Giving and Giving Thanks

Happy Thanksgiving (a little late) from our family to yours!!  I hope each of you had a wonderful day celebrating with friends, family and loved ones.  Our Thanksgiving was fantastic.  At first we were unsure what we wanted to do and after the Supermercado ran out of stuffing (yes they receive Stovetop stuffing mix, cranberry sauce and other Thanksgiving fixtures around this time) we decided to change things up and do something extra special for the day...

This was our first time to visit the beach since returning and Ryann's first time ever.  It was very relaxing and the weather was perfect!  Great day of family and rest and more importantly giving thanks.

 

We were able to participate in a special project with Freysy and his school on Friday.  November is the rainy season here in the Dominican, and at the beginning of the month we received a ton of rain flooding several areas (including the Sabaneta area).  One of Freysy's students came to him wanting to start a service club in the school and one of her first projects would be a clothing drive to help the areas that were flooded.  The club grew very quickly to about 25 kids and they received so many clothes they were able to outreach in 2 separate areas.  We accompanied the group to the second outreach.

 Loading up the safari with the donations.

 

 Organizing the clothing in women's, men's and children's.

 

 People from the community waiting for their numbers.

 

Black Friday lines here in the DR.

 

The entire group with Freysy, J and Rafael.

 

Later on Friday, the director of the school asked the club to share their experience with the entire school.  It was a time in which many of these students let their guards down and showed the emotions of what they were feeling.  Presently, 29 more students want to join the club (effectively doubling the size).  Gloria a Dios!!  It's amazing what a group of students can do when their hearts are set on Christ.

 

On Saturday, J accompanied Alfre and Alfre's baseball team to Moca (about an hour drive) to share and spend time with a team there.  After hearing God's word, 27 kids prayed to receive Christ as their Lord and Savior!!  They played 2 games and then passed out tracts in the community.  To add to the amazing day, Alfre's team stopped on the way to purchase some chips and snacks so they could give them to the other team after the game showing love.  God is so good all the time and so kind!  Praise Him for the life changes He makes in all of us when we begin a relationship with Him!

 

 

 

One of the amazing things we have seen since moving here is the change of heart of the community.  It is changing from what others can do for me to what can I do for others.  Praise God for this change.  I pray we continue to lead and grow in service.  I pray God would continue to work on the hearts of the leaders of this community.  And I pray God would continue to use us in whatever fashion He desires. 

And a quick shout out to our brother Salomon who turned 32 and 34 yesterday.  (His paperwork all says 34 but he was actually born in 1982 thereby making him 32.)  After our weekly meeting we had a surprise party.

The birthday kid!  (And like the nerds we are we spent the extra pesos to get the magic relighting candles.)

Aubrey enjoying her cupcake and orange soda in the party.  In the background are Alfre and J messing around.  Alfre took his cupcake outside to eat it so he could claim he didn't get one.  We are on to him.  :)

Freysy with his cupcake.

 

Our Dominican brothers are a big reason we have so much fun here!

He must become greater; I must become less.  John 3:30

The Cussin' Missionaries

J and I have a joke that our next blog will be called "The Cussin' Missionaries" because let's face it, we all do it.  You stub your toe... you touch something hot... you break something... you know those moments.  Whenever J and I accidentally let out a word we would not want Aubrey repeating, we often say "the cussin' missionaries strike again". 

I think a lot of people view missionaries like they do their pastors, they are "perfect" with "hearts of gold" who always place God first and read their Bible and have quiet time (which in my present state of 2 kids under the age of 2 1/2, what is quiet time?).  So real quick, let me set these ideas straight... errrrrrrrr (imagine the buzzer on the game Operation).  We are human just like everyone else.  I personally struggle with reading my Bible every day, praying often, spending any time alone with Him (much less daily) amongst my usual human faults of pride, stubbornness, stress, worry, anxiety... (shall I continue?).  J returned from the Meeting God in Baseball clinic in Hato Mayor with 20 AIM coaches several weeks ago.  And from the stories I have heard, God was breaking barriers and moving with force with these men.  Here in the DR, one often hears "oh they're not Christian because..." (fill it in- they drink alcohol, they wear make up, they are divorced, they work at a bar, they don't go to church...).  These are those sad moments when I realize how many of our brothers and sisters on this island are still chained up.  Chained to their former lives, chained to their previous sins, chained with the idea that they must earn and prove their faith.  And ultimately, it frustrates me to think about how many people are turning away from the freedom and salvation Christ brings because they believe they aren't good enough.  During our camp in Nagua this past March, one of the Dominicans who went with us told us that he didn't realize Christians could be like this (to which he was referring having fun).  He didn't know Christians could laugh and joke and have a good time.  For him it was all rules you have to follow.  Isn't that heart breaking?  Instead of this young man seeing and being told about the joy Christ brings into your life and the freedom He gives you from your former life and ALL your sins, he was bogged down with the rules and regulations.  I have been re-reading Waking the Dead by John Eldredge (go out right now and buy it or borrow it... just find it) which speaks to this.  Nowadays so many churches are focused on the rules and steps to becoming a Christian and improving your life that they skip the most important part- the heart.  They skip the training of our hearts to be like Christ (which will ultimately display peace, love, kindness, grace).  We've tried to boil down the "Christian life" to a series of steps to take, hoops to jump through, and when finished you will be a Christian.  That's not what Christ modeled, talked about, or intended.  We become more "Christian" as we grow closer in our relationship with Christ. 
One of our many prayers on this island is to share with others the true nature of a Christian lifestyle.  It's not about religion or what you can do, but your relationship with He who made you.

Just a few pics:

Ryann enjoying some tummy time.

In case you didn't know, Aubrey has actually started her own church services.  Here she is preaching into her "microphone" with her Bible.

 

 

 

"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full."

John 10:10

God is good all the time!

Praise God as the work here is going amazing!  Growth, discipleship, outreach. 

J attended an Association meeting last Friday and the overall theme was service.  Service to the communities, service to the people, getting out and doing something.  And none of this was on the "agenda" for the day.  Rather, our staff and coaches have seen a need within the community and felt the call to "go" and help where needed.  November in the Dominican is considered the "rainy season" and we definitely received a lot of that last week.  So much rain that several areas flooded causing people to lose everything.  When this was discussed, it was decided to hold a clothing drive for these people as so many were already working on restoring houses, furniture, and other needs.  Again what is phenomenal is the way people (just like in the States) come together to help their fellow brothers and sisters in need.  Mercedes (from Cangrejo which is one of the poorer areas we work in) immediately raised her hand to donate 2 large boxes of clothes and a suitcase of shoes.  Others immediately offered help and pretty soon we had an overflowing CR-V with clothes (it took J two trips to get it all there). 
As the night continued on, more ideas for service came about (holding a camp in Moca, creating a fund to help provide for each other when they are in need, etc.)  As J said, he was very proud of these coaches.  What you may not know is that 6 years ago these people hated each other (they could barely stand to play against each other much less meet together), 2 years ago it was all about what they could receive, presently it's about what they can give.  Thank you God for the growth in these men and women.  As these leaders become more like You, the community can come closer to You!!
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Today and last Saturday, Checo's team hosted a tournament.  The teams played in La Union, Los Castillos, Maimon, and at the Air Base in Cangrejo.  It has been a great opportunity for some of the smaller teams to participate (Bella Vista, La Grua, Cangrejo), and it is always a great time for everyone to hear God's Word.  Here are some pictures of the 2 days:

The honor of the first pitch was given to the General of the Air Force Base in Sosua.

As of lately, our life has filled up with meetings.  We still meet weekly with our AIM staff and now Luis Chingping has jumped on board during those meetings.  Just like every organization, it helps us stay up to date with the work everyone is doing and organize our needs and activities.  We have been meeting several weeks now individually with each of our staff to allow for time for all the housekeeping duties (receipts, work logs, etc) and time to reflect on their work and their life.  I think these have been going fantastic, and God has been shaping each meeting into something different. 

In our family life, the girls are growing and learning and having a blast.  Although I miss having cold weather, it is nice to still be able to go outside in shorts and play all afternoon.  Ryann is rolling over now and "tripod-ing".  We have learned that when she wants to do something or learn something, she will focus all her time on this.  So, once she figured out she could roll, she spent the next several days perfecting this and getting over her arm.  (Aubrey was different and very much like J- it will happen when it happens, why rush things!)  Aubrey is great and growing.  We are working on incorporating more Spanish into her language (and because everyone asks- she does not speak Spanish but she will respond to it.)  And J and myself are cruising along.  Loving our life and all the ups and downs that come with it.

 

Harriet Potter!

One evening we had a "gajillion" mosquitoes in the house.  J eventually mastered the art of giving the mosquitos "a high-five to the face".  However, they left their revenge as we had to clean the walls and ceiling.  Here J is using Aubrey's broom and a baby wipe to clean the ceiling.  (P.S. we don't call them baby wipes but how on earth do you spell wipey, wipee, wypee, wipey, whypee)

Checo has started an old man softball time.  All invitees are at least 40 years old with the exception of J.  He was given honorary 40 year old status.  He's not sure how he feels about this but is grateful for the opportunity to hang out with the old folks.

A visit with Mercedes.

A couple of Mercedes's girls with Aubrey.  Yup, it's Christmas time in the Dominican.  (Further proof was seen today at the grocery store because grills are on sale.)

 

 

Praise God for this work!  Praise God for each of you who make it possible for our family to be here!  God is good ALL the time!!

Surprise...

What a great day!  As we have been encouraging our staff to get out and spend more time with the coaches, J and Victor went to a meeting with Rigo (a volleyball coach in Villa Liberacion who has participated in several camps) yesterday afternoon.  This was meant to encourage Rigo, pour into him and begin the relationship of discipleship between Victor and Rigo.  But, God had more important plans and ideas for the afternoon.  When J asked Rigo if he was a Christian, Rigo's response was, "not right now."  As J asked him what was keeping him from becoming a Christian, Rigo responded with "no reason really, I just haven't done it."  At that point, J encouraged Rigo to make any decision, to not stay on the fence.  As J further thanked Rigo for allowing us and others to preach and do devotionals for his team even though he's not Christian, Rigo responded with, "It's good for me and God is everything." 
When J heard this he asked Rigo, "So you believe in God?" 
Rigo- "Of course I do, there is a God." 
J- "Ok, then who is Jesus?"
Rigo- "Jesus is God's Son who was sent here to die for our sins."
J- "Do you believe this?"
Rigo- "Yes."
J- "Would you say that Jesus is Lord?"
Rigo- "Yes."
J- "I have a surprise for you.  You may not know it, but you are a Christian."

Much of the Christian culture here (and around the world) focuses on what we do and how we behave.  So, Rigo's reaction was incredulous to "being a Christian".  (Rigo's face was reading something like... ok this guy's telling me I'm a Christian when I know I don't do the right stuff.)

J- What do you think God wants from you?
Rigo- no answer
J- God just wants to know you.  Our sins separate us from the God who made us to know us.  He sent his Son to take the punishment for our sin so that when He sees us, He doesn't see sin but sees Christ and He can have a relationship with that.  So in all the things we do, reading the Bible, going to church, etc. if we do those things to look up and say God, you see what I'm doing, then we are missing it.  But when we read the Bible, we should do so to learn who God is and to know Him better.

This was a lot for Rigo to take in because the idea that to be a Christian we have to do all these things is so ingrained (which I think many of us struggle with). 

Please be lifting up our brother, Rigo, as he discovers and explores the freedom He has found in Christ. 

Then (as if that wasn't enough), we had our individual meeting with one of our guys and let's say the Holy Spirit was working.  We started these meetings as a way to discuss their work, their receipts, their responsibilities, pray with them and ultimately pour into them.  But yesterday, J got to spend an hour pouring into him with scripture and lifting him up with his current struggles. 

Please be lifting up all our brothers here as they undergo life in general and continue to grow with the responsibilities God has given them within AIM.

On another note, Luis Chingping is doing as well as can be expected.  He is actually going to start joining us during our weekly AIM meetings.  And a note of encouragement he told J the other day was, "These last 2 weeks have shown me that AIM is not a ministry, it's a family."  Praise God for the brotherhood we have in our staff, our coaches, the Pastors, and all the other community leaders who are willing to dedicate their time spreading the Gospel through sport and to raising up the youth in these communities. 

Much love!

"If you declare with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord', and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved."  Romans 10:9

Oscar Taveras

I'm sure most of you have heard about the baseball star, Oscar Taveras, passing away earlier this week.  It is always sad when someone so young dies, but it is even harder to bear when you are not sure of their salvation.  Oscar grew up here in Sosua and was the hometown hero "who made it" to the big leagues.  Checo and many others had poured into him telling him Truth, and attempting to help him get his life on track for Christ, but as far as we know he died without knowing our Savior.  Yesterday at a game between Gary and Alfre, Gary preached on this subject (and let me say there was a lot of emotion going into these words).  Gary shared with the kids the pain of Oscar's passing, that he was so young and had so much ahead of him.  Gary shared his anger and frustration because he knows how much wise advice and how many times Oscar had been preached the Gospel, but Oscar always rejected it.   With tears, Gary desperately spoke to the kids to listen to the authorities God placed in their life that love them.  That when these authorities give advice, it is for their (the kids) own good, not to harm them. 

As our blog is titled "just one more", we always want "just one more" to come to know Christ as their Lord and Savior.  "Just one more" to be saved from eternal separation from our heavenly Father.  If you know someone who has not accepted Christ, please pour into them now.  Don't wait until "later" or tomorrow because as cliché as it sounds, tomorrow may be too late.  Oscar was 22 years young with dreams and life ahead of him. 

"Seek the Lord while he may be found; call upon him while he is near"  Isaiah 55:6

 

 

Tombstone

We have been meeting with our staff individually over the past week, and these meetings have been absolutely fantastic.  It's always informational the stuff you find out on a more intimate setting and how much you are able to get accomplished.  (No one else to interrupt or bring up random items.)  Today we met with one of our guys for about 3 hours and were able to really dig into some of his current struggles including time management and allowing time for his family.  God has been speaking to him about his time with his family and making sure he is loving on his wife and children as much as he is loving on those on the fields (something I think most of us can associate with when our work starts to take over our lives and we don't allow time for our family and more importantly God). 

Something J did with him and actually asked me a long time ago was if I were to die right now, what would I want written on my tombstone?  Obviously people put a variety of things on tombstones: "loving mother", "best friend", "giving", "precious angel"... whatever fits their life.  But if you were allowed only 3 things written on your tombstone, what would they be and in what order?  I found that when I took the time to answer this, it helped prioritize my life.  It helped me understand when God was calling me away from nursing at a hospital to working at the church and then ultimately becoming a missionary here in the Dominican, that I was not letting anyone down or shaming myself.  Because my number one thing revolved/revolves around God and no where on my tombstone did I have written "(insert adjective) nurse".  So when He called me away from something I loved and had taken time to pursue, it became a journey of trusting Him and allowing Him to work in my life. 

Thanks again to Financial Peace as J uses the same principle idea of "budgeting to zero" for time.  If you are not accounting and budgeting all of your time, you are likely wasting a good deal of it.  So plan out your hours accounting for family time, prayer time, rest, eating, work, etc.  Because when it is all accounted for, the chances of wasting it and misusing it is much harder.

Please be lifting up our brother through his journey as he attempts to reprioritize his life and invest more time with his family. 


Much love!!

Trials

We participated in another cleaning project this past Saturday in Los Castillos.  We have done a few of these in the past year, and they are always great in helping the youth (and even adults) learn the importance of taking care of the land.  It is rather customary here to throw all sorts of things out the window, on the ground, etc.  Cups, trash, diapers... you get the idea.  So these cleaning projects are a fantastic opportunity for an outreach in the communities.  J preached before the event started focusing on Genesis 1:27-31.  J wanted the youth to understand that we need to care for the Earth given to us by God.  After the cleaning part, what else is there to do but play some baseball for the afternoon?   Here are some pictures:

J preaching with the teams before the event.

Alfre leading us in prayer.

 

We use gloves to pick up trash, so here is J requesting a "right handed glove" from Alfre... it only took him half a second to realize what J was doing.

A picture of the "cleaning" in action.

Organizing the teams for some baseball.

 

And Saturday night, after a hot day outside when all I wanted to do was take a shower and relax, I see something crawling in Aubrey's hair.  I am immediately on "high alert" as bugs in general are not my thing, but especially bugs that tend to hide and you cannot easily see (fleas, lice... you probably see where I am going).  I pick it off and ask J (with some panic in my voice), "what's this??!"  And yes, much to my dislike, Aubrey had lice.  I immediately go into overdrive (kinda OCD, crazy overdrive) by googling and sending J to the pharmacy for some medicine.  (And of course I am suddenly itching all over the place just like all of you are at this moment!)  Seeing that everything online says to simply place the sheets, clothing, stuffed animals, and other items in hot water and the dryer, I am slightly panicked.  Because, we don't have hot water... and well we don't have a dryer either.  So what am I going to do?  So I do like every other person would and stuff Aubrey's baby and 2 stuffed animals in big baggies (something in which God provided from varying places in anticipation of this because we do not buy those here) and put them in the freezer and which are still in there 4 days later.  (I read this somewhere to help kill them and if not the freezer then 2 days away from a host.)  And I explained to Aubrey that her baby and animals had to go to the doctor in the freezer to get better.  She was ok with this.

Our freezer full to the brim with French fries, coffee, ice and frozen stuffed animals.  (We even threw J's hat in there for good measure... why not?)

 

J returns quite promptly with some medicine (as Dominican as can be)...

Who doesn't want to use lice shampoo with super heroes on the front??  I mean, it definitely makes me feel reassured seeing their fighting powers and their motto of "An intergalactic mission to kill the lice of the head".  Doesn't that make you feel good and taken care of?  And there are no directions anywhere so I follow what I read for the majority of lice shampoos.  Now because I am crazy about this, we all get to use the "special shampoo" (which smells very strong of a flower bouquet and in fact has the last ingredient listed as "fragrance") and let it sit in our hair for a solid 10 minutes.  Aubrey was ok with this and found shampooing and rinsing with our clothing on pretty fun.  We then spent the rest of the evening combing through everyone's hair.  Luckily, it appears Aubrey was the only one to have it and we caught it pretty early, but still it gives me the heebie jeebies to the max.  And I have to give amazing credit to my husband who deserves a superhero t-shirt for being so calm and collected and willing to go through all of my long hair looking for these things.  (And who actually continues to look because again I am crazy and think "oh, I have an itch, it must be lice.")  Aubrey is getting better at sitting still as every night we search through her hair looking for nits.  I guess you could call it a game to see if you can find one.  (Oh and mind you, they don't have lice combs on this island.  So we use a flash light, the finest comb we could find and ultimately go through hair by hair on Aubrey's head.  I think it took us about 1.5 hours last night.)  So we have an exciting date night scheduled again this Saturday for our special shampoo use.  Funny how Saturday nights used to be so romantic, but I wouldn't trade these superheroes or the flower fragrance for anything.

 

The next morning, J, Rafael, the girls, and I drove to Nagua as they were starting a week long tournament in the name of AIM.  (This is where we held the first completely Dominican led camp last March.)  Our relationships with the coaches and one specific Pastor in the area continue to grow, Praise God!, and it was great to be back.  Here are a few pictures of the day.  Sorry there aren't many and not too great.  I was watching 2 girls and holding 1 while on the field.

During the opening ceremonies.  AIM was recognized again and J was asked to say a few words.

Here J is batting the "first pitch".  :)

 

 

Our drive back from Nagua was much more downcast as we received news that Luis Chingping's wife passed away that afternoon (he is the president of the Christian Sports Association here in Sosua, someone we work very closely with and who actually traveled to the States with our guys a few weeks ago).  As it often happens, this was very quick and quite a shock.  One of those surreal moments as we had just seen her 1 week before at the airport picking Luis up with the other guys.  It's always hard to understand when God takes someone so special away so suddenly especially for the family, so please be lifting up Luis and all their family and friends as they adjust to life without this special lady.  There are always the "firsts" when someone passes away and we are quickly approaching the holidays. 

 

We love you guys and your support and prayers.  We are blessed to have such a faithful family with us every step of the way.

 

 

"I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world."  John 16:33