10 days ago, A Squad launched from Atlanta, GA and flew into Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. My team, plus two others, boarded a bus and drove 4 hours out of the city to the mountains to a small town called Lajas de Yaroa. Hope for the DR, our ministry host for month 1, opened their gates and welcomed us like we were family.
Hope for the DR is surrounded by mountains. It’s cool at night and not as hot as I anticipated during the day (praise the Lord!). We are just a minute walk from the main road in Lajas where we have walked about meeting people using our limited Spanish, which makes them smile. We have played volleyball and basketball with the kids by the school, we have eaten A LOT of rice and beans, and we are all learning how to best hand wash our clothes in a just bucket of water. So far, I have loved every minute of it!
Our first two days were focused on rest and prayer- for our hosts, for Lajas, our teams, and the ministry opportunities we will have here in the DR. On Wednesday morning, we finally found out what ministries we will have the privilege of working with! My team, the Kingdom Shakers, are preparing a message for the women’s and moms’ group That meets every Tuesday. We will also get to visit them in their homes!
For the past several days we have been praying and brainstorming ideas of what message the Lord has for the women of Lajas and for our team. The Lord brought to our attention the story of Martha and Mary in Luke 10. When Jesus was teaching in Martha’s house, she continued to busy herself while Mary sat at His feet and listened to Him teach. Martha complains that Mary has left all the work for her, but Jesus tells her that there is no better place than sitting at His feet.
The women of Lajas are very busy. They are responsible for cooking and cleaning and watching their children and have almost no time left for themselves- like most moms! So we want to dive into what it looks like to continue to listen Jesus, learn from Him, and sing praises to Him in the midst of business and responsibilities. As a team, we also want to learn what it looks like to sit at the feet of Jesus while also being diligent about the work that He has given us.
“Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken from her.” Luke 10:41-42
