Join me on this journey God has placed before me as I set out to be the Hands and Feet of Jesus in Haiti. Loving on those He places before me and sharing His love with them.
This journey started on July 2nd 2012 and keeps on going...
So today school was cancelled for us here at QCS and pretty much all of Haiti. I guess you could consider it kind of like a "Haitian Snow Day". Although riots, road blocks, and burning tires aren't quite as peaceful as a snowy day. My understanding is that there is a strike going on in Haiti because of gas prices. The people want lower gas prices so the tap taps and public transportation are going on strike. They also appear to be throwing rocks at other drivers who are out on the road. Needless to say it has been a pretty quiet day around here today. There has been some traffic and thankfully nothing major in our immediate area that I have seen or heard so that is good. We'll see if we have another "Snow Day" tomorrow or not.
With our extra day off Lovinsky and I decided to look through some old pictures and videos. We were all smiles and laughs as we looked back on the years!
I am beyond blessed and amazed at all that GOD has done throughout the years! It is still sometimes hard for me to fully grasp the fact that this little boy that I have loved is finally living with me and calling me mom!
This boy still melts my heart everyday!!!
Since we had a little extra time our hands today we did a recreation of the video from a couple years ago. ;)
I've learned so much through the years of waiting but above all God has shown me his FAITHFULNESS. When God is in it and it is part of God's story He will make it all come together in HIS perfect timing!
Such a little ham!! :)
So thankful that today this is US doing life together!
If you want to continue to support us on this journey as we figure out what God's next steps for us are we would greatly appreciate. You can support us with your prayers or if you would like to donate financially you can donate at RCE and just type in Jessica Burmester and it will guide you through.
Seasons come and go. Some are really hard when we are constantly crying out to the Lord. Others we feel like were just going through life day by day. And some are full of amazing blessings.
I feel like I am in a season of blessings and am so thankful for each and every one!
Blessings of making Christmas cookies together! Even if they didn't turn out. ;)
Blessings of technology to Facetime at Christmas!
Blessings of spending Christmas together!
Blessings of being able to be apart of family Christmas in MN!
Blessings of grass yards and games with friends!
Blessings of friendships!
Blessings of Legos and creativity of creating "EDH Cars" to bring electricity to people! Only a child in Haiti... :)
Blessings of Nerf gun fights with mom! :)
Blessings of game time fun!
Blessing of fun at the pool!
Blessings of courage to jump in! ;)
Blessings of quality time together!
Blessings of beauty and relaxation!
Blessings of Haitian meals! No I did not prepare this meal for him! ;) We are blessed with a wonderful Haitian woman who made it for us! And blessed by friends who blessed us with her!
Blessings of adventures!
Blessings of cool air!
Blessings of new experiences together!
Blessings of beautiful mountain views!
Blessings of horse rides....and bravery to do it alone! :)
Blessings of being together!
Blessings of horses and their beauty!
Blessings of awesome places to explore!
Blessings of peace...
Blessings of love and learning together!
Blessings of Christmas packages! Reminding me that my home is in MN! I have a sister who loves me dearly and always reminds me of that! ;)
Blessings of starting 2015 together!! Even staying up to watch the ball drop with friends!
We are soaking in every minute of this season and are so thankful for all that God has done and all that He continues to do!
WOW!! It has been too long!! So much has happened since I last posted--SORRY for not keeping you all up to date! Here we go....
As many of you know a long time ago I fell in love with a little boy! I fell in love with a little boy but had to wait on God's timing. After 2 years of waiting and trying to navigate through things in Haiti I can hardly believe that God has been faithful! At the end of November I was granted guardianship of little mr. Lovinsky! I traveled back to MN for Thanksgiving and when I returned he came to live with me! He is now going to the same school that I teach at. He is learning English and making all kinds of new friends!
It has been such an amazing and busy time! We have laughed together, we have cried together and we have been so blessed to have each other!
Before I left for MN I told him that he was going to be coming to live with me when I got back....we were both pretty excited! :)
Trying out the basketball court at school! :) Its so great that we can use this all the time!
Checking out the school!!
His first day of school!! So handsome!
It didn't take him too long to find a friend to run around with! We've also had some chats about being a good friend and keep our hands to ourself. ;) I'd like to say it's all been great, but we've had some "mom" moments we've had to deal with as well.
We've had fun weekends filled with ice cream and.....
Christmas lights!! (all at the grocery store!) haha
We're are having all kinds of new and good foods! (That requires me doing a lot more cooking...which if you know me may not be my best quality ;) ) Good thing he's not too picky!
We've been blessed with amazing friends who take us out for treats and to the "Haitian zoo" :)
We've also been blessed to be invited to Christmas parties where there is always something new and exciting to try!
A new experience on the trampoline...notice he's holding onto the pole ;)
Thankful to have some fun and crazy friends to hang out with!
We went to a little bazaar in Haiti where we got to sell Anchored in Hope items and Lovinsky made snow cones all day for everyone.....
saw Santa Claus...but said it wasn't the real Santa because he wasn't "red" or in other words white. Yikes! ;)
He even got to be spiderman...which just resulted in red face paint everywhere from him sweating and jumping on the trampoline! :)
I did get to see him a little bit that day! ;)
Our lives are completely different, but in a good way! We have our challenges, but we work through them. We have many happy moments. We have been blessed beyond measure by amazing friends who love us and help take care of us! We are blessed and thankful for each of you who have and continue to support us!
I am so thankful for such a wonderful Christmas gift this year and all the joy that comes with it!
God is good and He is so faithful! I am so excited to continue this journey with my little man and see where God leads us!
Wishing you a very Merry Christmas from our house to yours!! :)
As I look back on what the last 3 weeks has been I can only think of one word...FAITHFULNESS.
Recently I have been thinking back to all that has happened and where I am now. I have gone from feeling so lonely in a this new place and questioning if this is really what God has for me and am I really qualified to get guardianship and go through the adoption process to now feeling so incredibly at peace. For about a week or a week and a half satan was really doing a good job at tearing me down. But today I am so thankful for GOD'S FAITHFULNESS. God has blessed me and affirmed (thats one of our vocabulary words this week ;) ) that this is where HE wants me in this new season of this journey.
In this new season and during the transition God has blessed me abundantly. I had to go back and just simply lay out some of them, although I know I missing many.
-Emails and messages of encouragement and love
-The sweetest couple took me in and invited me over for dinner one night. It was the simplest act of kindness but it filled me up and was just what I needed.
-Another girl reached out to me and we had an amazing dinner and great conversation! I wasn't the only one struggling and we were able to connect and support each other.
-Facetiming with family and friends.
-During a time of no running water another sweet girl said I could go over to her place to shower. She then invited me to stay and watch a football game they were going to be streaming. Oh to have connection filled me up!
-Someone else sending me a messaging saying there was extra food if I wanted to come have some.
-Being invited to a 9 years old birthday part and connecting with others.
-Attending a weekly bible study with amazing people who love God and not to mention a big amazing meal every Wed. night!
-Students who tell me I look pretty--even when I'm not feeling it.
-Being able to receive mail and purchase needed items online.
-Another friend shared this song with me that rocked me to the core. My strength was failing me and I felt like I had nothing more to hold onto but I was reminded I could hold onto HIM and to not lose HOPE and that I was going to break through all of this. I bought this song and listened to it daily! Holding Onto You by Carrollton
-I was invited to a small intimate house church that I loved and filled me up.
-Comments and messages on facebook that always seemed to come at the right time.
-Letters from my 2nd grades telling me they love me and I'm a great teacher!
-The opportunity to stream TV and movies (most nights when we have power) ;)
-Being able to make phone calls and connecting with loved ones.
-Starting another bible study with two other ladies.
- Being able to take some days off of work to go home for Thanksgiving for a few days and having the funds to pay for the ticket.
-Randomly running into a girl I met probably a year ago and the encouraging words she had to share with me and that adoptions really do happen!
-Getting another step of paperwork done for the guardianship process.
-Another sweet girl I just met took the time to reach out to me with encouraging words and sent me another great song. Not for a moment did God forsake me! "Not For A Moment" by Vertical Church Band
-Watching a soccer game and cheering on our schools team and having a great time of connection with a now new friend.
-Friends who help me out when I need something--like a ride on a motorcycle--to get where I need to go and another great friend who gave me a helmet to borrow and made sure I was properly dressed!
-Going to a grocery store-regardless of the insane prices!
-Buying soft served ice cream at the grocery store--a delicious and tasty snack.
-Being apart of a school that truly cares about me--and even take care of renewing my Visa or help me to get a Haitian drives license (haven't done it yet but thinking about it!) ;)
-Meeting a new friend and being blessed by the devotion she read--of course it was about God's faithfulness! I love it when God does that!
-Spending that night at a dear friends house on the beach. Thankful for her and our time together.
-Unexpectedly receiving some early birthday presents!
I could go on and on about how God has been faithful these last couple of weeks but I think you get the picture! :) I am thankful to have a sense of peace about where I am, what I'm doing and know that I am right where God wants me--even if it took me a while to figure it all out.
Thank you all so much for your prayers! I would not be where I am at today without them!
It's one of those little things that I have taken for granted in the past. Most of the time it was a nuisance to get the mail because all it would be was bills or junk mail! That what your thinking isn't it! ;) Maybe I've been in Haiti too long, but I am excited because I now have the opportunity to send and receive mail!! (It the little things people that excite me!) ;) I can even order items (like cheese) online and have it shipped to me! Yes I have to pay for the weight of the items (about $1.50 per pound), but it is going to be totally worth it! Things in Haiti are really expensive and not always the greatest. So to now have the luxury of being able to order things I need (or want) or to receive actually mail is a pretty exciting event in this girls life! :) If you feel like going old school and sending a card or anything in the mail you now can! The mail gets sent to Florida, then it's brought over to Haiti and delivered to us at the end of the week! How great is that! Now I just need to get some stamps so I can send letters! :) If you are interested in sending anything to Haiti you can send things to the address below! Jessica Burmester 3170 Airmans Dr. # 2029 QCS Ft. Pierce, FL 34946 God has been blessing me abundantly during this transitional period and I am so thankful for the people He has and continues to put in my path. I'm being reminded to continually lay it all before Him daily! Thank you all so much for your continued prayers and support!
I came across this picture the other day on Facebook...funny how God even uses Facebook ;) But it is exactly what I needed to be reminded of.
There have a been a lot of changes in my life lately and regardless of how extremely difficult they have been I know that God is working it all out for my good. At least I try to remember this--it's not always easy in the moment when you feel like your life is tumbling around you.
A couple of weeks ago I connected with a girl on Facebook talking about adoption and guardianship stuff here in Haiti. It was one of those God things.
I've tried in the past getting guardianship of a child that God has placed so strongly on my heart only to be denied, for a few reasons, but one of them was not having a "job" in Haiti saying I wouldn't be able to support the child.
Through this conversation with this girl on Facebook she mentioned she had been in a very similar situation to me and was now teaching. She also mentioned that they were looking for a teacher for this school year--but this would mean me moving out of Grace Village, my home for the last 2 years and starting something new and not really knowing anyone. But if this could hopefully help me to get guardianship I couldn't pass it up, could I?
I had an interview and was offered the job on the spot. I was excited, scared and overwhelmed all at once. How could I do this? But how could I not do this?
Through lots of prayer and other circumstances taking place I knew God was opening this door and I had to keep walking through it--no matter how scared I was. So I took the job!
The transition has been difficult as I learn a new way of living and trying to find my niche in all the newness, but I have been beyond bless with the loving support of family and friends. I've received messages and emails from so many that continue to bring me to tears.
God is near and He is working.
It has been hard to leave Healing Haiti and Grace Village but it was time. I am blessed that, God willing, I will be able to find transportation to be able to go see all those that I love often!
So here I am teaching at Quisqueya Christian School in Port au Prince. I have been welcomed with open arms and though overwhelmed I am slowly finding a place in the chaos.
Change is difficult, but I'm reminded that I don't have to go at it alone.
A dear friend reminded me the other day...Our God can redeem our darkest days for his
purposes.
Without this promise, your trials and mine could feel overwhelming, and our pain could
feel unbearable-- GOD IS WORKING. He is working all things out for my good.
Even though my journey is taking me down a slightly different path I know my mission is to continue to love and serve those that God puts in my path even though it looks a little different now. I pray that through this season of change God will open the doors for guardianship and He will provide me with all my needs. I have been so blessed and am so thankful to be even just a small part of what God is doing through Healing Haiti.
Living in PAP and taking on this new role brings about a lot of financial change as well. I now have to pay monthly rent, transportation, water, internet and basically everything that goes into living--just at a little higher price. ;)
If you would like to contribute to this continued journey of following my heart where God is leading and hopefully one day, God willing, bringing a little boy into my life to stay I would be beyond blessed by your donations.
Donate by check: (please write only “Acct. no. 26908” on the check memo line):
Mail to:
RCE International
PO Box 4528
Wheaton, IL 60189
Above all please pray for me and this crazy journey of life that I'm on. Sometimes I think it would just be easier to leave it all behind and go back to my "easier" life in the states of providing for myself and being close to friends and family, but I know God has me here for a reason and I have to trust in that always!
Thank you for your continued prayers and support on this journey!
