Day 4

Today was such an amazing day. I got to see, yet again, God’s faithfulness and His unyielding love for His people. We picked the children up for a fiesta at the school and got to see what goes on inside the classroom. Before all the children enter the building they line up for songs. I love (absolutely love) hearing the children sing in Spanish and many of them love to sing walking through the streets. So when they lined up for songs I was so excited. They began singing in Spanish and my heart was stirred. I speak very little Spanish, so I was enjoying just seeing the joy on their faces. My heart smiled when I recognized words such as Father, love, and Jesus. Then I heard one of the teachers ask a question to which a precious boy answered and then they started singing their song. Norma (who has been such a blessing to me) translated and said, “He said….then we can move mountains.” When I gave her a blank look she let me in on the fact that the teacher had asked……. what if we have faith in God. This little boy’s proclamation of truth struck me. All around me the children were singing in Spanish, Creole, and then in English. “I could sing of His love FOREVER. I could sing of His love FOREVER. I could sing of his love FOREVER.” God’s presence was definitely there. He is at work here in the Dominican Republic. His faithfulness overwhelms me. He is changing the lives of these children! He deserves all the praise these precious little ones can give him, all the praise we can give him, and exceedingly more!

Holly Crim

It is the end of our fourth day in the Dominican Republic. Each and every day here has been so amazing and I have fallen in love with the people of this country. Every morning I am so excited to see the children in the villages that we have played with for the past couple of days. Their beautiful brown eyes, huge smiles, and tight hugs make me never want to leave them. Getting to hear and see the kids sing about Jesus today was such an encouragement. It was so evident to see the how God is working through Makarios. God is so faithful!

I wanted to write about something that happened a couple of days ago in the village of Chichigua. This village is very calm with only about 100 people and they are so sweet. Two other girls and I were playing with three of the young boys. It is so evident that these kids crave attention. They love being chased or swung around or even just held. Our group was about to leave so we started walking back to the bus. One of the boys, called Bob, came running up to Chelsea and leaped into her arms. Right away, God urged me to ask this little five year old boy about Jesus. I was filled with so much love for this child as I asked him three questions, “Do you know Jesus?” “Do you know He is your Savior?” “Do you know He loves you?” I give God the glory for the three sincere nods he gave me. God orchestrated the whole situation and reminded me again of His great faithfulness. I stand in awe of our Savior who can save anyone and who can use anyone to proclaim His Holy Name.

Bonnie Young