Dear Outside World,
Hi! We have very limited Wi-Fi this month and it has been challenging for me to keep you all updated so this blog is LONG overdue. Anyway…
The last 12 days have been hard. Really hard.
It is all squad month and that means all 33 of us are staying at the same ministry sight. We were faced with a challenge right when we arrived in country. Our host family’s two youngest daughters were in the hospital for severe dehydration. We took two days to intercede for their family and the entire nation of the Dominican Republic. We prayed for healing, rebuked the enemy, asked the Lord for rain, and joined together in unity for the Lord to perform miracles. It has rained (almost) every day since we have been here, our host family is back and healthy, and there have been significant steps towards salvation with some members of the neighborhood. The Lord heard our cries!
But I’m not really feeling like myself.
It has been very challenging for me to find balance here. Balance between taking time for myself and investing in relationships with others. Balance between finding Wi-Fi to contact home and being fully present with my squad. And finding balance between hearing from the Lord and staying disciplined.
Apart from the struggles, the Dominican Republic has been beautiful and our time here so fruitful.
I am learning more of how the Lord speaks to me. I’m learning more Spanish! Què bueno! And I’m seeing why the Lord has brought me on the World Race. I am being changed, molded by my Creator more and more every day. The Lord is empowering my gifts and passions, erasing my insecurities, and teaching me what it looks like to be His disciple. This is only day 13 of the World Race… I can’t wait to see what the Lord will do in the next 11 months.
Ministry :
This month we are living on Hope Mountain in Lajas de Yaroa Dominican Republic. Each team is given a different ministry assignment every day; housekeeping, manual labor, community ministry, and administrative projects. We pray for a half hour every day at 8:00AM, 2:00PM, and 7:30PM. We eat a lot of rice and beans and plantains… and I get a plate of bread since I can’t eat plantains. Gotta love carbs… and allergies. The people in the community get the biggest smiles when we try and speak with them in Spanish. It has been an amazing experience so far and I am loving every second of it.
Please pray for rest. Pray for peace. Pray for restored muscles to keep working hard. Pray for balance and for the Lord to continue moving across this nation and in our hearts.
That’s all for now,
Claire
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What I’ve been reading lately
Shoe Dog by Phil Knight
The Tale of Three Kings by Gene Edwards
