Reflections on My Trip to the Dominican Republic

 by Linda Cliff

    It has been a few weeks since I returned from the DR.  My time there was one of hard physical work, living outside my comfort zone in terms of the activities of daily living and growing in my spiritual life.  During our orientation to our time with the House Upon the Rock Ministry, Sharon Branson stated that one of the goals of the Ministry was to “ruin us for the normal Christian Life”.  Since my return I have been reflection on this statement and these are my thoughts to date.

     Prayer.  This is something we all do as Christians.  We pray to give thanks, to ask for direction, to commune with God.  What I saw in the DR was people praying as part of their lives.  Our first day in the DR we attended church service with a local congregation.  Three weeks prior to our arrival they had been told that their landlord would no longer be able to rent them the place where they held their worship service.  They had contacted us and asked for our prayers that they would be able to find a place to worship.  This was announced at a local church service and God moved someone to donate $20,000 for the purchase of land on which to build a church.  When this was announced at the service we were attending, the joy of this answered prayer was overwhelming.  

    Then there is the man who prayed for a new home and was convinced that God would fulfill his request in 2015.  We helped to finish building his house during our trip.  

    There is the Doctor who had no more medicines to give to the people who visited the clinic.  She started to pray two weeks prior to our arrival in the DR asking for direction about her role in the Ministry in Pedregal.  We arrived with three suitcases filled to the brim with medications that she needs to do her work.  

     One day on the worksite, I looked up from mixing mortar to witness two members of the Mission team bowed in prayer.  I do not know what they were praying about, but my wonder was what can I learn about my daily life and the place prayer has in my day to day activities.  These thoughts were reinforced when I was working in the clinic and saw the clerical staff bowed in prayer when the doctor was working with one of the clinic patients.  I also heard the doctor praying with a patient who needed spiritual care as well as physical care.

    So how have I been “ruined”?  I have seen powerful answers to prayers while I was in the DR.  I have learned that prayer must be an integral  part of my day.  If I am speaking with God and letting Him know what my needs are and what His wishes are for my life, He will have the opportunity to answer my prayers.  This requires that I spend time in his Word, time with other Christians and time in prayer-- time depending on Him during the day to day.

     I am sure as time goes by there will be more insights that will come to me because of the time I spent in the DR.  I have much to be thankful for!

BASIC CHRISTIANITY

    The Wednesday morning Bible Study group has reached the end of their study of the Book of Hebrews.  As usual, it was an enriching and lively study -- also somewhat sad as two of our regular members passed away during the thirteen weeks of the session.
    We took a bit of a break this Wednesday and watched a video,
"Drive Thru History -- Holy Land with Dave Stotts."  As well as showing us  various archaeological sites described in the Bible, the video made us chuckle.  Dave has a real thing for his Fiat 500!
   Next week we begin a six week study of John Stott's  Basic Christianity.  This is an old book and may well be already on your shelf.  It may have a different cover too, but the content is the same.  It's a classic because it speaks a truth that is timeless.  It's also fairly dense.  I welcome the opportunity to work through it in a study group!  As usual, Rev. Irwin will lead the study. He's a terrific teacher, able to make complex theology accessible to the layman.
    The book, "Basic Christianity," is available for purchase but is not necessary to the study.  If you haven't already picked up a copy of the study guide, it will be available on Wednesday too.  Biblical passages for the sessions include Mark 10:17-31, John 8: 51-58 and 1Peter 2:21-25 to name a few.  Topics include the claims of Christ, the character of Christ, and the Resurrection of Christ.

    The Bible Study is open to all and you don't have to sign up for the whole series.  Try it out, come once or as often as you like.  Coffee's on and there are terrific goodies.

Cedar Tree Ministries

The first Sunday of May, we had a special guest in our service. Rev. Joey Cho of Cedar Tree Ministries shared with us his call to ministry and his journey to the Cowichan Valley.
    After giving his life to Christ as a youth in Korea, Joey felt drawn to mission work.  His acquaintance with Canadian missionaries made him want to come to Canada.  Unfortunately, his church told him "No.  Canada is not a mission field."  But Joey believed that God was calling him to work with First Nations in Canada.  He prayed about the situation for twenty days and the call was still strong.  So, Joey set out for Canada without the backing of his home church.
    He went first to Vancouver but there seemed to be no place there to start a congregation.  Then he moved to Duncan, where he found seven tribal units with about 4500 First Nations people.  He believed he had found the place where God wanted him to be.
    The work was not easy.  Many of Rev. Cho's congregants are survivors of the Residential School system.  Some are angry, some are addicted to drugs and alcohol, some hate the name of Jesus because they associate it with the pain of residential school.  Despite this baggage, in 2007 he began Grace Cowichan Church with one First Nations family.  Later, with the permission of the band, the church moved into a building on reserve land.
   Even then, there were trials.  Because of the hatred felt by so many, the cross was continually stolen from the church or damaged.  In the end, a Native artist created a sign that incorporated First Nations art with the cross of Christ.  That sign has not been vandalized.
    The church now holds regular Sunday services, Bible Study class, hosts a women's group and a Kids Bible Club.  There are regular sharing days when people offer what they have to those in need.  There are weddings and baptisms and funerals.  There is pain and there is healing.
    But, as his ministry progressed, Joey felt isolated.  At times he wanted to give up.  But each time he thought he could not go on, he received a sign, a token of encouragement that told him God wanted him to continue.  Eventually, Rev. Cho joined the Presbyterian Church in Canada and was ordained by that denomination.  Now he is part of the Presbytery of Vancouver Island and surrounded by loving, supportive peers in ministry and by prayer partners in other congregations.
    Still driven by the need to be a missionary, Joey, with the blessing of Presbytery formed Cedar Tree Ministries, an outreach program focussed on First Nations.  There is now a First Nations Victory Chapel in Nanaimo and a new congregation in Mill Bay, begun at the request of three families on the reserve there.
   Cedar Tree Ministries is living its mission of Reconciliation, Restoration and Renewal.
    Rev. Joey's story speaks to God's mysterious ways.  Who would have thought someone from Korea, brought to Christ by a North American missionary, would then travel from Korea to do mission work in North America?  But God's ways are better than ours.  Because Rev. Cho is not Caucasian, he is better able to minister to a people who suffered at the hands of their white neighbours.  While his church in Korea was right in saying Canada is not a mission field, they were wrong in terms of First Nations reserves in Canada.  Those areas are crying out for the Gospel.  Thank God for people like Rev. Joey Cho who bring the Good News to hurting people. 
   One compelling feature I took from Sunday's message was Rev. Cho's reliance on prayer.  At every step of his journey, he spent days praying, seeking guidance.   When his Korean church said no, he prayed.  When he is discouraged in his ministry, he prays. When he felt lonely and isolated, he prayed then found a home within the Presbytery of Vancouver Island, and at the end of his presentation, he did not pass around the collection plate.  Instead, he asked for prayers.
   The Bible is full of examples of servants of God who pray earnestly and with open hearts and minds.  Sunday I met such a man in person.


For more on Cedar Tree Ministries, visit their website here/