All Things New

I can't believe another month has already passed. It seems like I was just writing to you the other day about the great work the youth leaders are doing in Hato Mayor.

Their good work for the Lord continued this month. They carried out the last of the parent-child activities in Jalonga (click here for details and pictures).

Now, they are wrapping up their winter/spring commitments and preparing for the summer months.



In May I had the opportunity to meet with each of the youth leaders one-on-one to learn more about how they are doing personally, to hear about their experiences in the ministry the last few months and to pray with them.

We have a team retreat on Monday and Tuesday to spend time together in worship, receive additional training and make summer goals. We are looking forward to this time together as a team, and it is such a delight watching these leaders grow before my eyes. God is doing great things!
Ministry in Santo Domingo

Joselo and I are still just beginning to step into all the new things that God has for us here in Santo Domingo. We thank God for the new opportunities He is presenting to us.

Joselo is getting back into the swing of being a student. He is taking classes in Psychology at a local University on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and really enjoying it. He has also escorted a couple different groups of pastors/preachers into the prison to minister the past few months.

I'm thoroughly enjoying the opportunity I've been given to assist with the MOTE-Bethel-UNEV Practical Theology class. I've been reading and studying a lot in order to prepare lessons (in spanish!). It's been great working as a team with the other professors, and I am loving the class time with the students.

As soon as I got in the car with Joselo last night after class, I said, "I love to teach!" It is so rewarding and humbling to be able to lead important discussions among pastors and ministry leaders. Again, last night they were so passionate and engaged in the class. We all went away inspired to love and serve and lead others according to the example Christ set for us. I pray this is just the beginning of this type of ministry.

The students of the class are starting to complete their first community service projects. It is also exciting to hear about all the lives they are influencing as they go back to their communities and share and implement the things we talk about in class.

Regarding the Community Bible Study ministry, (CBS)


We are still working to put the final touches on the training materials, and we are moving forward in conversations with different pastors and leaders who are interested both in equipping the leaders of their churches and teaching the members of their churches to study the Word of God.

The pastors see this as a very special opportunity for growth both for the leaders and their church members. I'm very excited to see transformed lives as people begin to study the Word of God together in caring communities.

In general I'm just really happy and excited for the new opportunities God is presenting to us that completely align with our mission of uniting, equipping and empowering others in missions. Glory to God!

A Note to Financial Partners

Joselo and I want to thank each of you once again for your continued faithful investments in this ministry.

Many of you have recently renewed and increased your monthly investments to help us reach our new financial goal - THANK YOU!

As we mentioned in our March letter, we have found the cost of living in Santo Domingo to be significantly higher.

With a baby on the way, we expect our monthly expenses to go up even more.

We are actively praying for and recruiting new monthly supporters so that we can meet our financial goal again this year and continue the ministry God has given us here.

This month I received a message from one of our monthly investors that just made my day. He wrote:

I loved reading your message and hearing about the "youth in action." they are growing up. I'm so proud to be a part of your ministry.

It is our prayer that as we each give of the resources God has given us, spiritual or material, putting them to work in the Kingdom of God something beautiful will happen that is greater than any of us individually, and YOU will be blessed knowing you were a part of it.

Thank you for investing in the lives of children and youth living in poverty!

Your prayers and financial investments help make this ministry possible. YOU are an important part of this team.

We thank you for your partnership, and we pray that you would be enriched in every way for your great generosity.  (2 Cor. 9:11)

God bless you!

Kristin and Joselo

Jalonga Family Activity

We had a great celebration with the children and their families in Jalonga this month. This is the last of the parent-child activities for now.

We followed the same model that we used in the other three communities: house visits & prayer followed by an activity with singing, special performances by the children, Bible stories, dramas, and yes the clowns Pancho & Chanco were even there!    

 

We've found these activities to be a very special time to share together with the children and their parents.

  

We were able to give a bag of groceries to each family, in Jalonga, too, thanks to donations made by Resurrection Lutheran Church. This time an special additional donation came in from the Cecile Lehman Memorial Fund. Thanks to all of you for helping us bless these families with food.

This community has been one of the more challenging communities as far as the behavior of the children goes. It's hard to believe when you see their smiling faces, but in the beginning, there was a lot of fighting and disrespectful behavior by some of the children. There are many factors that contribute to this type of behavior in these communities, but the teachers have been praying like crazy and working hard with the children, pastors and families to help the children improve in these areas. We want them to know they are loved by God and that God wants us to love others with the same love He has for us. The teachers have mentioned some big improvements since January, and we are praising God for that.