Chemen Lavi Miyo is a program that offers a “Path to a Better Life” for women and families surviving on the fringes of Haitian society. They are truly the ultra-poor on our planet. These women are not only poor in the sense that they have no money or food, they are also poor in hope and confidence.
The CLM imagery of a path expands beyond the women it leads, step-by-step, to financial stability and increased hope for the future. It also tells of the long dirt paths that Fonkoze caseworkers travel to visit their clients and to the path to a better life that it offers us, as supporters of and believers in CLM. If you’ve been familiar with the Haitian Timoun Foundation for a while, you’ve probably heard, “We need Haiti more than Haiti needs us.” This truth that calls us to humility over and over again is certainly evident in our relationship with CLM. It is very easy to adopt the mindset that we have achieved a certain status in life that allows us to feel like investment in CLM is a one-sided, charitable action. But when we walk alongside our brothers and sisters working with and for CLM, we are taking part in the ministry of reconciliation that God has called us to (2 Corinthians 5:16).
This Advent seasons offers even more opportunity to reflect upon a Path to a Better Life. Jesus came into this world to show us the way. Jesus walked and walks with us and calls us to do the same. When we take part in fulfilling God’s call to us, we too, are on the Path to a Better Life. As we walk together we can rejoice: “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore” (Psalm 16:11).
