Every Day Ministries

After a great Friday night of preaching and ministry at a local church near Nagua, we left early Saturday morning to go to a community called “La Puerta” for a combined church retreat that we had been invited to speak at. Although we had no idea where this small community was, we were going to pick up one of the pastors that had assured us they knew where it was. When we picked up the pastor, she mentioned to us she had not been to “La Puerta” before, but she had a vague idea where it was. After waiting for a few latecomers who needed a ride as well, we headed off into the unknown. After a few wrong turns, some guesses, numerous stops for directions, and being amazed at the great view, we pulled up to the church. The church was already full of people praying on their knees. They prayed for the next hour, and then the music and the praise started. When it came time to preach, the place was already buzzing in anticipation. Although the people had been there for over 3 hours, the response was amazing as the altar was packed with people responding to God’s Word. Praise the Lord. Christ is risen, changing and transforming lives everyday. He is the King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.

The community we held the pastor’s conference in this weekend has been rocked by “huelgas” (strikes) over the past few days as the frustration in the community boiled over because of the lack of water, electricity, and conditions of the roads. There is no doubt it was God’s perfect timing for us to bring a conference on the Kingdom of God and the church. As well as teaching on leadership in the Kingdom, we taught on how the church is to bring the Kingdom of God through their words and actions into their community. They are to reflect the very nature and character of God, the very fragrance of Christ, the fruit of the Spirit, and much more–bringing hope where there is no hope, bringing life where there is death, bringing restoration where there is destruction, bringing renewal where there is devastation, bringing healing, deliverance, and salvation. As Christ stated, “As the Father sent me, so send I you”. It was so apparent to all of us that the community needed to hear the good news of the Gospel of the Kingdom as right outside the church were the remnants of the road block (broken glass, burnt tires, etc)–a symbol of the cry for help from so many in the community. Everyone there made a commitment before God to live a life worthy and pleasing to God, not only in their churches and homes, but out in their communities as well. Everyone made a commitment to live out the plan of God for the church individually and as a corporate body of believers. It is time for the world to see that the Kingdom of God truly is a place of joy, peace, love, mercy, healing, deliverance, and salvation. Because of Jesus Christ all of us can be set free from the dominion of darkness, and enter the Kingdom of God’s Son. We have a message of reconciliation for all, that through Jesus Christ, we can be reconciled to God, and become a part of the family of God, heirs with Christ of a great inheritance that God has set aside for us in His Kingdom.

Last night we had the awesome privilege of kick starting a three day outreach event in Matancita (a community close to Nagua) with a group of pastors. We held the event right on the main street and filled the community with music, praise, prayer, and the preaching of God’s Word. EDM was asked to help with the worship, as well as preach the first message. We shared from God’s Word on Jesus’ powerful statement “you must be born again to see the Kingdom of Heaven”. The local churches also partnered with us with a worship band, dance teams, and special music. What a great night!! Last month, we held two very powerful youth outreach events, in Nagua and El Factor, that drew hundreds of people, including many young people. In partnership with local churches, we teamed up with dance and drama ministries, a local rap artist, a worship band made up of people from a variety of churches, special singers, etc to saturate the atmosphere of both cities with the Good News!! Many people responded to the messages, and we are looking forward to hearing of what God did in the lives of many.

February 21 marked a city-wide celebration here in Nagua, Dominican Republic. This date symbolizes the event of “Cuidad de Dios”, which translate to the “City of God”. This day is set aside for all the Evangelical Christians to gather together and celebrate with songs, dances, dramas, prayer, and the Word of God. The event was an incredible blessing to the people of the area of Nagua.

Recently we were in Arenoso where we are working on a church construction project. We were visiting one of the local pastors when a young man came into the house and asked if he could talk to us. He then told us how he had been walking by a pastor’s conference we held in Arenoso in September. He stood at the back….only to hear the visiting pastor from Canada address him directly by saying there is a young man here who is contemplating suicide. He heard that God loved him, and had sent His Son, and had a plan and a purpose for him. Right there, he gave his heart to Christ, and all the depression, suicidal thoughts, and anger were replaced with a peace and joy he had never experienced before. He was full of joy to God as he shared the story, and finished by saying how grateful he was to Every Day Ministries for bringing such an incredible message to his community. Praise the Lord!

For the last 10 days, RAIN Ministries partnered with the EDM ministry team as we traveled through various towns and villages declaring the words and works of Jesus. We witnessed tumors disappear, backs healed, pain leave, legs lengthen, hearing restored and so much more! The most marvelous miracle of all occurred–people received the miracle of salvation through faith in Christ as their Savior! Jesus is at work changing lives. After each healing service, we praised the Lord together. All of God’s children, of all ages, worshiped with thanksgiving. It has been amazing.

You could feel the excitement in the air; it was graduation day for the thirty-three students of the 2010 Every Day Ministries Bible Institute. All their sacrifices had paid off. The graduates were surrounded by friends and family. Rounds of applause echoed in the room as each graduate went forward to receive their diploma. It was a day to remember. Join us as we pray for these newly equipped soldiers of Christ.

We met with Pastor Carlos today to strategize the completion of the church in Las Cejas. The windows and doors are going in this week. The pastor and his wife also chose the paint colors for the church this week. Painting the church will be the final step before it is officially completed. Pastor Carlos was very excited as he told us he was already planning the dedication service. He told us there was an atmosphere of anticipation amongst the congregation as they saw the final touches being applied to the building. We are excited as well, as not only have we been able to complete more projects than we anticipated, but we are planning to finish two more projects before the end of the year. Grateful thanks goes to the mission teams, churches, and individuals who have made this possible. We could not have done it without you. God bless you.

We delivered a truckload of donations to Jimeni for the Haitian churches in the area who are still responding to the impact of the earthquake so many months ago. It was an 18 hour round trip with plenty of excitement involving cows, horses, dogs, and people on the road; HUGE potholes; military checkpoints; giving people rides; rain; traffic jams; couple of close calls; spectacular views, and other minor delays. It was well worth it to see those donations put into the hands of people who will make sure it gets to those that are still in desperate need.

EDM met with the pastors, who are the presidents of their local ministerials here in the province of Maria Trinidad Sanchez, today. We had a great time of food and fellowship, as well as planning and discussing our next provincial event in November with RAIN ministries. Later, in the evening, we concluded our three day worship seminar at a local church by sharing on the Biblical mandate of corporate worship. We preached on the different types of corporate worship, its importance, and the benefits and results of corporate worship in the life of individuals as well as the life of the church body. We ended with a great time of praise and worship as people honored God from their hearts.