Facts about life for Kristen in the Dominican
· We’re staying in a city called San Juan
· We’re living on a street named “the 19th of April.”
·I bathe out of a big blue bucket.
· I use that same blue bucket to manually flush the toilet.
(American men, not a method I would recommend in the states. It isn’t very affective…)
· There are dog gangs in the Dominican. This is serious. They fight every morning around 3 AM.
· I’ve seen a rather large horse walking down our street once or twice.
Have you heard that Christianity is comfortable? Well, whoever told you that lied. My gracious, I’ve been here a week and already I’ve been stretched and whacked like a piece of taffy.
The afternoons have been amazing going down to the local park and playing with all the children in the surrounding community. We play games, sing songs, and the little girls style our hair 15 different ways. Now, when I say “park” you might be thinking of a nice grassy lawn with flowers and sidewalks. Ha. Incorrect. Dirt. All dirt. An occasional pebble here and there that makes running a dangerous task and kicks up all of the dust guaranteeing you’ll be filthy within minutes. Imagine what we looked like after 3 hours. J
Sunday night and Monday night though we got dressed up and walked down to a local church. Thanks to my experience in Peru, I’m aware of certain expectations that Hispanic pastors have of their visitors. Not only did I know I was going to have the horrifying pleasure of introducing my group to the entire congregation in Spanish, but I was probably going to have to sing a song as well. For those of you who speak a little Spanish and have ever had to speak in front of a large group, you’re probably aware of how scary this is. Well, fears were confirmed as he called us forward.
I can’t tell you how nervous I was. What if I went blank and forgot how to speak? What if I used an unacceptable vocabulary word and insulted the entire congregation? It was a tie between wanting to cry and vomit. Considering I didn’t really want to do either, I just sat there fumbling and twitching like an idiot for the first hour of the service mulling over all possible scenarios.
Walking up to the front of the church had me seriously considering turning around and bolting for the back door. The only thing that stopped me was knowing my teammates probably would have tackled me before I hit the back step.
So, the positive side of this whole experience? After only a week, I’m being reminded of why I have certain gifts and I’m finding myself uniquely grateful for them in a way I never have been before. I’m experiencing the amazing peace that floods me every time I use one of them to bring Him glory. As I sang to that congregation, I knew that my skin color, Spanish pronunciation, and mismatched outfit made no difference. There was no reason to be nervous as I was doing exactly what it was I was created to do.
As I look around at the H Squad, I’m astounded at the multitude of gifts that each of my team members possess. It excites me to think about how the Lord will allow us to use those gifts this year, despite how uncomfortable we may become throughout the process.
