Day 5 – February 28, 2018

Wow has a lot happened in the 4 days since we last posted. The internet was basically non-existent till this afternoon, so I do apologize for the tardiness of this update.  You heard from Mike about our experiences Tuesday, and I want to share some thoughts from our Wednesday adventures.

Our morning began, as each one has, with the greetings of many friends as we load up for the day’s work. We headed to our second day at the school at Batey 35. Today’s focus, as we continued our theme of light, was the salvation message. I will end with my thoughts on this lesson in a moment.

What amazes me is how much can be communicated despite significant languages barriers. We didn’t always understand the students, and I am sure they didn’t understand us as we tried at times to talk without a translator. Sometimes a translator would be called over, but communication did happen through patience and creativity. Even when we have a common language, I don’t think we listen like we have been forced to this week. I would encourage you to take the time to look people in the eyes and really listen and you go about your daily conversations and see how it might affect your interactions.

The afternoon brought an outdoor service in a nearby Batey in Guazabel. The whole community slowly gathered under the shade of large tree. One of the students that our group has connected with over the years, Johnny, brought his youth group to lead in song and once again we were blessed to have Pastor Gusmane give the message directly to the people in Creole. After the service we were able to hand out bags of food and a solar powered light to each family in the Batey. Before we had left a few of the lights were already staked into the ground ready to light a path once nighttime came.

Our evening ended in a Pizza Hut of all places (and yes it tasted the same, great!). Our ladies held an American Bridal Shower for a young lady set to be married on Saturday while we took the groom out for the evening. Both groups had a lot of fun, but enjoyed sharing advice about the ups and downs of marriage and were able to pray for their future together. I just met this couple on Sunday, but I am very excited to be a part of their big day this weekend.

My thoughts for all of us as I close this post are focused on the content of the lesson given throughout the day. We shared Monday that God created the light. Today we were reminded that Jesus came to bring light into our world of darkness. What darkness do you live in? What keeps you from the God who created you, loves you, died for you, and conquered death for you? There is no darkness that God’s love cannot make light again. Jesus said in John 8:12; “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

Our life in Jesus starts with confessing, it continues with seeking the light, and it is sustained by the only one who can; Jesus. My encouragement tonight is to seek His light and His plan for you. If you haven’t chosen to believe in Jesus or say you have more questions about all of this, let’s talk. We are providing earthly things to the people of the DR this week, but our main goal is to provide what will never go away. So whether you are here in the DR, the USA, or anywhere else around the world, I would love to talk to you about the light in my life that has changed my life.

For tonight,

-Pastor Josh

Day 4 – February 27, 2018 By Mike Enslen

Hello CABC Family!  This has been quite a journey, and I am glad to be able to bring a blog update to you from the group.  Our Tuesday adventures began with packing the bus at Elza’s with food bags, clothing, and personal care items that we would be distributing at the Alta Gracia Batey.  Along the drive we came across a section of the road with sugar cane fields on both sides that were being actively harvested, with many men hard at work.  We stopped the bus and set up an area right there in the field to hand out clothing items to the men.  From what I am told, this is something that our groups have hoped to do but never had the right opportunity presented.  It was quite a sight to see, men leaving their work areas from all over the fields to come and see us.  We gave each of them a clothing item and a blessing and I saw many excited, thankful faces.  I believe this is what the ministry is all about – serving this population of people that work so hard for so little!

From there we went to Alta Gracia, and set up for clothing and food distribution inside their church.  There are some very sweet people that live in this Batey, and I had the opportunity to help some men find clothing and shoes that were desperately needed.  We also had many young kids come through and find clothes that suited them, as we had been blessed with so many donations of children’s clothing. (Thank you!)  As these families left they received a food package, and each individual was given a toothbrush and toothpaste.  Many connections were made here, and we prayed over the village as we returned back to Elza’s – this is something we do at the start and end of each day…sometimes it’s one of us, other times a translator or someone else working with the team, but always a blessing to see us all come before the Lord as one body!

Tuesday afternoon/evening was our beach excursion – a tradition for our groups that come to the DR, but a first for Me, Pastor Josh and Pastor Gusmane.  We enjoyed the water, had a meal, and saw a beautiful sunset.  The highlight of the evening was a birthday celebration for Polo, the administrator of our school at Batey 35.  It’s been an honor to meet and serve alongside Polo – he has such a heart for the kids, and works very hard on behalf of the mission.

I thank you for your continued prayers as we are getting close to the end of the week. (It’s Friday as I write this, as we have had WiFi issues and have been unable to make timely updates.)  It’s been a wonderful adventure so far, but we still have more to accomplish before we’re through!

-Mike Enslen

(I will be updating tomorrow, provided the Wi-Fi holds up.)

Day 1

We made it! We had a slight delay on boarding, lines getting off the plane, and a friendly exchange at customs, but otherwise a perfect flight. This was an experience to say the least, but we are officially here in Elza’s home in La Romana. Elza, for those who are not aware of our history here in the DR, is our gracious host and has had a long standing relationship with many individuals from our CABC family plus some. With some amazing, home cooked, food in our bellies we set straight to work unpacking and organizing for the busy week ahead of us.

My thoughts on the trip today come mostly from the journey here. This is my first overseas trip in over 10 years. I have forgotten the beauty that is God’s creation. Seeing the vast land and water while also flying up into the clouds is breathtaking. There is also the good reminder that we are such a small piece of our world. Not insignificant, but much smaller than that we make ourselves out to be sometimes. Our world is a vast place with many different cultures, customs, and languages. Just in the DR airport alone I heard Russian, French, Spanish, & English being spoken. (Or at least that’s what I thought I heard J).

Despite all those differences and the things that could and do keep us apart, I see hope in our world. I am a complete stranger to the people of La Romana but I have a connection with many here. Not because of my position, age, country of origin or anything else; but because of my relationship with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I am honored to have met a few of my brothers and sisters in Christ here today, and am even more excited to meet and serve alongside many more in the coming days. I will end my words tonight with a verse from our group devotional time. It’s a good reminder, whether in the DR, USA or anywhere else, that we need to do everything for God so that He gets the glory. We may be small, but His reach is global.

1 Corinthians 10:31 (NIV)
“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”

(And for the laugh of the night….yes, the Bible just said do, do!)