In the City

Well, once again everyone made it safe and sound, with all their luggage! It was great to see them- remember this is the church where I served for 9 years as Associate of Youth and Education.  They had a smooth day of travel and once they got here, we also had a smooth trip from Santo Domingo to Santiago. 

Randy L. cooperated today by celebrating his birthday so we came back to my house and had a birthday cake and ice cream before getting them to the hotel. They should be resting well- they certainly need it! Most of them have been up since Friday morning! They drove through the night to get to Washington, DC for a 6am flight! 

Tomorrow we will be worshing and leading SS in Los Santos and Villa de Yaque (simultaneuously) and then at 5pm we will be with the folks in the Hole. Pray for their rest and getting settled- Monday we begin a pretty ambitious plan of work! 

Where do the days and weeks go? How is it possible that the Red Sox are already playing? I awoke with a surprise as I turned on my TV and saw the Sox playing- and even pulling off a victory!!

Easter was a great day, as always, depsite the problems we are facing in some of our churches.  Nothing could dampen our joy.  We have had to put one of our members in discipline. We visited with him as a church and shared our decisions- he took it well. We have offered to help him get the help he needs - we will see if he responds with his part.  Please continue to pray for Villa de Yaque.

Monday night, after that visit, we had a community meeting with almost 100 people present. It was a good time of sharing our two new projects- the water and BB court. Spirits were positive. I feel we have a great potential to make some strong in-roads into the community. It may be that this other issue has helped to clarify our true followers and also helped the community see our Biblical stance in the midst of sin.  Please continue to pray for this community and especially this coming week as we get started with these projects with Mill Creek Baptist.

Tuesday night we had a similar meeting in Los Santos- we had an equally positive response though with fewer people. I believe that will also be a success. We are finishing the walls on the church which is exciting!  Please keep them in your prayers as well- these water projects are community based and our prayer is that it will open doors for our churches to share their faith and lead others to the Living Water.

In the midst of all this, I discovered I needed to go to the Port in Santo Domingo to get some water purification trailers out of customs. This was my first experience of receiving merchandise like this- we left at 6am yesterday and got home at 6:30pm. And, while we didn’t succeed in getting the trailers released, we made good progress and I certainly learned a lot.  It is rare that you can do it in one day but I was determined to give it a try! Unfortunately, the Tax Collector didn’t have the disposition to put a reasonable tax on it- they wanted almost US$2000 so we now have to go to another office (the home base of Customs) and see if they will exonerate them.  We couldn’t get back to Santo Domingo in time to get the paper work started so someone will do that for me tomorrow. Hopefully by next week we can get the trailers out. 

Things are moving along so fast- August will be here before I know it. Please pray with me for the remaining months of my time here, for all our projects to take root and move forward, and most of all, for people to continue to grow in their knowledge of the Truth that sets people free.

My trip to Perdenales was incredible- 18 hours of Dominican driving, all in one day! It did me in, to say the least. What we experienced there is beyond words really. A small community, “Nuevas Rosas/New Roses,” literally in the middle of no where- 8 kilometers from the main (only) road, surrounded by farmland with little to no commercial points along the way.  A small community of 26 families, mostly Haitian, living without electricity or water, working for a farmer that runs a small store (the only one) where they can buy their food. It amazes me that in this day and age, there are situations like this. The pastors had told me about this place, but until I saw it I couldn’t feel the hopelessness of their situation. We are studying various options to get them water and from there what else we can do to help them discover new ways to earn their living. Please keep this village in your prayers. They worship in an abandoned school, led by Pedro Jaison/Peter Jason. 

Milagro went with me Tuesday- she kept telling me over and over she had never traveled so far in her life. The coast line was without any exageration the most beautiful I have seen in the whole country. It took your breathe away to see the turqouis blue waters.  I look forward to future trips!  On our journey, we had the priveledge to share with two of our Convention leaders/pastors. What a blessing for all of us! We are encountering a very difficult situation with a brother in Christ who has confessed to a hidden sin that shook us all, and has the potential to destroy another family in the church, not to mention harm the reputation of the church. Please be in prayer for us as we seek to deal with this situation using the Bible and the Holy Spirit as our guide. It is so painful when brothers and sisters in Christ fall into the deadly trap of sin. Pray for Villa de Yaque, that as this becomes known and we deal with it, God will be able to once again bless this community. Pray for repentant hearts!

This year, with my heart heavy from this devastating development with a fallen brother, Good Friday was more vivid for me as I was especially aware of the burden of sin that Christ had to carry.  How can it be that he sacrificed all for people like us, so undeserving?  I look forward to the celebration tomorrow, when we feel the hope and joy of His victory over such evil.  May it be a day of joyful celebrations!

You can tell that it is a holiday week by the relative quiet on the streets in the mornings. The children aren’t going to school! I am off to Perdenales today to visit a site where one of our churches has a ministry to a Haitian village, just this side of the border. (It is about a 7-9 hour drive from Santiago!).  Please pray for our safetly as we travel and for our fellowship as we share en route. It should be a good day. Milagro (from Villa de Yaque) is going with and we will pick up two pastors in the Capital who will join us for the rest of the way.

What are we doing this week?  I met with the folks in the Hole last night- we are going to have a kite flying contest this weekend- who can build the kite that is 1) the biggest 2) flies the highest and 3) nicest looking. Thursday and Friday we will be showing the Passion of Christ in Guayacanal and then in Villa de Yaque.

Wednesday I will be meeting with the church in Villa to finalize some details about our upcoming project with Mill Creek Baptist Church- please keep them in your prayers as they too are meeting to finish up the preparations. This project comes at a good time for the community and for the church. 

Traditionally, this is a week where the majority of the people go to the beach or to the swimming spots and there are lots of fatal injuries. Pray for safety this week and for our civil defense folks as they work hard all week to keep accidents at a minimum.

It has been a great week… Tuesday I had a LONG travel day, visiting with three different ministry leaders, some Dominican, some IMB, some non-IMB.  It was so inspiring to hear how God is working in their lives, using them as instruments to bless the lives of others.  In hearing their stories, I realized once again that when we walk by faith, willing to make “sacrifices”, God is always faithful to care for our needs and even more. 

I have been dealing with a bunch of catch-up and getting ready issues, and trying to sort through issues at the house where I am soon to move.  Unfortunately, since getting back I have been fighting a cold/bug and it has progressively gotten worse. Hence I have been doing my “must-do” list  but not have the energy to spend blogging. Sorry about that. I appreciate your prayers and your checking in- I hope as I begin to feel better and get re-established in my routine, I will be better about sharing through blogging!

What a difference a few hours of travel makes: I left NH Thursday, with its huge snow banks and chilly temperatures, and Friday I was swimming in an outdoor pool, using sunblock to protect my skin! 

Sometimes it is hard to get going again after being away from things. This was one of those times. However, the uneasiness didn’t last too long. I spent most of Friday and Saturday visiting and catching up with friends and the ministry. The basketball court in Villa de Yaque looks GREAT!! We have the well ready to go for the water project too.  Please continue to pray for that church- we were very few today, partly due to the construction and partly due to sickness and other issues. That group of believers is one of the most talented but something has kept them from realizing their full potential. Partly sinful habits among them, partly jealousy or envy, partly just the nature of the barrios. I don’t really know. We had a great converstation about all this today, looking at the life of Esau. Their task this week is to affirm their gifts before one another, and choose their leadership role in the ministry.  Please pray for a loving, affirming, patient spirit to dominate their thinking and talking, that they may reach their full potential in Christ. Remember them also as we prepare for the ministry of Mill Creek in this area- Mill Creek folks will be here March 29-April 4th.

La Canela: I had an exciting visit with Simon- he is taking hold of guiding the Baptist work in his community. Together with another pastor he is organizing a Bible study for the students at the school. We have the opportunity to teach up to 500 young people. Please pray for Simon and Daniel, and the rest of us as we support and help them, as they reach out to the young people of this community.  We have encountered a problem with the water. We think it may be because of filling the tanks from the water from the fire department rather than the regular water.  Simon is working on correcting this problem and we hope to get moving again with the water. Thanks for praying for us that the community, as it benefits from pure water, will encounter the Living Water!

Los Santos: Sol has been given a job- what an answer to prayer! She is working for a foundation: Cuidado Infantil Dominicano (Dominican Child Care). They do community health education and train community health promoters among other things. It is a Christian organization and an excellent opportunity for her. (Carolina is next in line to also be given a job- pray that her spot opens up quickly!)  Mencio, one of the men baptized when the Quest team was here, is desiring to become more of a Christian leader and preacher. What an answer to prayer! Pray for him and his family, and for Sol, as we seek to help him develop his calling and gifts.

I am on my way to Guayacanal and the Hole. I have visited and talked with them and am looking forward to our worship together. Pray for them: The Hole is showing signs of becoming more self sufficient, and Guayacanal is recognizing that they need to be more responsible for their own spiritual health. Pray for us as we seek to keep moving forward obediently. 

They’re married! We had a wonderful time Friday night at the rehearsal dinner and as we cleaned up, the snow began falling. It was a BEAUTIFUL snow- large, soft flakes. It snowed all night (it made it fun trudging in and out from the RV where I was sleeping.)  It snowed ALL day Saturday, right up until we left for the wedding.  All together we had about 5-7 inches of snow. As we left, the sun came out which helped considerably.  The ceremony was beautiful, and then we had a great time at the reception. It is hard to fathom that my first nephew that was born when I was just a sophmore in college is now a married man! We are happy for them, they seem like a wonderful couple, complementing one another. 

It has been a real treat for me to be here and a part of the festivities- I miss too many family events!  Now that the wedding is over, attention will turn to other things. Since I have been home, our whole focus has been getting ready for one thing and another. (We are getting ready for the brunch- all the families on both sides have been invited to get together this morning. The bride and groom are leaving for Kansas around noon.)