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!