Lisa's Story by Lisa

Lisa and GladysSo this story has been started quite a few times in my head and on paper since returning from Haiti earlier this month.  There is so much to share about our team as a whole, in addition, to our own individual experiences; one person’s story does not do it justice. There is so much to say and at the same time words fail to express the amazingness of the story.  One theme that continually spoke to my spirit throughout our trip in my head and even after I returned was is it is God’s Story, His plan, His orchestration of millions of little stories woven together over many many years.  All of us have a God story, moments throughout our life that we experience in our journey.  Sometimes we do not understand or even grasp that a story is being written, sometimes we may even feel like life is just one chaotic and confusing event after another, trying desperately to make sense of the madness in the moment.  For me, my story began when I was seven, I am now almost forty so to prevent this from being one very long story, I’ll give you the highlights. Since I was little, about 7, I knew I wanted to be a missionary of some sort, of course, being like most children, I really did not know what it meant to be an actual missionary, but it stuck with me.   I believe two things now, that God had the plan for me all along and it was a true desire of my little seven year old heart.  When I was 15 I went on my first mission trip with our youth group to Mexico and I was like, YES! – this is it!  It rekindled that desire from when I was little that I had long forgotten.   This is what   I knew deep within my soul it was what I was made for and wanted to do that for the rest of my life.  Well, like many teenagers I went with the world instead of with God but that memory and desire never left me even though how lost I became.  It was ironic because in my desperate times I would go back to that experience or would run into a “missionary” no doubt a divine intervention from God to nudge me back on His plan and path for my life.  Eight years later, I was weary and tired, in every way; emotional, mentally, physically but mostly spiritually.  The world had chewed me up and spit me out and all the things I had tried to fill that God shaped whole in my heart/life had left me hollow, very very hollow.  If you would have met me then you would have probably wondered if there was hope for me; a high school dropout, single mom, lonely and lost.   But has God would have it, my best friend, Courtney, invited me to a “new” church she had found, it changed my life in every way!  God – is so good and faithful.  Amazing grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me!! Fast forward for your time’s sake, we would need a whole week together for me to share how the God moments through-out that time period that He orchestrated and planned just so I can share this part of the story.  The dream of being a missionary remained but always tucked back in head somewhere between four kids, a husband, laundry and nursing school.  Honestly, I thought I was crazy for even having it after so long.  It seemed impractical, I was too old, too many responsibilities and maybe that I had imagined it all together.  Working as a nurse can leave one empty, I know that sounds crazy when you care for people all day it becomes a job, and jobs can get mundane.  I was in funk at work and my then boss, Carlos started asking me questions.  I cannot remember them specifically but it ended with me sharing and saying I just want help people and go on a medical mission to Africa.  A totally different amazing story but a big part of this story was a few months later he called me and said I was going on a medical mission to Nairobi, Africa with his Pastor and church in Virginia ( I live in New Orleans).   The trip confirmed once again that I wanted to do missions in some capacity – I was like I can do this and have a family.  Which by the way I have the most supportive husband and best kids! I can do short medial mission what began to change was wanting to bring other people with me, leading other medical professional on missions.  I dismissed the desire initially but it like most of God’s planned desires s before it stayed. Fast forward again to May 2013, another mission trip, this time to Haiti and the House of Blessings.  It was not a medical trip at all and I really didn’t know what I was going to do except maybe help dig a well and take cold showers.   Just before the trip though, as God’s Story goes, Jean and Jay, shared that Richard and Pastor Monoit were working with an U.S. doctor on potential plans to build a Clinic in Callabasse and asked if I would help with beginning planning meeting for what a future medical mission would look like in a clinic setting.  Honestly, I was clueless and was wondering what was God up too?  I had no idea what to do and felt very much like God must have gotten it wrong.  The conversations with myself and God went something like this over the next week before we left;  God I know I say want this or desire this and even pray about it but maybe I am wrong?  God I am not the right person and would go through the list of how unqualified I was.   The scripture that popped into my head was, he chooses the foolish things to shame the wise.  When we got Haiti, the plans had fallen apart as many plans do in Haiti.  I was kind of relived because I still thinking God must have gotten it confused.  He couldn’t use me to do something really big and I resigned to just be happy with the little things – like the women in the bible who just wants the bread crumbs from the table.  It was then that God begin to show me the story, His Story which when I finally worked with Him became OUR story.  For anyone who has been to HOB you can see God in everything!  From the very beginning of the orphanage with Phil and Lonny and their dream to today.  You can see, story by story, being woven together in the most perfect way has only GOD can do.  The stories of the children and their journeys of faith, the churches growth,  you can see the fruit from the mission teams before us and after us.  You see all the parts coming together.  Northshore Church’s Medical Mission wove together just like that, a little piece at time.  Jean and I talked, walked, and planned as we travelled to and from the church, to looking for goats, or visiting what I would say was our first real patient.  Maybe the 3rd or 4th day in Haiti, she called her daughter, Kelli (who is also a nurse) and shared the idea.  She committed to coming with her husband, Paul, another amazing God story but they can share their own J .  The plan was for the trip in Janaury of 2014 to be both medical and construction related.   We bounced ideas off of Richard, Larry.    I shared then crazy idea I had to lead a medical mission team (looking back I must have looked completely foolish).  We returned home, Jean sent me an email for planning and next steps.  The next few months came and went and ALL the plans fell into place so perfectly! January 2014 our first day of clinic at the orphanage I was scared, nervous and doubted.  I was thinking maybe no will show up?  Maybe I didn’t do enough, didn’t pray enough, maybe I should have fasted? Then I told myself to not get my hopes up that way I would have less to be disappointed about but then I felt horrible for the rest of the team.  I prayed, God please let one person show up!  Still just looking for a crumb, looking back I see how faithless I was and can be – not matter how many times God shows me He is there and wants to bless me.  Well, children did come; I think the total was almost 100 over 2 days and all I can say it WOW!  God you are faithful (even when I am not), merciful, and gracious and bless us, even bless us when we doubt you.  You believe in us when there is nothing in us to believe in & send us amazing friends and partners in your mission who fill in all of our gaps. IMG_4805To my faithful brothers and sisters in Christ – Go Team Turantula LOL – you will never know this side of Heaven how much it meant for you all to believe in me and how many gaps of my faith you each have filled, I love you all – Richard, Debbie,  Jean, Pastor, Gladys, Jay, Larry, Andrew, Luis, Helen, Kelli, Paul, Shelda, Tayna, Woody, Kris, Pam, Vicki, Ben, David, Dr. Ben and all of the HOB gang – without all of you my dream would never have happened!  Thank you!!]]>