Finally on the court....

Wednesday began with another beautiful morning, providing a great time of personal devotions in the garden and pool area. There is something especially nice about being able to spend time with the Lord in the outdoors. After breakfast, we loaded up the bus to take in one of the favorite hobbies of the Lady Pioneers – shopping! Pastor Robert, youth pastor at IBC, and his cousins were our tour guides as we visited the big market in downtown Santo Domingo. After a brief orientation of the do’s and don’ts of shopping – Dominican style – the girls went out in groups to see who could come back with bragging rights and win the first competition of the trip! After a couple of hours of bartering and begging, there was still no clear-cut winner with everyone returning with great souvenirs. We were also able to talk to several vendors about Christ, leaving many of them with Spanish Bridge tracts with the Gospel.

The afternoon brought our much awaited first game. Unlike scheduling our games in the states, down here another organization does it and therefore we have no idea what kind of competition we will be playing against. Let’s just say that the club team from the Teresa League was by far the best team we’ve played in my years associated with the Lady Pioneers. When we arrived at the Mauricio Baez Club, we encountered 18 players dressed out for the game, including six that were taller than 6’2”, and a center that was at least 6’5”! They were also a very fast team, and that proved to be the catalyst for their quick 19-4 lead after the first quarter. We played much better in the 2^nd quarter, only being outscored by 1, but trailed 36-20 at the half. It was at halftime that we were able to give the Gospel individually to the players with a tract and t-shirt, and then I spoke to everyone including the 30 or so fans that came out to watch. It really was an incredible opportunity. Teresa League led 61-35 after the 3^rd, and finished with a 79-53 win over our exhausted and weary team. As their coach for three years, it was interesting for me to see, and hear them discuss later the difference in playing a game like today. As much as we knew we needed to play hard for respect and the glory of God, our real focus from the opening tip was the condition of the souls of those ladies in the other uniforms. We pray God will use the Gospel seed that was sown today to bring fruit in His time.

Thursday will be our busiest day yet. We will begin the day by ministering at a school in the area, helping with speaking English in several classes. We will also scrimmage a team from the school, as well as play another Club team from the Dominican. We then join the youth of IBC for their mid-week study and fellowship time. Thanks for praying for us! (Because we leave for our overnight visit to Hato Mayor early Friday morning, it is unlikely we will be able to post an update until sometime Saturday night or Sunday. But check back when you can!)

My time in the Dominican so far has been exactly what the Lord has planned it to be, which means it has been for my good and His Glory! Our first game was yesterday—and I didn’t know what exactly to expect. When I first saw the gym (which reminded me of the old school Indiana basketball gyms from home) and the Dominican girls team (which included multiple ladies with height exceeding our tallest player), I prayed that God would use us to have an impact for the Gospel, no matter what the outcome of the game. We were able to share the Gospel at half time through a translator, and I know that God’s word will never return void. A lot of the kids watching the game were asking questions about the Gospel—and we praise the Lord for those opportunities. Before we left the states, I prayed with a friend that God would cultivate in me a passion for sharing the Gospel, and He has. I can’t see these sights and meet these Dominicans without remembering the most important thing—they too must hear the truth and accept it if they are to bring glory to their creator! There is so much more to come…and I can’t wait to see what the Lord has in store for us! - Jenna

I have been on a few missions trip before, even some that were based around sports, but this trip to the Dominican Republic has been different than all those other trips. Even though we came down here to play basketball, the focus has never been put on the game itself. Basketball is not the thing that is trying to be communicated; Jesus Christ is. Wednesday we had the opportunity to play a club team here in Santo Domingo. I was a little nervous because I did not know what to expect. We started off really slow, which was a little discouraging because we wanted to compete. During halftime Coach Whitt was able to share the gospel (through an interpreter). The gospel was clearly presented and tracts were distributed throughout their entire team. Before the game my focus was on playing well and showing these girls that we could play just like them, but after halftime all I wanted to show them was the joy I had in Christ and that my main goal in life was to honor and glorify Him in everything I do. It was not about winning. It should never be about winning. God has given me the ability to play sports and I desire not to use my abilities for myself or my teammates, but for the honor and glory of my Savior. –Abbey