Let the Little Children Come to Me

One of the biggest lessons that I have learned while doing missions and ministry work is the the need to be flexible and patient. Things rarely go according to plan, and the unexpected always occurs. These past few days have been a great lesson in both areas. As a team, we have experienced delays in our original schedule, which was to go to two rural areas in Haiti and hold summer educational programs for children who would otherwise not have a chance to go to school.

Instead of heading out to Kenscoff and Jacmel this week, as planned, Gabrielle, Ms. Apollon and I found ourselves still in Petion-ville, (an urban suburb of Port-au-Prince). It was rather frustrating for us as a team. A few days ago, as we were on our way down to Gabby's grandmother's shop in Petion-ville, Gabby said, "Let's steal some children!" There were certainly plenty of children in the city who didn't have educational opportunities. Gabby's idea was for us to 'steal' these children, (with parental consent, of course) and run a school out of her grandmother's shop.

Our first 'catch' of children was rather a small one: two young boys, Jacob and Sadrac. We had a soccer ball, some paper, and assorted crayons and markers. After kicking the soccer ball around for awhile, we did some drawing with the children, and offered them water to drink. Our second day was slightly larger, about eight children. This time, we planned two activities: soccer and art, which would run concurrently. Afterward, we taught them a Bible lesson, gave them crackers, juice, and water, and sent them home.

Today was a whole different deal. We went to Place Boyer, a sort of public park where a lot of the street children hang out. We found several boys playing with a makeshift soccer ball, and invited them to come with us. A few agreed, and then ran off to get their friends and bring them along. When we finally headed back we had a motley crew of twelve kids. When we arrived, there were three or four more waiting for us. As I looked around at each child I prayed that God would show me His face in each one.

When we arrived at the shop, there was chaos waiting for us. Several Haitian ministers, pastors and individuals were in a hot argument about where our team should go in Haiti, what we should do, and who we would work with. They had taken up the space we had formerly used for our 'school,' so we spread ourselves out on the concrete in front of the store. As we began separating the kids into groups, I couldn't help thinking of the verses in Matthew, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for of such is the kingdom of heaven."

These were the people to whom God's kingdom belongs. They weren't necessarily the ones we thought we would work with, nor were they the easiest: fights and quarrels kept breaking out among them, and it was hard to keep the group under control, especially when we brought out the water, snacks, and juice. Yet as Matthew wrote, "Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.'" (Matthew 25:40). These children were among the 'least'--the outcast and dregs of society.

As part of our lesson, we read to the children a Kreyol poem which ends with, "Who are you? Is it society that tells you who you are?...What can you do to change the world?...Tell me who you are, then each of us can bring/A stone for the reconstruction of the world." Our hope is that while we are in Haiti, we will not only be bringing our own small stones for the reconstruction of Haiti, but that we will also be able to tell children on the margins of society who they are in God's eyes, so that they too can impact the world.--Anna Hunt