March 3, 2008

This last month has been an exciting time in the DR! We have hosted teams from Kansas City, Kentucky, Michigan, and Illinois, and while I was not with them much due to my teaching schedule and work in the school, the service they have done has been a blessing to the people of the Dominican! I was able to attend some Women’s Ministry seminars that the women from Kansas City Baptist Temple held in a few of the churches we work with, and I was blessed by their teaching and sharing of themselves. The picture to the left is of the seminar in Hoyo de Bartola that took place shortly after one of my classes there, so I was able to stay and participate. These women came and shared their personal stories and what they have learned about God, and one of the best lessons for everyone was that we all share similar struggles in our personal lives, regardless of the country or culture in which we live. They also brought with them a “Love Letter from God” that they shared with the women, and it brought many to tears to be reminded just how and how much God loves us!

This month, we were also able to purchase 163 new books for the library, thanks to generous donations from Hikes Point Christian Church in Louisville, KY, and First Church of the Nazarene in Dalton, GA! These books were for the fiction section of the library, which the students use for the Reading Program we implemented at the beginning of the school year. The picture to the right is of our morning librarian, Aurelis, with the books as she prepares to organize and process them so that students can begin checking them out. Also, the team from Northeast Christian Church in Rockford, IL, brought additional books in fiction and another set of elementary level encyclopedias in Spanish! Some of the books they sent are from series that can be hard to find here, but the students truly enjoy them, and the afternoon librarian, Alexandra, commented on how excited the students will be because of how much they like those series!

My English classes are going well, and my students are learning from the new curriculum I have been using. I found it through an on-line Christian newsletter – Brigada.com – that is published by Doug Lucas, the president of Team Expansion. Thanks Doug! The classes are focused on spoken English and are beneficial to both beginning and advanced students, and the lessons are each based on a set of verses from the first chapter of Acts. So, I am able to teach English while teaching about Jesus! The picture to the left is from my class in Hoya del Caimito, which is one of my most diverse classes, including people from the community who do not attend church as well as some new church members. It is a fun class, as they are very interested in learning, and they continually help and encourage one another.

One of the most exciting things that will be coming up is the school play my Drama classes are working on putting together. With students in third and fourth grade, we will be presenting the parables of the lost coin, the lost sheep, and the prodigal son together as an introduction to the fifth through sixth graders abbreviated production of Romeo & Juliet! While buying books for the library, I found a shortened version of the play in Spanish, and two weeks ago, we began practicing to present it! It was fun to once again be directing students through Act I, scene 1, which I basically know by heart from my time at SHA working with actors from the Kentucky Shakespeare Festival who would come each year to introduce the play to our students! My students here are excited to be part of a production, and I am excited to see what God will do through all of this! Thankfully, another full-time staff person – Karen George – who is here with her husband for just a few months, has offered to help with the Drama classes and the presentation, and while we are just in the beginning stages of putting everything together, it looks like it should be a great experience for everyone! The presentation will be on April 12, so please be praying for us through the next six weeks!

While I am enjoying teaching, my schedule has proven to be a challenge. Please continue to pray that I will have strength and wisdom while teaching, and that I will not get too focused on “working” and lose sight of my ministry. It seems that I am constantly on the go, and I am regularly reminded of my need to find time to rest, pray, and study God’s word, so that He will continue to be at the center of my life.

Next week, March 8 – 14, I will be going to La Romana to work as a translator with a team from Northeast Christian Church in Louisville, my home church, and I am looking forward to the trip! Please pray for safety as I travel across the country on my own and for the team as they travel here, and please pray for the medical clinic they will be providing. It should be an exciting week!

Thank you for all you do to support my ministry!

Con el Amor de Jesucristo,
Catherine