We are just two short weeks away from the launch of Shaken, and I can’t wait to share this story with you. As I’ve thought and prayed over the book, I began to realize that every person has an earthquake moment, sometimes multiple moments, where God shakes them and redirects them to something better.

The physical earthquake didn’t just shake people in Haiti in 2010. God has used this country to shake countless others as they experience what it looks like to serve others, partner with believers in another country, and meet with the Lord outside the bustle and technology of American culture. Over the coming weeks, I will share stories of friends who were #ShakeninHaitim which led to life change. Here’s a short recap of what the Lord taught me while in this island nation. Over the coming weeks, I saw my awesome Creator in a whole new light…

Where to begin after a week of living with another people in another country? How to describe this experience to you at home?

Every day, we explored villages, played with kids, shared the gospel, and grew closer as a team. And every day, I saw the Lord work.

Where did I see God?

I saw Him in my teammates picking up naked children and holding them close.

I saw Him in the woman meticulously caring for her tiny, one room house and trusting the Lord and our prayer to impact her 20-year-old son with cerebral palsy.

I saw Him in the little girl who understands that to follow Jesus you must give him your heart and soul.

He was in the translators – future leaders for this country. They passionately shared the gospel, and eagerly led us from house to house to share the good news.

He was in the young woman about my age who sang a hymn for us on her front porch in the most beautiful voice and then encouraged us!

I saw Him in the strength and resourcefulness of these people as they made the best of what they have.

I saw Him in the woman at the well who told us that we may have different skin but we share the same blood.

I saw Him in the old woman who told us she loved us and in the deaf Haitians who praised God with their hearts and their hands.

He was present in the conversations with staff and interns and other teams at Mission of Hope. He was in the smile of each baby in the toddler room at the orphanage.

I saw Him in the child who climbed in my lap, aching to be held and in the smile of 3-year-old Pierre who has a brain tumor but just keeps smiling.

He was there in the heat and rain and wind. He was there in the growth of Mission of Hope and the decrease of voodoo influence in the surrounding villages.

He was there every day, in the laughter and tears and shared stories of my team as we sought to love others with everything we had and He was there every night as we gathered to share what God had done.

He is the same God in Haiti as He is in America. He is moving in BIG ways. And I saw Him in every moment of every day.

We went to help a country and were humbled and changed in the process. I saw the greatness of God in a new way and was #ShakeninHaiti.

Do you have a story of a time when the Lord sent an earthquake to shake up your life? Share it with me!