Hey you! Just thought I’d tell ya that you are wonderful, and I truly appreciate you reading my blog. In the words of Marcel the Shell (it’s a YouTube video), “Read on!” 
Here’s a recap of last week:
For ministry we were supposed to visit another community in the mountains. Our transportation, however, did not work out. Instead, we helped out with a crusade that was held in Padre Las Casas. While some of the things spoken and practiced at the crusade were different from some of my views, I was nevertheless overjoyed to see so many respond to the call of the Holy Spirit. Many made a first time decision for the Lord those first few nights, and many claimed to have been healed from their infirmities. Yay God!
It was also a blessing being able to see my special friend,Evenecel, at the crusade each night. I met this girl at a church in Padre a while back, and she is a sweet and sassy nine year old who loves to dance, play tag, be silly, and teach me Spanish. It’s a match made in Heaven. I’ve already started a list of precious people I wish I could take home with me, and she is at the top of that list. I’ll miss her dearly when we leave the DR in a few days, and though I may not know if I will ever see her again (as with most of the people I meet), I’m thankful for the time I got to spend with her.
Here’s a recap of this week:
Our team took two very bumpy truck rides to two very remote communities. I’m pretty sure we were off the grid at one point. Like our previous visits to the other communities, we went door-to-door, talked with people about God and their religious views, and prayed with them before leaving. Even though I had a slight cold this last week, I was continually blessed and thankful for the special moments we had with people, such as…
…the time spent with one woman who had a daughter pass away some years back. My team shared about God being a comforter and that it’s okay to grieve and be sad. The reminder seemed to lift her spirits.
…being able to pray for a woman who lived alone, had been abandoned by her husband, and practiced idolatry of some sort. Although I’ll never know the outcome of that visit, all I can do is pray and hope that her feelings of surprise (and maybe even confusion) for when we prayed for her were overcome by stronger ones – feelings of comfort and curiosity of a bigger, even greater God.
…being able to visit with a large family who lost a dear father, husband, and brother a week ago. I was told by a pastor here in Padre that not many people ever visit this community, given its distant location. It seemed as though they were grateful for our mere presence – just being there with them was a blessing to them and to us as well.
…reading and acting out the account of Adam and Eve to a group of people. Our translator spoke about sin and the necessity of God sending Jesus. One man responded by making a public confession and praying the sinner’s prayer. It was evident the Holy Spirit left an impression on the rest of the people, given their response and mere countenance after the message.
Once again, these two weeks were filled with all sorts of emotions and feelings:
Feelings of frustration over theological differences.
Feelings of joy for overcoming those differences.
Feelings of humility by constantly be reminded that I can do nothing without the Lord’s help.
Feelings of doubt regarding whether or not our house visits make a difference.
Feelings of privilege and gratefulness for those precious moments when all is said and done.
And feelings of thankfulness for God’s magnificent creation.
Until I post next time, which will probably be right before we head to Haiti, here are some more random tidbits that didn’t quite make the cut for the above discussion:
- Rule #2 in the DR (rule #1 is in the previous blog): be VERY careful with the compliments you give. In our last village I told the woman who cooked our food that I thought her hat was pretty. The next day she put the hat on my head and made me keep it – she insisted. Any effort to give it back would have been futile. Also, I told a neighbor girl I liked her finger nails, so she left to get some nail polish and proceeded to paint my nails AND toe nails. I knew her for a whole 15 minutes.
My new hat. Fancy, eh?
- I rode a motorcycle for the first time finally. I’m convinced I will buy one when I return to the states. It’s fun.
- My tent survived a brutal wind storm on top of a mountain. Praise the Lord it didn’t break!
- I danced to salsa music during worship at the crusade with some local church friends. That’s right – we boogied.
- I had some legit hot chocolate that was prepared in this kitchen.
- I discovered that cat-calling here in the DR is hissing like a snake. It still takes me by surprise when I hear it behind my back, because my first reaction is that the person is looking for a lost dog or cat.
- And I’m being strengthened and encouraged by my team more and more each day.
EL FIN! 
