Today we were awakened by thunder, lightning, and heavy rain. We were a little concerned as today was supposed to be our free day, but we just went with the flow and let God take control. After breakfast and time alone with God, we were told that the skies were likely clearer on Catalina Island, so we took off to the dock. We drove an hour to a beautiful dock with many big boats, and we boarded our vessel for the day. We received bright orange life jackets and took off for the island. The ride to the island led us to a better understanding of how we should have faith like Jesus commanded of the disciples when they were in the boat in Mark 4. Due to the previous night’s storms, the sea was choppy, and we experienced a rough trip to our island destination. After 45 minutes, we finally made it to the island, and we were reminded that the God we serve is the one whom both the winds and seas obey, and He is always in control. Catalina Island was beautiful, and we greatly enjoyed our time there. We snorkeled, walked in the sand, and relaxed in the sun. We were fed a wonderful meal on the island and enjoyed time together as a group. We had a smoother return ride to our dock, and then returned to the SCORE facilities.
After dinner, we spent time singing praise to God, and we went around the group sharing our thoughts about what we enjoyed this week and how God moved through the team. We want to continue to grow even more as a group even when we return to the States, and hope to bring prayer into our daily lives together at school. We continue to ask for your prayers that the seeds we planted in the Dominican will be watered and that we will be able to further our mission at UAB. Please also pray for safe travels for our group Saturday as we will be returning to Atlanta and then Birmingham at around 10:30 tomorrow night. We are so thankful for a wonderful week and appreciate your prayers and support throughout.
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This morning began a little later than others- we were able to catch up on much needed sleep! We headed out for our last clinic day with all of our supplies in hand, and our hearts ready to serve. The place we served today was not as poverty-stricken as those we saw at the dump yesterday. Clinic was set up in the church as usual, and before we began, we were informed by one of the translators who grew up in this village of the prevalence of witchcraft in the community. Problems such as arthritis, low back pain, and ankle pain were seen today, reminding us of how similar these patients are to the ones we treat at home.
One group was able to go an hour outside of the community to serve the mother of one of the SCORE missionaries who had five strokes, making her unable to travel to the clinic. The people in the community were extremely kind and thankful for our willingness to serve. Out of all of the places we have served, we encountered the most unbelievers in this setting. Most of those who did not claim to be Christian stated that they were, “not ready.” This disheartened some of the team because we tried to convey the message that Jesus loves each person, no matter the sin and the imperfections that are present. Although we were not able to see the fruit of the seed planted, we have faith that the Lord will soften the hearts of the people we met, enfolding them in His love. Once we returned to SCORE after the day at the clinic, we were fed an Argentine BBQ, prepared by the pastor of the church we served at today. The money given for this meal went to the pastor and other missionaries who work to spread the Gospel in the DR. Two pastors shared their testimonies at the dinner, and we finished the time with a delicious dessert! Next, we headed to devotional where we were able to listen to more testimonies, praise the Lord through song, and learn about His word. Small group discussions then occurred, and we were able to grow closer to our teammates by sharing in His word. Tomorrow, we head to Catalina Island to relax and reflect on the trip before we return home. Thank you for your continued prayers, and please pray for our safety as we travel home. Today we woke up to the familiar sound of the crow of our neighborhood rooster. We joined together to have a short pre-breakfast devotional and then spent time alone with God. We left from the SCORE facilities prepared to visit a hospital in Santo Domingo. Though we did drive through Santo Domingo (safely thanks to the amazing driving skills of our new amigo Nino,) we kept going through the town and past the hospital. Word quickly spread through the bus that this may be the day we had been hearing about and hoping for all week- we were going to the dump! It may be confusing why we would be excited to go to a dump, but we had been hearing about this village and the people there from those who have been on this trip before. When we arrived at our destination, we were in for a completely new experience. This town was built on the edge of the city’s landfill. Children ran through the streets with no shoes, and we knew this place would be one of new opportunities for our group.
After setting up clinic in the local church, we began to treat patients with a diverse assortment of ailments. There is no doubt God was with us with every patient today. As we have every day, we treated both physical and spiritual aspects of the people’s lives, and we saw results through God in both of these areas. We were able to relieve back pain, provide walking assistance for those with impairments, and give education to help these people continue to improve even more after we left them. After the physical treatments, God worked spiritually in this community, and we were able to share the story of Jesus with many individuals who sought a relationship with Him. Three members of the community accepted Christ into their lives today, which was truly amazing to experience. Our team may be tired, hot and a little mentally drained sometimes, but God has given us encouragement frequently to show that He is alive in this country, and what we are doing is making a difference. He is so good, and we pray that He continues to use us as vessels to share His love to everyone we see. After clinic, we came back to the SCORE facilities, received physical rest and sustenance, and then met again in the evening to worship God as a team. Once again, we were blessed immensely from within our group when two of our own shared their testimonies and told us of the ways God has worked in their lives. Every day of this trip, we are continuing to grow closer as a group through Christ, and we can’t wait to see how this bond strengthens as this week begins to come to a close. Please continue to pray for our efforts, as we have one more day out in the clinic tomorrow. Specifically, pray for God to open the hearts of the patients we will see tomorrow so that we can fill their hearts with the love of Christ. Thank you so much for your support. God is great! Today we woke up and enjoyed a great devotional led by our wonderful Kim Galloway. She got our minds focused on Jesus before we headed out to serve the community of Alemon. In this community, we were able to treat many adults and children. The students were able to learn so much from the amazing clinicians we have with us, and we got many chances to spread the Gospel to the people of the Dominican Republic. We were able to provide relief to many with back pain, shoulder pain, and difficulties walking around their community and working, but we were most excited about the ability we were given to share the good news of Christ with each patient. God is really working in this trip, and we have felt His presence with us every day. Even when we get discouraged with language barriers or when the students lose confidence in the skills we perform, God just keeps coming through and showing how we provide no healing without Him, The Great Physician. It has been really encouraging to see how God has united our group and given us the ability to lift each other up and give each other strength in our treatments and our daily walks with Him.
After a successful day of service, we returned to the SCORE facilities for a little down time. Some groups went for a run or walk while another group spent time in the pool treading water and playing our own new version of pool baseball. We reconvened for dinner, which was followed by some time together singing and sharing. God truly was alive tonight in our group as we were blessed with an amazing testimony from one of our own. We also got to worship with some of the missionaries from SCORE International. These people are doing great works in the Dominican Republic, including a Children’s Support mission and a ministry to end sex trafficking. The different ministries set up after our time worshipping, and we were able to purchase items they had made in order to help support the amazing works they are doing here. We enjoyed brownies and bought bracelets, T-shirts and other crafts. To end the night, we spent time together talking and bonding amongst the group. We will once again be serving the people of the Dominican Republic tomorrow. Your prayers are being felt and we ask for continued prayers for success in our mission for physical and spiritual healing in this country. This day began with our friendly rooster neighbor greeting each of us with a resounding crow. Coffee was quickly reached for as we gathered and started the morning with singing praises, listening to a devotional, and praying over our patients for the day with the providers we were assigned to. Breakfast was then served, and quiet time with the Lord was spent.
Around 8:30, we left SCORE and headed to the nursing home, where we each were assigned to a specific clinician with one or more other students. Two groups went into the nursing home, while the others stayed in the local church to serve those who were unable to leave their rooms to be treated. Each patient in the church setting was sent through triage, where vital signs were taken, and then the patient was assessed if he/she was suitable for physical/occupational therapy treatment. Shoulders, backs, necks, and knees were all treated, and the “Good News” was shared to the patients. For those that already had placed their faith in the Lord, they shared with us their testimonies and how the Lord had worked throughout their lifetime. While one group was treating inside the church, the other two groups taught a group exercise class, similar to Silver Sneakers offered at the YMCA. Simon Says was played, the Hokey Pokey was danced, and Jesus Loves Me was sung! At the end of the session, one of the providers prayed over the group of elderly residents at the nursing home. At 3:30, the group left the area to return to SCORE. A group exercise class was led by our lovely exercise coordinator, and we were able to enjoy a fantastic dinner together after. Devotion occurred, and afterwards, pizza was made by a missionary at SCORE who uses this skill to make money to support himself and his family. Tomorrow we will begin another treatment day, although we have not been informed of where yet. The Lord has been tangibly felt throughout the trip, through the relationships He is forming within our group, as well as being able to see how He works through different cultures. Please continue to pray that the Lord’s presence be felt by all those we are treating, and let us be a vessel for His unconditional love to His people. |
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