Ode to Republica Dominicana-
Palm trees and Machetes
Yucca and boiled bananas
empanadas and arroz con leche
hikes, oceans, and beautiful views
rides in the pick up and mountain rain
Sweet and beautiful,
filled with pictures of the Lord.
I thank you for every adventure there,
every busy street, every child with a smile,
every moment that made my time there unforgettable.
The Lord is in the Dominican Republic and He met me there
and took me on a tour.
A day in the life…
The Dominican days were beautiful but filled with hard work as I served on a team that was assigned to do grounds work often. We woke up early to get down and dirty; building pathways, carving stairways, digging in water falls, electrical wiring, sewage hole digging, cinder block moving, trash hauling and burning, rock carrying, dirt shoveling, pick axe banging, machete hacking kind of work. The days were full of hard work but the atmosphere never lacked joy as we sang together while we worked, smeared mud on our faces to make ourselves official grounds warriors, made jokes and smiled through sore muscles, and embraced every moment as ‘good exercise.’ It was encouraging watching this spirit of joyfulness spread throughout the entire ranch that we pitched our tents on and called home( Yes huge accomplishment I lived outside for an entire month; slept, ate, bathed, worked…all outside.) When moments arose where I’d be willing to give someone permission to complain, groan, or give up instead they’d continue with a smile. That is a real perspective changing kind of thing, you know, and let me tell you my perspective of this kind of work has changed completely. I see the goodness in just helping people, doing what they need even when it does not feel like sharing the gospel. I learned that spreading the love of servitude really spreads Jesus… especially when done with joy.
Effect on my heart…
I feel like opening my eyes to this kind of beauty truly opened my heart for the Lord to move. As I let myself see things the way He does, I found that He began to use my new found sight to work in me in a deeper way than I would have imagined. I begin to value hard labor and the blessing that it could be to people and WANT to do it. I begin to value deeply the family we were working for and see how Christ was working in them and how I should pray for them. The Lord begin to work in me and my view of what ministry is and how I can show His love to people. It’s amazing how the Lord can take anything and make it His and make it about Him. I want to bring this back with me making everything about Him… not just going through my days monotonously and getting lost in the daily-ness of days but choosing to whistle while I work.
Grace. Joy. Carved Muscles.
Alyssha
