Haiti [August 2014] | Roadtrip | by: Sarah Frederick

On Thursday, our team went up to Lartigue from Petion-Ville. We loaded up Pepe’s bus with supplies and a few sleeping bags and left before dawn. It was early as we drove through a town beginning to hustle with people. I sat, half asleep, bumping up and down from torn and ragged streets. Road trips are not my thing (I get nauseous at the thought of them). With the added stuffy heat, these were not the most desirable conditions to sit for 5 hours. 

I was nervous about going up the mountain in that bus. Holly had warned me. Rocky “roads,” twists and sharp turns.

The road once we got into Lartigue. The journey up is much more twisted and bumpy.

Junior overlooking the mountain with us during a walk in Lartigue.

I woke up from my Dramamine induced sleep with about 2 hours to go. I sat, bumping, half asleep, praying to God that He’d get us up that mountain safely. As I turn, for the first time to look over the side of the mountain, I could see that windy road that we had already driven. Miles and miles of road. It was in that moment that the Lord spoke to me, “Look how far you’ve come.” 

Look how far I’ve come. I have come miles and miles from where I was, both physically and spiritually. I’m not who I was. I’m not where I was. And I thank the Lord for that. My story, is so similar to that trip up the mountain. With bumps, and twists, and rocky roads, with many difficult days trying to make it up the mountain alone. 

Look how far I’ve come. As I continued to pray, I felt the Holy Spirit reminded me, too, that I wasn’t there yet. I hadn’t reached my destination, the Lord isn’t done with me yet. My story is that of redemption, of remembering where I’ve come from and where I am going, but even more so, who I am going with. 

Thank you, God, for the grace you so freely give to me. Thank you, God, for carrying me up that mountain. 

- Sarah Frederick