Learning Life's Difficult Lessons

Sometimes life is like a mosquito; annoying and painful. Currently life is just annoying; like a small mosquito that flies around your head at night when you're trying to sleep.

I have all these swirling thoughts that go around and around in my head while I'm trying to teach. I find myself distracted by these thoughts and by the 4 students that are not on task and growing increasingly annoyed daily. Today I had finally had it! I responded incorrectly and had to ask my students to forgive me...tough but necessary.

I am struggling with how to show my students Christ's love in a way that they can understand. Sometimes discipline needs to be done in a loving manner but I've been struggling to find that balance of love and logic (funny, someone actually wrote a book on that). Thankfully, we have other teachers who know the students are equally as willing and concerned to sit down with you and talk. I think without them I would be lost and ready to quit.

I came to the DR with the purpose of following 1) God's will and 2) to be broken...and that is what God is doing. He is checking things off my list and breaking me in more ways that I know how to handle at once. Being broken is often viewed as a bad thing, but God has shown me in the past that being broken often leads to more growth and knowledge in the long run. Pray that this continues to be the trend and that I learn to love my students despite being overwhelmed with them.


Life on the non-school front is good; I am no longer sick! Our house is getting settled and I have found a good church to call my church home here. Ironically, it's the church I wasn't planning on attending when I first moved down here. I am attending Amor y Quisqueya (roughly translated Love and Brotherhood)[also known to my TUSB team members from 07 as the "Jumping for Jesus" church]. I attended here my second Sunday ever in Jarabacoa back in 2007 on Easter on which church lasted about 3.5 hours...I was pretty sure I didn't want to go back. But now I call this church my church...yes, church is still about 3 hours but I love the 1 hour of worship and trying to decipher my way through the nearly 2 hour sermons each week.

Prayer:
My patience as I continue training my students (both is school work and in their behaviors)
Health (so far other than the flu I've been good).
My students (Carla Nicole, Noah, Luis, Estanli, Ronnie, Jumel, Nicole, Anya, Brenda, Emmanuel C., Emanuell O., Brian, & Marlyn)
The school as we continue our construction and ACSI accreditation.