Life in the DR: Part 4 | Halfway There

Hello friends, and happy February! First of all, I owe you an apology. I have severely neglected this blog and I'm sorry for not being better at keeping you updated. But... better late than never, right?

Here's a little glimpse of the past 2 months.

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Ministry Update

Santiam & Joshua Teams: We have now had two short-term teams since I arrived, and it has become of one my favorite things! Our team in November was a group of high school students, and these past two weeks, we had the Joshua Wilderness Institute team here. I have really enjoyed the dynamic short-term teams bring to our ministry. I love being a part of an organization that blends the short-term teams so well into the long-term ministry: both sides truly benefit and learn so much from each other! And of course, Joshua will always have a special place in my heart because I graduated from the program back in 2010. It was where I truly fell in love with God's Word and gained friends that are more like family to this day, so I loved hearing what students are learning and processing now, about halfway through the program.

Laptop: I mentioned in my last update that a dear friend of mine and his wife so generously donated a laptop to use in our ministry site. I was able to pick it up over Christmas and it's finally here (see slideshow at the end of this post to see Daisy using it the day it arrived)! This laptop has already been a huge blessing. We are able to use it to play music when we worship together, play videos, research future projects, and it will be used as we continue to make testimony videos to share with you all what God is doing in our community. Shout out to Scott & Bri Bair and their incredible generosity in this. Thanks for being a part of what God is doing in this ministry!

Christmas Parties: All through the month of December, we threw Christmas parties for our different Bible study groups. We played crazy games with the little girls and taught the teen girls how to sew Santa hats... complete with pom-poms! For our parties with the adult women, we had special performances of singing and dancing from some of the kids in the community. They worked so hard to put it together! They showed up in their Sunday best and did a great job. By the Lord's provision through our generous donors (and Daisy's amazing creativity), we were able to serve a small meal at each Christmas party and give each lady and little girl a little Christmas gift. Overall, the parties were a smashing success. We had so much fun just being together and celebrating!

Bible Studies: We started the new year by setting goals together of what we want to work toward this year. We had the women and teens choose books they'd like to read, areas they want to grow in, habits they want to quit, habits they want to develop, Scriptures they want to memorize, etc. This may seem simple, but it was a profound experience for some of these ladies. You see, in a community like El Callejón, many people are stuck in the cycle of poverty that is as much cognitive as it is material. Many people are so used to living in daily survival mode that the concept of dreaming or setting long-term goals seems like a luxury- one that they can't afford. So we made goals! We made plans! Plans to know Jesus more and to take baby steps to continue seeing this community transformed from the inside out- one family at a time.

We also wrapped up a series with the chiquitas on the Fruits of the Spirit, and I am currently in the process of choosing a new topic to study with them. In the meantime, today we talked about fears and how God says we don't ever have to be afraid because He's always with us!

Today, I started a series with our teens about our identity in Christ (I'll be going through it with our pre-teens, as well). Today was more of an introduction activity, and next week we'll be kicking of with who God is and why it matters what He thinks of us anyway. Then in the coming weeks, we'll launch into who He tells us we are and why that matters. You can definitely be praying for this study!

Medical Clinic: This past week, we partnered with SI's Community Health team to do an educational seminar for women in our community. The team put on a great presentation about the importance of regular gynecological exams. Many schools here in the DR don't offer health education, so these types of events are an extremely practical way to serve these communities. We usually pass out invitations in the community the week before the seminar, and have a full house by the time it rolls around. It's so exciting to see these ladies learn to care for the bodies God has given them!

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Language Update

The Spanish is still coming along. I am excited to announce that I was able to translate for the Joshua team over the past few weeks!!! You guys, that's huge! Language was one of my biggest prayer requests when I came down here (because just about everything regarding relationships and ministry require it!), and whoever has been praying, the Lord is hearing you! I definitely had to ask people to slow down pretty often, and had some help from one of the Joshua students at our site (thanks, Shiloh!), but I was actually able to do most of it. I am blown away by the Lord's provision in this. Thanks again for praying, and please continue!

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Personal Update

Christmas: Whew! Christmas was amazing and a bit of a whirlwind. By the time I got back to the island, I counted that I'd been in 10 different airports (14 if you count the ones I was in twice), three different states (not including airports only- 6 states if you include airports), and 7 different cities.

My first week and a half was spent in California, where I enjoyed spending time with family and catching up with friends- and of course, catching up on all the puppy snuggles! Then it was off to Texas to get a little "late" Christmas with my brother, and it was so good to all be together for the first time in 2 years. Then for my final three days, I jetted up to Virginia where I got to spend the sweetest, most needed time with my cousin (more like sister/friend) and her precious little ones! I have ALL the heart eyes for all three of the babies, and I already miss them like crazy.

Parents' Visit: Over the past two weeks, I got to have my parents here to visit me! It was so fun to introduce them to some of my favorite spots in town and some of the people who are a part of my life here. It was such a gift that they not only got to see me in my element and realize why I love it here so much, but to see them begin to fall in love with it too! They have supported me from minute one, but now they get it. I was so thankful that they got to make the trip.

Grad School: Well, it's official! Two years ago, I decided I wanted to pursue occupational therapy as a career. A year ago, I jumped in and started taking the 5 pre-requisite classes I hadn't completed during my undergrad. Over the summer, I spent my days off (and some evenings after work) completing hours of observation in local OT clinics. In October, I submitted my applications; in December and January, I completed my interviews; and throughout the last month, I received my acceptance letters. And today, I submitted my "No thanks" emails because I have officially decided to attend Loma Linda University!

This means I'll be headed home sometime around the middle of May to get final details squared away and settle in before classes start in June! I'm unbelievably grateful for this opportunity and am so excited to see where the Lord takes it. Special thanks to Sandy Davis for being my anatomy & physiology Yoda; Lindsay Schroer for giving me the idea in the first place, then letting me observe you for hours and answering all of my million questions; to my roommates for bringing me late night In n' Out and free Starbucks drinks when I was staying up until unmentionable hours studying (not to mention babysitting my crazy pup while I drove to LA for weekend classes); and to all the other dear friends who cheered me on and encouraged me along the way! If you're near SoCal, let's get coffee when I'm home!

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Support Update

I got the official news yesterday that I am OFFICIALLY fully supported. Goodness, I wish you could all see the profound ways God is using this ministry to impact this place, and the profound ways He is using this season to impact me. This has been hands-down one of the richest seasons of growth in my life, and one of the sweetest seasons in my walk with the Lord. The word that keeps coming to mind is kindness. I've always believed and known that He is good, but in this season He has been so kind to me in so. many. ways. Not the least of which has been putting amazing people in my life to provide financially for me to be here. So thank you from the bottom of my heart.

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Yikes, that was a lot. If you made it this far, thanks for sticking it out and THANK YOU for your continued prayer over the second half of my time here!