Thank you letter

Below is the thank you letter that I am sending out to everyone who has supported the past two trips. Thought for some of you this might be easier to read on here. :)

Dear Friends and Family,

Thank you so much for all of your support! In both trips to Haiti, the support I have received was above and beyond anything I imagined. Thanks to you, our team was able to accomplish so much! During this last trip, we were able to wire all the classrooms in the second wing, get the plumbing started for the big bathroom, tutor kids in English, act out Bible skits, do arts and crafts, and SO much more. The time there goes by so fast but it amazes me how much we really get done.

God has been truly awesome and has had a major hand in this relationship with Christian Light Ministries. So much so that I will be returning by myself on June 8 and will be staying through July 6. Thanks to you, I have almost enough money raised from the previous trip to not have to do any more fund raising; AWESOME!

I feel so blessed to know that I have so many people supporting me! We saw a lot of progress from the first trip, but there is still so much work to be done. There is a long list of things I will hopefully be doing during the month that I will be there. Among the list are the following: Bible studies and skits with the children, after school activities, arts and crafts, organizing the storage room, organizing the kids’ bedrooms, and tutoring kids and staff in English.  

I know that this is a big list, and I will need a lot of energy to do all of these things while juggling 37 kids, which is why I ask you to continue your support in prayer.  Pray for safety as I travel alone, for Sherrie Fausey, the school, the kids, for my family and friends, for wisdom, strength, patience, endurance, and for discernment on what’s next. 

Again, I want to say Thank you. Without you this wouldn't be possible!

Blessings,

Amy Worst

Needs List

Hello again! :)
What an awesome weekend! Both River Rock teams got together on Saturday (we were only missing a few team members) to catch up with each other and talk about Haiti. It was so good to see everyone! We also decided on what to do with leftover funds raised. Thank you to everyone who has supported. Both of these groups have been so amazing, I am really blessed to have gotten to know them!

I have been asked to do some explaining or story telling as to why I am going back, and why I'm going back so soon. First of all, both trips have been awesome and amazing trips for me. I have been able to grow so much in my spiritual walk with God. Every morning and every evening was spent on the roof top of the school watching the sun rise and the sun set, while doing devotions in the morning, and group discussions in the evening. Those mornings with God are something I truly miss. I had the best of intentions both times to continue to get up early and start the day off reading my Bible. I encourage anyone and everyone to try to start their day off with some quiet time with God! Somehow in the busyness of getting back to work and the regular schedule it just hasn't happened. If you know me well you know I am not a morning person...the snooze button is my best friend!

This really caught my attention one day a couple weeks after we had been home. I was missing God! I couldn't sleep so I got back out of bed, knelt on the floor and started weeping in prayer. Completely confused as to what I was supposed to do next. What was I supposed to take out of those two trips? Did I do everything that I was supposed to do? Did I help or make it worse? Do those kids miss me as much as I am missing them? So many questions rolling around... and then I said Do you want me to go back? This began a conversation that was SO clear. It goes like this:

Do you want me to go back? YES
How do I know how long? When? Do I move there? The month of June to start.
Then what? I hate not knowing what is next! I will tell you then
What about my jobs? I am your provider. Put your faith in me.
How do I explain that to my family? my friends? Let me take care of them.
ok.(crying) Stop crying my child and go to bed. you are in my arms. 
ok.



I wasn't planning on sharing that conversation with anyone, but when I got back in bed I had to write it down so that I would remember word for word what I heard. I feel it is necessary to share this so that other people can see how God is working in my life. Now you know why I am going back to Haiti for the month of June. I'm going because I am told to go. I have learned that it's much easier to go on his plan than on my own. Everyone remembers the story of Jonah, and I do NOT want to get swallowed by a whale!!!
 
There are around 40 kids that are on the property at ALL times. We really got to know these kids and we got to see their love for God. It was amazing to me! The first day there on our first trip they were playing with a flat soccer ball because it was the only one they had left. They used two cement blocks and set them upright about 3 feet apart..that was their goalie box! My heart broke because of the flat soccer ball... I thought wow these poor kids don't have a ball to play with! Then I sat back and took some pictures and watched them smile and laugh and have so much fun. This instance really made me reflect on my life, how I have been blessed with so much and need so little. In fact, I am sure I have TOO MUCH!

There are a ton more stories, and I will try to fill them in here to share with you. But, if I told you them all at once that would be no fun! :)

Some things that I am in need to bring with me this time are:
Clothes (usually I go to goodwill for skirts and scrub pants...leaving everything there)
Teaching tools for beginner English...preferably something that helps from French to English.
Bible skit Props, we have brought down some in the past, but I would like to bring more
Coloring books--NO ACTION FIGURES... if there are christian coloring books that would be best
Arts and crafts ideas/supplies
Blank Journals for the older kids.
A good teen Bible study book for me to do with the older girls.

Small tools for organizing that are lightweight...still thinking about the best way for this. IDEAS?

For the people who have sponsored a child, if you have something small you would like me to bring specifically please let me know so I can make sure I have room in a suitcase. :)

Please leave a comment if you are planning on getting anything so that we can keep track of what is still needed. Keep in mind there is a weight limit for my suitcase! :)

Thank you so much for taking the time to read my blog. :)

Blessings,

Amy Worst


Psalm 51:10
"Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me"

Flights are Booked! :)

Hi all! This is my first attempt at blogging, so hang on!

First, thanks for stopping by! I am SOOO excited to see what God is up to! There is so much to do, so much going on, and right now i'm a little overwhelmed. The flights were booked yesterday--PRAISE GOD! Thanks to my Aunt Christie who is a travel agent and to Laurel at world mission!
This will be short and sweet... hopefully i'll be able to post again soon with more updates...but here is a list of what is going on and for prayer requests:
1) I leave June 8 from Grand Rapids, fly to Cleveland, to Ft. Lauderdale, to Port-au-Prince!
2) While there, God willing, I will be doing a lot of activites with the kids. :) I have some bible lessons and after school activities planned and we'll also do some arts and crafts (coloring etc).
3) The storage room is on my top priority list (after the kids) and hope to accomplish some organizing in there. This was something our team started and didn't get to finish.
4) Sherrie wants to move her office and get more organized, so I plan on helping her do that.
5) The kids bedrooms will also be on the list of things to organize...hopefully they can help me with that! :)
6) They are fighting mumps and chicken pox right now (pray for health! Thanks to my brothers I had chicken pox when I was little)
7) There will be more, and i'm sure what I have planned will change, becuase it's really all about what God has planned...plus his plans are normally better anyway!

Thank you so much for visiting my first blog! I hope to get a "needs list" out in the next couple days... stay tuned!


Blessings,
~Amy Worst


Jeremiah 29:11
"'For I know the plans I have for you' declares the Lord. 'Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'"

Phillipians 4:13
"I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength"