Bonjour friends! We hope that you and your family are healthy and hopeful during these uncertain times in our world. It has obviously been a while since we sent out our last newsletter. As you know we have been stateside since October of last year. Civil unrest fueled by the political opposition forced us to make the tough decision to take a temporary leave from our work in Haiti and remain stateside until things calmed down. Seeing a large improvement right after Christmas we began planning our return around the earlier months of this year, but as we reported in our previous letter, Chris began sensing the Holy Spirit telling him it wasn’t time to go back just yet. Eager to get back to our work and our people yet uncertain as to why the Lord was delaying our return, we turned to prayer and trusted that God had His reasons as He always does. Our bags were packed and our flights were booked but God was saying “not yet.” Little did we know at that time that we would soon understand the reason for our delay.
Just a few weeks after our delayed departure date, we started hearing reports that the opposition is now employing new methods of societal threat through means of kidnapping for ransom. This also recently included an American citizen. These kidnappings have been going on continually since the middle of February in the larger cities particularly in Port Au Prince, the nation’s capital and main point of entry for international travelers. Areas of Port Au Prince that we know to be safe and that we typically frequent when we are there are now deemed dangerous and off limits for non-essential travel. Thankfully in Mole Saint Nicolas where we’ve been living, crimes like these are unheard of and the reports of kidnappings have kept our people at bay from travelling to the larger cities.
In addition to the kidnappings, Haiti is now under the coronavirus pandemic as well. Two weeks ago Haiti’s government announced their first two confirmed cases of COVID-19 and those numbers have risen to a total of 15 known cases to date since the virus’s arrival in the country. Haiti is now under a nationwide lock down where businesses, schools, churches, and even airports have been ordered to cease operations and shut their doors in effort to stop the spread of the virus. The government has also closed the borders keeping travellers from entering or exiting. Thankfully the president made an exception allowing travel exclusively for American citizens but only for a very limited time. This means that if we had gone back to Haiti when we had originally planned, not only would we be dealing with the coronavirus amongst harsh living conditions but we also could have possibly been stranded without the option of leaving the country until the pandemic is over. From our understanding the department of public health in Haiti is doing it’s very best to implement all of the same strategies we are familiar with in combating this virus. However, methods like quarantining and social distancing are not only anti-cultural but also extremely difficult for a lot of people in Haiti and other developing countries. Most people live in very close quarters and depend on close social interaction for buying, selling, and other means of making an income or buying necessities. As you can imagine, Haiti’s sub-par medical facilities coupled with the extremely limited amount of testing and essential supplies could potentially have a detrimental impact on the country’s ability to adequately handle this pandemic. We are so thankful for the prompting of the Holy Spirit that convinced us to stay in the U.S., however we are deeply concerned for the health and safety of our Haitian brothers and sisters.
We are in daily communication with our people in Mole Saint Nicolas and we have been very encouraged to hear that they are optimistic, trusting God, and are taking this pandemic very seriously by following proper protocol to protect the members of our church and community from the virus. Please join us in praying for them through this season.
So…. what does all of this mean for us and our ministry? Right now we are obviously unable to travel and with seeing how this virus is trending in the U.S. and other countries so far, we have to anticipate an impending peak and fall period in Haiti as well. With a close eye on the situation our plan is to return to Haiti immediately once travel is deemed safe enough. Until then we remain hopeful in our God who ordains all things. Our hearts long to get back to our “other home” and continue the work we feel called to do there, but during this pause we remain on our knees for our country, for our beloved Haiti, and for our world. There is no time like the present to rise up as the church and lift high the name of Jesus! We pray that you and your family stay safe and healthy during these days. May God bless you and fill your hearts with hope as we reflect on Him during the approaching Easter season!
For His Glory,
Chris and Cassie Myers
