“And he said, "Jesus, remember me when You come into Your Kingdom." And He said to him, "Truly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in paradise." Luke 23:42-43
There were many times while I was living in Haiti that these verses from Luke came to mind; recalling the words of the thief that was hanging on the cross next to the Son of God, asking Christ Jesus to remember him when He gets into Heaven. The attached photo was one of those times. It was taken on the roof of the school at Village de la Paix which is next door to the Cite Solei slum in Port-au-Prince; especially dangerous part of the capitol. Just beyond the range of this photo was a barricade placed there by a group of vodou people charging a fee to drive through ‘their’ territory, as they would say “you are obliged to give me $10 to drive through this street.” This fee would be used for road repairs, as form of local taxation; common in Haiti. Or, the fee might be used for a bottle of Haitian Rhum. I drove around their barricade while making the sign of the cross and tipped my Christ Lutheran Church ball cap to them.
There are more vodou people in Haiti than Christians and quite often I would wonder what their remark would have been to our Savior had they been hanging next to him on Calvary. Many of the children in our schools with Trinity HOPE feeding programs come from homes with family members who still practice vodou and the children must be questioned by those who have not heard the truth about Jesus. Their journey on this earth has to be difficult as they give an answer for the truth that they have been taught in their Christian schools.
Our Savior has assured them that they will be with Him in Paradise along with all who accept Him as their Lord and Savior. “Just do whatever HE tells you.” If Jesus promises that He has a mansion prepared for you in Heaven, its already there! Thank you for continuing to support these young children who carry that message to the lost souls in Haiti.
Heavenly Father, you have called your servants to ventures of which we cannot see the ending, by paths as yet untrodden, through perils unknown. Give us faith to go out with good courage, not knowing where we go but only that your hand is leading us and your love supporting us through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. Amen.
May God be with you…Jay