Hello from Marisa and Kaitlyn! (Room 202 whoop whoop!) Well it’s day 8 of our Dominican Republic trip and God’s presence is evident in the everyday acts of life. We are finding that in the stillness, God is moving.
Tonight we had our final book discussion on the Celebration of Discipline and Kelsey had each student sum up an aspect of the trip that impacted them in a mere five words. Here is a snippet of what the students came up with:
Kaitlyn: Only God heals the broken.
Marisa: The little things are worthwhile.
Patty: Finding joy in all things
Carley: God will use me regardless
Andrew W.: Prayer begins with listening
Kapri: God opens the eyes of broken hearts
Brian: Growing by struggling with God
Kaylee: Having much but knowing little.
This small, simple exercise was so powerful. It was a witness that the God here in the D.R. is the same God in the U.S. Although we’ve all been growing in Christ individually, we’ve been learning together in community.
At the end of the workday, it’s really awesome to get together and hear about each other’s experiences. For example, hearing how Patty is connecting with the sweet children while teaching them how to play volleyball or how Carley had five girls braiding her hair at once while also being able to speak with them in Spanish. There’s also Kapri who is touched everyday by the unexplainable joy of Elsi, a four year old girl at her Mata Gorda school site. Elsi’s joy is evidenced in her marred smile of rotted teeth simply because of the inability of her family to afford water so the only other option is soda. After hearing about all these inspiring and sometimes difficult stories there is no doubt in our minds that God has placed everyone in their specific site for a purpose.
We’re very excited to see what God does in these last few days here in the Dominican Republic. We miss you and can’t wait to tell you all about our adventures here! And from all us Joshua Students, “Hi Family! We love you!”
DR – Day 8 from Joshua Wilderness Institute on Vimeo.