It has now been two weeks since I left the United States for another stretch of time in the Dominican Republic. The ministry here has continued in many of the same areas, but it has also changed so much as well. Instead of being a full time teacher at La Vega Christian School where I worked 40-50 hours a week the last two years, I am now helping out part time with the SWAT program, chapels and a substitute for English classes. The SWAT and chapels are only on Fridays which has cleared up so much of the week to work in other areas. On Monday, I was able to substitute for an afternoon English class and this coming Friday I will help teach the freshman Bible class. The biggest change I have seen is my work with my new missionary interns.
Much of the first two weeks was spent introducing them to as many different areas of work as possible. Instead of giving them a schedule, I hoped that they would find areas that they are passionate about and get plugged in. After two weeks of learning and adjusting, that is finally starting to happen. They spend two mornings a week teaching English with another missionary at a Haitian school and three mornings a week at La Vega Christian School helping with P.E., English, Chapels and SWAT. Friday afternoons are spent doing a chapel and English classes at the Rose of Sharon. It has been exciting to see them find other areas of work that they are passionate about that I wasn't doing before. Jon is helping the P.E. teacher coach the school basketball team a few days a week and Jayne is doing so much with photography.
What I have learned and tried to apply is that we all have different spiritual gifts that can be used in very different ways. That is something that everyone knows and isn't a new concept. The hard part is actually applying it to my ministry and finding the best way to use the gifts God has given us. They things that I love to do won't necessarily be what my interns love to do. They can provide a huge benefit for the ministry if I allow them to use what God has given them to reach a different group of people, or the same group in a different way instead of hindering them and putting them in a "box" of what I was doing before. My job is to encourage them and help put them in places where they will be most effective. The worst thing would be for them to go back to the U.S. in 6 months still completely "full" and feeling like they weren't able to be used in the way that they could be most effective. Pouring out into the next generation and teaching them is the key, and I am working to find the best way to do that. The last few weeks have been quite the journey as I have seen so much change in my ministry, but if the change means reaching more people for Jesus and affecting more kids, then I will do what it takes to make those changes.
