Thank you supporters!

Dear friends and family,

As I reflect back over my year, I am so incredibly thankful and appreciative of you for your encouragement, support, and prayers during my stay in the Dominican Republic. I cannot express enough my deep gratitude to each of you for the ways in which God used you to make this trip possible. A lot of the details of my trip are posted on my blog (http://www.voiceinthedr.blogspot.com/) however here is a quick summary of the events that took place during my time there.

My first trip to the Dominican in January was with Meeting God in Missions and Whitefields. During the first month, most of my time was spent with the short term teams that came down. After the month of January, I shadowed and interviewed the sugarcane pastors that disciple the villagers in the sugarcane fields. Most of the information I collected was used for updating Whitefields’ website and supporters of the ministry. I was also able to help out in Café del Rey, which is a café in the heart of Hato Mayor that seeks to share the Gospel with customers.  This position involved customer service and roasting and bagging the coffee sold in the shop. I found myself involved in other activities such as running a children’s ministry on Sundays in one of the villages, helping weed out a garden for a potential garden ministry, and assisting local Dominicans in various activities. I was planning on staying several months, however the ministry only needed me for a short time which caused my return back to the States in March. Although this was incredibly confusing and unexpected, God had different plans.

After being home a couple months, I returned to the DR to a ministry called Hope Mission run by the Lykins family. I joined the family in their ministry in a local neighborhood called Brizas del Mar and was given the opportunity to go to the local orphanage and teach English. The ministry of the Lykin’s family is extremely Spirit-led and focuses on relationship. It was there that I was able to establish authentic community with Dominicans. I developed a deep relationship with a woman named DiNora and her family, and I watched God work powerfully in this relationship. I posted a story about her family on my blog. I truly believe they were a huge part of why God led me to the Dominican Republic in the first place.

While I was there, I was increasingly overwhelmed and humbled by God’s awareness of the details of our lives. Not only did I see His careful planning and care in my own life, but also His awareness of the needs of those around me. I understood more of His heart for the poor, powerless, and those crippled under the injustice of the world (Matthew 25). He desires for His name to be known by all people, and He will go to great lengths to share it. When we align ourselves with His kingdom purposes, it is there that we find true joy and discover more of His heart.

After returning home, I am even more certain of His call to continue to bring hope to the hopeless (Isaiah 58). I am incredibly thankful for the ways that I experienced Him and the ways that He allowed me to take part in the kingdom work He was orchestrating in the Dominican Republic. He used this time to shape me, sharpen my focus, and lead me in ministry here in the United States with high school students and working with underprivileged children. Thank you for responding to Him and supporting me in this journey. May 2015 be a fruitful year for you and filled with the love and peace of Christ.

In Christ,

Kelly Mook

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all we ask or think..."

Nehemiah 12:43-“And they offered great sacrifices that day and rejoiced, for God had made them rejoice with great joy; the women and children also rejoiced. And the joy of Jerusalem was heard far away.” Humanity exists to worship, adore, and praise our Heavenly Father. As we get glimpses of who God is and as we clearly see Him unfolding His Kingdom here on earth, it results in our amazement and joy in Him. I pray that this story results in much praise in our Heavenly Father whose faithfulness, love, mercy, and compassion is far greater than we can ever begin to comprehend.

In February when I was working with the Whitefield ministry, I was bombarded right away with the intense physical need around me. Love requires an action, and 1 John 3:16 challenged me to respond to the needs of my brothers and sisters. I desired to help the Dominicans that I knew in some way but honestly was quite unsure how. Handing them food and water would help them for that moment, but what about the next day and the day after that? How could I help without creating a dependency? As I lived more life there and understood more of the culture, I realized their need for uniforms. I came to the understanding that a child in the Dominican Republic cannot go to school unless they can afford school uniforms and supplies. Due to the poverty in this nation, many families cannot afford to send all of their kids to school, thus leaving their unschooled children in the same economic situation as their parents. Every child should have the opportunity to go to school. After this realization, I was particularly led to start investigating this further. I did not personally know a family that I could buy uniforms for, but I started praying that the Lord would lead me with this idea if it was something He wanted to be done. One day, near the end of February, three of us hopped on a motorcycle to go to a nearby village to see if there were any children in need of uniforms. On the way there, it started down- pouring, and we were all stuck under a tree soggy and wet for a long while.  We decided to return back home. Shortly after, I left in March for the United States.

While I was home, I read some missionary biographies that really convicted and challenged me as a follower of Christ. I believe God used these biographies to refresh my perspective on what He desires of us as His believers. God ultimately wants me to love Him and love others. It awakened a new thirst and desire in me to love my neighbor and truly listen to the needs of others. Shortly after this, I made the decision to go back to the Dominican Republic with Marcos.

After making the decision to return, the Lord reminded me of the need for school uniforms. I had a deep sense that He had a particular family or person in mind that He wanted me to encounter when I returned to the Dominican Republic. He wanted to provide for this family in a particular way (specifically school uniforms) for the praise of His glory. I started praying that if I heard Him correctly in this, He would provide the money and resources to provide their needs. I fully believe that He conformed my will to His, led me to pray specifically for this family and His provision for them, and He knew it would overjoy my heart to watch Him respond.

One day, a friend of mine kept coming to my mind. He is currently working in downtown Chicago through a ministry called Inner City Impact. I was curious to hear how the ministry was going. We started talking, and he asked me if I needed any more financial support for my trip. He shared that he had some extra money that he wanted to give to someone he knew and trusted. I immediately knew God was responding to my prayer. I explained to him what I had been praying, and he became excited with me and sent me even more money than what I was expecting. When I arrived in the DR, I received another email from a couple I had met at MGM in January. They also asked if they could support me financially. I had not advertised or told people what I had been praying, and it was amazing to watch the Spirit work. I had abundantly more money than I ever thought I would receive. After watching God’s provision financially, I was confident He was going to lead me to this particular family. I knew that He was already working in them, and He wanted me to join Him in that ministry.

The next step was to be in constant prayer for His guidance, leading, and clarity in regards to this money and family. It is an amazing thing when we commit His work to Him rather than feeling like we must control it. The Spirit is truly at work within us to lead us and bring His work into fruition. I found myself grow anxious a couple times when another week had gone by, and I still had not met them, but He continued to remind my heart to trust Him. I knew, deep down, that He had led me this far, and He would continue to lead me not for my name’s sake, but for His. He wanted to reveal Himself to this family, and I was only His messenger. So then why would He forsake me?

There was one particular morning that I distinctly remember. I was extremely led during my morning time with the Lord to pray that the Spirit would be leading both Marcos and I that day. I sensed that we really needed to go walk in Brizas del Mar (the neighborhood we did most of our ministry). I felt a little bit like Philip when the Spirit led him down the desert road. I was not sure why I was going, but I knew God had a wonderful plan and purpose in it. Later that morning, Marcos told me that he was not being led in any specific way that morning, and I could decide where we went. I told him that we needed to go walk in Brizas del Mar. So off we went.

As we were driving into the neighborhood, I noticed a little boy walking down the road playing with an old motorcycle tire. We parked our car in front of Hope Mission and got out of the car. It didn’t take too long before we saw the little boy again. I told Marcos that we should go follow and talk with him. After we caught up with him, to my extreme disappointment, he was not interested in talking to us AT ALL. He mumbled a few things and walked away. And there Marcos and I stood. I looked around, and there was no one outside which is very unusual for the Dominican Republic. I remember thinking, “Oh great, now what…”

About 30 seconds later, we heard an “Hola!”, and a little eleven year old girl (Meliza) came out of her house and invited us inside. I had a deep sense that this little girl and her family were the reason the Spirit brought us out there that day, and now looking back, I know for a fact they were the reason.

We entered the house and met the family. Meliza lives with her grandma, DiNora, who is raising six grandchildren all under the age of fifteen with the help of her older daughter. They live in a tiny, pink shack with just enough room for a table, couch, and a couple beds. Their house is very neat and organized and is decorated with DiNora’s prized coffee mugs and stuffed animals. I could tell that their home was well taken care of and greatly appreciated. I could sense immediately that they were honorable, hard-working, mannerly, and courteous people. Compared to other families I had visited in the DR, their poverty was not due to a lack of hard work or an attitude of hopelessness, but rather due to the sad realities of a fallen world.

After sitting down and introducing ourselves, DiNora shared more about herself and her family. She mentioned how valuable it was for her grandchildren to go to school. Last year they had gone without eating for multiple days in order to afford school uniforms and supplies. She, being genuinely concerned for her grandchildren, shared that she did not have the resources to send all of them to school that year. My heart leaped after she shared this burden of hers, and the Spirit confirmed in my heart that this was the family He had chosen. I decided that I would continue to pray for complete certainty and in the meantime, spend as much time getting to know them as I could. Jumping on any opportunity to see them again, I asked Meliza if I could come by and color with her at their house sometime the upcoming week.

I colored with Meliza the following week, and I continued visiting them every time I was out in Brizas del Mar. I grew a deep love particularly for Meliza, who has such a gentle, quiet, and helpful spirit that even I would like to resemble. A couple weeks later, a short term team came, and we were out in Brizas del Mar for 5 consecutive days. This week gave ample opportunity to spend time with them, especially the younger grandchildren who came to the VBS every day. 

The more time I spent with this wonderful family, I not only realized the love that He gave me for them, but also God’s immense love for them as well. I was in awe of God’s compassion and care for them to be so attentive and aware of their needs and concerns. I had been praying that this family and I, whoever they may be, would have a deep love for one another that comes only through the Spirit’s power. And I saw Him answering that prayer in profound ways with DiNora and her family.

I was completely positive that He had planned for me to meet them. I spent a lot of time praying and discerning what it was that God desired to say to them. He had gone to such great lengths for this family, so what was it that He was longing to say to them? I knew where DiNora stood spiritually. She had heard the Gospel before, and she seemed indifferent to it. She shared that she had faith and prayed, but she was not sure to whom. I understood that this provision was not about a kind gesture from an American girl that decided to help. It was much greater than that. God was powerfully working before I came, and He wanted to reveal Himself and His character to this family. This was about God as the Father, the One who has deep compassion for the poor.  He pointed me to 2 Corinthians 5:20 that says, “Therefore, we are ambassadors of Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.” My humble position was only as a messenger to declare a precious message.

With just about a week left, I decided on a day to go over to share the message with them. When we (Marcos and I) entered the house, only DiNora and her daughter were there. I immediately knew there was something wrong because DiNora was curled up on her bed. She had come down with the illness called Chikungunya, a painful disease that had been spreading like wildfire in the Dominican Republic. Due to DiNora’s frail condition already, the illness was especially crippling for her. She was in no condition to have a serious conversation.

I left their house discouraged. Not only was I burdened with her pain, but also the confusion of why God allowed that to happen the day I was going to talk to her. He knew I was going there that morning. What I forgot in that moment was that His plans are much better than mine. What I didn’t know was that He was orchestrating small details.

The short term team that came down that week had a medical clinic in Brizas del Mar. After leaving the house, Marcos and I were able to get some medicine for her. Then one of her grandchildren needed to see the doctor, so I sent word to the medical clinic that it was important for this family to get into the clinic. Then Marcos found out that her family had not eaten for a while, so I was able to bring them the food we had left over from lunch that day. After running back and forth from our mission base to their house, I eventually sat down in their house with the whole family, and we just enjoyed each other’s presence. Meliza, (All Dominican girls LOVE to do American’s hair) played with my hair for a while and eventually, she got the whole family in on it. I ended up spending most of my day with them. God allowed the delay in the conversation so that I could first show them the Gospel of grace and love, and then He would provide me the opportunity to share the Gospel with them in words. I told them I would be stopping in the next morning to share a story with them.

The next morning, Marcos and I went over to DiNora’s house to tell them about the money and uniforms. When I walked in, the WHOLE family was there, unlike the previous morning when only DiNora and her daughter were there (Talk about God’s perfect timing!). I read Psalm 139 to them and shared in depth how God had been orchestrating and leading me to them. I cannot explain or convey what happened during these precious moments with this family, but as Marcos puts it, we were swimming in the Spirit. God, His Son, and His Holy Spirit were present in that tiny little hut that day. It is shameful for Dominican women to cry in public, but as I was sharing what God had done, DiNora keeled over on her chair and wept. She then stuttered, “You don’t understand, this is a direct revelation of God. I now know that God is real.” She shared that the morning Marcos and I were walking in Brizas del Mar and met her family for the first time, she had prayed at 6 a.m., “God if you are real, if you are really listening, I will trust you to provide our needs.” Her needs, she shared with us, were specifically about the school uniforms for her grandchildren. They all had a look of shock, amazement, and wonder on their faces. This whole event was not conjured up by a mere human, but by a compassionate and loving God who passionately desires for His name to be praised and exalted (Psalm 67). His name was certainly adored, praised, exalted, and revered. DiNora now knew that the God who gave His Son, Jesus Christ, was real. She saw the Gospel of Grace.

Shortly after this encounter with them, I came back to the United States.  According to those still in the DR that can keep in contact with DiNora, she talks and acts differently now. She has deep wisdom and discernment. She reads her Bible and prays every day. What an Almighty, compassionate, and captivating God we serve.

Vacation Bible School

The kiddos

DiNora and her family 

Meliza 

Awake, Arise, and Follow

Acts 20:24-“But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.”

This statement is made by Paul to the Ephesus leaders as he explains that he must go to Jerusalem where he knows that afflictions and imprisonment awaits. He was obeying the Spirit no matter what the cost or what he would suffer for the sake of the Gospel.

What a counter-cultural statement. We live in a nation that is all about making something of ourselves, about getting an education to get a great job so that we can live in a nice house and drive a nice car. Or even messages that we were plagued with in school like, “You’re a great person. Have confidence in yourself. The sky is the limit for you.” And I fear that in a lot of ways we, sons and daughters of God the Father, have fallen into this American Dream. But, how do we return to this conviction that Paul had? What does it look like to account my life of no value?

My friend and I have been praying this verse for our hearts. I so earnestly pray that the Lord would give me this conviction and attitude no matter where He has me. I pray that no matter what the cost, even if it requires my life, I would joyfully finish the assignment the Lord has given me.

                Then we move onto passages like Philippians 3:7-8 that states, “But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ.” Everything- that word entails, well, everything. My job, my money, my friends, my family, and even such things as my education, my pride, my outward appearance, my ministry, my failures, my security, my comfort, my pleasure, my reputation, people’s approval of me, my logical reasoning and understanding, my thoughts, my expectations, my worries, my fears, my self-life, etc. This ten-letter word can entail my entire life.

These past 9 months have been a humbling time for me. A time when things didn’t go as expected. My plans changed. God exposed a lot of my sin, pride, failures and mess ups. A lot of things just didn’t make much sense to me. It was more a time defined by seeming “defeats” rather than “successes.” But as I reflect on these past months, I am overwhelmed to see God’s purposeful working in the midst of it all. Through the hard times and confusing times, I have seen Him allow me to go through it to ultimately see the disappointment and lack of fulfillment of my “everythings” and to set my mind on Him, who has captured my love and my devotion. Through these circumstances, He has separated me from my “everythings”, to see the emptiness and nothingness they offer in comparison to Him. And each time as I forsake those “everythings” and allow them to take the proper place in my life  and instead choose Him, I get a sweet, addicting taste of my eternal Father which far exceeds anything, I mean ANYTHING, this world has to offer.

What is my life other than to know Jesus Christ my Lord? Though following Him and obeying Him may require a painful ripping from earthly treasures, those struggles cannot even begin to compare to the surpassing worth in knowing Jesus Christ. Although the battle between my flesh and the Spirit is a very very real battle, ultimately, I know that no matter what, obeying Him is always, and forever will be the very best option. And I’m finding the more I obey Him even when it doesn’t make sense, the more I see His faithfulness and the more I deeply trust Him. What an overwhelming, divine peace He offers when we rest and trust in Him.

I recently read Shadow of the Almighty by Elizabeth Elliot. It is the testament of Jim Elliot’s life. After reading Jim’s journal entries in the book, one can see glimpses of Jim’s thirst and hunger for the God of the Universe. He was willing to forsake anything, even the love of his life, to joyfully obey and submit to the Lord. Although his struggles were real and following Him meant a brutal martyrdom, an observer and reader of his life cannot miss the loving, unmistakable faithfulness of the Lord God in his life. It is absolutely incredible to see the way in which the Lord weaved the small details of Jim’s life together into something beautiful. It was nothing that Jim conjured up or planned. All Jim did was joyfully submit to the Master Planner, no matter what the cost, and God bore beautiful and fragrant fruit with his life.

And so, I choose to follow the Master-Planner, for thus says the Lord, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, do not lean on your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge Him, and he will direct your paths. (Proverbs 3:5-6)” As I obey God and follow His leading, I cannot deny the beautiful details He is orchestrating in my own life. Though the journey can be difficult, the Master Planner has a beautiful journey for each of us. When we rest and trust in Him, how wonderful it can be when HE is the one planning in HIS timing and in HIS way. And even though we try to control everything and plan what WE think is best, when we instead obey Him, we look back and realize how much greater HIS plans are for our life than the ones we conjure up.  He is omniscient, sovereign, and faithful in all things, so our natural response in light of these facts is to TRUST Him. Even when things don’t make sense. Even when we are confused by the results. Even if we find ourselves at a Red Sea where we see no way out. God is in control.

 I pray that we, brother and sisters of Christ, would see Christ as our one pursuit, our one passion, and our first love. May we account our lives as nothing, leave behind our “everythings” and with love, joyfully fulfill the purpose for which He has called us. May we, out of our deep love and devotion to our Lord, obey Him in everything. Let us trust the Master-Planner who works all things together for the good of those who love Him. We are not called to be “conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind. (Romans 12:2)” We are to be a people of love, faith, and hope (1 Cor. 13:13). We are citizens of a Heavenly Kingdom that is invading this dark and broken world. Dear citizens, let our concerns be on the heavenly and eternal, rather than the earthly and temporary. (Col. 3:2) Church, let us awake, arise, and follow in the footsteps of our Beloved.

 “Lord, how excellent are Thy ways, and how devious and dark are the ways of man. Show us how to die, that we may rise again to newness of life. Rend the veil of our self-life from the top down as Thou didst rend the veil of the Temple. We would draw near in full assurance of faith. We would dwell with Thee in daily experience here on this earth so that we may be accustomed to the glory when we enter Thy heaven to dwell with Thee there. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”

-The Pursuit of God, A.W. Tozer

Psalm 37:5- "Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him, and he will act."

I believe the Lord is asking me to share some insight into what He has been doing these past months in my own personal life. I am truly in awe of His sovereignty, and I pray that this blog post produces the fruit of love, joy, amazement, and trust in our Heavenly Father who is the Master Planner.  The glory alone belongs to Him, and everything good is His doing.

During my time at MGM and Whitefields, I sensed that my time there would be short. Not because I wanted it to be shorter, but because the tasks that they asked me to do would only take a couple months to fulfill. One of the ministry’s goals for this year was to effectively communicate to supporters through their website and newsletter all that God is doing in the Dominican Republic through the Whitefield’s ministry (which is a lot!). I had the awesome opportunity to spend time with the sugarcane pastors that Whitefields supports. I spent time gathering information on their ministries, the pastors themselves, their families, and the topics they discussed at their meetings. I had the privilege to get to know them and hear their hearts, which…wow, God truly crafts beautiful pots out of clay J. However, interviewing the pastors only took so long and during the months between March and May, the ministry is a lot less busy. Although I was involved in other things, I could not see the sense in coming down again during those months when there really was not much to do after the month of March. I was coming home March 8^th because I was in my friend’s wedding with the expectation to return on March 22^nd. With the facts that the ministry is less busy and that the government is now cracking down on the “90 day stay without a visa rule”, I decided I would not go back to the DR March 22^nd like I had planned and instead, stay home for a little bit to reevaluate things.

Now, I am going to back up a second. Before I even went to the Dominican Republic in January, I received a phone call from a girl by the name of Sarah who was going down to the DR to stay with a missionary by the name of Pastor Marcos in La Romana. She wanted to connect with me and see if I was interested in going with her. She received my name from a long list of connections. I had already committed to work with Whitefields, so we ended the conversation encouraging one another as we embarked on two separate journeys and hoped to run into each other while there.

Now, during my first month there, I constantly kept hearing the name Pastor Micah, who I confused with Pastor Marcos. For some reason, I had mixed up their names and thought they were referring to the man that Sarah was staying with in La Romana. So one day I contacted her and just asked to hear more about his ministry. After talking to her, I realized I had confused his name and realized it was not the same person. Needless to say, I didn’t think much about what she told me and moved on. Looking back now though, I can see how God used this to bring Marcos’ name back to my mind.

Sometime in February, Sarah emailed me and said that Marcos wanted to meet up with me. I remember thinking that was odd, since he probably only had heard my name mentioned possibly through Sarah. I figured Sarah had expressed a desire to meet up with me, and he consented to go. But I still thought that was very generous of him considering Hato Mayor is a good hour trip from La Romana. Around this time, I was really starting to realize that my stay at MGM would be short. It was extremely confusing because I had committed to the seven months and was expecting to be there that long. I was still confident that I had heard His call to come to the Dominican Republic correctly, but I was confused by the results. Why would He send me just for this to happen? Why did things go so differently than what I was expecting? I felt like Moses at the Red Sea. God had performed all these wonders to get Israel out of Egypt and then, they stop right in front of the Red Sea, completely trapped between the dangerous Sea and the Egyptian army. They must have been thinking, “Really, all of this to be here, Lord? You really brought us here so that we could fail?” But He didn’t let them fail. He was only setting them up so that His glory would be displayed. And, after God displayed His glory, it caused wonderful reactions in Israel and Moses. They feared the Lord, believed in Him and sang praises to Him. Exodus 15:2 “The LORD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation; this is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him.” God directed me to passages like Psalm 37 and was asking me to trust Him. Despite all my many different emotions, He gave me His peace and rest.

He led me to start praying over my circumstance. I asked that He would clearly lead in all of this confusion. I prayed that if He wanted me to stay, He would provide another open door. I remember the morning before I met with Marcos and Sarah, I sensed a deep need to pray over our conversation that day. It must have been the Spirit bringing this thought to my mind that morning because I remember thinking…what if I could stay with Marcos! The thought had never occurred to me until that morning. I prayed that if God was opening that door and was leading me through it, He would have Marcos ask me to stay with him during our meeting. I wanted it to be led by God not something that I conjured up or tried to control, and I knew that if I asked Marcos to stay with him, it would be my desperate attempt to make something work so that all of this would make sense to me. Instead, I wanted to rest in the Lord and allow Him to make the decisions. I asked the Lord that if it was according to His will, Marcos would be the one to bring it up and make the offer. And guess what happened. Before I had said anything about what was going on with MGM, Marcos asked me if I wanted to stay with His family and work with his ministry after my time at MGM. I was deeply aware that the Lord was orchestrating in these details.

Although the Lord had clearly spoken in regards to staying with Marcos, my stubborn spirit grew discouraged and indecisive. The Enemy used a lot of things to discourage my going with Marcos.  Honestly, I just wanted to be home. I was frustrated. I came home just plain confused and unsure of my next step.

After the wedding in March, I got a job that I really enjoyed. Truly God was the one orchestrating in those details as well. I was really starting to get adjusted and used every excuse in the book not to go back even though there was a huge part of me that really wanted to return to the DR. For starters, I was not hearing back from the ministry I was at before to come back in June. I figured that I just should not go back since that door was closed. But the lingering thought of that offer made by Marcos continued to come back over and over again. There was an internal war inside of me… I came home and got a job that I really enjoyed . I developed a great friendship with a dear sister in Christ. I needed to continue to save up money for school. I would lose the job that I really enjoyed. These were the thoughts of my flesh that waged war against the Spirit. I wanted to do what made sense and what was most convenient, yet I knew my Heavenly Father was asking something else from me. And I hated it. Basically it boiled down to this question: Am I willing to put myself in a position where I completely and totally have to depend on Him in trust no matter how confusing, and quite honestly, counter-productive, and illogical (to the world), the situation may be? It wasn’t a question of whether or not I was willing to sacrifice my time, money, job, and comfort (But I have to say, parting with those things, to my dismay and shame, was not as easy for me as I wish to admit). The real question was: Do I love him and will I obey Him? Do I really trust God at His Word? Am I willing to set aside the gifts He has given me to know the gift giver better? He had to change my perspective to see that my job and my present circumstances were a GIFT from Him. They were given to me not for me to cling on to them, but to be thankful for them. Once He gave me this understanding, I could see that these earthly treasures were never mine to claim. They were given to me to be used for His glory not my comfort. We cannot serve two masters. I cannot explain the promptings of the Holy Spirit, but as His sheep, we know our Shepherd’s voice. I could not shake the Holy conviction and prompting to go back to the DR. The Spirit’s promptings are quite unexplainable, but they were ignited as I sat in Church meetings, spent time in prayer, read His Word, read missionary biographies, and sat in His presence. I needed to go back with Marcos. I tried to compromise with Him in my mind with some of the things He was asking me to do. I won’t go on in great detail about these other things, but He basically was asking me to do everything the hardest way possible for me. I kept trying to find ways out that fit more of my understanding, but there was no peace. Absolutely no peace. I knew the right decision, and I continued to fight it.

Then, one morning, my mom said, “I really believe this is the Lord wanting me to tell you that you have to go back in May.” And, I simply said-“ I know.” Despite all my stubbornness, He still went to the length of using my mom to speak to me.  What grace He has with one who has such a stubborn heart. There was this fire welling up inside of me, and I simply thought, okay, if I truly say I trust Him, I must obey Him in this. So I said, okay Lord, I surrender. I relinquish control over this part of my life because it is Yours anyways. I knew what He was asking, so I made a decision. I settled in my heart that I was going to obey Him in everything, told Marcos I was coming, and bought the plane ticket. 

When I arrived here, my jaw dropped at His goodness, His sovereignty, and His orchestrating all along. Despite all my doubts, failures, confusions, etc. He has been orchestrating my journey all along. The second day upon arriving (May 13), Marcos asked me how I came to the decision to stay with him. I explained basically what I just wrote here. He told me that the real reason he had come all the way to Hato Mayor to meet me was because the Lord had brought my name up to him a couple times in prayer. The Lord told him to meet up with the "girl in Hato Mayor" and make an offer for her to stay with him and his family (he told me later he fought God in this request because he did not have the gas to drive all the way over to Hato Mayor). I asked God that it would not be my plan, and He answered. He was orchestrating all these details all along. He did not have to give me confirmation but knowing that I’m a “words of affirmation” kind of girl, I think He allowed me to have insight into that one. So, I am without a shadow of a doubt in His will in being here. I’m not sure what the journey will look like or why or what the end result will be, but that is okay. I simply know that I am in His will having obeyed all that He has asked of me, and there is just no better place to dwell.  

Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind. AND love your neighbor as yourself. (Matthew 22:37-40)

Hello there! I returned to the Dominican Republic on May 12th and will be staying through June 23rd. I am staying with a missionary by the name of Marcos Lykins who does missions in La Romana. Marcos and his family do a lot of work in the poorer neighborhoods of La Romana building relationships, supplying needs, and sharing Truth. Marcos' aim in working in these neighborhoods is to train and equip the Dominicans, so that they can then be independent and train others too. His ministry covers a lot of different areas such as working with former prostitutes and teaching them a vocation, pastoral training, short term teams, and daily visits to establish deep relationships. Because it is the Spirit leading and guiding this ministry, there is no set box of what Marcos does in these neighborhoods, so it is difficult to convey all that he does there. It is amazing to watch God work as we depend on His leading in ministry. Here is his blog if you want to read more about his ministry ://marcoslykins.blogspot.com/

This first week and a half, Marcos has been training and teaching me from the Scriptures about missions and other topics. Wow, the Lord has been revealing so much of His heart and desires through these studies. We have gone out to a neighborhood called Brizas del Mar to connect with the people there and start intentional relationships. One particular family the Lord has led us to is a mom (Mami-Ana) and six children. They live in a dirty shack and have hardly enough water and food to survive. The mother is ill and three months pregnant. Before we showed up a couple days ago, Mami-Ana was close to giving up. But little by little, as we continue to spend time with her, encourage her, and help her, we pray that she grasps on to the hope of Christ. And I can't wait to play with her kiddos, just so I can see a smile on their sweet faces :) Today we visited an orphanage in La Romana, and I am praying about getting involved there as well. Those kiddos are a blessing.

I have so much joy in doing this kind of relational ministry. These are my brothers and sisters. They are real people with real feelings and needs. And I love that they are willing to invite me in so that I can get to know them and come alongside them. I look forward to share the ways in which God is working in Brizas del Mar. I'm excited for the adventure He has ahead!

Proverbs 16:9 "In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps."

Hola mis amigos! Okay, I apologize for the overdue update- how easily we can slip into trivial, mundane tasks instead of Kingdom work...Romans 7 is a very real Christian experience. First of all, I came home on March 8^th, which was in the plan because I was in my friend's wedding. I was supposed to return to the Dominican Republic on March 22^nd, but I did not. I am currently waiting to go back to the Dominican because the government is now cracking down on visas. In order to stay without a visa, you can only be there ninety days at a time.As a result, I have to wait so that when I go back, I will not overextend the ninety day period. In the mean time, I am working at a bakery and helping with the ministry’s website. Along with that, I am figuring out details for next year, which turned into a much larger project than I was expecting. It looks as though right now I will be going back to the Dominican Republic May 12^th and staying with another missionary in La Romana for a little while. Lord willing, I will then return to MGM my last month there. I thought I would put this post up quick, and add more thoughts later. But, I have to share that although I was disappointed that my stay was shortened, I am absolutely in awe of God's sovereignty in all of the change of plans. In order to make things concrete for this upcoming fall, I have had to do so much research, meet with so many people, pray, make a lot of phone calls, pray, do some more research, and so many other details I won't bore you with. I have accomplished so much this past month that would not have been possible had I been in the Dominican Republic. I would have come back to find I was in a real mess and probably make poor choices due to a lack of information. I stand amazed at God's omniscience, sovereignty, and faithfulness.  

The Lord's purpose will prevail

Recently, there was a plot of land lent to MGM that will be used to plant a garden. On a Monday morning, Barb, Miguelina, two Dominican men, and I set out for this tiny "jungle" to turn it into something that looks more like a garden than a tropical forest. The first day, our speedy Dominican friends whipped out their machetes and tore down half of the weeds. After a lot of sweat, water breaks, and hard work, we cleared half of the land and then prayed over it. We are trusting that the Lord will direct MGM on how to use this specific plot of land to further His Kingdom and purposes. One possibility is to teach young women from the villages how to garden and grow certain food. It could also be used as a food supply for the missionaries there, or as a ministry for the teams that come down. Proverbs 19:21-"Many are the plans in a man's heart, But the counsel of the LORD, it will stand." How amazing to know that nothing can stand against God's plan. What He wills, will come to pass.

Psalm 67: 3 "Let the peoples praise you, O God: let all the peoples praise you!"

          Around a year ago, a man by the name of Leonel was in the middle of robbing someone when he was shot in the stomach and head and then crippled under his motorcycle that had been lit on fire and thrown on top of him. He laid in this condition in the middle of a field for around three hours in the early hours of the morning before being found and taken to the hospital. His mouth was sewn shut for twenty days to repair his jaw, and the bullet was taken out of his stomach. Leonel should not have lived. In time, Jessica, the MGM nurse here, crossed paths with Leonel. His leg was still severely burned and infected. The infection was so bad that his leg had turned green and most everyone thought he would lose his leg. Through many many months of taking care of his leg, it  has slowly begun to heal. But he has not only been healed physically, but also spiritually.

         Through Jessica's encounters with Leonel, she was able to share Truth with him on a daily basis. He was never angry or opposed to her sharing Truth with him, but he continued to tell her, "maybe later, maybe later." Week after week, Jessica would see his untouched Bible lay in the same place. But as time went on, she noticed that it had finally left that dusty, old place, and had been moved, opened, and read. After three weeks, Leonel finally accepted Christ as His Savior. Before Leonel was a thief who was very angry, mean, and dangerous. He hated the men that hurt him and wanted revenge on them. His face had a permanent look of pure anger. After receiving Christ, his whole demeanor has changed. The people in his village have noticed and cannot believe the change they see in him. He is now gentle, humble, and kind. He no longer wants revenge but instead wants to share the truth of the Gospel with others!

         The Whitefield's pastors caught wind of his story and visited Leonel on Monday, February 10th. God knew that Leonel needed men to affirm, encourage and uplift him. The men encouraged him to remain steadfast under trials, and that it is always the best to remain obedient to God, for He is good and faithful. The encounter really demonstrated how members of the Body of Christ need each other to continue steadfastly. It reminded me of the early church in Antioch. News had come to the Jerusalem church that many people in Antioch had come to know the Lord, and they sent Barnabas (son of encouragement) there. Barnabas encouraged these new believers and exhorted them to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose. The Whitefield's men see that it is imperative that Leonel is discipled and that his roots grow deep in Christ, so this Tuesday and hopefully from now on, Leonel will join the men each week in their pastoral meetings. In March, we are also hoping that he will attend the pastoral training held at Ney's house (he did end up doing this training). Leonel has had visions of preaching and sees God's calling on his life to share His Truth with others. As the Lord wills, we pray that someday down the road, Leonel could join Whitefield's in its mission to disciple and shepherd the flocks in the sugarcane fields.

           Leonel lives in Village 51, a very spiritually dark place. There are many gangs, and a lot of drugs. It is impoverished and there is no electricity there. There are many people, even small children, who are sexually abused and as a result, many suffer from sexually transmitted diseases. For most of the villagers, there is no way out of their situation. They are stuck in this place with no hope to ever leave their circumstances.There is no church building there because it is too dangerous.The temptations, opposition and persecution Leonel faces on a daily basis is unimaginable. We trust that God has a specific plan to shine His light in Village 51. For months, Jessica, the MGM nurse, has been going to Village 51 every Sunday to teach the remnant of people there who are interested in hearing the Word of God. The desire and intention is that Leonel would eventually take over for Jessica after he has grown deeper in Christ and the Word . Every Sunday, Jessica, Beka, me, and other friends go to the village. Jessica teaches, and I run the children's ministry. The prayers are that God would continue to build up the church there and that Leonel, if it is his calling, would shepherd the flock in that village. We know that against all odds, Leonel lived and that God preserved him for a specific purpose.

Prayer Requests:

• Pray against the footholds and schemes of the Enemy in Village 51.
• Leonel would endure through trials and that God would continue to grow his roots deep in Christ. Pray that God would bring faithful believers to encourage him, disciple him, and bear his burdens with him.
• God would continue to encourage Jessica's heart as she goes out every week to share truth with these people. May the soil in Village 51 be rich and receptive to His Truth and may He bear much fruit there. May His light shine forth and many people receive Christ.

The Whitefield's men visit Leonel in Village 51 and encourage this new brother in Christ.

Ney praying over Leonel.

The beautiful children that faithfully come every Sunday to hear the Word of God!

Compassion International

A lovely day spent at the Compassion International School here in Hato Mayor. A day to meet new friends such as these lovely girls!

http://www.compassion.com/ 

Prayer requests:

1. Many of these kids deal with very real hardships due to abandonment by their fathers, marital affairs, sexual abuse, violence in homes, etc. Pray that God would continue to raise up leaders that can be an example of God-fearing men and women for them and show them the love of Christ.
2. These children would grow to be God-fearing men and women that fully surrender their lives to the Lord's service. They would hunger for Him, seek Him, know Him, love Him and share about Him with others.
3. God would continue to raise the funds to keep the school going and to support more children to go to school. The leaders would continue to be yielded to God's direction and leading.

Here's for all those coffee lovers out there!

        One thing I have the pleasure to be a part of during my stay in the DR is to help make the coffee for Cafe del Rey. We often drink coffee without even thinking twice about the process that took place to bring this popular drink right in front of us. For all you coffee lovers, here is the process of how you get your beloved drink, well at least Cafe del Rey style!

               First of all, the ministry buys the beans from local farmers. They recently bought some trees, so they also will use some beans from their own supply in the future. After purchasing the beans, they are laid out on a tarp to dry and ferment for many days. The batch in this picture had been drying for seventeen days! After they are dried, they are sent to a mill to take the beans out of the shells. They are then put in 1500 kilo bags, and brought back to Ney's house.Six pounds of coffee at a time is then put into the roaster. Each batch takes around 15 minutes depending on the roast. After that, the beans are left to cool and are thrown into a tub to pick out unwanted objects. The beans go into the grinder and then are measured out into bags. They use a straightener (I know, clever, right?) to seal the bags, the label is put on, and the coffee is ready to go to Cafe del Rey! Pretty cool stuff, right?

1. The trees

2. Drying and fermenting beans

3. Beans sent to mill to remove shells

4. Beans are roasted

5. Beans are cooled

6. Unwanted objects sorted out

               

          

7. Off to the grinder!

8. Weighing the bags

10. And there you have it folks! Cafe del Rey's organic coffee!

9. Sealing the bags!

Dragon Skin

             I have officially hit the one month mark! It has been a full month of difficulties, frustrations, confusion, doubt and so many other emotions. But through all of the hardships and trials, the Lord has sustained me with His loving kindness and promises. He is so very near and present in our lives.
           
              In C.S Lewis’ series The Chronicles of Narnia, he writes about Aslan peeling a dragon’s skin off layer by layer. It is a painful process, but in the end, it strips him of his dragon layers that masked his true identity as a boy. More and more each day, the Lord peels off layers and chisels huge chunks off of me that do not conform to His likeness. I have put on the new self and it is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. (Colossians 3:10). It is a painful process, but I know it is good, necessary, and directed by God. It reminds me of the song “You Wont Relent” by Misty Edwards. God will not relent until He has all of us: our whole heart, our whole devotion, and our whole adoration. And this is in no way a selfish thing on His part. He created us and knows that our very purpose is for Him to be our all and all and for us to dwell and live in His relational presence. So as He calls us to lay more of our idols at His feet, and for Him to take the place at the throne of our heart, the more He is bringing us to the very center of who we are as His created beings. And once we discover this, we find that there is no greater and more satisfying place to dwell. Jesus promised that when we lose our lives for His sake,  it is only then that we finally find it.

           Despite some things not going the way I was expecting, He reminds me that I need to trust Him. He is the One with the ultimate plan. I may not understand His purpose in everything, but the Spirit brings to mind Proverbs 3:5-6. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths.” He is so gracious to remind us of His promises. He reminds me of His steadfast love and compassion for His children. It is written that, “the steadfast love of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him…(Psalm 103:17)”, and He is a Father who has great compassion for His children (Psalm 103:13). As I look to the heavens he reminds me of three promises. First of all, the heavens declare the glory of God (Psalm 19). Secondly, “For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him (Psalm 103:11).” And lastly His incomprehensible grace, for Scripture says, “as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us (Psalm 103:12).” Each time I look to the heavens, I see how infinite, endless, and majestic they are, and that only means that God’s glory, love, and grace is infinite, everlasting, unending, and absolutely breathtaking… And you should see the sunrises here in the morning!!! I am blown away that the God of the Universe is infinitely greater than His creation.
       
            As I continue to lay aside what I think things should be and instead, surrender, take up the cross, and am filled with His Spirit, He graces me with His wisdom and direction for today. He is my only source of power and strength, so daily I must abide in Him. When I try to figure out what today should bring and do things on my own terms, I find myself anxious and overwhelmed. But when I wake up each day and ask Him to lead me, He leads me. He works out the details. He desires that I relinquish control and yield to Him in faith. Even if following Him for today means restocking some cups or washing a counter, it is the work He has given me, and in Scripture it says whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. More and more each day, He slowly unravels what He wants me to do here. He continues to affirm and encourage me that, for today, I am right where He wants me. And there is just no better place to be than in the will of God.

           More and more each day, my heart aches for this land. It is easy to believe that the grass is greener on the other side, but the reality is that we are all broken. Every land, every nation, and every tribe has been ravaged and destroyed by sin. The fall of man means that in every place there is greed, murder, envy, selfishness, anger, and every other sin. Apart from His grace, our hearts will always be far from Him. I see so much pain and suffering here, and at times it can be overwhelming. I realize that whoever we are, rich or poor, black or white, male or female, we are all in the same boat. We all are fallen, and sin has affected us in some shape or form and in different degrees. But every human has the same longings and desires. We all are completely unfulfilled by what this world has to offer, and we so desperately think that something in this world will finally satisfy us. But it simply cannot. I think a lot of the Dominicans believe they will find happiness if they have more money and possessions.  But the reality is that wealth will never fulfill them. I am no better of a person for having possessions. My money, my possessions, or my skills will never fix them spiritually. We can give them as much food, as many crafts, as much money, but it will not fix the brokenness that is inside every human being. The real solution is Jesus Christ. He is the one that has ransomed us from our slavery. By the power of the cross, we are justified and freed from the control of sin. I am simply just as broken as the person next to me, but by God’s grace, I have been redeemed by a loving Savior.

          The pain and emptiness I see around me makes me even more thankful for the hope we have in Christ. Not only has He shown His deep love for me as His child, but also His deep love for the whole world. As I look out and see the brokenness of this land, it only leads me to one question. Why does God allow this to happen? But He reminds me that He has already demonstrated His passionate and reckless love for the world through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Because I have experienced the ways in which He loves me as His child, I am deeply aware that His love for this nation and these people is far greater than I could ever begin to comprehend. And because He has such a deep love for these people, He has developed a deep love for them within me.

Prayer requests:
1. Discernment, wisdom, clarity, compassion, humility, kindness, and joy for each day.
2. A surrendering, taking up of the cross, and filling of the Spirit each day.
3. Both the Dominicans and Americans would encounter God, receive Christ, seek Him wholeheartedly, and share the Good News with others so that the cycle keeps on going.
4. MGM and Whitefields would remain a unified body in Christ.
5. Communication within ministry and language barriers.
6. The Lord would bear much fruit through the updating of the website and newsletter that Whitefield’s will send out. Much fruit would be produced both in the DR and America through communicating all that God is doing in the DR (Which is A LOT).

Thank you all for your support and prayers. Truly, it has been so encouraging. More updates will be coming soon. I apologize for the delay in getting this post up!

Proverbs 3:5-6

                 I have officially been in the Dominican Republic for two weeks! Thank you all for your prayers and support. Truly God is faithful to hear and respond to His people. I wanted to share all that has been going on here in Hato Mayor.

                For this month, I have been helping out with Meeting God in Missions (http://www.meetinggodinmissions.com/), a ministry designed for Americans to experience God by worshiping and serving Him in the Dominican Republic . Every day the teams wake up and have a personal devotional with God. After that, they have morning worship and Jim, the visionary of the ministry, does a morning service. Each week, new teams from all over the United States arrive, and they go out into sugarcane villages which are located sporadically throughout a vast expanse of sugarcane field. The workers and their families live in tiny villages throughout the fields. Most of the American ministry is focused on these people in the villages. Some ministries that have been going on these past couple weeks have been a dental team, a medical team, an optical team, a VBS team, a prayer team, and a construction team.  I have been going out with the teams each day and helping out with the various ministries. Right now it has been a process of learning the ropes of most of the ministries. I have spent a lot of time with the Americans that come down by working with them, interacting with them, praying with them, and living here at the compound with them.I also have been assisting some of the long term missionaries with their responsibilities here at MGM. Each day I must depend on the Lord for His leading and guiding, and He is always faithful to lead. 

                During the month of February, I will be switching over to Whitefields Foundation Dominican Division (http://www.whitefieldsfoundation.org/dominican-division/). Slowly, God is unraveling His direction for my stay here. Ultimately, my stay here is in His hands, and everything is according to His plans. Here are the doors the Lord is opening to serve here in the Dominican Republic:

•  Working at Café Del Rey Saturday and Sunday nights. 
•  The ministry supports eight missionaries. Most of them are missionary pastors within the sugarcane  villages who are called to evangelize and shepherd the flock that has received our Lord Jesus Christ. They are the pastors that also come for pastoral training  (http://www.whitefieldsfoundation.org/dominican-division/ministries/#Pastoral Training and  Education). I will be shadowing these missionaries each week to observe their everyday ministries. I  will be gathering information and pictures for the ministry's newsletter. I will be collecting and learning as much I can in order to communicate to those who are not here about what the Lord is doing down here in the  Dominican Republic. I will travel to the missionaries' meetings and to their communities in which they shepherd and work alongside them as they minister to their communities. 
•  Working with Ney, one of the missionary pastors here, to make Cafe Del Rey's coffee.
•   Taking Spanish lessons from Justin, another Whitefields missionary.
•   Praying through other opportunities such as connecting with the Compassion International  School here in Hato Mayor and the local village children down the street. I am praying that ultimately, I am following the Lord and His direction each day.

God continues to remind me to trust and wait on Him. I need to abide in Him daily, obey His guiding and Word, and to love Him and others. He works out the details. He is the One with the plan.