The Rest of the Good Friday Ice Cream Story

It seems incredible that God would give me the gift of this beautiful redemption story, that I would be a character among many, as he would display the wonder of the Gospel in the hearts Alondra*, Ricardo* and their children. And yet I know that I am just one of the many characters in this story that started in an ice cream shop on Good Friday. 

Alondra was in a desperate situation when she came to me on that Good Friday, and because of the Spirit’s prompting, we helped her.  Honestly, I never expected to see her again. Three months later, I find that God has completely transformed her life and her whole family. She was faithfully attending our church and was in the new members class to be baptized. 

Since she and Ricardo were not legally married, they were not able to be baptized right away in our church. First, they had to get married. This, however was no simple matter. You have to have paperwork in order. Having paperwork (legal birth certificates, divorce documents, etc)  can be an enormous obstacle for the people of our country. This is why so many couples never really get married legally, and families that are formed with two people who have not made a legal covenant suffer horrible consequences like violence, infidelity, and poverty. 

This is where THE CHURCH of Jesus Christ has a powerful influence on SOCIETY. In order to get baptized and become members of the church, Ricardo and Alondra needed to get legally married. So the CHURCH rises up!  A lawyer from our church donated services to work on paperwork, and finally after a long process, on April 26, Ricardo and Alondra got married! Ladies from the church put together a beautiful reception with a gorgeous wedding cake! 

Two days later I had the privilege to serve with my Pastor as he was able to baptize the entire family. (except the younger children) Ricardo testified that he was a drunk before he came to Jesus. He said that he would buy alcohol before he would buy food for his family. Since giving his life to Jesus, and coming to our church, God has completely taken away his desire for rum and alcohol. He is a new man and the GOSPEL has taken them out of the misery of poverty. The day before he was baptized in water, Ricardo shared that he received the baptism in the Holy Spirit at church in the evening service. Now the power of the Spirit is as work on a whole new level in their family. 

When I saw Alondra the day they were legally married, there in the white dress with flowers in her hair I was overcome with emotion. That beaming face, with a white gown, did not bear any resemblance to the desperation of the woman in the ice cream shop on Good Friday. 

The Lord did a miracle for Alondra to find a beautiful wedding dress. She told us that she found it in a pile under the bridge where they sell used clothing that comes from the garbage dumps of clothes that are leftover from goodwill in the US.  She said it was black with dirt, but miraculously there was one dry cleaner that was willing to clean it for her. As she told the story, the tears streamed on my face. For it was the metaphor of what God had done for Alondra and her family. Like her wedding gown, she was a treasure in midst of garbage of life and Jesus gave me the joy to help her get cleaned up. 
* names are changed

Blogging about yesterday, and dreaming about tomorrow

As long as I live, I won’t forget those smiles. Beaming as big as the Caribbean sky! Mother and daughter, with twin colossal smiles that proclaimed throughout the whole village “Cristo Sana!!!” Jesus heals!!!!

As long as I live, I won’t forget that little girl voice. Big curls were bouncing as the once crippled little girl RAN and SKIPPED across the platform, shouting in a voice that still contained all the innocence of childhood, “Gloria Dios, Gracias a Dios!!” “Praise God, Thank you God”

As long as I live, I won’t forget the praise. Little brown arms that stretched up to the sky, she was singing with her face looking directly into the heavens. There were microphones for singers and preachers, but the loudest praise came from the lame child that was healed.

For a missionary who has held the crippled, looked into the face of a mother begging for money to buy her child medicine, and watched the villagers follow a petite pink casket, I know what this means. I know about the scraping and the saving and the begging of that mother, doing what needs to be done to fix her crippled baby.

Sometimes we wonder, why are these spectacular miracles so much more common outside of the United States? Maybe this is a question that doesn’t have an answer. Except I have seen too many children suffer, and even die for sicknesses that could be resolved with medicine or a visit to the doctor. Here in the developing world, it’s just not that simple. So I wonder if the desperate need produces a faith that seems much more probable and reliable than medicine or doctors.

Therefore, I know what this miracle meant for this family yesterday. I will never forget the joy of that moment. I wanted to hold it, save it, linger in it, because it was so amazing. Today, my words serve as a meager description of this beautiful moment.

Still, these are the memories of yesterday, but what about tomorrow? Today, I am pondering tomorrow. I have a vision of what this miracle means for tomorrow. How does the future look for this child who had an encounter with the POWER OF GOD? I believe that this is one little girl that will not be vulnerable to the prostitution that smothers her village. Perhaps it means that the threat of poverty is diminished because the family’s resources are not consumed by doctors and medicine. And I know that this little girl has a story to tell the whole world. Others will know Jesus because of last night’s miracle! At the age of eight, she has her whole lifetime to tell the story! What tremendous possibilities await, as the unforgettable, supernatural POWER OF GOD becomes the transformational catalyst for the future.

Rennae & the Bank Robbery

Last Thursday morning, October 29^th, 2009 I woke up with this song in my head. It was a song that I hadn’t heard anyone sing in years AND it was in English. I thought it was odd that it was in my head. I didn’t even sing it out loud because I don’t particularly like the tune. But the words are great. They are taken from the Scriptures “Fear not for I am with you”. I was checking my Facebook and I was just about to write that scripture for a friend who was going to get some medical tests done and something interrupted me and I never wrote the words down. It turned out that the song was not for her. It was for me! The Lord gave me that song!

I had a full day planned for Thursday and it started with going to the bank to pay the credit card bill. We have a Dominican card so that we do not have to carry around a lot of cash. Petty theft is rampant here and we have been robbed at least four times during our missionary career. So we have learned to be careful. I had paid the credit card two days before but came up short and needed more cash. So I had returned to pay it in full. Thank the Lord I would have had over $3000 in cash in my purse had I not paid as much as I could the day before.

As I walked in the bank, I saw a young man who was wearing tattered clothes and had an earring in his ear. Something didn’t seem right. His eyes looked glazed. I never actually processed that this might be a bank robber or that it was unsafe and I should go someplace else. Now that I reflect on this, I really believe that the Holy Spirit was giving me direction and I was too preoccupied with my “to-do” list to pay attention.

Thank the Lord for his grace even when we aren’t listening to the still small voice. I walked up to the counter, took out my wallet and began the payment. I heard some yelling in the background and then I saw that the security guard was on the floor. It seemed unreal and then I looked at the teller with a look like, “huh?” His expression actually gave me peace. He didn’t seem panicked or worried at all. Then the gunman yelled directly at me to get on the ground. I was thinking, “Ok, but let me gather my things here.” Then he waved his gun and said, “Just leave your purse! LEAVE IT! GET ON THE GROUND WITH YOUR FACE TO THE FLOOR!!!” He seemed like he meant it, so I did.

There on that marble floor of the bank Jesus came near to me. I felt his presence SO REAL. Immediately my thoughts turned to my boys and that was too overwhelming. The Spirit directed me just to focus on Jesus and the power of his name. I said “Jesus” out loud over and over in Spanish and in English. I spoke in tongues. I felt the weight of his glory all around me. HE WAS THERE WITH ME, like a weight on top of my back. I can still sense how it felt and it gives me chills because it was supernatural. In the midst of that presence, I had a sense that I would walk out of the bank unharmed. I just knew it. I really cannot tell you how much time passed. It seemed like an eternity.

Finally, a silence fell in the bank and I knew that the robbers must have left. Someone yelled to us to run upstairs to the second floor. The bank personnel began to check to make sure that we were clear and if everyone was safe. One of the tellers came up stairs trembling with tears in her eyes. I ran to hug her. My heart felt for her because she had been threatened directly by the gunman. The other customers were all shaken up but we were all just so grateful it was over. The women had their purses. The men had their wallets. I had nothing. My keys were on the counter! My wallet! My purse!!! Omar, my teller that day ran down to see if anything was left on the counter. He found my keys!!! Praise the Lord! But everything else was gone.

We were then instructed to come downstairs for questioning. Coming down the stairs, I could see that there were already police swarming everywhere. They asked us to wait so that the police could write a report. The other bank customers (there were six of us) were all on their cell phones making phone calls. I watched as they explained to loved ones and felt the relief of speaking to someone that they loved. I didn’t have a cell phone anymore.

A customer who was lying on the floor near me during the robbery asked me, “Were you praying? I thought I heard you praying.”

“Yes!” I responded. “God was with us. I know it! I am sure that is why no one was hurt. He was protecting us!!”

One of the other customers was very kind and handed me her cell phone and I was able to make a call to the office and talk to Sugeily, our administrator at our ministry office. She immediately got a hold of Nelson and LaDawn, a missionary colleague. It wasn’t long and I was able to speak to Nelson and after that I felt like I was able to exhale. Everything was going to be ok. I could breathe again.

It turned out that I was the only customer that had the misfortune of being robbed personally. They did take my purse that had around US $300, my cell phone, an itouch, an ipod, and then just the usual stuff. They asked me to stay and give a police report about the things that were stolen.

The other customers left one by one. But the man who asked me about my prayers came back to me to say “Gracias”. It was a sweet moment. I am convinced that he felt the weight of HIS GLORY too.

I was blessed to be surrounded by friends and family upon my return home. My boys and I shared a very sweet moment together as we prayed and praised God for his mercy & protection upon my life. As my son prayed, he included the thieves in his prayer, asking God to redeem them from the sin that was destroying their lives.

At the end of the day that is why I am here in Dominican Republic. These days the misery of poverty and unemployment, the rise of drugs and the resulting violence only gives me more of a reason to be here. I am here because when you know and love and walk with the POWERFUL PRESENCE of the Almighty God; you want everyone to know and walk with Him. You realize that the only hope for the misery and desperation that I saw in the glazed eyes of the thief at ScotiaBank, is in a real redemption by an authentic Savior.

I have come to understand the power of God’s presence in the moment I needed to know His reality the most. HE is real. His promises are real. His plans are perfect and I TRUST HIM. I TRUST HIM!!! He is worthy to be trusted! And because of HIM, and all that I know about HIM, and the MORE that I know HIM and the deeper that I go with HIM; I ache to know and go more. I cannot stop. Because of HIM. There is no fear, because of HIM and because HE IS WITH ME.

“The best evidence of God’s presence is the devil’s growl.” C. H. Spurgeon

I, for one, am not afraid of the growl.

A Walk in Bonis' White Shoes

Bonis has some nice white shoes. Seriously, I have always admired how white he keeps those shoes walking around here in the Dominican Republic. Bonis is a missionary intern from Castillo del Rey (King's Castle) in Nicaragua. And as a missionary, Bonis is walking the walk of faith in those white shoes. He has come here on a very tight budget and there are days when he doesn’t have a peso to his name. Today was one of those days.

Today he was supposed to come the office and share devotions in our staff meeting. The title of his message was to be “The benefits of obedience”. He walked out the door not sure how he would get to office and praying for God to provide transportation some how, some way. He has been serving in a small town 45 minutes away from our offices, so it was going to be a long walk in those white shoes.

As he walked Bonis contemplated what he would share in devotions. He had hardly walked just a few blocks when a car pulled over. It was someone Bonis had never seen before. Bonis explained to us that it turned out to be a brother who had seen him at an evangelistic event. The brother offered him a ride to the capital.

This morning we were all encouraged; there was not a dry eye in our devotions. We all understood. Every one of us is walking this walk of faith, in one way or another --just without the white shoes.

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.

The Accident

It was a breezy Caribbean afternoon as we arrived in Santo Domingo and left the airport baggage claim with our four boys, 11 suitcases, 1 guitar, 1 saxophone, two laptop computers, 1 ipod, and 3 Nintendo Gameboys. (It takes a lot of gadgets for the modern family to travel successfully.) Little did we know that it would be a day of miracles; both the mundane and the extraordinary. After all our years of travel we give God the glory for safe and timely arrivals at the airport and we feel especially blessed when ALL of our luggage arrives with us.

Jose Climaco, our Master’s Commision director and beloved colleague was waiting to take us to our home sweet home in the Dominican Republic. The boys were really glad to be getting home, but I must admit that I was dreading all the work that was waiting for us. We would be getting ready for a big move in the next six months as we are preparing for our year of itineration beginning in July 2007. The transition was overwhelming to me. I secretly wished that it would be possible to skip the next six months.

Jose, Nelson and the big boys packed the van as I got the little boys settled in a seat. This is where we experienced what would be the first miracle. Marcus, our wiggly five year old decided out of the blue that he wanted to sit up front in between Daddy and Jose. It seemed strange to me that he would choose to be up front in a seatbelt rather than in the back seats free from restraint, so I asked him if he was sure that he wanted to do this. He said that he was sure and so we put him up front in the seatbelt. The rest of the boys joined me in the back. Jose hopped in the driver’s seat with Nelson up front and we were on our way home.

We were merrily rolling along when about 10 minutes into the trip we heard the squealing wheels behind us. It had just begun to sprinkle rain when this car traveling at a very high speed lost control and was spinning behind us. I saw Jose look in the rearview mirror with great concern and then immediately tried accelerate and move our van and avoid what would be an inevitable accident. The impact of the car sent us toward a cement barrier along the median of the road. Jose turned hard to miss a head on collision and then a tire blew and we lost control. Our van spun around a couple of times and then hit the barrier on the side which caused us to tip and then we slid down the road with the van on the right side for about 20 meters before finally coming to a complete stop.

As the van began to tip, almost in unison we all cried out “Jesus” and “Cristo”. I can still hear my boys little voices calling on our Savior. In that moment, Nicolas fell toward the window and I knew that I needed to prevent my boys from falling onto that window that was sliding on the highway. So as we tipped I put one hand on the window and another in the back of the front seat to brace my body and use as a shield to keep the boys heads or anything from hitting that window. As a result my hand was chopped up and friction burned by the broken window and asphalt sliding underneath my hand.

Finally the van came to a stop and the presence of God filled the vehicle as we discovered that EVERY SINGLE ONE OF US WAS ALIVE AND WELL. I looked back at Troy (15 years old) covered in the luggage but with bright wide eyes he yelled “I’m ok mommy are you ok?” There was an amazing sense that we were in the middle of a miracle.

Instantly our car was surrounded with people banging on the front windows. They were trying to break out the windows to get us out. It wasn’t necessary because the driver’s side door opened easily and we all were able to climb up through it and walk away from the vehicle. My hand was filling with blood, but I felt no pain, just immense gratefulness as I saw each of my dearest treasures on this earth get out of the van and walk to my side. But at the same time I was feeling relief, people were approaching Nelson and I about the danger of people looting our car. This was a blessing because it was hard for us to even give a thought to worry about passports, laptop computers or anything else with blood, tears, chaos, and anxiety all around us. Nelson and Jose were able to secure our stuff, since neither was hurt, and as a result we did not lose anything. It was just another one of the miracles.

At this point I began to feel like I was going to faint. I have no idea who was holding me on the side of the road at that moment, but God bless him for being there at that moment. He held me steady as my hand spewed blood and Nicolas cried in desperation at my side. Alexander also held me steady. Alex has always been a calm and loving force in our family. God used his beautiful, peaceful temperament to get us through until we could get to a clinic.

Ambulance service is not always easy to get here in the Dominican Republic. Even as we were crashing, I wondered what we would do to get to a clinic. I knew we may need an ambulance. It turned out that God has his own sort of Ambulance service, he sent us two angels named China and Cesar to take us to the clinic. They pulled up in their clean, modest car and told me that they would take me to a clinic. I remember getting into the backseat with my dripping, bloody, hand and seeing that the interior of their car was cream colored. I was humbled by this amazing gesture, yet not really surprised because I knew this was a part of the goodness in the Dominican culture.

Nicolas and Alexander came with me in the car, they also were bleeding and were scraped up, especially Nicolas. We were about fifteen minutes from the nearest clinic and as we drove Nicolas began to panic desperately. He kept screaming, “Mommy, I’m bleeding!!! I NEED TO WIPE IT OFF!!! I NEED A WIPE MOMMY!!!!” It seemed that in his little mind that just by cleaning off the blood everything would be ok. He was really upset, I couldn’t seem to get him to calm down. At the same time, my hand was swelling and I had a ring (a mother’s ring) on one of my fingers. China, my God-sent angel, advised me to get the ring off quickly. It was excruciating, but I managed to get it off. As I was dealing with all this Alexander was helping Nicolas to calm down. I remember his words, “Nicolas it’s ok, we’re all ok. Jesus was with us. Jesus loves us so much. See, he took care of us Nicky. Nicky sing, sing with me Nicky…

Jesus loves me this I KNOW

For the bible tells me so

Little ones to him belong

They are weak, but HE IS STONG

Yes Jesus loves me!

Yes Jesus loves me!

Yes Jesus loves me!

The bible tells me so.

Alexander has a beautiful voice and he sang with all his heart. Later China told me that it in the midst of this ugly tragedy, she experienced amazing beauty in these moments. This simple song, maybe the first song that I learned to sing, filled our hearts with peace and strength. Nicolas finally calmed down as he sang.

It seemed like it took forever to get there and the pain was horrific for me. I felt pain but mostly I felt gratitude. I just had to praise the Lord. I kept saying, “Thank you Jesus, Gracias Señor” But even these two languages were not enough. I began to speak in tongues. The Spirit language just seemed to roll out of my gut. I remember hearing Cesar say to China “They must be Pentecostals.” (this made me smile) Later as I reflected on these moments a couple of things came to mind.

First was a phrase from one of my favorite hymns, the phrase says; “What language shall I borrow to thank thee dearest friend?” Truly, even with the benefit of being bilingual, no regular earthly language was enough. Second, was a passage in Corinthians where Paul writes about speaking in tongues. In 1 Cor. 14:17 he says that when we speak in tongues we “give thanks well enough”. This just proves to be another great benefit of spirit filled living.

We arrived at the clinic and it seemed to be a busy day. I remember lots of people in the emergency room. But they took us in right away. I had a terrible pain in my shoulder and I was scared that it was dislocated or fractured. They took Nicolas and Alex to different beds and started to work on them. I laid in a bed across from Nicolas and I watched as China’s 8 year-old son Cesar Augusto stroked his arm and comforted him. By this time I was in so much pain that I couldn’t think straight. They began to work on my hand and they gave me some pain medication. Just when it all seemed like too much to bear alone, my precious husband walked in and he came to me and held me so that my shoulder was not hurt while they cut all the damaged skin off of my hand. Meanwhile, China and little Cesar stayed with Nicolas and Alex, while they took them to get x-rays. The clinic did not have all the medication we needed; so we soon realized that Nelson would have to get to a pharmacy to buy medication. (not uncommon here) Cesar once again kindly offered to take him in his car. Troy was able to stay near Nicolas and my little Marcus (five year’s old) came to my side and prayed for me. After he prayed he resumed to using his hands as imaginary airplanes and making airplane noises. Marcus was totally fine, not a scratch. I knew that I was watching a miracle make airplane noises.

They also did x-rays on my shoulder and we were elated to find out that NONE OF OUR BONES WERE FRACTURED. It was the same for Nicolas and Alexander--no broken bones! Another miracle!

While we were at the clinic the police came by and assured us that they had secured our stuff. A high ranking officer, the General in charge of the prisons here, happened to be passing by at the time of the accident and controlled the mob that had built up around our van. He came by the clinic and gave us his card and told us to call him if we needed anything. This was just another one of the miracles. Our mechanic, who is also in the reserve military police, came right away to be with José to take care of the van and get it towed off the highway.

By this time Jaimie and Berly Bello, our missionary colleagues came by to get us to take us home. We hadn’t eaten all day, so Jaimie took the boys to get something to eat. Nelson, Nicolas and I went with Berly. Since the clinic was a small clinic with limited resources, we decided to go to another clinic, (one that we have used in the past) with emergency room doctors to get a second opinion. It proved to be a good idea because they could see that my wounds were serious and they called a hand surgeon to examine my wounds. The doctor told me that I had third degree friction burns on my fingers and that I was lucky to even have fingers. He was concerned that one of my fingers would need plastic surgery, but he said that it was too early to tell. We also learned that Nicolas and I would have to the ER everyday to have our bandages changed because of the risk of infection.

When we arrived home we were greeted by Pastor Bello and Milagros, Jose Climaco and his family and the Anonbys, our other missionary colleagues. Elena Anonby had dinner ready for us. This was such a blessing. We hugged and gave thanks to the Lord together. It felt so good to get those hugs!

The next day was Sunday and we had visitors all day! It was so good to share the amazing testimony and embrace the people we love so much. We prayed and sang together and the theme song turned out to be “His eye is on the sparrow”

Feliz cantando algres-- I sing because I’m happy

Yo vivo siempre as--i I sing because I’m free

Si aún la aves cuidan--For his eye is on the sparrow

Cuidarán támbien de mí--And I know he watches me

Today my bandages are off and my fingers are covered with skin. I have yet to regain mobility in my fingers but they tell me that with therapy I will be able get back full movement in my fingers. Nicolas still has a couple of patches of skin that we have to bandage but everyday he looks better. So many people have been praying for us and praising with us as well. We feel so blessed to have such wonderful support of so many family and friends.

Experiences like this help us to remember that every moment is valuable, even times of transition. We have a renewed passion for reaching the lost. I often think how horrible it would be to have gone through this experience with out the assurance that God would hear us when we called. We were completely sure that he was with us because we knew Him, because we all were friends of God. I want every Dominican to have that assurance. I have been so grateful for these scars on my hand because the bandages have opened up doors to witness and share about God’s amazing grace.

Just before we left the US we spent sometime with Rhonda and Gary Gray, our close friends who pastor in Venice, Fl. Gary has a recording studio and just for the fun of making a memory together; we recorded our families singing the chorus “I am a friend of God”. Nicolas probably sang the loudest and with the most heart! He loves that song. The first day that we went back to the ER was pretty difficult. It was a very painful process. Nicolas was not too happy about it, so I suggested that we sing a song. He chose to sing, “I am a friend of God.” As we sang we came to the part about Jesus hearing us when we call. Nicolas commented, “You know mommy that is really true Jesus heard us when we called out to him in the van.” Of course I whole heartedly agreed. It really is true.