A dent and a difference

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I have not been writing for several days because I am still "camping out" in Psalm 107. As with all scripture, this particular Psalm has several layers to peel away - and I am just beginning! But as usual, when God places you in a certain part of His word it begins to infiltrate the air around you and affects your vision of the surroundings. Such was my experience this past few days, especially when I watched the above story on 60 Minutes.

Psalm 107 paints a picture of people in all manners of distress. What is similar in all their circumstances is that at some point they cry out to the Lord in their trouble and he delivers them from their distress. Every time, in every situation, as soon as they reach their point of desperation, they CRY OUT and that is when HE ANSWERS! I have been dwelling on this for several days now and have seen this same pattern from God in my own life...

So, imagine my amazement Sunday evening, after my team THE STEELERS won their football game - which has nothing to do with this post, but they are my team and I am so excited :) -
and this story comes on 60 Minutes about a young man with Haitian roots who has been blessed by God in his earthly occupation and is using all his resources to make a difference in his home country.

The Haitian people are in darkness, they are held hostage by the conditions of their country, and Hope is not evident. They are the people of Psalm 107:10-16

10 Some sat in darkness and the deepest gloom,

prisoners suffering in iron chains,

11 for they had rebelled against the words of God

and despised the counsel of the Most High.
12 So he subjected them to bitter labor;

they stumbled, and there was no one to help.
13 Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble,

and he saved them from their distress.
14 He brought them out of darkness and the deepest gloom

and broke away their chains.
15 Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love

and his wonderful deeds for men,
16 for he breaks down gates of bronze

and cuts through bars of iron.

So here are the Haitians, a people of no hope, held in bondage by the conditions of their country, stumbling around seeing no one to help. And the Lord sends Wyclef Jean to bring them from darkness to light. And here is where I get goose bumps...the name of his organization is "Yele Haiti" which is Haitian for CRY OUT LOUD. They are crying out to the LORD in their trouble and he is delivering them from their distress !!!

If I can tap into just a small teaspoon of the vision and hope of Wyclef Jean, I know I could make a difference here in my own community. I absolutely love his statement that in the midst of what may appear to be a hopeless, dangerous, "too big to solve" condition - Wyclef Jean keeps moving forward. He knows that "past the danger is opportunity". He is not afraid. He knows that God is on his side. He doesn't plan to solve all the problems of Haiti, but as the bearer of HOPE, he can unite the people to move forward with him. His final statement in this clip inspires me and gives me guidance in my own life
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"What I plan to do is I'm gonna make a serious dent, and I'm hoping that after I make this dent, those kids behind me could help break those walls."

All I need to do to make a difference is make a dent...I don't have to solve the world's problems or be intimidated or overwhelmed by their vastness. I just need to make a dent - a dent I can handle!