A couple in Haiti gets a renewed start with Christ at the center of their relationship
Gilbert South Louis works with Samaritan’s Purse in Haiti as part of the Gender Protection Program. The program works to stop gender-based violence, strengthen marriages, restore families, and help men and women live out their identities in God’s image.
As I was walking down the street one day after work, I noticed a woman who seemed sad and hopeless. God prompted me to stop and ask her what was wrong and how I could help. I found out her name is Dieunie, and she had been living with a man called Ernso for four years without being married.
Dieunie was upset because Ernso had been mistreating her physically and verbally. She finished her story by saying that she has no children with him, and she has moved out because she couldn’t put up with him anymore.
Ernso and Dieunie hope to have their wedding in February or March.
After listening to her story, I asked Dieunie if I could meet with Ernso. She agreed. When we met, we spent time talking about how God created man and woman in His image and that He intended for relationships to be without violence. After we talked, Ernso felt sorry for the way he had treated Dieunie.
Ernso and Dieunie started counseling together with Samaritan’s Purse. As the counseling and discipleship sessions went on, the couple began to change, and Dieunie even described Ernso as having been deeply transformed.
One day after a session follow-up, Dieunie and Ernso decided to accept Christ into their lives. My team joyfully prayed with the couple and connected them to a church partner. After a short time attending church and listening to sermons on God’s intentional plan for relationships between man and woman, they felt compelled to honor God by getting married.
Samaritan’s Purse and the couple’s church are partnering together to make all the preparations for their wedding. Throughout the development of Dieunie and Ernso’s relationship, God’s grace and love has been seen clearly. Lives can be changed when one is willing to follow God’s prompting, and I’m honored to have been a part of Dieunie and Ernso’s story.
