So the coolest thing happened this morning!
But before I talk about that let me rewind and summarize yesterday’s events. We mostly hung out at the beach to watch all the intricate details of the pilots day, including set up, giving rides, take down etc. I was privileged to ride the boat for his promotional flight and it was SO fun! Actually, it was my very first time. Which is kind of funny when you think that this is the business we moved here to begin and I haven’t even experienced it myself! We still haven’t been able to buy sunscreen so needless to say I got a LOT of sun yesterday (I know mom, but I couldn’t help it ☺ ).
That night we had arrangements to be taken to the Internet store so we could buy a wireless card. These phone cards seem to be draining quickly and we want to be able to skype people more! So when our ride arrived we unexpectedly were bombarded with discouraging and belittling words. Before this point we had everyone’s support, yes some think were crazy but for the most part people think it’s cool that we want to chase a dream while we are young. Well this particular person pretty much let us have it, told us that we did not think this out and we did not plan well and what do we expect… so on and so forth. Nothing drains life out of you quicker than someone who puts you down. It’s so sad how your mind automatically remembers the put downs more than the uplifts. They say it takes 10 nice comments to erase a negative, and now I’m a believer of this equation. The rest of the night T and I were seemingly lifeless. Were in a foreign country unable to communicate with most, and now without a boost to keep on keepin’ on.
Also before I tell you about the encouraging and ever loving ways of our Lord I want to talk a little more about this “dream” of ours. I’m sure some think we moved to the DR just to merely live in paradise, lounge around, maybe make a few pennies, sip pina coladas, and enjoy life “Hakuna Ma Tata”. As tantalizing as all that is it is on the very opposite spectrum of what we are experiencing here. Am I disappointed? Absolutely not! That wasn’t our goal or even in the cards. You see Trav and I were desperate to find some sort of business that we could run together so we could see more of each other. When we were working in Texas and New York our time together was very minimal. Yes they were fabulous jobs, which could provide us with a lavish lifestyle, but what kind of life is that if you can’t even spend time with the ones you love? I mean if you think about it, what has happened to the “American Dream”? Both parents working way more than 40 hours a week, children being raised by themselves or by a babysitter, the biggest and newest is never satisfying, and after all is said and one… when the entirety of the week was spent at the office by both parents, the bills STILL aren’t met. I guess as we dig deeper into the Word, and draw closer to the Lord and to each other we begin realizing life’s’ true values. And thus we are lead here to the DR, in an effort to escape the normalcy of America. We have a burning desire to revolutionize our marriage and outlook on life. Hoping that if we can make enough to survive our family and friends might be able to join us!
Okay, I know I’m kind of scattered today it’s just that I have so many thoughts streaming through my head that sometimes it’s hard to stay focused ☺ Back to where I was about ending our day discouraged yesterday. Well this morning I was reading in My Utmost for His Highest and it completely lifted me up. I had Trav read it too and he was blown away are its’ relevancy to us! It was titled “The unsurpassed Intimacy of Tested Faith”. The very first sentence says, “Every time you venture out in your life of faith, you will find something in your circumstances that, from a commonsense standpoint, will flatly contradict your faith. But common sense is not faith and faith is not common sense.” I love that! Our move here does seem illogical and perhaps irrational. However, we are confident that the Lord called us here, for whatever amount of time. So no matter what common sense tells us, we are to lean on our faith! Okay, and it gets better… It assures the reader that once we proclaim that the Lord will provide all of our needs, that the testing of our faith begins (well that has without fail been my heartbeat since we arrived! ☺ ). Oswald Chambers then adds, “When my strength runs dry and my vision is blinded, will I endure this trial of my faith victoriously or will I turn back in defeat?”. Ahh! I love it! Just what we needed to keep our heads lifted and wait in expectancy for the Lord to move mightily!
After my time with the Lord we noticed that we had a visitor, its precious Maria! (She is the mother of the guy we are working for). She is a Christian and one of the most wonderful and hospitable people I have ever met. Her English is not that great so we are having a ball teaching each other our native languages! Anyways, she rushes upstairs and kisses our cheeks and tells us that she wants to introduce us to a young couple that wants to take us to an English speaking Baptist church tomorrow. Little did we know they actually live just a few doors down!
We make our way over and meet them. The young man is from the DR and his wife is from Spain. They are both solid believers and radiate Christ’s’ love! The man is a realtor and he took us to his office, which is also just a few doors down. There we met a few more of the real estate employees. They without shame told us this business was a solid group of believers and that things of the Lord are spoken about all the time in that building. They said they would take care of us and watch out for us… also adding that they knew everyone in town and could pin point who would lie to us, who would steal from us, who would take advantage.. etc. etc. They also invited us to a house party today at 3pm in Cap Cana (this is Donald Trumps development which we have been dying to see!).
We will be going and we are so excited to being these relationships with believers! The Lords’ hand is never too short to provide, even relationally! So that’s the agenda for today. It’s now 10:30 am and were still waiting to be taken to get the internet… our ride was supposed to be here at 8:30am ☺
It’s so nice to be relaxed again… the Lord is in control and I trust Him with all that I am.
Love ya’ll and miss you!
D&T
August 29, 2009
August 27, 2009
Thursday August 27, 2009 11:45am
Early this morning Trav and I spent some time in prayer together. We were praying for both of our families and it made me think about how richly blessed we are with the families that stand behind us, encourage us, and support us. From Gary and Val helping us in so many ways, to my family housing us and taking care of us this summer we can’t even believe how blessed we are to be showered in so much love! We hope that one day we will be able to pay them back for their enormous acts of kindness. We without a doubt would not be able to take this risk and chase this adventure if it weren’t for them.
After we prayed we got ready to start our day…
I’m sure you can see a common theme throughout my blog that things are ever so slow here in this paradise. This morning (9:30) we were on our way to our friends’ pool to cool off and use their WIFI to settle shipping details. On our way we passed our landlord and she said the guy was on his way to fix our cable. So I came back to our place and Trav headed to the beach to talk business with the guy we are working for. It’s now noon and still no cable guy… haha.
With no pool in our backyard, Internet or cable it is easy to find time to have devotionals. This is actually a huge blessing living in an environment with fewer distractions leading us away from our priorities. This morning I’ve been able to catch up on lots of reading in the Word. It was so refreshing and comforting, especially in our current struggles/situations. I’ll share a couple of the verses that spoke to me the most…
Psalm 7:10 “My shield is God Most High who saves the upright in heart”
Psalm 9:9-10 “The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you”
Along with drawing nearer to the Lord, another beauty of our new move is the intense ways in which my husband and I are drawing closer to each other. We don’t have the modern technologies and distractions to be able to distance ourselves from each other (not that we want to… but sometimes it unintentionally happens). We can barely even communicate with other people here. Therefore, truly all we have is the Lord and each other. We were best friends before we even started dating, but this solidifies that we aren’t just spouses and lovers, but we still envelope the best friend element which is vital in marriage! We love to have fun and enjoy being in each other’s presences all day long. Even if we aren’t successful building a business here, we have learned so much and brought our relationship to a new and beautiful depth. Despite all the chaos and the fear of the unknown, it is totally worth the new fruits that are blossoming. I adore Travis and can’t imagine doing this crazy adventure with out him; in fact I wouldn’t even want to!
That’s all for now—
Love & miss y’all!
D&T
After we prayed we got ready to start our day…
I’m sure you can see a common theme throughout my blog that things are ever so slow here in this paradise. This morning (9:30) we were on our way to our friends’ pool to cool off and use their WIFI to settle shipping details. On our way we passed our landlord and she said the guy was on his way to fix our cable. So I came back to our place and Trav headed to the beach to talk business with the guy we are working for. It’s now noon and still no cable guy… haha.
With no pool in our backyard, Internet or cable it is easy to find time to have devotionals. This is actually a huge blessing living in an environment with fewer distractions leading us away from our priorities. This morning I’ve been able to catch up on lots of reading in the Word. It was so refreshing and comforting, especially in our current struggles/situations. I’ll share a couple of the verses that spoke to me the most…
Psalm 7:10 “My shield is God Most High who saves the upright in heart”
Psalm 9:9-10 “The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you”
Along with drawing nearer to the Lord, another beauty of our new move is the intense ways in which my husband and I are drawing closer to each other. We don’t have the modern technologies and distractions to be able to distance ourselves from each other (not that we want to… but sometimes it unintentionally happens). We can barely even communicate with other people here. Therefore, truly all we have is the Lord and each other. We were best friends before we even started dating, but this solidifies that we aren’t just spouses and lovers, but we still envelope the best friend element which is vital in marriage! We love to have fun and enjoy being in each other’s presences all day long. Even if we aren’t successful building a business here, we have learned so much and brought our relationship to a new and beautiful depth. Despite all the chaos and the fear of the unknown, it is totally worth the new fruits that are blossoming. I adore Travis and can’t imagine doing this crazy adventure with out him; in fact I wouldn’t even want to!
That’s all for now—
Love & miss y’all!
D&T
Thursday August 27, 2009 11:45am
Early this morning Trav and I spent some time in prayer together. We were praying for both of our families and it made me think about how richly blessed we are with the families that stand behind us, encourage us, and support us. From Gary and Val helping us in so many ways, to my family housing us and taking care of us this summer we can’t even believe how blessed we are to be showered in so much love! We hope that one day we will be able to pay them back for their enormous acts of kindness. We without a doubt would not be able to take this risk and chase this adventure if it weren’t for them.
After we prayed we got ready to start our day…
I’m sure you can see a common theme throughout my blog that things are ever so slow here in this paradise. This morning (9:30) we were on our way to our friends’ pool to cool off and use their WIFI to settle shipping details. On our way we passed our landlord and she said the guy was on his way to fix our cable. So I came back to our place and Trav headed to the beach to talk business with the guy we are working for. It’s now noon and still no cable guy… haha.
With no pool in our backyard, Internet or cable it is easy to find time to have devotionals. This is actually a huge blessing living in an environment with fewer distractions leading us away from our priorities. This morning I’ve been able to catch up on lots of reading in the Word. It was so refreshing and comforting, especially in our current struggles/situations. I’ll share a couple of the verses that spoke to me the most…
Psalm 7:10 “My shield is God Most High who saves the upright in heart”
Psalm 9:9-10 “The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you”
Along with drawing nearer to the Lord, another beauty of our new move is the intense ways in which my husband and I are drawing closer to each other. We don’t have the modern technologies and distractions to be able to distance ourselves from each other (not that we want to… but sometimes it unintentionally happens). We can barely even communicate with other people here. Therefore, truly all we have is the Lord and each other. We were best friends before we even started dating, but this solidifies that we aren’t just spouses and lovers, but we still envelope the best friend element which is vital in marriage! We love to have fun and enjoy being in each other’s presences all day long. Even if we aren’t successful building a business here, we have learned so much and brought our relationship to a new and beautiful depth. Despite all the chaos and the fear of the unknown, it is totally worth the new fruits that are blossoming. I adore Travis and can’t imagine doing this crazy adventure with out him; in fact I wouldn’t even want to!
That’s all for now—
Love & miss y’all!
D&T
After we prayed we got ready to start our day…
I’m sure you can see a common theme throughout my blog that things are ever so slow here in this paradise. This morning (9:30) we were on our way to our friends’ pool to cool off and use their WIFI to settle shipping details. On our way we passed our landlord and she said the guy was on his way to fix our cable. So I came back to our place and Trav headed to the beach to talk business with the guy we are working for. It’s now noon and still no cable guy… haha.
With no pool in our backyard, Internet or cable it is easy to find time to have devotionals. This is actually a huge blessing living in an environment with fewer distractions leading us away from our priorities. This morning I’ve been able to catch up on lots of reading in the Word. It was so refreshing and comforting, especially in our current struggles/situations. I’ll share a couple of the verses that spoke to me the most…
Psalm 7:10 “My shield is God Most High who saves the upright in heart”
Psalm 9:9-10 “The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you”
Along with drawing nearer to the Lord, another beauty of our new move is the intense ways in which my husband and I are drawing closer to each other. We don’t have the modern technologies and distractions to be able to distance ourselves from each other (not that we want to… but sometimes it unintentionally happens). We can barely even communicate with other people here. Therefore, truly all we have is the Lord and each other. We were best friends before we even started dating, but this solidifies that we aren’t just spouses and lovers, but we still envelope the best friend element which is vital in marriage! We love to have fun and enjoy being in each other’s presences all day long. Even if we aren’t successful building a business here, we have learned so much and brought our relationship to a new and beautiful depth. Despite all the chaos and the fear of the unknown, it is totally worth the new fruits that are blossoming. I adore Travis and can’t imagine doing this crazy adventure with out him; in fact I wouldn’t even want to!
That’s all for now—
Love & miss y’all!
D&T
Wednesday August 26, 2009 7:30pm
Things are still realllllllly slowwwww. Coming from New York to the DR is quite the adjustment. I’m used to being busy busy busy and getting things done ASAP. Here, it is whenever it gets done it gets done (IF it gets done…).
Our boat/plane is supposed to be shipped Friday and its’ anticipated arrival is September 2nd. The guy we are working for is requiring that Trav have at least 150 more hours of practice before he is allowed to take tourists for rides. Which means we won’t be having an income for quite some time. It’s an unsettling feeling not knowing when the next dollar will be made as we watch our bank account drain from our necessities alone. I am learning so much about the sovereignty and favor of our God. Truly NONE of our situation is in our hands. We have absolutely zero control over this business and we are learning that all we can do is pray and draw near to the Lord. To outsiders we look crazy, (and perhaps we are) but this is the time when we wait and anticipate the Lord to work mightily in our lives. We believe he will prove himself faithful and we claim that His hand is not too short to give! And if this is not the Lords will then He will direct our paths to the next adventure.
Being that we don’t have our plane yet we don’t have much to do during the day. This afternoon we had a missionary couple over. We heard about them through a nurse that gave us our shots to come to the DR. The Lord works in crazy ways! We were able to chat with them for a while and learn about the types of ministry they are doing. They anticipate moving here in mid-September. We are excited because that would give us an outlet of ministry as well!
That’s all for now… nothing too exciting we are just waiting, waiting, waiting! Please pray for patience for us and for the Lord to provide. The sooner the guy we are working for lets us fly, the better!
Love and miss y’all! ☺
D&T
Our boat/plane is supposed to be shipped Friday and its’ anticipated arrival is September 2nd. The guy we are working for is requiring that Trav have at least 150 more hours of practice before he is allowed to take tourists for rides. Which means we won’t be having an income for quite some time. It’s an unsettling feeling not knowing when the next dollar will be made as we watch our bank account drain from our necessities alone. I am learning so much about the sovereignty and favor of our God. Truly NONE of our situation is in our hands. We have absolutely zero control over this business and we are learning that all we can do is pray and draw near to the Lord. To outsiders we look crazy, (and perhaps we are) but this is the time when we wait and anticipate the Lord to work mightily in our lives. We believe he will prove himself faithful and we claim that His hand is not too short to give! And if this is not the Lords will then He will direct our paths to the next adventure.
Being that we don’t have our plane yet we don’t have much to do during the day. This afternoon we had a missionary couple over. We heard about them through a nurse that gave us our shots to come to the DR. The Lord works in crazy ways! We were able to chat with them for a while and learn about the types of ministry they are doing. They anticipate moving here in mid-September. We are excited because that would give us an outlet of ministry as well!
That’s all for now… nothing too exciting we are just waiting, waiting, waiting! Please pray for patience for us and for the Lord to provide. The sooner the guy we are working for lets us fly, the better!
Love and miss y’all! ☺
D&T
August 25, 2009
Day four living in the DR.
August 24, 2009-- 10:10pm
Day four in the Dominican Republic. Check.
Apartment. Check.
Power & lights. Check, check.
Pest control. Check.
So here I lay in bed in our bedroom, which might I add is the only room in our apartment that has a/c, and I listen to the neighbors’ blast some array of reggae and Spanish ensemble. Life is definitely different here and it is going to take quite the adjustment for us to begin to feel like this is home.
Yesterday was sort of dramatic concerning our condo. First, we found out that we had no hot water and then the electricity/lights went out. We naively thought that it was our entire street doing without, however the Power Company came to our apartment during the night and took our meter! Haha! Not only did they just turn off our power but they took our meter! Hilarious ☺ The sweet man we are working with down here called us in the middle of the night and we told him we were without power. His wife and him rushed over to try and help us. When in doubt with the power, go straight to the power plant! And that’s what we did… we drove out in the middle of nowhere to the electric power plant to inquire! Everything seemed so surreal and like we were on some reality TV show.
We accidentally ended up signing a year contract in the wrong apartment complex. Dump international mistake number one, haha. But, after a minor hassle we were able to weasel our way out of it, kinda. As long as the cockroaches and frogs stay away this place won’t be bad at all! I just can’t wait to move into the apartments that we were shown today, they were beautiful!
Today we drove with Doreen to Higuey, a town about 45 minutes away. We filled up with gas for $4.44 and made our way through the country. As you approach the town you see beautiful mountains in the distance and then mass chaos of local Dominicans throughout the town. We passed numerous people on mopeds, bicycles, or merely hanging out of the street (mostly the latter). There were little ‘mercados’ that had hanging meats on the outside. I think I might become a vegetarian, haha! We finally made our way to the grocery store and it looked like a Spanish wal-mart. If it weren’t for Doreen we would have been in big trouble. EVERYTHING is in Spanish and not many people speak English. She’s like our own personal translator and the biggest blessing! We bought the necessities and headed home. We had to stop at the dentist because Doreen had an appointmet. While I was waiting for her a middle aged and young Dominican man/boy were asking me while I was there. I vaguely explained and they seemed blown away that we would willingly move to the DR. The young man even said “It’s so weird seeing you here!”. So there it was, my first experience as an absolutely minority. For Higuey is a city of locals only. Tourists never venture off to this area, hence the oddness of them seeing a blonde hair, blue eyed, white girl!
Haha. So the adventure begins! We still have LOTS to figure out and at times we seem overwhelmed with anxiety about how the Lord will provide. But, all we can do it sit and wait. We could use your prayers!
Love y’all!
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