Hola mis amigos!
Our last day in clinic and we worked HARD. Despite all exhaustion and very sore backs, we gave it our all until the last patient was finished. When asked around the team if they would prefer another day of clinic or our planned fun day for tomorrow, everyone said clinic. If that doesn't show where our hearts are at, I don't know what does. I admire the team's work ethic and drive to share the Gospel and heal others. The village of Experimental was so welcoming and we were happy to be there. Somehow, the energy is still high and smiles are constantly shared amongst us. One thing I love about writing these blogs is reflecting on the day and always seeing the good through and through. This morning did not start off the best. We loaded up the bus and started to head down the street when we found out our bus had a flat tire. (The wheels on the bus did not go round-and-round). So, we turned around and looked at each other like "what happens now?". The solution came easy-- we would take half of the team in the translator's van with the truck, and when our bus was fixed the rest of the team would join. Although this set us behind an hour, our efficiency has increased throughout the week and we still treated an abundance of patients. Tomorrow we will take a break and will be going to Catalina Island! To all of the parents out there-- everyone will be wearing sunscreen! A few wise words from our D4s who have been our lifeline this week: "I had fun helping the first years progress throughout the week. It was cool to see as we got further on throughout the week they became much more confident and knowledgeable. I really enjoyed getting to know the guys in my small group. All of the guys were in one small group and I'm excited to go back to school and continue our friendships." -Zane "It was enjoyable getting to know all of the first year students and exciting to see them grow over the course of the week. I was able to provide care but be very hands off by the end of the week. It was super exciting to see because I remember going as a second year and having the same feelings that they are having now towards sharing the Gospel with unreached people and increasing their knowledge in dentistry. It was a huge blessing to see the care we were able to provide to the Dominican people and ultimately share the Gospel boldly. I had fun." -Nolan "Having only heard stories from the previous years trips, I was in no way prepared for the abundance of love and care that emanates from this group of people. From the smallest to the largest task, our group has always been ready to serve. While not the most physically rested, this week has been such a reprieve from the busy 'normal' day." - Lauren Gracias a Dios, Margaret B :)
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It's game day!
Day three is officially OVER!!!!! Once again, we had an early wakeup call. Some say it's a miracle our team of over 20 to show up on time for our 6:15am meetings-- I think it's because we are just so excited!!! Once we finished our morning devotional, we carb-loaded on pancakes and french toast to have energy to get us through the day (or at least until lunch). This time, we ventured into the village of Pajarito. It was really fascinating passing by other local villages seeing kids play baseball and many happy locals waving at our bus. We unloaded fast in anticipation to efficiently treat many patients. The confidence in our hands continues to grow everyday-- all thanks be to God! This being said, we treated over 40 patients. Additionally, 8 people prayed to receive Christ today! One of the most meaningful moments of the day included the team placing our hands on the pastor's brother and praying for their church and community. I don't mean for these blog posts to keep getting shorter and shorter, but golly, we are getting more exhausted by the minute. Nothing has felt better than placing our head on our pillows after a long day of work knowing that we were able to use our gifts from God to impact others. Tomorrow is our last day in clinic. Such a bittersweet day knowing that we came to this country to serve others but it is fulfilling knowing that our work was accomplished. I will let you in on one little secret from this trip-- we stay up late every night having this very competitive game night. I mean so competitive we even have Mardon out here vibing with us. Christina has to come out and tell us to go to bed. We play this game called 'Code Names'. Every night we have this little rivalry of boys versus girls. Personally, I am for the girls but the score is tied right now. So, when we come back and you hear some of the boys complaining about losing... just know you heard it here first, it was a fair-and-square win!! Blessed be God forever, Margaret Braun Hola everyone!!
Wow, what a wonderful day filled with Jesus' love!! Today we ventured all the way to Honduras. No, we didn't take a boat but it is a small village in the Dominican Republic. As soon as we got there, the team worked efficiently to set up the clinic. You could see the confidence that has grown in the team in just one day. I mean, I heard everyone throwing out some Spanish terms. Everyone is going to come back a little more fluent and filled with heart-felt stories. The locals have been amazing patients but even more curious and receptive to hearing the Gospel. They have been sharing their stories with our team and greatly impacted the team through that. Tonight was SCORE night. Dr. Bob gave us a wonderful sermon on acceptance. The reading was from John 3-- the story of Nicodemus. A story of Jesus telling him that we live a life of two births. First, our physical birth followed by our spiritual birth. It doesn't matter who we are or where we come from, it is building that relationship with the Lord that fulfills salvation. I thank everyone on the team for humbling themselves before the Lord to serve others. Everyone's strengths in our team have meshed and flowed so together so perfectly. We have been so blessed that everyone has attributes that create this beautiful team to serve the same goal. It has been amazing to witness other teammates talk to locals about God and plant the seed of Jesus Christ. Each community we have visited has expressed gratitude for what we have provided. Even though we are all so tired, you are never too tired to show you are thankful. I want to highlight members of the team and what they are thankful for-- Today's Gratitude from the Team: Christina: chocolate tres leche; Margaret: the dentist's teaching; Noah: helping patients and learning; Nolan: seeing the amount of patients we saw; Lauren: vulnerability of other; Makayla: everything and seeing puppies; Zane: benadryl; Helen: great mentorship (Lauren and Nolan) & God giving me inspiration in sharing the Gospel; Nathan: beautiful weather and beautiful friendships and beautiful hearts; William: the local villager who let me take a guava fruit; Guy Best: cohesiveness of the team; Dr. McClenny: watching the students engage w/ patients in evangelism & treatment. Mardon being a great new director; Laurel: Maggie's guitar and patient D4s; Maggie: faith-filled conversations with my team and patients; Mardon: Maggie Braun Dios te ama, Margaret Braun Howdy y’all!! Oh my, oh my… where do I start to explain this amazing day. The morning came fast and we all sipped our coffees anticipating our first day of clinic. A lot of sleepy eyes turned wide awake once we got our morning assignments. After our 6:15am team meeting and breakfast, we departed back to El Peñon. There was a quick set up of six dental chairs before the patients started rolling in. All of the D1s were extremely grateful for the D4s and Dentists on this trip teaching us valuable knowledge about dentistry— things we have never been exposed to before. In total, 35 patients were treated in clinic. The evangelism side was blessed to bring many people to Christ and deepen many faiths. There may have been a few hiccups getting the day started, but not a single person stopped working hard the entire day. The bus ride home was filled with smiles and laughs as we shared stories from the day. We are ALL going to sleep good tonight. Today’s devotional resonated with me. 2 Timothy 1:7 states “God gave us not a spirit of fear but of power and love and self-control.” This reminded me of the Holy Spirit I have been filled with leading me throughout all of my days. The whole entire team has taken this week to draw close to the Lord and use the faith given to live with such spiritual qualities. I was blessed in my small group tonight to share our testimonies. These girls are not only the sweetest but you can see the love they have for the Lord radiate through them. After all, we’ve been gifted grace from God through Christ Jesus which allows us to fully receive His love and be an outpouring to others. Makayla Yu had a fabulous day!! Here is a summary of her time: “First things first, this morning we found out our doorknob was broken yet again. I got placed in evangelism this morning. That was my first time spreading the Gospel with other people. This was a very unique experience to me as the people did not speak the same language and required a translator. I realized people here are educated with Christianity but the difficulty comes down to their acceptance towards Christ. In the afternoon, I was in the clinic. The first two patients I had were the pastor’s daughter and grandson doing a cleaning. They were so grateful and I loved their smiles. The last two patients I have were a mother and daughter. The daughter had a broken molar. I learned how to do nerve blocks. Personally, I thought my first block would be in an adult patient but it turned out to be very sweet kid. I learned many techniques on how to extract a broken tooth covered with extra gums. The mother had serious concern regarding her upper arch of the mouth. After evaluation, it was decided to extract those remaining teeth. I was able to do all of the nerve blocks!! I successfully removed two teeth before the remaining teeth were removed. After an exhausting day, a hot shower was really appreciated with laughter from my friends while we shared the Gospel.” Guy Watkins Best also wanted to say: “Hi Mom! I love you!" Dios te bendiga, Margaret B Hello Everyone!!
We have officially ended our first whole day in the Dominican Republic!! To say we are exhausted is an understatement— you won’t believe all we have fit in this very first day. The morning started slow, everyone waking up around sunrise to have their cup of Joe. The team met for breakfast before departing for our Sunday church service in the village of El Peñon. The theme of the sermon was the goodness of God in our lives. I encourage you to read Romans 12:10-13. The love we receive from Jesus translates so much deeper when we share it with others around us-- and we are so excited to be returning tomorrow to put these words into action providing dental care. It's a pretty amazing experience to provide care in the exact same building that we worshiped our Lord. The day did not end there. Once we returned to SCORE, we had a wonderful lunch and team meeting. After attempting to assemble cardboard dental chairs, we got our scrubs for the week. I think this got everyone more pumped up to get to work tomorrow. The truck is loaded and we are ready to roll. After prepping for our first big day, we had some time to relax on the beach. Honestly, there wasn't much relaxing--rather, there was spikeball, football, and exploring. I will say we have quite the active and go-get-them attitude in this group. I mean, you should see us playing games at the end of the night. There are tons of laughter amongst our friendly competition. Our post-dinner meeting involved times of sharing our testimonies, singing worship songs, and reflecting on the good individuals have provided throughout the day. Thank you so much to everyone who is keeping up and reading this first message. We really appreciate all of the prayers you have sent our way. I promise we all miss our loved ones so dearly, but cannot wait to share that love and laughter with the local people. Everyone is eager with anticipation to grow in their faith this week. There will be more stories to come and more lives to touch. Our biggest take away from the day is: enjoying God's creation around us and hearing the wonderful message from a local church. For our first daily shoutout from Nathan Vincent: "First, I'd like to thank God. And then my family. All my coaches. Specifically Coach Gummadi and Coach Winters. Lastly, I want to thank all of you for reading this for your continued support, prayers, and love." All Glory Be to God, Margaret and Margaret The team is safely on the ground. I will be posting daily updates. Please stay tuned, and as always, we covet your prayers.
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