Here I go..

So it has been quite awhile since I've updated this blog. Honestly I haven't really felt the urgency or the desire to do so until now. Right now, God is just doing some amazing things and truly being the guiding light I've always searched for.

As you may or may not know, at the end of this summer, I was officially invited to join the Manna Global Ministries team in the Dominican Republic. This is a desire the Lord laid on my heart since my first week of ever stepping foot into the country. I remember my first summer with Manna and how unknown every aspect seemed. Not only did I know not a soul out there, speak a lick of Spanish, or had ever traveled outside of the country, but mission work truly remained a 'foreign' concept. However, it was only a matter of days until I told my journal that this was the place I was meant to be and the work I believe I was created to pour into. I remember boldly praying the Lord would allow me to graduate early so I could join the team sooner (which will be an amazing answered prayer this Dec. 18th!) and having a strange jealousy of the missionaries as this was their day to day 'job'.
From that moment on, my love for the country, the people, the work, and the Lord's mission in Bobita/Rio San Juan only grew and matured.

As this last semester in school has been, surprisingly, one of the most difficult challenges I have ever faced, I find peace in the Lord's guidance for my future. I have begun the, ever so intimidating, fundraising process, in which I daily strive to hand over to the Lord.

So here I go. Unknown to me the obstacles that lie in tomorrow, next week, or next semester, but I trust in the Lord's faithfulness as I have no other option but to put ALL of my hope in Him. As Paul writes in Romans 15: 13, "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit."

Dear Heavenly Father,
I trust you. Remind me of your faithfulness and the presence of Your Spirit everyday so that I am not led astray. I know you will bless this fundraising process for me and send me to the Dominican if that is Your will. May this not be about what I can do in the DR, but You just using my body as an instrument for Your Kingdom.
Amen

A life in the day of....

I don't know how much ya'll know about Manna or maybe you just know that we love Jesus (and believe me we do :) but I thought I'd take a little time to enlighten you about each of our team members goals and duties here on the team.

First off I'd like to start out by saying how honored I am to serve next to these people. So much so I'm blogging about them. God is incredibly faithful and playing people to their strengths and placing them in their specific role here on the team.

Corinthians 12: 18- 20 says
"But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body." The unity of the team our Father has established continues to fasinate me and deepen my faith in His promises.

Our missionary team consists of Norm, Chad, Ronald & Rosi, Porfi & Carla, and Evan & Rachel.
Norm is our head honcho. He is the Program/Field Director here in Bobita and Rio San Juan. Norm is the overs all and works constantly to assist the missionary team, interns, and groups here over the summer. He is also one of the board members for Manna Global Ministries so he is in constant communication with them and working through the details from the top down. Norm also keeps me in line reminding me constantly to buy ice for the groups while we are in town and holding me accountable to keep the drink cooler stocked with flavored water :) I am very grateful for Norm and his amazing leadership abilities God has blessed him with.

Chad is the co-leader with Norm. Chad works very closely with the Children's home and running the summer groups. Anyone that spends but 30 minutes with Chad can see for themself his gift from the Lord in interacting with the kids in Bobita, Rio San Juan, or anywhere. With the gift of language and sincere interest in developing below surface level relationships, he is very talented in spreading the love of Christ.

Ronald and Rosi are our Rio San Juan evangelists. On any given day they could be found spending time getting to know the group or out in the streets and houses in Rio San Juan just spending time with the people. Ronald is a character, constantly cracking jokes or starting a fun song. As the preacher of our new church in Rio San Juan his profound faith continues to amaze me. Rosi has one of the kindest hearts of anyone I've ever met! Her laughter is contagious as well as her joy for the Lord.

Porfi and Carla work with the childrens home and keep it running. This family represents the epitome of kindness the Bible talks about. I couldn't think of a better couple to pour love out onto the children in the childrens home and lead the house mothers in the way they do. Their gift of the language and knowledge of the Latin American culture are incredible assets to their ministry.

Evan and Rachel run the children's ministry in Rio San Juan. They organize all the children's activities and each have a small girls group and guys bible study group they minister to once a week. Spending time around them you will never find a dull moment. They really love this place and these people and it shows. Love 'em.

Interns!

Me- 'drink dictator' I always make sure we have water, buy ice in Rio San Juan, stock the cooler with drinks to sell and such. As well as 'communication czar' were I update the Manna Dr fan page on facebook, take pictures, and make a slideshow for the groups on the last night.

Jill- 'event empress' She coordinates everything the group will do all day long from informing them, telling them what to wear, how to act, what to expect. She has a big job but she never ceases to carry it out with such joy and passion for the Lord. Love her to death.

Nikki- 'food furor' From getting all the meals together, to arranging food in our tiny freezers she is constantly at work. Nikki does a wonderful job staying organized and keeping us all feed and happy.

Jordan- No title but he works with Nikki because food is such a big job. He keeps us all laughing whether he is shaking his hips or making some ridiculous joke, we like to keep him around.

Carter- 'mechanical monarch' Carter makes sure we always have water in the tank to shower with or have for camp period. This is so much work because if we don't have sun and the solar panels can't pump water, we have absolutely no water at camp. He also continually checks over the Diahtsu to make sure it's good to go. He's amazing at what he does and I'm so proud of his paitence and perservance with this job.

Glenn- 'lodging lord' Anything with the dorms, trash, toilets, laundry, he makes sure everything is up to par with the groups stay. We like to delegate work to him because this is a chill job :)

If you have made it this far I'm impressed. Thanks for caring. This is still only touching the surface. But like I said God is good in placing people right where He will have them so they can have a greater impact for the Kingdom.

Keep us in your prayers and know that we are loving every moment we are able to spend in the Dominican.

Hasta luego,
Audrita

family reunion

What a week! I was able to share this place with my mom and Caullen this week, along with my youth group from Lake Cities and it was incredible. Many times I found myself overwhelmed by emotion in having some of the people I love most in the entire world all within 50 meters of me! It was really neat to see how the Lord moved their hearts this week and covered Lake Cities with His Spirit.

I was really proud in the way my mother had no fear in trying to communicate with the people of this country. She had such a desire to connect with them, her love over flowed on to the hearts of the Dominican people. I was also impressed in the incredible growth of my brother. I see Christ working in him probably more than he realizes himself. I am proud he was able to have no fear in interacting with these people and furthermore continue to be himself.

Not to my surprise at all Matt did an incredible job leading the youth. He is just one of those people you experience Christ through interacting with. I believe Christ used him profoundly this week. I am so proud to be apart of Lake Cities and really felt their energy.

I am so excited about the potential of RSJ! Our main focus has been this city and establishing a church home here. As we have been able to reach many of the children through our VBS programs we long to use those relationships to introduce their families and more importantly their parents to Christ. Please be in prayer of this Sunday as the church in Rio San Juan will meet for the first time. Whether there are 2 people or 30 people, pray that the Lord will meet us there. I know He will.

God,
you are so good to us and we don't deserve Your love for a minute. Thank you for tuning my passion and allowing me to be here to serve. Please prepare the hearts for these people out here in RSJ for the radical change I know will take place in Your name. Father, You are worth it. You are worth the risk. Please help us to be bold and give you all the glory.
In Your son's precious name,
Amen

Weekly highlights

Well first of all this week was incredible. East Hill was so well prepared and they really worked hard in every activity and work project during the week. I am not sure if I had already told ya'll but this summer I am the Drink Director and the Communication Director (or we like to call them the drink dictator and the communication czar)

Basically in my drink director position I work each day with any and all drinks. We have a cooler of drinks like coke, gatorade, diet coke, sprite, flavored water, etc. that I try to sell to raise money for our Latino American missionaries. I feel really blessed to be in this position because of the purpose behind it. I can really see Christ overflowing out of Ronald and Rosi, and Porfi and Carla's hearts for this place and these people. Honestly I am really blessed to know these people. Talk about selfless servants! Ronald and Rosi are our Rio San Juan evangelists who are working on creating and developing relationships in RSJ and eventually planting a church there. With their very involved work in groups, the group members are able to get a very clear picture of the quality people Ronald and Rosi are. Which honestly makes my job, in selling cokes for their support, very easy.

One moment that really touched me this week was when I was in the hospital in Puerto Plata and I saw this Haitian lady laying in her hospital bed very sick. I got down to sit on the floor and talk with her and got my bible out to read her my favorite scripture from James. As I began reading it she reached into her bag and pulled out her Haitian bible and read along with me in Creole. It was so amazing to see her following along with me as I read in Spanish and she read in Creolo, and to see her nodding her head back in forth in agreement. God was there in that moment.

Another incredible moment in the hospital was when I saw this lady laying in her bed in a diaper very very sick. Her two beautiful daughters were sitting and standing all around her bed looking so dismal about their mothers condition. It was just so touching to me to see such the role reversal. As the mother, the caretaker, and consoler was laying helplessly in her bed, her sweet daughters were all she had to keep her going. As I began talking with one of the daughters tears just started pouring down her face. I grabbed their hands and began to say a prayer and she endless squeezed my hand. I was so blessed even to be in their presence. God was definitely in that moment as well.

I am obsessed with these people here! I think me and the other interns are in constant laughter over something. Our most recent bonding moments have been filled with singing melodies of Church of Christ hymnals and seeing how many people we can fit into the cab of the diahtsu. Yesterday we got 8! God has really blessed our bonds with a spirit of joy and overflowing fellowship in His name.

I could go on and update for days but other people need the computer haha.

Please pray for the upcoming groups and that the Lord will stretch us beyond our comfortable boundaries.

Dear God I'm overwhelmed with your presence in this place. I pray you will help me to find my identity in you and you alone, because You are all I need.

Until next time,
Audrita

busy bees!

Well as you all know I arrived in the DR on Tuesday. It has pretty much been non stop since our plane landed! I'll have to say I had no idea how I would react reuniting with the faces I had thought of each day since I had been away. It was so great to see everyone again. I'm pretty sure my knees and hands were shaking with excitement! It really feels as though I never left.

Pretty much the last couple of days us interns have been working with Norm and Chad to prep just about every last detail for the summer. I think yesterday we went over our jobs and schedules from 9 in the morning until about 6 at night! (with food in between of course :) It was definitely a blessing to have all of our roles defined and get a very detailed picture on how we can best serve the groups and show Christ's love through the work here.

I have a feel the Lord is going to do some pretty big stuff this summer. I have been praying that He will turn my world upside down. That He will challenge me, strip me of my comfort zone, break my heart, and help me to serve with joy. I have also been praying for the fellow interns and missionaries here. Let me just say these are some incredible people. It's amazing how the Lord has distributed such distinct and complimenting gifts to each member on our team. It is very clear that HE is the center of the work here.

Our main goal this summer, slightly different than last year, is to really speak of Christ into the lives of the people in Rio San Juan. Working toward establishing a potential church home in RSJ, we want to begin planting seeds and creating intimate relationships with these people. I am really excited about this and how the Lord is going to transform these hearts.

Please keep us in your prayers as we strive to reach out to these people. Even though they may not be accepting to the Word initially, but that their heart will begin to break for what breaks Yours.

Lord thank you for the opportunity, the mission, and the people.


Love you all!

37 days...

Until my heart is able to reunite with the pure bliss of the DR :)

I am beyond excited. When you have been thinking about and praying for something for 10 months you could imagine the build up! I wanted to share with ya'll or whoever reads this some things I'm most excited about and just some goals in mind as I approach this summer.

I'm a big fan of lists so here goes...

1. I want my Spanish to improve-grammar, vocab, understanding, so that...

2. I can get to know people there really, beyond Como estas.

3. I want to have the courage to talk to strangers about Jesus

4. I want to be a constant encourager. To the missionaries, interns, group members and Dominicans.

5. I want to be humbled everyday in that God doesn't need me but He wants me.

6. I want to take more pictures! Like 3,000 something. I need to buy a camera.

7. Reach out to the group members more, and pour into them.

8. I want to pray continuously

9. I want to be able to recite scripture in Spanish from memory.

10. I want to go read my bible to people in town so they can know God like I do.

That's only the beginning.

Here are some faces I can't wait to squeeze :)

He is able

He replied, "Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." Matt. 17:20

Honestly this is a very challenging verse for me. As I have been seeking the Lord and a deeper relationship with him, I have come to realize just how little faith I have. I remember driving home from Colorado after the summer and literally looking out the window, staring with all the intensity I could at the mountain, thinking Lord move that mountain, and I wasn't even joking, but since I knew it wouldn't happen, surprise, it didn't move.

So if you believe what the Bible says to be true, then if one of us has the faith of a mustard seed (which I looked up, and it is the smallest seed, 3mm in diameter) then we could move a mountain. So since none of us have moved a mountain before, I assume our faith is way smaller than a mustard seed. Geez. Thats pretty small. But then again, I guess we are pretty small. Faith is also being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see (Heb 11:1). That for me is hard to swallow and certainly not an easy thing to do, but the things that are worth risking your life for never are.

I also think faith is believing that He is able. Do you think God is big enough to move that mountain? Really? Do you think God is big enough to take your future and use every talent and skill He gave you to benefit His kingdom? Do you really? I ask myself these questions all the time, and honestly it's hard to follow them with a resounding YES.

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us. Eph. 3:20- Believe it!

original Love.

Hosea 2:5-20

Their mother has been unfaithful
and has conceived them in disgrace.
She said, 'I will go after my lovers,
who give me my food and my water,
my wool and my linen, my oil and my drink.'

Therefore I will block her path with thornbushes;
I will wall her in so that she cannot find her way.

She will chase after her lovers but not catch them;
she will look for them but not find them.
Then she will say,
'I will go back to my husband as at first,
for then I was better off than now.'

She has not acknowledged that I was the one
who gave her the grain, the new wine and oil,
who lavished on her the silver and gold—
which they used for Baal.

"Therefore I will take away my grain when it ripens,
and my new wine when it is ready.
I will take back my wool and my linen,
intended to cover her nakedness.

So now I will expose her lewdness
before the eyes of her lovers;
no one will take her out of my hands.

I will stop all her celebrations:
her yearly festivals, her New Moons,
her Sabbath days—all her appointed feasts.

I will ruin her vines and her fig trees,
which she said were her pay from her lovers;
I will make them a thicket,
and wild animals will devour them.

I will punish her for the days
she burned incense to the Baals;
she decked herself with rings and jewelry,
and went after her lovers,
but me she forgot,"
declares the LORD.

"Therefore I am now going to allure her;
I will lead her into the desert
and speak tenderly to her.

There I will give her back her vineyards,
and will make the Valley of Achor [a] a door of hope.
There she will sing [b] as in the days of her youth,
as in the day she came up out of Egypt.

"In that day," declares the LORD,
"you will call me 'my husband';
you will no longer call me 'my master.

I will remove the names of the Baals from her lips;
no longer will their names be invoked.

In that day I will make a covenant for them
with the beasts of the field and the birds of the air
and the creatures that move along the ground.
Bow and sword and battle
I will abolish from the land,
so that all may lie down in safety.

I will betroth you to me forever;
I will betroth you in righteousness and justice,
in love and compassion.

I will betroth you in faithfulness,
and you will acknowledge the LORD.


It sure is easy to get mopey around a day like Valentines day, I'd know.... However, I will always remain full of a kind of love that no earthly human could match, perfectly described in the passage above. It takes an honest effort to engage in this relationship, but His love truly never fails, it's original.