One year ago today....

One year ago today I was returning from a 10 day trip to the DR that culminated with me accepting a position with Solid Rock Missions here in San Juan de la Maguana.    And what a great trip it's been....this past year.    Have I changed?   Have I grown?   Have I loved life?  I think so.   I hope so.   I'm starting to see more and more the importance of being relational...and intentional....and trankilllllooooo trankilllloooo.    I want to dig in here pretty hard, make it home,  build community,  really get to know what makes this place and these people tick.    And I have to savor it- keep it simple- love on folks and ease up on my madcrazy typeA-ish controlling tendencies.  

It feels really good- seeing people that I know in the grocery store or in the market or Monday nights at baseball.   It feels great having friends stop by to chat or play dominos or have their hammered-to-bits-finger washed and dressed.   It feels good walking through the clinic saying hey to the crew and catching up on the news.  Sometimes it even feels good working in the scary room like today, when I take one box or one bag at a time and find a home for its contents.   It feels good to see Dan and Kari in the mornings over coffee and eggs, knowing that we are committed together to this place and each other and to our gente here.     It feels good to admit that I still need help, that I'm always going to be a mess in some way or another, that I fall down more than I soar,  that I really am nothing without Jesus anyway....and that He makes it so worth my while when I fall down before Him admitting it.     We don't take things like our safety here for granted, knowing that He has protected us so often on crazy roads...in possibly dangerous situations...and even with things like eating/drinking.    God has been GOOD.

One year ago I returned from the DR with a vision in my heart and a song in my head.   Today I can say that it's been BETTER than I dreamed, it's been BIGGER than I thought, it's been MORE REAL and MORE BROKEN that I would have imagined, it's been LOUDER than...well....it's just loud, okay?  :)   It's an adventure that I am grateful to be on.    I'm glad Jesus pushed me to CHOOSE THE BIGGER LIFE.   It's big enough for me.  Are you choosing the bigger life?   It's scary as all get out....but it's worth it.