I have a small sign in my house that says “trust the timing of your life.” This sign was a small gift from my mom when I came home to visit for the first time after moving to the Dominican Republic. I took it as a small token of her acceptance of my decision. Don’t get me wrong, I know and understand that she still would much rather I be in Indiana, as would a lot of my friends and family. Nonetheless, now and again I catch a glimpse of the sign sitting on some shelves in my house, and I’m reminded that nothing I am going through or will walk through this year is outside the timing God had for it.
I also realize that trusting God’s timing isn’t always easy. Currently, I have some family members who are going through some significant health issues. I’ve never been so thankful that I could pick up the phone and call some friends back home for help navigating this current situation. But there are days when I feel like “if only I were home,” the truth is, though, God knew I wouldn’t be home to walk through this with these people, and clearly, He timed it this way for a reason.
There is a possibility I will be taking a trip home soon to be with family as they navigate some things, so I’m just trying to trust God in his timing for when I should go home.
Although there have been some fairly stressful things happening at home the last few months, there have also been lovely things happening here.
We brought in the new year by attending Church, and then hosted a small New Year’s Eve party at my house. Then, as you can imagine, we hit the ground running with our first team of the year! Well, maybe I should say teams, we hosted 3 teams of 50 people, which combined for a double barrio, serving 8 communities the first week! We also had an invaluable group of guys working around the guesthouse to secure the new pharmacy area and fix up areas that needed some attention. I went to pick up this team, and as I was driving to the airport, I was overwhelmed with emotion, thinking of all the people who would be in San Juan this month to help make the start of the new year so sweet.
The following team, I had two friends joining me to see life in San Juan for a few days! They had quite the travel day to get to me, but they persevered, and we were able to spend 3 days together. Lindsey and Trace are among the oldest friends I have, and they were some of the first people I told I was coming to serve in the Dominican Republic. It’s fun to show people what life here is like and let them see precisely what I’m doing.
This week is just as special. My sister Maggi and her husband Jerry are here. Along with a team full of individuals whom I truly consider family. The team for Pinehills will always be special to me, but this week I was a little sad my friend Lydia and her husband weren’t coming. To my surprise, last night at dinner, Lydia was dropped off with Kamanda! I came around the back of the car looking for Kamanda, and there stood Lydia. I was in shock.
This week officially marks two years in the Dominican Republic! I’m not sure if the time has gone slowly or quickly. I feel like I just got here not too long ago, but then I realize I need to decide whether to stay longer or if it’s my time to go home. This is the question I get most right now, and I can’t answer it. When I decided to come here, I had such peace with God about it. So, I’m waiting for the clarity. But my good Friend Mike reminded me Saturday that sometimes God wants us to take a step before we have complete clarity.
We are gearing up for our first surgery team of the year. An ENT team from Hickory, North Carolina, will be here the second week of February, so the clinic has been completing consults to help build a list of patients.
I haven’t restarted my Spanish lessons yet, but I still plan to. We have a few weeks off in April, and I’m hoping to spend the first two weeks in El Cercado to really push my Spanish forward. I have a friend coming at the end of that Month, so I’ll be looking forward to her visit as well!
Prayer Requests:
– Health of my family in Indiana
– Surrender to God’s timing for life
– Continued growth in Spanish
– Clarity/Peace for the future
