And we’re off…

First grade hearing a story the first day of school.

Kindergarten- day 1!

Gym class

Kindergarten

Kindergartener working hard on handwriting

More kindergarteners

Second graders working hard.

This past Tuesday, a group of eager kids dressed in light green polo shirts and jeans made their way back to school at Caminito de Jesús. Some had nervous faces, others were eager to see their friends, and others were hesitant as they entered into a new year, new grade, with a new teacher.  As I watched and observed I saw a group of teachers that were loving, kind, and ready for a new year.  There was laughter, tears, singing, lots of talking and they were off!  I was encouraged to hear teachers starting their year off with consistent rules, clear expectations and the teaching of routines, a great start to what is hopefully a great year of growth.

I am working daily to best figure out how God is going to use me this year.  Day in and day out I’m learning the culture of the school, the background of the teachers, and slowly discovering how God can best use me in my time here.  It is a slow process and I’m learning patience through the process.  I am confident in the fact that God has called me here to be a blessing, and resting in that purpose.  I’m daily living in the perspective of ‘poco-a-poco,’ little by little and He is daily revealing himself to me.

Constant among the Change

I am a person that thrives on change. I love to be challenged and despite how difficult it is at times, I feel stretched and draw closer to Christ through a time of change.  My heart and mind is often restless and specifically over the last couple years I have been seeking a change.  In those moments of restlessness, I continually prayed “God, in your time, bring me a change.”  Here’s my warning to all…be careful what you pray for!!

God has brought incredible change in my life.  One year ago I was single, living in the Chicago suburbs, and preparing for another year teaching first grade.  One year later I find my life full of change! I’m engaged, living in the Dominican Republic, and preparing to help a group of teachers improve and grow as educators.  All this change is exactly what I prayed for, however it has set me into a tailspin!!

In this time of massive transition, I am being broken to rely on Him.  I am learning patience in the process. I am learning to give myself grace in the process.  I am learning that despite my change, He never changes.  The God I relied on one year ago is the same God I rely on today.  Has the last week full of change been easy? Absolutely not, but I praise that great God whose promises are true and who is the only constant in the midst of all the change.

“For this God is our God for ever and ever; he will be our guide even to the end.” Psalm 48:14

*Last week when we were at the resort I took the above picture. I have often looked at ocean waves and realized that they are just like God’s constant love for us, never stopping and continuing to crash on us.  And yes, it’s great to be back in the Caribbean!

He Llegado!

I made it! It’s hard to believe that I’m writing this directly from Santiago.  God has shown himself faithful yet again and I’m only beginning to count the blessings.  I had a perfect trip, complete with arrival and departure gates right next to each other in Miami and 2 suitcases waiting for me when I made it through customs!  The Pereyra’s have welcomed me with open arms and I’m so grateful to be a part of a family that loves Jesus so deeply and has the most beautiful heart of Dominican hospitality.  It’s going to take some time to fully transition, but I’m so very aware of that and praying daily for the strength and courage.  Today I’m off to the beach for the annual Caminito de Jesus teacher retreat. My prayers for this time is to begin building relationships and community so that God can fully use me in my time here.

P.S. The pictures are of my bedroom AND the horses that live next door:)

Nervous Pit

It’s really hard to believe that I leave for the DR in less than 24 hours!  I have said a lot of good-byes, ran a lot of errands, sorted through a lot of junk, and spent a lot of time with a nervous pit in my stomach.  I am beyond excited to go, but change always comes with a large assortment of raw emotions.  Mix together excitement, anxiety, sadness, eagerness, nervousness, and so much more and you create the constant butterfly belly that I’ve been feeling for the last 2 weeks.  I find that my quiet time with God each morning helps calm my pit so much.  I’ve been praying his peace in my life and I call out and ask you to pray for the same.  I know that the nervous pit is normal and regardless of my emotions, His peace and presence are going to carry me through.

I know I have a lot of prayer warriors out there and so here’s my prayers that you can join me in.

• Safe travels
• Smooth transition to living with the Pereyra’s
• Quick switch back to Spanish
• Receptive teachers at Pathway to Jesus
• Wisdom in leading
• Ability to figure out how to be in a long distance engagement
• And most importantly, that God would be glorified and honored in all that I do.

I value each and every one of your prayers and would be unable to head out on this adventure without them!  Next time I post, I’ll be in Santiago!

God’s Perfect Timing

God has blessed me with a very full life. I have lived overseas, traveled to 5 continents, have an amazingly loving family, and a grand network of friends.  As I journeyed through my adult life, I always trusted God’s timing in my dream of meeting a man to love and marry.  It’s in God’s great sense of humor that he brought this man into my life just as he was calling me to serve him in the DR.  On November 27, 2012 I went on my first date with Anthony.  He talked about his love of God, missions, and the time that he had spent in the DR.  We had a wonderful 3 hours chatting and I had a good feeling that this could really go somewhere.  4 dates later I told him about God’s calling on my heart to head back to the DR. I’ll never forget his response to me- “First and foremost, I want you to follow God’s leading in your life and so if we’re still together, we’ll cross that bridge when the time comes.” This response stole my heart and I knew that if I went, I was likely going to have to leave him behind in the states.  Well, here we are 8 months later, crossing that bridge, and we’re engaged!  I am so grateful and blessed. Antho has walked with me every step of the way preparing for the year ahead of me and I know that he will walk beside me as I go.  I’m dreading that early morning trip to the airport Monday, however I’m confident in God’s plan for our time apart and my prayer is that it only draws us closer together.