January 22,12
Month 1: Los Montacitos, Dominican Republic
After 24 hours of travel by foot, bus, train, plane, and a bumpy, slightly terrifying drive up the steep mountains in a small truck, my team arrived at our first home- a small village called Los Montacitos in the beautiful mountains of the Dominican Republic.
I am reminded of God’s glory each time I look outside my tent. The awesome landscape of mountains, the adorable children curiously peeking their heads in our direction, often giving us gifts of fresh oranges and bananas off the trees, and the street dogs and chickens running around bring a fresh aroma of peace to this village. Though we are living out of our tents, taking seldom bucket showers, and cooking our own food, we feel tremendously blessed to be living in this community.
[Oh, and did I mention they are known for planting and making their own coffee in this village? It’s the best coffee I have ever tasted in my life!]
Though we’ve only been in Los Montacitos for a week, it already feels like home. The warm, sensational culture of the Dominican Republic has made it easy for us to feel like we belong here. We have made many new friends and are excited to develop these relationships. Our schedule so far has been:
7:30 am- Wake up and quiet time
8:30 am- Breakfast
9:00 am- Door to door evangelism
1:00 pm- Lunch
4:00 pm- Prepare lesson plan for ESL class (our translator, Ronnie, has been an amazing help to show us how to teach English!)
7:30 pm- Church service
One thing I’ve been blown away by is the dedication of the Christians in this village. Their genuine desire to meet with God and praise Him in their own way is incredible. Tears have brimmed my eyes several times as I’ve encountered these people’s devoted hearts towards the Lord. There is nothing like seeing a different people group praising God in their own sound- it’s as if God reveals a different piece of Himself through each culture He’s created.
Please pray for the rest of our time here, that the Lord’s face will shine upon this village and release His Spirit in a new, refreshing way. Pray for continued strength over my team, that we will remain healthy and fit for the task God’s given us to do. Pray for our relationships to deepen with the community here, that the Lord will gives us opportunities to share His love with nonbelievers, as well as encouraging our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ here!
