WELCOME

First, let me thank you for stopping by our blog. We are a family of 5 ~ Brad, Brooke, Jaden, Jake & Abie Lynn. We were called to serve the people in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic in 2008. We long to serve Puerto Plata by caring for the people there and aiding in holistic community transformation. We believe you cannot truly change the life of an individual if you don't help with the community around them. We believe in partnering with the indigenous people and churches worldwide in accomplishing these goals by establishing, trust among the local pastors/leaders of the communities we serve, helping start sustainable businesses for locals, providing pure water and health education and most importantly sharing the love of Christ through relationship and discipleship. God has called our family and we are blessed to be a part of this journey. We invite you to be a part as well...you can join us by reading this blog and sharing it with others, visiting us on a short-term trip, financial gift through Until They Know...(300 Vestavia Pkwy Set 2300, Birmingham, AL 35216), or most importantly partnering with us in prayer. God bless you or as we say it in the DR ~ Dios te bendiga!







Monday, June 28, 2010

BACK AND STARTING STRONG!

By Brad Jenkins

We are so excited about how things have started in the second season of our DR ministry. We have hosted 2 short-term mission teams, the first of which (Auburn Football/FCA) arrived on the same flight as we did. They had great trips and accomplished much in love and worked to further develop our relationships in Puerto Plata and our vision and philosophy.

Children programs have been done in various focus villages around town. A church building was built by, Northside Bible Church members in the Haitian Community of Lo Coco, where there was no gathering building prior to this. This will also function as a site for community meetings and Alliance 29:11 led English classes. All of these programs have been done in conjunction with pastors and their outreach ministries of their churches. This is to insure that we encourage local involvement and have relationship with the leadership of continuing ministry efforts in these villages.

We have plans to build shower facilities in some Haitian refugee villages that do not have bathrooms readily available. At this time, the people bathe in washbasins at their front door or in nearby polluted rivers. They stand in their clothes and try to get as clean as possible, but community leaders desire more. Please pray for Alliance 29:11 and Reel Life Adventures teams as they will build these and facilitate the supply of water for these shower facilities. We hope to develop a low cost solution that can be reproduced easily.

Shortly after our arrival, we were joined by 3 interns – Kaylyn Moran and Cadence Snyder recent graduates of Asbury University in Kentucky, and Maddie Russo a student at Union University in Tennessee.

The interns are doing an awesome job working with children and adults in our focus villages and with our partnering pastors. They are leading and co-leading English classes, music classes, discipleship, and activity programs in Javillar, Aguas Negras, Lo Coco, San Marcos and Munoz. The Adults are so excited to have the opportunity to learn English, and all the while being exposed to the truths of God’s Word, through songs, stories, and new relationships. They also led a week long VBS with an amazing turn out of over 175 children and hosted a parent’s night at the conclusion of the week. We are seeing a great response on all efforts. I am so proud of the girls and the job they are doing.
 Jaden, Jake and I will be working through the international language of sports to share Christ and disciple guys in Puerto Plata. We will join in pick-up basketball games at a local court and invest into the young men who play there. We will also travel into villages to create sporting opportunities, whether baseball/whiffle ball, basketball, or soccer for the kids there; All the while, seeking to engage them in spiritual conversations and the work on Christ.


 Please join us in thanking God for His provision with our support needs that allowed us to be back on the ground in Puerto Plata. However, since arriving we have lost several donors due to the economy and a few that have not yet sent in their pledges. As of today, we are in need of $500+/mo. This is AWESOME considering the last newsletter we sent out we had a need of $1250!


 Please pray as we continue to settle in as a family. Brooke cut her leg right at the Achilles tendon and bruised it when a cabinet fell over on her. We had our ER experience just a week into our time here. She was given 12 stitches and is still sore after 3 weeks. She no longer needs crutches, but we continue to pray for healing and thank God that the tendon itself seems to be healing. We will be going to get her an MRI in the next week so she can make sure all is well and can begin therapy. This injury has hindered Brooke’s ability to set-up house, but we have managed.


 We continue to wait on the provision of resources to complete the first phase of the orphan care facility (Rescue Village of Dominikids Hope House). We trust that the Lord will provide in His time and ask you to pray for our contentment and ability to minister in ways that He allows in the meantime.


 We rejoice in the purchase of our family vehicle here. We thank God for the purchase of a sound vehicle at a good price and the donors that made that possible.


 Please pray for our partnering pastors here – Pedro, Mateo, Dib, Evelyn, Jacob, Blanco, Ricardo, and Daniel. Also, please pray for our local, U.S. and Summer staff.


As always THANK YOU, without your prayers and financial support NONE of this would be possible!!
 Watch for links to ministry pictures and videos...