We're in...

We have moved into the house but our internet is problematic. We did have favor in that we were able to get phone/internet connections in 3 days and power was turned on after less than 48 hours which more than just favor it is more like a miracle here in the D.R. =) But our "new" modem is not working out to well so I am hoping that what I am typing will save and I won't lose it if the internet should decide to go off again. *ugh*


We are once again blessed because we have friends from the US (Florida actually) here to help us unpack, paint and set up the house. Jonathan, "Mr. B", Jesse, Jen Doll and Gideon (Jonathan's son) flew down to help us. They are all from BCS and they have been able to make several trips here to help and build relationships in several orphanages over the last year and a half. When we talked with Jonathan (a.k.a. Mr. J) and told him that we may be moving he talked with the others and they decided that they wanted to come back to the D.R. again but this time they wanted to be a blessing and help us since we have been a blessing to them and to others. They bought tickets before we ever knew when we would be moving but God's timing is perfect and they arrived on Monday. They have their paint clothes on and they are busy painting the downstairs living room/den. We are so thankful! Also thankful to Betty Poppe (a.k.a. Betty "Crocker" Poppe) as that woman can cook! She is keeping our tanks full so we can keep on working. =)

I posted a few pictures so you can see something the boxes covering the floors the painting going on everywhere. Haha!

It's moving day...

Well, I will keep this short because it is going to be a very busy and long day as we plan to move a large majority of our belongings today. We want to thank all those who are helping us to move today. Thanks to the Simons, Jason Speegle, the Darnells, and Abner for your willingness to help load and unload. We could not do this without you all.

Hope to have pictures of the house for you soon! Okay, gotta run!

Busy, busy, busy...

We are busy little bees around this hive. We have a future missionary couple, Tom & Cindy Darnell, staying here with us in the Agape house. They have been a HUGE blessing to us by helping us to pack up everything we own and clean rooms, floors, and do a ton of much needed yard work. I don't think that I would be this far along in packing without them.

Here is a taste of what is going on in our home right now... while hosting another team of 17 from Texas that has come to work with the Youth of Palabras de Vida (our Dominican church home) at the 3rd annual youth camp this weekend (July 18th- 20th) which we are also helping with, and we are also trying to pack our entire house. The team arrived in two different shifts (two different days) and are currently settling in to sleep for a few hours before they have to get up at 4:30 am to get ready and meet at the church by 5:30am. They will be gone until Sunday night and then we will continue hosting them until Thursday morning then we are planning to move on Friday and Saturday. Whew!

It is only by the grace of God that I am not going crazy right now. Hahaha! It has been interesting finding places for everyone to sleep while there are boxes in the corners and luggage in the dining room. =) I just keep thinking about the little train engine,"I think I can...I think I can..." and I keep repeating the verse that says that I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

Seriously though, we are so appreciative of every single person/team that comes to the D.R. to serve short term or long because we are blessed to see God work in the lives of the Dominicans and in the lives of the teams. They always leave blessed and changed for the glory of the Lord and we are glad to be able to play a part in it.

Thank you Lord for your continued provision, blessings, and direction! Thank you to all of you have been lifting us up in your prayers and for your continued support. God bless and we will keep you posted!

Sole Mates

I wanted to share something with each of you that really touched my heart. On the last day that our home church (Bethel Team) was here and we were at the Ranch they saw the need of the Haitians and Dominicans that they had worked so hard with for a week. What was the need? Shoes! The Haitians were in ragged shoes if they had shoes at all and the Dominican family that care-takes the land needed shoes as well. What did the team do? They gave them shoes off of their feet then we joined in prayer over all of the workers and care-takers and many of the team members left barefoot or in sock feet as they loaded onto the bus. Talk about a real soul-winners or should I say "sole" winners?! The Haitians were double blessed with the gospel and with shoes. =)

A New Place to call "Home"

Yeah, that's right...we found a new home. Thank you for all of your prayers. We found a home in a section called Arroyo Hondo. It is a secure, gated community which is a big relief to both Greg and myself. Though we finally gained the peace of the Lord after the break-in, I can't say that we have been able to sleep as soundly as we did before. Some of you know, after having been here to visit, that every house you pass has bars on the windows and doors and a large gate guarding the entrance to each individual house and when we drove through the new neighborhood we actually found homes without the gates, without bars on the windows and doors which says to us that this is really well guarded.

I, Melynda, made a list of things I would like in the next house and God meet all but one item which was the large kitchen like I had before. He has given me ideas on how to make the smaller kitchen work though so I am fine. The best part is that we will be in a gated/secure area with gurads at the only entrance/exit of the neighborhood and the kids will have the opportunity to ride bikes again without ingesting a load of pollution from cars and such. I can't wait to get out and talk a walk with my hubby and children in the evening or early in the morning. Another bonus is that we are neighbors with several other missionary families who have truly enjoyed living there. Yeah! Go God!

I hope to post pictures once we are in the new house. Thank you Lord for your continued provision, protection, and direction. Thank you friends and family for your prayers! We love you!

"One Shovelful at a Time"

Wow! Can I just say we have, once again, been overwhelmed by God's goodness, blessings, and provision! We just finished with our home church of Bethel Worship Center in Camden, SC. Let me just put a small plug in here...if you do not have a church home and you are anywhere in the Columbia, Camden, Sumter area and are looking for a church you must at least visit Bethel. I know you may be thinking, "that is a long way to drive" or "with gas prices so high it is not worth the cost" but I will tell you that you are wrong! We lived in Columbia and we drove the 50 minutes each way and we were never disappointed. I would dare to say that even with the gas prices here, $5.75 per gallon of regular I would still pay the price to drive if I were in SC. They are family to us and they receive everyone that comes in the door the same regardless of age, gender, what you wear or how you look... you are a child of the living God and they will love on you just as He does! I don't know what we would do without them, their support and prayers.

Now back to the story...we were blessed to have 25 of them come and stay with us for 8, no 9 days (more on that in a minute). Even after living all together (all 30 of us) in our home here and sharing 3 bathrooms, braving the heat, traveling together 1 hour and 35 minutes each way in a guagua to and from Restoration Ranch we managed to still love each other. =) It probably helped that we were in air condition on the bus which was a good thing after we spent the day sweating while laboring in the hot sun. =)

They had asked us for a "wish list" full of items that are difficult if not impossible to find here, or they cost just too much to even think about buying. Well, once again our Bethel family worked together to fill not one or two of those wishes but filled then ALL and then added items of their own like a new DeWalt tool set. Those of you who know me (Melynda) know that I love tools! They brought us a shop vac which also has been put to use a few times. And just when we thought they were done and we were already speechless they pulled out a new laptop...better and with more memory than the one that was stolen in May. I am still shaking my head in amazement! God's word is true...He says that that which is stolen from you will be returned 7 fold and He did just that! Actually I think it was much more than 7 -fold.
We are so proud of each member...let me see if I can name them here - Pastor Casey, Leland, Eric, John, Russ, Brent, Les, Terri, Karen, Brenda, Kaleigh, Kirstin, Briana, Maggie, Brittany, Helen, Travis, AJ, Josh, Andrew, Jeremy, Brice, Trisha, Jessica, and Kalyn. Whew, that's a mouthful. They were able to accomplish so much in one week that we are still astounded. Here is how the Ranch was blessed by their hard work: (enjoy the photos posted throughout this entry)
~They repaired a lopsided and sinking outdoor sink
~Placed shower rods and curtains in two bathrooms of what we call "the little house"
~Installed two ceiling fans under the gazebo - helps keep flies off of your food. =)
~Built the framework for a concrete ceiling to be poured so we can build a second floor
~Purchased a rebar cutter (which has already saved us thousands of dollars in labor already)
~Fixed the air-conditioning in our car
~Fixed several plumbing issues in the house.
~Cleaned up all of the remaining rubble, dirt, broken block and such from in front of the first building by loading it one shovelful at a time into a wheelbarrow and wheeling over to fill the footers of the second building. We got smart by the 3rd day we rented a Bobcat to help us out.
~And last, but not at all least, dug a huge hole for the septic tank. When I say huge I mean HUGE! It was over 7 feet deep and 24 feet long by 12 feet wide. Greg and I had hoped that the Haitian workers that were hired would finish or at least get close to finishing it before Bethel arrived but they kept quitting and walking out saying the job was too hard. It says a lot when Haitians, who are not really welcomed into this country with open arms and who do just about anything to make money and eat only rice and beans or rice alone just to survive and stay here rather than go back to Haiti, walk away from a job that was paying them and housing them because it was "too hard". It shows the tenacity that our team had in order to come in when the hole was not even a foot deep and dig it out to completion. On the last day they were able to put in the rebar and pour the cement flooring in the bottom which Pastor Casey then carved the initials "BWC 2008" into and said he hoped he never saw the bottom of it again. Hahaha They worked all day, everyday to get that hole dug it became known as "the pit of despair". It sounds horrible and while it was, it was also a place of much laughter, strengthening (both physically and spiritually), and friendships deepened just as the hole did. Greg continually brought relief to those digging in the hole with his comic relief. I just love that man! =)

I also want to share something very special with you that came out of that time in the hole, it is something that still brings tears of sorrow mixed with tears of thankfulness and joy to my eyes as I type it. Pastor Casey shared this with us the last night we had a time of devotion and sharing. He said that the Lord spoke to him clearly and audibly while he was digging and he climbed out of the hole and tried to write it down as fast as he could. Here is what the Lord said to him regarding Restoration Ranch...
“In this place I (God) will break off generational curses. Where there were generations of hatred, they will be replaced with generations of Love. Where there were generations of abuse, I am going to replace it with generations of grace and compassion. Where there were generations of ignorance and illiteracy, I am going to replace it with generations of knowledge and understanding. Where there were generations of despair, I am going to replace it with generations of hope. Where there were generations of incarceration, I am going to replace it with generations of freedom and deliverance.”
***That alone makes all of the pain and soreness from all of the work worthwhile.***