I. drop. everything.
Well, all breakable things, I mean. Specifically, electronics.
Cell phone. Dropped it.
Zune. Dropped it too.
Camera. Let it fall off a bus seat. It was in my backpack but still broken.
Needless to say, that's left me without a good camera option. And the Droid I was so hoping would be a convenient option messed up my SC card. Even the Droid was dropped on the road before my little bro recovered it for me.
My fancy shmancy new laptop has a webcam (so thankful), but it's not exactly portable for all the candid moments.
I love my rooftop for reading and devos and the awesome view across the city and the mountains all around. I so wish I could share pictures of that with you. Of a recent rainbow that filled the sky; one of the brightest and long lasting rainbows I've ever seen. Or of the breathtaking sunset I enjoyed a few days ago.
Yet without a camera, I'm learning to enjoy those moments. It's so easy for me to get so busy taking a picture that I forget to really enjoy what I am photography. I'm learning to slow down and appreciate the beauty and remember why I love sunsets and rainbow. I'm reminded to thank God for such blessings, for all the little things that He knows specifically fill my heart with joy.
I'm learning to just let it be a moment between me and Him.
So, I encourage you to put down the camera. Enjoy the moment and be present with your Creator.
Tuesday, February 18, 2014
Tuesday, February 11, 2014
Sometimes
Sometimes I wonder how I ended up here. At SCS. The exact school I specifically avoided because I didn't want to student teach at it. I didn't want to teach rich kids. Yet here I am.
Sometimes its hard to explain how teaching rich kids is ministry. Especially when my mind is filled with images of Batey Lima or San Jose or walking the streets in Juan Dolio one night with the Lily House missionaries. It doesn't seem like Santiago could be in same country as those towns.
Sometimes I feel as if I'm not living in the DR. Times when friends say they've been without power for 3 days. I have an inverter. When friends don't have running water for days. When friends can't get to church because of too much rain.
I don't get me wrong, not for a second have I regretted taking a job at SCS. Not in the least. But I never expected this is were I would be. But this is exactly were God put me. And he's using it teach me so many things. Things I'm realizing 'on my own' and many things that come more indirectly.
Over the past few weeks as I've begun to do develop relationships with my SST students I've noticed a shift in my perspectives. I haven't quite figured out a new perspective but I can see it beginning to form.
As I've talked with my students and heard the stories I've learned that many times rich kids don't have anything. Their lives, families, or homes may be falling apart behind the fancy houses and expensive clothes. They need loving teachers to model Christ just as much as any of the 'poor' students I've worked with. When I type that out it looks so straight forward. I'm sure if I'd read that a year ago I would have agreed with it, but now I really see it in a way I didn't before. A way that, I think, with change the way I approach working with the 'poor'.
Now, I don't think that my passion has changed. I'm pretty confident God has plans for me to work among the materially poor one day. There aren't many days without thoughts of San Jose, Batey Lima, or somewhere like them. But I'm leaning that this socio-economic thing is way bigger than I'd though and I'm just beginning to touch the edges. I'm learning that God's power to transform lives is way bigger than economic statues...even in a country were so much placed on that status.
Last Thursday I began volunteering at a Christian school down the street for SCS, but worlds apart. I spent half an hour working with two 2nd grade barrio boys practice reading in Spanish. That's right I was helping them read in Spanish. I'm hoping I didn't teach them wrong. But in that half hour my heart was filled with a joy in a way that just doesn't happen at SCS.
Sometimes I wonder how I ended up here. Living in the DR. Teaching in the exact country I've thought about teaching in since 2008. Where teaching rich kids and poor kids is a 5 minutes walk apart, so I'm able to do both. Because all kids need to see Christ's love and know that God is good.
Sometimes I imagine were I might be in the future. And sometimes I remember Ephesians 3:20 tells us God can do more than we could ever imagine. I'm here now and that's more than I ever imagined.
Sometimes its hard to explain how teaching rich kids is ministry. Especially when my mind is filled with images of Batey Lima or San Jose or walking the streets in Juan Dolio one night with the Lily House missionaries. It doesn't seem like Santiago could be in same country as those towns.
Sometimes I feel as if I'm not living in the DR. Times when friends say they've been without power for 3 days. I have an inverter. When friends don't have running water for days. When friends can't get to church because of too much rain.
I don't get me wrong, not for a second have I regretted taking a job at SCS. Not in the least. But I never expected this is were I would be. But this is exactly were God put me. And he's using it teach me so many things. Things I'm realizing 'on my own' and many things that come more indirectly.
Over the past few weeks as I've begun to do develop relationships with my SST students I've noticed a shift in my perspectives. I haven't quite figured out a new perspective but I can see it beginning to form.
As I've talked with my students and heard the stories I've learned that many times rich kids don't have anything. Their lives, families, or homes may be falling apart behind the fancy houses and expensive clothes. They need loving teachers to model Christ just as much as any of the 'poor' students I've worked with. When I type that out it looks so straight forward. I'm sure if I'd read that a year ago I would have agreed with it, but now I really see it in a way I didn't before. A way that, I think, with change the way I approach working with the 'poor'.
Now, I don't think that my passion has changed. I'm pretty confident God has plans for me to work among the materially poor one day. There aren't many days without thoughts of San Jose, Batey Lima, or somewhere like them. But I'm leaning that this socio-economic thing is way bigger than I'd though and I'm just beginning to touch the edges. I'm learning that God's power to transform lives is way bigger than economic statues...even in a country were so much placed on that status.
Last Thursday I began volunteering at a Christian school down the street for SCS, but worlds apart. I spent half an hour working with two 2nd grade barrio boys practice reading in Spanish. That's right I was helping them read in Spanish. I'm hoping I didn't teach them wrong. But in that half hour my heart was filled with a joy in a way that just doesn't happen at SCS.
Sometimes I wonder how I ended up here. Living in the DR. Teaching in the exact country I've thought about teaching in since 2008. Where teaching rich kids and poor kids is a 5 minutes walk apart, so I'm able to do both. Because all kids need to see Christ's love and know that God is good.
Sometimes I imagine were I might be in the future. And sometimes I remember Ephesians 3:20 tells us God can do more than we could ever imagine. I'm here now and that's more than I ever imagined.
 |
| My Ephesians 3:20 t-shirt, given to me by a mission team just before moving to Santiago. It's one of my favs. |
Tuesday, February 4, 2014
This and That
1. I've started reading Revelations this past week during my devo time. Revelations is one of those books that I've never been super excited about reading. Probably because I don't understand it that well. But I've been reading through the New Testament and finally made it to Revelation. While I've been reading I've noticed there's a good number of verses in the first few chapters that praise God. Those have been a good reminder and blessing to me this past week.
2. We recently had a staff member return to the States for medical reasons. I've been moved from substitute teacher to SST, what we call special ed here. I now have a weekly schedule rotating 17 kids for pull out sessions. I'm slowing getting used to everything, but I'm super excited to have my own schedule and students. I've only been in SST about 9 days so I can't tell you much yet, but keep an eye out for updates. I've spent the first few days trying not to be overwhelming as I go through all the materials the students had been using. I'm getting close to having a basic idea of what I'll be doing each week. I'm so blessed to be in this new position and have an opportunity to build deeper relationships with these students.
3. Huelga, again. This is the second time in as many weeks. Last weeks was a strike of the transportation industry so taxis and other forms of public transportation weren't running. Tomorrow may be the start of a two or three day commerce strike meaning stores would be closed. So far neither strike has closed school, but we're still all hoping we can get a little break out of this.
Finally, since I'm obsessed with Spanish worship music....here's my latest obsession: Evan Craft with Spanish versions of Christ Tomlin's Awake My Soul and Hillsong's Oceans. Disfruta!
2. We recently had a staff member return to the States for medical reasons. I've been moved from substitute teacher to SST, what we call special ed here. I now have a weekly schedule rotating 17 kids for pull out sessions. I'm slowing getting used to everything, but I'm super excited to have my own schedule and students. I've only been in SST about 9 days so I can't tell you much yet, but keep an eye out for updates. I've spent the first few days trying not to be overwhelming as I go through all the materials the students had been using. I'm getting close to having a basic idea of what I'll be doing each week. I'm so blessed to be in this new position and have an opportunity to build deeper relationships with these students.
3. Huelga, again. This is the second time in as many weeks. Last weeks was a strike of the transportation industry so taxis and other forms of public transportation weren't running. Tomorrow may be the start of a two or three day commerce strike meaning stores would be closed. So far neither strike has closed school, but we're still all hoping we can get a little break out of this.
Finally, since I'm obsessed with Spanish worship music....here's my latest obsession: Evan Craft with Spanish versions of Christ Tomlin's Awake My Soul and Hillsong's Oceans. Disfruta!
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