Wrapping Up 2018

This update has been a while in the making, but we've unfortunately had "sick week" in the Terrero household. I (Rose) came down with a bad cold on Friday, and spent several days mostly in bed. Miguel caught it just as I was getting over it and is finally on the mend now. The good part is that it happened the same week that FCA's Christmas break started! So, sickness aside, we've enjoyed being able to be home and mend without any worries that things were falling to the side as a result (except this post, of course ;).

2018 has been a tremendous year for us, with a lot of -traveling, -ministry advancement, and -church involvement.

- We've made a total of 4 trips stateside since this time last year!

Our first trip was to MI for Christmas and Miguel's first taste of all things America, including snow and everything related to a northern winter! Early on, we decided to spend the Christmas/New Year's season Stateside every other year and spend the alternate year here in the DR, barring any special circumstances, of course. Since Miguel had just gotten his residency approval paperwork, it worked out well to spend a little over a month for our first trip together.Because of the length of our stay, we got to spend a few days in GA as well, visiting wonderful friends and meeting new ones! Most of our GA family have been people who've been here on trips throughout the past 7 years and have gotten to know Miguel through ministry connections.

Our second trip was barely a month later as we headed to Orlando, FL to attend FCA's annual International Capacity Conference and once-every-three-years Realtime gathering with all of FCA staff and spouses. It was a full week of lots of learning, gaining ministry strategies, and connecting with fellow missionaries and people with a heart for youth and sports ministry. 

Our third trip was the beginning of summer and right before our mission team season started. We were able to head to ND for 10 days to share with one of our main supporting churches, Northland Harvest Church, and give Miguel a taste of long summer days in northern USA.

Our fourth and most recent trip was barely a month ago, right over Thanksgiving. We absolutely loved catching up with friends and being with family in TX and making new connections and potential partnership opportunities in MD with Bay Area Community Church, as well as catching up with TCP, who is starting to make annual trips down here. I wrote a recap of the trip over on our Facebook page. 

It's difficult to compare the trips since they were to different parts of the country, during different times of the year, and for different purposes and each was unique and special in its own way. The one common factor we took away from each trip was overwhelming gratefulness for the family and friends we have spread all over the US. AND on the flip-side, coming back home to a place where we belong right now and to people who pray for and miss us while we're gone. It's the best of both worlds, even if it does mean we're always missing someone.
An added blessing has been the generosity of churches and ministry partners who have made the trips possible through funding. At this point in our ongoing monthly funds, we would not be able to pay for all these trips on our own and we are so blessed by others' generosity and love for us, above and beyond what we have needed! Also, a big shout out to friends and family who have allowed us to invade their homes and spaces during our trips! You know who you are - thank you from the bottom of our hearts!!

- Miguel and I were talking about ministry the other day and reflecting on the incredible change that has taken place over the past two years since Miguel first started coming to Higuey in preparation to move up here once we were married. He first came knowing a grand total of 3 coaches. Two short years later and now he meets with 10-15 coaches weekly, 5 of whom are in his bi-monthly small group gaining tools to disciple their own teams, families, and influence other coaches. He visits an average of 3 fields every day, four days a week, to run devotional times (huddles) with the athletes and equip the coaches on-the-go, teaching life principles, Biblical understanding, and supporting them in any way necessary.

Every coach in Higuey, and many in the outlying small towns, know Miguel; he has visited their homes, knows their families, and shared in the their difficulty and joy. In turn, it is a weekly, sometimes daily, occurrence to have a coach show up at our home to see Miguel about personal, professional, and spiritual matters.

He has been invited to participate as a mediator in a group who is aiming to better formalize baseball in Higuey with the MLB since they know he doesn't bring his own agenda and is trustworthy.
We recently had another 3Dimensional Coaching workshop where 34 coaches participated in learning the fundamentals of coaching on a physical, mental, and heart level. These workshops are run by another of FCA DR's regional directors and have been amazing tools in helping coaches understand the impact they can have on an entire generation of their communities. Our prayer and aim is that the coaches learn to use this impact for good and to share the true hope of a future that comes in Jesus Christ.

On top of all this, we've helped host 8 teams for FCA DR and are already up to 10 teams for next year! I'll give a few more details on that below.

 

Then, of course, we have ATB and what that has added to our personal ministry. Recently, ATB staff was called in to assist in helping relocate more than 20 foreign women who had been trafficked. Without going into too much detail, this isn't the first time that a situation like this has come up and the government and assisting parties don't have any place to put the rescued women. This is precisely why we have created our Assessment Center model - but, we are still waiting for the paperwork to go through on the building the government is willing to donate to us. Involved in this recent case was an official who has access to the person with the authority to sign and release the papers on the building. Please be praying with us for this situation to be resolved and the paperwork to be cleared! Anyone who has done any ministry, business, or personal legal processes in the DR knows how long the paperwork process can drag out (sometimes for years). We will need discernment to know how long to wait until we should simply look for another option.
On another note, when we came back from our Thanksgiving trip, we were able to bring 2/3 of the donated Human Kindness Kits some of you gave towards. We are excited to have these on hand and look forward to being able to give them out in future cases!

- Something we've touched on several times, though not in great detail, and has been one of the most important factors in our married lives, is our local church. We strongly believe that the local church is God's design and the goal of any ministry should be to actively, beneficially participate in it's growth (in depth and width). The church we are a part of has been, in essence, a re-plant, and is still in it's beginning stages. It has been incredible to be able to see and participate in, from the beginning, how a healthy church lays its foundations, what biblical doctrinal guidelines are, and what is truly important - people.
We always encourage athletes to attend church with their coaches if they do not have one to attend and they're too far away from ours. However, we always invite them to come with us, when possible, and three of Miguel's youth have started attending regularly. One has gotten baptized and another one is considering taking that step as well!
Dinners with church friends are a regular occurrence around here. This dynamic group of people are the individuals who challenge us in our walk, encourage and uplift us in difficulty, and share in the joy of Jesus with us. Come visit us, and we'll take you to Thurs. night or Sun. meetings and you'll get to share in the warmth as well! The kind of friends who insist we share New Year's with them and call us family always welcome our visitors and groups with open arms.

As we wrap up 2018 and head into 2019, our hearts of full of praise and we love celebrating the reason for it all, Jesus Christ!

You might not be able to read the lettering, but I'm sure most of you have seen this news by now. We found out about our Mini T right after getting back from MD, and we are thrilled! Though not a complete surprise, in human terms one month later would have been "better" regarding ministry scheduling. My due date is early August, right in the middle of 3 large teams scheduled to come next year! We'll need some discernment in planning, but as of now, it looks like I'll be going Stateside in July and Miguel will be joining me as close to the baby's arrival as possible to plan for.
Because of this, one of our focuses will be having all the details in place for the team(s) Miguel will need to miss and training one more staff member the ins and outs of hosting the teams once they're on the ground. We also are not accepting any more team bookings for August!
We will also then need to spend several more months stateside as we will have at least 3 paperwork processes going after August.
The paperwork for Mini T alone will be more than usual as we want our kids to have dual citizenship.
The second paperwork process will be Miguel's residency status. Since we were married for less than 2 years when we filed, he was granted temporary status for 2 years, and come September, we'll need to begin the process of filing for the extension of full permanent status.
The third paperwork process will be to get started on my Dominican residency process. This needs to be started from the States and we've never been up there long enough, since getting Miguel's US residency done, to begin filing for mine. So far, residency hasn't been necessary, but we do need to pay an overstay fine every time I leave the DR, which adds up. And with adding a child, it will make things easier and more cost effective long-term to have my residency here.
These are the joys of international family life! When we got engaged, my bosses, who are Australian and American, told me, "Congratulations!! Welcome a lifetime of filing paperwork!" :D

Because of these processes, we'll have some costs above and beyond regular "adding a member to the family" costs and would appreciate your prayers in this area. 

An Authentic Thanksgiving and Other Fun Stuff

I was shocked, utterly shocked, when last week I realized it's been 5 years since I last celebrated Thanksgiving in the United States. That's right - 5! And, not only has it been that long since I celebrated this USA holiday outside of the USA, over the past 5 years my favorite holiday has been spent/celebrated in 3 different countries. Yep - 3 countries. 

2013 - the year I started this blog. Originally, I started blogging to keep people updated on my family's travels to Central America that year, while also wanting a place to write and share about musings, growing steps, and life in general that could be an encouragement to others. 
That year, Thanksgiving was spend in Belize! It was the first, and only, trip we took as a family to Belize. In the post Thanksgiving and Beyond I wrote about our time with the Baumgartner family. Thanksgiving is the special holiday that brings Americans living overseas together and it's been a unique experience every time. 

2014 - the year I lived in Guatemala, interning with Pray America~Manos de Jesus in the mountains of Chichicastenango, Guatemala. That year (spring 2014 - spring 2015) will always hold a special bookmark in my heart, as that was when I had stepped out for the first time on my own and started putting into action what I believed God was calling me to - that was the jumping off point to bring me to where I am today. 
I didn't write much about Thanksgiving in and of itself that year since the post The Clock is Ticking was written right before the holidays, but I do vividly recall a gigantic Thanksgiving Day spread in the common area of the Community Center on campus and celebrating with staff, volunteers, and one of our favorite teams of the year who was serving with us that week. 

2015 - the year I moved to the Dominican Republic. That year, I managed to be in 4 countries for no less than a month in each one (Guatemala-USA-Thailand-Dominican Republic) and waved at Japan while catching connecting flights. I also moved from MI to ND to work, in between the country to country moves, and to establish more of a network and support system. In more ways than one it was the year my life changed, yet in other ways it was familiar because I was finally doing what I had dreamed of for so long. 
I moved here, along with my bosses (Peter and Barbie Everett), on October 27th. We got together 2 weeks ago on our third anniversary to reminisce those first few weeks/months and reflect on what to leave behind and what to take forward with us into new ventures. That year's post The Worst Thanksgiving Day Ever was a reflection of how we were learning to depend on God's truth no matter the circumstances. It was also the only year, in these past 5 years, that I did not formally celebrate my favorite holiday. 

2016 - the year I met Miguel AND the year we got engaged! That year was a road full of learning curves, growing pains, immense joy, crushing heartache, tears of agony AND joy, and dependence on Christ like never before. The safe home was up and running, girls came and went, staff grew and changed, and we saw work come to fruition.  
I will always think of that year as one of the most colorful, most fulfilling, best, yet hardest years. That year's post I Am Thankful... was such a beautiful reminder of what God really can do. Thanksgiving Day that year was everything the previous one was not!

2017 - the year of change. It was a year of new beginnings on every front. My brother had passed away the end of 2016. We got married in the spring 👫. I stepped away from anti-trafficking for a year. We moved to Higuey. We got plugged into a growing, thriving local church and community. Miguel's residency process was started and completed. Grief, happiness, healing, changing, moving, difficulty, contentment, peace, trust, overwhelming gratitude - these are things we experienced and moved through and grew in. 
We celebrated Thanksgiving in two distinct ways - once with a small group of family/friends (inner circle) and secondly with a large group of many missionaries working in all kinds of fields (outer circle) who came together to celebrate the special American holiday we all love. That year's post Preparing for a White Christmas! was an overview of the wonderful culmination of many prayers answered, a reflection of moving forward as our roots were beginning to grow. 

2018 - the year of more! You all have lived this year with us, and I think you'll understand when I say this has been one of the sweetest years.
And this is the year we get to spend Thanksgiving in the good ole' USA! Miguel is looking forward to the authenticity and spread of food; I doubt he'll be satisfied if we have less than 3 options for each food group. We're planning to be in Texas from November 17th-23rd to visit my oldest brother and his family. They weren't able to make it to our wedding last year due to his preparation for a long term deployment, so they haven't personally met Miguel yet. Saying we're all super excited to get to spend this time together is an understatement! 
From TX, we're flying to Maryland for an extended weekend to visit some of the same friends who were here in August with our last group of the summer. We're looking forward to seeing everyone again and making some new connections. I'm especially excited to get to spend a day in D.C. while we're there since I haven't been to my own country's capital yet (in all our family travels we never made it to the east coast for some reason). 

I considered splitting this post into two, but decided against it, simply because my excitement about An Authentic Thanksgiving probably wouldn't suffice as a post in itself ;) So, I'll try to keep the Other Fun Stuff part brief. 

If you've dropped in during October, you've seen our posts about a fundraiser we were doing. It's important I mention this because there is an amazing continuing story that has resulted from that event. 
Our goal for the fundraiser was to raise enough funds to purchase 200 Human Kindness Kits containing basic toiletry items to be gifted, along with other basic necessities, to women coming through ATB's trafficking assessment center next year. The fundraiser was done in the form of an online party and everyone attending was able to give direct donations for kits while also being able to shop products for themselves. My friend who hosted this receives a commission on a percentage of the products purchased, and she had originally wanted to donate her commission to Miguel and myself. However, knowing we might not reach our 200 kits goal, we decided to have her commission go toward kits, so every purchase counted, and if anything was leftover, then she would give the rest to us. 
~These details are important, I promise!~
Before going on, we want to sincerely thank each and every one of you who got involved with this fundraiser!! It has paid off more than we ever imagined.
While we were wrapping up everything, we did some brief calculations and figured we had enough in donations and commission on purchase products that would allow us to purchase 180 kits! So close and such a great number; I honestly would have been happy if we got only halfway to our goal, so we were excited. But -
Somehow, somewhere, our calculations were off and Joanne tells me a week or so later, while she was finalizing the event, that we actually would have more than we figured and had enough to get 200 kits!! I was stoked! Plus, she said, there would be some commission leftover that she could give to Miguel and myself after all. I was overwhelmed by God's goodness and people's generosity. God really does multiply in so many ways. But - 
~It doesn't stop there!~

Let me rewind a little bit and fill you in on some behind the scenes of our life right now. Miguel's mom needs double knee replacement surgery and she would be out of work for several months after this takes place. Before we even met, Miguel had begun building a house above his mom's house that we have worked on on-and-off as we've had extra funds. When we found out about his mom needing surgery, we started working more steadily on finishing the house with the goal of having it be move-in ready by December. This way, we can rent it out in December and support his mom through the rent money over the following months while she is in recovery. This month, we reached the end of our extra funds with only painting and a few electrical details left to do. The cost is large enough that we thought we'd have to postpone finishing the house until mid-December. Then - 
~This is the super crazy part!~

Joanne, my friend who was heading up the fundraiser, messaged me the day after Miguel and I had crunched numbers and decided we'd have to postpone finishing the house. She had been waiting for the month of October to close before knowing how much commission from the party fundraiser would actually be left over. When she told me the number I questioned her several times to make sure she had her figures right...The amount she told me was twice, TWICE what she had originally said would be left after purchasing 200 kits! The craziest, most God-detailed, part is that the amount she told me is only $5 shy of what we need to make all our bills and finish the house!! We are rejoicing! 

In more Other news:

~ FCA DR had our annual marriage retreat again in October. This year, everyone brought their families as well, which is something we're considering doing every 3 years, and our pastor was invited to be the keynote speaker. The theme was Embracing the Plan of God and he shared, through vivid examples, the Biblical truth and need of family being our first ministry. 

~ The calendar for next summer is filling up with teams. We have even more scheduled for 2019 than we had this year! Miguel and I have also been invited to share at an FCA specific event next year and could see more opportunities to travel and share about all sides of our ministry(s) come up as time goes on. If anyone is interested in knowing more about anything we are involved in (FCA and ATB) and possibly even have us share at your church or any event, don't hesitate to reach out to us. We are open to going where God gives opportunity.

~ In March, we are excited to be planning a trip to Guatemala! FCA's annual international Capacity Conference will be taking place in Antigua, which also happens to be where some of my former missionary coworkers are now at. 

~ ATB was in the process of getting a building, for the Assessment Center, donated from the Dominican federal department over anti-trafficking and just as things seemed to be moving forward, the head of the department was replaced. This means, the process has had to be restarted from the beginning. Peter and Fernando were able to meet with the new head and we are hopeful to see progress be made soon. 

Please continue to keep us in your prayers as we move forward in faith that God will continue to direct us to exactly where He wants us to be when He wants us to be there. 

Exciting Announcement about the Fundraiser!

To all of you who have been participating in the fundraiser going on this week, THANK YOU from the bottom of our hearts! Your participation, involvement, passion, and interest in our ministry and the work we do is playing a key part in helping make this fundraiser a success.

On Tuesday, we launched an online fundraiser to raise funds for 200 kits to be given to women who will be coming through ATB's assessment center next year and beyond. (Read our previous newsletter here for details).
A generous sponsor who has a big heart for the anti-trafficking work I have been, and continue to be involved in, and what ATB is doing, wants to help the fundraiser with an extra boost. So today, they are presenting a match challenge for all donations for Kits!

The match challenge is for up to $500 and open through the weekend. Meaning - this sponsor will match your donation for kits so that it becomes DOUBLED: 1 kit will become 2, $50 will become $100, and so on! Once we hit $500 in kit donations the match will close. Or, if we do not reach $500 in other donations, the match will only be for the amount we have reached. Our goal of 200 kits will cost around $3,600, so this match will help bring us about a third of the way!

This Kit contains lip balm, facial wash, deodorant, and lotion - all made with fresh, natural ingredients and has been specifically designed to positively impact at-risk persons. For every Kit sold, as a company, LGS donates $1 to their anti-trafficking organization of choice. To further the impact, they are encouraging their consultants to use these Kits in fundraisers, events, and other contribution opportunities where human kindness is desperately needed.

The fundraiser will continue through tomorrow night, so if you haven't gotten the chance to join us or to contribute, there is still time. And with this match challenge there is no time like the present!
"Donating Kits gives you the opportunity to become involved in the very first steps of what happens when a woman walks through the doors of our (future) assessment center. The Kits will be given to them, along with clean clothes, a bed, and good food, as their first welcome stepping into a safe, protected, prayed-over environment. The Kits will be used and enjoyed as these women's cases are processed and the road to emotional, physical, and spiritual healing and freedom begins." 

To contribute toward purchasing one or more Human Kindness Kit, each Kit costs $22, including shipping and handling. Tax deductible donations can be made through ATB's safe online portal here. Click on the link and follow the simple onscreen instructions.

Be sure to add a note "To purchase __ number of Kits - LGS fundraiser" in the comment box.

FUNDRAISER - Care Kits for Anti-Trafficking Efforts

Friends, YOU have an opportunity to become involved in the very first step that happens when women come through the doors of Anti Trafficking Bureau (ATB) next year! 

Mark your calendar to join us Tuesday, October 9th on Facebook for a party with a purpose.

Allow me to introduce you to my dear friend Joanne Hebert. We've been besties since pre-teens, have had countless sleepovers at each other's houses, picked strawberries during the summers together as kids, played in a band together as teenagers, and been in each other's weddings as young adults!

Along with being wife to her paramedic husband and mom to their two precious children, Joanne has been an independent Lemongrass Spa consultant for the past 2.5 years. Lemongrass Spa (LGS) is a company producing over 400 affordable haircare, skincare, and beauty products that are all made with fresh, clean, natural, and organic ingredients. 

Joanne has been looking for an opportunity to contribute, in some way, toward the anti-trafficking work I've been involved with here in the Dominican Republic (DR), and that opportunity finally came when LGS recently released their Human Kindness Kit. 

This Kit contains lip balm, facial wash, deodorant, and lotion - all made with fresh, natural ingredients and has been specifically designed to positively impact at-risk persons. For every Kit sold, as a company, LGS donates $1 to their anti-trafficking organization of choice. To further the impact, they are encouraging their consultants to use these Kits in fundraisers, events, and other contribution opportunities where human kindness is desperately needed.

We are now on a mission! A mission to raise funds for at least 200 kits that will be given to women when they first come through ATB's Assessment Center in 2019 and beyond.

This fundraiser will be held in the form of a Facebook Lemongrass Spa Party 

beginning October 9th!

• Joanne and I will be hosting the event through multiple live video chats, fun games, drawings for prizes, and interactive posts including information on Lemongrass Spa products, how they are made, what benefits they have, and what they are used for.
• I will also be sharing my story about how I first became involved in missions and anti-trafficking, how I ended up moving to the Dominican Republic, what impact getting married played on that, and finally, how I got to where I am now with Anti Trafficking Bureau!
• We'll launch the party at 8:30 pm EST, going live in an interactive video with Joanne and myself chatting about all the fundraiser and party details, as well as answering your questions about ATB and anti-trafficking efforts on the spot.
• Everyone who attends the party will have the opportunity to purchase any Lemongrass Spa products, including the Human Kindness Kits, for their own personal use as well, just like a normal party. Joanne will be donating a percentage of her commission as a consultant for this party to ATB, so personal orders will also be contributing towards anti-trafficking efforts. 
• The party will be a multiple Mystery Hostess show, meaning-  everyone who attends the party and either donates 2 kits or purchases $50 value in LGS products, will get their name entered into a drawing to receive party hostess benefits, which include free products and discounted products. AND the party is going to be so big that we'll have up to 10 hostesses for this event!
• The party will last for 3 days to give everyone a chance to check out the Kits, re-watch the videos, participate in the games, and peruse the products; and the page will be open for 2 additional days so that we are able to personally answer questions and give everyone time to get their orders in.  

Join us directly on Facebook here or reach out to us via text/call/email at our contact info below - or simply leave a comment on this blog :) - if you'd like to join our fundraiser in October. It will be hosted in an open group, so you can even invite your friends to join the party, as well, once you are added to the group!

Joanne Hebert · 

(406) 242-0063

jonagirl.strums@gmail.com 

Rosy Terrero ·

terrerolife@gmail.com

If you'd like a physical catalog in preparation, get us your address by Sept. 28th and we'll send you one asap. (check out the LGS fall digital catalog here in the meantime) 

You all, I am SO beyond excited about this fundraiser! These Kits will be given to women rescued from trafficking, along with clean clothes, a bed, and good food, as their first welcome stepping into a safe, protected, prayed-over environment. The Kits will be used and enjoyed as their cases are processed and the road to emotional, physical, and spiritual healing and freedom begins. 

Spread the word and please be praying for this fundraiser! That God may be glorified and lives be changed, one small step at a time.

Presence and Being Present

When Miguel came home today for his noon break (and to escape some of the rain-drenched fields) he called me crazy for having the fan turned on claiming it's too cold! If you'd stop in at our home for a visit right now, besides no fans running, you'd find most of our windows closed and Miguel in a long sleeve shirt. It's raining! And it's the kind of "summer is over because it's raining" rain.

During the sweltering summer, we rejoice for the typical once-a-week rain showers because it cuts through the heat and stickiness. But really, sometimes those summer showers seem to make it worse because 5-15 minutes of sheer happiness in the rain quickly turn to sticking your face in the nearest pedestal fan, because the humidity after rain just went up a notch. Rain every day means the earth, cooled down by constant showers, has a chance to bring down the thermostat of humidity that clings to everything before all the freshness is sucked back into the atmosphere. Most people who know me know that Fall is my favorite season - I've talked about it often enough! It used to be because of the changing leaves and harvest parties in northern USA, but now it's also because of the glorious rain that ushers in hurricane season in tropical Dominican Republic. 

Other than the rain, our most recent personal highlight has definitely been a little mountain excursion this week. Last night, we got back from a 3 day/2 night get-away into the mountains that someone very generously gifted us with. It was the perfect way to end the summer! We found a beautiful lodge tucked away above a lake in the northern part of the island and thoroughly enjoyed the tranquility of watching the fishermen in their boats out on the water while listening to the wind in the trees during the day and insect chirping at night. Up until a few years ago, I could never have imagined adapting to living in a city, let alone in a tropical climate. Some days, I really miss living in the country and I miss living in the mountains; this spot was the perfect combination of both. Miguel is pretty sure someone should start an FCA program up there ;). 
In all honesty, though, something not enough missionaries feel like they can talk about is the need to get away and recharge every once in a while. The hustle and urgency of doing God's work can so often take precedence over just being with God. Remembering to take time at Jesus' feet like Mary did can be hard when our role usually looks a lot like Martha's. We are so thankful for that friend who knows this necessity and made it possible for us to get a boost of rejuvenation in our spiritual walk, as well as reconnect as a couple without distractions. All just in time for Miguel's weekend university classes to begin.

Blankita, the goat, seemed to like us a lot

We met up with a friend the other day who we hadn't seen in a long time and were conversing on our favorite topic - making disciples. He said something that stuck out to me and has been turning over in my head since. He was telling us a little bit of the story of one of the youth he is currently mentoring. This teenager told him, "I have Christian neighbors who look every bit the part. They wear the clothes, talk the talk, are super nice and polite; but they never reached out to get to know me personally. I knew they were Christians and would never question that - but they didn't tell me that there was something better for my life than alcohol and drugs. They never reached out to me." Our friend kindly reminded him that none of us can know what is going on in the personal lives of other people and his neighbors don't need our judgement. They probably have very purposeful lives. But that story turned into the three of us talking about how Jesus did ministry. He got to know people personally. He reached out. 
What I've been mulling over since then is the challenge of how to live our lives like Jesus did. This may sound cliche, but I think all of us need to be reminded of the importance of being present wherever we are at. Being present to those around us and the present to the voice of God. Hearing God's voice, can only happen when we spend time in His presence listening. I know Martha's challenge. I, too, get caught up in making things happen! Jesus' words with Martha weren't so much a reprimand that she was doing something wrong as it was a reminder to not give up what is better in order to accomplish what is good. 
Everything comes in seasons, and some of those mean every minute crammed with activities. But I also think that I like the feeling of "I did this". 
I led this person to Christ. 
I prayed for this person's health and s/he got better. 
I showed them a better way. 
When in reality, all of that is impossible for me as a human to do. It's only Christ. I can't change someone's heart, no matter how hard I try. I can never, ever be the perfect example. When I lose sight of Christ, when I wander away from His presence, I also pull away from others. I forget to see their needs and hurts up close and love them the way Jesus loves them. I start to see their weaknesses form afar and become impatient or get frustrated when someone doesn't understand. 

So, I'm taking on the challenge of being more present. More present with Christ and more present for others. Anyone wanna join me?



Luke 10:41-42 “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

Summer.Time.Ness

Am I the only one who, every single year, when July rolls around, the realization hits that the upcoming Christmas is now closer than the most recently celebrated Christmas? I mean, it's the middle of summer! Christmas is supposed to be a loooong way off at this point, not almost peeking over the horizon! There are times when I'm convinced that a day in summer is only half as long as a day any other time of the year. I call this phenomenon - summer.time.ness.

Photo cred to the greatly talented Levi Hebert

Last time I wrote, we were heading into June with our sleeves rolled up - or maybe with sleeves cut off since it's sweltering here ;) As most of you know, Miguel and I took the position of Team Trip Coordinators this year for FCA Domincan Republic. Prior to this year, FCA DR partnered with another local organization for hosting teams in one of FCA's multiple locations; but we wanted to be able to connect mission teams to more places where our staff is working and be more intentional in cultivating recurring relationships with our staff and the coaches and athletes being ministered to. 
Part of this strategy has meant creating the ability to host teams in three locations now, instead of just one, so that our staff members, spread out in these areas, each work with only several teams a year. This allows them the ability to continue with their normal ministry and discipleship work without too many distractions while still receiving the blessing of having teams add additional support and contribution to work projects for several of their coaches each year. This does, however, mean for Miguel and myself the responsibility of traveling to where each team is located. Since most teams coming down are connected to sports and schools, the vast majority come during the months of summer-break (June-August); this happens to the point of having multiple back-to-back teams where we would be telling one good-bye and welcoming another one sometimes within less than 24 hours. July finds us right smack in the middle of all this flurry of mission trip activities! This week's team has been doing a men's conference in Higuey, where we live, so I've finally been able to get ahead on work projects, including updating the blog and sending out a newsletter :D 

We, miraculously, were able schedule a necessary trip Stateside toward the end of June, and looking back, I still marvel that we were able to do so. It was God's hand holding those dates for us, because we surprisingly didn't even have a team wanting to book a trip over those ten days. Right before we left for ND, our wonderful friends, the Heberts, came and spent a week with us (our first personal visitors from the States!). 
Our ND trip was a time of great encouragement, as always. For the past 3 years, my sending church has held and continues to hold us faithfully up in prayer; and every time I schedule the yearly trip to ND, my heart is always full of excitement in being able to personally share what God continues to do with and for us here, as well as witness how He continues to work there. The picture below demonstrates with so much truth what we continue to learn, both within our local church here and other parts of the Body back in the States. Its message has resounded in our hearts so many times this summer and I am continually overwhelmed with gratitude for how God has provided for us through the Church on so many levels. 

The same day we returned from ND, our intern arrived. Hannah is with us for the month of July helping us out with the mission teams, doing some English tutoring with our staff, and pitching in with daily life. It's been a true joy having her here! Apart from having another pair of hands on deck, her joyful, serving attitude has been a big contributing factor in making all the crazy summer.time.ness go smoothly.
She'll be abandoning us (I mean, returning to her other responsibilities) the same day our last team of the summer comes in. 

In this season of crazy summer.time.ness God's whispering reminder to us has been "rejoice in the details." Just this week, we had another conversation of the slow transitions beginning at the close of this summer and moving into next year. It seems like so much when taking in all the factors - we came up with no less than 10 contributing factors that will determine how these transitions will work out. But as we live and move in this current season, we see how God works out all the details. He goes ahead of us before each team comes down and the details we think will be complicated all get ironed out with seemingly little effort. It's like He's taking this crazy summer.time.ness as a small scale demonstration of how He is more than able to handle the crazy life.ness coming up. 
I, as a human, have the habit of projecting things too far ahead of time and getting caught up in everything that could go wrong. Our Father, in His sovereignty, keeps whispering, "rejoice in the details." 

Rejoice in the complicated made simple. 


The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged."
Deuteronomy 31:8

Living a Life of Prayer

I like living a life filled with charts, criteria, and check-lists. These are things that make me feel safe. Running down lists and checking off boxes gives me a great feeling of accomplishment, seeing right in front of me that I succeeded in something that day. 

As you can imagine, I tend to apply my charts and check-lists to all aspects of my life - marriage, ministry, friendships, relationship with Christ. I mentally write out my little list of criteria for what it means to be a good wife, a good missionary, a good friend, a good Christian, and once (in my mind) I acheive that standard, I raise the bar and keep on going. 

Please don't misunderstand me in thinking it's wrong to challenge oneself and set standards that keep us accountable, but...if we get to the point where we think we've figured out God, in my experience, we can expect Him to chuckle, bring something else our way, and show us just how mistaken that thinking is - especially when applying it to our prayer life.  

Now, do I think we shouldn't use strategies and charts in our prayer life? Absolutely not! In fact, I think we don't use them enough. 

Miguel and I have personally had many, many prayers answered simply by applying a discipline in the way we pray. For example, the home we live in currently was nothing short of an answer to a long list of requests in our prayers. 

At friends' wedding in May.

A few months before we got married, Miguel found an apartment halfway between where I lived at the time and where we currently live in Higuey. We knew we would be moving to Higuey that summer (in fact, ended up moving only a month after our wedding) so while he was working, he would keep his eyes open for a place we could rent. Between the two of us, we had a very specific list of what we wanted. 

- At the top of that list, even though we had no plans to buy a place or live in one place permanantly, our greatest desire, knowing it was part of what God was calling us to, was to have a home where we could host people - coaches, youth, friends, strangers passing through, family. Whether just to enjoy a home-cooked meal, spend the night, or even temporarily live with us, we wanted to be able to open our doors into an atmosphere of welcome and encouragement. 

- For Miguel, that meant a house not an apartment. He despised living in the apartment building we spent our first month of marriage in. He had lived there several months by himself and it just felt too lonely after having grown up on a street in a town where everyone knew eachother. And along with the house, he also wanted an outdoor patio area since we'd have a dog running around to keep the place safe. And... it should have some fruit trees. I threw in the request of having it be large enough to plant at least a small garden - and having some grass would be nice. I love sticking my feet in grass (pebbles and cement just aren't very friendly to bare feet) but it can be hard to find around here. 

- For myself, it meant having at least two bedrooms and a decent sized kitchen. The bedrooms request was obvious. The kitchen request was practical because Dominican kitchens in general are small, sometimes with only enough room for one person to move around in. I also specifically requested a place that had reasonably dependable electricity since most of my work is done on my computer via internet. 
- We both also wanted barred windows and doors, especially after my computer had gotten stolen out of my former apartment through the windows. And really, really wanted a quiet, reputable neighborhood without worry of music blaring from the corner stores at all hours of the day and night (a very common occurrence around here!)
- And of course, all this had to be within our, pretty low, budget!

At one point, about 2 months into looking (again, Miguel had been keeping his eyes open even before we got married), we added up all the places we had looked at - apartments and houses in every shape and style - and it came to a grand total of 22 places. Of the 22 there was 1 house and 1 apartment that would maybe be ok if we were willing to let go of some of our criteria. We were frustrated but kept looking, confident that God had the perfect place for us. 
This brought us to the day that we had a conversation, discussing all this, with our pastors; they referred us to the realtor who had helped them find their place, and we were able to still meet with him that day. After giving him the list of what we were looking for, he told us he had 2 places he could show us right away. On the way to what was going to be the first of the two places, he pulled up to this house that he said made him think of us but wasn't going to be on his list to show that day. 

Current picture

As soon as we saw it, before even getting out of the car, Miguel and I looked at eachother and both said, "This is it - this is our house!" It was painted two-tone orange and the patio wasn't cleaned up, but that didn't matter. Cleaning and painting would be easy. 
It actually ended up being a house that the realtor's company wouldn't be getting the keys to, from the landlady, until the following day and we were the first clients to see it. No one had lived in it for 2 years and the landlady, who lived in Puerto Rico, was trying to sell it. The realtors convinced her to allow them to rent it out for her in the meantime so that it would remain lived in and not fall apart. 
The front had a patch of grass that was nicely shaded by the big tree on the corner. We walked around to the back to find two huge mango trees, a cherry tree, and plenty of space to create a garden.  Through the windows, I saw the largest kitchen that could possibly fit into this size home and to this day we joke that Miguel said yes to the patio and I said yes to the kitchen without caring about the rest of the place! It ended up meeting every. single. one of the criteria listed above, plus a few more, and in the year since we've lived here, we have had minimal upkeep expenses (bonus blessing). 
Our house has since been used to host many, many people. This past month has been no exception, with hosting multiple dinners (like when new missionaries moved into a town close by or when a coach currently seeking more spiritually wanted to bring his girlfriend over for deeper conversation on what Christianity means), a few overnight guests coming through town (the most recent just left this morning), and friends coming from the States to spend a week with us. And even though we still don't have any idea of how long we'll be here, we praise God for His provision in what has really served as a valuable ministry space for this season in life. 

Answered prayers such as these have added up over time, and I reached a point in my prayer life that I kind of assumed I could keep making lists and expecting the same results. So when Anti Trafficking Bureau (ATB) approached us to invite me to join their team (read more on about those details in Come What May), I assumed I could take the same approach - lay out my list before God, do a little fasting, do some intentional praying, have a few conversations with Miguel about logistics, and, wala! get our answer within our timeline.

ATB team and partners

Again, I don't think that approach is wrong. But at this point, the approach I was taking came out of a prideful place. I thought I had the solution to resolving all things and if it didn't work, then it wouldn't be my fault. 
A week went past and no answer. I had no peace about saying "yes," and zero peace about saying "no." So, I talked to Miguel again to see what he was thinking or if maybe God was telling him something that I wasn't hearing. I was following my checklist, so by this time someone should know what we were supposed to do. I didn't know, so obviously Miguel, as the spiritual head of our home, should at least have an inclination, right? But he didn't.
So, then I got frustrated. Frustrated at God and at my husband. And I started casting blame. Obviously (from my viewpoint) it wasn't my fault that we had no clue what our answer was supposed to be because I was doing all the right things. It must be Miguel's fault. He must not be doing his part correctly. And it was also God's fault for not cooperating with my little strategy plan. After all, I was being reasonable; I wasn't being stubborn in asking for a "yes" answer - I was ok with a "no" answer if now was not the time. That must mean I was being humble in my asking, right? 
The result of this blame casting was a tension in our marriage that we hadn't ever had before. One evening, after arguing about what to do, I told Miguel I was tired of this - we rarely argue and the tension was taking over our home. I didn't have peace either way, "yes" or "no," and if he didn't know what we were supposed to do, I was just going to tell them "no." At least that would take care of making a decision and we could get past this. 
"But do you have peace that saying 'no' is the answer God is actually giving us?" he asked.

Ouch. 

My pride in my lists and strategies had brought me so far, that I didn't care anymore what God's answer was and instead was willing to create my own answer. My problem with saying "yes" is that Miguel couldn't go down my little checklist and say that every one of my expectations in how the answer was supposed to come about was met. Instead, he was completely willing to have me join the ATB team and see where God would take us without fully knowing how it would work out long term. He was willing to take a step of faith. 
But was I? 

A call to faith. That was my answer. Faith in God speaking through my husband and faith in my husband's advice. 

I texted my used-to-be-former boss to let him know that, yes, I was on board; but sending that text was a shaky step of faith. I was still so uncomfortable to step outside the box I had created this decision to fall into that it took several weeks before I truly surrendered and allowed God to give me peace to walk in the "yes." 

Since then, my position with ATB has been officially named Executive Assitant, meaning for now, I report to my used-to-be-former boss (the cofounder of ATB) and assist him and the director (the other cofounder) with the large project of setting up an assessment facility for all victims of human trafficking and sexual exploitation, along with other little details in the administrative department such as translation, liasing with legal processes, etc. 

At a recent build project with our latest team. Miguel decided to hide his face behind the palm branch at that exact moment. 

As time goes on, we'll be including more about the ministry and work of ATB while continuing to include FCA ministry details. 
In the meantime, we want everyone to know that basically nothing has changed:

1. I am still in the same position with FCA DR as administrative assistant and mission trips coordinator. As of now, I'll be continuing full-time this year. ATB is an additional role that will develope with time. 
2. Miguel is still doing what he's always been doing, including coach discipleship and leading visiting team trips. 
3. We also continue to be heavily involved in our local church, as I've briefly touched on in other posts and updates. 
4. Our fundraising remains the same.


We are excited for new opportunities for ministry and to be able to be used in multiple ways to spread the love of Jesus and share the Gospel, individually and as a couple. 
If you have any questions, please, please let us know and we will answer them!


"When we take the talents God has given us and hold them with open hands, knowing they really belong to Him and not us, then we are able to truly live a life of full potential, making an impact for eternity."