Preaching in Haiti

I don’t preach much. It’s really not my strong suit when it comes to being a pastor. I’ve done it, and can do it, but it just takes a lot of emotional energy for me to do it well. So, when I was asked on a Saturday to preach on Sunday, I was looking for any way possible to deflect the invitation. But that was only the first reason I didn’t want to preach on that Sunday. I was in Haiti, I would need to be translated, I didn’t have any notes with me, the church would be hot, uncomfortable, and overcrowded. Now that’s plenty of reason to say “no thanks” to Marcel, my Haitian host.

But as Marcel chatted with me about why I should preach on 12 hours notice, I had a very difficult time telling him no. Marcel said, “This has been a very busy week with your group and my family coming.”  Marcel’s wife and five of his kids had traveled with us from the U.S. They had not been home to Haiti in over five years. “I don’t get many breaks from preaching,” he continued. “I’m sure you have a sermon in your back pocket. When I travel to the states, I’m asked to preach from my back pocket.” How do you deflect that request? 

The good news was that God had given me a passage that had been rolling in my head for several weeks. I had always thought about how I would teach the passage and now I was about to find out. So, late that Saturday, I grabbed my Bible and some blank pages from a friend’s journal and threw together an outline. I was surprised how quickly things came together. It was good to know that with a translator, I had to keep things short, simple and relatable to a different culture.

As I finished, a young man from our team, Ben, approached me and asked if he could pray over me. Though Ben is only 20 years old, his spiritual maturity is well beyond his years. He has traveled abroad for the last two years with an organization called Youth With A Mission (YWAM) and has felt the pressure I was feeling. He prayed, “God, help Phil to know that he’s proclaiming your Word and not his own and that he can rest in the power that comes from your Word.” I really appreciated Ben’s prayer. I knew that truth, but needed the reminder as I approached this new opportunity.

The next day, I got up early and spent some time going over my notes, rehearsing what my simple little message would sound like. I grew excited about this opportunity but there was some real anxiety within me as well. As we arrived at the church, another one of my group members approached me and asked to pray over me. I think he saw my worried face and my pacing feet. Kevin prayed this with his hand on my shoulder, “God, help Phil to know that he’s proclaiming your Word and not his own and that he can rest in the power that comes from your Word.” Once again, I needed that reminder as the service time approached.

Preaching to this Haitian church was an incredible experience. As I began to speak, I felt calmness—and even a cool breeze—in that packed house. I experienced a freedom to speak as God led and even the staggered flow of speaking through a translator (who was Marcel) went fairly well. I preached from Luke 19 and told the story of Jesus pursuing the short, hated, chief tax collector named Zacchaeus who was known by his community as a notorious sinner. I made the point that the people grumbled when Jesus hung out at Zacchaeus’ house and that Jesus loved the lost more than the people did. The story ends with Jesus giving his mission statement: “I have come to seek and to save those who are lost.”

When I finished, I prayed a prayer of blessing over the congregation and walked off the little stage feeling a sense of completion and relief. But, Marcel called me back. He pointed to a woman who was approaching the stage and said, “Please pray with this woman. She’s giving her life to the Lord today!”  I was honestly shocked and didn’t know quite what to do. Marcel repeated his instructions to me. So, I knelt and prayed with the woman (who didn’t understand a word I said). After a song, Marcel came and prayed with woman, asking her questions leading to her confession of sin and her receiving the gift of salvation through the shed blood of Jesus.

I was shocked and amazed; but why? Perhaps the prayers of my traveling buddies were being answered in front of my eyes. Perhaps their words had not quite sunk in with me. “God, help Phil to know that he’s proclaiming your Word and not his own and that he can rest in the power that comes from your Word.”   The power of the verse, “I have come to seek and to save those who are lost” had transformed this woman’s view of God and her view of her life. Watching Marcel lead her to Christ in front of the congregation moved me immensely. That day, I learned again a powerful message about the changing power of God’s Word. This song from David rings even more true for me after that Sunday in Haiti.

Oh, how I love your instructions!
I think about them all day long.
Your commands make me wiser than my enemies,
for they are my constant guide…
…How sweet your words taste to me;
they are sweeter than honey.
¹⁰⁴ Your commandments give me understanding…

              (portions from Psalm 119.97-104)