So as I sit in this noisy hot computer center I have only visions of pumkin pie, mashed potatoes, and string bean casserole!! My mouth is watering just thinking about it!!! But alas, I must blink and realize there is no Thanksgiving day here in the DR...well in my class there was! I surely did teach my kids about it and we all wrote about things we are thankful for and this is what I wrote:
I am thaknful mostly for family and heath right now. I have been here for nearly 4 months and I really miss everyone. It is amazing how we take each other for granted at times. I am thankful that I can walk and run and play. That I can see and hear and that I have shoes to walk in. I am thankful that I have been protected and that though I have been battling frustration of ¨why am I here¨ God is keeping and guiding me.
After the storm there have been at least 40 people who have died from some sort of disease and things are sorta business as usual. this is weird to me.
I started to think instead of GRAND occurances, maybe the purpose and glory is brought in making conversations and showing the light of CHrist....so I began my dance class and my spanish class and soccer. I guess each will be an avenue to BE a testimony to CHrist and an open door to tell others about Him. Yesterday I met Fernando at the bus station and I was able to talk to him and give him the gospel of Juan t read....I think I am thankful to learn that our power is not ours that prayer is more powerful than anything...
So please pray that I learn ¨to be content in all circumstances...¨¨ as Paul said, and that I learn to ëdify and encourage myself through te word¨
Pray that there may be divine encounters and hearts here would begin to give thanks for a God who cares for them....on this Thanksgiving I am learning to push past myself and die to my feelings to begin to live the truth not based on what I see or how I feel but what HE says....I am Thankful for more days to grow in this knowledge....yo espero que la paz y gozo de dios van estar en sus corazones!! forgive spelling errors!
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Sunday, November 18, 2007
A New Day, A New Direction, Where?
ok friends and family,
I am setling into the vacancy that my firends left behind! Things here are back to being settled. Kari is situated for the most part and we have both decided to go to a church led by a Pastor that is very nice and has been mentored by Pastor David in NJ. I believe that this church will one day be a place of change for many but right now it is small and on the rise...yes I did say I was going somewhere else but God is pulling me here to hep and watch this thing grow.....anyway, I will be home in about 4 weeks and I am very excited about that. A taste of home will be good. For now, please pray that I learn to tap into what God is doing here and realize my role in it all. While I very much like my job and the people and the culture, I believe there is sooooo much more to my purpose in being here and I am feeling quite frustrated in the unknown of it all....But again as always I know God is good and His purposes will come to pass....This is a new level a season on uncomfortable growth and in that the learning of new ways and new disciplines, how to be lessthat He may be more in my life and how to learn to walk in grace and love with all humility while trying to head the still small voice....all of this a bit overwhelming at times....pray for sustanance and joy in the process. Maybe the key is Merengue? Dancing always free the spirit..maybe I will take classes and I guess my boycott of the language will cease and I will begin classes again!!!! ok paz y amor hasta proximo vez....
I am setling into the vacancy that my firends left behind! Things here are back to being settled. Kari is situated for the most part and we have both decided to go to a church led by a Pastor that is very nice and has been mentored by Pastor David in NJ. I believe that this church will one day be a place of change for many but right now it is small and on the rise...yes I did say I was going somewhere else but God is pulling me here to hep and watch this thing grow.....anyway, I will be home in about 4 weeks and I am very excited about that. A taste of home will be good. For now, please pray that I learn to tap into what God is doing here and realize my role in it all. While I very much like my job and the people and the culture, I believe there is sooooo much more to my purpose in being here and I am feeling quite frustrated in the unknown of it all....But again as always I know God is good and His purposes will come to pass....This is a new level a season on uncomfortable growth and in that the learning of new ways and new disciplines, how to be lessthat He may be more in my life and how to learn to walk in grace and love with all humility while trying to head the still small voice....all of this a bit overwhelming at times....pray for sustanance and joy in the process. Maybe the key is Merengue? Dancing always free the spirit..maybe I will take classes and I guess my boycott of the language will cease and I will begin classes again!!!! ok paz y amor hasta proximo vez....
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Christ Church Mission trip news
Hola friends and family!
This week the team of 25 people came from Christ CHurch in Montclair NJ to minister to the people in the DR. It was an awesome thing for me personally because GOd truly knows when we are tired and in need of refreshing and so he brought some of my favorite people for me to share time with. God is amazing bc the team was scheduled to come even before the storm and so many of the original plans were changed. it's just like GOd to keep us flexible and on our toes...and that He did.
The beginning of the week was a bit disorganized in the places we were going and thge supplies we were to need. We met up with a local church to distribute food and clothing to a community in San Cristobal. The people there were very desperate bc they has lost so much in the storm and so they were a bit roudy and the men used lots of muscles! There were two locations and food was distribiuted from an orphanage and a church location. Many people received prayer and encouragement.
Tuesday unfortunately I had to work but the team went to the smae community and some of the people even began to throw rocks in anger when the food ran out! Desperation was evident.
Next we went towork wit hDenise a missionary here that I have become friendly with. She runs Nazerene Compassionate minstries here and we painted her community center...Half the group went to distribute water and the other half went shopping for supplies.
The next two days were the best as God was beggiuning to speak to us to loose our frustration from disorder and he was calling us to seek him in a different way and begin to fight against the spiritual things that are holding on to people here. We went to Bonoa a community that was still a mess from the storm....it rained alot but we filled the ground with dirt to soak up the water and then we prayed with many families. It was an awesome experience to worship and praise with them.
Friday we went to a very poor Haitian community and we really saw the violence that exists among the people and we tried to love on the kids there....again there was desperation bc they are seen as illegal and illigitimate in the DR and so no relief is given to them...the racial prejudice is very bad.
Finally today we were off for a bit and my friends came to my house and we did the "livin in DR" thing at the supermarcado and banco! Then we went ane prayed for the children at the chuldren's hospital...
If all that isn't enough, God chose dinnertime to call my roommate in to HIs kingdom and she was saved!!! That made my whole experience complete.
Missions is awesome and when you are looking from behind it is different than looking from the head. I was able to see from both. It was different and he is stretching me....to be continued!
This week the team of 25 people came from Christ CHurch in Montclair NJ to minister to the people in the DR. It was an awesome thing for me personally because GOd truly knows when we are tired and in need of refreshing and so he brought some of my favorite people for me to share time with. God is amazing bc the team was scheduled to come even before the storm and so many of the original plans were changed. it's just like GOd to keep us flexible and on our toes...and that He did.
The beginning of the week was a bit disorganized in the places we were going and thge supplies we were to need. We met up with a local church to distribute food and clothing to a community in San Cristobal. The people there were very desperate bc they has lost so much in the storm and so they were a bit roudy and the men used lots of muscles! There were two locations and food was distribiuted from an orphanage and a church location. Many people received prayer and encouragement.
Tuesday unfortunately I had to work but the team went to the smae community and some of the people even began to throw rocks in anger when the food ran out! Desperation was evident.
Next we went towork wit hDenise a missionary here that I have become friendly with. She runs Nazerene Compassionate minstries here and we painted her community center...Half the group went to distribute water and the other half went shopping for supplies.
The next two days were the best as God was beggiuning to speak to us to loose our frustration from disorder and he was calling us to seek him in a different way and begin to fight against the spiritual things that are holding on to people here. We went to Bonoa a community that was still a mess from the storm....it rained alot but we filled the ground with dirt to soak up the water and then we prayed with many families. It was an awesome experience to worship and praise with them.
Friday we went to a very poor Haitian community and we really saw the violence that exists among the people and we tried to love on the kids there....again there was desperation bc they are seen as illegal and illigitimate in the DR and so no relief is given to them...the racial prejudice is very bad.
Finally today we were off for a bit and my friends came to my house and we did the "livin in DR" thing at the supermarcado and banco! Then we went ane prayed for the children at the chuldren's hospital...
If all that isn't enough, God chose dinnertime to call my roommate in to HIs kingdom and she was saved!!! That made my whole experience complete.
Missions is awesome and when you are looking from behind it is different than looking from the head. I was able to see from both. It was different and he is stretching me....to be continued!
Thursday, November 1, 2007
Noel 2007
First of all THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!! Family and friends you have no idea how great it is to be supported and feel you love while there is a disaster going on. So many of you called (or tried) and wrote emails.
Ok the situation here is bad. I am great and my place is in a good area but my street floods abit. There have been more than 200 deaths and about 25, 000 people displaced. The rivers and arroyos have overflowed into houses stealing lives and clothing and crops have completely swept away.
in the most affected areas there has been a road that broke opff like a bridge and left a whole community disconnected. there have been many mainframe power lines that fell but all in all people are ok right now. There are many schools and churches housing those affected and humanitarian groups are trying to help too. The governement is doing alittole but MANY of the people affected are illegals from Haiti and they get NO aide bc tey are not registered here! Isn´t that nuts? Anyway, people are in good spirits. we have a missions team coming Sunday whose plans will now be changed to doing relief work.
I know that GOd is Lord of all and though the rain continues to fall at times, He has a plan. i have recently learned of various Voodoo roots and groups taht celebrate here during some seasons...maube god is washing the Land and creating a desperationin people´s hearts to seek the Truth? Please be praying for this nation and Haiti. love you and thanks Jaime
Ok the situation here is bad. I am great and my place is in a good area but my street floods abit. There have been more than 200 deaths and about 25, 000 people displaced. The rivers and arroyos have overflowed into houses stealing lives and clothing and crops have completely swept away.
in the most affected areas there has been a road that broke opff like a bridge and left a whole community disconnected. there have been many mainframe power lines that fell but all in all people are ok right now. There are many schools and churches housing those affected and humanitarian groups are trying to help too. The governement is doing alittole but MANY of the people affected are illegals from Haiti and they get NO aide bc tey are not registered here! Isn´t that nuts? Anyway, people are in good spirits. we have a missions team coming Sunday whose plans will now be changed to doing relief work.
I know that GOd is Lord of all and though the rain continues to fall at times, He has a plan. i have recently learned of various Voodoo roots and groups taht celebrate here during some seasons...maube god is washing the Land and creating a desperationin people´s hearts to seek the Truth? Please be praying for this nation and Haiti. love you and thanks Jaime
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