Sabbath Rest by Sandy Murphy

Convincing 30 teens and 12 adults to arise at 5:45 to watch the sun come up is no easy feat. This morning however…. mission accomplished! (ok, perhaps it helped that sleeping in was not an option) By 5:55 our not so quiet bunch paraded through the sleepy streets of Juan Dolio. Destination: BEACH. Soon we were taking in the sand between our toes and the rhythmic sound of the rolling waves. The sound of strumming guitar joined the majestic moment followed by our voices:

 
"The sun comes up, it’s a new day dawning.
It’s time to sing your song again.
Whatever may pass and whatever lies before us,
Let me be singing when the evening comes.
Bless the Lord oh my soul, oh my soul
Worship His Holy name.
Sing like never before, oh my soul
I’ll worship His holy name."

Singing this together with our crew of 42 was a memorable way to usher in Easter morning on the coast of the Dominican Republic. As we watched the sun rise we contemplated the truth that the SON did indeed RISE! This is what gives our trip meaning. This is why we painted nails and faces. This is why we played baseball, London Bridge and Duck – Duck – Goose. This is why we made handprint paper lilies. This is why we shared the story of the gospel in a remote sugar cane village.




After a short time of worship we spread out on the sand for a time of solitude to journal and reflect. We were blessed by a glorious sky as the sun began to glow through the clouds.



Soon we returned for breakfast and then headed down the dirt road to the church in Juan Dolio to celebrate Easter. The service was full of worship, the Word, communion, and a short drama. Celebrating Easter in two languages – one God, one story - was a sneak preview of heaven.


 Following the service we proceeded back to SCORE to witness the baptism of 2 beautiful women who have put their faith in the risen savior. One of them was from Lily House, a place of refuge for women coming out of prostitution. This has certainly been an unforgettable Easter as we wholeheartedly embraced the rich meaning of the celebration. Honestly I don’t think the Easter Bunny was missed.



 Our afternoon was one of sabbath rest. Naps, more journaling, and leisure time has given our team time to recharge and reflect after a day of travel and full day of ministry yesterday. Our team is ready and eager to take on a full week of ministry ahead. We are giving thanks for safety, good health, and rest as we enter these coming days.

 As I’m writing this I am listening to our team meeting in the background. Listen in with me: hear them singing passionately as the evening comes, hear the story of the wordless bracelet as each student makes one to share when we return to the villages tomorrow, hear several students sharing the ways they are seeing God show up here in the DR, hear the challenge given students to live lives that point others to Christ. This is truly an amazing group of teens. We as leaders are so blessed to share this week with them.

Thanks for following our story in the Dominican Republic. We feel all of your prayers and love.
For the team, Sandy Murphy

Our First Day of Ministry by Tom and MaryJo Major

Greetings from the DR,

The Day started with devos in our rooms followed by breakfast (the fruit is amazing!) The team then loaded into 2 buses and began the ride out to 2 villages to begin ministry.

The first village was the larger of the two and named La Yeguada. This is the village the team from our church visited in February. Before we arrived we were prepared to “ go with the flow” and that is exactly what happened. A quick game of baseball ensued with all ages, some old some young and some from our team. The girls quickly found some girls from the village and engaged in fingernail polishing, face painting, clapping games and “London Bridges”.


 It was wonderful to step back for a second and take it all in. What joy it is to see students be stretched and serve God. Two of our students are fairly proficient in Spanish and were able to help translate for us, what a blessing!

The puppet team sang a few songs and then the craft team did a craft with the children. The evangelism team gathered men old and young and used the Evange-Baseball to share the Gospel. We are looking forward to returning there on Monday to continue to build relationships and engage in ministry again.

We loaded the buses and headed to the next village, Los Altos. This village is pastored by Pastor Ceasar. We had lunch there and started ministry. Much of the same activities were done here as the first village.

The students were able to experience some of the local fare including chewing on sugar cane, watching a young villager scale a coconut tree 50 feet high, knock it down with his feet, and have an older man hack it open with a machete. The students got to drink the coconut juice and taste the coconut. You might want to ask the students how it compares to the coconuts at home!

We then said “Adios” and returned to the Score Complex to relax and well…. Watch SU beat Marquette!!! Yes God is good to our basketball fans here in the DR. We hope they know that their fans are cheering them on from “ all over the world “.

It’s been a great day! Please continue to pray for us. There is a great sense of unity within our team and we are looking forward to have a Sunrise Service tomorrow to celebrate our risen Savior. He is Risen, He is Risen indeed!



Thank you for your continued support and love.

For the rest of the Team,
Tom and Mary Jo Major

Day 1 On Site by Mary Beth Frantzis

Praise God! After a 12-hour travel day, we arrived in the Santo Domingo airport with all 47 pieces of luggage and 42 happy passengers! Our bus ride was comfortable, and uneventful. The notes from the families started everyone out on a positive note! The hours on the road were full of games, laughter, conversation, and not very much sleep!

The flight was smooth, and our trip through security and customs was easy and quick. Parents, you should be proud of your teens. Through every aspect of our travel day, they were patient, respectful, and fun to be with! We didn’t hear a bit of complaining at all!









Here we are at the SCORE complex in Juan Dolio. It is a welcoming place that has all we need for a group of our size. We have accommodations that allow for a meeting place each day to plan and share as a large group, as well as plenty of smaller spaces for our various ministry groups to get together and prepare for their ministry. This afternoon, we even had a bit of time to re-energize in the pool after our long night and day with little sleep.

Jake challenged each of us this week to be watching for the wonder and mystery of God, as we see how He will work through us. He reminded each to be bold in the power of the Holy Spirit (not timid) as we have opportunities to share Jesus Christ with others.

We start early tomorrow. Our plan is to run two VBS programs, one in La Yeguda, the other in Los Altos. We can’t wait!

First Leg Complete....

Got pics late last night and early this morning of the team on the bus and hanging out at the airport.  Can you find yours anywhere here?  So thankful they made it safely to NYC.

They're boarding......next stop Dominican Republic!!

Last Minute Thoughts by Pastor Jake

We are just a few hours away from loading 42 CORE students and leaders onto a bus to begin this adventure that God has called us to. Throughout the past months of training and preparation we have seen God’s faithfulness as he has provided the nearly $55,000 of support that was need for this team to spend 8 days serving Him in the Dominican Republic. I am so encouraged to know that there are hundreds of people who along with me see the potential that this group of students has to make an eternal impact not only while we are in the DR but throughout the rest of their lives. I am confident that God is going to use this trip not only to make a difference in the lives of the Dominican people that we will be ministering to but also to influence the direction each of the students and leaders lives that are a part of our team. I am looking forward to all of the challenges that God has for us in the days ahead and would ask that you pray for us each step of the way.

Here are a few things that you can pray for us about as we begin this trip…

• Safety as we travel and peace for those who are anxious about that part of our experience.
• That we would be able to move smoothly through all of the TSA checkpoints and customs.
• That team members would be encouraging and supportive of one another throughout the long travel day.
• That God will give us opportunities to share His love with people that we spend time with in the buses, airports and airplanes.
• That we will be able to get the rest we need to stay healthy and be ready to serve Him when we arrive in the DR.

It's Weigh In Night

All the checked bags are packed  (under 50 lbs each) and turned in to the leaders along with passports for 42!  Now's when it really starts getting exciting.  Countdown to departure....26 hours!

Thank You and You're Invited

Tomorrow is the day!   As we get ready to leave on our Missions Trip to the
Dominican Republic, here are a few prayer requests:

. We will be traveling March 28, 29 & April 6.
. We will be helping a group in LaYeguada who are planning a
new church.
. We will be helping in a couple of orphanages in the area.

 WHEN WE GET BACK…

We’d like to invite you to join us for dinner on April 14 @ 1:00PM at
NSBC’s Fellowship Hall. We’re looking forward to an exciting afternoon
full of pictures, reports and so much more... Please RSVP to
t.burns@nsbconline.org by April 7 so we can save you a seat!

AGAIN, THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT AND PRAYERS AS WE MINISTER TO OUR NEIGHBORS IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC.