“The Story of Jocelin…What Food and Love Can Do…”

It was early one morning when someone knocked on our Children’s Home door here in Haiti. They said that our security guard had caught a thief that broke into a wall at our old clinic. I went down with the guard.  When I arrived, there was a huge part of the block wall missing, and we could see where someone had broken it and walked right inside. The strange thing is that he went upstairs of the old clinic, and that’s where the guard found him…sweeping the floor!!!

That “person” was sitting quietly beside the security guard. I asked the man’s name. He said his name was Jocelin. I said, “Jocelin, did you break into my wall?” “Yes,” he replied. “Why did you do that, Jocelin?” His response, “Because Jesus told me to do it.”

I said, “No, Jesus didn’t tell you to do it. Jesus doesn’t come in like a thief.” He said, “I’m not a thief, but Jesus did tell me to do it.”

I asked around about Jocelin. He had worked for us a long time ago and had gotten into trouble, so he was fired. He had no place to go and “slept where he could.” This man bothered me. He was gentle, but yet, I could not let him on the property for fear he could attack a lady or anyone else. People were afraid of him. He reminded me of the Bible’s story, Mark 5:5, where Jesus visited the man in the tombs, who was not in his right mind.

After he left, I sent for him. I said, “Jocelin, I cannot let you sleep inside, but if you come to the gate, I will send food to you three times a day.” He agreed. After a week, the heavy rains came. We thought about Jocelin every night when we were sleeping in our nice, warm bed. Where was he? I found out that he had been sleeping “on the top of a mountain” where we had put a large cross. He was sleeping in the rain, right beside the cross! Then, I found out that one of two of our cooks from our Birthing Center went up to visit him, shaved his beard, cut his hair, and gave him some food. They said, “Sherry, he is living up there and sleeping on the ground in the rain each night.”

We decided to move him into a “mobile dental clinic” that one of our friends had donated to us. We moved the ‘bus” on the property near the Birthing Center. Then, we decided to give him a job!!! Today, Jocelin is happy, clean, and in his right mind. He has come to Jesus as his Savior…This man’s story has so touched Bobby and me. It is a story of what “food and love” can do!! It can change a life!!

Thank you, partners, for sponsoring food and for all that you do!

Sherry