Lemuel Ministries, a Haitian ministry co-founded by Manis Dilus and Crossworld worker Gigi, is located in a remote community called the Plateau, in Haiti’s northwestern peninsula. Populated almost entirely by one family, once controlled almost exclusively by voodooism, and essentially cut off from most outside influence, the Plateau community was almost impenetrable to the gospel.

As I pulled onto the Lemuel property on the Plateau, I fought back tears. Was this the same place where a dream had been birthed 19 years ago? The large, green trees provided generous shade. Flowers decorated the landscape with red, purple, white, and yellow. Fruit hung from the branches of the mango tree we planted years ago and pomegranate trees burst with promises of succulent fruit. Shade houses produced beautiful salads of lettuce, tomatoes, beets for the table. Past the tree nursery, I was shocked to find a chicken coop under construction, a gazebo for shade and a breeze, and new rooms for short-term workers.

As we drove back to the house, Manis said, “Gigi, I am going to show you what thrills my heart the most.” We walked to the school, to the church, and then to the development office. Men who grew up on the Lemuel property now led all three of these ministries. What a dream come true to sit with them, hear their dreams and visions, and watch them work. But seeing how faithfully they are walking with the Lord thrilled me the most.

Later, as I sat on Manis’ porch, I thought about God’s message to the church of Pergamum in Revelation 2: “I know where you live — where Satan has his throne. Yet you remain true to My name.”

My mind wandered back to our first trip to the Plateau 19 years ago when Manis and I scouted the land for planting both a ministry and gardens. As we looked over the dry, thorn-infested land that we hoped to turn into a producing, fertile garden, a man came up to us. He said, “You don’t need to come back here. Satan already has a throne here.”

But, we came back. Years later, the mayor of a large town made a speech and said, “As I stand here today, I realize that Satan has been removed from the throne and Jesus now sits on the throne.”

I also thought about the comment of a man who drove through the Plateau on a business trip. He told me, “I drove along a terrible road in a landscape of thorns and barren hills. And suddenly, I came to a lush oasis. Then, as I left Lemuel’s property behind, the road was once again marked by thorns and destitution. I thought how I had visually witnessed Jesus in the midst of a satanic stronghold.”

For the staff who make this Plateau their home, it is not easy. Yet, God is doing His work there and they all sense a joy in being part of it. He has also poured out special blessings to them: a week of refreshing rain, the shade houses bringing new foods to the table, and a friendship among all of them that is shaped by a common vision and a committed love for Jesus Christ.

Gigi grew up in Haiti, and then served there with her husband.

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