Angelo is going to PERU!!!!

I must admit that I was surprised that Angelo was even interested in Master’s Commission, our missions training school. Angelo is quiet and from the small town of Azua. Yet he was determined. This past summer Angelo was one of the first class of students in Dominican Republic that was the first to graduate with a major in missions and theology.

Since entering Master’s Commission Angelo has felt called to missions and he made it his goal to do his missions internship in Peru. Financially, this was an extremely lofty goal for a guy from Azua. Yet the biggest challenge was the fact that his family was in the middle of a crisis. His father had been unemployed for six months. As a young adult in Dominican culture, Angelo was expected to contribute to the family finances and all the more so in the situation of financial crisis.

So Angelo had a decision to make the day that he bought tickets to Lima, Peru. The tickets were found at a significant discount if he could leave on the 31st of October. Would he stay and find work? Or would he move forward with his ministry plans in Peru? Angelo took an enormous step of faith and purchased the airline ticket. The flight would leave the day that his father was to complete six months of unemployment.

Yet the God who calls is also the one who provides. Just a few days before Angelo’s flight was to depart, his father was was hired at a new job! This was just the confirmation that Angelo needed. His family was taken care of, his missionary budget was supplied and his Friday, Angelo will get on a plane headed for Peru to serve and love the children there.

Nicolas and the Tooth Rat

Nicolas is eight years old has been losing his teeth. Right after we first returned back from the states Nicolas lost a tooth and asked if the tooth fairy would be making any trips to the Dominican Republic. Troy and Alex, the big brothers who were experienced in these things quickly informed him that the tooth fairy did not work in the DR. Instead here in the DR they have a Rat named Perez.

The story goes that this rat lived in a dentist office and learned dentistry and would help his fellow rats with their tooth problems. When the older mice would lose their teeth Perez found that the best replacement was a child’s baby teeth. So he would go looking for these teeth under the children’s pillow at night and left a gift in exchange for the child’s tooth.

Nicolas listened to the story intently with great interest, so I thought for sure that he would leave his tooth in his bed. But I found that his tooth was nowhere near his bed. He left the tooth in my bathroom. The next day I asked Nicolas why he left his tooth in my bathroom. After all, the Ratoncito Perez would never think to look there.

To which Nicolas replied, “C”mon mom, would YOU want a rat climbing in your bed at night? I don’t think so.”

We laughed and he said “Don’t laugh, For real, mom. I don’t want any rats in my bed.”

He has every reason in the world to worry about rats in the bed. We’ve killed a few rats at our house. Holly, our miniature dachshund, even killed one. So its not like its all that far fetched. Yet, at the same time I marvel at the faith of childhood.

Children don’t question, they just believe. They believe that tooth rats could come in your bed, easter bunnies hide eggs, Santa brings presents with or without a chimney and Jesus really does hear our prayers and He really is coming soon. The difference is that tooth rats and Santa are fun but not real. Yet that kind of faith placed in the person of Jesus, God’s Son can really make a difference in this world!

I just keep thinking that we must tap into this kind of faith! I want Nicolas to pray and believe God to work supernaturally in our everyday lives. So I have been asking Nicolas to pray more often as we live in a country that needs to see a faith that really does move mountains.

As for the tooth, we’re keeping it to remind us that childlike faith is real and I should be ready for some mountain moving when my children pray.