After a late night snack and an informational meeting, the players when to bed around 12:30am. The next day (Sunday), the team and the Shaheen's woke up bright and early, ate breakfast, and headed out to church in the capital. That was a great experience for this group in particular. Not only did they get to participate in a Dominican service (in spanish but translated by headphone), but also a Baptist/Nondenominational type service. Most of the guys on this trip are Roman Catholic and have never been to a protestant service. It was great for me to see their reactions and to explain to them a lot of the differences in the two denominations. I grew up Catholic before switching to nondenominational and so did Jason Haniger, so it was a God thing that we were able to have good discussions on the differences in denominations. The overall discussions were positive and the guys were really excited for the week ahead.
On the way to the Sugarcane village.
Monday morning was wonderful. After fellowship with the coaches on top of the tower that overlooks the campus, I had the opportunity to speak to the SF Giants Dominican team. They are the two time DR champs and of course the Giants MLB team won the World Series. I pray that God will somehow use me in their lives over the next few years. There is no doubt that they are caught up in the opportunity to be a Major Leaguer and make lots of money. They have the world in their hands a lot like our college students do in the States. After I spoke to the Giants, I jumped on la Gua Gua (Bus) with the college FCA team and we headed out to a sugarcane village in San Pedro de Macoris. We brought some wiffle balls and bats, frisbees, bouncy balls, and of course, some chiclee (gum) and dulces (candy). Our big, burly, shy young men turned into soft, extroverted magnifiers of Christ's light. We had a blast playing with the kids. Here are the pictures:
Coach House throwing a football like a baseball player.
Who needs the Boston Garden. A tree, a car wheel rim, and some flat ground.
Coach Haniger "the human carousel"
"You have some pretty cool pets. I have pets at home too. A cat, a dog."
All kids love bubbles!
"Bringing the cheese"
Some lovin
Let's praise and talk about our Savior.
Picture of the day.
The guys really loved spending time in the village on Monday morning. They could not get enough of it. We plan on feeding a village on Thursday afternoon and they are really looking forward to it. Spending time in a sugarcane village (batey) really is a major change in perspective. Dirt floors, no AC, no transportation, little amounts of food, limited water, etc... On Monday afternoon, the game scheduled in the capital was postponed due to weather, but the guys did not care. They were still buzzing over the time spent with the kids in the batey.
Tuesday they played a doubleheader of baseball in the capital. They told me that the best part of the games was the interaction with the other team. Players from each team spent time in their opponents dugout in order to talk about baseball and life. It was pretty cool to hear that the games were extremely competitive and the both teams won one game each. The Gospel was presented after the game and the Dominicans accepted the gifts of Bibles with excitement and thanks.
Wednesday July's team from San Pedro came to the Highlands to play a game at 9:30am. The game was postponed after 3 innings because of rain, but that did not matter. The teams played soccer together in the rain, fooseball, ping pong, four square, and then ate lunch together. It was a special time between Dominicans and Americans. The best part of the day came when July (pronouced Julie) spoke in front of both teams after lunch, and for the first time, openly gave his testimony. His players were stunned (in a very exciting way). I am very excited about July and his future as a Christian leader in his community. July has committed to meet with me every week to read and discuss the Bible. He always tells me,"I teach you spanish, you teach me Bible." That's a deal! later in the afternoon, the boys went to La casa de Luz, an orphanage for physically and mentally handicapped children. There are not words to explain the experience they had with the kids in Casa de Luz. Suffice it to say, we had a lot to discuss after dinner last night. I am really enjoying my time with these young men. They wear their hearts on their sleeves. They ask good questions and are always honest.
Today may be a wash. The tropical storm has brought us a lot of rain. So far there have not been any bad wind gusts. We should be pretty safe as long as we stay inside. Thank you for your prayers on this storm. Hopefully later today we will be able to feed the village of El Penon (the village that I brought the 3 college guys last week). We would like to finish the week tomorrow with a ball game and some time at Boca Chica Beach. There is no better place to learn about Dominican culture than at la playa de BC.
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