Steve Pruitt from our home church The Bridge in Lawrenceville, GA visited in July 2014 with a group to serve and he had this to say......
I have seen the poverty that marks so much of the developing world and I expected to see it in the Dominican when we were there with Mike and Jodi. So many ministries get stuck at the poverty and fail to move beyond the difficult circumstances. That's just not true with the Shaheens. We were there a week, and the poverty was overshadowed by the people we met and the relationships we made. We didn't meet poor people--we met friends.
We met Mike's FCA team--an amazing set of young men who use baseball to serve their communities. These guys develop baseball clinics and even build ball fields for their villages. They call themselves coaches, but they act like pastors as they build relationships with whole families and share Jesus wherever they have an audience. We sent some academic Spanish Bible resources a few months ago. Mike says the guys are reading them cover to cover and hungry for more.
We met the children of several communities, and we made friends with a local humanitarian center for families where one of Mike's team had been building a relationship. Because of that relationship, we were the first group they allowed to come in with the Gospel, and the friendship was reinforced with hard work and excited children. Each day we joined these kids and then went to the villages of Mike's team, always helping develop the relationships his guys had already begun, and always astonished by God leading people to Jesus through both us and these young men.
And we met the forgotten people of Boca Chica--the streetwalkers and window washers. Our ladies worked with a local ministry to prostitutes while the rest of our team served sandwiches to the homeless boys who wash windows in the intersections. Two of these guys trusted Jesus the first night. The next night, we were joined by a couple of armed soldiers who had questions of their own about God. At lunch, we met a similar set of folks working on the beach. And our hearts were burdened for these kids. That's why we're joining with the Shaheens, the Rowland Foundation, and The Bridge Community Church in south Georgia to develop Holt's House of Hope--a house and ministry for the street boys of Boca Chica.
When we tell the stories, we rarely describe it like I just did. We don' refer to Mike's guys and street boys. We talk about Miguel and David and Willie and Maicol and Ariel and Luis and Albis. We tell stories about Julio and Antonio and Renaldo and Hector. We did not meet a group of people struggling to overcome difficult circumstances. We met friends who needed Jesus just like we do. And we cannot wait to see them again.
In grace and truth,
Steve Pruitt
Lead Pastor
The Bridge Church Atlanta
Bill Emerich tells about his time in the DR....
November 2012 - My wife Jennifer and I have shared several weeks in the Dominican with Mike & Jodi Shaheen over the past of 3 years. When you see a young boy so covet a granola bar because receiving that small gift means his family will eat that night, it makes you realize how insignificant the "things" of this world really are. We have no appreciation in this country for what it truly means to rely on God. Coming to this realization has forced us to reevaluate our relationships with our God. We spend more time now in prayer, more time in God's word, more time chasing after God and His son Jesus Christ. And now God has both blessed us and really challenged us. He has given into our care 3 little girls ages 5, 3, & 1 who were removed from their home. They are at the same time the greatest blessing we could imagine (and NOT one we were seeking) and a constant reminder that we CANNOT fully serve God without relying completely on God.
- Bill Emerich
 |
| Bill shares the Gospel with a group in San Jose, Dominican Republic |
Dave Franco tells about his time living near the Shaheens for about a year....
October 2012 - Nine months ago, my wife Whitney and I moved to the Dominican Republic. I had worked a one-week baseball camp in Boca Chica a few months prior to our move, but Whitney had never been to the DR in her life. This move was a big step of faith for us, as we didn't have any real relationships in place yet. Essentially, we had a small Spanish background, a part time online job and my baseball blog to support us, and a desire to live and serve in a Spanish speaking country. "Free Agents for God" is what we kept calling ourselves. The months preceding our move, our most consistent prayer was simple: God, please provide a God-honoring ministry and community for us to come along side and serve with in the DR.
There is no question that God answered our prayer through FCA and the Shaheens. I found Mike on the internet (insert internet dating joke here), and we've been close friends ever since. To say that the Shaheens have been our Domincan life-line would be an understatement. The Shaheens are some of the most generous people we've ever met. Between the car sharing, guest room-bed sharing, and Jodi's avocado dip that frequently lands in our fridge, the generosity of the Shaheens continues to blow us away on a regular basis. Christ tells us not to hold onto earthly possessions too tightly, and sharing life with the Shaheens provides a great example of that on an almost daily basis.
In terms of the FCA baseball ministry, I could not have found a better fit for my passion for Jesus and baseball. It's been an honor to be able to invest in the FCA ministry. We get to see up close the many lives positively touched on a regular basis... bringing glory to God. In a country where Godly men and husbands are the exception, Mike has surrounded the ministry with exceptional Dominican men who are passionate about sharing Jesus Christ with players and coaches. I'd need a few more newsletters to explain in detail the blessing that FCA has specifically meant to Whitney and I, and the specific impact I've seen it have on many others.
Blessings to everyone,
David Franco
 |
| Dave and Whitney have become close friends of ours! |
June 2012 - I had the privilege of living with the Shaheen family for the month of June this summer and serving along side of them. We did baseball and softball with the kids of San Jose and lead Sunday school for all the kids on Sunday mornings. My last week in San Jose I got to lead Sunday school, teaching the kids about the armor of God with a little game of 'Lindsay Says'. God really spoke to my heart in San Jose with a little boy who couldn't even talk...He stuck by our sides every day and even carried my backpack wherever I went. He was always so full of life. I got to play softball again too! I played with the sassiest group of girls from Boca Chica, and they taught me so much more than just how to improve my softball skills. We shared so many laughs on and off the field--riding in the truck, and eating empanadas after practice together. Coach Mike and I studied through Acts each morning, and Mrs. Jodi taught me a new hobby--picture taking! The Lord opened my eyes in so many ways and moved my heart to love Him and His people more. This was the best experience of my life. ~ Lindsay Emerich
 |
| Lindsay at a Dominican orphanage Casa de Luz |
A Note from the Garvins after their April 2012:
We were greatly blessed to spend a large portion of our spring break with the Shaheens in the Dominican Republic. What a privilege it was! We were able to witness first hand the Lord working mightily in their midst. It is obvious - around every turn - that the Lord is using them in great ways among the Dominican people. Even though they have really only been there a short period of time, the Shaheen's have totally embraced the Dominican culture....and the Dominicans have totally embraced them as well!
Of
course, the love of Jesus knows no language barriers! Mike, Jodi, Wyman,
and Grace are showering their Savior's love on anyone to whom they come into
contact. They open up their home and their hearts at all hours of
the day and night extending food, drink, funds, Bible study, instruction, and a
love for baseball. It is cool how a common bond of a particular sport can
open doors that would otherwise be closed!
Dominicans can be seen on every street corner, on every vacant field, on
every sidewalk playing baseball.....and then a little more baseball!
God
has prepared, equipped, and destined Mike and Jodi for such a ministry as this!
We would highly encourage you to pay them a visit....not for their benefit
but for yours! You can then get a glimpse of Almighty God at work!
It will be well worth your time! You will come home with a greater
desire to serve Jesus with a willing / sold-out heart!! You will also
come home appreciating your country, your home, your shoes, your
electricity, your drinking water, your indoor plumbing, your trash collection,
and your mail service....just to name a few!!
Greg, Angela &
Colton Garvin
 |
| Of course we took the Garvins to Nicolo's Pizza in Boca Chica, best pizza in the DR!! |
“Recently my 21 year old son and
I traveled to the DR, along with another father/son team, to witness and
experience the FCA Baseball ministry there. I expected to see poverty,
and we did. I expected to see baseball being played with a passion and
fervor, and we did. And, I expected to see Mike and Jodi investing
themselves daily into the lives of local men, women, and children with the
purpose of spreading God’s love and grace in their community, and we did.
But the effect that these observations had on me was quite different than I had
envisioned. In their poverty I saw an ability of the Dominicans to find
happiness in “the simple things” which left me humbled and disappointed in my
own sense of priorities. Through their approach to playing baseball, I
became reminded of the days when we played the game for the purist of
reason…because we loved it. The games were played as just that, they were
simply games. The kids shared gloves (where gloves were available) with
the opposing teams, settled their own close calls, and never seemed to be too
concerned with the score or inning. They just wanted the sun to never go
down and end their game! It was refreshing to watch them come and leave
as friends who would need one another tomorrow for another game to take
place. But, most of all, I was amazed by the platform for Christian
discipleship which the Shaheens had found in the DR, and by their unbridled
passion to serve as missionaries for Christ! Their daily drive to grow
this platform and expand the mission was and is awe-inspiring to me, and I
cannot find words which adequately express my feelings in this regard.
Some things must be seen and not just heard to be properly conveyed.
Finally, as a Christian I know intuitively that God is omnipresent. But
for me I felt closer to Him and to my son during my days in the DR than I had
ever felt. Perhaps it was because of a sudden appreciation for all my
earthly possessions? Perhaps it was through my experiencing of a simpler
and less intensive daily rigor, allowing more quality time for God and my
son? Or perhaps it was because I was not distracted by man’s creation
from truly seeing the natural beauty of God’s creation? I suspect it was
some of each, and more. I honestly can’t say. But what was
clear, crystal clear, was that God was in the DR and He was diligently at work
through FCA Baseball and His faithful servants, the Shaheens! I
would STRONGLY suggest to anyone who is capable of doing so to accept Mike’s
and Jodi’s generosity and go visit them.” -Bob
Worthington
No comments:
Post a Comment