PASTOR TRAINING CENTER DEDICATED

What a difference 6 weeks, 2 teams, and many hours of labour makes!

November 16, 2009 will stand out as a day to remember for the CRC pastors on the North Coast of the Dominican Republic. The building which was started in 2004, has finally been completed. It was dedicated for the teaching and training of local pastors, all for and to the Glory of God.

We want to thank the 2 mission teams from Living Hope CRC who worked diligently alongside the local tradesmen in making this project a reality.

Even with a delay in completing the roof on the building (due to lack of tin available and then a stop work order regarding the permit), work was allowed to continue only on the inside of the building. Trying to stay on schedule (our North American work ethic) and wanting to lay the ceramic tile before the 2nd team arrived, the ensuing rains that fell during this time was probably God’s way of saying slow down…all things will be completed in His time.At the dedication service, we spent time worshipping together with our Christians brothers and sister, participating in song and prayer. After hearing the testimonies of the pastors and what this center means to them, it was worth all the hard work we experienced during the previous 6 weeks. The Christian joy of working together is reflected in the letter below from the Canadian Pastor at Living Hope CRC. To our brothers and sisters in Christ,
Greetings, from the church of Jesus Christ at Living Hope CRC in Sarnia, Ontario. What a gift it has been to us as a congregation to partner with you in the cause of the gospel. We have been richly blessed by the opportunity to share in ministry with you.
Congratulations on the completion of the Ministry Centre. We are so thankful to God for his church in the Dominican Republic. We long for the Ministry Centre to be a place where God's servants are equipped and refreshed for ministry. May God's Spirit be at work within and far beyond these walls.
It has given us great joy to work together with you in bringing glory to God.
Grace and Peace to you all,
The Council of Living Hope Christian Reformed Church

Team 1

Team 2 It has been a pleasure for us to assist in this project, working with family and friends of Living Hope CRC, a church that John grew up in as a child and one that we worshipped in for the first 15 years of our married life together.

P.S. Hi dad & Edith!!

FEED A VILLAGE

“Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love, and his wonderful deeds for men, for he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things”. Psalm 107: 8 & 9.
What does it take to feed an entire village? For many poor families, hunger pangs are never far, especially when they can afford to eat only one meal a day. After their food runs out, many moms resort to giving their children a glass of sugar water or a stick of sugar cane to chew on to fill their tummies.
In Los Algodones, the children receive a snack each day while attending school, but the need is far greater.

An exciting opportunity for visiting mission teams is being able to buy food, bag it, and then distribute it to an entire village. 1500 lbs of food worth approximately $1,000.00 and a lot of volunteers is all it takes to FEED AN ENTIRE VILLAGE. Each family would receive 3 lbs of rice, 1 lb of dry beans, cooking oil, bouillon cubes and a large tin of sardines….enough to feed them for a few days. While sometimes the ingredients in the bag change…the important thing is that the poor are being fed.
Through the generous sponsorship of an anonymous donor and the willing hands of team members from Living Hope CRC, each family in Los Algodones/ villa Esperanza were given a bag of food on Sunday, November 15th. The key to doing this successfully lies in the planning and distributing of tickets prior to the actual event. Saturday morning Marie, Ellie & Sandra & I with the help of the children, Mateo & Luckny, tromped through the entire village visiting each household to distribute the tickets that could be redeemed the next day. The men translated for us and stressed to each person…no ticket…no food, and it worked! After attending the worship service on Sunday Dave, Sandra, Dirk, Ellie & Arnie exchanged the tickets for bags of food to each person in the line at the school……while Mateo & Luckny kept the line moving in an orderly fashion. Forty five minutes later….all 200 bags were picked up except one. This was a record for the most prompt and orderly fashion of any distribution ever held in Los Algodones!

LIVING HOPE CRC SARNIA/PASTOR TRAINING CENTER IN CANGREJO

In 2004, construction began on a training center for the CRC pastors on the north coast but like most projects in the Dominican, it ran out of funds before completion. The 1st floor of the building was completed and rented out to a local doctor who has chosen to help the poor in the Puerto Plata region while the 2nd floor remained unfinished.Pastor training has been an important part of our mission work….after all, equipping the pastors to preach the Word is first and foremost to spreading the gospel. Almost all of the resources available for pastors are located in the Santo Domingo area (about 4 1/2 hours south) so finishing this training center is like a dream come true for them.
Fast forward to June 2008. Arnie & Betty Wildschut were on their 4th visit to this beautiful country visiting and helping with the Samaritan Foundation, when one night during our conversation the big question arose. “Have you ever considered leading a mission team, because I have a project in mind for you?” Being open to the idea, John showed them the unfinished ministry center and explained the great need for it to be completed. After 3 months of prayerful searching, they gave the green light, and then approached their church council for approval ….and the months of planning; canvassing for volunteers and raising the funds to cover the costs of this project began.
October 2009 With their bags packed, an eager team of 10 from Sarnia Living Hope CRC arrived in Puerto Plata along with their mountains of luggage containing supplies and ministry donations. As it says in the book of James, building God’s kingdom here on earth not only consists of bricks and mortar but ministering to the people too…. putting your faith into action! Local tradespersons who claimed to be maestros were employed to assist the team in construction with Edmund, a local Haitian pastor as their interpreter. The difficult part was doing the construction their way, and not with our North American mentality of speed and long hours. The building is small in size so no more than the 5 construction workers and 5 volunteers could work at the same time, therefore the women took on another project painting furniture and windows in villa Paraiso instead.
Each afternoon was spent reaching out to the community with different ministry projects…..a children’s juice ministry, a visit to the public hospital, visiting and assisting at Mustard Seed, an orphanage for physically and mentally handicapped children, distributing 200 bags of food to the entire village of Emmanuel, attending a Haitian worship service, and the highlight of their week was moving a widow and her 4 children from Puerto Plata into her new home in Paraiso.

REFLECTIONS & EMOTIONS

SANDRA'S REFLECTIONS.
“A lot went on this past week. The need we saw is absolutely heart breaking, the people there helping positively awe inspiring and the children give you hope. All mixed together it has left me wondering what it is that I am supposed to do to help? I haven't got the financial means, I haven't got any business contacts, I haven't even got any real business experience! So what can I contribute? The language difference was a real barrier, so I guess I will now be learning Spanish!! Ola'
The emotional roller coaster had you in tears one minute and peeing your pants with laughter the next. The humidity had us going through two changes of clothes a day/soaked right through to the skin each time! You were left feeling very tired at the end of every day, but somehow it was a good tired, with a sense of accomplishment. I, little ole' me, made a difference in someone else's life today. I, just one person, affected so many people’s lives! I am Grateful for the experience, Grateful for what I have, Grateful for my family and friends, Grateful for the love of the Lord. “
Sandra is also now planning on returning with their 2nd team to complete the ministry centre in the middle of November. Mission work is not only what you give to others but also the many blessings you receive in return.