Psalm 16:8
I have set the LORD continually before me; Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.

With more threats of cholera, unrest with the upcoming elections on the 28th of November, and various trials, I need more than ever to hold this verse close to my heart. Each day is fresh with various different trials and problems to solve, but God is good and is carrying me through.

I was so blessed with joy to see my mom, Aunt Kim, and sister Hope when they were here last week. We had a wonderful time together and it just flew by way too fast! We shared some good laughs, talks and even a few tears. It was hard to say good -bye to them at the airport.

I am still caring for Mercy and cannot believe how grown-up she is becoming. She is a blessing to me and I will miss her dearly when I leave here. I hope you will pray along with my parents that her passport will come through so she can travel to the states for medical treatment.

I will not be celebrating Thanksgiving here in Haiti, and I will be missing my family especially on that day. I know it will be a hard day, but I will still give thanks to God for his goodness in my life!

Thank you all again for praying for me. I am still trusting God for the rest of the money I need to travel to Uganda. The balance is due by the middle of December, and I know that God will provide, so I rest in Him.

Please pray for the children's health as Jasmine will be leaving in a few days and we are still dealing with sick children. Pray also for Loveka, a 8 month old baby who only weighs 8.5 pounds and has multiple health issues. I ask that God gives me the chance in my last weeks to share His love with the children and the madams who work here. I desire to share with them a hope that only comes through knowing Jesus!

Thank you all for your continued prayer! I love and miss you all!
Katie

Cholera, Hurricane, and hard work!


First off, I want to thank every one who was praying for all of us here in Haiti. Every one is well and nothing was ruined at the orphanage, although sadly, the hurricane did cause 7 deaths in our town. It could have been disastrous for everyone in the tent cities, so we are thankful for the storm turning away from us.

Second, I have not heard of anything new on the cholera issue but for the most part I think it is contained and not very close to us. Hopefully the flood waters won't make this condition worse here.


We heard about the hurricane last Saturday. The two days before that ( Thursday and Friday) I had spent 5 hours each afternoon, (after teaching in the morning), in the MRE food tent organizing everything. It was a very hot tent and I had a back ache for many days from staying bent over under the low tent for so long.


Then on Saturday, with less than 24 hours of enjoying the results of my hard work, we were emptying and taking down the tents...including the MRE tent. Sadly all of my hard work was in vain. All the boxes were combined and shoved in any dry area on the property we could find, and almost all of my work was undone.


Then we spent Saturday-Thursday working hard to hurricane proof everything...only for Friday to come with no real hurricane in sight... only some rain. I am thankful that the Category 2 hurricane they predicted did not hit us in our wood buildings and tin roofs. I am thankful that those living in tents still had some shelter at the end of the day. But when we had to turn around and spend all day Saturday working to try to get things back in order... lets just say frustration was nagging at me all day.

I am learning to just roll with it, but the full week ahead of us to make things livable again is not exactly a job I'm looking forward to.

Yet....

My lovely mother, sister Hope, and aunt will be coming in on Tuesday! I am sure that their much needed presence will overshadow any frustration from the seemingly silly, frustrating work.

And even greater still....

The biggest and best news that fills my mind is not the hurricane, the work, or the cholera... The thing that is going to impact my life the most, the thing that I am going to remember, is the things I am learning about God and our faith in His son. I can not explain to you how much my heart has opened up and realized the truths of what the word of God says. I have honestly been in awe of God and who He is for days on end. I don't know what is different here than in the states, but I know that this place or maybe just this time in my life has set my heart to stand in awe of God and who He is like never before. The interesting thing is that when you begin to understand in your soul who God really is, it tests your faith in the blood of Jesus Christ.

Because... The more I grasp the character of God, the more I am sure that I do not want to stand in the presence of an Almighty Holy God, (I found God described as Almighty 40 times in the first 8 chapters of Zechariah), with out the blood of Jesus Christ to cover me.


Another realization that has made its home in my heart is that as children of God we stand in his grace and favor. Not new... but it has really sank into my heart deeply.


I am not... but I know I AM!
(anything) (God)

Love you you all :)

I hope this finds you well and in the hands of God.

Kaitlyn Joy

Hey all :)
Time is flying by here and I cannot believe that tomorrow is the 1st of November, and the fact that it is still HOT here doesn't help.
For anyone interested in praying for us here, Cholera is a problem and now we are facing a hurricane some time mid orlate next week. Please be in prayer not only for us in our wood buildings but for the hundreds of thousands in make shift homes and tent cities.
Kaitlyn Joy

Oct 18, 2010 A much overdue update!

It is difficult to find time to update my blog while here in Haiti. My days start very early,are very full, and I am usually tired and in bed much earlier than when in the states. Writing in my blog seems to get pushed to the back of my "to do" list.

Thank you to everyone who is faithful in prayer for me while I am serving here. It is through prayer that God is doing His work not only here at OLTCH, but more importantly in my heart.

I will give you some highlights of the past few weeks:

~ Jasmine and I have been doing a bible study together and it has become the highlight of my day as we are learning so much more about who God is! We study an attribute of God and then meditate on it all day. In the evening we come back together to share again about what that attribute of God means for our lives. It has been an amazing time for me to really focus in on who God is.

~The students I work with are making progress and it is a joy to see them learning new things everyday!

~ Mercy has taken her first steps and is starting to talk my ear off. We are praying for her passport to come through so that she can join my family in the states for some medical treatment.

~ I am learning to trust God in all things and find Him to be enough. It is not always easy, but God is showing me His goodness.

~ I got to visit with my dad for a weekend when he came down to fix the generator. This was an unexpected trip and it was so awesome to get to see him for a couple days! He got the generator up and running and even got to take a trip into Leogane to the market on a moto. How awesome that God worked it out for him to come and visit me!

~ I spent this past Sunday again with my friends from the EFCA (Evangelical Free Church of America) Wes and Christine picked me up for church early Sunday morning and I was able to spend the day with them. It was nice just to sit and relax and fellowship with the group. Later we walked to a Haitain anniversary party and spent some time with the people there. I enjoyed hearing the Haitians try to put their words together to try and talk to me. :)

There are so many more things I could share, but for the sake of time I need to end.
Thank you again for your prayers and for everyone who has sent support for my upcoming trip to Uganda. I am still in need of about $2000 dollars and trust that God will provide just as He has in the past. If you are interested in helping in that way you can contact my mom, or send me a message here, or on facebook to let me know.

Pray with me that I will continue to be able to help the children in learning. Pray for their minds to open up and for real progress to be made.

Pray that language barriers are broken down so that I might be able to share the truth of God's salvation with them.

Pray for Mercy's passport situation to come through so that she can travel to the states for this needed medical treatment.

And when you pray thank God for the work HE is doing through me and in me!


Love, Katie

Day 23 or something like that...

God is my strength, If i don't get my early morning time in his word... let's just say the day is... different.... haha. It is a must have here.

Teaching is going well. I am normally teaching the children from 8am -noon. I have taken on a few extra children for that class time. I am working with some of the children who are having a hard time learning basic concepts like numbers and letters. Many of the children here have learning disabilities and gaps in their development which causes much difficulty in learning. I have been working on some creative ways to get their little brains thinking and learning. Afternoons are always busy with anything from more tutoring, painting, or working with the baby workers to improve conditions and create a better environment for the children and the ladies who care for them.

I would love for my time here to be more about Christ and His salvation than about teaching pre-school. I am just praying God opens up a way for me to share His love.

On a different note.. Last Sunday Laura, Nicole and I had the opportunity to spend all day with EFCA. ( Evangelical Free Church of America) They came and picked us up early and took us along to a Haitian church service. After the service we hung around the HOUSE. Yes, I did say house-which is such a pleasure when you have been living in tents and shed like buildings) We had the pleasure of getting to know the team that had just arrived for a mission trip on Saturday. We took a two hour hike up a mountain! It was beautiful and one of the first times I have seen any part of Haiti except the trip from the airport to OLTCH. What a blessing it was and how enjoyable that time was for us. I loved every minute of it! It started to pour half way up the hill and we were soaked through within minutes but we continued to hike! :) When we got back to the house we played card games for hours with our awesome new friends from EFCA. We laughed so hard that I was crying...a lot! It was the best day I have had in Haiti and very refreshing!
I think tomorrow I am going with Pastor Sam to take Laura and the gang to the airport... we'll see.

Continue to pray for my work here, and that I will find ways to teach the children to love learning. Pray that God will open their minds and allow them to learn new things. Pray for communication barriers to be broken down as I teach.

Also pray that I will have opportunities to share the hope that is in me, the redemption of mankind through Jesus Christ, and that children and Haitian workers here will want to know what this great salvation is that we possess!

love you all,

Kaitlyn Joy.

Just to give you an idea of what my time here looks like..
My bed is a 2 inch piece of foam on a piece of plywood (my back has not been too happy with the sleeping arrangements. haha.) My bed is pushed up against Mercy girls bed, which is pushed up against Laura's bed. I built myself shelves out of MRE boxes and ducktape to make the best use of my limited space :)

In the morning if there is laundry to do I wake up at 5:30 to hand wash it. If not I sleep till about 6 am. Devotions come before breakfast. I cannot tell you how much listening to worship songs can touch your soul when you can't worship with other believers.

Breakfast is at 7 am and I often eat what the children are having, corn mush (which is really good), bread and bannans, eggs and bread, noodles with tomato sauce...

On Monday, Wednesday and Friday I take the youngest children in groups to the play/school room where I spend time teaching and interacting with them. The first group at 8:30 and the second at 9:30. I love this time and the way they yell "bravo!" when they learn somthing new.

On Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday I spend this time with all the babies and their madams.

Then at 11-12am I take a group of Pre-K children. :)
Lunch is at 12 and then sometime in the afternoon I teach Rodnair for at least an hour. I read to the boys almost every afternoon, and now when every they see me they ask me to read. They always say "anko" which means "again", after the end of each book. We normally finish after 3 or so books.

I GTG. I'LL TELL YOU MORE LATER

Hey All! Getting on the internet was harder than I expected and so I do not know how often I will be able to post. Thank you to everyone who has and is praying for this place and for me.
Quick story- Emmamuel, who cried almost all the time when we were down here before, is for the most part a happy little boy now. I remember my aunt Kim praying for him, and now, He smiles all the time!
We are sharing a room with Rosy, Manes, and Mansa, along with Mercy Girl :) and some nights laura has baby Mandelynn. This is very random because I am rushing and dont have time to put my thoughts together. Haha.
It has been harder then I expected to get time with God in the morning... but it comes sometime throughout the day, when I do get to it, it is a very encouraging time.

Please pray for us as we will be welcoming many new workers.
Rodnare, a 7 years old, eyes are getting worse, from cateracts.
and more.. but I must go now.. :)
Kaitlyn Joy

In preparing for Haiti God has already been teaching me many things and stretching my faith as well. It is uncomfortable sometimes; yet I am thankful for the chance to grow closer to my Lord. Thank you everyone who has committed to being a part of this work through prayer. I am in need of it as the departure date comes closer and unexpected trials are thrown at me. Just more opportunities for God to be glorified! Tomorrow is my last day at my beloved home church. I am sure I will be crying, it will be a happy and sad day all in one.
Blessings,
Kaitlyn Joy

6 days!!!
Last night my sister Laura decided to join me for 3 weeks of my trip!
I can not wait to get down there and hug my babies! :) I am so excited I feel scatterbrained!
God is so great and I am trusting Him to provide,
Kaitlyn Joy Althouse

Pre-trip

2 weeks from today I will be in Haiti, Lord willing. I am praying that God works through me when I'm there and for wisdom for any situations that may come up and in every day interactions. Also I am praying that I will be able to bring joy and encouragement, that comes from Christ, to everyone I come in contact with.