“The Lord will deliver them to you, and you must do to them all that I have commanded you. Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:5-6
Last week, I read on The Guardian website that a fairly large group of people living in a suburb of Port-au-Prince had stopped a van with 14-armed gang members driving through their neighborhood. They bravely disarmed them, and then beat and stoned them to death. Then, as the police watched, they piled old tires on their bodies and burned them. In the days following that event, several more have taken place in other neighborhoods within Port au Prince. Perhaps this is how the gang violence will come to an end in Haiti.
The above verses that Moses spoke about leaders, certainly seem to apply here. A few leaders here in this Haitian neighborhood, men or women, got together and said enough is enough. God is with them. I know, the fifth commandment says ‘thou shalt not kill’ but it seems that if this group of neighbors didn’t stop this gang from more killing, raping, stealing and kidnapping, their families could be the next to suffer.
I came across the attached photo of a group of people who are my paternal ancestors. This is the family of Fred and Lucy Brinkmeier in Seward, NE. My grandfather Ernest is in the back row, second from the left side. Fred and Lucy took risks, coming to America from Germany in the 19th century. I think about my dad, mom and grandparents as leaders. I am not aware that they had to face the type of challenges as the people in Haiti are facing today. But, they faced their own challenges and led.
Leaders must be prepared for action. One cannot lead without energy or motion and must be ready to take a risk. Leaders are pathfinders, road makers, action takers and can calm or rattle a saber. Cowardice is an ungodly trait. God is not passive in the face of evil, nor is He indecisive. He is in control. Never is our Heavenly Father portrayed as a mild-mannered, passive Deity, hoping and waiting for things to happen. Always, He is aggressively engaged in an all-out war against injustice and inequity.
Righteousness and truth are causes to be fought for. That is what I think about when reading the story from Haiti.
In every generation, conflict is inevitable. It comes in different shapes and colors. And the ammunition for such conflicts? Having faith that if God is with us, who or what can possibly stand against us. Do you have that kind of faith? That group of neighbors in Haiti does. Do you take courageous action in the face of wrong? Will you stand alone, if necessary, and embrace a principle, even though it means you may lose friends or prestige? God is with us and with our brothers and sisters in the faith, living in Haiti. Trinity HOPE has been helping to prepare God’s children to lead the past 25 years in Haiti. I hope that His army of leaders will defeat the evil in the streets of Haiti. It is their time to lead Haiti and save the lost souls where possible and defeat satan where he is found.
Dear 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