When I was around 15 years old, I went on my first mission trip to Jacmel, Haiti with my church. While we were there, we were able to help build another orphanage behind the one they already had for the older children, we got to spend time with the kids (my favorite part), and we got to enjoy a little bit of the Haitian culture. Little did I know that the Lord would give me a heart for Haiti and it’s people during this trip. Over the years, I continued to have a heart for Haiti and knew I wanted to go back. I had no clue when I would be able, but it was always on my heart.

When I started college, my first day of classes I met one of my best friends. Very quickly we realized that we both had a heart for Haiti. I thought this was so crazy. I was amazed at how sovereign the Lord was over my life, giving me a best friend that has the same passion. Fast forward to last year when Ellie asked me if I wanted to go to Haiti with her church. Of course I was not going to pass that up. So we had our trip planned for July of 2018 (when I was still a dental hygiene major), but riots had broken out in Haiti and travel was banned. I was so disappointed we had to reschedule. Little did I know the Lord was preparing me for the trip that was rescheduled for December 2018. So I am going to go into a little side story because it allows you to see just how faithful of a God we serve.

Let’s rewind to when I was in high school. For the longest time I knew I wanted to work in the health care field and use my degree for missions. So naturally I decided I wanted to be a nurse. My senior year of high school, I watched as my mamaw passed away and I just kept re-thinking my decision to be a nurse. So that week I decided that I was going to pursue Dental Hygiene as a career. The first couple years in school when people asked me what I was in school for I would always say, “Dental hygiene, but for some reason I just don’t think that is what I will end up doing.” I said that ALL the time, but I still continued on in school because I was already done with my prerequisites and ready to apply. My spring semester of my sophomore year I applied for dental hygiene school even though I knew it just wasn’t what I was going to do. Well I didn’t get in, but it didn’t make sense because my grades and GPA were great, and my interview went so well. Can I just say how thankful I am for the Lord? He is in control, and His plans for my life have been so much greater than I could’ve ever imagined. So after not getting into the program it was really hard for me. It didn’t make sense, everything went well, and I had no clue where to go from there. Well at this time, I finally let the idea of being a nurse, that has lingered all these years, back in. At this point I was trying to decide should I apply again for dental hygiene or switch to nursing. I just continued to pray “Lord, lead me to whatever is going to bring you the most glory.” That is all I want for my life, to have a career that ultimately brings God the most glory. So I decided to just apply to nursing. I knew that if nursing school was where the Lord wanted me to be then He would open that door for me. Boy am I thankful that He did just that. I got accepted to nursing school and was ready to start Spring 2019.

Okay now after that huge side note, let’s go back to my trip in December. When I say this trip changed so much for me, it is an understatement. On this trip we went to Hope Rising in Léogâne. We were there doing medical missions. Inside of the compound, they had just built a clinic for people of the community. We worked in this clinic for most of our time there. We had a Physicians Assistant with us that was seeing patients. Then they would go into a room to get fit for glasses if they needed any. After that they would go to our evangelism room where we would pray for them and tell them about the gospel. We also had a pharmacist with us, and the patients that needed them were able to receive some medicine. I got to stay with the Dr. and be his “nurse” for the week. Being able to see first hand the need for medical care and being able to provide that, even just for that short time, was more than enough to show me that I don’t want to just stay for a week and then go home. I want to be able to use my nursing degree to help these people, to love these people, and to bring God the glory.

I will end with this. As Ellie and I were walking back to our place in Haiti she said, “Isn’t it funny how back in July when we were supposed to come you were still a dental hygiene major, and now (December) you are about to start nursing school, and this trip means so much more to you now than it would have then.” I was just in awe of how good our God is. She was absolutely right. This trip solidified that I am supposed to be in nursing, that I want to use that for medical missions, and that I am right where the Lord wants me to be.

I tell you all of this because I want you all to be apart of this journey I am on. In January, my aunt and I are going back to Haiti to serve for eight days with a team. I am looking for support, whether financially or through prayer, for this upcoming trip. I will use this website to keep you all updated. If you would like to donate, you will be able to do it through this site. Thank you all in advance for your prayers and support.

Love, Madison