Hola! We have officially started the World Race in the Dominican Republic! The people here are wonderful. They drive crazy, ride around on moto-taxis at all hours of day and night, and speak so fast in Spanish it’s hard to understand. Our ministry host Juan and his family have been so hospitable to us. He is the pastor of a church here and he started an after school program to help local children with their homework. Some of the children don’t go to school, so this is the only schooling they receive.
On our third day here and our second day beautifying the church and school building at the church. (We have basically been picking up trash around the campus that the locals throw there.) Several of the local boys have helped us clean over the past couple of days. One boy has been helping us both days and is such a hard worker. Today, when we were wheeling the trash to the corner of the street, his house was pointed out to us. It was barely a step above a shack. The walls were brick but that’s about as good as it gets. Juan told us that the boy lives with his grandma, father, and little brother. He said the mother is only around sometimes. Both of the days the boy was helping us he didn’t have shoes on. Juan told us that he wasn’t in school because he didn’t have shoes. After that, Juan told us that we are going to bring the boy to the store to buy him some shoes. On the way to the store, I got the Holy Spirit heart rate (aka my heart beating out of my chest) and I felt led to buy him the shoes. When we got to the store I did just that. I knew that he really wasn’t going to be able to thank me because of the language barrier and the fact that he really didn’t know what was going on, but I didn’t expect that. I am here to be the hands and feet of Jesus. I am here to show these kids and everyone I meet who Jesus is. I did it because I felt called to do it and because I wanted the boy to go to school and have a future. I want him to be able to grow up and get out of the cycle of poverty that plagues so many people.
So thank you. Thank you to all of you who have supported me and helped me be able to go on the World Race so I can show these people Jesus. Thank you to those who have shown me what Jesus looks like so I can look like him to others.
Please pray for our ministry host and his family. Pray for the people here that their hearts will be open to all that Jesus has for them. Pray for my team as we go out and do ministry around the town.
