For I know the plans…

For I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

– Jeremiah 29:11

 

If you’re reading this, you’ve most likely heard this verse somewhere. Whether from a friend, a pastor, or even from someone random. This verse, as much as it is quoted, is the best verse for my life. Before I continue and tell you how this verse relates, I first want you to know a little context about this verse.

You see, Jeremiah was a prophet and he rarely brought good news to the Israelites. When he said this, Israel was under the Babylonian rule. So they weren’t being told this after their slavery ended, this was years before it would end. So God knows the plans for us, even when we are in our darkest hours, as you’ll see from my story.

I was found on the streets of Cite Soleil, by an orphanage director. I had no one to call family, just a group of people who had kept me alive. The orphanage director proceeded to do two things that were out of the ordinary. She first got a police report, and then got me medicine because I was very sick. 

So God had a plan, and it involved her doing things she had never done. She brought me to her orphanage and kept me alive for three more years. It was survival, not living. The other orphans and I were rarely fed, didn’t have clean water, and no bed to sleep on. We became very sick because of the living situations. 

“…plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a Hope.”

God had a plan to give me a future and a hope by choosing to use an amazing organization to accomplish His plan. This organization is called Mission of Hope. Wow! God is funny sometimes. This organizations goal was to bring life transformation to every man, woman, and child. I became one of those kids when they brought down a group from Texas. 

This group contained my now parents, but they had no clue that God brought them to Haiti to accomplish His plans of giving me a future and Hope. When they came down, my dad stayed back to work on Mission of Hope’s campus. The team went out into the villages and communities. That night, the team members began weeping. They weren’t eating dinner, and this made my dad curious. That’s when they explained what they saw and witnessed. 

Upon hearing this, my now father asked if he could come along next time. My mom at first said no, but then realized that my dad never invites himself to anything, nor does he ask for anything. Mom realized that this was not my dad but God working through my dad. So she finally said yes. 

When the team came to my orphanage the first time, they didn’t see me. The next time they came to visit the orphanage, I was there and my dad saw me. He came over to me and picked me up; it was at this point in my life that I felt loved for the first time. I had never been picked up simply because someone wanted to. I was only four at the time, but I still remember that moment.

I fell asleep in his arms, and when this happened, God’s plan came to the first checkpoint. My dad turned to my mom and said that I was suppose to be their kid. Mom was on board but reminded him that they already had two fully grown daughters; which had both gone through elementary, middle, and high school. They had also gone through college, and both were married. So she checked to see if he wanted to do all of that again, because they were already in their mid forties. My dad, without a second thought, said yes!

My adoption began, but God’s plan wasn’t finished. Even when my adoption was done, God’s plan wasn’t done. Even when I graduated high school, God’s plan wasn’t done. God has given me Hope, but he also promised a future. That future is wrapped in His will, and His will is to use His people to share His story with everyone. That story is the Gospel, and my goal is to fulfill his plan for my life, part of that plan is doing the World Race and sharing the same Hope He had given to me.

Please join me in fulfilling His plan for the whole World by praying and donating!