Wednesday, December 24, 2014

Christmas in Monte Plata

A glimpse of the Christmas festivities with our 
Kids Alive International kids in Monte Plata, Dominican Republic.

The Scary Part of Christmas Vacation

For those of you who are parents, I imagine you've been to some sort of school meeting in which teachers and administrators speak about how you can help your children at home. They spoke about discipline, study habits, homework help, or the importance of being involved in your child's academic life while at home.

Now I want you to imagine that you're sitting in a school meeting and you hear the school director say "Remember, parents, not to serve your children alcohol during vacation this year. Don't send them to the store or to the bar to buy alcohol for you. Those places are dangerous. Don't let them drink alcohol in your home. Don't let them leave to a friend's house after dark. This is Christmas season, one of the most dangerous seasons of the year here, and you need to know where your child is at all times. So remember, don't let your child drink alcohol or get drunk this Christmas." 

This is just part of the advisory speech our school director, Deborah, gave to almost 90 parents last week at our last parent meeting before Christmas break. Remember, we are not a high school. We are an elementary school, serving preschool age children (4-5 years old) through 8th graders (12-14 years old). Deborah is an elementary school principal, warning parents not to let their young children drink alcohol or get drunk during vacation. 

This is where I live. This is where we serve. These are the battles we are fighting. This is the darkness that threatens to swallow us nearly every day.  This is the fear that literally brings tears to my eyes as I write this from the comfort of my parents' home in America, knowing that I'm so far from my kids this morning. This is the guilt I carry in being away for even a few days at a time. This is the worry that will constantly be on my mind until I arrive back in Monte Plata in 14 days. Until I see every single one of their faces back at school or back home at Casa Monte Plata, I will worry. And the worry won't stop there. Sometimes the psychological, emotional, and disciplinary consequences of time away from us take weeks to sort through with our kids. 


In the mean time, I ask you to join me in praying consistently, praying fervently, and praying powerfully for our children while they are away from us. Our school is closed until January 7. Our students and their families have been provided with a bag of food and supplies to help them have enough to eat while their children aren't eating 2 meals a day at our school, but what we are able to provide won't be enough for them until January 7. Pray that their families are able to find work, earn money, and use that money wisely so our children won't go hungry. Pray that they are kept safe, safe from abuse in their homes, safe from the dangers in the streets, and safe from emotional and spiritual darkness.  Our Casa Monte Plata residential facility will be closed until Jan 5. Our children have all gone on vacation for the holidays, some with relatives, others with friends or church members in the community. While we love that our children have the opportunity to spend time off-campus, many with family, we are realistic about the effects this vacation may have on them. Pray that they are kept safe from familial battles, safe from threats they are not accustomed to facing while they live within the safety and security of the Casa Monte Plata walls, and safe from the enemy's schemes that jeopardize their spiritual, physical, and emotional wellbeing. 

Sunday, December 7, 2014

What will I remember?

I recently spent the day at a ministry event that, if I'm going to be honest, left me completely exhausted, frustrated, and wanting to retreat into my own little world for a few days. I came home and thought "Ok, I've done my time, paid my dues, now it's 'me time' and I shouldn't feel guilty about closing myself off to ministry tomorrow." I sat down to journal about my day and began to write defeatedly about each thing that had aggravated me. But as I wrote each line, the Holy Spirit began His quiet, gentle work in my heart. 

I angrily wrote: "And the boys said .... and were acting like ... and made me feel so ..." And the Lord whispered: "And do you also remember when they looked up at you and smiled and said "thank you?" Do you remember when they got scared and instinctively reached out to hold your hand? Do you remember when they sat down next to you and put their heads on your shoulder? Do you remember when they grinned at you with lips and cheeks coated in bright blue chicle ice cream? Do you remember the look on their faces when they tried on brand new, never been worn, tags-still-on church shirts and felt like the most special little boys in the entire world?"

Each time I began to write about a new frustration, God would gently remind me of a way in which that exact person or situation had also been a ministering agent of His grace, His joy, or His beauty to me that day. It's all about perspective. God simply asked me, "Kristin, what will you choose to remember about today?" Did I want to remember the frustration, the anger, and the disappointment? Is that really how I wanted to record that day in my memory forever? Is that really what the Lord wanted me to store in my heart from those hours spent doing His work? I had a choice to make - remember the flesh, or remember the Spirit.

I choose to remember the moments of joy in the midst of frustration.
I choose to remember the hope in the midst of seemingly endless disappointment.
I choose to remember the glimpses of eternity. 

Why do I choose to remember the good? Because God remembers not my sin, not the endless list of ways I've disappointed Him, not my selfishness, my anger, nor my guilt. God looks at me and remember Jesus - His sacrifice on the cross for the worst of these. In His great mercy, He extends not an attitude of frustration nor blame but rather a heart of forgiveness and grace. Who am I to extend the opposite to those who I am called to love and serve? 

I, I am He who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, 
and I will not remember your sins. 
-Isaiah 43:25
I will forgive (be merciful toward) their iniquity, 
and I will remember their sin no more. 
- Jeremiah 31:34, again in Hebrews 8:12

I choose to remember in others what I want the Lord to remember in me. I choose to extend grace in my memories of frustrating events with people who disappointed me that day.

What will you choose to remember about today? What will you choose to remember about him or her? What will you choose to remember about this season of your life? 


Remember grace. Remember mercy. Remember Him.