Leader Reflections- Michelle Brandsma

Dominican Republic 

What a week! As a school employee and a small group leader at Sonlife, I get to spend time with some of these great teens every week during the school year, but this week was different. I got to share some great highs and lows and make memories that will last a lifetime with all of them. It was awesome to see how this group quickly became family. We laughed, cried, sweat and sang together all week!

We started each day with breakfast and a short time to talk and get to know each other better and a prayer for all the activities of the day. Most days we did construction projects or strategic mission time and played with the children in the Village of Ascension. Our group fell in love with the village and everyone that lives there. Seeing the village children come running and the smiles on the faces of the people we were helping every time we arrived made our kids want to work harder at all the projects we did. We ended each night with dinner together and a time of sharing our highs and lows of that day and praying for each other and our village. There is something so phenomenal about teenagers being truly present and engaged in something so much bigger than them and praying about wanting to do more for the children, more for the church and more for the village. Many of us are hopeful that God’s plan for us will bring us back to the Dominican Republic and back to Ascension, but for now we pray for all of our new friends and trust God’s perfect timing.

Michelle

Leader Reflections- Candace Smit

Not only do I get to spend time each week with these students, I had the privilege to spend a whole week with them in the D.R! I wish I could tape the entire trip so parents & grandparents and others could see the growth of each student that I get to see. From the first day we went into the Village of Ascension and visited in the homes and being somewhat shy to the last day of seeing them cry with tears of sadness to leave them! The students were so kind and caring to the Dominican people and also to each other! Many of them could speak Spanish to some degree with the people which was nice and encouraging to them and their Spanish teachers😊For all of us to know that God will be watching over them comforts us. And that they continue to share Jesus with other neighbors in the village. I so treasured up the moments I got to see these kids sing praises to God at the top of their lungs as we headed to the village each day and back home again in an open canter. Thank you for all of your support and prayers said for our week in the D.R. 

Feeling Blessed, Candace

Leader Reflections- Hope Cupery

I wasn’t supposed to be on this trip. I’m not a regular youth leader in Friesland’s youth group. I never even attended Friesland’s youth group when I was younger. Sure, I have my connections to the group, but I came into being a leader on this team tentatively. I was afraid that I wouldn’t fit or that I would be in the way, but God, of course, knew exactly what He was doing. 

Throughout the past week, God has shown me so many amazing, beautiful things, and I wanted to share a few of them with you. I’ll even be nice and put them in a list. 

Things God showed me in the DR:

There is beauty in the waiting-

When I first was asked to come along on this trip, we were planning to serve in Haiti...last year. Everyone was crushed when we couldn’t go, but God brought so much beauty up from that waiting period. The year gave each of us time to grow and get to know each other better. I hate waiting... a lot, but I learned that if I’m in a season of waiting, there’s a reason. I learned to trust more in the perfect timing of our awesome God.

There is beauty in simplicity-

I love stuff. I love getting new stuff, doing stuff, and making stuff, but I never truly realized how often all of this “stuff” gets in the way. During our time of ministering to the people in Ascension, we often asked them what they like to do for fun. It helped break the ice and lighten the mood. I was amazed to hear each of them answer, “pray and read my Bible.” I fill up my life with so much stuff that I often forget to see the joy than can be found in Christ alone. Instead, I want to fill up my life with things that matter in the lens of eternity.

There is beauty in brokenness-

Over the past 8 days I have seen poverty, broken families, poor health and so much more. While defeat would likely be my chosen response if I was in their shoes, these people chose to find joy in Jesus. They found healing and redemption amidst hurt. We are never too broken to be mended by our Savior. He makes all things new, and I’m so thankful that I got a front row seat to that this week.

There is beauty in community-

I never knew the impact a pot full of rice and beans could make. Everyday for lunch, the women would spend the morning making us lunch and we would set up plastic chairs and break out the styrofoam plates and just fellowship. Despite the language barrier, we formed many relationships that will last a lifetime. Friendships within our team and with those we met in the Dominican were gained by visiting at lunch or working alongside each other throughout the rest of the day. Every kid that we saw we loved on deeply.  Our team experienced true community, and we can’t wait to bring some of that back with us to the States. 

Even though I started off on this trip a bit skeptical, God blew me away. He taught me to find beauty in this journey we call life, and I encourage you to do the same.

As always, thank you to everyone for your prayers and support. God changed hearts this week.

-Hope

Day 7 Travel Day Home (We Think)

Today started out with lots of tears.  We first said goodbye to our interns at 10:30 this morning when we left our Beacher Campus.  We then went to the airport to get all settled and upon arrival we saw some of our translators there waiting to say goodbye to us.  It was another sad and heartfelt moment before we got all our bags checked in and boarding our flight back to the states.  Many of the students shed a lot of tears saying goodbye to people we didn't even know a week ago.  It is amazing how God can knit people together in such a short amount of time.

We said good bye to the Dominican Republic and headed back to the United States with our first stop being Miami.  When we landed everything went smooth except McKenna had to go in a separate line because they flagged her passport.  The main group went through while Darrin and Michelle waited for McKenna.  McKenna kept us updated on her progress through the line and got through with no problems.  We then boarded our plane to Chicago or so we thought.  We did take off and because of bad weather, we were forced to divert to Indianapolis to refuel and wait for the storms to clear Chicago.  Currently at 10:44 PM EST we are sitting at the end of the runway waiting for air traffic to thin out so we can finally get to our destination.  We are all tired and ready to get home to see our families and sleep in our own beds but God has other plans at the moment.  Hopefully we will take off soon and be able to complete our final leg of flying.  Our bus driver has kept in contact with us and we know that when we land he will be waiting to pick us up to take us home to Friesland.
We can't wait to share about all that God has done on this trip with all of you in person. We will be having a time of sharing this Sunday during our morning worship service at First Reformed Friesland.  Come on out at 10:am if you would like to hear more.

Thank you all for your prayers.

P.S.  Our leaders will be posting their blogs in the next couple days sharing their thoughts on the trip.

In Christ
Sonlife Mission Team

Day 6 Afternoon/Evening- Noah Cupery

This afternoon we went back to the village of Asscention. At ascension we were able to connect with the kids and some of us were even able to reconnect with kids that we had met earlier in the trip. While some of the boys went and played basketball, others played soccer with them, blew bubbles, or simply were an ear to the kids as they talked about their lives. Towards the end of the afternoon, we had the chance too visit local shops to purchase bracelets, necklaces, and fun items to to bring home. As we wrapped up the afternoon we gathered and prayed for Pastor Francesca and her husband and thanked them for how much they impacted us. After that, we said our goodbyes, though tough, only 95% of us cried. Towards the evening, we shared our highs and lows of the day and the trip. As we closed the evening, we gathered and prayed for our precious interns. Today was a tough day for almost all of us. As we had to say goodbye to friends that we have cultivated for the past week, say goodbye to kids we connected with, and as we drove away and saw the village slowly disappear in the distance. We are sad but we have a peace knowing that God has a watchful eye over them.
Tonight we had a all campus debrief and talked about all our group's weeks.  We then had our daily debrief of highs and lows.  Our Interns, Morgan and Kevin, joined us.  We ended our time by laying hands on them and praying for them before we got to have free time.
Overall this week has been a blessing to our group. We have grown closer together, grow spiritually, and grown as kids. Please pray for the people of the Dominican Republic. Now to Him who is able. Amen

Noah

Day 6 Morning-McKenna Murphy

Today we returned to the house I worked at the first day.  It looked much different than it did before which was encouraging. A whole room in the house had been torn down! Our job today was to tear apart the foundation and floor so they can rebuild a new house with future teams. This required shoveling lots of dirt and many bucket brigades to clear everything out.  Though the labor part wasn’t that fun, it was exciting to meet all of the locals working on the project and form relationships with them.  Pastor Francisca, her husband, and the members of her church have been so opening and inviting to us.  Everyday she and Rosa have prepared us lunch and today we had opportunity to help prepare it again. To prepare the rice we had to pluck out any wood slivers. After this, we soaked the rice and “squished it” clean.  After this, Rosa mixed it in with the beans she had already made.  We also got to boil the noodles for spaghetti and put chicken (including the feet) into a pot.  Passion fruit juice was made for us to drink and it was delicious! The people of Ascensión’s kindness and openness to us has been overwhelming.  Seeing people so on fire for the Lord has been truly inspiring and I hope to be as bold in my faith returning back home in my community.

McKenna

Day 5 Team 3- Noah Cupery

Today we had the opportunity to visit the villages once again for SMT(Strategic Mission Time.) As we walked through the village we stopped at our first house. We met a woman named Marta. Marta told us about how she loved being a teacher but didn’t hesitate to tell us that everyone of her students were trouble makers. She went on to tell us that summer break couldn’t be long enough but she assured us that being a teacher was one of the biggest blessings of her life. To close our time together, we gathered in our circle and prayed for Marta and her family. 

As we continued our day we stopped at our second house and met a man named Antwan. Antwan shared with us that he didn’t have a job and that he would love prayer for that. He also shared with us that he has never ceased praying to God in the good and in the bad times. I assured Antwan in my prayer that God would remain faithful to his family whether he found a job or not. 

As we finished up our morning, we stopped at our translator, Ronnie’s house. We were blessed with time to get to know his brothers, ask them about life and about their futures. We laughed as they talked about play wrestling with each other. And how the younger brother usually wins. We wrapped up our time thanking Ronny for his faithfulness to Mission of Hope. We had a blessed morning. I believe that God is working in these folk’s hearts. We ask you all to join us as we pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ in the Dominican. We know that God is able but even if He say not yet, not yet to a solution to poverty, not yet to a solution to water and food for kids, or not yet to a solution to every problem, we will still remain faithful. Now to Him is able, amen.

Rony (our translator) and Noah 

Day 5 Team 2-Sami Ford

Today was an absolutely incredible day. It definitely felt the most productive out of all of them so far. In the morning my group got to work on a house ripping up the floors and help making lunch with Rosa for everyone. Lunch, as always was very delicious. We got to build closer relationships with many of the locals that we already met and many of us got our hair braided by Diana. 

Later in the afternoon our group got to play with a lot of the kids. Some played basketball and others, including me learned games from the younger kids. Then we got to go up to the mountain campus for a couple hours to buy gifts from their shop, that provides jobs for locals (one who was also one of our translators; John) and get to know others more. To be totally honest, I also went on social media for the first time this trip to talk to my friends on the free WiFi. The days have flown by so fast and I can’t believe it’s already day five. I’m really disappointed that we have to go home on Wednesday. I am so glad that I had the opportunity to go on this trip and that God had his own plan for everything. I realized today just how much God has watched over us this whole trip, 

Sami

Day 5 Team 1- Camber Ebert

Our day started off this morning with a delicious breakfast of French toast, fruit, and cereal. Then we headed out to the village of Ascension for a day of work and SMT. When we arrived, we stopped at a house that my small group had worked in on Thursday. Then we split into two groups of eight. My group went further into town to start with SMT, while the other group stayed back to work on the house. Our group of eight then split in half with an intern and translator for each group. When we arrived we were immediately greeted by my young friend Robér. 

My group (Mckenna, Grace, Michelle and I/our intern-Sam/our translator-Oliver) visited 5 houses. We met Alicia, Maria, Frankie and Family, Filomena, Anise and her children, and Llorena and her family. Filomena moved to the Dominican Republic from Haiti a while ago (she didn’t remember how many years). She has ten children, though five of them have passed away. The other five are living in Haiti and are unable to come to the Dominican Republic. Filomena has a hurt leg, especially her knee. Sometimes she is unable to walk and she always has to use her cane. She visits the doctor often because of her pain but she told us that her money is wasted because they say there is nothing wrong with her. We all laid our hands on her and prayed for her health and safety as well as her children. Llorena is the grandma of Rosa and Anayeli, they all live together. Anayeli (18) not even a month ago had her baby Ámamelady. Luckily everyone in the house spoke Spanish so I was able to communicate with them. I was even able to hold Ámamelady’s hand (she held my finger). I was able to pray for their family in Spanish! This concluded our SMT and we headed back to the house while singing (screaming) some worship songs on the caravan. We ate a delicious lunch made by Pastora Francisca (rice, beans, salad, and cherry juice). 

After lunch we split up again and started working. Our project was to help build a new foundation for a house to go on. It was for an elderly woman and her family to live in. I was working at this house on Thursday and I was awestruck by the progress the Dominicans had made since then. My job was to help move dirt out of the spots they were going to put concrete in. I worked for about two hours shoveling dirt, moving rocks, and dumping buckets full of dirt. The phrase “Dame la pala” or give me the shovel, was used often. I was thrilled with how this day went because I feel like I made an impact on several lives. 

My Dominican friends call me by many names. To John (one of the Mission of Hope workers) I am “Dominicana” because I have the characteristics of a true Dominican. To some I’m Kimberly or Kimber and to everyone else I’m Camber. I’m am truly blessed with my ability to speak Spanish and because of this I have made many amazing new friendships that I will never forget. Pastora Francisca’s husband Juan Pablo or Papito, told me that with my personality and work ethic I am a true Dominican. He said that I have found my people and I am welcome here whenever. I am so grateful for this spectacular experience. 

Camber

Day 4 Church Day- Devon DeYoung

Our team started off the day with a church service at the mountain campus.  The message was given by Paster Jodi, a paster who had grown up in Mississippi and moved to the Dominican Republic after meeting his wife here.  We had a breathtaking view of the mountains in the background of the roof during worship and the sermon.  

After the mountain campus, we rode a bus (pic of Derrick and our driver) an hour and a half to Santiago to another MOH campus. There we had a relaxing and fun afternoon. Some of the highlights included playing volleyball, bags, more cards, talking with team members and bonding, and of course (with the help of many) being able to get into an upper hammock.  In Santiago, we also had the privilege of having more worship time with a band of staff and local Dominicans.  The band was incredible and the experience of being surrounded by 3 different campuses of people and staff singing in both English and Creole was powerful.  MOH leaders also gave insight into their plans for the future and how we can continue to be part of the team from home. 

In the Dominican Republic I have learned many things.  There are a few things that really stand out to me. One  was something that Derrick said on how we have seen many beautiful views over this week and how we can clearly see God’s beautiful creation in these views, but we don’t always realize this at home with the green grass and being able to grow crops.  Another is the power of communication.  We have formed a lot of bonds this week with each other, translators, children, local Dominicans, interns, and so many more.  The conversations we have had will have more of an impact on me, and hopefully the others, than any of the physical work we have done in this one week. 

Devon

Day 3 Beach Day- Jessica Bahr

Today was beach day today! From flying off of banana boats, to snorkeling over a coral reef, to running over the scorching sand, or just even relaxing by the ocean side, we did so many memorable things. Being part of a team made the whole experience even greater. 
Snorkeling was such a beautiful thing; there was so much to look at, there was no way of even seeing it all. We swam so close to the fish and the coral that you could even touch it. On the count of three, Carter, Hope, Camber, and I even touched the coral together. The beauty of God’s creation truly had shown in today. 
We even got to go shopping today, which was [unsurprisingly] one of the highlights of my day. In the beginning of the trip we didn’t think we’d get the chance to get many souvenirs, so it was a happy thing for more than just me. Simply seeing another part of the Domincan Republic than we did in the beginning of our week was eye-opening as well. There is so much difference among places here that it’s pretty hard not to notice. No matter where you go though, people are always happy and that’s the most important. It tugs at my heart strings seeing people here so happy, even makes me sad to think that people in the US typically seem to find the bad in situations. It’s just such a better way of living to be genuinely happy. 
With time, even after all that’s been going on in the news, as a team we’ve seen that the Domincan has great potential, even more through Jesus. We, here as a part of Mission of Hope, are part of the beginning to it all. It’s such a joyous thing to be able to be a part of it. Every day changes me in a different way and brings us closer to what we’ve been saved to do, and I couldn’t have wanted to experience more on a trip. 

Also, hello family! I love you from miles away! 

Jessica

Day 2 Overview

Hello All,

Well yesterday's overview shared that we would always be in 3 teams but today we were put first into 2 teams and then all together for awhile. In the morning we all worked at the church as some sifted sand, some helped with cement for a block wall and others played with kids.  Just like yesterday pastor Francisca made us lunch.  It was so delicious.  After lunch we broke up into two teams as some did Strategic Mission Time and others played basketball with local kids.  It was a great but hot time.
We got back to the campus early and went for a swim and then had dinner.  Later tonight we had a worship night and sang songs with the MOH staff.  After worship time we shared our highs and lows and prayed for each other.  I think our team is really getting to know and care for each other through this time.  After our team time we had some free time to play cards and bond together.

Thanks for all your prayers.

P.S. Tomorrow is our beach day and our team is excited for the day.

Day 2 Team 2- Grace Ford

Today I was able to go out into the village because yesterday I had to stay back and rest as I was not feeling well since coming home from camp. I joined Darrin, Emily, Michelle, and our intern Morgan to do strategic mission time. We talked with a mom named Jocelyn who has 4 kids and 2 grandkids. She said she was a Christian and her biggest challenge in her life right now is the church. The church that her family attends has spilt. Her husband wants to attend one church and she wants to attend the other church. She asked us to pray for her and wisdom in making a decision in what church to attend. 

When we asked her what her favorite verse was and she said it was Daniel 3:17 “If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand.” This is her favorite verse because when she dreams she feels like there are demons coming after her. This verse brings comfort because she knows that God is going to deliver her no matter what her circumstance. It was fascinating to see how much she depends on the Lord. 

When we asked her about her family she said her son had a problem with his mind. He argues with everyone and does not want to go to school. She says a lot of the time she does not know where he is. He will skip school and go to other places. She asked for us to pray for him also. We also asked her if she does anything in her free time. She said she is always taking care of her kids so she has no free time. It was sad to hear she has no time for herself, but the love she has for her kids is incredible. 

It was crazy that down here in the Dominican just like the American church, we struggle to stay together and as leaders split the churches, it negatively affects so many people.  

It was really neat that this lady was able to cling to what God has done for people in the Bible and relate that to her own experiences.  Even though the church life is hard and her family and dreams are feeling like they are in trouble, she clings to this versos and what God did in the past to help hear in the present.  

The high of my day was being able to be with the kids and seeing the joy in their eyes as we played with them.  I was really excited that I was able to be out in the village. 

Grace

Day 2 Team 1-Carter Beaulieu

Today was the second full work day in the local village. Emily has introduced you to the store front project our team has been working on. We were also able to continue erecting one more wall. In the morning I was assigned to be the job site manager watching Derrick, Kobe, and Noah repair a roof, build the storefront wall, and finish the concrete wall in the bathroom. I was job site manager because I had one of the local children as a helper. Robér and I hung out all day! Just before lunch, our team gathered in the church and danced to Christian music each holding onto one of the children from the village. My morning with Robér ended at lunch as we went our separate ways. He had found a new friend (Camber) and our team had joined up with the others (including Grace and Candy!!!) at the local basketball court. Many children noticed the commotion created by us and joined in. Some us on the team played 5-on-5 basketball with translators and MOH interns while others played with children, teaching them simple hand games. Rock, paper, scissors and different secret handshakes were the kids' favorites. We are looking forward to continuing the same activities on Monday and Tuesday, but to also enjoy our off day tomorrow.

I felt blessed to be given the opportunity to bring so much joy to this little boy's life, along with many others throughout this trip. It seems at times we are not providing enough help, but it was reassuring to some of us to be told by the locals how much our presence helps and encourages their village. Tonight we prayed to continue working even harder on Monday and Tuesday and to help spread God's word to all here. Thank you for your prayers of safety and God's hand in the lives touched by this trip. Thank you to everyone who helped our team come to this blessed, joyful country!


Carter

Day 1 Team 3 Myjah Drews

Today was our second day in the Dominican Republic and the first full day. It was full of forming new friendships and learning about another culture. The first part consisted of taking a bus ride to the village, Ascension. It was there that we began our mission work. After making our work groups, we said a prayer and headed off to our work sites. My group consisted of Pastor Darrin, Hope Cupery, Jessica Bahr, and myself. Our job was to dig holes for sticks that would serve as supports for an extended roof. It was difficult, hot and time consuming but in the end, I believed it to be fun. In one day, we finished digging 3 holes and got a good start at another couple. After completing the work for the day, we ate a home cooked meal by the community’s  pastor. They cooked rice and chicken for us and gave us fresh pineapple juice. It was fantastic!
After lunch we did our SMT, strategic mission time, where we went to people’s houses and asked them about their culture and relationship with Christ. Everyone we visited had already been following Jesus and loved reading their bibles. In fact, everyone we met with stated that in their free time their favorite thing to do is read their bibles. For me, that was something that really stuck out. Other things that were prominent were: the garbage littered everywhere, how dark the insides of the houses were, the starving stray animals, the condition of just about everything, and especially how happy many people seemed even though they lived in poverty compared to most Americans. That was inspirational for me and that’s when I realized that I was going to get a lot more out of this trip than just sharing the gospel.

Myjah

Day 1 Team 2 McKenna Murphy

Our group consists of Candy, Kobe, Samantha, Camber, and I.  For our work, we went to a house further away from the church to dig a trench for a walk way for a family.  We also had a translator named Ronny and an intern from MOH named Morgan.  When we got to the house the women who lived there, immediately offered us fresh mangoes and pineapple.  They were so delicious!  Though we were only at this house for less than an hour a lot of work was completed! We’re excited to be able to go back tomorrow and help some more!  Our trip to their house we had the opportunity to see more of the country and farms.   During our strategic mission time we had a new translator named Oliver and the local pastor Francisca joined us.  We had the opportunity to go to three different houses throughout the village.  The first house we went to they were already believers but it was reassuring to hear all that God has done in their lives.  The second house was also of a believer.  She was a mother of four kids in between the ages of 2 months and 15.  Some of us had the opportunity to hold her baby and she was so precious!  The mother was also encouraging and said some extremely empowering things!  One thing that she said that really stuck with me was that she used to have a lot more and felt like she had nothing, but now she has a lot less and with Christ, feels like she has a lot more. This statement was extremely convicting to me because I have so much and often want even more, when I have all that I need through Christ who has saved me. The final house we went to was of a woman who was questioning her faith in Jesus.  It was good to tell her that even in her times of questioning God never stops loving her.  Overall, our group had a great time and excited to share more of God’s love to these people!

McKenna