Whats up you guys. I know its been awhile since my last blog post. Now I’m not the best at these kind of things so try and bare with me. I would like to start off by saying thank you to everyone who has supported me on this long journey; I truly would not be where I am today without your endless love and support. So I’ll try and give an insight on how things have been in my life lately. Taking it back to Training camp, that 10 days was such a incredible change for me, I have heard Gods callings in the past and have felt his presence on different occasions, but not to the extent of what I felt during those long, exhausting, and sweat filled days out in the woods of Gainesville, Georgia. I met some of the most amazing people this world has to offer, and could see friendships forming that will last a life time.
Fast forward to launch in Atlanta, Georgia. Arriving at the airport was very strange at first. After months and months of preparing, the time was actually here. It was time to say my see you laters and get this thing started. Saying goodbye to friends and family were some of the hardest things I have ever had to do, nothing was easy about it. Not seeing a familiar face for 9 months sounds kinda scary, right? At least I thought so.
After the first day of launch I remember waking up in the hotel room at 4, preparing to leave. I remember waking up and feeling more excitement than I ever have in the past, more excitement than any Dallas Cowboys game could ever bring me, or any other form of excitement I was used to. The suspense was so overwhelming, and it didn’t take long for things to get back into the groove with my squad mates, sense of humors flourished and it was just that “man its good to be back” feeling. And after some amazing worship sessions, and tears from my mom and I were shed, it was time to hit the road with Christ.
That morning we woke up at 4:30, and all met in the hotel lobby. I slept for maybe 45 minutes to an hour the night before, but strangely had no shortness of energy. It was super weird. Hopped on the plane with my now friends, and looked out over the ocean for the duration of that 4 hour flight, my first “international”.
Arriving in the Dominican was kind of a sense of “woah I’m really doing this, no looking back now” at the airport alone little english was heard or understood. Ive never had that problem in the States, so it is still something I am getting used to. I will say I should have a pretty mean game of charades by the time all this is said and done. After going through customs, we found our way to our bus where we awaited a 7 hour bus ride to our location of ministry on Hope Mountain. The bus was small, everyone was laying on top of each other with their day packs in their laps. Im sure that sounds a little rough, but I actually very much enjoyed it. Had some good conversations and time to discuss what we hoped for spiritually in the coming weeks. With it being a 7 hour drive, we drove through 2 major cities, not sure which ones but I will always remember it being my first culture shock. Families were sitting on the sidewalks, trash covering the street corners and edges of the roads, children coming up to the windows of the bus at every stop pleading for our generosity. Not just asking for money, but these children were hungry, and asked for these things out of survival, not pleasure. People standing all over the highways waiting for traffic to arise to sell things to drivers passing by. Mentally and physically disabled on the streets with little to no help or attention. Homes on top of each other with no windows or doors. All of these things were visible, but the spirit of the Lord was just as visible. With people having so little compared to the States, they had so much more heart.
I was speechless, sitting their with all my squad mates by my side, I was speechless. After living my life so wrapped up in things that have absolutely no importance, worried about things that some people only wish to have worries about. I was convicted.
UPDATE:
We arrived at Hope mountain after the long bus ride around midnight, tired and ready for a good nights sleep, we met our ministry host family. Some of the most amazing people I have ever had the pleasure to meet, the glow of Christ just pours out of them like sweat on a hot summer day.
It has been a week so far here on Hope Mountain, and the same excitement I experienced at launch still roars. We’ve spent a lot of time working and helping out on the property, walking the streets of the neighborhood praying, cutting down trees, digging drainage ditches, having amazing worship sessions with nothing but our voices, the beautiful sound of one my best friends Andrew Lilly on the guitar, and hearts full of the Holy Spirit. Showering in the nearby waterfall every day, washing our clothes in the river by hand, and watching God replenish the jungle everyday with a heavy afternoon rain. We learned some Dominican children dances, had kids from the neighborhood come so we could put on skits for them, make arts and crafts, play games, dance, and just watch the Spirit of the Lord come to life in so many different ways.
A little ways up the road theres a concrete basketball court overlooking the mountains and jungle of the Dominican Republic. Every other day we come here to play hoops with with the local kids, and try our best to put smiles on their faces. But as hard as we try, the smiles on all of our faces are just as noticeable. Looking around I see the overwhelming joy of the Lord in each one of us, and in each child we come across.
It has been one week here on Hope Mountain, and I couldn’t be more excited to see what God has in store here for the next 2 weeks.
With all of that being said, I want to take the time to thank each and every one of my supporters. I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for each one of you, your love and generosity doesn’t go unnoticed. I believe that the power of prayer is the strongest force in the universe, so to those who have kept me in theirs, from the absolute bottom of my heart, THANK YOU SO MUCH. If you have supported me financially, I cant even imagine someone spending their hard earned money so I could pursue a calling. Its just unimaginable to me, so from the deepest depths of me, Thank you so much.
I will try and continue posting a blog every week or so to catch you all up on how things are going here.
Thank you again. Talk soon,
Joe
