Dominican Dispatch: Settling In

It's been a bit since my last update, and quite a bit has happened! God's graciously given me the energy I need to work through these next steps as I begin settling into a routine. We finished all staff training and launched right into the school year, so I'm getting a great feel for what my duties are going to be like at Doulos!

Personal Mentor

Doulos wisely assigns new staff mentors from among those who've been here much longer. My mentor, Andy Langenfeld, is really neat. He and his family are very musical, which is super fun for me! I'm grateful to have someone I can go to when I need help with life in the DR, experience culture stress, need advice, or just need someone to talk to in English.

The Motor Lab in Motion

Since the school semester started, I've had a week or so to experience life in the motor lab. This is a space specifically designed for students to get moving between classes. For about 20 minutes a day, different grades (pre-k through 5th) come in and we direct them through key exercises which, as they master them, improve their ability to learn and participate in a normal classroom environment. They think they're just getting to play, but in reality, we're using directed motion to help them overcome reflexes that might hinder their ability to sit still, their handwriting, or even their overall ability to process information! This is where I spend most of my time working. It's super fascinating! When I'm not in the motor lab, I'm helping with the pre-k kids, who can be quite the handful!

New Apartment

I just recently started renting an apartment! It has two tiny bedrooms, one tiny bathroom, and a quite spacious living room/kitchen. I'm excited for my ministry to branch out beyond Doulos, and into the local community through hospitality. I've already had the chance to meet and talk with a couple of my neighbors. Looking forward to seeing what God will do through this home. When I started renting it, it was pretty much empty, so I've had some big expenses to acquire the essentials (washer, refrigerator, stove/oven, bed, etc.)! If you'd like to help with these expenses in a super practical way, please consider sending a gift or supporting my ministry monthly!

Dominican Rivers

The rivers in the DR are absolutely beautiful! Seeing and swimming in some of them has been one of my favorite things during my time here! God's creation continually amazes me, and it's cool to have this wonderful scenery all around me.

Doulos Young Life

Doulos partners with an organization called Young Life to clearly and effectively present the Gospel to Doulos students, while also having a great time. Think well-organized youth group with camps. I was invited to a Young Life leadership retreat over last weekend, where I was surprised to see some friends from when I lived here before! During this retreat I decided to be a part of Doulos' middle school Young Life program (called WyldLife) as a leader. So every other week we'll have a fun, youth group-like evening with our middle school students. We'll play games, have fun, get to know the them better, and share about Christ.

Prayer Requests:

• Added ministry means more energy needed
• Not speaking much Spanish can be bothersome, I need to keep studying diligently!
• I really don't want to get burnt out!
• With lots happening around me and lots of work to do, I need to be careful not to lose my spiritual disciplines and to maintain my own personal growth in Christ
• The really little kids can be quite the handful (of course, so can some of the big kids)
• Pray that God would open students' hearts to receive the Gospel

Author: Timothy Bemenderfer (08/28/2023)