This was our theme verse yesterday, along with the song "I love you Lord". Our team is continuing to show sacrificial love in their work here. We were without electricity for hours yesterday, and the water pressure is at a trickle, so washing hair and sweaty bodies is a challenge. Yet they continue to smile and keep going! They have had a good taste of village life so far with a variety of experiences.
The food is definitely different, and some can't quite "eat the whole thing". Americans are the only ones who throw food away.........It was sad the night that we had mangu; someone was on the way to the scrap container with a plateful. One of the Dominican boys ran and snatched it before it got there. He took it to the table, and several other boys dove into the plate, demolishing it in seconds. The same scene was repeated with a second plate. This week of camp is probably the best that these kids eat all year, and they are not going to let it go to waste.
There are two Dominican-American boys in the camp here from New York and New Jersey, visiting relatives. Yesterday one of them was "offended" by someone, so proceeded to "pout" all the way through dinner. He finally came in and got his bowl of rice - then said he didn't like that and headed to the trash can. Mason, in his mercy, said he would go get something from his snack bag so he wouldn't have to go to church hungry. We didn't allow that to happen. That (camper) was such a sad reflection of American culture. The boy lived to the next meal................
We are finding that Dominicans are extremely competitive and very loud!! The games are lively and met with great exuberance. We had a scavenger hunt yesterday that was a huge success! The students had to translate the English words of objects that they had to find. Some were unique to the area (green coconut, palm branch, Dominican friend) and some were not (dirty sock, red candy wrapper, American). It was a wild time as they ran around the camp and village, collecting items. The melee as they got back and claiimed victory was quite impressive!
Last night Justin preached on Satan as our adversary, and how he seeks to devour us, and may come disguised as an angel of light. The words are hitting home. There were many campers that were very attentive and taking notes. Rebecca & Kristina (who is staying 3 more weeks) are going to do follow-up discipleship classes with the girls, and Rebecca is looking for someone to do the same with the young men. They do not want to drop the ones who are so close to life-changing decisions.
Today we go to Santo Domingo for an outing with the campers, to a natural attraction called "Three Eyes". It is a group of underground lakes that are very beautiful and a marvelous example of God's creation. After that we will go to a park, and then on to get the famous Dominican Pizza -- and yes, it is different! We will not waste the time -- we are also going to use the trip as an opportunity to pass out tracts and Bibles. We are so looking forward to God using one more detail to spread HOPE through His Word.
For the group in Juan Tomas, walking in the Power of His Spirit,
Debbie
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