Why Wednesday is My Favorite Day

Each Wednesday at 1pm, the Stint team and students from Vida Estudiantil meet up outside the library to share our faith. The first thirty minutes are spent reading a passage from the Bible that helps us understand more about why we share our faith and discuss what we can learn from the example Jesus set for us. We also do some sort of training—how to prepare and share your testimony, using illustrations to communicate the Gospel, becoming familiar with booklets and other materials to share with people—before splitting up in pairs to tell UASD students about knowing God.  

This past Wednesday, I got partnered up with José*, a pre-Med student who has been part of our movement since the spring break teams came last March. This student was led to know Christ through their visit, another reminder of how important even short team missions are!

We forgot to bring the Four Spiritual Laws with us, a booklet that illustrates clearly and briefly the main points of the Gospel, but went out anyway trusting that God would help us communicate clearly how much he loves us and how in need we are of Jesus.

I was astounded when during our conversation, José* shared with the girl we were speaking to all of the main points and key scriptures from the Four Spiritual Laws from memory; he even recalled the illustrations and drew them himself on a scratch piece of paper. He also used his own illustration about how receiving Christ’s gift of salvation is like a sick person taking the prescribed medication that will make them well again. To not take the medicine is to deny the very aid you need. What I thought was cool about his example was the way he used his interest in medicine to clarify a spiritual truth.

It was encouraging to see how over the last eight months, José* has grown in his personal walk with the Lord and understands his role as Christ’s ambassador. His dedication to memorizing the truths that could speak most clearly to lost people challenged me to be more prepared to give an answer to anticipated questions about God.

I share this story with you for two reasons. One, because I want you all to be informed about what God is doing through the ministry he has sent me to serve and how you can be praying for us. Second, I hope that hearing stories about how young adults—even those with little time walking with the Lord—are living missionally will encourage other Christ-followers to be more bold about sharing their faith. 

If you’re interested in getting your hands on the Four Spiritual Laws and other tools to help you communicate the Gospel with others, download this great iPhone app or visit this link.

Josh with some students during evangelism time

Investing Your Life in Others

I want to share with you a major part of what you might technically call my “job” as a missionary, but really is so much more than that to me.

As a team, the six of us are here to support the current group of students and staff that make up Vida Estudiantil (Campus Crusade for Christ or Cru). Simply put, our presence here allows us to be committed to reaching more students at UASD for Christ, equipping students to do the same, and proving resources and an environment where they can grow in their faith.

Something that I have found particularly rewarding is my time with my disciples, three girls that I meet with weekly that are seeking a deeper relationship with the Lord and how to follow him. Together, we are all learning practical ways that we can understand God’s will for our lives through various materials.

With two of the girls, we are studying apologetics (rational basis for the Christian faith, click link to find articles on this topic) which is helping us realize the importance of understanding what we believe and how to communicate that clearly to others. One of them is also reading Beth Moore’s So Long Insecurity after I read it as recommended by one of my supporters back home. We are hoping to get a hold of a Spanish copy so the other can read it too!

 

With the third girl, we are reading a book called Taking Every Thought Captive by Jerusha Clark. As we read, she and I have been made aware of the lies that we have been deceived by about our worth, relationships with others, and our God. It’s been exciting that as I share what I am learning, she is vulnerable with me and is allowing the Lord to help her have a healthier thought life.

God has been teaching me what it means to really invest in these girls’ lives. I want each of them them, as well as any student in our ministry, to know God deeply and be equipped to bring others into a meaningful relationship with Him too. A verse that helped me understand how to do that better is 1 Thessalonians 2:8:

We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God, but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us.

Just as Jesus demonstrated the significance of “doing life” with his twelve disciples, Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians tells us that sharing every day life moments with them was a crucial (and enjoyable!) part of his ministry.

It has been such a cool thing to see how the girls God has given me to care for are opening up more and more as we share normal experiences like going grocery shopping, eating lunch together, visiting each others’ homes, discussing our family trees, even cleaning together! Every meeting with them doesn’t have to consist of a huge spiritual revelation. I will never be able to love them fully if all I am seeking is to force spiritual growth on them. But building friendships filled with fun, silliness, sharing of burdens, intentional conversations, and prayer will help me better understand how to serve them and draw them nearer to God.

You don’t have to be a missionary to invest in other people’s lives. God has given each of you people in your sphere of influence with whom you can reveal his love by simply sharing life with them. My prayer is that all of us would be able to love these people genuinely, not seeing them as some sort of project that could benefit from our time and expertise, but waiting on the Lord to show us how to point them to Him as we place ourselves in their lives. 

Little Things That Bring Me Joy #4

Yesterday, my parents celebrated their 20th wedding anniversary! The coolest part of this day for me—and every year I always seem to forget so it’s a surprise every time—is that my Dad gives me a call and tells me Happy Anniversary too.

Twenty years ago, in my parents wedding ceremony, my Dad called three year old Jessica up to the altar to place a necklace around my neck as he told me that he was not just committing to being a good husband to my mom, but a father to me.

Even separated by 3,000 miles, I still got a long distance call from my Daddy yesterday to say “Happy Anniversary.” Definitely brought me joy as I thought about what a special gift he is!

When I was having a really tough time in the DR last year, he was on a plane a week later to celebrate Thanksgiving with me, he always offers a perfect mix of gentleness and strength when I need him, he planned an incredible three week trip to Europe just for the two of us, and is the best example I have of what it means to live with Christ-like integrity and wisdom. Love you Daddy!

Attempt at Perfect

I’ve been distracted from blogging for a while. We’ve had quite a few visitors this month and have been keeping busy, but I’ve also been sick all week—which has given me some time to reflect on a few things.

A month ago, my roommate Katie told me about how some friends of hers dedicated an entire year to making the perfect batch of chocolate chip cookies. They would bake at least a batch a week, trying different recipes, playing with oven temperatures, tweaking measurements. The best part is that everyone got to be taste testers in the mean time.

So we decided that we should take on a challenge of our own, to use this year to “perfect” a culinary endeavor. What will mine be?

Scones.

For those of you who have not had the pleasure of trying one of these delectable foods (perhaps you were more of a muffin person when faced with the decision at Starbucks), scones are a British biscuit-like snack that many enjoy with tea. Personally, I treasure scones for how they contributed to one of my fondest memories growing up of having tea parties with my mom, grandma, and siblings.

I finally got around to baking a batch this weekend. Here’s the basic recipe I used, though had to make a few cultural adjustments (stores don’t sell baking soda or buttermilk; fortunately these are easy to substitute). 

They came out pretty great!

As I ate my tasty scone, I reflected on what it means to be made perfect. My scones tasted great already, but were they perfect? What would need to be changed about them to be without flaw? If people eat and enjoy them, does it really matter then if they are perfect?

To confess, I have been guilty of trying to make myself perfect. I recently discovered this (though not for the first time in my life) as I realized how worn out I was and how much I depend on affirmation from the things I am able to accomplish.

Key example: the first couple days of being sick, I felt really guilty for watching t.v. when I could have been working on something productive—emails, newsletters, this blog, even studying the Bible.

Yikes. This is when I realized that I need to relearn what it means to rely on God’s grace and remember that love is the greatest thing He’s asked from me.

A recent entry of a blog I subscribe to called The Resurgence puts it this way:

“…Our humanness is bound up in imperfection and that Jesus has perfected us by grace and thus we press on for his words of “Well done” and nobody else’s.”  

Long story short, I am not perfect and my scones will probably never be either, but both are still enjoyed despite their flaws!

The Cost of Transformation

I wrote the following exactly a year ago today. It’s amusing to read things you’ve written in the past, and I share it on my blog today because even after an entire year, it still has meaning for me.

We're studying Forgotten God in our small group and this question got some heavy reactions:

"Are you open to being transformed [by the Holy Spirit] no matter what that may mean for your life? If you do want to be changed, why do you desire this? If you don't, what is keeping you from desiring this change?"

So what is my answer?

Before I offer it, I want to share how the story of Elijah has captivated me lately. The story is in 1 Kings 17-19. What caught my attention was what he said in Chapter 19, verses 3,4:

Elijah was afraid and fled for his life. He went to Beersheba, a town in Judah, and he left his servant there. Then he went alone into the wilderness, traveling all day. He sat down under a solitary broom tree and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, Lord,” he said. “Take my life, for I am no better than my ancestors who have already died."

I can totally relate with what I imagine Elijah was feeling. His lament followed a sequence of events in which he saw God provide free refills of flour and oil to a widow, raise her child from the dead, burn an offering that was drenched in water, send rain after years of drought, and run faster than a chariot to escape that rain. In all honesty, this man saw God do astounding things. What could cause him to find himself alone and waiting for death to take him? Was it taxing on him when the widow cursed God for allowing her son to die? Was he nervous when the worshippers of Baal were calling on their god to ignite their offering? Did he feel burdened in being the one to pray fervently for the rain to come? Surely Jezebel's threat of death sent him right over the edge.

I said that I can relate to Elijah. While I've never witnessed God's work in the same way that Elijah did, I have seen God do mighty things before my eyes. When I asked for a way out of the temptation to follow my peers and their recreational drinking for sake of keeping companionship, he provided a community of new friends who were truly following Christ, who were fun and helped me walk in a path that was life giving. I received courage as the Lord brought me to East Asia to share the Gospel with college students and witness some give their lives to Christ despite a language barrier and a strong opposition by the national government. Now as I am in the Dominican Republic, I am leading our team of five young adults who have never been out of the country for a year, not to mention never with the sole purpose of reaching students for Christ as a profession. We don't know what students need to hear to be free to experience Christ, my Spanish is at best mediocre, and our team dynamics are far from seamless.Despite how I've seen God work in my past, most days the weight of these responsibilities brings me to the same disposition as Elijah: "Take my life, for I am no better than my ancestors who have already died."

Before we answer if we are open to transformation by the Spirit, we have to analyze the cost.

Is it too honest to share that there are days when I wish that the success of my job didn't depend on God working through me? That it would be more comfortable for me to go back to being a high school math teacher where I can put in the hours of preparing lessons for students, being a good role model for eight hours a day, then go home and relax?

Instead, I am challenged with continuously seeking God's counsel to lead my team with wisdom and strength to obey his commands. When the Spirit asks me to drop my anger towards a teammate and spend time in prayer that unity and love would abound, I can't help but think, "No, thank you!" When the Spirit is asking me to lead my team in a time of worship, I want to crawl in a hole and stay there because I'd rather be shy about my gifts of singing and playing the guitar than to trust God that His Spirit will provide much needed rejuvenation to our team despite my lack of proper training.

So how can we be sure that the benefits of letting the Spirit transform our lives out weigh the costs?

Growing up, my mom always challenged me to do socially risky things: sing in talent shows, try out for cheer, run for student government, wear a super trendy outfit to school, take back food that wasn't cooked to order. I always groaned and tried to get out of doing these things, but she always convinced me that it really wasn't that big of a deal and that I had more to gain than to lose. I'll never forget the day that I learned that the reason she pressed me so hard was because she was too afraid to take these kinds of risks! We were at a water park and she refused to go down the water slide. Even after I told her how much fun it would be and that it wasn't that scary, she still resisted.

While I won't compare the thrill of living in compliance to the beckoning of the Holy Spirit to a trip down a water slide, it does help me realize how much I've gained when I've accepted my mom's challenges and how much we have to gain when we take the risks He asks us to take. I received attention and appreciation by my family when I sang for them. In cheer, I was able to express myself through movement and blossom in a time when my self confidence was in need of a boost. Being in student government put me in situations where I needed to meet new people and I saw myself being able to encourage those who felt unseen in our student body.

We won't always know what the benefits are of following the Holy Spirit. They might not even benefit ourselves, but someone else. If I want my answer to be "Yes, I want to be transformed by the Holy Spirit no matter what it may mean for my life," I have to remind myself daily of the truth in Psalm 84:10-12:

A single day in your courts is better than a thousand anywhere else! I would rather be a gatekeeper in the house of my God than live the good life in the homes of the wicked. For the Lord God is our sun and our shield. He gives us grace and glory. The Lord will withhold no good thing from those who do what is right. O Lord of Heaven's Armies, what joy for those who trust in you.

Little Things That Bring Me Joy #3

Playing games is a favorite family pastime, college experience, and one way that I still enjoy interacting with friends. They can be fast paced like Catch Phrase and Speed, or thought provoking and strategic like Settlers of Catan or Bang.

A fun group game that I haven’t gotten to play since my days at ASU (a whole year ago I know…) is Mafia. For those of you unfamiliar with the game, it’s basically where all players are secretly given roles and everyone has to figure out which ones are the Mafia by reasoning it out with the other players.

My moment of joy today was seeing five of my Dominican friends—including Leyla—learn the game as they played it with us for the first time and love it! After one round, they begged to play again. I am loving being able to bring in pieces of what is fun to us into our growing relationship with them.

It was a little tricky to play the bilingual version, pero vale la pena!

Eucharisteo

This post was really hard for me to sit down to write.

I will only use one sentence to describe the chaos that has been overwhelming me last week:

Our electricity has been completely out for eight days now—no fridge, washing machine, internet, lights, hair dryer, charging of phones…nothing!

There’s no need to go into the gory details of how that’s affected our daily lives, because this post is not aimed to glorify the problem, but rather glorify our Caretaker.

You know how people say they hate praying for patience because then they are faced with situations that require patience? Well, since this summer I’ve been seeking to know the joy that comes from gratitude. Hence, the electricity has been out among other circumstances that force me to look a little harder to find that beauty amidst the ugly.

It may be hard for us Westerners to relate to the passage in Matthew 6 about worrying over what we will eat, drink, or wear because God knows and provides for our needs. Even as I go on week two of no electricity, I still have my fundamental needs met and then some.

But I don’t think it matters how difficult a trial we are walking through; God still wants to be our provider AND even more importantly, wants us to experience joy regardless of our circumstances:

I know what it is to be in need and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. Philippians 4:12

But how is that joy possible when the world is chaos around me? Ann Voscamp, author of 1,000 Gifts puts it this way:

“I would never experience the fullness of my salvation until I expressed the fullness of my thanks every day.” (40)

Eucharisteo in the Greek language means “to give thanks” and is where the practice of Eucharist, or taking communion, gets its name.

The secret of being content and filled with joy despite your circumstances is recognizing that there are many things to be grateful for. That God is still good. That He is not withholding electricity from my apartment because He doesn’t love me, but He dearly loves me and I can experience that love despite that problem.

I don’t know if that makes much sense, and I hope no one reads this thinking I never complain about things because I’m grateful for the good things in life (believe me, I can be an expert complainer!) But I just want others to know that there is peace and joy to be found when we choose to seek God, thank God, and enjoy the good things of life. 

One step at a time

While the coast we live next to in Santo Domingo isn’t what I’d call a beach, the paved sidewalks that line rocky cliffs hugging the water make an ideal running trail. Normally when I run, I can’t think of anything except for what’s playing on my iPod, but today I actually learned something.

I was on my return from the halfway point and still had yet to pass Adrian Tropical, this restaurant that serves as my “only ten minutes to go” landmark. I had already been running for fifteen minutes, I was tired, and wanted to give myself a break by walking for a bit. I tried to justify it by saying to myself, “I’ve already ran for twenty minutes…I worked out yesterday…what would stopping for a few minutes do to me?”

I even tried thinking of the satisfaction finishing a thirty minute run having given it my all the entire time would bring me (I’ve never been much of a long distance runner, so for me thirty minutes is plenty). But fifteen more minutes of giving it my all seemed too overwhelming to attempt.

Then Matthew 6:34 came to mind:

Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.

As I meditated for a moment on how Jesus tells us to live life one day at a time, I was encouraged to complete my run the same way—one step at a time.

Literally, for the next full minute I kept mentally repeating after each step, “That one wasn’t so bad.” Before I knew it, I was back to my starting point and as I stretched out my sore muscles, I thanked the Lord for empowering me to attain that satisfaction of finishing well.

It may seem silly to find such victory in completing a half hour morning run this way, but I write about it because it really helped me make the connection between what we are incapable of doing on our own strength and what we can do in God’s when we walk with Him one day—or step—at a time.

A glimpse of the sunrise from the Malecon is worth waking up early for

Little Things That Bring Me Joy #2

Finally bought a toaster for our apartment. That’s another thing I went without last year. It’s just easier to put a slice of bread in there and wait a few seconds for evenly cooked toast.

The fact that we now have a toaster is great, but it’s the way that it springs the toast out of the machine like those guns that launch  free t-shirts into the crowd at sporting events that makes me giggle.

It’s like it wants me to play hide and go seek with the toast. As I look into the toaster for my two slices of bread for my sandwich and only spot one, I can almost hear it taunting me: “Oh ho, gotcha this time. You’re probably wondering if you’ve lost your mind and really did put two pieces in or not. Sure try and find it if you think it’s really there…”

About 10 seconds later—which is really 9 seconds too long—I find the previously launched toast laying inside a bowl we keep by the microwave.

Though it’s not something I spend my whole day laughing about, those few moments of searching for my food from the springy toaster brings a smile to my face.

And anything that can do that is worthy of being added to my joy.

Little Things That Bring Me Joy #1

I decided to add this section to my blog as seeking and valuing the good things in life—no matter how small—has been a recent objective of mine. The challenge was inspired by Ann Voskamp’s book 1,000 Gifts.

Worth the watch, here’s a four minute trailer for the book that has helped me recognize God’s blessings in the mundane.

Ann Voskamp’s book inspires the blessings of gratitude

Now on to my joyful experience for the day.

I’ve never bought a dragon fruit before. In fact, I didn’t know what it was called until I Googled it when I got home from the local Domincan super market. It was an impulse buy; I was curious to find out what this artichoke gone pepto bismol tasted like:

Laying forgotten in my refrigerator for a few days, I realized I still needed to figure out how to eat this thing. I asked my roommate to look into the proper way to cut and eat a dragon fruit as I placed it on the cutting board. “Slice it vertically like a kiwi,” she says from the dining room.

I can’t explain why, but I got this unexpected rush of anticipation as I prepared to reveal the insides of this intriguing fruit. What color would it be? Would it have seeds like an orange? Would it hold its form when cut open, or gush juices all over the place?

I can’t remember ever reacting this way to a simple task as cutting open a piece of fruit, but as the two halves fell open I gasped in awe of what I saw. Shocking fuchsia brilliantly complemented with beady black seeds and a texture like sherbet.

This experience of seeing the inside of a fruit for the first time may seem trivial to some, but to me it was like God sharing with me His wonder and tenderness through His creativity.

I am thankful for the reminder that the dragon fruit brought me:

God is good.

He makes beautiful things.

He loves to bring us joy through his creation.

He loves to bring us joy through our experiences.

He loves me.

What brings you joy today?

Music makes you well

One of my favorite stories in the Bible (or at least makes the top 20 list) is in 1 Samuel 16 where King Saul’s soul had been troubled by a spirit that made him feel depressed and full of fear. His servants encouraged him with the following advice:

“Find a good musician to play the harp whenever the tormenting spirit troubles you. He will play soothing music, and you will soon be well again.”     1 Samuel 16:16

David, a God fearing man, shepherd, and harpist, was appointed for the job and as the King’s men suggested, Saul’s spirits would be lifted whenever he played the harp for him.

I love this story because it confirms why sometimes listening to music brings me comfort, encouragement, perseverance, and peace. Music can be a very powerful ailment for our sufferings when the words are edifying and promote wholeness.

I’ve often been one to benefit from others’ music recommendations, so here’s one for you guys that has inspired me to remember the important stuff in life. It’s by one of my favorite artists—Francesca Battistelli—and the rest of her songs are just as awesome. Buen provecho!

This is the Stuff

Do you have to speak Spanish?

A lot of people ask this question when I tell them that our team will be working full time with college students in the Dominican Republic. One reason why I chose this country to do my Stint over others was for the opportunity to use the Spanish I had studied for five years while in Jr/Sr High.

Even with my plethora of book knowledge, I found listening and speaking a bit beyond my capabilities upon my initial arrival to the DR last year. Thankfully, my vocabulary and verb tense skills sharpened up throughout those first ten months as I spent more time doing life amongst Dominicans.

I’m pretty fluent now (someone even thought I was Dominican the other day!) However, half of our team is just beginning to add Spanish to their language repertoire.

Though it’s only been two weeks since our team has been in country, I’ve been delighted to find evidence that supports one doesn’t need to know Spanish right off the bat to make an impact in the Dominican Republic. One teammate has made connections with over a dozen students already by simply picking up a basketball or tennis racket and communicating through his actions on the court. One girl asks lots of questions and carries a small notebook with her where she jots down new words, phrases, and even Dominican recipes! Another teammate has an incredible ability to understand the gist of what is going on in a conversation and ask insightful questions that help spur the discussion further.

While I wouldn’t tell my teammates that developing their language skills isn’t important, I would say that humility and compassion for Dominicans are two qualities that would go a long way as they seek to demonstrate Christ’s love at UASD.

I can’t write this entry without thinking about the 90 students we received in spring break and summer project teams. The majority of them were not Spanish speakers, yet we are currently ministering to students that they initially reached out to!

So shout out to my three teammates who are kicking butt and taking names as they combat tropical heat plus cultural overload, yet still manage to build solid relationships with students; and another to all those that have come to serve the people of the DR and found a way to love them when you couldn’t speak their language. To me, you all have lived out what Paul encourages the Corinthians to be to the lost:

I try to find common ground with everyone, doing everything I can to save some. I do everything to spread the Good News and share in its blessings.   1 Corinthians 9:22b,23

Ricardo getting to know the guys in a tennis match on campus

 

What’s it like to be a student at UASD?

Some of you have recently started reading my blog or just joined my support team, and as I’m going through the process of reacquainting myself with the main university we’re serving in the Dominican Republic, I deemed it important to share with you a little bit about UASD (Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo).

There are 120,000 students on the main campus, making it nearly double the size of the largest university in the States (which happens to be my alma mater: ASU). It’s a public university with a history; it was the first university in the Americas, founded in 1538.

So what’s it like to be a Uasdiano (student at UASD)? While tuition can be as low as 6 pesos (equivalent of 16 cents) per credit hour for those that attended public high school, they can spend a small fortune just getting to and from school everyday. For someone who takes class Monday-Saturday (which is quite common), they can spend about $15 a week taking public transportation.

Another challenge students are faced with is an inadequate study environment. I went to class with a friend once and the lights were out, some students had to stand or sit on the floor since there weren’t enough desks, and the sound of construction outside made it nearly impossible to hear the professor.

Students walking to class while construction of the Engineering building is in progress

Of course UASD has some redeeming qualities that makes it worthwhile to study there. Besides the fact that it is the most affordable option in the country, it is also well recognized by academic institutions abroad making transfers and advanced education more attainable.

What I love most about UASD culture is the ease of meeting people on campus. You can’t go far without seeing a group of students sitting leisurely on the grass or friends spending their free hours in between classes on a shady bench. Ask one to tell you about Dominican culture and they’ll talk to you for hours. I so enjoy their openness to make new friends and jump into conversation on any subject.

Spiritually speaking, most Uasdianos belong to a church (Catholic, Evangelical, Protestant being the most common). Collectively, Vida Estudiantil and the Stint team last year had over 1,000 spiritual conversations on campus. Something we learned from those discussions was that being affiliated with a religion doesn’t necessarily reflect a genuine faith in God. Many students that consistently attended church and believed in the divinity of Christ and existence of God would say they didn’t feel ready to have a personal relationship with Him. To illustrate how cultural religion in the Dominican Republic is, we learned that even atheists were familiar with Scripture quoting multiple passages. 

There are a lot of faithful believers at UASD, and it’s encouraging to see groups of people meeting for Bible studies around campus throughout the week. But if I were to choose one verse that reflected the general spiritual need for UASD it would be this:

“Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. On judgment day many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’  But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’”    Matthew 7:21-23 NLT

I’m still learning about what God’s doing at UASD. This week our team will be heading to campus daily to do some intentional studying of the university and its students so that we can minister more effectively to them. Pray for the students of UASD and our team so that more people can come to have an abundant life with God!

Mighty Creator

Something I’ve been really excited to do this year with my team is a study on the different characteristics of God. We’ll be using Ann Spangler’s book The Names of God as our daily devotional to help us learn and meditate on what it means to recognize God for the various identities that He has.

Today, our team learned that God is Elohim, our Mighty Creator. This is the first name used for God in the Bible during the description of how the universe was created. The coolest part of our conversation was when we shared how we experience and benefit from His creation in our daily lives. Here’s a few of the daily gifts that we receive through His works:

The majestic display of lightening from behind dark hurricane clouds

The vast variety of living things, even just on the street that we live on. We take joy in seeing the mango trees, palms, and orchids that brighten up our urban apartment neighborhood.

The power of the ocean as the waves crash against the cliffs.

His overwhelming presence in silence.

It was so refreshing to talk about the ways that God’s creation have refreshed our souls. I’m looking forward to learning more about His character together this year and falling more in love with who He is.

And I just have to put this shout out in here:

Today is my teammate, Katie’s birthday! She rocked it practicing her Spanish on campus today and gave our team a great reason to come together and celebrate.

Katie meeting students for the first time at UASD

Things I lived without last year

I thought my experience from our “moving in” shopping trip today would be a great illustration of what it’s been like as I begin my second year of Stint to the Dominican Republic.

I’m not sure if my new teammates thought I was managing with less, just being frugal, or plain out of my mind last year when I told them that we’d have to buy an oscillating fan, ice trays, and a kitchen trashcan since we didn’t currently possess any of those. Now that I’m sitting in the living room with the fan creating a cool, forceful breeze, I’m beginning to think I was on the brink of insanity too!

As I followed my teammates around the department store trying to remember why I went all last year without some of those items that they considered basic, it hit me that although I was returning for the same length of time to the same location, this year wouldn’t be a repeat of the last. Jimmy and I are not the same unsure and sprouting leaders that we were at the beginning of last year now that we’ve gained the gift of experience. My four other teammates are not the same people that joined us last year (whom I keep thinking I’m about to see walk around the apartment any second now).

On the other hand, some things haven’t changed a bit. Which brings me comfort. As we drove up to our old apartment, geared up to move back in, I got such a wave of excitement. This is my cowntry! (country of course sounds much better in a Dominican accent). I missed the eloquence of the flow-y Caribbean Spanish, the ease of taking public transportation, the teal blue sea right outside my window. Mmm! Love it.

So I look forward to embracing the new while growing more in love with the home that I was introduced to exactly one year ago. I trust that God will use the experience and compassion from last year to help me lead my team more aptly. I trust Him to use my new friends/co-workers/roommates to powerfully impact the students as they commit themselves to serving the Dominican people. I trust Him to bind our team together in unity. I trust that at the end of this year, I will be more in love with Him than I was when I first accepted the call of Stint and than I am with Him now.

Our team, left to right: Ricardo, Katie, me, Maira, Josh, and Jimmy at briefing in Chicago.

Massive shopping trip where we broke the news that our milk will now come in a cardboard box.

It’s not the DR if you’re not squished in a car having a great time!

Is it ok to hope?

I haven’t updated you much since I’ve been back from the DR, mainly because I’m pressed for time as I’m trying to reconnect with lots of people while I’m briefly back in the States. However, I’ve received multiple requests to blog about this, so here it goes:

I, like many other young adults, have reached the stage in life where it seems like all of my friends are either engaged, married, or talking about getting married. And I, like many other single women, am left asking myself, “When will it be my turn?”

Now before any of you start thinking that I am just another one of those fantasy chasing, needs-a-man-to-complete-me, constantly daydreams about her wedding kind of girl, let me say this: I have found the last few years of my life to be an adventure in which God has drawn me more in love and satisfied with Him than ever. I’ve gotten to live in another culture, come alive through significant conversations with others, and gained confidence through the experiences God has enabled me to walk through. I would continue to live this way in my singleness for the rest of my life if that’s what He’d call me to do.  But that’s not what this post is about.

This post is about my journey of seeking an answer to why I have this desire—at times an aching longing—for a life long companion.

Have you ever hinted to your parents that you want a certain gift for Christmas and desperately hope they actually get it for you? You know, with the same kind of desperation Ralphie had for the Red Rider BB gun? You get excited just thinking about how you’ll use the gift, but are conflicted about the possibility of that sinking feeling you could have if you don’t find it under the tree. You begin to wonder if it’s even worth your hope for fear of how you’ll feel if you don’t get it. This is the question I’ve been asking God for a while now: “Is it ok for me to hope for a future spouse?” (What I’m secretly asking him is really something more like, “Can you just tell me if I’m going to be single for the rest of my life so I can stop getting my hopes up whenever I meet someone who fits the bill?”)

As I asked God this question for the umpteenth time, I started to hear an answer, though not to the question I was asking. He reminded me of Genesis 1:27,

So God created mankind in his own image,
   in the image of God he created them;
   male and female he created them.

He continued to remind me of something I had read about–how the feminine heart reflects His own character. I began making a list of core desires I have as a woman and considering how these might reflect God’s longings as well. It didn’t take long for me to figure out my top three priorities as it relates to my romantic petitions:

1) to be understood and known,

2) to be pursued,

3) for someone to be committed to me.

I was taken aback when I began making connections to what Scripture tells us is true about God’s heart:

Wasn’t it God who said, “I will give them a heart to know me” in Jeremiah 24:7? And wasn’t it Jesus himself who prayed “that they may know you, the only true God” in John 17:3? God also wants to be known intimately.

And isn’t it interesting the exact phrase “seek the Lord” is mentioned over 25 times in the Bible? It is so important to Him to be pursued that before Jesus’ sacrifice paid the price for people’s sins, the Old Testament tells us that “all who would not seek the LORD, the God of Israel, were to be put to death (2 Chronicles 15:13).”

And try to tell me God doesn’t desire commitment after reading about the Parable of the Rich Man (Luke 18). This guy obeyed all the law and did everything required to follow the Lord, yet God asked him to give that which he still clung to, his wealth, as a demonstration of his devotion.

I was moved by what the Lord shared with me that night, and felt compassion for how His heart must ache, too, when His children say they love Him and go to church every Sunday, but don’t know how to show that love in the midst of their daily lives. If I may, it’s kind of like the guy who tells you it was love at first sight and professes to adore you when he doesn’t even know what your values are, what you’re talented at, or your favorite flavor of ice cream. Empty words don’t build relationship or fill the need to be known.

All of a sudden I could understand the way God must feel when people give up on trying to grow in their walks with Him as I contemplated my own frustration with circumstances where it appears someone is drawn to you, but nothing ever comes of it. If I want someone who’ll chase after what they like in me, I’m certain God wants it too.

And finally, I see more clearly than ever why God desires us to be lifelong followers committed to growing with Him as I think about the satisfying fulfillment of growing with your spouse until you both turn gray and have wrinkles from a lifetime of laughter.

God didn’t answer if it was ok to hope for a spouse (or tell me if I am going to be single for the rest of my life), but He did show me He was true to His promise that “If you seek the Lord your God, you will find Him if you seek with all your heart and with all your soul (Deuteronomy 4:29).” I know Him better now. And somehow Psalm 34:10 restores my hope:

The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.

Vida Estudiantil in other campuses

Haven’t had much time to blog as our team is preparing to leave the country and return to the States (also my power has been out since Thursday and just came back last night!) Had to share with you though about my experience at UNPHU (Universidad Pedro Eriquez Ureña). Since Jimmy and I will be returning to the DR for another year in August, we thought it would be cool to visit the campus for the weekly meeting today to check it out before we left the country.

This year, a second year medicine student, Albelina launched a Vida Estudiantil movement on this campus with the help of Leyla. I had the opportunity to get to know her at the student retreat earlier this month. She has such a huge heart for demonstrating God’s love to others on her campus by telling them about Christ. I really admire her for taking a HUGE step of faith by starting this movement. Even though it felt awkward for her to invite her peers and students she didn’t even know to participate in a weekly Bible study that had yet to see it’s first week, she faithfully did so and now has about fifteen people coming regularly.

Although we didn’t know we were expected to lead this week’s meeting until we got there, Jimmy and I were blessed to get the chance to share with the students how we felt God calling us to serve in the Dominican Republic and why campus ministry is so important. They shared with us some concerns they have for students on their campus and how God is already moving at UNPHU. In this meeting of fifteen students—one boy—we caught a glimpse of what the needs of the ministry are and how we can celebrate what God is already doing there.

We heard some students share how God had been faithful to help them in their weaknesses, whether it was a tough class (organic chemistry, you know that one is hard!) or kicking a bad habit to the curb. I was really inspired by the strength of their testimonies. Someone even shared about how God brought her back to him after she had drifted away for a while. It was clear today that many of these students have had faith defining experiences with God and truly adored him for the changes he has made in their lives.

We learned that it’s been difficult to gather men to join the ministry. That while students are growing in their relationship with Christ and desire to share him with their peers, they have not been equipped with resources or training on how to do so in a natural and effective way.

Please pray for this budding ministry at UNPHU. Pray that Leyla as our national director is given divine wisdom to help guide Albelina and the ministry there. Pray for Albelina, that in the midst of the challenge that is leading a new group, she is renewed daily by God and given fresh compassion for those under her care often. Pray for the students who are currently invloved, that they continue to be open with one another and praying for each other and bring light to the campus. Pray for the university, too. It’s a private school and lots of very bright young adults graduate from there. These students could have lots of potential to affect the country in the future. Pray that it produces a generation of true Christ followers who love others as He did!

Evidence of God at Work

I’ll be honest. There are some days when I’ve reflected on my work here and feel like I haven’t accomplished much. Then there are others when I experience moments—like today—that remind me that God is allowing me to bear fruit in my time spent with students at UASD.

A few posts ago, I wrote about a girl named Rosi who was brought to us after the Spring Breakers met her during an outreach. She was looking for someone to help her grow in her faith. You never know if someone is just saying that at the time or really means it. Unfortunately, there are many times when we meet a student and it seems like they might be a great person to invest your life in, but they never answer your calls. However, Rosi was one of the few that truly meant what she said and for the last two months, I have been meeting with her to discuss some of her questions for God and what it means to be his student (disciple).

Today, we talked about developing our relationship through prayer, studying the Bible, and obedience. We do this using little booklets that are a guide with passages to read from the Bible and questions for thought, which can sound a bit dry, but it’s awesome how it just spurs on further conversation. For example, one of the questions asked “What does God promise that we will experience if we pray in what ever situation?” (based on Philippians 4:6-7). We both shared times when we received this peace through prayer.

Perhaps the coolest part of our meeting today was at the end when we talked about what God is asking us to do through the areas of prayer, Bible study, and obedience. We both spent some time writing down some goals in each area and later shared them with each other. I absolutely cherish this kind of thing, because it not only helps me get to know her better, but gives us both some accountability to what we are seeking to do. It serves as a mile marker to which we can look back on in a year and say, “Remember when we committed to ___? God has been faithful!”

Another evidence of God at work through my meetings with Rosi is his gifting us with the ability to understand each other amidst a language barrier. My Spanish has improved tremendously the nine months I have been here, but she is one of the people I have difficulty understanding. Whenever we meet, I rely on her ability to correct me or her patience as I ask her to clarify what she just said. It also brings us a lot of laughter :)

Keep praying for our relationship and that God would continue to be doing a good work in her life as in the lives of all the students who are growing through discipleship right now.

I’m sure this will be funny later

I want to start off by saying that I am blessed. I am so thankful that God has provided me with a home in the DR that is safe, comfortable, and beautiful.

Yet there comes a time in every home dweller’s life when things don’t go as planned and quite frankly, drive you crazy.

Yesterday’s plans were to wake up early, workout, go to church, and hang out with friends. I thought it was getting better when I received a call from a relative of our landlord saying he wanted to drop by before I left for church to take some measurements so they could put in a water heater! This was music to my ears as I’ve missed taking nice hot showers this year.

Upon taking the measurements, they decided they would just install in right away since one of them would be leaving for the States soon. Eager to get my hot water all hooked up, I told them it was fine for them to stick around a while and get to work.

Fifteen hours later…here’s the short story of what has passed:

• Water heater installed-yay!
• Broken valve in one of the bathrooms-woops
• Chiseling at concrete wall to get to broken pipe-loud, and is that normal?
• 5 men in the bathroom yell “We need a mop” followed by downstairs neighbor coming upstairs to let us know he doesn’t appreciate the water leaking from his ceiling-uh oh
• Water spraying everywhere and flooding bathroom-OMG!!!
• Neighbor: “My ceiling just caved in!”-This is getting out of control!
• Problem still not fixed, but don’t worry, we just shut off the water to the entire building so it shouldn’t flood-I want to curse.

Well, it’s now the next morning and here I am, un-showered with a pile of dirty dishes in the sink, (you don’t even want to ask about what’s in the toilet, lol), and I feel like I ‘m being held hostage in my own apartment.

Of course, in these times I have got to readjust my perspective and be Christlike-I am a missionary after all. But seriously, God is so gracious to me even when I feel like acting out in my frustration that He reminded me this morning that He has given me everything I need in the midst of this situation to keep my cool:

By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a life of godliness…these promises enable me to share in his divine nature.                                    -2 Peter 1:3,4

In everything we do, we show that we are true ministers of God. We patiently endure troubles and hardships of every kind [even silly household mishaps].          -2 Corinthians 6:4

I know I have every right to be frustrated in this situation. But it doesn’t help me feel any better and it certainly can’t be refreshing to others around me. There’s a reason God gave us verses like these, not only to convict us of our humanly ways, but to teach us a way to live in his peace.

I said this would be funny later, and pictures sometimes help me conjure up that emotion so here’s one to share so you can laugh with me:

Whose idea was it to put the pipes in the middle of a concrete wall?

Something To Say

Today it took all that you had

You’re wondering if you’ll ever get it back

But the whole wide world is waiting for

Waiting for you to step out that door

Come on, let your life be heard today

You’ve got something to say

This song by Matthew West has been my anthem on many days this year. My absolute favorite part of stinting is building relationships with students at UASD and seeing God work through their lives. It’s amazing though, how things like planning, daily frustrations, and emotions can suck energy from me, at times leaving me feeling dry before I am about to step on campus.

Sometimes it’s all I can do to either play this song or think about the lyrics and trust that God will not only meet my needs of energy and compassion, but bring me life through my interactions with students.

On one such day this week, after juggling a few tasks that felt like a million, I got to meet with Daisy*. Daisy and I have been meeting regularly since the spring break team left so that we can talk about some questions she has about her faith in Christ. Each week, we’ve studied different aspects of our faith together. On this day, one of the first things she said was, “What are we learning today?” She said it with such enthusiasm that I couldn’t help but be joyful. Our two hours together flew by as she opened up more to me about her doubts and desires for her relationship with God—and shared chocolate! Later that day, I was knocked off my feet with excitement as I watched two of our Vida Estudiantil members lead Night Vida, something that has NEVER happened before! So cool!

So for everyone back home, or wherever you are, please continue to thank God for how much joy he is allowing me to experience through my interactions with students at UASD and ask him to keep refilling my cup (and while you’re at it, my 3 teammates’ too!)

Something to Say/Matthew West

Doubts

Tonight in Night Vida we invited students to share with us times where they have ever doubted whether a loved one was telling the truth or would fulfill their promises. Many students shared about times that this has happened to them and how it affected that relationship. Pushing the topic further, we then asked, “Is it ok to doubt God?”

What I love about our meetings is that students are allowed to share their opinion without being judged. We got a wide range of answers, but ultimately came to the conclusion that doubts were a normal part of life. We suppose that God expects us to have questions for him, because he gives us verses like Matthew 7:8 which says “For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.” He invites us to ask him questions.

My favorite part of the night was giving students the opportunity to anonymously write down any doubt or question they had about God. We explained that these will be the topics we’ll be studying together in the coming weeks. I couldn’t help but identify with some of them. Can’t you?:

Can I still be His daughter even if I keep making the same mistakes?

Why doesn’t God respond to my call or if He does, why don’t I always understand His response?

Why does God allow suffering?

Why does God forgive us?

Can I still go to heaven no matter what I do sometimes?

Why would God bless me with so many great friends?

I am so touched by these questions—not because I fear instability in these students’ spiritual lives—but because they present opportunities for God to become more real to them as he provides them with answers, sustains their faith.

Never underestimate the power of prayer! Please pray over these and the other doubts/questions the students asked tonight. Pray that in the coming weeks, we are able to have meaningful and truthful talks that address these doubts in which God will strengthen their faith. I’m so excited!

English Immersion Program/Birthday in the DR

This past December 5,000 Dominican students graduated from an intense year long English program throughout the country. UASD plays host to one of the locations where the course is taught. These students must come to class Monday through Friday for four hours a day to learn everything they can to become fluent in the English language. While the Spring Breakers were visiting, we tried to take advantage of times when these ambitious learners would be on break from their class in the hopes that they would want to practice their English with them.

Students share their faith in English

I was really touched by an experience that a girl from the University of Oklahoma shared with us about her time with students near the English Immersion building. Over the couple of days that she spent at UASD, she kept running into the same two Dominican students during their break time. The more she talked with them and learned about their lives, the more she grew in compassion for each of them. She recalled to us that she really just wanted them to both hear the message of what Christ did for us from someone—whether or not she got the opportunity to. I really admired her attitude, because it’s important that as we think about sharing Christ with others, it’s not about ourselves at all. It’s not about how well we are able to communicate with our words who God is, or how much we smile, or even how much we pray. It’s remembering God’s heart (not wanting anyone to perish but everyone to come to repentance—2 Peter 3:9) and trusting him with how he’s going to speak to people. Later in the week, she saw one of the students talking to a leader of the spring break team about how to know God personally and the other student was talking to Leyla about how to be involved in Vida Estudiantil! So cool that God allowed her to see that her prayer was answered and that these students were cared for as they heard about the love God has for them!

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On another note, today is my birthday! I was a little bummed as it would be my first in a foreign country and was prepared for it to not be super amazing. But on the contrary, my teammates, friends, and family made it one I won’t forget!

Bri woke me up with my brother on Skype ready to be the first to sing me happy birthday. Then she had a scavenger hunt leading me to gifts galore! Jimmy and Rob coordinated with my family and knew to make me some delicious banana-chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast. I treated myself to a massage, relaxed, received a fun package in the mail from my best friend Lin, then went to Vida Estudiantil at night. It was totally cool because it just so happened that there was a concert on campus tonight! We got to hear some great music with lots of my Dominican friends and dance! Then to top off the night, I came home to find more clues leading me to the freezer where I got spooked by a video camera inside awaiting my reaction to finding ice cream cake and Jimmy and Rob jumping out from the darkness.

Another bonus is getting lots of notifications on facebook from all the birthday wishes. Also, I’ve noted something cool about Dominican culture when it comes to birthdays. Not only does everyone wish you a happy birthday, but they also tell you all the very specific things they hope God blesses you with in the next year: blessings, joy, peace, fulfilled desires, (and admittedly, someone even said the man of my dreams!) Thanks to all who made my birthday special—I was definitely not lacking anything despite being far from home!

Night Vida

Every Thursday night at 6 pm, our Stint team shares our faith at UASD and invite students to come to our weekly night meeting. This week, the spring breakers joined us and helped us reel more people in. We played a huge game of Simon Dice (Simon Says) and split off into smaller groups to talk about what it means to be ready to follow God.

One thing to note about Night Vida is that we try to create an environment where both the believer and non-believer can feel comfortable with where they are at and learn about God. At the end of the group discussion, Bri shared with the group what it meant to follow God and asked if anyone was ready that night to receive him. That night, God was tugging at Francisco’s heart who prayed to have Christ in his life that night!

We were also astounded when we had three students ad lib a worship session after the meeting. We had a singer, guitar player, and dancer. It was great to see them using their hearts and talents to praise God and lead us to do the same.

Check back tomorrow for another awesome story!

Cultures Collide

Story #2 from Spring Break beautifully illustrates how awesome it is when people from different languages and cultures come together.

Two students from Oklahoma were talking to a Dominican student about her spiritual background. With the Spanish they knew, they listened to her share about her life and things that were missing from it. They showed her the following image from the Knowing God Personally booklet to try to understand her better:

The girl told them that she felt she was currently living the Self-Directed Life, but wasn’t satisfied living that way and that she wanted to live a Christ-Directed Life, but didn’t know how. Our American friends were thrilled that she had this heart to submit to God, but couldn’t communicate some key words that would help her down this path. Divinely, Pedro, one of our students from Vida Estudiantil walked by where they were having the conversation and they asked him to come help them talk with this girl. Pedro was able to translate for them and share his own words of encouragement to this seeking girl. Towards the end of the conversation, she learned that she was missing Christ in her life and that this would help her get on a path that was guided and protected by him. Because of the collaboration of these students and God’s amazing grace and compassion for this girl, she received Christ through prayer that day and began to follow him!

More stories to come! Keep checking each day this week to find out more about what God did through the lives of these 60 students at UASD!

Biggest Event of the Year

I am so excited to tell you all about the awesome things that happened last week.

We received 60 students representing Campus Crusade from 5 different universities in the States to serve Vida Estudiantil at UASD during their spring break. All this month, we have been praying about how they can best spend their time here: meet as many students as possible trusting that God would help them find those who don’t have a personal relationship with him or need encouragement in their faith. 

I could take up the whole page telling you all the stories, but I figured I’d spread them out a little bit over the next week. This should be even more exciting as our Stint team will be following up with the students they have met, so you’ll get to see the stories as they’ve unfolded a little bit more!

One story in particular that I want to share now is about a girl two students from the University of Oklahoma met on Wednesday. In talking to Rosi, they learned that she was a Christian who was really struggling with her faith as she daily heard her philosophy teacher instructing opposing beliefs, even mocking her for what she believed to be true. She said that she wants her faith to be “rock solid,” but doesn’t know how to get there on her own. Through these students’ courage and persistence to speak to her in the Spanish they knew, Rosi was directed to people in Vida Estudiantil who were willing to meet with her to encourage her in her faith. In addition to this, Rosi admitted that before meeting them, she believed that Americans were all bad people who were thirsty for control over others. While it was difficult to hear that this belief is something she learned from her family, we were all excited about seeing one person at a time gain understanding of our motives and the genuine love we have for Dominicans.

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On another note, I must tell you that these students truly were a blessing to myself and my team more than anything. Not only was it exciting to get to talk to other Americans for a week, but they just did a great job of encouraging us and my spark for ministry here at UASD was re-ignited as I saw their enthusiasm to pour out their hearts into other students. It gave me such strength to finish the rest of my time here well and helped me re-focus on what I was sent here to do. As they asked questions about my life and work here in the DR, I became more confident that my job is really cool!

Electricity

I’m writing this while I wait for the electricity to come back on. No electricity today means I can’t reheat the coffee that’s now gone cold, no printing off materials I need to prepare for a discipleship meeting tomorrow, no going online to check emails, no looking up recipes to see what healthy ingredients I need to buy at the store, and most devastatingly, no access to my straightener (ok, that’s a little dramatic but I still feel like piling it on the list).

It’s frustrating how the smallest of inconveniences can send me over the edge in moments when I’m already vulnerable. I’ll be honest, while the last couple of weeks have been filled with blessings and joy, my general disposition has been stressed.

An evangelism tool we use, Soularium, has a picture of a man with a bunch of post-it notes on his forehead…these days I most closely can identify with him. Our return from a midyear retreat with Campus Crusade staff and my teammates has given me lots to think about and action steps to improve where we are at. We are also about to receive 60 students and staff from CCC in the States next week and have been working very hard to make sure their time here is fruitful, enjoyable, and safe. I’ve got friends back home that I haven’t spoken to in a while. The list goes on, but all that to say that this is definitely a Philippians 4:6-7 moment:

Don’t worry about anything, but pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank Him for all He has done. Then you will be filled with His peace with passes all understanding. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

The electricity is off, and I want to sit and pout. But His Spirit within me is greater than my feelings, and His peace urges me to rest in His provision for my needs and to be thankful for what He has already done.

Just want to share that with you so that you know I’m not always a peppy missionary girl and sometimes the little things make me lose my sight. Thanks for letting me be real :)

High Five

There has been a multitude of things going on in my life and ministry lately. Rather than bore you all with a monologue explaining everything, I’ll briefly update you on 5 recent highlights and let the pictures do the talking.

1. Started meeting with my discipleship group this week-same girls as last semester! This month we will be learning what it means to be a disciple-learner of Christ.

2. Celebrated birthdays for the month of January and February. Leyla (our national director) had hers in January, so the students put together a very special gift for her. Some even gave some pocos palabras or brief words about how much she has meant to them. It was great to remember the impact this one woman has made on student’s lives at UASD.

3. We have students who keep returning to Night Vida! It continues to be a place where students are involved in discussions about their beliefs and can hear more about who God is.

4. Our Stint team met up with the El Salvador Stint team and staff for a midyear retreat last week. It was the perfect time to be encouraged, motivated, and energized by the community of the other Stinters. I was so blessed by how much everyone poured out into me that week and it definitely boosted my ability to come back to Santo Domingo and finish my Stint year well! (Pictures to come later)

5. Preparing to receive 50+ students from USC, Northern Arizona University, University of Arizona, and the University of Oklahoma for a Spring Break trip on the 14th of this month! Pray that God would give our team help organizing this and giving them direction for how best to use their time at UASD.

That’s all for now—thanks for checking in on me and I’ll continue to keep you posted!

So much good news!

I haven’t posted much this month, but in a nutshell, so many great things have happened for me personally, for our team, and with the ministry. Here’s a little recap:

In the beginning of the month, my parents came to Santo Domingo for a visit! It was so refreshing to see them and since it was my mom’s first time here, it was great for her to get to see where I’ve been living. The students were quick to welcome back my dad and I was impressed as my mom used her Spanish to introduce herself at the weekly meeting. What was perhaps the most encouraging part of their trip was when they participated in our team’s weekly prayer and worship time. My parents prayed over each of us and reminded us of the awesome work God is doing here. Sometimes it takes an outsider’s perspective to recognize those things!

The other great thing that I experienced was getting to go home for a quick 4 days to be a part of my sister’s wedding! It was a whirlwind experience, but so awesome to get to spend even more time with my family, meet my baby niece and brother in law, and witness the big day!

Finally, we experienced a lot of rockin’ things at UASD. We saw a student come to Christ during our weekly evangelism time with students, began discipleship groups with 15 students, and had students from our first ever leadership team conduct the weekly meetings! We are also become recognized on campus as Vida Estudiantil. A couple of students approached a small group of us sitting around one day and asked if we were the ones that had the weekly Bible studies and if they could join us that week. Cool!

Continue to pray for us as there is still much to be learned about our students and ministry at UASD. Pray for perseverance and a deepening compassion to drive us on!

First week back-Amazing!

What a great start to a new semester. We we reunited with our dear friends from Vida Estudiantil and planned an outreach to gather even more students to participate in our meetings. It’s really important for us to continue seeking new students for a couple different reasons. The first is that with UASD being so large (over 150,000 students on our campus), there are many students who haven’t been reached with the message of the Gospel. Also, as we’ve observed over the last few months, students who were strong leaders within Vida Estudiantil can come and go as they graduate or start working (we always accept their request to pray that they get jobs, but it’s bittersweet—and our loss—when they find one!)

The purpose of our outreach today was to meet and inform 300 students about Vida Estudiantil through giving away Survival Kits (Fundas Salvavidas). Our friend and long time member of Vida Estudiantil, Alvaro, gives us an expert explanation of what we did today (Might I say, his English is excellent! The subtitles are only there because there was a lot of background noise):

A student does a great job explaining our outreach today

Four students from Vida helped us accomplish our goal, and to our surprise and delight, three others that we just met today played a significant role in bringing their friends over to us. We met so many people today, my throat was sore! I never know what God’s complete plans are when we do these outreaches, but I’m praying that someone we met today will know Christ deeper as a result of their participation in Vida Estudiantil this semester. Can I dream a little more? That one of them is a future leader of the ministry, bringing even more into communion with God. Thanks for joining me in prayer since we’ve been here. Continue to pray that more people know Christ and that UASD is filled with true followers of Him!