The Timothy Project

After a day and a half at the beach (lots of red bodies heading home!) the LBC arrived at the airport at 12:00 today- with a lot less luggage. I must tell you Nathan has the luggage detail down to a science- I was so impressed with how they got the bags from one place to another!

The beach was a great time to relax and see a different part of the DR. The evening share times were the highlights for me- it was great to hear how God had spoken to different people in different ways. It was obvious that God had been working in a lot of hearts and bringing a lot of new truths and old truths to mind. I pray the group will continue to live out their faith as they did here! It was a blessed week- the group made a huge impact- on me, on our Dominican churches and missions, and the lost people in the areas where they served. Thanks for sending them!! I pray the last little bit of their journey will be safe and you will enjoy their presence tonight!

Wow- it is hard to believe this stage of the project is over but it is! Tonight we had 30 people from the Los Ciruelitos barrio come to hear the True Love Waits theme- it is such an important message and it makes an impact coming from the LBC youth.  They did wonderful.  From there we headed to Pastor Ramon's house for dinner- we had pork chops, grilled casabe and all the left over salads from the week- it was a great feast and everyone was happy, especially my dog Oreo who got more than enough bones to chew on!

The LBC group is 34, translators are 7, the invited Dominican helpers & leaders were 20 or more which made for a total of 60 people tonight for dinner! Ramon started cooking late this afternoon and we arrived at 8:40pm for dinner- he worked hard all day and loved every minute of it.  He is thrilled to have the group to his house and prepare a meal for them. It was a very special event for the LBC group to be in his home. 

Tomorrow at 7:30am (6:30EST) we will be loading luggage, then have a quick breakfast, and hopefully be on the road by 8:30am (7:30EST) heading for the waterfalls in Jarabacoa and then to Santo Domingo and Boca Chica. Pray for safe travels.

Also, pray for all of the LBC group to take the time to process what they have experienced this week during these few days of transition and rest, to make appropriate life applications, and also be able to share with their families and friends all that God taught them this week.  I saw a lot of tears today, a lot of hearts full of emotions, which is what makes these projects so special. Pray for a lasting effect on lives- both Dominican and LBC lives! Thanks for your prayers, Marsha

Well, we are nearing the finish and it was a tough day emotionally to say good-bye to the kids. I think everyone is learning a lot and being stretched just enough.  It is a challenge to relate to other cultures, yet well worth the discomfort it brings.  Our eyes and minds, and most especially our hearts, are opened to different realities which causes us to grow.  I think this experience here has been that for many of the LBC group, and I am thankful for that. They have been such a pleasure to work with and I have been touched as I hear them share and process their experiences.

This afternoon they will be working in Los Ciruelitos where my church is located, and again will be doing evangelism with youth leading up to a worship service tonight at 7pm.  (6pm EST)  From the service we will head to Pastor Ramon's house for a closing cook-out with all our Dominican helpers.  It will probably be a late night for us!

Tomorrow morning we head out bright and early for Jarabacoa for a hike into a waterfall and then on to the Colonial City in Santo Domingo with our final stop being the Coral Hamaca in Boca Chica- we will be traveling from 8:30am to about 3pm.  Keep us in your prayers!

Well, as they came in at lunch time, they said they had thousands of kids for the morning session- each group! I think what they meant was there was more kids than the day before and the kids had "warmed up" to them.  Giving things away isn't as easy as it sounds, and they experienced some of the difficulties that arise when children who are used to scarcity see an abundancy of both material things as well as love and attention.  Unfortunately, very few of the children that are being ministered to this week hear, "I love you" or "You are special" at home. Nor do they get the hugs and attention that the LBC workers are showering them with, and they don't always know the appropriate way to respond. All too often the response is trying to push the other kids out of the way, stealing what is given to another, etc. Please pray with us that as we minister and love in Jesus' name, these children will learn to respond in faith to God's love, believing they are special, and learning to love one another as He has loved us.

And then this afternoon in La Joya- it is a tough place, hearts are harder to touch, and interest in the things of God is slim.  I was impressed by how the LBC youth could sense the difference in spiritual climate.  We worked specifically to reach young people, which made it hard when children continually appeared, wanting to be loved.  But the church was packed tonight with young people, and more were gathered around the fence looking in. It was a great service, the LBC group did wonderful as usual and were joined by their new Dominican friends from the church in Los Ciruelitos and Central during the service.

Some have asked for some pictures to be posted on the site so you could see your loved ones in action. I would love to do that but my digital camera is not working. John and Wayne are snapping pictures like crazy but I don't have any way to down load them to my computer to upload to the site. Sorry! I know you will be thrilled to see the pictures and videos when the group gets home.

God is good all the time. All the time God is good! How true that has been today.  We have had an EXCELLENT first day- glitch free! (I love it when things go smoothly, according to plan!)  More than anything, we had the priviledge of ministering to people in Jesus' name and that pretty much sums it all up, but I will add some specifics:

Los Santos: 95 children, Villa de Yaque: 100 children, Esperanza: 50 children for a total of 245 children in VBS learning and hearing and experiencing God's love for them (and many mom's and others listening in!)

This afternoon two of the teams were evangelizing youth in El Hoyo- the girls did fingernails and the guys played baseball and then had a share time of what Christ means in their lives.  It was an amazing experience both for the LBC kids as well as for the Dominican kids!

The service tonight went really well- there was a good size group present.  LBC is the first volunteer group to work with this mission in Esperanza. They are thrilled with the work that LBC is doing and very appreciative. 

We finished off the night with a Domino pizza extravanganza. I would guess that heads are on the pillows by now- it was an exhausting day. It is always a priviledge to serve. The blessings are too many to share now but I know as your group comes home they will have lots of stories to share. Good night!

LBC arrived safe and sound, with all their luggage. As I write this they should finally have their heads on a pillow- they had a LONG travel day but were amazing alert and energetic for the travel to Santiago and meeting at the church. We are working with two different youth groups from churches here in Santiago and we met tonight for a brief get to know you time.  We made the assignments for who is going where tomorrow morning, and then hurried the group off to the hotel so they could get ready for tomorrow and go to bed. 

How can you pray? For all of us to have a prayerful spirit, open to what God is doing around us and to what he wants to do through us.  For ministry that bears fruit- 6 different mission fields will be touched by the LBC team this week, along with three Dominican church youth groups- they have an AWESOME opportunity to mentor and encourage other youth as they work with children, evangelize other youth and lead worship services. 

To those back at LBC- thanks for sending your team. I know God will use them in ways we can't even imagine. I am praying their lives will be touched and changed as they make themselves available to God.  Your prayers and your encouragement are much needed! The task is big, but our God is bigger, and He has given us prayer as our number one tool- let's use it this week and in the weeks to come!  Good night,

Ministry Schedule for LBC Project

Monday 28th: Arrive and travel to Santiago, youth group meeting with Los Ciruelitos and La Iglesia Apocalypsis

Tuesday:

• AM: Children's activities in Villa de Yaque, Los Santos and Esperanza
• Afternoon: Youth evangelism in Esperanza & The Hole
• PM: True Love Waits service, Esperanza

Wednesday:

• AM: Children's activities in Villa de Yaque, Los Santos and Esperanza
• Afternoon: Youth evangelism in La Joya & Esperanza
• PM: True Love Waits service and inauguration of new youth group in La Joya 

Thursday:

• AM: Children's activities in Villa de Yaque, Los Santos and Esperanza
• Afternoon: Youth evangelism in Los Ciruelitos & Esperanza
• PM: True Love Waits service in Los Ciruelitos
• Special cook-out at Pastor Ramon's house!!

Friday:

• AM: Market and Monument in Santiago, heading the capital
• Afternoon: Colonial City, Santo Domingo, heading to Boca Chica
• PM: Coral Hamaca Resort

Saturday: Free day at the hotel

Sunday: Head for home!

Lexington Baptist 2005

LBC will return to the DR March 28th for Spring Break. This talented group of students will be leading activities for children in the mornings, doing youth evangelism in the afternoons and leading special worship times in the evenings dealing related to True Love Waits. Pray for them in their final preparations, pray for the Dominican teams preparing for their arrival, and most of all for the hearts of Dominican young people to be impacted by their message.