Thankful

For my November update I have decided to go with the Thankfulness theme. Original, I know.

A little over a week ago my mom called me asking if I had seen any specific ways God had answered prayer since being in Jarabacoa. There were a few things that came to mind right away, specifically in the area of provision. God had provided me with the position at JCS, the finances to get here, and friendships to encourage me along the way. Everything has been so exciting and amazing. But to be honest, once I got here I think I lost my drive to pray. While I still pray, it has not fulfilling. I have not been relying on prayer anymore.

When my mom called me I felt convicted right away, because I knew I hadn't been relying on God through prayer like I should. The verse Phillipians 4:16 came to mind after I talked to her. It says:

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, in prayer and thanksgiving, present your requests to God."

When Paul wrote about prayer, he wrote about thanksgiving. Do I pray with thanksgiving? Do I live with thanksgiving? Do I live everyday thankful to God through prayer?

Honestly I had never really thought of prayer like this before, but it is very striking.

If I am thankful for the blessings and even difficulties in my life, I would let God know that on a daily basis. I would give thanks. Its not simply saying the words "thank you", but submitting my everyday thoughts and actions to him, because I am thankful. I am thankful to my Father that he has given me a life to live: both physically and spirtually. And the best way to to say "thank you" is to give it back to him.

Here are some ways that God has truely blessed me -in both good times and bad.

-Health: I surprisngly almost made it through November without getting sick! Those of you who were tracking my life here three years ago may remember an infamous spider bite that started out my semester. Well, the same type of spider...or whatever it was...decided to leave its mark on me once more, only on my leg. Long story short I was out of school for the three days before Thanksgiving break. Only a bite, you say? Well the bite turned into an infection and walking was very painful. Not to mention the fever and vomitting that came along with it! Fun!

Thank you God that my infection is gone, that I am walking again and keeping everything in my stomach! :D

Friends: This brings me to my 2nd item on my list. I have never felt so popular than when I have been sick! I was so thankful for all my friends who took such good care of me and came to visit me. Melisa and Mandy: you are such good roomates. Thank you for keeping track of all my pills and keeping me hydrated! Jim: thank you for driving me all around town to find a doctor and an open pharmacy. Joan: thank you for walking back to the pharmacy in the rain after I left my perscription sheet at the pharmacy...I would! Mellissa: Thank you for being my "mom" :) Kristin: thank you for making our 1st grade Thanksgiving play happen in my absence! You are an awesome teacher and friend and I am so lucky to know you!

Thanksgiving Break: I was a little worried that I wasn't going to be able to enjoy my Thansgiving break to the fullest after getting sick. But no worries, I was able to eat all the yummy food that we had at the JCS fauculty dinner on Thursday. Dominicans don't celebrate Thanksgiving so I was very grateful for the fact that we actually had a turkey for the dinner!

Mandy and I also had our own Thanksgiving dinner with some Dominican friends from church. We wanted to expose them to the wonders of Thanksgiving food! So we spent all day cooking Friday with our friend, Jim. It was our first Thanksgiving meal on our own so we were pretty proud of ourselves. Even though we had to roast a chicken instead of a turkey, I think they were thourougly impressed.

10 hours of cooking and baking!

Amanda's new found calling: roasting chickens My new found calling: baking pies

The power would go out!

On Saturday some friends and I took a day trip out to Santiago, a larger city about 45 minutes away. It was my first time driving in this country. SO crazy, but so fun . Kinda reminded me of Chicago actually. Just even more intense! We took full advantage of our time there and packed our day. We spent the day site seeing, shopping at La Sirena (a large department store) and the mall, seeing a real life movie in the movie theatre, bowling, and eating at a resturant. Essentially we spent the day in the United States. Ha! Those things might not sound special to you all back home, but it definetley felt like I was living large!

Photo shoot at the statue Friends

So fancy... and so classy!

A visit home: While I have only been out of the States for 4 months, I am so grateful for my upcoming visit home at Christmas. It really gives me a sense of comfort as I finish the semester. Christmas just does not seem the same with 70 degree weather and palm trees. (Not that I am complaining-at all!) Thank you so much to everyone who have given financially to make my visit possible!

Answered Prayers: Help with Brian

In my last blog I wrote about one of my students, Brian, who just started at JCS this year. Since I last wrote the 2nd grade student teacher from Taylor Universtiy started working with Brian for an hour everyday on phonics. She is a huge blessing! I wish she could stay forever! I have also seen improvements in our tutoring sessions. I actually look forward to these days alot. I am able to give him the attention he needs and make activities a more exciting than his everyday school routines. Please continue to pray for Brian's transition into school. While I am very grateful for his improvments, he is still light-years behind the other students in many areas. He is not at the maturaty or academic level as the rest of the students and this acounts for some pretty difficult days.

Well. That sums it up for now. I can garauntee that December's update will be even longer due to all that is coming up!

Thank you all for your prayers. They are so appreciated.

Peace and Blessings,

Jo ♥