Sweat, Cement and Bug Bites

In three words, that was my trip to the Dominican but it was so much more than that. When people ask how it went my response is, "Great! but hard." I should've practiced what I taught the Service Corps this summer - prepare a one sentence response that will intrigue people to hear more about your trip when they ask how it went. I know now it's easier to send than it is to go - like that one was hard to figure out. For so long I've just been talking about it - sending people - telling them how it was when I went - IN 1999. It was hard then but I can't feel the things I felt then as intensely. Before last week, I was telling people to eat what was put in front of them and that they would LIKE IT. Now, I can say that knowing that last week, I did that as I spooned fish into my mouth (ugh) and had cereal with unrefigerated milk. That's nothing compared to other things that people have to eat but it was a challenge. I suppose last week I learned that I'm a wuss - although I'm a wuss with determination. We stayed in a hotel that I believe was rented out by the hour. When I walked into the hotel I noticed that it was pretty dingy and dirty - there were no doors into and out of the hotel, just iron gates with padlocks. Some rooms had air conditioning, some did not - I was fortunate on that end. The bed had one sheet on it and that's it. I was scared of the sheet. I wasn't quite sure it had been washed and if it had I'm pretty sure it wasn't sanitary. You see, the town has no hot water. The entire week we took cold showers in showers that were pretty dirty - lots of mildew. We couldn't flush the toilet paper and there were plenty of bugs everywhere. I had ants and probably roaches although none were seen in my room. I mentioned earlier that I think the hotel was rented out by the hour because I woke up at 3:30 a.m. once to the sounds of a woman having sex. That freaked me out quite a bit. Once I was opening the door to my room and saw a guy coming up the stairs zipping up his pants. I don't know where he had been or what he had been doing but it brought to mind plenty of mental images.

Those things don't even begin to tell of what we did last week - that's just where we stayed. During the week, we spent most of our time helping some construction workers build a new corps/school in the little town of Cotui. The first day was kind of discouraging just because we didn't get to help or do much. We spent a lot of our time that day sitting around, watching. Things picked up on the second day. We formed lines down which we would pass cement blocks, of which the construction workers were continually needing more. We refilled the workers buckets with cement as they laid the bricks in place. Some of us got to help level out the ground. Some of us went on a prayer walk. No matter what we did though - we were sweating and hot. That's how it went all week.

We did have one break in the week however and that was Wednesday. Our host, Angelita really wanted all of us to see her farm. (By the way, didn't realize that we could have been exposed to the foot and mouth disease there - happy thoughts.) So, throughout the week Angelita kept telling Joe and I that she had arranged a truck for us to go in to her farm. In my mind I knew in what we were going to be travelling but I kept telling myself differently. Well, my mind was right. Wednesday morning came and our transportation arrived and we were travelling to Angelita's farm in the back of a flatbed truck. Now, don't go getting creative on me. This truck was no bigger than - hmmm, an F-150. There were 15 of us crammed into the back of that truck, plus a dog our host's husband had named Dookey (there were plenty of jokes about that), lunch for the afternoon (a pot full of chicken and rice which eventually spilled all over the truck and was still consumed), three huge bottles of water, 6 or 7 plastic chairs, one tarp and a couple of blankets and pillows upon which we sat. We spent the next two hours of our lives enduring this trip. Parts of it were fun. Annie pulled out her book of questions, Joe kept yelling "To the Farm" and Dookey kept crawling all over everyone. That was a blast!
When we got to the farm we were surrounded by absolute beauty. We were in the mountains and everything was incredibly green and lush - gorgeous. The house was incredibly rustic - that's the best way to put it. There was no plumbing, no running water, dirt floors, an outside kitchen. There were plenty of animals everywhere - chicken, pigs, dogs. We took a walk later on and saw the cows. That day was quite interesting.

Besides that day though, everything was quite the same as far as routine is concerned. Our team, however, was not quite routine - or sane. I don't even know how to explain it except to say that we were an interesting group. That's all I'm going to say on that issue because I don't want to get myself in trouble. Just know that we laughed a lot last week.


"So what," you say? "Don't you have an amazing story to tell about your trip? Don't you have a mountaintop experience to share? Don't you have any advice to share or anything?" That's just it. I'm still struggling with that part. I always tell people before they go on a mission trip that they will have a "moment" - a time when they realize why God sent them on a trip. Maybe I wasn't there long enough; maybe I didn't look long enough; maybe I wasn't listening hard enough. Whatever the reason - I didn't have a "moment." I'm a little disappointed. I don't know how else to put it. I had a great week - at least it turned out that way. I met some really incredible new people. I got to help build part of God's kingdom. I got to be away from work for a week. I did not have a moment and I'm still struggling with that. I don't know how to tell people when they ask how it went. So, that's why I say "Great! but hard."

I'm still trusting though. I'm trusting the Lord to show me why I went. At the end of the week I realized that everything doesn't have to be a mountaintop experience. It's not like we can earn those or like we deserve them. We just get to experience them sometimes and then sometimes we don't. That doesn't make God any different. He doesn't change and I guess that's what I learned. He's never failing and He never changes. So, despite whether or not I had a moment - God was there and He loved me through it. Maybe that's the lesson.

Anyway, that's my thoughts for now. We'll see what I think tomorrow. It could all change - except for the God part. Remember? He never changes.

Man - I've got a lot to learn.
Maybe that's what my one sentence response should be. Ready to try it out?
You ask, "Hey Joy, How was your trip to the Dominican?"
I say, "One of the most interesting weeks of my life. I didn't have a mountaintop experience but I know God was there and loving me through it. How cool is that? He's awesome!"

Still waiting,
Joy

So, I'm leaving for the Dominican in two days. I can't believe it's already here. I'm not quite ready to go and I think I'm not really aware of the fact that I'm going. That's how it always is with me though. Two days before something is going to happen - mission trip, vacation, holiday, I'm clueless. I don't have a feeling in the world towards what might happen or what we're going to be doing. I just trudge along in this world of mine living and breathing just like every other day. Shouldn't I be overflowing with some sort of emotion at the opportunity?

Please don't get me wrong. I'm excited that I get to go. I know that it will be a wonderful experience but right now all I can think about is how much I have to get done before 6:00 Saturday morning when we leave the house for the airport. Right now, all that will be wonderful is just a head knowledge. It's just a thought about what might be.

When I return home though? That will not just be a head knowledge but an experiential knowledge, a heart knowledge. There will be some part of me that has changed forever. God never fails me on that one. Every time I go I sort of don't want to go - I like being at home, with my husband, doing the daily grind but I always go because He has called me to go and I want to be obedient.

But God never fails me on this one. He goes above and beyond anything I could ever hope for or imagine (hmmm...sounds like scripture). I think that going because He's called me to go is something worth talking about - that's nothing! I do one silly little small thing and He responds with miracles that will never be forgotten, faces that seem to become a part of your being, a love for Him that seems to deepen. I don't know how to explain it, I just know that it's worth it.

And so, I turn my mind to Cotui - a little town of 25,000 people and a building that has yet to be built. I begin to realize the unbelievable opportunity he has put in front of me. I will be laying the foundation for a new school for the Army there and He will be laying His foundation in my heart. God is so good to me. I love him.

Maybe I'm a little bit more aware of leaving for the Dominican in two days than I thought. Go figure!

Please pray, I'm preaching on Sunday there. I'm a little scared but I know He'll come through.

Loving Him with all I've got,
Joy