Epilogue 2018

Final 2018 Post

After a final breakfast, prayers, hugs, and good-byes were exchanged with Pablo and Ruth. Genesis drove the team back to Santo Domingo for the 3:10 flight to Atlanta. They stopped at the usual tourist-trap market to barter with the vendors and 15 minutes along the ocean to view the beauty of the water and city one final time.

The final 24 hours is always bitter-sweet. Emotions range with the individual and the number of years served has a significant impact on that. While the home-coming to loved ones is looked forward to, the friendships that are being left until another year (or maybe not until eternity) will be missed. There's the memories and emotions of the past week; not so much what was done but with who and for whom it was done. It's always about the people. It's always about Jesus. A particular Jesus Film or ministry stop may be forgotten but not the certain little boy, elderly lady, or disabled man. There's no forgetting the people we served with that so humbly showed what faith is really like.

This was a very good team. Coherence and unity are critical in the mission field and this team was with one purpose and exercised much grace. While many were strangers at the beginning the bonds were formed quickly because the focus was Christ. Much was done this week. No trip to the beach and very few (if any) siestas. Rarely back to the hotel before 11pm and going again at 7am.

As with the Church body as a whole, this small team functioned using the gifts the Holy Spirit has blessed each individual. It may have been the soothing and healing touch of massaging crippled fingers or jumping rope with children. It may have been preaching the hope that is found with following Jesus or the physical energy needed to pour concrete for a new church floor. It may have been identifying a potentially life-threatening medical situation and putting into motion the events to see it through to a cure or blessing a family with enough food for the next few days. It may have been giving a disabled boy a bed so he doesn't have to sleep on a pile of clothes or showing a film under a bright moon on a dusty street in the middle of nowhere that depicts the life, death, and resurrection of the One we strive to serve.

The team is back to their normal lives now. It doesn't take long for the old routine to kick in. And while the reality of life in the U.S. may seem to overwhelm or at least shade one's faith to some degree, the team can hope to be inspired and blessed because of their experiences in the DR. Mission work should change a person. It should refocus the priorities in life and allow a person to see the world with a Biblical mindset. Believers want to share their hope and faith for the coming glory; not just with strangers in the DR but with friends and family here in the U.S. where it seems it may be needed the most.

In being forthright with our finances, following is a list of our major expenditures. No dollar amounts are given so as to protect the privacy of our ministry partners. As the needs far outweigh the funds available, prayer and discernment is used by the team prior to distribution. All monies are left in the DR as the team members raise their own funds for transportation, meals, and lodging.

Expenditures
- 6 church building projects (roofs, block walls, or concrete floors).
- 800 adult bibles
- 1500 children's bible story books
- 825# of beans, rice, and oil divided into 264 family-sized bags
- 1300 gospel tracts
- 3 yearly on-going feeding programs
- money to the team's church for fencing (Azua Mission International - AMI)
- money to another large church building project
- keyboard for a church
- speaker system for a church
- Love Offerings to our ministry partners for their services (translating, cooking, cleaning, vehicle usage)
- French-Creole Bibles for Pablo and Ruth in Haiti
- smaller price-tag items such as personal healthcare, equipment for the disabled, mattresses, medical needs, etc.

Ministry Events
- Jesus Film - 5 nightly showings with messages and worship
- Men's and Women's prison
- Special Needs School
- Compassion International School
- Disabled Center
- Marketplace
- Estebania (Wilfrido) feeding program
- Radio program
- Project 4 (Nelson's) feeding program
- Los Cartones - sweet rice feeding
- AMI - sweet rice feeding
- Joel's high school
- Heavenly Fire Church - preached
- Center for the Blind

2018 Cast of Characters

US Team:
Paul Flunker: Construction/factory worker; Appleton, WI - 14 yrs.
Dan Natzke: Dairy Farmer; Greenleaf, WI - 13 yrs.
Shawn Eckstein: Crop Consultant; Reedsville, WI - 11 yrs.
Christina Robokoff: Retired teacher; Green Bay, WI - 7 yrs.
Dean Meinholz: Dairy Farmer; Arlington, WI - 3 yrs.
Kim Meinholz: Nurse; Arlington, WI - 3 yrs.
Mike Brennan: Retired Police Officer; McFarland, WI - 2 yrs.
Crystal Schenian: Occupational Therapist; Reedsville, WI - 1 yr.
Sheila Olson: Occupational Therapist; Reno, NV - 1 yr.
Molly McGinn: Student; Green Bay, WI - 1 yr.

DR Team:
Pablo/Ruth: Cooks from Puerto Rico, missionaries to Haiti
Natanael: Clothing shop owner; interpreter, main DR liaison, preacher
Genesis: Bus driver; driver, preacher
Wilfrido (Miguelina): Dentist; pastor, community leader at Haitian village in Estebania
Anderson:  (Julian Joaquin) Pastor
Daniel: English teacher; translator
Joel: School Superintendent; translator, preacher
Nelson's: Husband and Wife (Nelson and Areceli Concepcion) Pastors at Project Four
Daimler: Driver, helper
Alan: Translator, helper
Sandi: Pastor, helper
Cesar (El Jefe): Construction boss

Friday

7am came early but the team is living on Holy Spirit fuel right now going into our final day. After breakfast the team went to the beach to visit Rodney and Roddis at the YWAM center (Crystal, Sheila, and Molly went by scooter). The next hour was worship and praise led by YWAM staff. This is always a powerful time as the team is balancing physical exhaustion with the emotions of the week. Listening to the beautiful music in the open air room with a gentle ocean breeze and the sounds of the sea in the background is a perfect time to reflect and ponder the past week in the presence of God.

Rodney gave us a run-down on current operations at YWAM. The team is always amazed at his faith and attitude and the many "God stories" he shares. Besides the DTS student training, their ministries are weddings, prison feeding and witnessing, traffic police, street kids, church work projects, pastor conferences, and prayer ministry in the park.

After a quick stop to drop off a cane to a blind man the team went to the Nelsons at Project Four. As this is one of the team's continual feeding programs, the team helped serve food to over 150 children and stayed to play games and do crafts.

During the morning the team received news about the important headline of the day in DR. The helicopter that landed Thursday night next to the showing of the Jesus Film was not due to mechanical issues; that was a cover story for the real reason: Joel. Because of ongoing issues between the teachers and government all 18 superintendents in the DR were fired and replaced by Friday morning. Our own Joel was one of those replacements and a helicopter with security personnel was sent for his benefit. Look back to a past blog to what this author called Joel: the real deal. He will now oversee approximately 600 schools in the Azua area!

Friday afternoon means a stop at the center for the blind. Blindness in the DR has ramifications far beyond what a blind person in the U.S. may have. There are limited resources to help those with disabilities and just being mobile is a significant risk. The sidewalks are uneven and full of holes, there are no crosswalks, a deep gutter usually separates the street from the sidewalk, and many obstacles are randomly scattered (not to mention many cars, trucks, and scooters. Crystal, Sheila, and Kim massaged hands while presentations and prayers were made. Donations of walking sticks from the Lion's Club along with audio Bibles from the team were made. It never ceases to impress how this group of individuals continues to strive for (and achieve) success.

The next couple of hours was spent running last errands and preparing for tonight's going-away party. Some of the team got a few minutes of rest or started packing for the trip home.

The team always hosts a going-away/thank-you party for our local ministry partners on the last night. Pizza is shared with laughs, introductions, messages, prayer, song, and a lot of hugs. The Dominicans come dressed in their best and it's an emotional time saying goodbyes never knowing if it's for the last time or not.

A final debrief was held and the team got back to the hotel some time after midnight to pack and get ready for a 7:30 breakfast.

Spent but blessed...so much done....so much emotion

Thursday

Today started early with the van leaving the hotel at 7am to visit Joel's school south of town. Joel has been one of our interpreters for the last few years with a day job of high school principal. This young man is the real deal: strong in his faith and family values; a real leader who represents what we are all about. His translating is strong, he's not afraid of physical work, and he delivers a solid message. He asked us to come to his school to see how they start their mornings. 

At 8am the kids line up by age and gender in the courtyard to raise the flag, say the pledge, listen to a piece of scripture, and then pray. Yes, scripture and praying in a large public high school! The students then sat in the stands in the basketball court while some members of the team gave messages. An impressive start to the day.

Back at HQ Pablo had a large brunch fixed (no lunch today). Empanadas, bacon, pancakes, eggs, mango, and pineapple.

Crystal and Sheila led a devotion on trust and discipleship before we had guests from Compassion. Three representatives from the district office in San Juan wanted to discuss using AMI for a future Compassion School. The interest from both parties is very high but details in building design and pastorship need to be resolved first.

Early afternoon was Dan, Nataniel, and the ladies visiting the woman's prison in Bani, a town about an hour towards the Capitol. All the girls witnessed to a very attentive audience. Meanwhile the guys met with El Hefe at the hardware store to purchase building materials and check out the progress on a couple of projects.

Supper was a big spread at Nataniel's which was in combination with his daughter Emily's birthday. Dean, Paul, and Mike did a sweet rice feeding for the children at Pastor Sandi's church; a building Paul helped build on his first trip 14 years ago. The kids sang and performed some skits.

Most of the team then met at a nearby basketball court to show the Jesus Film. The kids in attendance were a little distracted as a military helicopter needed to perform a landing in the field immediately adjacent for mechical reasons. Messages were given and worship songs sung afterwards.

Nataniel, Shawn, and Crystal went to a church service during the Jesus Film. Crystal witnessed and Shawn gave the message on Scriptual Authority. What Shawn and Crystal did not know was that this small church was in a temporary building and the team had funded a floor for their new church. The pastor stated that the team  "provided the miracle they had been praying for" so giving the message at this moment was very timely and well received. Isaiah 52:7 was the pastor's response. Very humbling; even more so when we drove the pastor home about 5 miles as she could not afford a scooter ride ($1) and often walked that distance in flip flops for the multiple services per week they have.

Back to HQ for debrief and the hotel shortly after 11:00.

Wednesday

Today was construction day. The day began with breakfast at 7:30. Pablo spoiled the team with empanadas. Kim led a devotion about our call to serve and ordinary people doing extraordinary things.

While the team is funding 7 separate building projects this year, the singular project they are helping with the labor is pouring a "garage" floor by Pastor Anderson. This area will be used as a temporary church until his membership increases to the point where he can expand (he doesn't own a car anyhow).

Paul, Dean, and Mike stayed to work while the others visited the Special Needs School where they shared messages. At 12:30 Chris, Crystal, Sheila, and Molly went live-on-the-air on Radio Azua. Every day for a half hour Nathaniel hosts a Christian radio program (on a secular station). The ladies discussed their faith journeys and while a bit nervous to start with did a fantastic job of sharing.

A late lunch was at Anderson's and the next hour or so was either canvassing, taking a break, or running errands. Beans, rice, chicken, salad, avocados, and pineapple punch were enjoyed.

Another delicious Dominican Pablo and Ruth supper and the team headed out for the Jesus Film. They ended up in a remote and hilly part of town and showed the film on the exact spot as they did in 2008. El Hefe directed them to this location as the pastor is new and it's another very poor area. The hillside setting was gorgeous under the full moon that was shining down on us. About 50-75 of mostly children watched the movie and Jesus sketch, listened to messages, and sang with the team. While our language differences may be a barrier to communication, worshipping Jesus is universal and warm hugs ended the night.

Poverty, poor nutrition, lack of transportation, lack of medical care, and less-than-safe living conditions all lead to various forms of sickness, disease, and injuries; the team sees cases every day without having to look hard. With 3 team members having medical training this allows better recognition of the most serious conditions. Tonight was the 2nd night in a row where a life-threatening condition may be made well if our prayers are answered.

Many topics needed to be discussed so the debrief went long and the team arrived back at the hotel around 11:40 to get ready for a 7am start on Thursday.

Tuesday

8:00 breakfast at HQ of eggs, fruit, pancakes, and oatmeal. Chris led a devotion on the parable of the sower.

The first stop was "our" church or AMI (Azua Mission International). This team-funded compound continues to expand every year. The team split up going various directions to include playing baseball with the boys, face painting and playing games with the girls, running errands, and canvassing the area passing out bible tracts and connecting with the community inviting them to events and worship at AMI. Around noon the team fed the kids sweet rice and then headed back to HQ for lunch of their own. 

The afternoon was for ministering to the minister (and his wife). Pastor Wilfredo and his wife stopped at HQ not knowing why they were asked to come. The girls pampered Miguelina with flowers, candy, hand and foot massages and whatever else girls do to love on each other. This was a complete surprise for "Gina" and she was overcome with gratitude. The men had some honest discussions with Wilfredo about his family and ministry and both came away with a new and profound appreciation for each other and the love the team has for them.

A delicious supper of fried chicken, plantain, salad, peas and rice was served by Pastor Anderson's wife at their house prior to leaving for the Jesus Film.

Las Veredas is a favorite village of the team as they've made many past stops at this very poor village north of the city in the hills. Their pastor is dear to the team as he leads with passion and authority. This short, older gentleman with the machete on his side tells us that "we are not poor, because we are rich in the love of Jesus".

The film hasn't been shown here for 10 years and this night won't soon be forgotten. It rains more frequently in the hills and tonight it started about 20 minutes into the film. The team is used to quick and light showers but the umbrella over the projector wasn't enough as people started to leave and the rain grew heavier. Our projectionist was having some concerns with the mix of expensive equipment, electricity and water.

As the rain continued the team scrambled to move cabling, power cords, speakers and projection equipment into a nearby shelter that animals frequent. The film continued with messages and worship songs after. The shelter was at capacity and no one wanted to leave. Hugs all around finished off a wonderful evening. 

The night ended with debrief and back to the hotel around 11:30.

The author would like to remind the reader that the spiritual nature of our business is our focus. Yes; we fund and help with building projects, pass out food, bibles, gospel tracts and fund countless other items but it's all about Jesus. Tonight we were reminded of our devine appointment. Las Veredas was not our original stop to show the film. Plans not of our own doing were changed and ultimately this led to a situation that may have saved a young boys' life. God is good!

Monday

8:00 breakfast at HQ with Paul leading a devotion titled "What if Jesus didn't rise?". This was followed by a trip to the marketplace. A cultural event every Monday of the trip, the marketplace is the Azua version of a Wisconsin farmer's market  on steroids. It's crowded and noisy with olfactory sense overload but a great way for the team to witness and pass out tracts. 650 gospel tracts were handed out in less than an hour.

Wilfredo's village at Estebania was the next stop to visit a pastor and his community who has been an integral part of the team for years. The children sang and danced for the team and Wilfredo showed us the current state of his construction projects. This man is an incredible servant for the Lord and we feel blessed to be in partnership with him. 

The team ate lunch at Wilfredo's before coming back into town to either run errands or go canvassing. A few team members changed clothes and went back to Wilfredo's to witness a 3-couple Haitian wedding.

After a bit of a "Dominican Detour" the team ended up at Buenos Aeries to show the Jesus Film in a vacant lot to about 75 people. Messages and songs followed. On the way back to HQ for debrief Birthday-Boy Dan bought ice cream.

Sunday

 The team left the hotel Sunday morning at 7:30 to travel to HQ (the house they lived in the past) for breakfast and devotions. Pablo and Ruth travelled from Puerto Rico to live at the house and be our full-time cooks. Their service to the team cannot be exaggerated with healthy and delicious meals that allow us to focus on our mission. Bacon, eggs, and fruit was the fare. Fresh fruit in the DR is like a dessert as it's so ripe: pineapple, mango, banana, avocado, papaya, and melon.

Shawn led a devotion called "First and Last": Jesus' first and last words of His ministry and how we should respond as a believer. 

The men visited the prison in town while the ladies stayed back to mix over 800# of bean, rice, and oil to give out to families throughout the week. Joel helped interpret for the men as they gave testimony and witnessed to a rather large group of very attentive prisoners. About a dozen men came forward to give their lives to Christ; the response from Genesis afterwards: "the Spirit of the Lord was present today".

A visit to the Compassion school was next. Dan, Paul, and Shawn were able to visit with their sponsored children while the team shared the love of Jesus through playing games, face painting, and songs.

The Disabled Center was the afternoon visit where the team visited with about 35 people suffering from a number of conditions. Nearly all had mobility issues and many could not speak or see. Crystal and Sheila used their therapy skills messaging hands (they absolutely loved it) and a message of hope was given from James 1:2-4 and Romans 8:18.

After supper the team showed the Jesus Film near Carmen's church where a message was given to about 100. A debrief was done at HQ after unloading prior to going back to the hotel after 11:00. As best said by Sheila: "I've never done anything like this in my life".

I'm Trying

The author apologizes for the delay in writing this blog but the simple excuse is long days. Awake at 7 and going all day until 10:30 without break (in the heat) followed by a debrief and a return to our hotel means 7 hours of sleep at best; this writer now needs all of that as he's not getting any younger. All he can promise for the future is "he will try".  The only reliable WiFi is at the HQ which also complicates uploads.

The Madison flight was delayed so those 3 didn't get to Azua until after midnight but otherwise the team arrived safely Saturday evening.

Preparing Hearts

Today was our last team meeting at the farm. Currently we have 10 members confirmed for this trip and 7 were able to attend this morning. We went through final suggestions, needs and a tentative itinerary. Many questions were answered. There isn't a specific focus of this year's trip except to spread the love and gospel of our Lord Jesus. We will be financing and helping with building projects (a church in particular), preaching in the prisons and schools, passing out gospel tracts, taking part in worship services, supplying hundreds of bibles and food packages to local churches and of course showing the Jesus Film every night.

As we know our Dominican friends are in prayer for our arrival we also ask for prayers from our supporters in the U.S. Specifically prayers of safety, health, protection (physical, mental, and spiritual) and the ability to have open hearts and minds to do God's will in Azua.

Prayer is our first request, but any form of mission work also requires financial support. Our team is 100% self-funded which means all monies are raised by individual team members. This also means that 100% of donated funds goes directly to our projects in the DR. A lot can be done in the DR with American money (a hardcover bible is $3, a new church is $12,000). If you feel called, tax deductible donations may be made prior to February 15 through Zion Lutheran Church, 8378 County Rd. W, Greenleaf, WI 54126 (attn. DR trip).

Until February 24, God Bless!