The Journey

 

It was the longest, most difficult journey of my life. It was my second mission trip to Haiti. I was with a team of about 10 other people. We traveled from near Port au Prince to the Mole St. Nicholas area in the back of a large truck. There was a wooden bench on each side. The bed of the truck was surrounded by a large metal frame. Look up a Haitian tap tap and you will get the idea. We were told that the trip would take about 6 hours. We rode for 17 hours in the back of that truck. The roads were terrible. There was a metal bar located just above my beltline that hit my back hundreds of times on the journey. As the day wore on, the hot Haiti sun began to heat up that metal cage. It was almost unbearable. And that was before we made it to the desert. There was sand everywhere for hours. As we met other vehicles, the dust coated us. It got on and in everything. The roads were so rough that the metal cage began to fall apart. Every time we stopped, we were told it would take 4 more hours. It was the most miserable journey of my life. But at the end of the journey, God brought about great joy. We saw people saved. We met lifetime friends and ministry partners. We laid the foundation for future church plants. The hard journey led us to great joy.

She was likely only 13 or 14 years old. She was favored by God. She was great with child. Not just any child. Her child was God’s Son. It was close to time for her to deliver. But she found herself on a long, hard journey. Her journey was about 90 miles. I don’t know how long it took. It had to be the most miserable journey of her life. She was 9 months pregnant with 90 miles of trail ahead. She probably would have loved to ride in our miserable tap tap. But Mary’s options were a donkey or her own 2 feet. There had to be times along the way that she wondered what God was doing. It was such a hard trip. But at the end of that difficult trip, the hardship gave way to incredible joy. Mary gave birth to the Savior of the world. His name is Jesus. His birth brought forth good tidings of great joy. Joy for Mary. Joy for us. Joy to the world. Sometimes the hardest journeys lead us to the greatest joy. “For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:11)

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