written by Brad Jenkins and Don Ankenbrandt
Greetings to our faithful support family!! It’s been a while since our last correspondence. God has been doing some big things in our family and in the ministry and we want to share that with you.
We continue with ESL classes, discipleship, preaching, building relationships, leading a Bible study at a local drug rehab, pure water efforts, hosting teams and interns (Jodie and Lauretta). We have continued to see God bless our ministry efforts. The Lord has been sharpening our focus in the city of Puerto Plata. We have also developed community with other missionaries working in the area. This has been a great encouragement to us. As a result, the network that we have is growing and becoming more effective.
Specifically, we worked with Blanco, Bill and Maxine Crofton who are missionaries from Canada and with Developing World Partnerships, to construct a home for foster children in Amistad. Brad has used a series on David with the guys at Cristo Transforma Drug Rehab Center to encourage them to depend on the Lord - the one who brings victory in the battle. With Lauretta and Jodie we partnered with an orphaned teenage girl and her little sister to finish the rebuild of their collapsed home – a project the orphan girls had begun on their own. We hosted three teams in January and February and did sports programs in the villages with them, as well as, furthering our water filter programs. We piloted a clothing business as a means to build sustainability for families and had great success.
We spent several weeks in March in the states for meetings and gearing up for a great summer. The Lord has been very gracious and honored our time and efforts while stateside. We were able to be in a couple of partner churches and see many of our support family – not to mention some time with our actual families! We hit the ground back here in the DR on April 4th with much to look forward to. We will host 6 trips by the end of July. We will begin a de-worming program to coincide with our water filter program. We will be partnering with 4 pastors to conduct asset/deficit surveys in 3 villages that will help set our direction for the future in these villages. We will continue to nurture the new missionary community we have in Puerto Plata. And Lord willing we will be welcoming the Little family and (un)adopted to Puerto Plata as they launch their mission of transformation in the community.
In our last newsletter we wrote about God’s plans unfolding and the wrestling match with the Lord that led us to surrender the dream of building an orphan care facility. Since then, we have continued to seek the Lord for the future - Searching for His purpose for our family in being called to the DR. As with every believer, God is constantly working. Some of the time we don’t fully see or grasp how, but in time things get unpacked and become clearer and revelation begins to occur. God defines direction, which can mean the ending of one journey and the beginning of another. GlobeWorks International, Dale Cutlip and his board offered us the chance to work with them and led us as new missionaries into a foreign land. We are so thankful for Alliance Ministries stepping in and adding their vision to our orphan care desires and vision for Puerto Plata. As our partners in ministry you know and as I mentioned above, not much has unfolded as we expected. God has worked in and through us, and the organizations that we have represented. Much ministry has been accomplished, but all the while we have been waiting, asking, seeking, waiting, trusting, resting and listening. We have just sensed and believed that there was more that God was going to reveal.
While our family’s focus and passion for the DR has continued to increase, Alliance Ministries-US has grown and expanded its boundaries, hiring more staff and just exploding! Meanwhile, God has sharpened our vision and directed everyone involved; He amazes us as we’ve seen him graciously lead people individually and corporately to a common course of action and decision. The Lord has confirmed a continued call and ministry for our family in the DR but has been prompting us that it needs to shift in focus, and as we came back to the US for meetings earlier this month with Don and Alliance we learned that the Lord had directed them in relation to the DR as well. Due to the increased attention and energy needed in the US with Alliance Ministries, they feel the Lord leading them to shift from a full-time presence in the DR with missionaries on the ground to a model where they simply facilitate the connection of people and resources in the US to ministries and needs in the DR. This aligns well with the core mission of Alliance Ministries in the US. Of course this directly impacts our family and perhaps could have been a disappointment and confusing time in our journey, but it wasn’t! We are certain that Alliance is doing the right thing for the ministry and for our family, and we are thankful that they have been sensitive to the Holy Spirit and listening to the instruction of the Lord.
So again, as so often happens in life and in missions there comes transition. Not a change in our call, but a change in how the call looks. We're working with Alliance Ministries and our home church to re-focus our ministry in the DR. We think God is moving us to re-shape how we do ministry to these communities in Puerto Plata. Our call to the people of the Dominican Republic is not in doubt, but this means our ministry needs to be shifted in its focus. As of now, we are planning to return to the US by September 2011 and by that time hope to have more definite plans about the “shift” to our ministry. Alliance will continue to send teams to the DR and continue to invest into the community of Puerto Plata. As I said, we have a lot to do before September and many exciting ministry opportunities to continue. We are excited about the future that God is unfolding before us!
Throughout all of this journey and adventure the Lord has continued to provide for us spiritually and financially. We have felt the prayers and even when it shouldn’t add up our monthly need was supplied each month and God has continued providing through you resources to meet ministry needs in the DR. We believe whole-heartedly that the Lord will continue to provide the energy, the people, the prayers, financial resources, and direction for our involvement in the north coast of the Dominican Republic.
We want you to know how much we love and appreciate you all. We wish we could have talked to you all individually to share this exciting news, but we are thankful for the mail and internet for helping us share this with you all! We need you all more now than ever…
Please remember us in prayer before the Lord in these ways:
* Our family – we thank God for a great time at home with family and friends we love and miss. As we continue to develop ministry objectives here in Hoyo de los Puercos, Magiollo, Lo Coco, and at the Drug Rehab Center and Amistad. We are seeking the Lord to reveal the shift in focus for us in the DR.
* Housing/Food – as we mentioned in our last newsletter we still have the $1300/mo need for housing and food allowance in addition to moving expenses and needs. Please prayerfully consider supporting us on a regular or one-time basis. Every amount helps and it’s what keeps us able to serve and do ministry.
* Alliance Ministries, Inc. – they had to make a tough decision and we are thankful for them following the prompting of the Lord. Pray for continued blessing in their ministry and for this transition time. We are thankful for our continued support of one another moving forward. We are blessed!
* Short-term trips – for successful summer trips that will assist in the transition to this new approach to the mission of our family in Puerto Plata.
* More thanks – that God is continuing to reveal His plan for us in the DR and connecting us to other missionaries in the area, and that He has given us a foundation of people praying in the States. They have been felt during this time, and they are what held us up!
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| The girls brought baseball equipment for this team that was sharing 1 glove & 1 bat with the end cut off of it |
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orphan girls home mentioned above  Lauretta inside there new home
 Singing songs & spending time with kids in the village of Aguas Negras   A note from our Director ~ Don Ankenbrandt Dear Friends and Partners, On behalf of Alliance Ministries and Alliance 29:11 let me affirm this realignment of the Jenkins’ ministry and tell you a little more about what the Lord is doing in my own ministry these days. We really believe that God has made it clear over the last several months that He intends to expand the boundaries of Alliance Ministries here in the U.S., because we’re seeing an explosion of ministry opportunities nationwide. Our focus on Half-time and related ministries is really where these opportunities are opening up, and we’ve had to face up to the reality that Alliance is still a relatively small organization with only so many people and resources that we can leverage for the gospel. We still feel a passion for the Dominican Republic, and we still hope to connect ministry opportunities there to people here in the States who are searching for their calling in life. We’ll stay involved through trips, and we’ll look for ways that we can partner with Brad and Brooke as they continue their work. This re-focusing that God has led us all through really enables everyone to pursue what we feel God calling us toward and to use the gifts that He’s given each of us. Our hearts are good; we’re encouraged; we feel unity in the decisions we’ve made together. Please join me in continuing your support of the vision for the people of Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic. For the Kingdom, Don Ankenbrandt |
If you would like to contribute to the Jenkins’ Family and ministry in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic you can mail a check directly to Alliance 29:11, 400 Office Park Drive Suite 301, Birmingham, AL 35223. All contributions must be designated “Jenkins Family”. OR you may also go online to make a contribution or set up a reoccurring contribution by visiting www.alliance2911.com. Click on the donate button and follow instructions. Make sure to select the drop down menu to choose “Jenkins Family”.
