We first met little Jameson when his mother brought him to our small clinic. She had come from the other side of “Letant” across the lake. She took a small rowboat to come to our clinic with her son, Jameson, who was quite small. We first saw Jameson on the outside our clinic, covered with oozing sores all over his face; we found out later that these same oozing sores were “all over him.” His eyes were infected, and he was in horrible pain. The infection was so bad it was affecting his eyesight. The doctor had said that he had inherited this “sexually transmitted infection” from his mother. We brought him to our orphanage because we thought he would be in better hands with a “mother worker” watching over him in a cleaner environment.

He still breaks out with this infection from time to time, usually when the dust and wind are blowing. He is sweet, funny, and always smiling. But when the infection hits him, he has to be scrubbed down from head to toe with antibiotic soap and butadiene and then has medicine applied. He cries and cries. He is so pathetic when he is recovering from the infection (which can hit him at any time).

For now, he is doing good. He has on his church clothes, and he is “looking good!” He is getting ready for school. He has to wear prescription glasses, but he loves school and makes good grades. He is so sweet that if I look at him and he asks for something, he has it!!! (But he rarely asks for anything. Well, maybe once in a while, a “piece of chocolate!”) He loves to work, even when he’s sick.

We love Jamesson so much! We cannot wait to see what he will become in his life!

Sherry

You would have to be in Haiti to see the little children in the mountains eating food. They do not leave “one grain of rice” in their bowls! It is also sweet to share food with missionaries and churches that have feeding programs. This one provides education and food. So, each month, we set aside three containers of food for ministries. All these ministries share in different ways. This letter came to us yesterday from Sister Marie Alexis at Life Church:

Dear Love A Child,

Life in every country of the world is not easy, all over the world people and children are dying of hunger. We feel blessed to be one of the blessed organizations to receive food for our children.

We can go on to list all that this food has done for our kids, what it means to us to have the privilege to receive the food, but you will never truly understand our point of view.

With that saying, we want to thank all the sponsors, volunteers, donors for donating this food for us.  We are “one blessed home.”  This food means a lot to our home, our children and staff.

Again, thank you sincerely,

Marie Alexis

Life Church

Thank you, partners, because when we put our hands and our hearts together, we are stronger “against hunger.” We cannot stand alone and do this big job. It takes “all hands on deck!”

Thank you, and God bless you, richly,

Bobby and Sherry

A Strong Habitation

“Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort…” -Psalms 71:3

You may never be able to fully understand these words unless you have been through a disaster. If you have lived in a state where you have been through a tornado, a fire, a hurricane, etc., you know what it is to seek out a “strong habitation.”

A few years ago, South Haiti was hit with the force of a terrifying hurricane. We were asked to go down and bring supplies. While there, a friend of ours told us that one of his workers discovered a “cave” where hundreds of families had turned to, where the hurricane hit.

Bobby went down to see the families who were in the cave. The opening was so small that he had to go on his knees and crawl on his belly to get inside. There, to his amazement, were many families with their children inside this musty, nasty cave that had bats. They were praying, singing, and thanking God for saving their lives. They had found a “strong habitation.” His name is Jesus!

Today, if you are facing a battle, or are in a storm, run to Jesus! Run to the Rock! He is your strong habitation! It’s going get better!

Sherry Burnette

We never stop and think about “a cup of cold water,” because the Lord has blessed us so much that we can just “turn a handle” and out comes water!!! Haiti, the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, does not have enough clean water. The mountain people, especially, walk miles or send their children walking for miles looking for water, many barefoot.

As we travel through the rocky riverbed, not far from our Love A Child Children’s Home, we see women and children sitting in the middle of the large, dry riverbed that winds through the mountains. Women and children spend long hours with a tin cup, trying to scrape up a half cup of water. They need to find enough to drink and enough to wash clothes with.

I have seen children come to our Mobile Medical Clinics with their heads crusted in filth and infection simply because there is no clean water. Yesterday, was a great miracle! That water well pumps 1,200 gallons a minute! The water travels to all the farmers’ crops in the area!! To God be the glory. We wish to thank Academy Cathedral, Pastor Elaine, for sponsoring this well and the submergible pump in Fond Parisien to be fixed and installed!! What a blessing!!! Sherry

Daniel (Daniello) is one of the sweetest boys we have! He is hard-working and a little “toughie,” but he is just adorable. He always has a yard-wide smile, is always ready to work, and is always “bare-footed,” with high-water pants on! Ti Daniel is ten years old (soon to be 11) and is in third grade. He is a wiz at soccer and basketball. In fact, I would give anything to send him somewhere to learn professional soccer! He is that good! Other than playing sports, he is usually by himself. He does not do well in school…

He also disappears and ends up somewhere he is not supposed to be. We found little Daniel during a Mobile Medical Clinic. His father had been “hit in the head with a rock” and died. Then, his mother died. The village people tried to keep him alive, but he was just another burden to them. We saw that his health was not so good, and we took him to our orphanage.

Daniel is a “tough little boy!” But, he is a good worker and so sweet. We do not know how long he will stay in school, but we are always ready to see what he is really interested in. When he puts his mind to something, he does it! If he keeps smiling, he will make it! The Haitians say, “Your face is your passport!” We love Daniel!

Sherry

Power in the blood of Jesus!

“And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where you are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt.” Exodus 12:13

If we study from Genesis 3:15 and 21 on, Scriptures pointing toward the coming redeemer. The shedding of animal’s blood was a foreshadowing of the blood of the lamb of God. Jesus is the lamb of God. In Exodus when the blood was put on the doorpost of each house the death angle would not strike the eldest son of the house.

We have the power of the blood of Jesus in our lives. I remember one night in Haiti when a demon who looked human-like walked right through the door of our bedroom and the door was shut! It was in the middle of the night. I heard the person walking down the hallway coming towards our bedroom. When the demon came through the door I rose up out of bed and shouted, “The Blood of Jesus is here!!!” The demon disappeared…

Today we are covered by the blood of Christ. Satan can’t touch us! Run devil run!

Missionary Bobby Burnette

Sarah and her brother, Joseph, were brought to us by one of our Haitian Pastors. They are brother and sister. Their mother died after they were born and both developed severe malnutrition. Her father was poor and could not take care of the children. We brought them into our Orphanage and began the long task of getting these children back to health and saving their lives!

Joseph, Sarah’s brother, was quiet and studious. You would hardly know he is here or there… Sarah has grown up! But, when she was a teen, she really stretched my “little bit of mercy” I had left. Because she is a big girl, she was always trying to “be one” of the smaller girls.

Often, we would let the girls go to a local soccer game, just about five minutes away. I would always make sure the teenagers looked presentable… dresses not too short, pants not too tight. When you have a load of teenagers, it is like “watching over a drum of rats,” as the Haitians say! Sarah would always get dressed and then right before the bus left, change into one of her sister’s skirts and tops.

Just as the bus was leaving one afternoon, I happened to “re-check” the kids on the bus! Sarah had a size “5” cramped into a size 14! When I forgive once, that is a warning… but when they do it twice or three times, it’s time for a little “come to Jesus talk!” The next day, I packed Sarah and her clothes and sent her back to her father. We still paid her way through High School, but I wanted her to learn a lesson before she came back. When she did, she was really changed! She was mature, sweet, kind, respectful, and obedient! She worked hard and appreciated everything so much more!!

Sarah has a great gift of organization! She wanted to go to college for administration, so we sent her to one in Port-au-Prince! During the week, she is in college and all the kids stay together at an apartment we have rented. The older ones come home on the weekends. I can say that Sarah has really changed! We are so proud of her!!! (One day, I’ll tell you about her “trip to the mountains,” where she came from!!!!) I can say with all my heart, that we are so, so proud of Sarah!! When she finishes, I know she will have a job waiting at Love A Child! (Maybe we can put her over the teenage girls!! Ha!)

Sherry