God is Moving
It is Sunday morning and we are arriving at the Ministry Centre to set up for church. As a new church plant in a village that spiritually battles witchcraft, voodoo, alcoholism, drugs and sexual immortality, we never know who or how many will come to church. As we start the service, there are about 12 of us. As the worship continues, more people come and by the time the message is being shared, 26 people are present. We praise God for opening this ministry door and the people who are choosing to come into God’s presence on a Sunday morning.
The next few months are going to be busy. Today, we have friends coming to visit then two days later, a couple from MSC who are our Worker Care contact arrive. They oversea various missionaries under MSC to provide all kinds of care for the missionaries. It will be their first visit to us in the field and we are looking forward to spending a few days with them. Two days later, a team from Innisfail, Alberta arrive for eight days.
9 March we are hosting a Worship Workshop. All the churches and ministries are invited. The speakers are missionaries from Chile who live in Santo Domingo and are gifted in teaching all the ins and outs about worship.
13 – 26 March, a mission team arrives from Saanichton, BC and 20 March, Sharyn’s brother and his family arrive for two weeks. A few days later, the “Wheelchair” team from Hope Mobility in North Carolina arrive. That will take us to 18 April.
STAFF NEWS
God has provided us with a new member of our House Upon the Rock family. Rosalina Diaz is the new ministry’s secretary. We are excited that Rosalina has joined us and the talents that she brings. After just two weeks, she is already a huge help and blessing.
Dra. Wendy has a very busy, exciting next few weeks. On February 29th, she is getting married! Her finance is Mauricio. He is a pastor from Columbia and has moved here. Wendy’s boys like Mauricio and are happy with this union. We will be closing the ministry on the 29th so that we can all attend and be a part of Wendy’s big day.
MINISTRY CENTRE
We have obtained all but one permit for building a new Ministry Centre building. The final permit should be approved in the next week or so. Once we have all the funds in hand, we will tear down the current building and build a new and better building that accommodates the needs of all departments of the ministry, especially the Medical Clinic Ministry. We currently have about 60% of the funds needs and are trusting God to provide the remainder in His perfect timing.
VEHICLE NEEDS
Prayers are needed for our ministry vehicles. We have three vehicles and all are at the point that they are constantly in the shop with one urgent repair or another. In November, we had to put a new motor in the 2004 ministry van that is used to transport teams. We can now sell it but need about $20,000 USD added to what we will get for the van in order to replace it.
The ministry work truck (Paul’s famous 1999 blue ford)’s transmission gave out the other day. It will cost $1250 USD to repair it. Our other vehicle, a 2003 small pick up that is used for everyday needs, has also been costing in constant repairs. It currently works but needs air conditioner and few other repairs.
So much of Paul’s time in the past year has been absorbed just trying to keep all the vehicles operating. Repairing vehicles here is not easy as mechanics are not trained, parts are not available and often, we have to replace a broken part with a functional used part. Our prayer is to be able to sell and replace all the vehicles with equivalent vehicles that are around five years old.
FAMILY
Noah will be starting a new job at the beginning of March as an accountant’s assistant. It is guaranteed work for the tax season with a possibility of becoming full time. Noah loves numbers and math and the accountant profession has always interested him. Noah has been blessed with a good, Christian boss at the chicken farm and the accountant that he will be working for is also a Christian. We thank God for the chicken farm job as it has been a great experience for Noah and for his new job.
Samantha continues to work hard at college and getting very good grades. She needs to find a summer job as she has to complete 600 hours of work experience for her program before September. Prayers for the right job that meets the program’s requirements and is a good, healthy experience for her are appreciated.
Paul and I will be going to Canada for a bit at the end of April to help Sam move out of the college dorms and move to whatever town that she is able to get a job at and help her to get all settled. We will be available to speak at churches and conferences before we return to the DR for a busy summer of ministry. We also hope to make a trip to the USA to visit churches and supporters in 2024. We have not visited the USA in over seven years.
PRAISE & PRAYER
- Praise God for the growth of the church and Biblical leaders that God has put in place. February 16th will be the church’s one year anniversary.
- Praise God for the staff that God has placed at the ministry. Each one is such a huge blessing!
- Praise God for your priceless prayers that sustain the ministry and our family. You are priceless and so appreciated!
- Praise God for the many teams and visitors who are coming in 2024 to serve our Lord with the ministry.
- Praise God for Wendy and Mauricio’s upcoming nuptials.
- Pray that every day, we are doing ministry according to God’s will and His will alone.
- Pray for the vehicle needs of the ministry. It is a huge need that seems impossible but is not to God.
- Pray for the growth of the church and Elders of the church as the seek God to lead, disciple and grow the church.
- Pray for the Branson family, our geographical separation which is so hard, for Noah and Sam to seek God in their lives, their faith, and their live choices.