Pulling Up Roots

Written Sunday, 22 July The weekends here have been a blessing, being loaded with downtime in which to rest, read, do laundry, and other such activities. It is really a nice idea, a three day weekend. Friday (our day off during summer program) was a gorgeous rainy day. The rain cooled off the hot earth and was so refreshing. We experienced our first Dominican thunderstorm with lightning, enjoying it from our enclosed front porch. After our last week of teaching, that was exactly what the three of us needed, and we are still thanking God for it.  Saturday was the same, staying in and taking a rest. We've been getting pretty creative with our cooking lately as our food supply dwindles towards the end. But even when it is spaghetti for dinner AGAIN (seriously, I don't think I could eat another noodle!)  we have learned to be thankful for what God has provided.  I have learned much about gratitude this trip. I used to think that gratitude was cultivated by comparison- you know, when I look around me and see the children's worn shoes and ill-fitting clothing and I realize how good I have it. To some extent that is true, and I am most definitely grateful. But God has also taught me that gratitude comes moment by moment. It is taking nothing for granted and recognizing what God has placed in front of you, whether it is a juicy hamburger and fries or a plate of rice and beans, as His provision and receiving it from His hand. We have so much to be grateful for, and not just because others do not have what we do.  There is a delightful kind of settling in and adjusting that has happened during my time here. It has been hitting me slowly. I realized last week that the driving here has become normal to me. Then, I realized that I don't notice the constant background noise of chickens, roosters who caw at all hours of the night, motos whizzing by, the beat of merengue blaring out of our neighbor's stereo, and neighbors hollering for children down the street. I expect to hear Spanish, not English. I am even used to the smells. Life's dust has settled around me in Dominican fashion.  We have one week left in Caraballo, two days of debriefing as a team of 21 interns at a resort, and then next week we fly home. It has been hitting me slowly these past few weeks, and I have been digesting it bit by bit that I will be home soon. It feels like pulling up roots, even six week ones, to leave. God has molded me in unique ways on this trip, and it is always a little jarring when He moves us to the next place He has for us. I am fully excited to be home and yet fully saddened to leave. It makes it easier to leave knowing that God was here before I was, He was here with me, and He will remain here long after I leave. Christ loves these kids in ways I cannot, and He is their ultimate hope. I feel blessed and privileged to have been a part of scattering seed, helping to water some, and maybe even pruning others. But I can leave in full peace even as I wipe tears of sadness from my face because these precious kids and my wonderful co-workers have always been in His hands. And I can rest assured that He will also sustain my own roots as they are pulled from the rocky Dominican topsoil to the next plot of sod He has prepared for me.  As we countdown the days to hugging our families, please lift up the following prayer requests. It is so encouraging to know that others are interceding for us in prayer!  * I am praising God for good health on this trip and sustaining me physically so far! Pray that myself and the other interns are not drained as we return home.  * Pray for the kids. They need Jesus, and He is the One who can restore them fully.  * Praise God for Vida Para Niños (Kids Alive's Dominican Republic ministry) and all He has done here! Pray for the national staff, that they would not grow weary of doing good and would preach the Word in season and out. Pray for His blessing and provision for their families and that they would each individually be satisfied in Him. Thank God for those who are committed to this ministry in their own country!  * Pray for healing and reconciliation between the large Haitian population and the Dominicans in Caraballo and Villa Ascención, where we have been serving. Pray that violence would end and that systemic oppression would cease.  * Pray that the Dominican and Haitian staff of Park Care Center, the Vida Para Niños ministry in Caraballo where we have been serving this summer, would continue to be a witnessing community to the power of the Gospel as they minister alongside each other.  * Pray for this last week of summer program: for our field day and our fiesta. Pray that it would be a fun and refreshing time for the kids and staff and that we would be able to celebrate what God has done this summer!  * Pray for good goodbyes with the kids and our co-workers and friends. Wednesday will be hard for us as we begin our leaving.  * In case I do not have another chance to update this before I am stateside once again, please pray for traveling mercies as we head home next week! We will be departing the island on Tuesday, and I have a long 17 hour day.  ¡Mucho amor de Caraballo! Nos vemos pronto. 

Pulling Up Roots

Written Sunday, 22 July The weekends here have been a blessing, being loaded with downtime in which to rest, read, do laundry, and other such activities. It is really a nice idea, a three day weekend. Friday (our day off during summer program) was a gorgeous rainy day. The rain cooled off the hot earth and was so refreshing. We experienced our first Dominican thunderstorm with lightning, enjoying it from our enclosed front porch. After our last week of teaching, that was exactly what the three of us needed, and we are still thanking God for it.  Saturday was the same, staying in and taking a rest. We've been getting pretty creative with our cooking lately as our food supply dwindles towards the end. But even when it is spaghetti for dinner AGAIN (seriously, I don't think I could eat another noodle!)  we have learned to be thankful for what God has provided.  I have learned much about gratitude this trip. I used to think that gratitude was cultivated by comparison- you know, when I look around me and see the children's worn shoes and ill-fitting clothing and I realize how good I have it. To some extent that is true, and I am most definitely grateful. But God has also taught me that gratitude comes moment by moment. It is taking nothing for granted and recognizing what God has placed in front of you, whether it is a juicy hamburger and fries or a plate of rice and beans, as His provision and receiving it from His hand. We have so much to be grateful for, and not just because others do not have what we do.  There is a delightful kind of settling in and adjusting that has happened during my time here. It has been hitting me slowly. I realized last week that the driving here has become normal to me. Then, I realized that I don't notice the constant background noise of chickens, roosters who caw at all hours of the night, motos whizzing by, the beat of merengue blaring out of our neighbor's stereo, and neighbors hollering for children down the street. I expect to hear Spanish, not English. I am even used to the smells. Life's dust has settled around me in Dominican fashion.  We have one week left in Caraballo, two days of debriefing as a team of 21 interns at a resort, and then next week we fly home. It has been hitting me slowly these past few weeks, and I have been digesting it bit by bit that I will be home soon. It feels like pulling up roots, even six week ones, to leave. God has molded me in unique ways on this trip, and it is always a little jarring when He moves us to the next place He has for us. I am fully excited to be home and yet fully saddened to leave. It makes it easier to leave knowing that God was here before I was, He was here with me, and He will remain here long after I leave. Christ loves these kids in ways I cannot, and He is their ultimate hope. I feel blessed and privileged to have been a part of scattering seed, helping to water some, and maybe even pruning others. But I can leave in full peace even as I wipe tears of sadness from my face because these precious kids and my wonderful co-workers have always been in His hands. And I can rest assured that He will also sustain my own roots as they are pulled from the rocky Dominican topsoil to the next plot of sod He has prepared for me.  As we countdown the days to hugging our families, please lift up the following prayer requests. It is so encouraging to know that others are interceding for us in prayer!  * I am praising God for good health on this trip and sustaining me physically so far! Pray that myself and the other interns are not drained as we return home.  * Pray for the kids. They need Jesus, and He is the One who can restore them fully.  * Praise God for Vida Para Niños (Kids Alive's Dominican Republic ministry) and all He has done here! Pray for the national staff, that they would not grow weary of doing good and would preach the Word in season and out. Pray for His blessing and provision for their families and that they would each individually be satisfied in Him. Thank God for those who are committed to this ministry in their own country!  * Pray for healing and reconciliation between the large Haitian population and the Dominicans in Caraballo and Villa Ascención, where we have been serving. Pray that violence would end and that systemic oppression would cease.  * Pray that the Dominican and Haitian staff of Park Care Center, the Vida Para Niños ministry in Caraballo where we have been serving this summer, would continue to be a witnessing community to the power of the Gospel as they minister alongside each other.  * Pray for this last week of summer program: for our field day and our fiesta. Pray that it would be a fun and refreshing time for the kids and staff and that we would be able to celebrate what God has done this summer!  * Pray for good goodbyes with the kids and our co-workers and friends. Wednesday will be hard for us as we begin our leaving.  * In case I do not have another chance to update this before I am stateside once again, please pray for traveling mercies as we head home next week! We will be departing the island on Tuesday, and I have a long 17 hour day.  ¡Mucho amor de Caraballo! Nos vemos pronto. 

Sueños DO Come True!

¡Buenos Días! I write this early on Sunday morning from a lovely air conditioned bus, which we are quite enjoying at the moment. This weekend all of the summer interns traveled from our respective ministry sites to Jarabacoa to spend a weekend together and to visit the capital city for a day. It was strange to be in the company of so many English speakers once again, but it was fun to share stories and experiences from the past month. Us three from Caraballo ended up spending two nights in Jarabacoa and we just boarded our bus back. We have a good few hours of traveling ahead of us, but it will be good to get back. Caraballo is beginning to feel a lot like home to us.  Friday we enjoyed some down time with the Jarabacoa interns while waiting for other sites to arrive. We cooked a big spaghetti dinner and enjoyed some fellowship time as well. I had a good conversation with Mallory, a missionary who has committed to two years serving down here. It was really encouraging to hear her story about how God led her to serve in this way and the lessons He taught her along the way.  One major thing that I prayed for about this trip would be receiving God's guidance about my future. Well, the LORD is always faithful to answer prayer but often it is not in the way I had originally thought. I was thinking specifically about being able to serve here or live here long term, and while I definitely have taken some steps forward there, God has overwhelmingly used this trip to confirm and even deepen my passion for educating kids. The last time I was here was three years ago, as a high school junior who wanted to attend an academically prestigious Christian college and study to become a pediatric neurologist. Yeah, some of you are laughing to yourselves right now. Well, God has taken me on quite a journey these past three years. I now attend an academically rigorous but not Christian college, and I am studying Religious Studies and Early Childhood Education. Yup, God's plans were better than my own, and definitely different. Anyways, the whole major thing is so crucial to when God decided to send me back to the Dominican Republic. The first day of training that we had, our ministry director shared about the plight of education in the Dominican Republic. I had been to the country twice before on a missions trip, and yet I never knew that the DR has the most undeveloped and in need educational system in all of Latin America! Talk about God using my passions and gifts for His glory. That knowledge has profoundly shaped my experiences on this trip, and the moment that I realized that even if I do not speak the language fluently I still absolutely LOVE being in the classroom, I felt God confirm and deepen the passion I have for kids and their education.  I don't have any solid answers about the future. I don't even know what will happen tomorrow! God's word is clear about that fact as well: we are but grass that will fade away in this short life. And yet through all of this, I sense God telling me to wait on Him. Oh, I feel so impatient. But perhaps more than ever, I need to hear that. Wait on the LORD. He will tell me what to do and where to go when it is time. I have always been that person who wished God would fax me a memo with His plans for my life all neatly written and articulated. Go to this school. Study this subject. Move here, find a job there, and marry this person (and NOT that one!)  At the same time, I know how stubborn I can be. And God's waiting and operating on His timeline is and always has been and always will be for my good. It keeps me tuned into what He is doing, it causes me to trust Him more.  Anyways, that conversation on Friday really caused me to reflect on those things. That evening, I learned that dreams REALLY DO come true. I experienced two of my favorite things colliding in a glorious opportunity to fulfill one of my (wilder) dreams. I had the chance of a lifetime, people, to be involved in a CALL ME MAYBE FLASH MOB...and it gets better. We did the flash mob at a talent night, called 'Gran Circulo' at a children's home called El Arca in the Dominican Republic. That's right. My dreams totally came true. The video should be making its way to Facebook soon, but I will keep you posted.  Saturday morning we woke up bright and early to travel the two hours to the capital of the DR, Santo Domingo. I have flown into and stayed in Santo Domingo on both of my previous trips here, so I was excited to return. Besides, I had plans to meet up with a friend from my former mission trip, Anabel! Anabel was a senior in the class of the Christian school that my mission team partnered with when we traveled here. She and I became friends over the two weeks I spent here and we have stayed in touch via Internet these past three and a half years. She met us at the Cathedral in the historic colonial zone of the capital and we hung out for four hours! It was such a neat connection and it was great to catch up and talk about where God has taken each of us in the past three years. We toured a fort and also a house with authentic furniture that Diego Columbus, son of explorer Christopher Columbus used. Then we had the opportunity to shop a bit before heading back. On our way back, the whole group of us got to drive the Constanza interns back and see their living space and ministry site. It is great to be able to see what Kids Alive ministries does on this island, and it has been a neat perspective on our own ministry in Caraballo. We were treated to stunning mountain and sunset scenery as our tiny guagua wove its way up a winding mountain road. It was so beautiful, and for the first time in the past month, I was cold. It is so hot in Caraballo all hours of the day that I usually don't even cover up at night. But last night we enjoyed the bliss of the mountain chill.  Now we find ourselves here, on the bus for the next three hours. We have eight days of summer program left: eight days of sweet hugs from the kids, eight days of conversation with our national co-workers, and yes, also eight days of rice and beans. I am already sad to leave, but God has been impressing upon me the might of His sovereignty. Almost more than any other trip I have been on, I have had a sense of God's peace about returning, which has always been the most difficult part for me. He has numbered and ordained my days, and as hard and sad as it is to leave, I am resting in the fact that He has given me exactly the number of days He desired for me here, and I am getting ready to step into the plans He has for me at home. He is sovereign and I continue to trust Him as I take life a moment at a time...at the moment, a Dominican moment at a time.  A few prayer requests that I would be honored if you would lift up before the LORD in intercession for: - Pray for the emotional and spiritual transitions for me, Cara, and Landon (fellow Caraballo interns) during these last two weeks - Pray for my three of my co-workers (all 3 are siblings) and their family: their grandfather passed away last week. Please pray for Francis, Sandy, and Francina and their mother as they mourn this loss.  - Pray for the kids of Caraballo and Villa Ascensión that we serve every day. Pray for their hearts to be fertile soil for the Word of God. Pray that they would know the LORD and the future and hope and plans He has made for them.  - Pray for the family of our DR Field Director. The Trautweins have had an unexpected bump in the road this week and have some difficult travel and lodging decisions to make. Please pray for good goodbyes as they leave for an unknown amount of time.  - Pray for God's light and love to be evidenced through us and the teachers and faculty of the Park Care Center at Caraballo. - Pray for good conversations and relationships with our national co-workers. Praise God for them: they are SUCH a blessing and encouragement to us!  - Pray that God would pour His blessings on Bekah, the North American missonary who has helped us out so much during our time here. She returns to U.S. indefinitely in two weeks after 8 months here. Pray for her transition and goodbyes. 

Dos semanas más...

[Escrito en la noche de jueves, 13 de julio] Another iPod blog update, and this one is being written in the dark. The electricity is unstable in the DR, so the lights go out pretty frequently here in Caraballo. We enjoyed dinner (pancakes & salami) by candlelight this evening and in between prayers for Jesus to turn la luz back on, we are qattempting to read or journal by flashlight.  This week has flown by. It was our third week of the summer program this week, and a hot one at that. The joys of my week came from the relationships I have built during my time here. Already the realization has hit that I will not always be in the classroom with my kiddos, and I can forsee that leaving is going to be difficult. In the midst of that, God has impressed upon me these past few weeks firmly where I end and He begins, or rather where He has been all along and how I am just a teensy blip on the radar screen of situations and places He has created and is both sustaining and redeeming, right now. He is the only hope for these children, and really for all of us. More than a good education or six weeks of daily hugs from the gringa, I want these kids to know Jesus. I am powerless to undo the dark and difficult things some of these kids have had to face in their young lives so far, and Jesus is the only one who can redeem those and work them together for their good and His glory. The end goal of the ministry I have been a part of this summer is not just children receiving nutritious meals and access to basic healthcare. It is not just teaching them to read or how to do basic math or geography. It is not just clothing them, or even letting them know how loved they are. The real purpose of this six weeks of ministry has been in the hopes that these kids will find the LORD. That the words of the Gospel will take root in their hearts. And ultimately, not only that they will gain the hope of eternal life, but that they will live in the abundance God offers them on this broken sod and become impact Christians and lights wherever He places them, many of them in this same place they have lived all their lives.  Hebrews 13:20-21 says, "And now, may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, equip you with all you need for doing His will. May He produce in you, through the power of Jesus Christ, all that is pleasing to Him."  I have learned on this trip to accept all things from God's hands in the moment as part of what He has equipped me with to do His will. The lights and thus the fans are not on at the moment. It is hot and buggy and I feel sweaty and kinda gross after a long day. But as I have been wrestling through some frustration earlier this afternoon with how tired I was of perpetually sweating, I was reminded of this. God has given me this day and this time for a purpose. And it is times like this when I am reminded, with some perspective the Holy Spirit likely drew to my attention, that my moments of discomfort and actually teensy tiny and will dwarf in comparison to the glory of eternal life in heaven.  "And this world is fading away, along with everything it craves. But if you do the will of God, you will live forever." 1 John 2:17. 

Cosas van y tiempo pasa....

Another quick update. Unfortunately, I think my lack of access to a desktop computer has hindered my ability to update my blog as in-depth as I would like. I have been typing everything on my iPod and connecting to Wifi when I am in town. Also because of this, please excuse any silly AutoCorrect typos.   But, as I am learning, I am thankful for God's provision in all ways. I may not have electricity all the time, but I am sure am grateful when we do. I may be sick of rice and beans, but the LORD has seen it fit to provide food, so I am thankful. And though we had lizards in our house the first week, we are still living at a level of comfort above many of our neighbors. Perspective is where it is at.  This trip has stripped down some of my presuppositions about full-time ministry. It is about a lifestyle. Over the years, I have seen God transform my view of missions as something that only people who grew up with that sense of calling and read their Bibles for hours on end every day were supposed to do, to seeing it is basically the Christian lifestyle. If you are a professing Christian, shouldn't your life always be ministry? We are all called to serve the LORD with our lives and that looks as different as the Body of Christ looks. I have learned that missionaries still go on Facebook. They enjoy listening to music or sermons on their iPods sometimes. They enjoy a good day on the beach complete with some Dominican cliff-jumping as much as the next person. Don't get me wrong, I think that it is important to be in tune to what God may be calling you to give up for Him as far as creature comforts and self-sacrifice go. But my vision for full-time ministry is truly a holistic thing now, as opposed to a living-in-a-hut kind of thing. (Although some missionaries may live in huts).  God has been teaching me to serve Him in all that I do. No task is too menial for the Kingdom of God. As I found myself struggling with the importance of cutting out a craft for my second-grade class for the zillionth time, I was reminded that first off, my attitude needed a check. I am NEVER too good to do small work. And second, God is glorified even when I work for Him in the small things. Things like telling my second graders to "Siéntate" (sit down) for the millionth time, or resharpening all the colored pencils, or picking up paper scraps. I pray the kids would see even a glimpse of Christ's humility in me, and that in our interactions they would know that it is His love that compels me. That has been my prayer.  A crazy thing happens when you find that communication is difficult, as it often is being the only English-speaker in a classroom of sweet yet squirrely second-graders for two hours every morning. You begin to realize where your own ability ends and begin to seek God's so much more. Even in my first language, kids don't always enjoy listening. It is during moments of frustration, or noticing the child who always seems to agitate the others, or the girl who seems hard-hearted, stubborn, and closed off. That is when I have learned to pray without ceasing. To lift up these kids whose story I may not specifically know, but knowing that the Only One who can fully restore the hurting parts of their lives is Jesus.  I am thankful for God's hand of safety as we have been using public transportation often. I am thankful for the rain this past week that cooled off the heat of Caraballo and let us use our sheets at night. I am grateful for my Dominican and Haitian co-workers, whose heart for the LORD is both an encouragement and something that spurns me on to love Jesus more. I am grateful for the body the LORD has gave me to love on these children, to kiss their sweet heads and give running hugs and high-fives as they run into the comedor (cafeteria) to eat. I am grateful for the kindness of our landlord and next-door neighbor, who has helped us feel both safe and comfortable in a new living space. And who has killed a rather large spider for us. I am also grateful for so many of you. I know that I would not have been able to go on this trip without the financial provision of God through many of you, and equally as unable to be here without your faithful prayers. My heart has been warmed many times thinking of my community back home, and I feel so blessed. I wish I could reach through the computer screen right now and give all of you a warm Dominican hug. Three more weeks here, and though I already know it will be hard to leave, I have a sense of God's sovereignty as He leads me wherever He would have me. And I am excited to see so many of your beautiful faces again. Especially those of you who I have not had the privilege of seeing much this summer!  Go with God, my friends.