Sunday, March 1, 2015

Dominican Republic Day 1


DR Blog Sunday, March 1, 2015
Parkview Baptist Church

We are grateful to God for a safe and uneventful travel day, yesterday. A few of us immediately began enjoying the cuisine choices that are not readily available in Lake City--pastelitos in Miami and empanadas in Santo Domingo. I promise that these posts will not be all about food, but we enjoyed fresh mango this morning as we gathered for breakfast and our morning devotions. We have certainly enjoyed the hospitality of our hosts.

Our first day on site was a blessing. We worshiped with the gathering at the Community Transformation Center. The pastor taught the people two new songs, "Draw Me Close to You," and "Lord, I Lift Your Name on High." Of course they were sung in Spanish but we sang along with them. Pastor Cavier preached from John 2:1-8 and really pressed the fact that Jesus is our only hope because Jesus is our only true God. (At least that is what we think he was saying.) I do know that he preached verse by verse and appreciated the expository method by which he preached.

After worship, the team began painting the interior of a house and very quickly worked up an appetite for lunch. After lunch, the men finished up the interior painting of two houses (with multiple coats.) The ladies had a great Bible time with almost thirty children. They introduced the Golden Rule and talked about caring for others. The children were excited to color pictures and get their snack.

Since we were still adjusting to the new schedule, morning devotions were moved to the evening. Pastor Mike shared some thoughts about the four different types of missions commissions in the Bible and encouraged the team to make much of Jesus during our stay.

Some highlights:
As our ladies were teaching the children a song, the children began singing it in their own language. It was a joy to see the families together. We were grateful that so many children came back in the afternoon.What a great reminder that the kingdom is much bigger than any one ethnicity or nation.



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