First of all, thanks to all who have been praying. Our first two days of work have gone extremely well. I was a little nervous Monday going into the week, because I am not used to being in charge without anyone to defer to when it comes to decision time. Monday was the first test of that, and all of the work projects went well. Javier, the Dominican Director of Mission Emanuel, has done an incredible job of setting up the projects, so he is making my job look easy. He is really the one in charge, and it is a blessing to work with him and watch him serve these communities and these crazy Americans so well. We are currently working on two different houses. The first is for a woman named Carina, who has one child in our school, and came to Mission Emanuel asking for help on their home. They have slowly been building their own home, a piece at a time when they have extra money, doing all of the construction themselves. So, for the last year, their entire family has been living in half of a home. In Cielo, that means living in about 1 room. They asked for help with materials and labor, so the group will work this week and complete their home. We went to visit them on Sunday, see the construction site, and pray with them before our work began. It is always beautiful to stand with a family and know that at the end of this week, their dream of a complete home of their own will finally come true. It is pretty amazing to watch their joy and excitement. These days of construction bring so much hope to their lives, and I am thrilled to dedicate their house on Friday morning. We will all gather with them, share in their joy, and pray for the life they will have in this new home. What an amazing moment to witness! We poured the concrete floors this morning, after hours of bucket lines to move all of the materials yesterday. The only thing left is to sand the walls, prime them, and paint. So exciting!
The second project is for a family who has worked for Mission Emanuel for many years. I helped build their current home when I was here for a spring break in college. They have been living within the compound of the ministry, with the husband taking care of the grounds and working with maintenance, the wife teaching in the school, and their three children always around to play, help out, and even serve on summer staff. This is a well-known family to all who serve Mission Emanuel, so it is special to build them another home. We are moving them because their first home was converted to offices for the mission, as they need to move in order to have a little space between work and home. This house means a little less insanity, more privacy, and some space away from work. Just like I wouldn't want to live in a manse attached to my church, they want some space! So, footers have been dug, rebar laid, and pouring of the footers begins tomorrow. Hours and hours of concreto!! My favorite :)
So far, all is going well. There are a few things about this trip that will be different for me. I am trying to view this as two months of living here, rather than visiting. So, my camera is safely tucked away in my bag, because I am no longer a tourist here. These are my friends, my community for two months, and my job. So, there will be a lot fewer pictures this time as I simply live here, rather than view moments as photo opps. My life in the DR this time will be much more like actual life, instead of a fun visit and adventure.
Continue to pray for our progress, strength and energy in the heat, and for all of the teenagers with us this week. I know how much international missions and service to others can change the life and attitude of a teenager, and I hope that God is doing a lot of that this week. I do sometimes need to be reminded of how I was so deeply changed at their age because of trips like this. God spoke to me then and continues to speak to me now...I sincerely hope God is speaking to these kids now and will continue to walk closely with them.
Thanks for your prayers!
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