The following is a condensed version of my journal from our recent one week mission trip t o the 
Dominican Republic. I know that there are many people out there that do not believe short term missions are a good use of our time and resources. I highly disagree. This journal should shed some light on why I disagree.
Day 1: Saturday Travel
Road trip time. We drove to St. Louis with 3 other students in our car. I had a great time getting to know these students. They are not students I would normally have a chance to get to know. We talked about anything and everything on the way there. I think road trips are a powerful ministry tool for this very reason. We were all boxed in with no other option than to talk and get to know each other. The flight to Miami and the flight to Santo Domingo were smooth...no problems. We all ate a special chicken dinner at Provocon (Dominican KFC), together with our local leaders and hosts. That chicken was amazing! Then we packed into a bus, surrendered any personal space we might normally enjoy, and headed into the mountains in the refreshing tropical air. (I forgot how crazy and aggressive driving is here. We put a lot of trust into our driver!)
Day 2: Sabbath in Constanza
Slept in. Found out who the snorers are (besides me of course) last night. Sleeping arrangements are tight but cozy. To say that our home base is rustic would be generous. However, staying here in community is a treat. I don't even mind not being able to flush down the toilet paper. Got some Dominican coffee...good stuff. We just chilled out most of the day at our home base. Ate a huge Dominican lunch. Also good stuff. At 5pm we went into the community of El Chorro where we will be working all week. They always have a formal ceremony to welcome us and thank us. Chi Che is one of the oldest men there. He is the leader in the community. He is a sweet, hard working, wise man. I love that guy! We always have the warmest embrace and greeting every year. Even though we do not speak the same language we are great friends. I am not sure how that is possible...but it is. I have a ton of respect for him. He is a man of great character. His character is evident without language. I know of very few people that I can say that about. The cermony is so backwards in my mind. Yes, we are coming to help. But it is not that hard for us. When we get to heaven we will be honoring many of them for their faith in such circumstances. They are over comers with great heart and love.
Day 3: Monday - 1st work day
Up early. Got my Dominican coffee and off to the work site. We tore down the old house in about 20-30 min. That tells you something about the shape it was in. I worked my butt off digging (or trying to dig) the foundation for the new house. I used muscles I do 
not normally use. I felt bad because the
Dominicans were such better workers than us. Another huge lunch followed by a siesta...both were needed and awesome! I helped with Vacation Bible School for the kids in the afternoon. Charatine showed up! I haven't seen her since our very first trip here 6 years ago. I felt very burdened to pray for her then. I have looked for her on trips since then but never saw her. She is 12 now. I am sincerely worried for her. I want to protect her. I know she is not safe here. I had the translator sit down with us and I told her how much God really loves her and that we had been praying for her. I will be continuing to pray for her. I believe that God has special plans for her. I cannot explain this burden I feel for her any other way. A little 7 year old boy latched on to me all day. His name is Jose Armando. He does not have a father. I wish I could adopt him and Charatine. Back at the home base I took a cold shower (very refreshing) and enjoyed a glass bottle of coke from the market next door. We just hung out with the students for the rest of the evening. Lots of laughs and good times. Noticed (again) that my wife is a really nurturing woman. She always cares for any girls that seem to have something wrong. I love her...she has such great character.
Day 4: Tuesday
Pancake day...always a good day. Coffee and off to work. Mixed a lot of cement with a small shovel today. Time flew by, though. Got home in the evening and took a cold shower. We had a group meeting with our leader, Maria. She talked to us about how much had changed in the community over the 
years. We also did some sharing. It is great to hear how much God is doing to shape our students here. It made me realize how important this trip is for our ministry. Our students are challenged in a number of ways including living simpler back in the States. Seeing God at work in the lives of the poor also helps us see how big and loving our God really is. Played a lot of euchre with the students. Had a great talk with one student about some really important stuff. I also had a really great and needed conversation with my wife. The evenings here are always relaxed, fun and yet productive. Finished off the night with a very large roach crawling up my back and onto my head. Not a good feeling.
Day 5: Wednesday
Did house visits in the morning. These are always powerful times of fellowship with the local residents 
of El Chorro. The first woman we met (Amelia) had two adult children that were bed ridden with what seemed to be severe Cerebral Palsy. She is a widow and is taking care of them by herself. They were completely dependant on her. Amelia is the definition of amazing considering what little resources she has available to her. I got to see Charatine again. She was walking around in the neighborhood. We went to visit her house but she was locked out and alone taking care of her little brother. We found out that her dad had been married to 2 women. Charatine's mom died a few years ago. She has had to grow up fast. When I took a nap after lunch I found myself tearing up as I thought about her and her situation. Another great evening of fun and cards with the students. A cold shower and a cold coke made the evening complete.
Day 6: Thursday
We took a break from work today and headed into the mountains in our pick up truck. It was a long ride...2.5 hours straight up into the mountains on gravel and dirt roads. The view from the back of the truck were amazing. It also provided us with a chance to serve each other. Because of the size of our group a couple people had to stand on the back of the bumber and hold on to the bar. It was an uncomfortable spot to be in. One of our hosts, Cesar, stayed on the back all day. He is an amazing guy! I think that uncomfortable spot was the place of honor in God's Kingdom. These were definitely the most dangerous roads I ahve ever been on. Our truck driver is very skilled! We got to see a great waterfall amoung other things. One thing that really struck me on this trip were the people walking on the roads. They had to be walking for hours considering the distances between settlements. I wonder what they think about on these walks by themselves. I am sure this walking is healthy not just for their physical bodies but also for their emotional lives. They have so much time and space in their lives to just think and reflect. Their lives are slower. We are so unhealthy in the U.S. when it comes to our pace of life. We are constantly busy busy busy. No time to think and reflect. Having evenings free here is also great. We have no TV here and yet have great times every night. Living in community with free time is so healthy. I have time to read, write and have fun with the students. Im having a great time with Nettie here as well. I think it is also good for the students to see my wife and I interacting. Many of the students come from broken homes so it is good for them to see a healthy marriage. The students had a great conversation with one of our new believers late tonight. This only proves my theory about how useful road trips are for discipleship! Quality time equals quality conversations equals quality discipleship.
Day 7: Friday - last day in the community
Big last day. Worked hard and well. Today I saw a little boy take out of his pocket a truck wheel that had been broken off of a toy truck. He played with that wheel all day and seemed to really be enjoying himself. Watching him play with that wheel made me realize how much stuff we don't need in the U.S. We have heaps of unused stuff in our house that would be a literal gold mine to this kid. My kids have so many toys that they don't even play with. Contentment is truly great gain. (1 Timothy 6:6) Another thing that really struck me today were all of the neighbors in the community that were helping us build this house. They gained nothing from the deal but took the time to labor with us. This rarely ever happens in the U.S. This kind of cooperation is unheard of in my town. This is very much to our loss. Played fast pitch softball with some 
of the local young men in the afternoon. They mixed the teams, of course, because they are too good for us. I went 5 for 5 at bat and had a blast. We had our closing ceremony in the community in the evening. It was emotional. Many of us gave speeches. My mind was on Charatine though. I can't think about her without tearing up. After the ceremony I got to sit down with her and her little brother again and tell her that God loved her and that she was a really good girl. I told her that she deserved to be taken care of and that I would try to do that from a distance. She is very shy. I am not sure how she took it but I think it had a good impact. After that I gave Jose Armando a few of the biggest Dad hugs that I could muster up. I can't imagine growing up without a dad. I feel like this trip was about Charatine and Jose for me. Quality over quantity. Charatine came to the truck to see us off. That broke my heart. That was the first time she sought us out. I am worried for her but I know that God can protect her. Too many kids get eaten up and abused in this cruel world. Hopefully, she will be one less. The trip out of the community was sad and dead queit. Everyone was tearing up. I guess that means the trip was successful.
Day 8: Saturday
The trip from Constanza to Santo Domingo was smooth. Going through the mountains is always good in spite of the motion sickness that is inherent. We always stay at a budget resort which is connected to a public beach for our last night. The transition is a bit of a shock. But the shock has to happen sometime. It is always sad to see all of the drugs and prostitutes at the local beach.
Day 9: Sunday - traveling home
Time to transition back to reality. This is never easy. I am a little disappointed in myself and the rest of the group. When we got to Miami we all pigged out and spent a bunch of money on food. Some habits are hard to break, I guess. Now the task is even more clear. We need to work to put into practice these things that God revealed to us over this trip. Change is never easy...but God can and will help.
