Merry Christmas from the Dominican Republic



Group from Abiline, TX

 Greetings brothers and sisters in Christ!

Cindy and I have returned to the DR for two weeks.  We arrived on Christmas Eve around midnight.  Praise God we made it out of Des Moines which was experiencing a snowstorm that morning.  Due to a delay in Dallas and short turnaround in Miami our bags did not arrive with us.  A word of advice if you don't already do so, pack at least two days worth of clothes in your carry-on!  The Christmmas holiday caused the baggage delivery service to delay our bags by an extra day so we finally got our bags on Sunday at about 3:00pm. 

One interesting note about the holiday here in the DR, most people celebrate with family on Christmas Eve and then just take Christmas day off.  Gifts are usually exchanged on Epiphany or Three Kings Day, January 6.  We've heard rumors that the government is trying to change that day to a Friday or Monday so people aren't taking off work in the middle of the week . People too keen with the government messing with a holy day!

This week we are hosting a group from Abilene, Texas.  They are mostly older adults (I'm not going to identify what I mean by "older") and a high school freshman.  They are constructing a chapel, benches, and conducting ministry outreach and dental clinincs.  For not being here before, they are doing a great job.  In fact after one day of work they are nearly 2/3 done with the chapel!  This is great progress considering we only have three days to build this chapel as opposed to the normal four.  We also have much needed help from our Dominican staff who are off work for the Christmas holiday.  The chapel is being built for Pastor Gregory, who has graduated from the Bible Institute started by Pastor Rudy at the church next door to the TIME Center here.  Pastor Rudy was in in turn led to the Lord by by a pastor that TIME founders Zeral and Doretta Brown witnessed to back in the late 1940's.  This is a shining example of the consequences of discipleship for future generations. 

The weather here at this time is very comfortable.  Dry with days in the lower 80's and nights in the 60's.  It's strange actually having to put on a long sleeve shirt or use a blanket at night, and yes, the mosquitoes are still around.  Cindy and I will have the first mosquito bites of the year!  Christmas decorations abound, and lights are on the houses but it is a bit unusual seeing lights in palm trees.

Cindy and I will return to the States on January 8 and will spend a few weeks visiting friends and family in Minnesota and continue our partnership building.  At the beginning of February we plan to put our home in Des Moines on the market and plan to return to the DR for the spring and summer sometime in March.

Our training in Colorado Springs was invaluable.  We learned much about ourselves and the challenges we expect to face on the mission field.  Our days were filled with classes, simulations, role play activities and small group discussions.  Evenings and weekends were spend relaxing, hiking, fellowshipping and just trying to digest the material learned over the previous week.  Cindy and I also survived a virus similar to the one that went through the DR this summer.  From what we heard from those who had it, it wasn't pleasant.  We made lifelong friends with missionaries who will be travelling to the utermost parts of the earth, working for the same cause.  It will be a time remembered and we'd highly suggest any of you future missionaries participate in the progam if you have the opportunity!

That's a quick update, thanks all for your prayers and support and hope you can take some time in the busyness of the season to reflect on our Savior's birth and the free gift given to us.

Kris and Cindy

Praises:
Safe arrival in the DR and eventual arrival of our luggage.

Great training program at Mission Training International and safe travel.

Our prayer partners, monthly and one time support continues to grow.

Good health.

Prayers:
Fruitful time of ministry and planning for 2011 here in the DR.

Successful sale of our house in Des Moines.

Continued prayer, monthly and one time supporters.

Our home church, Indianola Heights Evangelical Free Church is planning a trip to the DR this summer.  Pray that all the planning would go well.



TIME Site Director Noe Figueroa & Pastor Gregory




Cindy gets out from behind a desk!





Kris using his Minnesota lumberjack skills



Long time no blog



Mission Training International, Palmer Lake, CO

Hello all!  It has been quite some time since the last blog.  We are currently in Palmer Lake, CO at Mission Training International.  We will spend three weeks here learning about cultural adaptation and interpersonal relationships.  The training has been great so far, revealing as much about ourselves as the challenges we'll face working with others.  It is amazing being with missionaries who will be serving the Lord all over the world.  We have also met missionaries who serve in the DR as well.  Speaking of which, we will be returning to the DR on Christmas Eve for two weeks.  We'll be assisting with another group and working on the budget for the next year.  Pray for us during this time that we are away from our families during the holidays.  When we return to the States in early January we will continue our partnership building and hope to sell our house in Des Moines.  Provided our partnership building goes well we hope to return to the DR in March on a more permanent basis.  Please see below our activities over the past couple of months.

After returning from our trip in the DR in Sept/Oct we attended the TIME Ministries board meeting in Dallas, TX.  We had a great time of fellowship with missionaries from the Monterrey, Mexico and Dallas, TX locations.  Plans were discussed for the coming year and Cindy and I were officially approved as missionaries!

In late October we took a short vacation and visited friends in Orlando, FL.  The day after we arrived the four of us (six if you include two Shelties) drove up and spent a week at a cabin in Gerton, NC.  The fall colors in the mountains were beautiful and it was a great time of relaxation. Upon returning to Orlando we continued partnership building with churches and individuals we met during the summer in the DR.

From Orlando we flew to the DR to help with a senior high group from Ovilla Christian School.  Apparently during this week grades 9-12 take missions trips.  The seniors travelled to the DR and built a chapel for a Hatian community in Santo Domingo.  It was a great experience for them and we even had some impromptu baseball ministry at a nearby sandlot.

Praises:

Our partnership building goes well.  Although we are at 37% of our total monthly need, we are at nearly 61% of the minimum we need to leave for the field.

The opportunity to attend training at Mission Training International.

Our supportive church family.

Opportunity to return to the DR on a regular basis until we are there full time.


Prayer Requests:
That God would provide the resources and work out the details for the sale of our house.

Our full support would come in by March.

Pray for our families as we are away during the holidays.





Training at Mission Training International

Back in the Dominican Republic

Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails. Proverbs 19:21

I think we could have used that for almost any day here in the DR! While we did accomplish some of the work we expected to do down here during this short time, we had other adventures, too. Well, maybe not so much adventures as much as the nature of living here. We thought we'd try to update the blog while we're here.

Generator: Those of you who read our prayer update saw our need for prayer for the generator. Here in the DR most people have electricity, but it is not always guaranteed 24 hours a day. From what we've heard, there's something of a political aspect to it. Depending on who is in power determines what areas may receive more consistent power. Here on the north side of Santo Domingo we usually lose power a couple times a day. As a result, we have a generator on the roof that kicks in during a blackout. Last week the generator developed a cooling leak from a broken thermostat housing. Using some epoxy weld we managed to temporarily fix the old housing while a used replacement part was tracked down. Thanks to the assistant maintenance man Jean Carlos and site director Noe for finding the part. I can't imagine finding such a specific piece in a city of 2.5 million who speak Spanish!

Float Switch: While many houses around us have city water, the TIME Center has a well. The well feeds a cistern which then supplies the building with our water. This summer, the float switch for the well pump failed. The float switch is much like the switch on many sump pumps back in the States but backwards. In our case, it turns the pump off when the cistern is full and on when it is empty. Without the switch we had to manually turn the pump on and off. If we forgot the cistern would overflow and flood the neighbors, or run empty when someone was in the middle of a shower! Fortunately we now have a new float switch in place.

We also had the pleasure of attending a Dominican wedding in a chapel TIME built many years ago. We were invited earlier that day (no need for invitations, the pastor drove up in his van while we were working and invited us). It was an amazing experience, more info will follow in our next newsletter.

We also participated in work day at the church next door, refinishing the benches, painting and general clean-up projects.

Our last couple of days here before the board meeting in Dallas are filled with giving a tour of the ministry to a prospective summer group. This could be one of the largest single groups we've had in the DR, perhaps 60-80 people. The largest group we had this past summer was a combined group of 52 so we'll need lots of prayer in coordinating if this one comes to pass!

Thanks again, Kris and Cindy Anderson

Praises:

Cooler weather this week than most of the summer.

Many maintenance tasks and paperwork were accomplished.

Plans are coming together for next years ministry. There is much potential!

Prayers:

Contiued focus on God's leading in our lives.

TIME Ministries board meeting later this week.

Violence in Monterrey, Mexico would subside and allow for groups there this summer.

For students thinking of becoming summer interns next year. That God would work in their hearts for direction.

That our prayer and financial support continues to come in.

Deputation

"Among Christian missionaries, the process or period of time during which they raise support for going to their mission field. This use of the word has been common in churches and missions organizations for over a century but recently has been giving way to the more 'bureaucratic' term 'home ministry assignment'. As commonly used, a missionary 'does deputation' or is 'on deputation'. However, the missionary is not called a 'deputy' nor is the person said to be part of a 'deputation'. Deputation is said to begin when the missionary is commissioned to be a missionary and it ends when the person goes to the mission field." Wikipedia definition

Got it? Me neither. I thought I was going to get a badge. Actually, for years I thought it was called "debutation." At any rate, that's where Cindy and I are at now. We've been back from the DR for over a month now, training, speaking at our home church, meeting with friends, family and supporters and taking care of paperwork.

What kind of paperwork you ask? As you can see in the photo above, we've been developing and printing our support and information materials. Praise the Lord for Cindy's design skills! We've also been navigating the wonderful world of health insurance. We are responsible for finding our own healthcare coverage and we never realized how much the corporate world subsidized our premiums. After checking with the major health insurance providers we were blessed to hear about a company called Medi-Share. It is a Christian based health care coverage company that works a bit like a cooperative. Our premiums are matched with the needs of a particular patient. We receive information on them so that we can lift them up in prayer. The customer service reps are very helpful, even praying with you over the phone. Our rep is a Puerto Rican married to a Dominican from an obscure town we are very familiar with. It's amazing how the Lord works!

The next few months are going to be very busy for us. We leave on Monday for a week in the DR to take care of accounting duties and catch up on some construction and maintenance projects. From there we fly to Dallas for the TIME board meeting. We're back in Des Moines for a couple of weeks after that and then down to Orlando to visit with friends and to some partnership building. Then we fly back down to the DR to help with a short-term group. We'll be back during the week of Thanksgiving and then off to Colorado Springs for three weeks of missionary training. It's a crazy schedule and we humbly ask that you pray for travel mercies for us.

As promised before, we'll try to keep the updates coming and take you along on this adventure with the Lord through the web! Thanks again for your prayers and support.

Praises:

The ability to stay in the church's parsonage during our time back. It has been a helpful base for operations. It also gave me some exercise mowing the lawn. And here I thought I was done with that...

Reconnecting with friends and family, thanks so much for your interest and support in God's work in the DR.

Cindy has completed her Education Specialist degree and Principal licensure. Praise the Lord Drake allowed her to finish when she got back.


Prayers:

That partnership building would go well and our support would come in quickly but also patience and waiting on Him.

Boldness as we share about the Lord's calling in our lives.

Travel mercies, especially when we drive to Colorado for training. We trust in the Lord, we do not necessarily trust in our older vehicles!

Pray for the TIME board meeting and for more workers to enter the harvest field.






Training with TIME Director of Operations Rick Jacobsen. Rick is the former Site Director for the TIME Monterrey location.

Where Did The Summer Go?

"Why do you call me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say? I will show you what he is like who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice. He is like a man building a house who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it because it was well built. But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete." Luke 7:19

This verse has very practical applications in a structural sense as well as a spiritual sense. This week we laid the foundation for our last chapel of the summer season in the Dominican Republic. The foundation is the basis for the chapel and one of the most important parts that determines the longevity of the structure. Even though the structure may burn or blow down in a hurricane, the foundation will remain to be built on again.

When we arrive at a chapel site, the first order of business is clearing the area of vegetation. Our site this week had Yucca plants and Corn so we got a little taste of Iowa as we cleared the land. We then lay out our foundation lines, 20' wide by 28' long. Stakes are pounded in the ground and strings tied between them. The Pathagorean theorem is then used to ensure that the corners are square. High school math does come in handy even 25 years later!

We then begin to dig trenches for the footing, and here we never know what to expect. We've encountered rock, coral, mud, Tarantulas, roots and any number of obstructions that can slow the process. The Lord knew this was our last week and presented us with a blessing of a level site and dry dirt for a change.

After the trenches are dug (with shovels and pick axes mind you) we mix the concrete. Two wheelbarrows each of gravel and sand, followed by concrete mix and water. Then it's time for the mixing dance, six or so people moving around the pile turning it over until thoroughly mixed and then filling the wheelbarrow full for deposit in the trenches. Rebar is set in the footings and through the blocks. The rebar is eventually bent over the base plate of the chapel to hold it in place.

Once the footing is laid, the concrete block is set in place. Depending on the slope, one side may be five blocks high while another is only one. Again we were blessed this week with only a corner that was three blocks high with most of the rest of the structure being only one or two block high. The gaps are filled and the holes in the concrete are filled with a mixture the Dominicans like to call "soupy-soupy" as it is a very runny form of concrete. The foundation sits for a few days to cure and then the chapel construction begins.

In relation to the verse above, what are we building our foundation on? On who do we depend for our hopes and dreams and life decisions? Are they our own abilities, education, or financial success? Are they our friends, coworkers, family, teachers, learned professors or philosophers? All those may change with the times and immediate circumstances. Those foundations are often unstable and begin to crack when put under pressure. But in Christ we can depend for He is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow, and His plan cannot be shaken. Base your foundation on Him, and though the torrents may shake you, your foundation will remain.

Praise the Lord for our summer here in the Dominican Republic, it has been an eye opening experience and we apologize sincerely for not blogging more often. Our schedule has been busy and often it is easier to update with Facebook, though we realize that some of you may not have access. Perhaps in our last couple of weeks here we'll be able to summarize our summer and how we've seen the Lord leading in our lives and our future plans. Thank you all again for your thoughts and prayers!

Praises:
A summer without major illnesses or injuries for either of us.
Great summer interns who have finished the race well and who made our jobs easier.
10 chapels built for worshipping the Lord in the Dominican Republic.

Prayers:
Clarity from God to serve Him in full-time missions.
Cultural adjustment as we return to Des Moines in mid-August.
The stories and events we share would reflect what He has done here, not us.
The 10 chapels built this summer would be full of people worshipping the Lord.

No TIME to Think

"The Lord will guide you always; He will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame." Isaiah 58:11

When we first started this blog, we thought we'd be updating it at least once a week. Once the reality of work here set in, our plans will likely change. Since our last update, much has happened here in the DR! Our summer interns arrived a little over two weeks ago and are a great group to work with. They are working well as a team and is a blessing that so many from different backgrounds can connect when working for the Lord.

We also have the first week of groups under our belts. We had two groups building two chapels in five days, which to our knowledge has never been done here before. We ran out of hammers! It's been a very busy schedule, waking up a 6:00am and doing construction until noon, ministry in the afternoon or evening, and bed around 10:00pm. As soon as we drop off one group at the airport, another arrives and we start all over again. We begin construction on two more chapels Monday morning!

We are settling into our duties well here. Cindy has been handling schedules and finances, which is a learning experience in a cash society. She also jumps in where needed, once in a while in the kitchen and going to the grocery store. Keeping track of receipts and budgets and exchange rates can make one's head spin. Kris has been learning the ins and outs of construction in the shop. It's amazing how all the pieces of a chapel come together at the site, even when he messes up all the measurements!

Also since the last update, we moved into our apartment in the TIME Center. It's a blessing to have our own quarters and the convenience of a kitchen and private bathroom, bedroom and office space. Even when there are 80 people on the other side of the door it's still fairly quiet! One reason our updates have been so sparse is because we do not have internet access in the apartment yet and we have to travel about a block to the building where the office is located. This is even more difficult with the groups now here! We did have Internet in the apartment for a day, but it was the wrong speed. Instead of just leaving it and upgrading at a later time, the phone company came and took back all the equipment so we're back to square one. We guess the Lord has more important things for us to do at the moment!

We are wrapping up our first day off in five weeks, so it's time to head for bed in preparation for a 6:00am wake-up call! Thanks for all your prayers!

Praises:

We have both been healthy in the midst of many people with illnesses

We have moved into our apartment for the summer

A great group of interns that get along with each other

Two teams have made a legacy for the Lord by constructing chapels (and not losing any fingers in the process!)

Prayers:

For our Site Director, Noe and his family. He has been up before 5:00am for several days to assist with foundation work for the chapels as our other foundation person won't be available until next week. Pray that Noe would find time to rest in the Lord and that Kris will be able to learn how to do foundation work as well.

Our decision to continue full time with TIME. The Lord does not seem to be showing us a reason not to!

Safety for us and the groups during the construction and ministry projects as well as healthy stomachs!

That the groups would develop a heart for missions and serving the Lord.

Kristian and Cindy Anderson

"... and the waters kept coming."

"For forty days the flood kept coming on the earth, and as the waters increased they lifted the ark high above the earth."

Genesis 7:17

We know that it wasn't really a flood, though there was quite a bit of water coming in the building where we are staying. We are currently staying in the TIME Ministries Guest House that is available for those that may desire a few comforts of home as they visit and experience the ministry here. The rooms have individual air conditioners and also a water heater for hot showers. Though a cooler shower feels better after a hot day, the ability to temper the water is nice. We are working with staff here to finish an apartment in the TIME Center where we will be more permantely for the summer.

The weather has been warm all week with showers periodically throughout the day. On this particular day there was a torrential downpour and the front porch was filling up with water from a plugged drain. We quickly found some bowls and buckets to start throwing the water out and to minimize the amount going into the building. We soon were joined by others that showed us were the drains were so we could allow the water to move more "naturally" than us throwing it out ourselves.

Are We There Yet?

He told them: "Take nothing for the journey-no staff, no bag, no bread, no money, no extra tunic." Luke 9:3

Oh how we wish we had the faith of the apostles! We spent our last day stateside packing for the plane ride tomorrow. It's amazing how much stuff we think we need for three months. Fortunately we'll be serving in a tropical location as opposed to Alaska. We wouldn't have room for the sweaters!

We apologize for the delay in blogging, it seems as though responsibilities always fill the alloted time one has. After a cold week in Minnesota with family we are ready to depart for the Dominican Republic! We have several answers to prayer to report. First, full support for our missions experience this summer has been raised. Thanks to all for your prayers and contributions. In addition, our cat Tiger has found a loving home with a former coworker.

Our home in Des Moines is ready for renting. Our original plan was to rent furnished but discovered that prospective renters would likely want it unfurnished. We had a last minute scramble to get all the furnishings into storage, thanks to all who helped out! Speaking of renters, it sounds like there are some good candidates, so please pray the Lord brings the right tenants.

We would also appreciate your prayers as TIME Ministries plans have changed this summer. Due to the violence in Mexico, all the tours scheduled for the summer in Monterrey have been rescheduled for the Dominican Republic and Dallas, TX. Please pray for the staff, interns and groups that will be relocating, as well as the churches in Monterrey that depend so heavily on the work and ministry usually provided.

We should close at this point as we'll be waking up at 4:30am to get to Minneapolis for a 9:10am departure. We plan to arrive in Santo Domingo at 10:30pm Eastern time.

Praises:

Full support has been raised

Storage for furniture

Home is ready for renting

Cindy's Aunt and Uncle driving us to the airport!

Prayers:

Ministry changes for TIME

Safe travel with attitudes and actions that reflect Christ

Good renters for our home

Oh, how did the packing go? Have a look!

Mission Impossible Garage Sale

Jesus replied, "What is impossible with men is possible with God." Luke 18:27

Welcome to our first blog post! We know some of you have been blogging for years but this is our first attempt! Our garage sale was a huge success. We were blessed with beautiful weather and opportunities to share the Lord's leading in our lives. A big thanks to all who helped with logistics or purchased our trash for your treasure (no returns, please!) Yes, it is difficult to part with possessions but a bit freeing at the same time. Then again, hopefully we won't be needing winter boots for some time to come.

The Lord continues to clear roadblocks for our missions work this summer in the Dominican Republic and we are above 80% of our fundraising goal. Thanks to all for your prayers and sacrificial giving. We continue to prepare the house for rental. The upstairs floors have been refinished and personal belongings are being packed away. We should have invested in the Rubbermaid company!

As far as the pets are concerned, Cobalt will have a home in the country to run and play in for the rest of her days but we are still praying for a home for Tiger. If you're looking for a loving 13 year-old Maine Coon kitty, let us know!

That's about all for now, we'll try to keep blogging as time permits.

Kris and Cindy Anderson

Praises:

Garage sale is over!

Floors are refinished
Generous donation of Rosetta Stone software for Spanish

Nearing our support goal for the summer

Home for Cobalt

Prayers:

Home for Tiger

Cindy's last week at work
Focus on the Lord and not try to plan too much

Renters for our home