We're all in this together!!!

If you live in Sosua, Dominican Republic chances are great that you have met Benito.  Benito works at a very busy area downtown where all the shops are including where we bank.  He is quick to point out a good parking spot and keeps a special eye on our car so nobody bothers it.  He always has a smile and kind words.  He never complains and is always quick to give God the glory.  So when Brian told Maddie about the condition of Benito's wheelchair, Maddie quickly new that she wanted to spend some of the money she was blessed with from Pastor Steve (see previous post) to bless Benito.

 

He was literally in tears and what REALLY touched my heart was that as we left he told us he would be praying for Landy to fully heal.  CAN YOU SAY AMAZING??!!!

 

 

 

2 Corinthians 1:4

who comforts us in all our suffering, so that we may be able to comfort others in all their suffering, as we ourselves are being comforted by God.

 

 

Sleep well Nelson!

I seriously LOVE working with people that have a heart for children!  The staff at Go MAD's Firm Foundation Children Center may be little but it is MIGHTY!  Every time we have a family come in with special needs they jump into gear and pull out whatever is needed, including their own food for lunch, clothes, etc.   So it was not surprising to me when one of our employees, Tania, brought a young neighbor to the clinic for treatment because his mother is 8 months pregnant and was sick in bed.

  His name is Nelson.  He is Haitian and he suffers from albinism.  He is the sweetest kid you will ever meet.  Tania brought him in for help because he has a bad rash for over a month.  We need to get Nelson to a dermatologist in a nearby town so we paid his mom a visit today to see how we could help.  I am so grateful that we did. 

When we arrived at an old run down abandoned resort, climbed a make shift ladder......

 and then to the roof of the building this is what we found. 





                                                     This is where Nelson sleeps.

I will give you a closer look.....

This is where his mother makes his meals....

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

This is Nelson's good buddy.

 

 

 
 
 
 
 

The really cool thing is God knew Nelson needed more buddies.  He actually orchestrated a pastor in a small town of LeRoy, Il to have a enormous heart for missions AND children.  This amazing pastor had given my children both $100 and told them to find a mission of their own in the Dominican Republic.  So both Mario and Maddie have been praying about how they can make their $100 grow to make a HUGE impact.  But what God showed us today was.  It doesn't have to be HUGE to many.  Sometimes being HUGE to one at a time is enough.

 

 So with part of Mario's gift from Pastor Steve we sprang into action! 

 

We made a special delivery to a special child of God....he was so cute...he just kept scratching his head in disbelief! 

Thank you God for the heart of Pastor Steve Ward.  Thank you for the heart of my son Mario.  Thank you for allowing us to delivery Nelson a soft comfortable place to sleep tonight.

 1 Sam. 2:8 He lifts the poor from the dust-- Yes, from a pile of ashes-- And treats them as princes sitting in the seats of honor. For all the earth is the Lord's And he has set the world in order.

The Good, The Bad and the Ugly and Some Ridiculous!

    As we get ready to celebrate our 1 year anniversary of entering the mission field I thought it would be appropriate to share my emotions on this crazy roller coaster ride.  I would LOVE to say that these are feelings I have had throughout the year occasionally but the reality of it is....I experience MOST on a  DAILY basis.  I would be lying if I said this has been easy.  The only absolute I can tell you is how much I have to rely on God for strength and sanity!  So here are just a small portion of my thoughts through the day and quite literally how quickly they can change.

• LEARNING A NEW LANGUAGE IS SO HARD!!!!!!!!!  I want to crawl in my bed and throw the covers over my head!

• I feel like I made some really good choices today!

• Man.....I screwed up!

• Thank you God for using me to save a life today (either physically or spiritually)

• The ugliness of sin from abuse, greed and sexually immortality makes my heart shatter into a million tiny pieces.

• I really miss fast food drive thru's!!!!

• I'm not doing enough!

• The beauty God shows me in the hearts of people and on his earthly creation literally makes my heart feel like it's going to burst.

• Just curious but why did you invent mosquito's and allow such high humidity?

• There's so much need and I am just one person.

• Why me???  Why did I have to move so far from my family that I adore?

• I love it here!!!

• I want to go home!!

• Thank you Lord for the AMAZING people you have placed in my life.

• Can I not do anything right???

• I am so proud of my family for being so strong.

• Stop asking me for "things"!

• Please someone invent a microchip to insert into my brain so I can be instantly fluent in Spanish!

• It's so awesome to work along side of my husband!

• I am with my husband wayyyyy to much!

• Thank you Jesus for leading me here.

• I am blessed! 

• Use me Lord!

I am grateful for every single one of these thoughts and feelings because when we are pushing ourselves out of our comfort zone....that's when we grow closer to God.