So Month 1 of the World Race is officially over. We leave for Haiti tomorrow at 5 am, to begin Month 2. It seems like July went by so fast, yet really slowly. This month was a bit of a struggle for me. God has really been using this month to teach me a lot about living a life of sacrifice.
And over the course of this month, through several different avenues and people, God has been saying “Sacrifice. Your desire for a child right now is just that – YOUR desire. Not mine. My desire is for you to complete this race. Live a life of sacrifice to Me.”
As usual, I ignored that message until it became quite obvious that God’s will was for me to be here, and to sacrifice my wants for His wants. My life for His life. I have to learn to die to myself and live for Christ.
And so I keep going. Honestly, the thought of the next 10 months scares the poop outta me. But I know that God will use it to grow me so much, I may not recognize myself when I get home. Thank you guys for keeping up with us and praying for us.
On a lighter note, I’m going to do a list of 25 things for each country. Here’s the DR!
25 Things I Learned in the Dominican Republic
1. It is really easy to get a parasite.
2. Don’t look up pictures of your parasite on Google, because you will gag.
3. Living with 46 people in a 4 bedroom/3.5 bathroom house will make you appreciate things like privacy, and being able to shower and go to the bathroom whenever you need.
4. Empanadas are delicious.
5. This is a gorgeous country.
6. Sleeping on a balcony with gorgeous mountains in the background is really pretty awesome.
7. Washing clothes by hand means they never feel quite clean enough.
8. Space to hang clothes so they can dry in such a crowded house is crazy valuable.
9. Pastor Manuel is an amazing, amazing man of God.
10. God is working hard in the Dominican Republic.
11. My team rocks.
12. Medical care in other countries is really really cheap.
13. Medical care in other countries is nowhere near as good.
14. There’s actually a lot of racism here – people with paler skin are preferred.
15. Mosquitoes are evil creatures.
16. The equate brand itch cream does not work.
17. If you scratch too much, your bites will scar.
18. Seth’s hair looks completely awesome when he lets it do whatever in the humidity (think…a laid back Mr. Hyde).
19. Joshua Maisner can do a very good Elmo voice. And Mickey Mouse. And Jessica Smith can do a good Batman voice. I find this odd.
20. Fresh mangoes are not always as good as you would think.
21. Avocados are not as bad as I thought.
22. Don’t eat sketchy pizza that may or may not have been made a few days ago.
23. Doritos are Oreos are apparently everywhere. Also Cheetos and Pringles.
24. Coke tastes better not in America.
25. Lastly, this race will go by so quickly. Cherish every moment, because it will soon be a memory.
And as always, please keep in mind that we need $18,050 to continue on this trip. You can donate by clicking on “Support Us!” to the left on this page. Thank you!
