Posted in General Posts by Olivia Haughey on 1/30/2012
Wait…wait…none of us like to hear the word wait. Well, I am still waiting. When I was preparing to preach many times the Lord would only give me “wait” and wouldn’t give me anything else until right as I walked up to preach. I waited for my funds to come in and they came in right at the last second until this deadline when they never came in. Then the Lord told me to wait and trust His perfect timing. I may not understand His plans sometimes, but I know it’s always for the best.
I embarked on this journey to go deeper with the Lord, find healing, be challenged in new ways, serve, see the world, and love on others. This trip may have been planned for 11 months, but the Lord did all of this in 6 months. I wanted to stay for the ministry, friends, and traveling but part of it was also pride. I wanted to finish what I had started. I didn’t want to “fail” because I didn’t set out prepared to be on the mission field for 11 months, but the Lord NEVER told me it would be for 11 months. He told me, “Go” and I imputed, “for 11 months”. He had this all planned from the very beginning. So as I was praying, seeking Him, and talking with close friends on the race the Lord was showing me how He had prepared me for this next step. This journey began as something great and new. Living in community was a challenge and rewarding at the same time. This organization seemed perfect in my eyes when I first discovered it up until I was actually on the race. Don’t get me wrong I am glad I went on this trip. However, just like there is no perfect church there is no perfect organization. So of course there were things that came up that I did not agree with, but that is where we use our discernment. The Lord blessed us with discernment to use it for times such as this. They say to speak life into each other, but I found people they put in leadership position on and off the mission field weren’t always doing what they preached. Near the end of this journey I felt them speaking lies over me. Telling me how I was something I wasn’t or trying to say I haven’t grown as much as I have. This was the last piece the Lord needed to give me that confirmed it was time for me to come home.
If you haven’t realized it yet; I am home. I am home waiting. I’m waiting for the next step, waiting on the Lord. So here I wait to see what the Lord has planned for me. It is weird to be home and back in the United States of America. Transitioning has been difficult in some respects but in those difficulties perhaps the Lord is speaking to me about the next journey. And thank God for the friends He blessed me with on the race. If I didn’t have some of my closest friends home already from the race I don’t know how well I would be transitioning without them.
Thank you all who supported me!! This has been a great growing experience for me. I pray you will continue to follow and support me in the next ministry the Lord is preparing for me. He has BIG plans! Thank you again for everything. God bless you!!
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Posted in General Posts by Olivia Haughey on 1/25/2012
Rwanda is beautiful and by far the cleanest place I have EVER been. It makes the United States look filthy. We visited the Genocide museum and worked along side some who experienced the mass killings. Some lost their parents, family, friends, and some were caught as little children to be treated as animals until they were rescued. These people are full of love and life, but are still effected by what happened during those dark years.
I am blessed to have been able to worship with these christians. The joy that pours out of them while they worship our Savior in song and dance is beautifully contagious. There are less pictures this month because everyday we were preaching twice a day at different places.
This month was challenging in the fact that I was faced with one of my biggest fears every day by having to preach. The Lord calmed my nerves and gave me words when I had none. He taught me to trust that He would provide me with His words and a message for His people. So I hope you enjoy the video.
Untitled from Olivia Haughey on Vimeo.
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Posted in General Posts by Olivia Haughey on 1/11/2012
Sorry this is late, but better late than never.  Kenya has forever changed my heart. My heart was stolen here...
Kenya2011 from Olivia Haughey on Vimeo.
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Posted in General Posts by Olivia Haughey on 12/29/2011
Every year I relish in the thoughts of cool weather and the first snowflake. Dreaming often about all the snow creations I will be able to create when we get our snow! As the brisk air hits my face my spirits automatically lift. I enjoy bundling up next to the fire with hot coco, while watching an endless list of Christmas movies. Then there comes the wonderful time of tree hunting and decorating as we listen to Christmas music! And of course all of the fun times getting together with family and friends.
 
(Christmas Tree at the airport!)
So this year as I spend Christmas in Kigali, Rwanda with new friends I am experiencing a new type of Christmas. There is no cold weather, no snow, no traditions with old friends, and no family. Very sad. But we made it work. We have been listening to Christmas music and watching Christmas movies all month. We did a pre-christmas dinner in Kenya, attended a children’s Christmas program, and drove hours somewhere unknown men who spoke very very little English to hike through a jungle to preach at a church. The fun began though on Christmas morning when I awoke to Christmas gifts with a note by my bed and my shoe in the hall full of gifts. And for our Christmas dinner we ate hamburgers at the airport and skyped our families. What a GREAT day!!!
Oh and we did a white elephant exchange with whatever we had in our packs to give away. We have truly changed. We were fighting over a pair of yellow socks, a nail polish remover pad, a buff, bug spray, and a piece of paper that said free massage. Haha. Oh the simple things in life!!!
This year I can say I actually focused more on what Christmas is really all about. It is nice to have traditions and times with loved ones, but Christmas is about celebrating the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ!!!!!!!!!!!! Praise Jesus!
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Posted in General Posts by Olivia Haughey on 12/26/2011
When I signed up for this race I was hoping to leave all distractions back home in search of finding a more intimate relationship with Christ. I thought that this would be perfect! I would get away from the hustle and bustle of life, no one would know me, I would spend hours with Him, have amazing revelations and healings from Him, and have an awesome time serving His people. Plus, see the world while I was at it.
Well, life never works out the way we imagine is what I have been taught. It isn’t a bad thing. But it’s just not as easy as I thought it would be. Distractions are everywhere we go. Life is crazy at times here as well. I feel like my mind has been foggy the whole time, making it hard for me to hear anything from the Lord. But in all of this He has shown up in ways I didn’t expect. Let me catch you up on where I have been.
Romania: at our launch of the race we had a last minute team change. What a way to start the year of your life by having the team dynamics change when you already felt secure with them.
Bulgaria: our first month of ministry. Given only 10 days of assigned ministry and a place to stay then told to ATL (ask the Lord) where to go for the rest of the month. Well, that basically meant go find someone in a foreign land and see if you can stay with them and if they have ministry for you. So we were a group of 7 women, we have NEVER left this camp out in the woods, never have talked to anyone to make a contact besides our contact at the camp, and being told no on every option we asked to do. He taught me that month to listen and obey faithfully to Him. Also, it was the beginning of learning how to live in community. It is a lot harder to live with a group of people, work them all day long, and NEVER be able to go ANYWHERE by yourself. Don’t expect to EVER have any actual alone time. You can go in your little corner but there will always be others there. He also taught me the sweet joys of little things.
Hungary: learned to use my discernment more and to pray like I have never prayed before.
India: gave us a little bit of independence again. We had set times for ministry at SCH, which made it feel like it was almost normal life. We went to work all day then hung out doing whatever afterwards. I loved being able to love and help take care of these children. God broke my heart for them. This month I found my daughter, Jackie. Then at the end of the month team changes came again. I wasn’t prepared for this like I thought I was. It seriously wrecked me for a little bit. There were so many emotions that I had to work through.
Nepal: we stayed with the BEST family EVER! Spiritually and emotionally it was a tough month, but the Lord always shows us things in the mist of our struggles. He showed me that teaching can be fun, but also frustrating at times. In this month, He did more pouring of love on me from this family than I probably did ministry. He knew how much I needed family and especially the love and time of a mother. What a faithful God who always provides exactly what we need. So I picked up a mother who truly treated me like her own whether it was teaching me to cook, language lessons, holding and rocking me, trying to carry me on her back, swatting my butt, talking to others about me, or having fun laughing at me.
Kenya: started rough because two of my friends from my last team decided to go home. I was sad that the girls whom I trusted and confided in were no longer going to be around; however, I admired their willingness to follow the Lord’s calling on their lives, even though it was not easy. Then I fell in love with Kenya and the people. At the boarding school, I had a blast hanging with the teenage girls learning to dance and sing. I don’t understand why people want me to teach them songs and dances. I am the worst person to do this but it keeps happening. I will remember and cherish the girls from the house we stayed at. The Lord taught me the importance of sharing your struggles and testimony with those around us and that He provides people in our lives to help us work through things. So I picked up my sister, Becky, in Kenya!!!
Rwanda: so far the people are nice and the country is BEAUTIFUL! Often times we think it looks similar to California. Weird. This month God has been stretching me by having us preach every day. For someone who has great anxiety and fear about public speaking this is rough. However, it is getting a little better just working on trusting the Lord to give me words to speak.
So each time the Lord has shown up no matter what we were doing, what type of attitude I had, or where we were. These last 6 months I have grown in new ways that I wasn’t always expecting to grow in. My heart has been wrecked for God’s people and His people have also helped heal my heart. Thank you for supporting me this far!! I pray you continue to pray for God’s will in whether He wants me to continue on this race for the next 5 months or if His will is for me to continue on this journey at home. Thank you again for EVERYTHING! May God bless you ABUNDANTLY.
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Posted in General Posts by Olivia Haughey on 12/21/2011
This sweet girl lives with this family on weekends and holidays because she is an orphan. Here she does the cleaning, washing, bathing the younger kids, etc. Another girl, who also just turned 17, is there as well to help and these girls get up at 4am every morning to study for school. They don’t have alarm clocks nor do they get much rest until they lay their heads down for bed around 10pm. These are hard workers. I have spent some sweet time getting to know them. And I LOVE THEM!!!
We will call this girl Cinderella since she is exactly her. We would laugh and hang out but one day something was different. There was no smile, no emotion, just silence. My heart became burdened for her. I tried everything to get her to snap out of it. Nothing. Then one night as I crawled into their bed as a joke I shared what was going on with me. This opened up a door for her to finally share what was going on in one word. She said she was frustrated and left it at that. Progress!
Cinderelli Cinderelli night and day Cinderelli. Wash the dishes! Scrub the floors!
The next day she continues her normal duties plus we are doing things for a pre-Christmas/birthdays celebration. All day Tambo is in the kitchen cooking our American food for them. We are getting frustrated with everything in the kitchen. But I make an extra small pan for us of sweet cornbread. There are over 30 people so we want to make sure there is enough. It finishes early while we continue working on empty stomachs. We break into it! We stuff cornbread into their mouths for them since they are hard at work. This lifts all of our spirits and they want more.
After everything is over that night we begin a movie with the family in the living room. I settle in then Cinderella walks past with a depressed face saying she didn’t want to watch but to enjoy. Well, that didn’t set right with me. So my chasing after her begins again. We end up lying down on the bed where we like to do most of our personal talk. She wants to share stories. I convince her to tell me hers even though it’s all sad she said. Cinderella begins her story…
Her twin died when she was one year old. Since she was a burden to her parents they gave her to her Aunt who lived at a boarding school. She spent the next several years growing up with her as her mother. Her father would often visit and bring her gifts but he never told her that he was her father. Then her Aunt passed away leaving no choice but to move back to her biological parents she didn’t know. Their tribe was at war. Sometimes at school they would come shooting leaving them to hide. That was the end of her going there. Then one night all the houses were being set on fire so they ran and hide in the ditch. Her life was like this for a while. When her father came home one night he was telling her horrible things about her stepmom…the next thing I know I am being asked a question I NEVER thought I would be asked.
Have you ever seen a human slaughtered? No…
My stepmom slaughtered my father like a cow. She had seen his body. My heart broke for her. Every time I tell her story I break down. This is why her life is miserable she said. Now she must work in someone else’s home working for food, clothes, a home, school, and love.
Lord BLESSED me this month with Cinderella. My (His) persistence on having her open up and talk to me was about showing her people do CARE. There was a poster in the kitchen that she read and believed that basically said don’t tell people your problems because they will either laugh or don’t care because they have more problems. Only tell God your problems. Yes, tell God your problems ALL the time, but I fully believe He sends us people to help us. By the end of my stay there she told me she was going to burn it since it was rubbish. Praise Jesus! He reached her. We had so many sweet talks about her feelings/issues our last days. The Lord has created a strong sisterly bond between us that I KNOW we will see each other again. So Cinderella’s story ends with her finding love in her Savior and a new sister. She continues to follow her Prince of Peace until she enters the Pearly gates of Heaven. But until then she will pour out Jesus’ love on all those around her.
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Posted in General Posts by Olivia Haughey on 12/19/2011
She screams!! Excruciating pain…horror…SCREAMING! Her father is raping her…she is only 6 MONTHS OLD. A precious baby. The neighbors hear the commotion. They call the police and thankfully the police put her father behind bars. Her older sister clings to her little sister knowing all too well the horror. Their mom leaves them alone because she is not mentally stable.
They stand there crying, defiled, abandoned, and frightened. The authorities contact a family who owns an orphanage. They take these girls in. During the school year they stay with a family and other orphans at the school. On the holiday breaks they get to go home to spend time with a loving Christian family who takes care of them.
Unfortunately, there are so many sad stories like these little girls. Everywhere we go I feel like I hear a story about someone being abused, abandoned, mistreated, etc. We hear these stories in America as well. When are we going to begin to open our hearts, eyes, and ears to the hurting people in this world? They are all around us. The woman at the checkout counter, the janitor, the kid cracking jokes, the powerful business owner. The list goes on. They come in every shape, age, ethnicity, nationality, and gender. Can’t we take the time out of our day to just ask the stranger near us how they really are doing? People are looking for someone to care enough to listen. Not the, “hey, I got five minutes for you to tell me what is going on”. But giving them all the time they need. Maybe it doesn’t all come out in one sitting. We all have some type of trust issues and need a way to build it enough to open up. Who around you needs the love of Jesus to pour out of you onto them?
These are lives Jesus is reaching through me on this race. He breaks my heart for them allowing me to pour ALL HIS LOVE on them. Letting them know they are worthy of love and are precious to Him. I want to continue learning how to listen and love on people. No matter where we are we are called to “bring the good news to the poor; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound”. (Isaiah 61:1)
I still need $3,290 before January 1st in order to continue.
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Posted in General Posts by Olivia Haughey on 11/23/2011
We have been painting at one of the children’s homes here in Africa. As we were painting we were throwing out blog titles that could be used for any blog we might post because that is a regular conversation. At some point throughout the day someone will say, “Oh that would be a great blog title”.
Anyways, as we painted over all of these unwashed stains and erosion to make it beautiful I couldn’t help but think we do that in our own lives. What I mean is that so many times in our lives we just paint over our scars. If we are dealing with something in our lives we paint a smiley face on to show people that we are happy even though we aren’t or put on a tough face so people won’t see that we are falling apart at the seams. We begin to paint so many layers over all of our hurts, all the cracks on our hearts until we no longer know what the original surface looks like. Painting becomes so natural we don’t realize when we do it or why. It takes a lot of work to chip away each layer. Well, I came on this trip partially to chisel away all of my layers. I have been finding out I need a power tool to get rid of these layers. Our first week in Africa, the Lord took a chisel to part of my paint. He let me see what was at the surface of some things and made me face them. Even though it was painful, it was freeing. I am thankful for it. Sometimes we need that extra help to face our problems. So I am working on not painting over anything else and chiseling away all of my past layers.
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Posted in General Posts by Olivia Haughey on 11/12/2011
The Lord knew this time of year is a tough one for me so He blessed me with the most loving family. This month I received the love of a father, brother, and most of all, a mother. I have a great family back home, but sometimes we need to hear, see in their eyes, and feel the embrace of family love.
Every night before we went to bed, we met as a family to sing a song of praise, share a word from the Bible, give thanks, and pray to our Father in Heaven. I have never experienced that type of thing before, but I loved it. Even when I arose early in the morning I was pleased to hear them praying right as they woke up and having their quiet time as well.
Throughout each day my Nepalese family was receptive to how I was feeling. They would say a kind word that sometimes I needed to hear, give me a loving look, or a simple touch to let me know they were there.
But the one who touched me the deepest was Bhim (I call her "Ama" which means momma). She cooks and cleans all day long with a smile on her face. She doesn't speak English and is always laughing. This woman of God is a joyful, faithful, loving, strong servant. In the beginning of her faith they were beaten in persecution. She was dragged out of church and her home by her hair and kicked. Then a couple of months ago as she was hiking with other women to evangelize she was beaten and had all her jewelry ripped off of her, yet she continues to serve with a loving heart.
At night, I help her and any other church women who come over to work in the kitchen. Some how even though none of them speak English God allows us to understand each other. Most of the time I just repeat what they are saying to each other, which fills them with laughter. Then we do a lot of them telling me how to cook and I repeat in English. So I learned a lot of Nepalese words about foods, if things are good or not, and when things are done. I don't really know what it is, but I love these women. Ama is always talking to others about me. I am her youngest daughter. Most of the time when I am cooking with her I become teary-eyed because I think about my mom. These are things you do with your mom, which I can no longer do with my mom. She makes fun of me when I mess up and gives me love pats as she walks by. She even tries to carry me on her back at times.
The other night as we sat on the floor together she pulled me into her arms and just rocked me. Then Megh, our papa, joked with me as I layed there. I felt like a little girl again. Oh my goodness Lord this is exactly what my heart needed. I needed that motherly touch and a mother's love.
Now we are leaving and I don't want to leave this motherly love that I have missed. I tear up every time I think how I have to leave her. This family will always be a part of my heart and I plan on coming back to see my Ama again.
Subash (my brother), Bhim (my momma), and Megh (my papa)
My Ama!! She is sundar (beautiful)! I miss her already...
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