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Now In: Dr. Garlock Update
A TIME FOR MIRACLES (condensed) by Dr. Frank Garlock
I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God, in Him will I trust. Psalm 91:2. When the earth shook at 4:50 p.m. on Tuesday, January 12, I was taking a stroll outside in Jacmel, Haiti—trying to get some exercise, and had walked up the dirt road our house was on. I had just turned to look down what we would call an alleyway that ran between the two-story house where I was staying and another two-story house. I was approaching an iron gate between these two houses when I heard a very loud roaring noise and saw the trees shaking violently. At first, I thought it was a tornado. But when the ground beneath me began moving so that I could not keep my balance, I knew it was an earthquake. As I grabbed the iron gate to stay upright, I turned to my left and saw the second story of the unfinished house in front of me collapse, pancake-style. The rubble from most of the houses that collapsed came out into the streets and alleyways. One miracle was that none of the debris from the house I stood by came in my direction—I didn’t receive one scratch. The house behind me, which was the house I was staying in, stood miraculously intact.
During the earthquake, Sarah was outside teaching a Bible study in the front yard of a poor neighborhood. She was seated on a very low chair, close to the ground (the type of chair Haitians use for cooking and laundering). In the middle of her closing prayer, her chair started shaking. As she opened her eyes and saw the ground moving, Sarah knew it was indeed an earthquake. The ladies in the Bible study group began screaming and trying to run—but they could hardly stand up. Most of the walls from the huts in that neighborhood crumbled to the ground before their eyes. Afterward, they were praising God that they were outside at the Bible study during the earthquake and not in their huts, or else each one could have been seriously injured—another miracle.
When Wednesday morning, January 13, dawned in Greenville, SC, our friends and loved ones learned from the news that their worst fears were true—Jacmel was indeed devastated, as well as Port-au-Prince. The epicenter occurred almost halfway between the two cities. I have discovered that many people in the states were desperately trying to receive news of our safety and whereabouts. Very late Wednesday night, Cheryl Reid of Majesty Music worked diligently at her computer and found a website called Joy In Hope Foundation that has a children’s home in Jacmel. Cheryl noticed that there was an email option and sent a short message asking for any information on an American by the name of Frank Garlock who was ministering at the Hosanna Baptist Church.
On Thursday, January 14, back in Greenville, at 2:55 p.m., Cheryl was the first to receive the news of Leann from the children’s home finding us. Cheryl was half laughing, half crying as she called my daughter Shelly to relay the news. I have been told that after receiving the news of our safety, great rejoicing followed. After finding us, the next problem for our family in Greenville was finding a way to get us out of Haiti. Many people worked very closely together for one and a half days to try to get us out. As Friday, January 15 was coming to a close, after encountering one roadblock after another, Ron and Shelly finally decided the best means of evacuation out of Haiti would be to use a helicopter to take us into Santo Domingo, D.R.; Sean Bennett, Sarah’s son, made the flight arrangements to get us back to the U.S. from Santo Domingo.
Saturday morning, January 16, Sarah and I said our goodbyes, arriving at the airport at 7 a.m., we waited and waited for our helicopter—but none came. A few minutes after 10 a.m., someone ran over to Sarah from the children’s home to give her the message that the airspace in all of Haiti had been “locked down” since Hillary Clinton was coming in. Immediately after the messenger came over to inform me of our plight, I saw a black helicopter coming in at a very low altitude to land. He had been flying low to avoid any radar that might be operating. I thought to myself, “That helicopter must be for Mrs. Clinton!” You can imagine my joy and surprise when it landed and the pilot called Sarah’s name and my name. Through tears I called out to Sarah, “Come! This is for us!” Another miracle—God provided a way for us to leave Haiti.
Someone has said that CATASTROPHE IS GOD’S MEGAPHONE TO A DEAF WORLD. Let’s pray that at this time, this catastrophe will open the ears and hearts to the Word of God in Haiti. Many thanks to all of you who cared about our safety and faithfully prayed for our arrival home! You can send help directly to the Haitian people by contributing to:
Mission for Haiti
2435 East North Street
Suite 196
Greenville, SC 29615
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