The Dominican Republic Spring Break: Celebration in Brokenness

About a month ago I--along with 23 others--embarked on a short-term mission trip to the Dominican Republic, a country located on a small island in the Caribbean. We went down there with an organization called Children of the Nations, a non-profit group that sponsors children in third-world countries. Our mission: to spread the love of Jesus in the most tangible ways possible. The outcome: changed hearts and a deeper understanding of who God is.

We participated in several service projects during the 10 days we were down there. Most of our mornings were spent laying concrete floors, painting a school, and baking bread for Haitian earthquake victims. In addition to these service projects, we spent our afternoons doing relational ministry with the I Love Baseball Foundation. Using baseball as platform, we were able to connect and build relationships with the Dominicans through this commonly loved sport. Although the Dominican baseball players far outweighed us in expertise, we had a blast and were able to learn a lot from them.

Having now returned from our trip, it will be impossible to forget all that we experienced--from the haunting smell of poverty to the joyful sound of children laughing; all of it remains deeply ingrained in our senses. Pain and joy. Suffering and happiness. Weakness and strength. We witnessed it all. As I continue to reflect on this paradox of realities, I am reminded of a particular experience we had on our trip. This experience took place when we attended a Dominican church for the first time.

During our first full day in the DR, we were invited to attend "Buenos Nuevos Iglesia" (Good News Church). The service was definitely more charismatic than anything I had ever experienced back here in the US, and there was something about the energy in the room that morning that struck me. As I stood there among the Dominican Christians--exhausted from dancing for an hour straight and sweating profusely in 90 degree temperatures--I came to this sudden realization: These people were happy. Genuinely happy. And because of their happiness, they were celebrating. The entire church service (all three hours of it) was a sweet and joyful celebration.

Why were these Dominican Christians so happy? Instead of blaming God for their poverty-stricken conditions, they were actually giving thanks to Him. But why? And that's when it hit me: Christianity is the only religion I can think of that offers something worth celebrating. That's why the Bible has so much imagery about parties and wedding banquets. That's why the Bible talks about heaven as being an endless celebration of praise and worship. As Christians, we truly have something incredible to celebrate. We celebrate Jesus, the one who died for us, rose again, and now sits in glory. Our debt is paid and we are free. We don't need to earn anything from God; instead it's freely given. It's almost too good to be true. That's why Christians can't help but celebrate--it's really our only proper response to grace.

It doesn't matter if one is rich, poor, well-fed or hungry. This is good news for everyone. The Dominicans Christians we interacted with seemed to grasp this concept full well. In the midst of poverty and brokenness, they still had something to celebrate. Needless to say, it was an honor for us to come together as the body of Christ and celebrate with them.

Overall, our trip to the Dominican Republic was heart-breaking, rejuvenating, and inspiring. Not only did we get to know a lot of Dominicans, but we also got to know each other really well. By the end of the trip our team of 24 had truly become a family. Thanks be to God for such an amazing trip! Our hearts are forever changed.


See the video of our trip.

Written by Tracy Spohn

South Central L.A.

Over Spring Break I had the chance to road trip down to South Los Angeles with 22 students. L.A. is such a fascinating culture where the poorest of the poor and the richest of rich live merely blocks away. The streets are lined with vendors and stores selling the next must-have jewelry, perfumes, and designer jeans. The amount of stuff for sale is unimaginable, with such a focus on material goods.

With this abundance of "stuff," is an even greater abundance of need. People are walking the streets jobless, hungry, homeless, and even just in need of a good friend to trust. Loneliness is often what influences many to join some of the most violent gangs in L.A. At the end of the day, many of these people just want to belong… to be part of something bigger. The funny thing about this is ultimately this is something we all crave: authentic community.

Whether we are wandering the streets or road tripping in a van, we all want to belong and to find a place where we feel comfortable and loved for who we are. We were created to be together…not alone.

By the end of the trip our group from L.A. had formed this type of community. Various service projects such as the food bank and the after-school kid’s program really bonded our team together. We walked away not just a group of people but a family. Throughout the trip we also shared life stories where we were able to see how diverse our families and backgrounds were. Many of us had grown up in different places with different families and yet similar themes of struggle and acceptance seemed to emerge in all of out stories. Even as we talked and heard stories of homeless people on the street, we were able to see that though our experiences may be different, our needs are the same.

Overall, I walked away being reminded that the kingdom of God is not designed for one type of person. The kingdom of God is inclusive where diversity is seen as a beautiful asset. God took the same delight in creating me as he did the homeless person on the street. We were all chosen and designed to be part of God’s kingdom.

Written by Becca Suess

New Orleans::HOPE

This past spring break, I had the privilege of joining 13 other women from The Inn in New Orleans, Louisiana, for a week-long service trip. This trip was the third time in the last two years that The Inn has traveled to "NOLA" with a group of all women. Just like the previous two trips, we saw God working in mighty ways in just a week's time.

Going into the trip, I didn't quite know what to expect. Even though I knew what I was getting myself into, each of these trips is so different. God works in different ways even though the location stays the same: the work is different every time, the leadership changes, the women aren't the same, and many other factors make each trip unique. I knew not to expect anything of the trip and to allow the Lord to work in whatever way He desired, but it was hard to keep from worrying that this trip wouldn't disappoint because the last two had been so life-changing (and fun!). Also, as a student at UW (not a UMin staff member), it was a new and exciting experience for me to lead a mission trip. I had all sorts of anxieties and worries about what it would be like to be "in charge" of 13 women who I consider great friends and leaders in their own right.

God completely stepped in and worked in incredible ways to eradicate these fears of mine and the struggles that other girls were facing. While serving in New Orleans, my team and I came alongside Presbyterian Disaster Assistance and Project Homecoming to rebuild houses for the elderly, uninsured, under-insured, and disabled residents of New Orleans whose homes were damaged by Hurricanes (most notably, Katrina and Rita). PDA and Project Homecoming are both relief organizations that use volunteer labor to rebuild homes affected by disasters; the latter organization is based in New Orleans and was started by the Presbytery of South Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans and the surrounding areas.

Ten out of the 14 girls worked for Miss Lita Bennett, a St. Bernard Parish resident whose house was entirely submerged during the Katrina-induced flooding. She currently lives in a FEMA trailer (as many residents still do) in her front yard. I can't imagine what it must be like to wake up in your front yard each morning, see your unfinished house, and be reminded of the destruction and tragedy you faced. My teammates and I got to work tiling Miss Lita's bedrooms, priming, painting and texturing her walls, all while singing and dancing and having way too much fun. We worked with an awesome Americorps volunteer and a great construction assistant who put up with our noise and laughed along with us. Miss Lita was so charmed by our singing that she gave us a big bag of Mardi Gras beads at the end of the week. It's amazing how someone with so little is so quick to give back.

The rest of the team worked for Miss Lori Broussard on a house in Gentilly. They did a lot of finishing work, including tiling and painting. They were the second-to-last team to work on Miss Lori's house, as it was scheduled to be completed the following week. The small, tight-knit group made a lasting relationship with their construction assistants Christina and Faith, and enjoyed having intentional conversations while putting the finishing touches on Miss Lori's home.

But we didn't spend the whole time working! We also got a chance to explore New Orleans, including the French Quarter, Lower Ninth Ward, the Garden District, and the Tulane Univ. area. If you traveled to NOLA and just visited the nicer areas of town, you might never know that Hurricane came through; the nicer areas weren't affected as badly by "the storm" (as NOLA residents call it). It was pretty eye-opening to see enormous mansions in the Garden District contrasted with dilapidated homes in the lower ninth.

All of that work and sightseeing was exhausting, but it was incredibly energizing to spend each evening hearing the life stories of all our teammates. Jesus has healed and transformed each one of our lives in such unique ways, and I realized how much all of us on the trip needed the therapeutic sharing to release guilt, shame and fears that have plagued us. Some of our teammates are in incredibly dark places in their current seasons of life, and it brought so much hope for them to be open and honest with such a loving, accepting community of women - women who have been through those times and can offer wisdom and encouragement. There's a reason why we take these women-only trips: some of the girls had never shared with a single soul the struggles they are facing, and needed the love and support of our group to begin the healing process. In that way, God revealed that no matter how much fun or life-changing a trip can be, none of that matters when all He wants to do is rebuild lives or heal brokenness.

I think it's safe to say that the highlight for the whole team was spending our last night at Donna's Jazz Club in the French Quarter. We invited Miss Lita and a few of our fellow construction assistants to join us for a night of live jazz music and dancing. After a week of having paint in our hair and tile grout in our nails, it was such a fun time to get dressed up and celebrate a week of healing, rebuilding, hope and joy.

Written by Emily Eggers

Jamaica Lovin'

A few weeks ago most of the UMin Staff had the incredible opportunity to go all over the world on different break missions. Missions have a special place in my heart as God has used them countless times in the past few years to challenge me, teach me, and open my eyes further and further to the greatness of his Kingdom.

This particular spring break I went with Becky Riggers and a team of 17 students down to the island of Jamaica in the Caribbean to work with Global Soccer Ministries. Going into the trip, I was excited about all of the things that we would be doing down there, primarily being our work at an orphanage and playing several soccer games with local teams. For me, looking forward to the trip was more about all of the things that we were planning to do and the ways in which I saw that we could serve. But, as the week went on, God showed me that the trip was such a greater blessing than merely the things that we were doing there.

Now, this isn’t to say that we didn’t do some really cool things. Working at Mustard Seed, the orphanage that we served at for the first four days, was incredible. We did a variety of things there, whether it was painting or construction or hanging out with kids with disabilities. It was a great picture of what real, true service was like. Looking at the caregivers that spend time with the disabled children every day was incredibly humbling, and working with the kids myself was a great eye-opener to see how difficult that really can be.

Playing soccer in Jamaica also proved to be a great source of joy for our team. We brought down both a men’'s and a women'’s team, filled out a bit with a few Jamaican’s because we were a little short on players. Fortunately, we held our own in these games against the Jamaican’s, because going into the trip we all had a lot of fear that we were just going to be annihilated by them. But, even more so than the playing, it was incredible to see at the end of the game how our play had actually earned the respect of many of the Jamaican players. This then gave us the opportunity to share about our love for soccer and our love for Jesus. After all this was done, we simply put our arms around each other and prayed, which was a truly incredible experience.

But, for me the greatest way in which I saw God moving on this trip was in the lives of the students that we brought down. In the weeks leading up to the trip, I was getting very excited about how amazing all the students going on the trip seemed to be. I would constantly be telling guys to get stoked about the trip, because the people we were going through were simply amazing!

Well, God certainly surprised even me with how incredible everyone was! Throughout the week we all got a chance to share our story with each other, guys sharing with the guys and girls with the girls. This was an incredible opportunity for us to open up to each other, to be vulnerable, and to share with the rest of the team all of the ways in which God has been working in our lives. This, in itself, led to a great sense of genuine interest throughout the team, and it was even more incredible to see how everyone sought each other out on a daily basis as well. It was incredible to see how no two people seemed to sit next to each other on the bus twice in a row, and how all of the people genuinely wanted to get to know the rest of the team and to really hear their story. The community that we built on this trip was unlike anything I have ever seen before, and I am starting to see more and more clearly that it is simply because it was centered around a love of Jesus and a love for service.

The amazing thing that God showed me on this trip was what a blessing Christian community really is, and how I often take it for granted. I saw a lot of students on this trip see that blessing of community for the first time, and I also got a chance to see how much of an impact it made in their life. I remember on the final night one of the students talking about how she knew most of the Jamaica team after one week better than she knew most of her good friends from college simply blew me away. In that moment, I started to realize how incredible it truly is to be in Christian community. We are made for community and we are called to community, and this trip showed me even more clearly how much of a blessing it really is!

Written by Cris Tietsort

Disputable Matters Reference List

Across the Spectrum: Understanding Issues in Evangelical Theology
By Paul Eddy & Gregory Boyd

The Moral Vision of the New Testament
By Richard B Hays

Faith Seeking Understanding
By Daniel Migliore

Theology: the Basics
By Alister McGrath

Mere Morality: What God Expects from Ordinary People
By Lewis B. Smedes

The Supremacy of Christ in a Postmodern World
John Piper, et al.

What Must I Do?

A great Bible preacher I admire and respect once said, "It's not hard to be saved--unless you want to be God." He's right. Salvation in the Christian sense is very simplistic--not much is required on our part. God freely gives it, and all we really have to do is receive it. Salvation isn't earned, it's given--not because of our works, but because of God's grace.

So why does this concept of "being saved" still cause us to stir? After putting our faith in Jesus Christ and receiving salvation (as promised in Romans 10:9), we inevitably come back to these questions: Am I really saved? How can I know? What more must I do?"

My core group is currently reading through the gospel of Mark. In preparing for our study this week I came across the story of the rich young man. If you're at all familiar with this story, you know it's the one where Jesus explains the impossibility of camels traveling through the eyes of needles.

The story starts off with a man asking Jesus, "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" Notice his words, "What must I do?" Right off the bat this man makes himself the center of the equation. Read how their conversation unfolds in Mark 10:19-21:

Jesus: "You know the commandments. 'Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, do not defraud, honor your father and mother."
Rich young man: "Teacher, all these I have kept since I was a boy."
Jesus: "One thing you lack. Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."

Notice how Jesus never directly answers the man's initial question of "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" From the way this question is phrased, Jesus can already discern the condition of the man's heart. "What must I do?" is the man's inquiry. And Jesus responds as if to say, "You? What do you have to do? Well, what do you think you have to do?" To test the man's faith, Jesus proceeds to list off the 10 commandments. Thinking he's on the right track to salvation, the man responds confidently, "I've checked everything off the list! I must be in!" His pride, however, is quickly shattered.

"One thing you lack," Jesus says firmly, "Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor." And the man was devastated.

What was Jesus getting at here? Does this story teach us that we can only be saved if we give away all our money and possessions? Surely not, or else Jesus would have taught this more explicitly to all his followers. Instead, the command to sell everything is specifically directed at the rich young man. As such, what can we extract from this story?

The thing that most astonishes me about Jesus in this passage is his ability to tactfully list off the 10 commandments, while purposefully leaving out the very first commandment of "You shall have no other gods before me" (Exodus 20:3). In doing this, Jesus is testing the man's faith and trying his heart. In essence Jesus is saying, "I know you have kept most of the commandments, but what about the most important commandment? Have you put your faith in me? Do you trust me? Do you love me?"

If we aren't willing to worship God, then obeying his commandments will be a futile endeavor--such was the dilemma of the rich man. Although he was faultless in regards to obeying the law, he chose to put his faith in something other than God. Instead, he worshiped his wealth. He worshiped his reputation. And he ultimately worshiped himself. His friends probably described him as hard working, powerful, and self-sufficient. He was so caught up in himself that he didn't see his need for God. In essence, he had become his own god.

And here is the irony: Being saved can either be the easiest thing in the world or the hardest thing in the world--depending on the view you have of yourself. For the person who wants to be Lord over their own life, it will be the hardest thing. For the person who is willing to give up their lordship, it will be the easiest thing.

It's not hard to be saved--unless you want to be self-sufficient. It's not hard to be saved--unless you want to be in control. It's not hard to be saved--unless you want to be God.

Written by Tracy Spohn

For our staff meeting this week, we looked at the second section of Henri Nouwen's (not pronounced as "Onry Nooven," like a fellow intern once thought), In the Name of Jesus. As I read through this section, a couple of things really stuck out to me in the way I approach ministry and my relationship with God.

The first chapter of the section talks about the reasons we do things and it is appropriately titled "The Temptation to be Spectacular." Nouwen talks about how he has lived his life as a tight rope artist walking on a high, thin cable from tower to tower waiting for the applause of the spectators when he has not fallen off and broken his leg. I thought of this and how often I do things as an intern looking for applause from the staff at UMin or from peers for what I have done in ministry. I thought about the need I have to feel validated by the people around me instead of from the God whom I say I work for. The thing is that I really do the things I do for God, BUT I am so easily distracted by the feeling I get when people on this earth tell me "good job" or "you are doing such great things for God's Kingdom." There are times I have made it across the tight rope, and there are times I have fallen - fallen hard! Those times included pretty much the entire first quarter as I tried to figure out what I was supposed to be doing as a UMin intern. And, as I tried to walk across the line, I would fall, and everyone saw it. I had no Core Group, then I had one and I didn't follow up with them...the list goes on. Jesus was also tempted to be spectacular, to cross the tight rope, too. In Matthew 4:6 Jesus is tempted by the devil, to do things that would receive praise for being a stunt man. Jesus wanted people to listen to Him because of the truth of His words and actions. What are the times when you act as a tight rope artist? How have you fallen off the line?

-Posted by Brian Petermeyer, UMin intern

Resources for Romans Series

Some resources you might want to check out for further studies on Romans:

Resources and Bibliography:

Gordon Fee and Douglas Stuart, How to Read the Bible Book by Book. The perfect guide for getting a handle on the basic themes of Romans. This tool is especially helpful if you are going to sit down and read straight through the letter on your own.

Douglas Moo, The Epistle to the Romans. This is more information that you want, but Moo covers every argument on every issue throughout Romans. His comments on the structure of the letter were particularly insightful and consequently influenced the structure of this series. Originally recommended to me by George Hinman.

Earl Palmer, Salvation by Surprise. In my opinion, this is Earl’s best; Complete with diagrams this is might actually be the most clearly systematic of the commentaries that I worked with. Earl follows the structure of Paul’s argument very closely and helps readers understand each section as the argument progresses.

Tom (N.T.) Wright, Paul for Everyone: Romans (One and Two). Accessible commentary where N.T. Wright essentially gives “kids sermons” on the different themes throughout Romans. A very helpful resource when you are trying to figure out what not to say or cover. Wright has gone on to write some of the most provocative stuff on Romans in decades, most of it pretty heady.

N.T. Wright, Justification. Wright’s exploration of Paul’s theology of justification through Galatians and Romans. He takes a covenantal approach to justification in response to John Piper’s recent book challenging Wright.

John Piper, The Future of Justification, a Response to N.T. Wright. A justification understanding through the lens of the Reformers, directly challenging the theology of justification of N.T. Wright.

Paul Achtemeier, Romans (Interpretation Commentary). Achtemeier does an excellent job of clarifying the issues for the average reader, but offers an in-depth account that addresses all of the issues that Paul is unpacking in Romans.