Narrative

It was just one of those days.

It was hot. My body was sweaty. I had a headache. My eyelids were heavy.

We had just sat and talked with a couple of students about spirituality in the Dominican Republic, and Shannon and I were mentally and physically exhausted.

We walked around the campus, looking for a shady spot, and ended up on a sidewalk curb underneath some trees that line campus. We were in an area that's directly across from the library in what the student's call the "embassies." On scattered benches and tables underneath these trees, students from the same city or district will get together to reconnect while at UASD. 

So there we were, rambling on about our day and watching students walk in and out of the library, when I felt a gloopy plip-plop on my legs and in my hair. I looked down at my pants and saw a yellowish green goo on my pants.

That's right, people. 

The tree pooped on me. 

Well, really, it was the goo inside the seed hanging from tree that did me in, but you get the picture:

Blonde-girl, freaking out in English, thinking it was some crazy bird, wiping frantically at her hair with a tissue. 

Dominican students, saying things Blonde-girl doesn't understand in Spanish, laughing and holding up seeds, showing her that it wasn't a crazy bird, that it's normal for trees to behave like that. 

Other American girl laughing and trying to get goo out of Blonde-girl's hair. Blonde-girl trying to laugh about the goo and thinking she'll try to spin this positively in her blog later, until she hears:

"Hello! Do you speak English? Are you with Vida Estudiantil?"

And just like that I met Y., a foreign languages student at UASD, who had been to Vida about twice  last year and was interested in practicing her English. So we sat right back down on the curb under that same poop tree and started talking about pretty basic things (what do you study, what do you do for fun, what do you think of the city, what do you hope you will do in the future, etc...) when Y. turns to me and asks, "So, how do I know if I'm going to heaven or not?"

Bam. What's-up-Holy-Spirit.

Who draws us to Himself. Who gives us the words to say. Who counsels us. Who leads us in truth for Christ's glory. Who uses heat and shade and exhaustion and poop-trees and weird Americans and Spanglish for Christ's glory. Who empowers us and gives us the spirit of love and a sound mind for Christ's glory. Who baptized Y. and put a new heart and spirit within her when she received Jesus as her Savior and Lord one hour later!

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." -Hebrews 12:1-3

Please join me in praying for Y. and the rest of the students we have met and spoken with here. Pray that their love and trust in Christ would grow even as we continue to disciple and encourage them. Pray that we would fix our eyes fully upon Jesus and run with perseverance.

xoxo,

kme