My wife Lisa didn’t start crying until she read about the collapse of the Hotel Montana, where she and my daughter Nasim had stayed on their trip.  She could see the faces of the staff, including the bellboy she over-tipped every morning. She could see the face of Micherline, our formerly sponsored girl, and the time Lisa had to coax her into the hotel’s pool because she had never swam before. She could see the face of Albertina, the girl we currently sponsor.  There’s no way to know if they are dead or alive.

A 7.0 earthquake anywhere is frightening, powerful and devastating.  In a country like Haiti the destruction can only be unimaginable. In September 2003 there was an 8.2 earthquake off the coast of Japan; that’s more than 10 times more powerful than a 7.0.  41,000 people were evacuated, but only one person was killed.  He was sweeping up the glass in the street and was hit by a car.

In Haiti the numbers are going to be much different; tens of thousands dead and millions displaced.  What’s the difference? They are poor.  They don’t have the infrastructure, the equipment, the materials, the money, or political will to build earthquake resistant buildings.  They don’t have the medical facilities or personnel to handle the casualties.   It’s possible to see a dead body in the street on an average day let alone after such a disaster. People are more concerned with surviving the day than thinking about tomorrow.

Death was never part of God’s plan for us.  He intended us for fellowship, relationship and work.  He has things for us to do, an intended potential to live out, people to love, a God to walk in the cool of the day with.  Each of the unknowable number of people killed had the same potential, yet through circumstances, some of which are our fault, some the enemy’s, some just circumstances, their potential is gone.

Don’t tell me God is in control.  He didn’t do this and He didn’t allow it. God loves us too much to play puppet master, dangling us on a string of His choosing like a toy.  My God is a safe place, a Father whose heart is broken over the death and suffering He sees.

And He is watching us.  Not to see what we do about Haiti, though we should do something.  He has already placed people in a position and with the authority to bring His light to a lightless place.  Instead He is watching us to see what we do in the face of the death that surrounds us all.

Are we surrendering to the world, the enemy, to death?  Are we accepting what we see?  Are we turning a blind eye and pretending we don’t know?  Do we care?  Are we too busy, too comfortable, to apathetic to live out our story, our potential?

Or, are we choosing life over death?  Are we choosing to be a light on the hill? Are we the light people see when faced with their own destruction?

The enemy deals in lies and death.  Our God is a God of truth and a God of  life lived out in love.

So, what will He see as He watches us?  If we have more than we must have, will He see us share?  Will He see us open our eyes to the hopelessness around us?  Will He see us bring our hope, the hope He gave us, to the situation?  Will we reach out a hand? Will we trust Him when He tells us that all things are possible for those who love Him?

What do we do in the face of such death?  We say a prayer and we write a check; both are crucial to the suffering happening today.  But, we also say good morning to our neighbor, we know her name, we ask her about her life, we listen and we help where we can.  We reach into our community, find the hurting people, and bring them what we have to offer.  We find the lonely and the weak and bring them ourselves.  We reach out, both at home and over the ocean, to the poor.  We surrender some of our safety and comfort for the sake of others.  We love them like Jesus does.

My friend Wess Stafford tweeted this today, “If you’ve been living with a “do not disturb” sign on the door of your life…I beg you…take it off. This is the time to live your faith!”

So, what do we do?  We live out our lives with the passion of someone on a mission. We find the place where our position and authority mean we get to bring His light into the world.  And, if we look around and don’t see any position or authority, we step into our potential, the potential He gave each of us.

God is calling us.  Not, because He expects us to earn anything; we already have it all.  Instead, He is calling because He wants us to reject death, to wrap ourselves in love and light, and live.

Response:

–There are a ton of great ministries operating in Haiti.  I can personally vouch for the integrity and effectiveness of Compassion International.  A donation to the Disaster Relief Fund is a good choice, and if you want to participate in the long term solution to poverty around the world, sponsor a child today. I also know Doctors Without Borders was particularly hard hit.  But, whatever you choose, choose to help somewhere.

–If you have or are experiencing a personal disaster or crisis, a great resource is God is a Safe Place.  He is and will always be there for you.

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