Waking up tired and sticky, the cold shower never felt so good! I was up by 5:15am as we took turns taking showers, packing, and cleaning up evidence of our stay at the guesthouse for the past 5 days. I applied one more layer of insect repellent from head to toe as we waited for Wah-Wah and Jacques to pick us up and take us to the airport. A sweet older woman, who served us all week, graciously brought us one last Haitian meal-fresh fruit and croissants!
After we loaded our bags into two vehicles, we made our way through the city of Port Au Prince one last time as we headed to the airport. I was 
excited to be on my way home but I tried to soak in one last visual experience of the poverty stricken, earthquake riddled country. The trip to the airport also included learning more about Wah-Wah’s story as a student, how he met his wife, and how he came back to Haiti to serve as a professor and Dean of Students at the seminary. We finally arrived at the airport and our Haitian friends gave us one last bit of instruction … don’t let anyone touch your bags! Enough said.
We quickly passed through one security check, then zigzagged through the line to check-in. All of us enjoyed the air condition in the airport as we waited in line and made our way through a second security checkpoint to our gate. All of us on the team began to say our good-byes, realizing that once we hit the states, we would scatter to Washington, Florida, New Mexico, Kentucky and Illinois.
The flight from Haiti to Miami was a blessing as I sat between an Army soldier stationed at the U.S. Embassy in Haiti and a non-profit business owner who has devoted her life helping the Haitian people find jobs. The conversation was filled with talk about God, His gracious and saving work accomplished through His Son Jesus Christ, and the need to share the gospel. I also marveled at God’s creation as we flew over several Caribbean islands embedded in a sea of deep blue and emerald green waters. I always flash back to my days in the Navy when I experienced the beauty of the vast ocean, whether on an old destroyer, cruiser, or a super aircraft carrier. God has blessed me with diverse life experiences that He has used to grow and change me. Praise Him!
We arrived safely in Miami, made our way through a crowded customs area and had just enough time to board our connecting flight to Chicago. By the time we arrived in Chicago, fatigue was setting in from the weeks of preparation in the midst of the challenges of pastoral ministry, the lack of sleep and the demands of the conference, to the spiritual battles we faced before and during our time in Haiti. I finally had a chance to grab some long-awaited American food, ate half of my chicken wrap, then started feeling sick. I felt miserable on my flight from Chicago to Louisville, wondering if I needed to use the bag located in the seat back of the plane L. The Lord sustained me as I was reunited with my precious wife Karen, but on the ride home, I kept saying, “I’m soooo tired.”
I praise God for the unique opportunity to minister with a team of pastors from across the country to pastors who lived in 
totally different country. Despite the ethnic and culturally differences, we are all one family, who share the same faith, hope, and love in Christ! We all recognized that God enabled us to participate in something that was above and beyond what we could ever ask or think (cf. Eph. 3:20).
For all who prayed for us during this extraordinary week, THANK YOU! I end this journal with one of the only Creole phrases I know. I shared it with the Haitian pastors and I will share it with you as well … Jezi renmen ou … Jesus loves you.
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Thanks for sharing my friend and brother. I was definitely spurred on to love and good works. Praise God for His work in Haiti.