missionaryMAC

​I've been to Belize six times this year - perhaps more than I've been to any given country in any given year. Had things gone according to plan - my plan, anyhow - my last visit would have been late August . Alas,  they did not , so there I found myself there in mid-November building a playground at Little Lambs Lutheran Preschool with my favorite (read: only) all-male team: Trinity Downtown from Houston, TX.  Like me, two of the team members arrived early to do some on-ground prep work. Somehow all of THAT is going to turn into a playground. BBQ dinner on team arrival day.  We were privileged to receive God's gifts alongside the congregation at Iglesia Luterana El Buen Pastor, next door to the preschool. After a scrumptious sandwich spread courtesy of missionary wife Markie (in absentia!), the project began with a "mustering" by team leader Thomas (left) and a prayer.  The Rev. Benjamín Flores invited the men of the community to work alongside the volunteers and...

Spelling was my THING in elementary and middle school. I'm pretty sure I went at least one full academic year without missing a word on a spelling test (and without studying). The only year I didn't make the schoolwide spelling bee was 2nd grade, and I'll never forget how to spell stampede because of it. 'Canonize' and 'ascertain' are also imprinted in my brain.  Accordingly, when Josh mentioned that the public school he visits 2x a week (coincidentally, the one that rents classroom space from my church) was having a spelling bee, I cleared my schedule so I could go. My presence was fortuitous; the bee was postponed from Friday to yesterday because of Hurricane Melissa, which meant two of the "judges" could no longer come. From spectator to official? Sign me up.  Yes, there were DECORATIONS , including flowers.  Each of the three judges had a scoresheet like this where we first listed the spellers' names and grades. As they each took their turn...

Last week's team of go-getters from St. Matthew Lutheran Church in Lee's Summit, MO, probably could  have painted the entirety of Las Américas red if I'd asked them to; instead, their marching orders had them stick to Iglesia Luterana Amigos de Cristo, inside and out. While there was also a seafoam green, a bright white, and a deep rust color, we went through "Colonial White" in 5-gallon increments and affectionately dubbed it "Lutheran Beige." Receiving God's gifts from seminarian Kairo alongside the congregation before getting their hands dirty.  The congregation provided hot dogs, and more importantly, Christian fellowship, following the service.  Our cultural outing was a Sunday afternoon chocolate-making experience in the Colonial Zone. I've done it once before but was excited to have dark  chocolate as an option this time. Sisters in Christ from the US (left) and DR (right).  St. Matthew had generously funded a bathroom renovation that was ...

YOU get an eyeglass clinic, and YOU get an eyeglass clinic, and...! Yep, mere days after I returned from hosting a MOST Ministries  eyeglass team in Jamaica , I'd told Dana I could interpret for a day of HER MOST eyeglass team in the DR. Turns out interpreters were easier to come by than anticipated, so she suggested I come around lunch to chat with the team over pica pollo  and assess the situation.  Bety's & Macarena's (far right & 2nd from right) smiling faces greeted me at the registration table. Not long after, Liana (far left), wife of new seminary student Luis Enrique (Cuba) joined us. She's an optometrist! It canNOT be a coincidence that after months of visa paperwork, a seminary wife who happens  to be an optometrist arrives the week before an eyeglass clinic! Tirzah & Vicar Gavin weren't far behind.  Getting up and heading to find Dana, someone screaming "Erin!!!" practically bowled me over. It was Marie (left), a perfect stranger wh...