The Haven Church team is from Zeeland, Michigan. The team explore Abaco and learn about the resilience of the Bahamian people.
Today we really got to see the true damage of Hurricane Dorian and the resilience of the people even though there is still a lot of devastation after 4 years. We watched a video before going into town about a Pastor who, during the hurricane, was stuck in his church for 2 days with 10 other people. They had to hold a mattress over their heads as it was the only form of protection from the metal sheets and other things getting blown around by the 200 mph winds. And 4 years later, they have started the slow rebuilding process and have a new foundation.
When we were at the Church site, Laura gave us some more details surrounding his experience while waiting out the storm. They went downstairs through a hole in the floor that somehow appeared in the midst of the chaos, although nothing had fallen through. When they went back up, they noticed bottles of water and small bags of chips that should not have been physically possible due to the winds. They were sent from God, and that was just enough to hold the kids over until they could be evacuated. This was just one of the many stories we have heard about real-life miracles that people have seen here. It was very powerful that not only did we get to hear many different stories, but we also got to see firsthand the destruction.
After leaving the Church site, we traveled around Marsh Harbour, hearing more stories and seeing more of the destruction left by Hurricane Dorian. We next stopped at the former location of The Mudd and Peas, a large Haitian shanty town. When we saw it, it was all overgrown, and it was hard to even imagine what it looked like when people were living there. Many didn’t leave for the storm as it came so quick and fast, so many lives were swept away. Despite the many losses that day, God was still there in the chaos, and we continue to see his faithfulness through the positive attitudes of the survivors.
When we got back to Camp Abaco, we all teamed up to start one of our week’s projects. We are helping replace the old, rusted doors on one of the buildings. Even though we had many people working together, we still have a lot more to do today – getting about 1 ⁄ 3 of the way done.
After seeing all the devastation in town and hearing about how expensive and difficult it can be to rebuild, it puts into perspective how hard it is for these people to put their lives back together, piece by piece. We admire the people more for their positive attitudes.
So, we leave you with, when has God shown Himself in the midst of your chaos?
