Friday, January 8, 2010

A First Full Day in the DR

Hello again on a Friday night in the Caribbean...We had a full day of work and experiences today after getting a much needed long night of sleep...and one of the guys on our team is going to share what he saw, he felt, and what God is doing in His life...I think you'll enjoy reading it...

Today was a day that I will never forget. This morning after breakfast we went straight to work. Today we worked on making a second floor of a building that will soon become a weight room for students and people of the community. It was probabally the hardest labor I have had to do and yet it was the most enjoyable. It's funny because I thought the day would never come where I would actually have fun working! After lunch we went on a walk through one of the villages. What I saw was unexplainable. These people literally have nothing but the clothes on their back and yet every single person seemed to be very joyful in a way that you do not see in America. When walking through I saw a little girl off in the distance staring at me but seemed to be too shy to approach. I walked up to her and handed her a lady bug beanie baby, and the expression of this little girl gave me shivers down my spine. To us a beanie baby means nothing and most of us wouldn't even want it, but to this girl it was like she just got a brand new car. The truth is at that moment I don't know who was happier, that little girl or me. The feeling of giving and helping the needy is an amazing feeling that I think has changed my life. The Dominicans know what really matters in life. They are so content with what they have. They value and love one another like nothing I have ever seen. I came on this trip because I have a heart for the needy, and the least I can do is sacrifice a week of my life to help change the Dominicans lives, but really it's the Dominicans who are changing mine.

Signing off from the DR, Zac Tolsma

I love seeing God at work in student lives and loved reading the paragraph above filled with such a powerful testimony...what a privilege to come to this community and be changed as we seek to be part of the change God is at work doing here...we look forward to a big day of soccer tomorrow, filled with matches against local teams...we're excited to meet the players on those teams and it will be fun to play against guys who love the same game we do in another part of the world...and we look forward to telling them about the One who has brought us to their country...

We always sense the prayers of you back at home and it's pretty neat to see how God always shows up in real ways as we seek to serve Him, even in the first day...

Looking forward to tomorrow...CHIP

3 comments:

Catherine said...

Sounds like an amazing experience and a day well spent. What you are doing is such an affirmation of God's design of communing with Him and one another as you reflect His image. I can't imagine a better way to spend a day. Thanks so much for the update. Tell Coach I said hi ; ) In Christs name, Catherine Mueller-Bell

tamigrotenhuis said...

I love sharing in your experience through these posts! We are praying several times a day for you!! May He continue to unfold His plan for each of you and draw your group together to do His work!

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