Inverted Arts - Summer Camp

Inverted Arts Summer Camp - What a delightful week!

Mark Collier is the president and founder of Inverted Arts Ministry of Maple Grove, MN.   Inverted Arts exists to empower young people out of poverty by giving them a voice through the arts.  In this week long camp, I was blown away by the gifts and talents in both the art teachers and our students! 


In this picture, Mark is working with the video class.
The students had a great time learning how to use a video camera and create their own videos. 
They created their own "movie trailers," conducted interviews, made an video advertisement and
gained experience in directing and acting as they created a movie based on the "Good Samaritan."



Travis pictured on the right worked with the music class. 
In this class, students wrote the words and lyrics to their own songs,
 and then they recorded their songs in order to share them with others! 

Renee was the visual arts teacher. 
Students drew self-portraits, worked with paints and pastels to
create the masterpieces you see below. 





 

 

I wish I could have captued the excitement on the faces of the students in Batey Magua
when they first saw the bright-colored paints and learned they were going to have the opportunity to use it!





Sarah was the teacher of the photography class.  I discovered I didn't take many pictures of students taking pictures!  The first thing the students of the photography learned was that there is a lot more to the art of photography than they realized!  They learned to capture beauty in people and nature by looking at things they've seen a million times with "new eyes!"  It was fun to watch the students develop throughout the week and think more and more creatively!

On Friday, the students invited their family and friends to a Showcase, where they explained to their parents what they did and learned at camp. 
  

They displayed their work, performed the songs they wrote,

and showed the videos and pictures they created.   




My favorite part of the Showcase was watching the expressions on the students' faces as they celebrated the beautiful things they and their classmates had created.  It was a wonderful week recognizing the beauty God created in each one of us and in the world around us! 

We are all eagerly waiting for this team of artists to return! 

A Story about Yahson

Yahson (Jackson) de la Rosa is one of the leaders of our library project.  Yahson is a great teacher, he's humble, he leads by example, he's always willing to help in anyway he can, and he's a great friend.  Something very special happened in Yahson's life recently, and I've asked Yahson if I could share it with you.  With a huge smile, Yahson said, "Of course!" 

Yahson has been a faithful leader in our library project from the beginning.  He does a great job with the students, gets along well with his teammates and is very reliable.  In December, we promoted Yahson to a new level of leadership among the team.  He was to oversee two of the library sites.

I got word in February that Jackson was having problems with his back.  I was informed that he was making trips to see a doctor and then a specialist.  He was in a lot of pain and needed to step away from ministry for a while. 

He was taking medication daily for the pain, and in March they told him he had a herniated disc in his lower back.  Jackson is 20 years old.  When I asked him why or how he thinks this happened, he told me about a time when he fell off a horse and thought it could be related to that. 

When I returned to the Dominican Republic in May, I was suprised to see Jackson at work with the team.  Though he walked with a noticable limp and was in constant pain, he continued to participate the best he could in the leadership team meetings and with his work with the children in the Haitian communities. 

Yahson working with students in Batey Magua.

Yahson gave me regular updates on his health and his trips to the doctor.  Things did not seem to be getting better for Yahson.  The pain was getting worse and the doctors were advising him to undergo an operation. 

The weeks leading up to the operation were the worst for Yahson.  The pain was so bad he couldn't walk --he couldn't even get out of bed. 

Yahson was scheduled for surgery on Tuesday, July 10th at 3pm.  Yahson and his family left for the hopsital in the evening on Monday.  (Yahson informed me that the hopsital rooms fill up quickly and they wanted to be sure to get a bed.)  

The surgery was a very delicate surgery.  If something went wrong, Yahson could have problems or be paralyzed for the rest of his life.   Many people were praying for Yahson.  

 

When it came time for Yahson's operation, they were informed that the specialist who was to perform Yahson's surgery was delayed.  Yahson would have to wait another day. 

I can only imagine what must have been going through Yahson's mind at this point.  Relief?  Anger?  Frustration?  Fear?  His family continued in prayer around him.  Yahson said that around 5pm he prayed, "God have your will in my life -- whatever that might be."  

The next morning the specialist came at 7am to prepare Yahson for surgery, but Yahson's pain was gone.   The pain that was excruciating when he went to sleep was gone.  He went six hours without taking medication, and was still free of pain.  They examined Yahson's old xrays again.  (To take new xrays would be very expensive.)  The specialist concluded that he wouldn't operate if Yahson did not have any pain, so they sent Yahson home!

It has been three weeks.  Yahson is still free of pain, and he gives God all the glory.  Yahson has jumped right back into ministry and hasn't missed a beat.   

We are all praising God and rejoicing with our friend Yahson because of what God has done. 

How GREAT is our God?!



Yahson was a huge help to the Inverted Arts team who was here July 21-29,
helping with transportation every day.



Un Culto en Mi Casa

The first week I moved into my apartment we had a "culto" or worship service in my house.  A group from the church came, and I also invited friends and neighbors.  There were over 25 people who attended.

  We sang worship songs, had special music and Neftali shared a message from Matthew 7:24-25 about the wise builders who built their house on the rock rather than in the sand. 

The girls made popcorn and brought juice to share.

Having a "Culto" in someone's house is a pretty common thing for those who attend Iglesia Centro Cristiano Shalom.  I've been to at least three of these services in the past couple of weeks.  I think it says a lot about the church and these youth that they attend church services Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday evenings and on the nights they are free they choose to continue praying, worhsipping and studying God's Word together in their homes.  What a blessing to be a part of this community! 

Add caption

Library Project Pictures.

These pictures were taken in Batey Prudencia on June 5, 2012. 

working hard on phonics and handwriting at the same time

This is the older group who is able to read.  Their work is more advanced.

The leader of this group is Liliana.  She is studying at the University to be
an Elementary school teacher.  It will be a couple of years before she has her degree,
but she's already using her gifts to help others learn.  It's easy to see that she's a natural teacher!

Mario is one of our translators.  He is also going to start teaching English
to some of the older kids in the community. 

These pictures were taken in Kilometer 16 - Batey la Mina on Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Neftali works with this group in Km 16.  They are working on their handwriting. 

This younger group is learning to recognize different letters of the alphabet.

Lujany is teaching them the vowel sounds.

These pictures were taken in Batey Magua on Saturday, June 16, 2012.  Magua is our newest site.  There's not an official church building there yet, but there is a lot of space to give our classes.  Today there was a great breeze.  It was a wonderful morning to be in Magua. 

There is a small group of about 8 students who want to learn English. 
Clara Inez has been working with them for the past several months, teaching them English. 
Today she introduced me to one of her students who recently made a decision to follow Jesus. 
How exciting!  I'm also encouraged by the fact that Clara will continue to be there to encourage
her, answer any questions she might have and be a friend to her as she learns more
about what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ.

Handwriting:  Practice!  Practice!  Practice! 

One of the things I love is the one-on-one help and attention the students receive. 
We continue to stress the importance of relationships.

There is one more site that I have not visited yet - Batey Jalonga.  I hope to travel there on Tuesday afternoon to see how the students and teachers are doing and how the community is growing.

Finding My Rhythm

It's hard to believe I've been here for almost a month already!  It feels like only a few weeks.  Things are going very well, and I feel like I'm starting to find my "rhythm."  I've been going for walks every morning at 6am with a couple of ladies from church.  I love being outside this time of the day.  It's much cooler, and the countryside is beautiful. 

For breakfast, I've been making oatmeal, eggs or pancakes.  Last week I received a bag of mangos as a gift, so I got to eat mango every day for breakfast, too! 

I'm getting to be pretty good with a broom and a mop.  I haven't timed myself, but I bet I can clean my whole house in less than 30 minutes.  It's kind of fun, too! 

Yesterday, one of the ladies from the church came to teach me how to cook rice and chicken - the Dominican way!  It was delicious, and I'm eager to try again on my own. 

I had some challenges with my water the first few weeks.  There are two big tanks on my roof.  They were filled with water in the late afternoon but empty when I woke up in the morning.  We couldn't figure out what was happenign to the water.  I went five days without running water!  Thankfully my neighbors gave me a bucket or two of water each day so I could bathe and wash my dishes. 

Finally we realized that the toilet was not sealing property and running all the time.  There wasn't a leak in the pipes at all -- the water was just going through the toilet!!  One more thing to wrap up with that and the water problem will be completely fixed - praise God!  Through all of this, I learned some things about how important water is to daily life.  I didn't realize how much I take these basic necesities for granted.

Mondays -- groceries, cleaning the house, Bible study, Spanish practice and preparing for the week.
Tuesdays -- leadership team meetings and ministry in the bateys, prayer service at church
Wednesdays -- other meetings in the community -- ImapctLives food, writing curriculum, etc
Thursdays -- catch up on emails, write reports, support raising, worhsip service at church
Fridays -- Sabboth...personal day
Saturdays -- Ministry in the bateys, finish computer work, Study
Sundays -- Sunday School, clean the church, lunch at Pica Pollo, Study, Worship at night

It might sound funny, but I'm really enjoying establishing a routine. It feels good to have a rhythm!  

A Home Away From Home

Here are some pictures of my first apartment in the Dominican Republic!  This is actually the first time I've ever really lived alone.  In the US, I always had at least one roommate.  So far, it's been great.  I'm loving the space, the quiet times and the freedom that comes along with having your own place.  I signed a 6 month lease. 

 

This is the entrance, the dining room and the living room.

 



Here's the kitchen.  Homes in the Dominican Republic do not come furnished,
so I bought the refrigerator, the gas table top stove and the gas tank.  I also bought some lightbulbs! 
My neighbor is graciously allowing me to borrow electricity from him for now. 
Next week, I need to go and sign a contract with the electric company, so I can get my own electricty. 



The bathroom is really nice!  Running water in the sink, shower and toilet. 
There was only one day so far when I didn't have water.  I hope that doesn't happen on a regular basis!

Here is my room.  I love the mirrors on the closet! 
I also bought a bed and La Pastora Teresa had some sheets for me to use.
I had the bookshelf made on previous trip for the library project. 
They aren't really using it now, so I brought it to my apartment.        

This is my favorite part, the terrace.  There is a great breeze back here.
 It will be a good place to do reading, studying and have meetings with our team. 
There is an avocado tree and a mango tree within reach - YUM!
 I will also do laundry here. 

Last night from the terrace, I could see a boy on the roof of a house nearby flying a kite.
 I'm on the second floor and love the view.  I can see beautiful green hills all around me. 
Everytime I look out, I'm reminded of Psalm 12:1-2,
 "I lift up my eyes to the hills—
    where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
    the Maker of heaven and earth

Members of our team came on Monday to help clean.  They're experts at cleaning the house with water.  It really needed it, and they did a great job.  Something that would have taken me all day and would have been really frustrating, took only an afternoon!  Praise God for friends!!

The group returned again on Wednesday night to pray over the house with me before I slept there the first night.  I'm so thankful for them and for this space, and I pray that God will use it to teach us and prepare us for ministry.  I hope we can have meetings here, do Bible studies and maybe even English classes here.  That would be great! 

Right now, I'm getting by on the minimum - a couple plates, cups, one spoon and fork, a small pan, etc.  Little by little, God will provide the rest of the things I need - a couch, table, dishes, pots and pans, plastic chairs, a washing machine, etc. 

If you'd like to make a donation, please let me know!!  :)  God Bless!

First Impressions

By God's grace our food-packing projects in Monticello and in the Albany Area were a great success.  People of all ages from many different parts of the community contributed to the success of these events.  Together we packaged over half a million meals and raised more than $120,000 to cover the costs of the food, shipment and basic ministry in the Dominican Republic - education, construction projects and medical outreach. 

 I'm in the Dominican Republic now and will meet with leaders on Monday to discuss some of the logistics for shipping, storing and distributing the food.  We're praising God for His goodness and faithfulness in providing this food and want to do the very best we can to distribute it to the people who need it most in a way that brings honor and glory to God.  Thanks to everyone who helped make this possible.  We pray the logistics will be worked out, and the food will be ready to ship mid June.

Albany Area Hunger Challenge
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Albany High School Bus Garage

Monticello United food-packing event
Saturday, March 10, 2012
Monticello High School Field House

In the few days I've been here, I've very quickly been reminded of how much need there is in the Dominican Republic - seemingly everywhere.   

The ImpactLives food that Pastor Carlos had from a previous shipment is gone.  There was a person from his church asking for help on Thursday night.  There wasn't any rice to give, but Pastor Carlos and members from the church chipped in to help the family out. 

Another thing that has become very obvious to me in my first few days in the Dominican Republic is how much more aware I am here of my dependence on God and others for just about everything - everyday.  At times, I'm thankful for this reminder.  On other occassions, when I want to just do it myself, get it done in my timing or seem to think I know what's best, I find it extremely frustrating. 

The verse in Psalm 23 that says, "your rod and your staff comfort me" has come to mind several times this week.  I'm thankful that God is teaching me to walk close to Jesus, the Good Shepherd.  He uses His rod and staff to remind me not to run ahead or go off in my own direction, but to wait patiently and joyfully at His side.  I pray that Jesus would continue to teach me to walk close to Him, to listen carefully for His voice and to follow confidently wherever He leads.  I praise God for His unfailing love, His constant goodness and the grace that He so generously extends every moment of every day.