Quest

Quest 13, The Journey Continues

2012-01-24T21:37:00.003-05:00

The newest group of Questies will depart for their overseas in less than a month. Thanks for join us on this phase of the Quest 13 experience.

Meet the Q13 Teams

Dominican Republic
Name, Church
1. Hannah, Hope Chapel
2. Matt, Friendship
3. Makayla, Casa de Oracion
4. Bekah, Baring
5. Aaron, Primera Iglesias Boston
6. Kristin, Waterbury Ministries
7. Eric, Casa de Oracion

Faculty
Susie Boulos, Vinetta McCann, Thomas Moore

South Africa
Name, Church
1. Jessica, Celebration-Bridgeport
2. Marilyn, First Manchester
3. Isaac, Celebration-Saugus
4. Cody, Grace Community
5. Kelly, Hope Chapel

Faculty
Ken Hall, Ita Elizalde, Renee Selim

The City
Name, Church
1. Moriah, Community Congregational
2. Patrick, First Manchester
3. Emily, Celebration-Boston
4. Kory, MERCYhouse

Faculty
Allyson Clark, Rob Morzella, Jo Endersby

Bekah Q

2011-03-31T22:58:00.000-04:00

When i traveled to the Dominican Republic I prayed that God would put someone in my path to winess to or to encourage. Although he did that many times he also put me in Ina's path. Ina was the missionary we worked with in the village of Cercadillo. She encouraged me to be more interested in missions and listening to what God has to tell me. Also, she shared her testimony with us and it impacted me to be a better disciple of God. She told us aout how she wasn't sure of what God wanted her to do but she kept waiting. She ended up noticing that she was telling him what she should do instead of listening to him and being patient. This impacted me because this is my Junior year and im trying to figure out what im going to do with the rest of my life. And my heart was set on medical careers as well as missions. I have been trying to figure it out myself but i need to understand that i need to give it to God. "Thy will be done". Not my will! I have been praying more about it and God has not clearly shown me but i know he will. And i want to live my life that is pleasing to him. I thank God for letting us meet Ina, because she impacted me with her story and im sure she has impacted many others.

Maggie

2011-03-24T22:23:00.002-04:00

My mission in the DR is one I will never forget. First off, lets just talk about the fact that we were a team of all girls. I'm the kind of girl who would much rather be hanging out with the guys playing sports because the girls stress me out too much, and there I was with 7 other girls! In a sense, God took me out of my comfort zone, and showed me so much through you ladies! Over the course of the trip, God blew my mind in too many ways to count. I really saw God in a much more real way than I ever have in my life. I found Him in his word, and he was speaking to me through his word. It was incredible! The people I met in the DR will remain with me always, they may not know it... but they have made such an impact on my life, and everyone I tell my story to. All I can say is wow. What an incredible experience. I wouldn't trade it for the world.

Alexandra

2011-03-16T17:07:00.001-04:00

My Trip to the DR was life-changing. My view of salvation changed. I had grown up in the church, but seeing how those people live, I saw that they need salvation like they need clean water. The thing that impacted me the most was meeting a seventeen year-old girl who was married and had a baby. I'm seventeen and thought to myself, 'If I lived here, I could be married and have a child as well'. It impacted me personally because it made me realize that the teenage girls their had to give up their childhoods very quickly. It was sad to see how grown up the children were, having to take care of their infant siblings, getting water for their families, and watching over themselves everyday. I enjoyed the time i got to spend with the Dominicans and would love to go back and continue the work there. I loved every person that I met and would do this trip all over again if I was given the opportunity.

Bekah V

2011-03-16T17:03:00.000-04:00

William Carey said, “Expect great things from God. Attempt great things for God.” The message of this quote were shining brightly throughout the 10 days my team and I spent in the Dominican Republic. There was not a moment that I did not feel God's presence. During the second half our trip, while serving in the village with the active missionary, Ina, I had the opportunity to share my testimony with some of the teenage girls from the village. In those few moments, I felt God speaking through me, and I knew that it was not me speaking, but Him speaking through me. It was absolutely amazing to see that everything I had been through in the past had a reason, even though I may not have known it at the time. On that same day, a few of my other team members and I were playing with the pre-school age kids that live in the village. It was a beautiful sight to see. Although they are not in the best situation, they still were happy. It was a phenomenal experience, and showed me that God's love has no limits. We were able to connect with the people of the DR on a completely different level. We may not have been able to speak to them directly because of the language barrier. However, we all shared one common language: the love of Christ.

Bethany

2011-03-16T17:01:00.001-04:00

Going to South Africa is probably one of the best experiences I’ll ever have. Going there helped show me how much God can use me, and anyone else that’ll let him work in their life. I always wanted God to use me, but on the trip when I completely gave up every fear to him in order for his will to be done I got to see him work in incredible ways. The third day of the trip I was completely exhausted from just getting over being sick and not getting much sleep the night before, and honestly I just felt awful. What started off as the worst day turned into the best day. That afternoon we went to a Zulu village. In the village we went into a small tent full of excited children. Even though it was a small tent inside big things were happening. Our group and I got to lead songs with the children, automatically brightening my mood seeing the joy in all their faces. Then for the first time in public I was able to go up and share my testimony with everyone. I could see how God was using us to touch the hearts of these children. After having some fun and sharing with them we began to ask the children serious questions about God. That day every child made the decision to stand up, and except Jesus Christ into their lives. I even got to pray with two little girls to ask Jesus into their hearts. Even though we spoke different languages there was no barrier, God saw their hearts and knew my words meant the same. After, I saw that even when I’m feeling weak the all powerful God can still use me because it’s not me doing the work, it’s him working through me. God will always be there to lift us up off our feet, and when you put your trust in him he will be glorified through you.

Bryan

2011-03-14T21:46:00.000-04:00

For the longest time, I have had crazy urges to travel across the world. My passion is to meet new people, learn about their culture, and build a relationship with them. I was able to live out God’s plan for me in “The City” as I spent 10 days meeting people from a foreign culture, religion, and tradition. God surrounded me with people who sent me off from my miniscule state of Rhode Island into the vast open world. God placed each one in our team into this position, an experience together never possible to forget. Relationships I never imagined came out of my Quest experience, ranging from my team members, to ”City” workers, to unbelievers known for a single day, to my new “City” friends whom I’ll never forget. Some of the most impacting realizations have come out of the entire quest experience. Through the constant prayer for those around me, the show of dedication among the workers in “The City,” and the ability to be a lamp among darkness, I have learned I’ve placed walls up against God’s plans for me. I’ve been so nervous to make mistakes my entire life, that I’ve developed a subconscious disregard for God showing me His plans for my life. This being one of many eye-openers I experienced in the city, I thank our God of the Universe for showing me these things in a place thousands of miles away from my home. His presence, and His ability to place my team around me, gave me the opportunity to make a conscious change, and reject what I have previously accepted about myself.

Miesha

2011-03-14T19:36:00.001-04:00

So I went to South Africa! This was the best trip of my life! God showed me lots of new things in life. Which is to become a stronger leader in Chirst and at my church! One thing that I got do is go to a Zulu village which touch my heart! We got the privilege to work with kids and sing songs and share testimoines with them! One thing that I got to do was pray for two little girls who accepted Chirst into their life which was amazing to see how God was working in their life and also in the village! It was amazing to see how God used me to minister to the two little girls! One lesson that I learned is if you put your full faith in trust in God he will do awesome things in many people lives!!!

Brianna

2011-03-12T22:33:00.000-05:00

I had the privilege of going to The City, it was an amazing experience and one i won't ever forget! One thing that I learned that week was the importance of building relationships and having patience. You can't just throw the Bible at someone and expect them to be a believer just like that, it takes time...and lots of prayer! The workers in the City are a prefect example of that as they reach out to non believers on a daily basis and live as examples of Christ. I've always been rather impatient with my unbelieving friends, but through this experience and the people i met God really showed me that through patience, prayer, and living as an example people notice, it just takes time!

Kathryn

2011-03-12T19:18:00.000-05:00

Can words be as impactful as seeing something with your own eyes? In most circumstances, I believe that sight can provide an individual with substantially more insight than words. Besides, did not God give us two eyes and only one mouth? However, there is power in God’s Word. While the sensations of the Dominican Republic are still a profound mystery to me, I will try to convey how it was that I saw God’s Word come to life. During the latter part of our trip, the ladies of the D.R team and I were given the blessing of working with Ina York. As a woman of unfathomable faith and unwavering dedication to the Lord, Ina followed God’s call for her life to the Dominican Republic. It has only been about four years that she has permanently been there, but the impact that she has had on the people of Cercadillo is beyond imagination. From facing the witchcraft on the village head-on, to leading dozens of women to Christ, Ina revealed herself to be a true servant of Christ. There was one instance at the village where we were all sitting around in a circle with the women. Susie had asked a few girls to share their testimonies, but after Yassie, there was no time for anyone else because one by one the women shared their stories. I was blown away by the hardships that they had faced, but I was even more humbled by the fact that they all praised God for his love. God is incredible.

Dean

2011-03-10T10:51:00.000-05:00

God taught me a lot during the trip. One thing that I learned about was the importance of relationships and relationship building. The workers in the city spend years and years building relationships just to share with people. We have relationships with lost family members and friends that we don't take advantage of. God opened my eyes to the bountiful opportunities we have to share with others around us. I don't just want to say that; I want to put it into action in my life. I know I have lost family members who I can be a better witness to and I am planning on doing more to reach out to them. Praise God! He has a plan for us and will work everything out for the good.

Teresa

2011-03-08T23:54:00.001-05:00

I was on the South Africa team. The third day we were there we got the opportunity to visit a small, rural, Zulu village called, Bushyvale. While we were there, we broke into small groups and went out to do door-to-door ministries. We visited a few homes, and got the chance to encourage families that were already believers, and pray over any needs that were present within their homes. We were at our second to last home, and Ken had told me I would be talking to the family. When we got in there one of the guys that was with us, that spoke Zulu and was translating for us, told us that the lady's daughter was in the next room, and was dying of AIDS. I got to talk to the mother, encourage her and tell her that God is always in control, and would always be there for her, no matter the circumstances. After talking to the lady, she invited us to pray for her daughter in her room behind the curtain. A few of us went behind the curtain, and we got the opportunity to pray with her, lay our hands on her, and hear her recite the sinners prayer. Soon after that she fell back asleep. She was only 26 years old, and she was in her death bed with AIDS. I never found out her name, but I'm thankful that God was able to use her to show me how valuable our life is, and how I should live every minute of it for him, and him alone, because it could all be gone in a matter of seconds. She was definitely one of the most memorable people I met while in South Africa, and I'm thankful for her life, and that one day we'll meet again in heaven, away from all the pain she felt that Saturday afternoon.

Irene

2011-03-08T21:43:00.002-05:00

Since I returned from South Africa, I have definitely felt satan trying to push me away from God. Its kind of making me feel stronger though because I'm not giving in. I am reading Ephesians now with my small group and since I have been back it has been helping me alot. Especially in chapter 6, verses 10-11 "Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes." It's amazing how God can inspire a person. I feel God teachig me whats the next step to becoming a leader too. Little things like respecting your parents and people in general. Little things like that are things I need to work on in order to be a good leader because I need to lead others to do the things God wants them to do.

Jessica

2011-03-08T21:19:00.003-05:00

One person that I met in the DR that really made an impression on me was Ina. Our first full day with her we were able to go to her house and just listen to her share how much God has been able to do there through her. And given that opportunity to be able to hear how much God has done through just one person when they listen and wait for him to say go do it, and not ask questions about it. And it's got me asking to myself if I just listened to God and didn't question what he told me to do, and just did it, What would I be able to accomplish?

Erica

2011-03-08T21:19:00.001-05:00

I had the opportunity to be on "the City" team. It was really an amazing experience. It reminded me that God is not just my God, or the God of the people in my church but the God of this universe. The dynamic in "the City" is a little different, openly proclaiming your Christian faith is illegal for someone my age. Because of this we had the constant chance to prayer walk. I had prayer walked before but to think that the people I was praying for might of never been prayed for before was mind blowing and honestly sad. At first i felt a lot of pressure praying for these people, like this may be the only time someone ever prays for them i better make it a good one. But it soon got overwhelming to pray like that. So i prayed for guidance i guess you could say, and God was like "really Erica what are you doing. Let the prayer come from your heart not your mind". It may seem weird and such a simple answer but it really opened my eyes and helped me be more aware of what he was doing around me and in "the City".

Ashlee

2011-03-07T22:20:00.002-05:00

I have been planted on a firm foundation on Jesus, my rock and salvation, in the pass 3 or 4 years, but i was challenged as I left "the City" on the way back the the USA, the old Ashlee wanted to come back. I left Ashlee of the past behind me, the girl who was afraid and feared what would happen the next day. The girl who didn't want to go home and face reality, she built on a sandy foundation. Growing up knowing Jesus, but not having a personal relationship with him or accepting him as her own. I have embraced my rock foundation and I am holding on to Jesus. I don't want to go back to the way I was. I want to continue to grow in Christ. Lives have shown me that my foundation is rooted i can't let go of my faith or my hope in Christ. That he will see me through all my pain and struggles that i have to face. I get a chance to live my daily life praising him and having my foundation planted in him.

Yassie

2011-03-07T22:18:00.002-05:00

One of the moments that impacted me the most on my trip the Dominican Republic was the power of God, how mighty He is. I had the opportunity to share my testimony in front of a women's Bible study and it was an awesome feeling and it was great to experience being able to share how God has transformed my life. It was encouraging to know that my life experiences through Christ could help others. There are no barriers or boundaries for Christ. The love of Christ can shine through anything no matter the situation. I gained confidence to share the word of Christ and share my testimony. God gave me the most wonderful opportunity of my life.

On site team photos

2011-02-27T15:39:00.002-05:00

Home...well almost!

2011-02-25T20:58:00.002-05:00

All three teams arrived back in New England today. We had dinner together at the Lodge and then shared some funny stories. We are all pretty tired and working on limited sleep. We ended our evening with stories of seeing God in our three countries.

Now most are sleeping as we work toward adjusting time zones and rest. Tomorrow we will share and celebrate with family, mentors, pastors and youth leaders.

Continue to watch this site as members of the Q12 team share accounts of their experience. Thank you for continuing to journey with us.

Q12 Team

City team packed and ready

2011-02-24T18:29:00.002-05:00

It is 1:30 am local time and we are packed. Our shuttle to the airport will be here in just over an hour. some of the team are resting others playing cards in the lobby.

We had a great day to wrap up our visit. We got up early and took in one more museum before visiting another campus. Our local friends had a time of debrief with us and then a couple and their two children who used to live in New England joined us for dinner.

We said our good-byes to E & L. We hope to see them again soon.

Looking forward to returning home. City Team

Goodbye SA

2011-02-24T02:20:00.002-05:00

We just finished breakfast and will be heading to the airport soon. Although we are all sad to leave, we are excited to come home and share all God has done. Pray for us as we travel.

City team Wednesday

2011-02-23T17:33:00.002-05:00

The City team had a slow morning which was nice. We were able to spend some extra time a the hotel before heading out into the cool rainy day. We met one of the workers we spent last Friday with and his wife joined us today. We took about a 30 minute walk to a local mall for lunch and to spend time hearing about the work here. Later in the afternoon we returned to the office.

The group spent a few minutes praying and then setting up for English Tea Time. This is a free conversational English class offered each week. Some of the group make chocolate chip cookies with ingredients we brought from home. We shared the treat with those who attended the group.

After the group we headed out for a late dinner around 9:30. Once again we found great local food in a very small spot. I think 10 people ate and several others had a beverage for about $30. Rice, beans and a salad.

We invited L & E to spend the night at the hotel with our group. So tonight there were 11 all circled up in one of the hotel rooms as we talked about our day and what we learned. Then we prayed individually for L & E. (Tomorrow will be the last day we see them.) It was a special time. As we closed, prayers were shared in four different languages around the circle!

Tomorrow we finish strong.

City Team

Last full day in SA

2011-02-23T07:47:00.002-05:00

This whole week we have been very busy, getting up early and staying out late. Today continued in that fashion as we left at 7am, heading to a high school. We arrived in time for the morning assembly. As we have seen before, the assembly occurs outside with all the students standing together facing a platform, or in today's case, one side of the quad. There were maybe 500 or so high school students at this school. They began by singing, in Zulu. Although we don't understand, their voices are beautiful and they are full of joy when the sing. Next an evangelist from a church came and gave a short devotional reminding the students to turn to Jesus. (We found out later this is a Christian school, so churches are welcome to come and share.) When the assembly ended our students went into classrooms to talk with the local students. Some were able to answer questions and share, others sat in on biology or Zulu classes. After this the girls were able to play soccer in the quad, and we all hung out during the break time to make new friends. Its amazing what technology can do, and exciting to know that our students may be able to stay in contact with some students they have met here.

After the high school we went across the street to a local church which has a preschool in it. We all were bombarded with smiling faces as we walked in and began playing with the children. None of them speak English yet (as they will learn it in school), but still we were able to share our love. Our students really enjoyed this time.

Right now we just finished eating at "Wimpy" a local take-away place. We will rest and pack a little this afternoon, then head out for our "last supper." We have invited the different people we have worked with this week to join us for our last meal. It will be a bittersweet time as we have all really enjoyed our time here and we have seen God working in so many ways. The students all say they want to return some day. They have really been able to see that God is moving in all the different communities here, while at the same time there is still so much need.

We read the comments from our posts last night to the students and they enjoyed hearing from family and friends. Thanks for all your prayers!

We leave for the airport tomorrow around 12, then land in the USA Friday morning.
Praying for the DR and City teams!

DR- small town, big needs, small me, big God

2011-02-22T22:55:00.001-05:00

The DR team is settled into the Time Center, a mission house in Villa Mella, a small town north of the capital. We began working with Ina York- a missionary who formerly worked in New England and has been working in ministry with the women in Cercadillo. Cercadillo is an impoverished neighborhood where many people are undocumented. We learned that many are not given birth certificates and if they are not given birth certificates, they are not given ID's and thereby do not exist to the government. If one doesn't exist then neither can one's children. This affects everything from work to education. Beyond that, many in the community believe that implicit message- they are "nobody".
We are seeing how God is ordering all things to bring the good news of His love and grace to those who are seemingly forgotten. In the past couple of days, we've heard amazing God-sized stories of things happening here. We've been able to show God's care in a practical way by playing with children and, most uniquely, providing manicures and pedicures to girls and women who have never had anyone care enough to massage their hands with lotion or wash their feet. In this time the girls have been able to mutually share stories, songs, testimonies and ways that God has worked in their lives. Tomorrow we will be working exclusively with the adult women in a discipleship group called "Cafe y Coser con Cristo" (Coffee and sowing with Jesus) where women learn Scripture in community and learn a trade (usually sewing) to help maintain their families. We've felt very honored to be a part of what God is doing in Cercadillo- whether its been through prayerwalking, playing or providing manis/pedis (and we can definitely see God knew what He was doing when He set up an all girls team)!
More to come! We do miss home even though we are enjoying every 80 degree minute of it here! THANK YOU for your prayers! -the Q12 DR Ladies.

City team

2011-02-22T17:41:00.002-05:00

Our day began with a visit to a local university where we heard about the school and took a tour. The University is brand new, only in it's second year. The school rep is actually an American and talked about the opportunities to study abroad and he told about his own experience. We then drove out to the site of their new full campus and prayed for the expanding school and God's purpose.

Our host most of the day was a great guy who actually was a summer intern in N.E. about 10 years ago. It was pretty cool to swap stories.

This evening we visited the home of one of our friends. Others stopped by to visit and we made cookies. More conversations. We are learning a lot about listening and sharing stories.

On the way home we had a late dinner near our hotel. We love the local food and drink. We enjoy the local food servers hospitality and trying new foods.

Our time is winding down but we hope to finish strong. Thanks for your continued support, comments, and prayers.

(a.p. - thanks for the sports update! sooo ready to watch baseball!)

Monday in S.A

2011-02-22T10:36:00.002-05:00

Today we had the opportunity of going to a near by AIDS trust, when we first arrived we joined the workers for their devotions. They started in traditional Zulu fashion where one person started singing a song they were lead to by the Spirit. The devotional that was shared encouraged each of us to wake up daily with a positive outlook. We were taught about the AIDS trust and the self-sustainability of it. After being given a tour of the facility at the end we walked into a garden where there was a memory wall, of all the people that have stayed at the trust and passed away. This moment was emotional for us all, and touched us in different ways. God has been breaking our hearts and showing us his redeeming love for the people we have encountered. Tonight we will be joining Westville Baptist church and doing street ministry. We need to run now to eat some South African pizza! Thanks for all the prayers!

Praying for you DR and City teams!

RSVP

2011-02-21T18:30:00.002-05:00

Quest families, mentor's, youth leaders and pastors are asked to please RSVP to the Quest Celebration, Saturday, February 26 beginning at noon. Please RSVP to:
jspringer@charter.net.

City team Monday

2011-02-21T18:16:00.002-05:00

It's all about relationships, and God has a purpose in everything, big or small. These are two key lessons we are learning.

Today we traveled to he highest point in the City and the sun peaked through the clouds long enough to see how vast this City really is. It can become overwhelming if we loose His focus.

We did our shopping today in a very, very, very old "mall". This evening we hosted a bowling party for local friends and then went to dinner. Great conversations and laughter together.

We are mastering travel in the City life; walking (lots of walking), buses, ferry's, and taxi's again today. We are on the back stretch of our time. More soon.

Glad to hear an update from SA.

City Team

Sowabona from South Africa

2011-02-21T13:51:00.003-05:00

God is doing amazing things here in South Africa. The team has been very busy, but loving every minute, meeting amazing people, and eating wonderful food. We have so much to share, but little time. We are currently at Shaun and Deshni's family's house for dinner and enjoying the wonderful fellowship and food. Earlier today we went to a game park and saw so many animals, then went to the beach to swim in the Indian ocean.

Just a quick word about our weekend. We were able to be a part of a missions training and outreach experience with a local Indian church. The team shared testimonies, taught on youth ministry and missions, then went out doing door to door evangelism in a remote area amongst Zulu people. It was great to experience God working in so many ways.
On Sunday morning we were blessed to be able to worship with our Zulu brothers and sisters out in a remote area in a tent. Then in the evening we were in Westville, a suburb of Durban worshipping in a large church. It was a great day.

Internet is sparse here, and I am writing this from an iPhone. We hope to be able to update more soon.

City team Sunday

2011-02-20T14:06:00.002-05:00

The City team started the day with the breakfast buffet before heading off to meet Esin at a local familiar statue, the "boa" (bull). We got on a bus and 35 minutes later arrived at Esin's church for an interesting service, where no English was spoken. We sang a couple of songs that we recognized from home that were sung in the local language. After communion and the service, we headed downstairs for fellowship with the members of the church. Lunch was at a great restaurant where the City team from 2 years ago ate.

The afternoon was more relaxed as our new friends, Esin, Lizzie, and Pablo, came back with us to our hotel, where we played many loud but fun games of spoons. After about an hour of annoying our leaders and fellow hotel residents with our excited yells, we went out to a local spot to watch the big soccer game. We took advantage of this place to eat a "fishy" dinner. As OUR team scored the first goal, a crowd of people (Allyson being the loudest...videos can prove this astonishing event), cheered as representatives of the rival team silently hated us. During half time we walked back to the hotel and some of us finished the game in the lobby.

We need our sleep for a long day tomorrow, more coming soon.
-City Team

DR travel day!

2011-02-20T06:42:00.001-05:00

It's Sunday!! Our mid-way point!

We spent a great day yesterday taking a walking tour of the city center with one of our friends, Alex. He showed us some of the historical buildings as well as some important landmarks. San Francisco has the only school for the deaf, and we learned that the church has a ministry for these people, some of whom we will meet today during services. We also visited the offices of the most famous CACAO in the world. The president gave us a brief lesson and we hope that a tour of the actual plant will be available for future Quest teams.

In the afternoon, the girls had some down time, which they spent getting to know some of our new young friends- a lot of playing "never-have-I-ever" and learning very interesting details about each other's lives (please ask what that game is all about). We also visited another small neighborhood and spent some quality time with children and youth, playing and sharing. In the evening, we attended and participated in the youth service. Our girls are learning about what it means to be "transformed" and how to relate that back to life at home.

We've reached the mid-way point in our journeys and with it comes a change in our location. After services this morning with our friends in San Francisco, we will start our drive back down towards the capital where we will visit a new community to Quest. We are anticipating and waiting for new adventures and lessons to learn.

We are thinking about and praying for our friends in SA and the City, very excited about what they are experiencing.

city team day 2

2011-02-19T17:09:00.002-05:00

The City team is settling in and learning our way around. Only a few sprinkles which was nice since we were outside a great deal of our day and evening. We visited the really, really, really old sites we planned. One site that has been under major renovation is now free of scafolding and beautiful. The team ended the night at the school we visited yesterday.

We are already beginning to wrestle with hard questions. Our walking to and from the bus and ferry as well as the ride time allows for good conversation. We continue to run into people at meals, in the hotel, the small market a few doors down and other locations who remember our teams and we are able to reconnect.

Tomorrow we see our friend E and worship with her. Many of you who attended CW will remember we skyped with her the last night. Thanks for your comments we read them out loud as a group tonight.

Families, everyone is doing great.

Praying for the DR and SA teams. More soon. CityTeam

Update from SA

2011-02-19T08:18:00.003-05:00

Good morning! The SA team has limited access to internet right now. I have gotten some updates from a friend in SA and want to share with you all.

They spent the day Friday at 3 different elementary schools visiting with the students. On Sunday they will travel to visit with Barry and Deb at Westville Baptist. Once they are there they will be able to post an update with details of what they have been up to during their first few days.

Luggage . . .It seems that the luggage should arrive on Sunday! Thank God!

day 1 around the City

2011-02-18T17:31:00.002-05:00

We crashed last night and slept pretty well in our new home away from home. The group loved the breakfast buffet with some very different options.

Today alone we traveled by foot, bus, taxi, subway, and ferry. The group has really taken to the food here. They're adventurous and trying new dishes. One of our contacts, who is new to the whole group spent the entire day with us. We learned some of the amazing history found just down the street from our hotel, visited a private school and attended a youth group. We had great weather today and are probably going to puddle jump tomorrow as we tour some really, really, really old sites.

Praying the SA folks get their bags, some of us know how that can distract. Glad to hear all the DR open doors.

Need to rest, more soon. CityTeam

DR team up and running!

2011-02-18T14:39:00.000-05:00

These have been a very busy 2 days for the DR team in San Francisco. Our first full day in country had us visiting a private school with students ages 9-13. The girls split up, met in small groups with the children, and practiced Spanish as both groups shared stories about their lives. After a delicious home cooked meal of rice & beans, we spent a few hours in a neighborhood that the church has been starting to visit recently. We walked and talked with neighbors and even practiced our swing on the baseball diamond. These girls can hit!!

Although it has been raining on and off all day today, it hasn't slowed us down. We visited a nursing home this morning, loving on some wonderful folks, painted a lot of nails in pretty bright colors (even blue), lots of hands-on opportunities to love and care for our elders. We also visited an orphanage, and played with 9 precious little boys. We are excited to be a part of a new connection with our friend here.

Next it was off to a local hospital to care and pray for patients in Pediatrics, the Womens ward and the Trauma unit. In one day we've had the chance to minister to widows, orphans and the "least of these". We've been in awe at how God has been enabling and equipping us to share and experience His love and grace. Tonight we're looking forward to working with more children at local small groups meetings the church is holding to continue to share the gospel in the community. Hasta manana! -the Quest DR ladies.

News from SA

2011-02-17T15:25:00.002-05:00

Quick message from SA - The team has arrived safely. They are missing a few bags, all the leaders bags! Pray they get to them quickly. They will update us more soon.

city team reaches the City

2011-02-17T14:08:00.002-05:00

We arrived on time and our luggage did too! Smooth day of travel. After dropping of our luggage we went to a brief orientation with our friends here and then dinner at an awesome spot. We met briefly to chat and now headed to bed. More soon, praying for great rest. CityTeam

DR team has landed!

2011-02-16T14:26:00.002-05:00

After an early wake up, and 2 flights, the DR team has arrived in balmy 80 degree temps. We made our way through the hussle and bussle of immigration and customs and are now in our guagua (bus) headed to San Francisco de Macoris, our home away from home for the next 4 days. We're praying for safe travels for our friends headed to the City and South Africa.

The Q Ladies :)

Quest 12 is ready to go!

2011-02-15T21:33:00.000-05:00

Ready to go!

Most of the Q12 Questies are in Northborough tonight. The first two teams DR and SA have a 3:15 AM shuttle pick up. (They're just hearing about that now.) And they will be off for the day's journey. The DR team will be on site by late afternoon. SA will arrive in Durban just after noon Thursday, Durban time.

The City team will all be together by late morning Wednesday and begin their journey overseas late afternoon. They have a shorter flight than the SA team but also arrive in the City just afternoon Thursday.

We are excited... watchful, for God.

Thanks for joining us in this journey!

Quest 12!

2011-02-01T11:20:00.004-05:00

Q12 Teams

DR
1. Jess, Hope Chapel, MA
2. Bekah, Friendship, CT
3. Kathryn, Hope Chapel, MA
4. Bekah, Faith, RI
5. Yasirie, North Park, CT
6. Lisa, Friendship, CT
7. Maggie, Community Cong, MA
8. Alex, Middletown, RI
9. Itamar Elizalde, Faculty
10. Susie Ibrahim, Faculty
11. Vinetta McCann, Faculty
12. Tatiana Burgos, Q7 alumni

SA
1. Teresa, Middletown, RI
2. Miesha, Waterbury, CT
3. Dan, Sudbury, MA
4. Aidan, Friendship, CT
5. Irene, Manchester, CT
6. Bethany, Friendship, CT
7. Ken Hall, Faculty
8. Lynn Kobus, Faculty
9. Ababa Abiem, Q7 Alumni

City
1. Brianna, Community Cong, MA
2. Jackie, Celebration Saugus, MA
3. Dean, Pleasant Street, MA
4. Bryan, Faith, RI
5. Erica, Hope Chapel, MA
6. Ashlee, North Park, CT
7. Allyson Clark, Faculty
8. Rob Morzella, Faculty
9. Tommy Moore, Q7 Alumni

2010-02-26T23:08:00.000-05:00

DR reflections - bradley, emi, meghann, marithe

2010-02-24T15:18:00.004-05:00

Bradley - I went into this pilgrimage expecting to be doing a lot of physical labor and a lot of preaching about the gospel to EVERYONE. We did almost no physical labor, but in a sense we did preach the gospel, but not with words. Every night we would be asked how we lived a Biblical truth. By living the way Jesus tells us to, we are preaching the gospel louder and clearer than we sometimes think we are with words. One big thing I learned is that prayer DOES work. Prayerwalking was a big part of our experience, and Pastor Franklin, who we were working with, wanted to have some more connections with the people in Duverge, the neighborhood we were prayerwalking. My group actually ended up discovering one of the people living there is a Christian, and he came back with us to join Pastor Franklin and his ministry. Praise God! As well as seeing the power of prayer, we experienced some of the most authentic worship I've ever seen. It's not about how the music sounds or putting on a show for people, but solely about worshipping the Lord even if you're not good at singing or whatever. It was eye-opening to see the authenticity of those worshipping our Creator!!

Emi - Quest was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. Throughout this whole journey, I have learned so much and grown so much closer to God. In the DR people are living with much lower standards than here, and yet somehow they are so happy, and overjoyed when we met them. Every home that I was invited into, every place we ate and slept, I saw God's presence and love. The DR team did a lot of prayer walking. I have prayer walked before, but absolutely never like this. When a group of us approached someone's house, they would go in their house and bring out every chair that they owned for us to sit in as we talked with them. From small gesture like these, it was obvious to me that God was there. I was fortunate enough to cross the border in Haiti one of the days that we were there. After the earthquake, they have even less than they had before. I did see some damage, but it was very unclear to me whether it was already like that, or if it was new from the natural disaster. I went to an orphanage where I had witnessed God's mercy first hand. These kids were dirty, had no shoes, and only had old, ripped clothing, but the thing that stood out to me above all were their smiles. As we prayed for the people there, I could tell that God has already done miraculous things there, and I pray that He continues to do so.

I learned so many things from the whole Quest experience, but one thing that really stood out to me was the fact that I view God as if He is in a box, that because I have so many problems, and that everything I pray for here in America seems so big and so much, He really isn't just working in America. He works everywhere at the same time, doing miracles all over the world. This gives me faith because only God can think about every single problem, and every single thing happening all over the world at one time. This probably doesn't make much sense in writing, but to sum it up, God is SO much bigger than you could ever imagine.

I am so blessed to have been a part of Quest 11 and these experiences are ones that i will never forget. Thank you to everyone who helped make this possible, and to everyone whose prayers were with all three teams as we traveled.

Meghann - Going to the DR opened up my eyes to a whole new culture and way of life. The experience truly changed my perception of the world. Returning back to the States, it is hard to look at things the same way, having met so many who have to do without simple things that I have been blessed with.

I went into the trip expecting a lot of physical labor, but we ended up doing a lot more prayer-walking. We got to meet people face to face and pray with them, right there in their houses or on the streets. I was extremely hesitant at first to do such things, partly because I shy, but mainly because I so used to people immediately plugging their ears to Christianity and rejecting those who try to evangelize, but after seeing the Dominican culture I realized how open they are and how hungry they are for knowledge about Christ and prayer. They were truly excited about what we had to share and were eager for us to pray for them. I feel as though I learned more from them about life than they probably learned from me about Jesus because they seem to have so much already. There were so many who already knew of God love and were spreading it to us simply in their hospitality, their smiles, and their acceptance. They were people of love and God is working there just as he works in all places.

I was also truly blessed with the opportunity to go into Haiti and that experience was the most powerful. The faces of those kids keep coming back to me and it makes me want to cry. Their smiles were so bright through all the devastation and I genuinely miss them and ask everyone to keep praying for Haiti and those who suffered in the earthquake.

As for my team, I miss each and every one of you. It was great to have so many people to share the experience with and I glad I have you all to turn to post-Quest.

Marithe - Going on Quest to DR was an amazing experience, even though I was born and raised there, I truly saw things in a new light. I was able to appreciate the breathtaking beauty of it, when I never saw it before. I also learned so many new things, and met many wonderful people. I was also able to see the amazing power of a church that is truly on fire for God. Pastor Franklin, whom we were working with later in the trip, was always telling us things about his church and all the places we passed. Once, on the bus, he was telling us about these two ladies, who couldn't carry children and how their church lay hands on them and prayed so much, then within two months one of them became pregnant, and the other in 3 months. It was amazing, it was like hearing about the God who enabled the prophets and apostles to do all those miracles, and it reminded me that WE have that same power, that we don't have to be anywhere special to be on fire for God.

SA Reflections

2010-02-24T11:47:00.000-05:00

Blake~ The trip to the AIDS facility really rang through my heart. It showed me how being on fire for God could help you to accomplish any impossible goal or task. He helped them to give 110%. Seeing the way people had love for those around them who “normal” people would regard as scum or too low for our love/undeserving, and how some of these Christians did all they could to help them made me realize that I need to judge less, and even if I don't like someone, I need to try and treat them with love.

Joe~ Through this pilgrimage God has shown me that he is more than faithful. The way every body lived- simple- really hit me and has showed me that I don't need ¾ of the stuff that I have. God showed me that I have always been worrying about how I am going to live, what I am going to do, how much money I'll have, but realize it is God takes care of me. He keeps me alive and well, and that if God is calling me to full time ministry... “How am I going to support my ministry” should be the least of my worries. I am going to tell of how God is touching the hearts of many who were prostitutes, beggars, and druggies and now they are risking their lives to reach the hearts of others.

Ana Laura~ What impacted me the most was to see people that had nothing be so happy to serve the Lord. They're thankful for everything. Some of us don't go to church because we're too tired or we don't have the exact perfect outfit to wear. They serve whether it's hot, cold, rain, or shine. They don't care what the conditions are. For example, the Zulu church was small, hot and smelly. All of them were so happy to serve God! From this, I learned nothing can separate me from God. I'm going to serve the Lord freely and unconditionally and thank him for what He has done!!

Matt~ I think that the kids (at the homework help) were great! I usually don't like kids because of a lack of patience, but I loved teaching them. They are very smart. I'm going to apply this trip to my life by acting like a Christian when I'm at school and lead by example. I'm going to try to have more patience.

Sam~ I've learned very much in SA, but the orphans in Noordsberg had the biggest impact on me. These kids were very easy to love, as they were innocent, helpless, and unspoiled. It seemed to us like they deserved love, so it was easy to give it to them. I have many people in my life who are hard to love, as I feel they don't deserve my love. They're mean “stupid” and I feel that I have every right to hate these people. Jesus tells us that we must love our enemies, but this is very difficult to do. Gal. 5.14 tells us we must love everyone as we love ourselves. When I am struggling with “loving” someone, recalling this verse and thinking of my love for the little African children will be helpful. I need to feel the same love for my enemies that I feel for the orphans, no less.

Elaina~ I think hat had the most impact for me on this part of this Quest experience has been the many meaningful encounters I have had with the people of SA. From the orphans at Noodsberg to the woman suffering from HIV, each of them touched my heart and gave my time in-country purpose for me. Seeing God working in SA was seeing the way God had manifested Himself in the people of SA. Each of them, in their own way, faced great struggles and yest they were all able to still place their whole trust tin God and love freely. When I get home, I am going to strive to be more like those I met in the SA and place God as the number ONE most important think in my life. Like the people of SA, I need to realize that when I get my whole sights on Him, only then will everything fall into place. No longer will I doubt of hold back but praise the Creator and love Him wholeheartedly.

Katie~ Seeing all the poverty and how little everybody has, yet they have so much love and joy! For example, the orphans who had nothing. They were lucky if they ate one meal a day, and we couldn't understand what they were saying. They didn't understand us very much either. Yet they loved us so much! Without knowing anything about us, they loved us unconditionally. Also just talking to people hit me. At the shelter Elaina and I were talking to this woman who fully opened herself up to us and talked about her struggles with us. It was hard not to love her, she needed love so badly. We prayed for her and cried with her and held her. Again Elaina and I were talking to someone in the mall who opened herself up to us. It's hard not to love someone when they need it so bad.
I want to love unconditionally. It's harder at home when people are complaining about not to judge them or join them. I want to have joy in my trials, and be content in my discontentment. There are people at home who are in desperate need of love and I want to be able to give love to them freely without any strings attached. I want to show the love of Christ fully and have His joy in my heart.

city reflections: julie, robbie, jaime, cullen, beans, tori

2010-02-21T22:06:00.004-05:00

julie: The Quest Experience was easily one of the best experiences of my life. Of course it was incredibly fun, but more than that it helped me to see God in a new way.

Since the nature of the trip was different from the others, I really went into it with no idea what to expect. To be honest, I was stressing out about everything I had to do or not do while I was there. But once I asked God to open my eyes, he totally did.

The pain and darkness in the city was so evident once I looked around. God showed me pain and frustration just among people I would pass on the street or on the bus. Knowing that it would be so incredibly difficult for these people to even hear about Jesus was heartbreaking. And I was further hit with a full sense of hopelessness when we took a trip to a hill overlooking the city. As I prayed, I began to question God about how anything could ever change in a place where it wasn't even okay for people to go on a mission trip. But as I was standing and overlooking the city, God brought to my head the song "God of this City." The lyrics said that Hes the God of the City, King of these People, Lord of this Nation. I realized that even in a country where 99.9% of the people are not saved and following something so false, God is still in control because He is the creator and ruler of everything. And if I could commit and submit to Him in prayer or any other way, He can and will do the impossible. He's a big God, bigger than any form of darkness, and I suppose I had been taking it for granted in the context of this trip and my own life. I am so grateful that even in a place so dark, God still shines His light.

robbie: This trip has impacted me in more ways than I can really describe. Going and being a part of a different culture for nine days, seeing how they live, and how they interact with each other have given me new ways of looking at things; both spiritually and in my everyday routine. God laid on my heart the power of genuine, consistent prayer, and al though I may never see the results of what I prayed for there, I truly believe that the prayers will be honored.

In addition, this week every person I talked to or shared a meal with was genuinely interested in me, they really listened to the response. As odd as it sounds that’s not something I was used to and I plan being much more genuine in conversations with others I know when I return.

jaime: In addition to this trip to the City I have had the opportunity to experience God’s hand in the Dominican Republic and China. It continues to amaze me the different ways in which He reaches out to his children in different parts of the world. God specifically touched my heart through the people. The City is incredibly dark spiritually and I became doubtful of our potential impact. But Jesus showed me something profound through this overall experience, it is not by our specific actions that anything will ever be completed; rather, it is by his will and his grace that saves us. It may be hard to see his impact in the City but absolutely nothing is too big for my God.

cullen: The last 10 days have been amazing for so many reasons. The experience of being in a completely new culture has been very interesting even if it was for such a short time. The people and the way of life differs so much from America, it really opened my eyes and challenged me to take some of the positive characteristics of the country and apply them to my daily life. Similarly my experience have led to me learning about myself and my relationship with God.

The people I have shared these past few days with have helped make the trip what it was. The experience would not have been the same if I was with a different group of people. As is, I cold have asked for a better people to share this life changing event with.

Pray that my return to the states would go smoothly and that the and that the things I have seen and experienced would draw me closer to others in my life.

Justin/Beans - What can I say about the City, except that it sure is one amazing place. Going to the City has definitely changed my life and helped me grow in my walk with Christ. I got to experience God working in a place that has been so covered with darkness. It's amazing to see God at work through the lives of the workers there as well as the very few native believers. I was touched by their overall hospitality and kindness.
Through this trip, God has showed me the power of humility, silence, and prayer. God doesn't need us to always be loud, but he has showed me that being sincere in our interactions and prayers can make a huge difference and help impact lives for Christ.

Tori - I always had my own view of what a missions trip would look like. I thought in order to be helping you must be building a church or sharing your testimony, but that was before the City. This trip taught me that the main principle in missions is to be a servant to God and trust that he'll show you the way. In the City our primary focus was prayer and just getting to know people - planting seeds of Christianity into the lives of many.
Ths trip has given a visual as to how dark the world we live in is. It's challenged me to be sincere in my actions and live for Christ even more. Going to a place where Christianity is frowned upon made me want to live out my faith in a new way. If lost people matter to God they must also matter to us, whether its half way aross the world or in our own city.

Celebrate!

2010-02-21T07:48:00.002-05:00

All three teams arrived home safely and within 2 hours of one another. Hugs first then stories began to spill out as the chatter level rose louder with each story shared. Some stood face to face while across the room small clusters gathered. It was quite the sight. After dinner groups shared briefly and then began to settle in for much needed showers and rest.

On Saturday groups met for some final details and planned their time of sharing.

Over 130 were present for the Quest 11 Celebration. Parents, siblings, mentors, youth leaders and pastors were present for the time of reporting and sharing. Each team gave a brief glance into their experience.

Thank you for following our journey. Please continue to pray for those you know at they process and infuse what has taken place. Beginning today the blog will be filled with reflections by students and faculty. These will be added over the next few days.

Thank you.

Welcome home!

2010-02-19T21:20:00.002-05:00

All 3 teams have arrived in Northboro. They had a relaxing dinner and a brief time of sharing before winding down for the night.

Looking forward to seeing many of you tomorrow and sharing with you.

Teams in travel

2010-02-19T09:46:00.003-05:00

Please continue to pray for all 3 teams as they travel back to MA. The SA team has landed safely in the States and will slowly make their way up to Boston. The City team is flying over the ocean and the DR team is still enjoying some warmer weather in Miami, but not for long.

We will let you know once they have all arrived back in Northboro!

City on a hill

2010-02-18T00:51:00.000-05:00

The expression "city on a hill" will never have the same meaning for the city team. This afternoon went to a park, sitting high atop a hill, overlooking the city in all directions. From our vantage point we walked alone and in pairs, praying for our friends, old and new, as well as the Father's work within the city.

In the evening we participated in a conversational English class with people from all over the world. We used photos of New England as conversation starters. It was amazing to see everyone so engaged and involved throughout the evening.

After a late evening stop for cay and desserts at our favorite cafe, we came back to the hotel, ready to rest before another full day tomorrow. It is our last day in the city. Although there is still more to be experienced here, we're beginning to think about home and how to infuse all that we've seen, heard and learned into our daily lives.

Keep praying, c.t.

city thoughts

2010-02-16T15:33:00.003-05:00

hi there... our day is rounding out but we still have to travel back to our hotel in a few moments. monday and tuesday we have spent time on two separate university campuses. our students have seen and learned first hand about the school system here. they also met students and began friendships. monday night some of those students joined us for an evening of bowling. (no candlepin here) of course we ended the night with cay at our local spot. the staff at our local spot are becoming new friends too.

tonight our host invited some of their friends and our new friends over and we made Toll House Chocolate Chip cookies. many of the ingredients cannot be found here so it was a treat for everyone. this provided a nice evening of conversations.

it is amazing to see students work their way through this great City with ease and confidence. many of you would be so surprised to watch your students.

we hear you had snow today, we are thankful for another day of comfortable temperatures and no rain. we know our time is quickly coming to a close. we want to finish strong.

looking forward to sharing stories soon. c.t.

More details from the DR

2010-02-16T12:08:00.002-05:00

It's been a busy few days for the DR team! Here are some bullet points of some of the things we've seen, experienced, and learned:

We joined small groups in San Fransisco.
After a brief change of plans, we went to a local museum called the Museum of the Butterflies. The Butterflies were 3 revolutionary sisters that rebelled against a tyrannical dictatorship here in the 1950s and 1960s. The sisters were brutally murdered by the regime in 1962. They had a 4th sister - the last survivor. TO our amazement, that sister was at the museum! Pastor Gabriel and our bus driver (ELVIS!) were amazed to have met a living Dominican legend. She sat down with us, answered questions and told us personal anecdotes about her legendary sisters and her ongoing struggle for the freedoms many Dominicans enjoy today. It was truly an honor!
Has a homemade Dominican lunch at one of our girls families home! IT was awesome to establish some personal contacts as well as share Christ in a personal way.
We helped to set up, participated in and worshipped with our Dominican brothers and sisters in their Valentine's Day service. We were able to talk about God's love and relationships- and then able to share with our new family at their youth pastor's birthday party!
We worshipped with Iglesia Bautista San Fransisco de Marcoris while half our team helped to lead their Children's Sunday School in song, crafts and Bible stories.
Then we traveled to the Capital to worship in a small garage church in the country side. Our students were amazed to sing about our Savior who can move the mountains as we were surrounded by the lush green mountains of the DR!
From there we've traveled 3.5 hours away to Barahona - the southwestern tip of the DR about 45 minutes from Haiti. We've been prayerwalking, actively sharing the Gospel with Dominicans and Haitians in a town called Duverge where the local pastor, Pastor Franklin, is being called to begin small group Bible studies and eventually a church. We are honored to be a part of some of the pioneer work God is doing in this city!
Today we are continuing to prayerwalk, share the Gospel, and do brief Bible studies in the homes we visited yesterday.
We are learning about seeing God everywhere we go and becoming aware of how we can be applying Biblical truths to our lives to reflect Christ and the Gospel- it's been amazing and truly humbling.

Thank you for the comments, encouragement, scripture and most of all prayers! We miss you very much- some have even said they missed the snow! LOCOS! It's been a very nice changed and a great chance to see and appreciate God's diversity in weather!

Hasta la proxima!

Quest DR

The time is FLYING TOO FAST!!

2010-02-16T10:48:00.002-05:00

We all can't believe that we only have a few more days here...wow! All of the students are hoping that our flights are delayed so that we can stay longer:o)

Anyways, here's what's been going on the past few days!

Monday was our "site seeing" day and we got a chance to hit the beach and meet up with one of our pastor friends that we met last year for a bit, do some shopping and then we went to Tala to see some fun animals! We did get to see the white rhino's close up like last year as well :o) We then had a FANTASTIC evening last night eating at the Pilay's home! They cooked us up a feast of great Indian food and our fellowship was so sweet with them! Their generosity, hospitality and warmth made it feel like we were all at home.

Tuesday (today) was just amazing (and it's not over yet!) Today we visited the Hillcrest Aids Trust and were BLOWN away by what God is doing there through His willing servants. In the province we are staying in, the infection rate is around 40%, so it is a great need to have a place to assist HIV/AIDS patients. But these folks not only assist them, they give them a reason to live again!

It is a 26 bed facility that also is helping the victims with income generation through extremely creative ways...farming, working with materials to make BEAUTIFUL projects, clothes, a craft shop, etc...they have found that income generation brings healing to the patients and helps them stop thinking about today and to start living for tomorrow.

They have found that so many people who come looking like they are about to die, with good medical care and the ability to provide for themselves enables many of them to walk out with their HIV/AIDS under control.

Of course, it's also extremely sad to know that in one month recently, they lost 27 patients, 5 in the course of 12 hours. We saw today that what they are doing matters so much, this place had a sense of LIFE and HOPE that you rarely see.

This afternoon and evening we are working with the community outreach that Westfield Baptist is doing through a program (with an awesome young woman named Lauren) they have started that does food parcels, homework help, HIV testing and care, and street ministry to name a few things! We helped out at a school with homework help and had a blast!!! Most of these kids are refugee's from families from all over, including the Congo and some of them don't know how to hold a pencil. So, we helped and played and did the ABC's...it was awesome! But also sobering to know that these kids go with out food and some in desperate situations.

Tonight, in about 30 minutes, we will be working with teenage boys who are on the edge of becoming street kids, sharing testimonies about making the right choices and just hanging out with them from 7-8. Then, we will be visiting shelters and talking with folks...hearing their stories and praying with them. Some are homeless, some are prostitutes, and some are street kids. Lots more to say, but got to run...thanks for your posts and prayers! We love you guys and have had a few amazing days :o)

Love to you Oaks (people) from SA!

Driving through the nation and meeting a legend

2010-02-15T21:42:00.002-05:00

Hola from the DR team! Sorry for not blogging sooner . . .

We've had limited internet access and phone signals! Everyone's great; learning, growing, serving. Saturday we had an amazing time sharing with our brothers and sisters in Central Dominican Republic. We are now in southwestern DR working with a church planter.

Promise we will blog more when we have internet!

Hasta luego!

city hospitality

2010-02-14T17:35:00.002-05:00

we can't really describe today, at least not fully in this spot. we spent the morning in a gathering of other followers. we listened to a new language and found common songs through the music played. we sang along as well as we could. we shared the bread and the cup.

we left and traveled to the home of a woman who demonstrated hospitality. for seven hours she demonstrated hospitality. a light meal then a full (and we do mean full) meal from soup to dessert. we sat and had conversations. we shared our stories with one another. and we encouraged her but not beyond how she challenged and encouraged our group.

we learned we need to visit more in one another's homes. that we need to have deep honest conversations. that we need to tell one another our stories. that good happens when we take time and not rush.

we look forward to telling you the full story when we return. we are healthy and not rain today! thank you for continuing to support us throughout the day. c.t.

hey!

2010-02-14T11:14:00.002-05:00

Greetings from South AFrica! We are all doing well and thank you for all your prayers and comments!!! Yesterday was a wicked hot day spend at Noorsberg with some amazing kids...Noorsberg is one of the more well off orphanages in the rural part about 1 hour outside of Durban. They still only usually get one meal a day, 6 kids to a room, ect...but we loved getting a chance to hold them and love on them and run around with them...a lot!! We played soccer for over an hour with their just formed soccer team and we were beat (physically and literally :o) but we had a great time!! It was a bit tricky, having to avoid all the clumps of grass all over the pitch, as well as the 4-5 cows that wandered onto the field at certain times and left nice little...presents along the way! They sang for us again this year and it always is the most beautiful thing ever to hear...
That night we talked about how amazing it is just to love. No strings attached. How incredible is the Unconditional love of God...we saw that from the kids and talked about how we need to love like that all the time with each other, with our family, with our enemies. Loving in action, but also in words, speaking to others about the amazing love of Jesus and how much we all need God.
Today was spent at church...this morning we went to Sean and Deshni's home church in Arena Park. It was great to worship with them in their home church!!! Then we spend the rest of the morning and afternoon at a Zulu church in a very poor part of Durban. Even though the church is basically a small shed, they danced, sang, and worshiped with such joy and enthusaism, despite some hard and sad circumstances. We talked about the fact that circumstances can't change God and the joy that He brings to us...and questioned why it's so hard for us, who seem to push God aside when circumstances are hard or tough.
Sam preached and God really spoke through him!! Katie and Elaina shared too, about their lives and how God is working in them, all through translators...Blake, Matt, Ana Laura and Joe ran a children's program during the service with bible stories, songs, games and more running around in the hot hot sun!! Westfield Baptist church is partnering with the local pastor to begin really starting to change that community through sharing about Jesus and helping to take care of large community needs. We were blessed to minister alongside them today!!!
I have to run, we are just about to begin the worship time with Westfield Baptist...know that we are experiencing the joy of seeing that God is international, working everywhere and in our hearts as well.
We are SO GLAD God provided ways for us to be here, and learned that we need to keep persevering in life...chasing after God :o)
I leave you with some words from a song we sung today: "I will run to the HIding Place...draw me ever closer to look upon Your face, I will run to the Hiding Place."!!

saturday in the city

2010-02-13T18:04:00.002-05:00

we woke to rain which was heavy at times but we troded on and visited some key sights in the city with a couple of new friends. we saw some amazing places from the long ago past. we learned how we can learn from the past. we shopped a bit after lunch and the sun came out as did many, many people in the city.

this evening we joined the students we met yesterday for a valentine gathering at their school. the bus ride was 1 hour 45 minutes out and about 35 coming home. we were told this is normal. one of our group had a great conversation with another high school student who wanted to practice her English. she had never spoken to an American before. a great experience for both.

we returned to our local evening hang out for hot cay (tea) and a late light supper. we have begun making friends with the servers at the shop.

tomorrow we will meet with other followers and visit one's home for dinner and a long visit. we are excited to go into someone's home.

our last bag arrived today so everything is now accounted for and we are grateful. thank you for your comments (we read the aloud tonight when we met as a group.) everyone is healthy and trying new local food with every new meal time. thanks for your support. ct

News from SA

2010-02-13T08:16:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone!! We FINALLY made it in last night and are all doing great! After taking trains, planes, vans, and automobiles :o) we arrived to hot and humid temps...a nice relief after battling the blizzard in DC! We are just SO thankful for all the many many ways we have already seen God providing for us, each day! We thank Him for the wisdom about our travel plans and all the ways He made a way for us. We are learning that problems can be just opportunities in disguise and that we are to "Make the most of every opportunity" (Col. 4.2 i think)...already had some great converations with people on the planes and at the airports about Jesus!

Today we are heading out to Noorsberg to spend the day with children at the orphanage there. We are planning to bring them the cleats we collected from our churches, because they have a soccer team that is just starting up! We are going their with the youth from Westfield Baptist Church (Deb and Barry's church for those of you who know them) and are excited to go!!!We have a great schedule planned, with 3 church services tomorrow! One of the Zulu churches we are preaching, sharing testimonies and running the kids program, so please be praying for the students as they prepare for that.Thanks for all your prayers and we will blog again when we can!

Peace,
SA Team

city news

2010-02-12T17:32:00.002-05:00

a great day of learning to move around on public transportation on land and across the water. we have eaten local food for all our meals and everyone is enjoying the cuisine and the chai of course. the questies met other students today and gleaned from them rich insights. our friends were great guides and hosts. our eyes and hearts have been opened. tomorrow we tour some very old sites. a few quick showers but partly cloudy all day, we are thankful. all but one bag was delivered today. we pray for the last bag of mostly supplies arrives tomorrow. thanks for you dupport. c.t.

CALOOORR!

2010-02-12T16:38:00.002-05:00

Quest: DR reporting from hot San Francisco de Macoris, Dominican Republic. Its been a busy 24 hours! No flight delalys whatsoever! Yeah for prayer that moves snowstorms! The turbulent flight was worth the face of wonder one of our students had as she experienced her very first airplane take off! We werent so fortunate to miss the Dominican rush hour that welcomed us! We made it to our hotel here in San Francisco de Macoris safely and had a brief orientation with some old friends.

This morning we had a Dominican breakfast (complete with mangú!) with our beloved Pastor Gabriel, followed by another orientation to ministry in San Fran, some prep time, a homemade Dominican lunch and then prayerwalking and visits in a new neighborhood the church is working to plant new small groups in. We visited Doña Angela- an elderly woman who is very sick but is slowly getting better. It was amazing to meet a very real need, pray, and be encouraged ourselves with the faith of someone who has so little yet is able to bless us! We continued to walk around Aguayo (the neighborhood), visiting people, praying with them, playing dominoes, singing, some even got to speak some inglés with students who are learning! It was a packed afternoon and now we are splitting up into smaller groups to join some nearby small group Bible studies.

Tomorrow will be more prayerwalking in another new neighborhood followed by lunch with one of our girls´ extended family that lives nearby! We are humbled by their willingness to open their homes (and their beautiful garden we¨ve heard so much about) to us and are looking forward making a lasting connection. Ministry opps abound tomorrow and we¨ll culminate with the church¨s Valentine¨s day service in which we will be talking about relationships with God and others.

Dios los bendiga!

Planes, Trains and Automobiles to South Africa

2010-02-11T18:49:00.002-05:00

Well, the SA team is off the ground and headed to much deserved warm weather. Their journey has been an exciting one already.

They travelled from Northborough to Springfield by automobiles in the wee hours of the morning Wednesday. It was there they boarded a train headed to Washington DC. It seems that it was a beautiful journey, be it a very white journey! They spent the night in a hotel and took more cars to the airport. Early this evening they finally jumped onto their plane headed to SA. They are only 24 hours behind their original schedule!

Stayed tuned for their arrival notices!!

city lights

2010-02-11T16:36:00.003-05:00

the city team arrived safely this afternoon! we are thankful. a few of our bags did not make the quick transfer but are scheduled to be delivered to the hotel overnight.

we checked into our hotel and then walked to a nearby location for an orientation with our local friends. some of us saw familar faces which is fun. we all had dinner at a wonderful resturant. the bread was like dessert and the meal ended with our first in-country chai.

after dinner one of our hosts took us on a pleasant stroll through the neighborhood. the temps outside are so pleasant and no rain. it was nice to walk after the time of travel.

back at the hotel we had a short debrief and now heading to sleep.

for those who have been here before, yes the cats are alive and well! more soon, thanks for your support. c.t.

2010-02-11T12:37:00.001-05:00

Here is a post from the DR team liast night! They had some trouble getting on.

DR team reporting from the Lodge in Northborough. All safe, sound and waiting to start our journey to the Dominican Republic. All flights seem to be on time so, Lord willing, we will be in the Dominican Republic this time tomorrow!

Thank you to those that are praying! Hasta mañana!

They are currently in transit and should be landing in Puerto Rico shortly and then they jump over the Carribean Ocean to the DR.

2010-02-10T18:11:00.002-05:00

city team is ready to go! we arrived safely at logan and are now sitting at the gate. we will let you know when we arrive. the other groups should update you with their own stories.

Q11 Prepping to go

2010-01-27T20:36:00.002-05:00

The Q11 teams will travel simultaneously to the Dominican Republic, South Africa, a City in Asia, February 10-20, 2010, representing New England through ministry. Follow along with the groups as they travel.

Dominican Republic
Joshua, New Colony, MA
Anthony, Casa de Oracion, MA
Zach, Faith, RI
Bradley, New Colony, MA
Chris, Sudbury, MA
Marithe, Friendship, CT
Meghann, Daybreak, VT
Mary, Naugatuck, CT
Emi, Hope Chapel, MA
Reby Oliveira, Vida Abundante, MA
Miria, Brazilian Leominster, MA

South Africa
Katie, New Colony, MA
Elaina, Hope Chapel, MA
Joe, Arabic Baptist, MA
Ana Laura, Brockton Brazilian, MA
Matt, Faith, RISam, Daybreak, VT
Blake, Hope Chapel, MA

The City
Kassie, Casa de Oracion, MA
Jaime, Hope Chapel, MA
Robbie, Manchester, CT
Beans, Friendship, CT
Julie, Hope Chapel, MA
Cullen, Daybreak, VT
Tori, Southside, NH

City Reflection

2009-03-21T15:28:00.002-04:00

This is definitely an experience that I’m going to remember for the rest of my life. This was my first mission trip, and because of it, it most definitely won’t be my last! This mission trip was a very different experience than what I had heard other people talk about when they go on mission trips. There was no canvassing, no witnessing, no street testimonies, no talking about Jesus or why we were there. While we were there, because we couldn’t openly talk about our faith to people, the whole point of the trip was to show God’s love through our actions and by making relationships. We couldn’t just speak Jesus, we had to BE Jesus to them. Everyone over there just assumes that if you are American then you are Christian and they had been given a bad impression of Christianity because of things like MTV and other American shows. We had to work hard to change that opinion and break down that stereotype to the people we were around. This applies to my life here because I have may friends that have such bad opinions of Christians because of experiences that they have had with them. It made me realize that in order to change their opinions and realize that Jesus is so much more than a bad example, I can’t just say God loves you sometimes and hope it works. I can’t just tell them my testimony or share about the Gospel with them sometimes. I need to show through my actions EVERYDAY that I am different. Then, when they wonder why, I can proudly say, “Because I love Jesus!” I definitely know that there was a reason God chose this as my first mission trip. Because it was my first, it impacted me that much more. Tessa - City Team

City Team Reflections

2009-03-06T17:50:00.002-05:00

Krissy Q10
Through doing Quest God has shown me life through the eyes of other people. Not being able to be open about my faith while being in the City made me realize that I need to take advantage of the openness I have at home. Another thing I was shown while being in the City is that I really like being with kids and helping them out. We were at a native school one day and Nic, Brittany, and I had to come up with a story to teach the kids using sock puppets and we did that and then taught them some songs with the hand movements...it turned out they new most of them. Overall God showed me two things: I really should take advantage of having the ability to be open about my faith with the people around me and that i have a lot of fun being with kids and teaching then new things...like what a moose is.

Kelsea Q10
Where do I begin! The City was an AMAZING experience, except amazing doesn’t even cut it! The people were so friendly and beautiful. The culture was astounding and really old, but I loved it that much more! Our “City” contacts welcomed us with open arms and were excited that we came to help them share Christ through our actions and attitudes in a “Christianity is restricted“ country. God taught me so many lessons that deepened my relationship with Him during the trip. Prior to the trip, I struggled with my quiet time and with life in general. I did a quiet time everyday and prayed, God knows how many times, but there was still a wall between my Creator and I. On the trip, my team was given a sheet with different Bible passages for different days and we were to read them throughout the week. This enriched my relationship with Christ. As the week went on, I developed a surpassing love and desire for my God through his word and it made me realize that back home I was treating my quiet time as a chore rather than an opportunity to spend time with my Father. If we truly love Christ and want a relationship with Him, then it shouldn’t be an inconvenience. I have come to understand how crucial and beneficial a quiet time can be. One other lesson that impacted me is that not all mission trips have to deal with poverty, open street worship and devotions. All the mission trips I’ve been on had some sort of combination between poverty and public devotions. The first few days I’d spent in the “city”, I was absolutely clueless, but now I know that you can affect non believers just by your actions and attitudes. In the Bible, its shares with us that our attitudes should be that of Jesus Christ. As our week came to a close, Allyson reminded us of one thing, the real mission trip starts when we are at home. I thank God for this opportunity of a lifetime, our contacts in the “city” for arranging the events and giving my team cultural insight, and the team leaders, Rob, Beth, and Allyson, for dealing with our teenaged ways and making sure that we are safe. Stay Strong!

South Africa Team Reflections

2009-03-02T19:11:00.003-05:00

My experience in South Africa has impacted me a lot. Knowing that some people in South Africa have nothing but God and make God the center of their lives is amazing. The first day we were in South Africa we visited an orphanage in Kwa Dobeka that consisted of children from 6 months and younger to about 6 years old. Once Q 10 SA walked in, kids ran and attacked us with hugs. After spending time with the kids and volunteers, it was sad to say we had to leave. One of the volunteers stood up and worshipped out of no where. I was shocked to see them pray and worship. You would have never seen that in America. Even though they did not get paid, they still helped out and shared Gods words the children. Even though those volunteers and those children had nothing but God, they still rejoice in his word no matter what happened. That made me think of how people in America act. We have so many materialistic people. They take things granted. It made me think of how awesome God is and without him we have nothing and with him we have everything. He is all we need. It was only the first day and it all ready made me stronger with my walk. It was amazing. -Krestina

The person that I will never forget from Durban, South Africa is a 14 year old boy who happened to look like he was eight. His name is Trevor Kabooli, he is extremely skinny and he’s Zulu. But the thing that impacted me the most about Trevor was how he played sooccer with the rest of the shirtless and shoeless South African boys. They played on a field that was really gross, but they were definitely the most passionate kids I ever met and I was honored to help them. The drive that was on Trevor’s face along with the sweat and the willingness to chase after the ball no matter what got in his way was inspiring. I want to be so much like Trevor when it comes to my walk with God. I want to run and chase after God the way he did after the soccer ball, he didn’t let anyone get in his way and h e was so willing to share at t same time. That’s how I want to be with God and with sharing my faith with others. -Amber

If I had to choose one thing that made an impact on me on this trip would have to be the fact that the same God that works in my life in the U.S. is the same God that changes lives in South Africa. A great example of this was when we went to Westville Baptist Church and after the service I had a conversation with a youth named Andre who told me his testimony and I was moved by the impact God had made on his life and he was moved by mine as well. That was the highlight of the trip for me.-Deva

My trip to South Africa was one of the best experiences of my life. Going to the orphanage in Noorsbery was an unbelievable experience! Just hanging out with the kids, playing with them, and watching them smile and enjoy our company was amazing! I enjoyed every minute of South Africa and I felt God’s presence everywhere. It was great to really see God’s presence in Durban, South Africa and I can’t wait to see what else He has in store for that country.-Joshua
On the trip to South Africa I experience so many things. One that impacted me the most was the love of God that the people have there. Our society has shunned and looked down on our faith in a King. It’s hard for people to share their faith here. In South Africa people are free to share Jesus and they can do it in public schools. Here it is so hard and I hope one day we will be able to do that in America; to share and show the love of God everywhere. -Zach

My trip to South Africa was amazing in so many ways. First, the people there were so much more spiritual. You could feel it. I could tell of God’s presence the minute I went to the first orphanage in Kwa Debeka, a small town located in Durban. Second, the people we were working with, Deb and Barry, pastors at Westfield Baptist, and a Zulu woman named Mano. Deb and Barry were with us about everyday and were extremely generous and just all around amazing people. Mano was incredible and took us all over Durban showing us amazing things and people. She was very spiritual, always doing what she felt God was telling here to do. Over all, our trip was life changing. The times we shared together effected my life and changed my walk with God in the best way possible. -Jared

Wow! What a wonderful experience and opportunity this has been! One of many stories/experiences that pop in my head is when we visited the orphanage. The kids were so welcoming and wanted nothing more than to be held and loved. As we were leaving a young boy grabbed my arms and wrapped then around himself. He wouldn’t let go and Katelyn had to help get him off me. We finally got him off but he fell on his face and cried. After seeing that little boy and how determined he was to hold on to me I thought, “That’s how I want to be with Christ. I want to hold on to him always and never let go.” I want to hold onto Christ like that little boy held on to me. I don’t want to love Him one day and stray away from Him the next; I want His arms wrapped around me now and forever! Kate

If you didn’t think that African dancing, singing and face painting right next to the Indian Ocean was possible, think again! We went to this African Resturant that was culturally different for all of us but amazing called Moyo. We were able to listen to African music and to experience the Zulu culture. We met this woman named Mano who is one of the best Africans you will ever meet. She is so hospitable, cheerful, an amazing singer and a true follower. Nothing I’ve ever seen can compare to what she is doing. In SA, it’s unbelievable how many people you see who have so little; it makes you appreciate everything you have. But with even so little, the people are happy beyond belief because they have God in their hearts, and that’s what IS important! Mano works and travels to help widen that belief. It shows her love, care and that will forever be in my heart! I’m thankful for Mano and her work- it honestly inspired me to things she does later in my life. It was an outstanding and unforgettable trip!-Catherine

Dominican Republic Relections 2

2009-03-01T08:55:00.003-05:00

Jim
Hey my name is Jim and I went to the Dominican Republic. I saw God at work in almost everything that we did there. The thing that influenced me the most on this trip was the orphanage. It influenced me because the kids had so little, but they were still very happy and smiled constantly. Even small gestures would make them so happy. God showed me that I complain about everything, and I have to stop thinking of myself in every situation. I realized that because I saw how the little kids lived with almost nothing. That experience made me start to appreciate the little things that I have and thank God for everything.

Lenny
Hey everyone my name is Lenny! What impacted me the most was when I was videotaping the trip the Dominic Republic kids would crowd around the screen and be so happy just to see it. Some of them would dance and be so excited to be on video. Later one of them walked up to me and thanked me for videotaping him and he had this look on his face that told me how much it actually meant to him. Through this experience I realized that there are a lot of things that we take for granted in America. When I showed some of the kids there a picture I took of them it almost caused a riot among the kids to see a picture. Seeing the excitement on their faces really opened my eyes to how blessed we are. There’s a saying that goes “God bless America”, why? We have all ready been blessed.

Caitlyn
¡Hola! One of the things God showed me was this: Always be ready. Be ready to serve. Be ready to share. Be ready to love. Always.
Going into this, the thing I was most nervous about was sharing my testimony and how God has changed my life. I was dreading being called upon to speak in front of an audience. Even when I didn’t end up being asked to share my testimony, God was still right there saying, “Be ready.” One example of this would be when we went to visit a man named Antonio who pastors a church in his garage. At one point he asked that one of us share our testimonies. It was unexpected and I had that feeling of “phew!” when I wasn’t asked to. Another instance of this was when it was arranged that the team would be on a local live television show in San Francisco de Marcolis. We didn’t know what to anticipate or who would be asked what. So on our way there we were predicting what would happen and trying to prepare ourselves for questions that might be asked. Again my mind was at ease when I learned I wouldn’t have to say anything.

In both of these times I felt God telling me that I shouldn’t have felt relief for not being called, that I should have been ready. 1 Peter 3:15 says, “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.” Eventually I did end up sharing my testimony a couple of times to smaller groups. And if I can do that in front of random people I’ve never met, I can do it in the company of those I know and trust.

Marley
Hola!!! my name is Marley and I was blessed to be on the DR team where I saw God work in so many ways. There were so many wonderful things that happened but one thing that really stuck out to me that God was showing me was how on fire rooted in the word and ready for service the Dominicans we met with are. I think as far as ministry goes my favorite parts were being with the kids and getting to play with them and also prayer walking. I always viewed prayer walking as the way we do it in the U.S. – walking around and praying for things we see. However, in the Dominican Republic it is a little different…actually, a lot different. When we prayer walked you would recognize and respond to a need in the community whether it be by prayer, sharing your testimony, sharing a bible verse or just telling them about God. We met so many people with so many needs who still, in spite of all their troubles, trust in God and responded well to what we were doing in their community. I was really amazed at the openness of the people and I learned so much through this experience.

Ben
My name is Ben and I was on the DR team. The trip was amazing! Churches in America could learn a lot from those in the DR in my opinion. With all the emphasis we put on presentation, what church would meet in a library? Or in a garage? And how many of us would see a need and start a church in a garage? In addition to all the serious stuff, it was a lot of fun.

Dominican Republic Reflections 1

2009-03-01T08:52:00.002-05:00

Andre
Keloke?!?! My name is Andre, and I went to the D.R. with the Q10!! God did wonderful things in this trip to everyone, but the thing that God worked on me the most was how to improvise and that my talents can be used for his glory!! Before this trip I could only do the “Puppet show” with the appropriate song and a mini stage but God taught me that I could do it pretty much anywhere, from on top of amps to benches, from the top of walls to keyboard cases, I even did the presentation with Jimmy playing the guitar!!! Another HUGE thing was that before the trip I really didn’t want to bring the puppet, when Suzie told me to bring it, I tried to come up with every excuse I could think of, but I ended up bringing it. God used the puppet so much. I hope it touched people’s hearts. God also taught me to be thankful for everything all the time, no matter what. I know God changed me in this trip; and the old Andre who refused to serve God no longer exists!! God bless everyone!

Jared
Que lo que? Me llamo Jared. Which is apparently pronounced “Halled” in Spanish? The DR was absolutely amazing! I know that I will always remember this experience for the rest of my life. My favorite part of the entire trip was when our group did our cardboard testimonies. For those of you who do not know what cardboard testimonies are, it is when you write your testimony in a short and precise way on cardboard. I really believe that our testimonies spoke to the people of the Dominican Republic. We all had our own special testimony that could touch each person in a different way. I believe that our time in the country not only change our lives but change the people of the country as well. The Dominican opened my eyes, at a point where I now see how fortunate I am for living in a country like America and how I should thank God every single day for what I have. I thank everyone who sponsored me for this trip and I thank Luc Cruse for recommending me for this trip. And I thank God for giving me this great opportunity.

Sam
Hey guys my name is Sam. While my team was in the Dominican Republic God was working through us constantly. We weren’t doing anything; it was God and only God. One experience that really affected me was when we were in Pedro Brand prayer walking. One lady invited us into her home, and I shared my testimony with her. I didn’t really think it did much, but it was sharing how God was working in my life so I didn’t really mind. Later that evening, we went to a church service at a boy named Christian’s house. The same lady that I shared with earlier that day was there that night! I was so excited when I saw her, so I went over to say hello and what not. The next day, we went back to the same area in Pedro Brand, and Itamar was talking to the lady’s daughter. She was telling Ita how my testimony really affected her mother because she had lost her parents a little while back. The lady (I didn’t catch her name) was also at the church service that night! Again I said hello and she really seemed to be enjoying the service. This experience just showed me how God uses past experiences to glorify Him and bring people closer to Him. He also brought me to realize how when we ask, He gives us the words to say that will really have an impact on those that we are speaking to. It wasn’t just luck that the lady and I had gone through the same experience that was God’s will, no doubt.

Kathy
My name is Kathy, and our trip to the Dominican Republic was life changing. The culture of the DR is so different than here in America; the genuine hospitality of people who had just met us was humbling, and so many people on the streets were happy to talk to us and hear our testimonies. God revealed himself to me more than ever on this trip. One main event that stands out to me while in the DR was a day we spent time at an orphanage. Each one of us paired up with a child to spend one-on-one time with a kid who rarely gets it. The girl I spent time with was Nicole, a girl who was nine or ten years old. The sparkle in her eyes when our team came in was unreal – she was so happy to see new people. She wouldn’t let go of my hand for the entirety of our time there, and really showed me the child-like hope and love that we all should aim for. I need to show the hopeful sparkle in my eyes that Nicole showed me, and never let go of God’s hand.

Carmen
Hi my name is Carmen and one of the things that impacted me the most from our trip to the Dominican Republic was seeing how hard the missionaries and Christians over there are working to spread the gospel. When we got there we met Rodney and Sharon and they are doing an amazing job working with the Dominican people. They introduced us to some people from their church they were extremely nice to us and you could tell that they truly loved God. Something that God taught me throughout this trip was to trust him no matter what and truly give him the first place in my life. I saw many people who were much less fortunate then myself and it made me so thankful for what my Lord has given me. I enjoyed every moment of the trip and being able to meet new people. I loved the time we got to spend with the kids at the orphanage and being able to share God’s love with them. I became very close with all the members of my team and had a great and life changing experience. God does amazing things and I have learned that he is in control of everything.

Jimmy
Que lo que? My name is Jimmy. God really showed me a lot and taught me a lot this week. He really gave me a heart for the people. We went to an orphanage one day and one kid really attached to me. His name was Roni. He was so full of life and so happy even under the circumstances of his life. I really connected with him and we had such a great time playing football, singing, and dancing together. I was just glad that God was able to put a smile on this kids face through me.

Giving Thanks

2009-02-26T20:26:00.003-05:00

We have been back for almost a week and we are re-adjusting to our lives. We have returned to family, school, work, friends, congregations and youth groups. We are attempting to tell our stories which at times is easier than others.

We so appreciate your many levels of support. We have much to be thankful for as we reflect on the extent of our travel, various forms of travel, our safety and health. Minus a few colds and jumpy tummys, we all fared well physically. We are grateful for the in-country contacts who paved the way for our overseas experiences.

Most of all we thank God for gracing and teaching us. Our prayer is that in return we deepen our personal relationship with Christ!

Please continue to follow the blog as students and faculty share personal reflections.

Home Sweet Home

2009-02-20T19:07:00.002-05:00

All teams are now back in Northboro at the BCNE. We had spaghetti for dinner, which was welcome by all.

Everyone is doing well. We are sharing experiences tonight, as we prepare to share with the rest of you!

DR update: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday!

2009-02-20T11:05:00.003-05:00

Hi there everyone!!
Although we made it back to Northborough, we just wanted to update you on our last few days of ministry in the DR.

Monday morning, we spent a glorious 2.5 hours relaxing at Boca Chica beach with Rodney (Coleman) and some of our Dominican brothers/ leaders at Cristo Viene Church. The water was nice and warm, on a beautiful clear day. Part of what makes our stay in the DR so special is the connection we make with some of the Dominican believers. They help us out with our ministry as we come alongside them in theirs. This week we spent a lot of time with Jochy, Vick, Fernando, and Elvis. These guys were vital in our work in the capital as they helped lead some songs and teaching throughout the week.

Monday afternoon and evening, we went back to Pedro Brand to work alongside Pastor Alejandro and his wife, Joana. They have started a church in the town because they saw the need for one. Our team split into several groups and prayerwalked the neighborhoods of this town, and several groups were invited into homes, where they could share some testimonies and pray for the family members. We were able to have great conversations and learn about people’s lives in this small town. In the evening we helped lead a small service at a church member’s home. As we climbed the small hill to her house, we were greeted by some of the most scenic mountain views—another amazing testimony of our Creator! Again, we were able to share about the transforming power of Jesus through the “cardboard testimonies”, and through “Sergenio” (Andre’s puppet friend).

We’ve been amazed at how such a simple pieces of cardboard could have such a powerful meaning in our lives as well as the lives of our Dominican friends. Our prayer is that they, too, will experience a transformed life when they put their trust in Jesus.
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Tuesday found us at Pedro Brand again for a full day of ministry. Again, our team split into smaller groups- one to play games with the children and the other to share with people door-to-door. After lunch, our group came back to Pedro Brand and visited a local school (where Joana teaches in the morning). We had a very crazy opportunity to join the kids for recess- which consisted of several hundred children out on the basketball courts playing with only the few balls we brought. We then had an opportunity to do an impromptu presentation at the school in their “auditorium”. We found ourselves standing on a VERY small stage in front of 100, then 200, then 300+ children in grades 3-6. This was a Dominican moment to have some many people crowded into a small space like that! We were able to get it quiet enough to teach 2 new children’s songs. We then taught them “Open the Eyes of My Heart”, and it was like being in heaven to hear all of those voices singing- we didn’t want it to end! It was a bit overwhelming with the amount of children and eventual overwhelming rowdiness, so our time was cut short. You will see our pictures and know what we mean.

That evening was spent having a small service in an empty lot between some houses. After a near miss of a rain shower (which came after a lot of quick prayers) we were able to begin. The temps went down fairly low this night, which we were very surprised to experience after so many warm days. Although this was a long day, it was a great day of ministry with our new friends. A Dominican brother previous Quest teams have met, Osiris, spoke a powerful and thorough message. It was amazing to see this brother’s growth and maturity.

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For our last day of ministry (Wednesday), we went back to Antonio’s home for some encouragement—as many know, often times when we go somewhere to “bring encouragement” WE are often the ones encouraged! Antonio shared his passion to love on and share Christ’s love with his community. We split up into groups to share about Antonio’s weekly church services held in his garage on Sunday mornings. We were able to talk with community members of Antonio’s passion and desire manifested through his open heart, open arms and open doors. Antonio’s influence has not gone unheard in that community. Our prayer for that community is for Christ’s love and power to renew and transform as it has and does with Antonio and his family.

After our goodbyes with our faithful Dominican brothers, we were able to soak in some more Dominican culture while souvenir shopping, driving through historical parts of the Capital as they prepare for the Dominican Independence Day (Feb. 27), and finally having a very special dinner at El Conuco—a typical Dominican restaurant filled with history, culture, and music! It was an encouraging time with Sharon (Coleman) and the Hernandez’ family (Karin, Eric and little Eric). Our nightly debrief time was a wonderful time of praise as we lifted up prayers of thanksgiving and hope.

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We started our travel day (Thursday) in the wee hours of the morning with a good chunk of the group feeling some of the effects of fatigue and cold-like symptoms… but all went well in travel. The team is grateful for a restful time to recoup and prepare for the other teams to arrive and share. We cannot wait to see friends, family and mentors tomorrow at noon for our Closing Celebration. We have much to be grateful for! God has certainly been good (AS USUAL)!

DR team has arrived!

2009-02-19T20:18:00.002-05:00

The DR team has arrived safely and is adjusting to being "home." They are resting and preparing to meet up with the City and SA teams. Stayed tuned for updates from their last days of ministry.

Pray for both the City team and SA team as they travel home. Pray for everyone as they adjusting to being back. Pray for rest and a great time of joining together to share experiences.

Tea, Tea, and more Tea

2009-02-19T04:33:00.004-05:00

Yesterday we had a jam-packed day. Our morning was spent prayer walking on another university campus-- it is a new campus and has been growing by thousands and thousands each year. While waiting to eat lunch, our girls were approached by two female students who invited us to drink tea with them. We were so excited to have the opportunity to really connect with students close to our age and ask questions about school, life, and boys : )

We had eventful bus experiences including a belt that broke and having to move to another bus. We traveled through a less wealthy part of town. And other things we will just have to tell you when we see you!

The ladies were invited to have tea and snacks in a traditional home--this is VERY unusual!! This was an amazing opportunity to see first hand how many of the more conservative people in this city live. Though we had a language barrier, we laughed with one another and developed a friendship. As the meal progressed, we all became more comfortable.

We ended the evening by attending a weekly tea time, where students can come and practice their English with native English speakers. We talked about movies, sports, culture, faith practices, and food with people from all over the world.

It was truly a day to dig deeper into the psyche of the people who live in the city-- your students are learning to ask questions, listen, and understand what it means to be a citizen of this city.

We have started our last day, almost ready to pack and head home. We hope to blog one more time!

Sunshine in the City!

2009-02-17T16:18:00.004-05:00

Yes we saw the sunshine today!

Today we toured a university campus with some of our friends. Our guides from the univeristy told us about the school and the degrees offered. We heard about the national exam graduated high school students take to attend. Only about a third of those who graduate high school are able to attend.

Our purpose for being on campus was greater, to walk and pray. We learned as a group how easily we can be distracted by life happening around us. We made many observations of the campus and discussed how we can remain centered to our purpose. Tomorrow we will spend time on another univeristy campus.

We traveled across the river for the last time (by ourselves without our friends!) to shop. We did our shopping and found out who in our group could barter and who was a bit shy. And tonight we ate cheap and American at good ole McDonalds. I think most of us are ready to return to native food!

Our time is winding down. We read the other blogs and see how different our experience is from the others. We have learned a great deal but it will take time for it to soak in. Thank you for your support.

PS We are thankful more than ever that our public places back home are smoke free!

More from SA

2009-02-17T12:40:00.000-05:00

Today was a busy day! We visited two primary school's and sang (We have brought the Moose song to South Africa and they LOVE it!) and two of our girls shared a bible stories with them. We worked with 2 youth workers (Lisa and Matthew) from another church who minister to students in primary and secondary school. They are able to share all about Jesus in the most of the schools and participate in Bible clubs, which is pretty fantastic! We were stoked because in one of the schools this was the first time they were given the time in the assembly to share about Jesus!! So we feel priviledged to be a part of what God is doing there!
We then went and played soccer with students from the first school.
They do not have sporting facitities, so they have to pay to use a field close to the school and it hardly ever gets mowed, so the grass was a bit high :o) We had a great time sharing with them and helping coach them in soccer! It was great to see what God is doing through their ministry in the schools and through Lisa and Matthew.
Dinner tonight was amazing! Our good friend Mano, who has been taking us around a lot this week (and works it seems 10 different jobs with passion and a great sense of calling) invited us over to her and her mother's house in Kwa Debeka for traditional South Africa food! We had had enough curry yesterday to last us a while:) (well, everyone except Ken) so it was fun to have some new types of food! I bet you all never thought your students would eat tripe! We also got to interact with the local kids in the area after dinner...it was great!
We are now at Deb and Barry's church getting ready for their Sr. High small group time so I best get off...Thanks so much for all your prayers and comments! Keep them coming! We all can't believe that tomorrow is our last full day here, but we are ready to visit more schools tomorrow and the Dream Centre, an AIDS hospice center.
Greetings to you all from the South African team!

The latest from SA

2009-02-17T12:25:00.003-05:00

"There is no one else like my Jesus, there is no one else like my God, there is no one else like my Jesus, there is no one else like my God!
Greetings! We wanted to start our blog off today with the English words of a song that we have sung many many times here in South Africa because it is the truth! We have seen God working in so many ways through so many people, it is incredible!
On Sunday, we had the opportunity to participate in four different worship services. They were all different in style, language, venue, but all weaved together the message of the kindness of God shown to us by the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus...We shared at Arena Park, an Indian church (where our friend Shaun use to be the youth pastor), at Kwa Debeka, a Zulu church we had been to earlier in the week, and had a surprise, God ordained visit to an outside outreach in the middle of Durban where two of us shared a bit of how Jesus has changed our lives! We saw many people coming to give their lives to Jesus there which was awesome! We also saw some good dancing and singing :o) and a few of us joined along. Many of us learned have learned that when God speaks to us, we need to not hesitate, but to listen and follow as He leads.
That night, we worshipped at Deb and Barry's church and got to hear Deb preach, reminding us that we can't expect God to bless us or things to change in our lives when we hold on to the sin that trips us up and destroyes us. It was a great great day.
Yesterday we ate some fun things like Bunny Chow, zebra and wilderbeest, and had the most incredible feast at Deshni's parents home!! Shaun and Deshni, your family is doing well, but your dog and nephew miss you very much :o) and we have some fun stories that we now know about you!!!
Yesterday was our day off and we got the amazing opportunity to go to a Game Park and see some wild animals! Let me just say that you all need to ask us about the white rhino's...we got to know then up close and personally! As they say here in South Africa, it was hectic!!! (meaning crazy, awesome).
We also got to go to the beach and dive into some big waves.
Today we are sharing our testimonies and drama at three different schools and going to Deb and Barry's small groups tonight so busy day! The students say HI and that they love you all!!! Although most of them are pretty set about staying in South Africa :o) Thank you for your prayers and we will see you soon!
pictures are in the jo'burg airport, at Kwa Debeka and at Noorsberg orphanage....

Rain, Sun, Snow, Opportunities and a Birthday

2009-02-16T16:54:00.009-05:00

Hello to everyone. We started out again with rain, but we have grown acustom to it and just went on. Then this afternoon the sun, while hidden behind clouds did bring bits of blue in the sky. But to round out the day we had snow on the walk home tonight! Pretty cool!

Today the group crossed the river again and worked at a refuge center. We assisted the children doing a craft and then time in a circle for songs and focusing on the day's letter: Q! How appropritate! Some held the babies while mothers were seen by a medical team or visited with other women. The room was filled with energy and conversations. At noon we all shared a meal.

After the morning session ended the group assisted with a new effort to help refuge children who are not allowed to attend school engage in some type of tutoring experience. Our group worked through packets to assist in assessing where each child is in math, reading and other basic knowlege skills.

This is weekly outreach touches a number of women and children from all over the world. When a group like ours is able to step in, it expands the 1:1 contact. Our team enjoyed the interaction and opportunity to share.

We visited another really, really, really old site after the Center, let's just say the year it was built only has three numbers instead of four! We told you it was old! Then we walked through a large indoor shopping area thinking about what items we would like to bring home. Everyone wanted our business!

Tonight we ate at a fun restaurant and then back to a shop near our hotel for tea and cake. We celebrated Andrew's birthday. The waiter finally realized what we were celebrating, stopped the singing and took the cake back and returned with a candle and sparkler! This was our second time in this shop, we hope to return at least one more time. Our goal is to be a light to those who serve us. As we started into the shop tonight the waiter recognized the group and flashed a huge smile!

The group has adapted incredibly well to moving around the City. Some parents would be shocked at how well their students know where to go and what to do! Many compliments from our friends here about the nature of the group.

We appreciate your continued support! We hope you enjoy the photos.

Saturday and Sunday in the DR

2009-02-16T14:59:00.000-05:00

Saturday....
Quest DR spent the weekend in San Francisco, up on the north-central part of the island. Saturday morning, we set out to love on some very cute children at an orphanage. There are 22 kids, ages 3 to 13 being cared for by volunteers who have served for four years straight w/out a vacation. Some kids are orphans, and some had been abandoned and found on the streets. Each Questie was able to spend some great 1 on 1 time with one or more kids. We made special valentines, played games and sang songs together.
On saturday afternoon, we joined together with the youth of the church and walked through neighborhoods giving out candy hearts and free hugs, sharing the love of Jesus, with invitations to the church. That evening, we participated in the youth service, with a special emphasis on being a disciple of Love (Jesus).

Sunday....
While in San Fran, the team had a great opportunity to connect with Pastor Gabriel, his family, and the church members. For those of us return visitors, we are excited to see the physical and spiritual growth of the church. The service on Sunday was filled to capacity, with a group of people lined up against the back wall.
The team has been sharing its "Cardboard Testimonies" at most sights. Their impact has been felt, as Dominicans connect with the real transformation that God has allowed in the lives of the students.
On sunday evening, we got back to the capital and worshiped in Pedro Brand, a new church started by a Dominican who saw the need and started a church in his neighborhood. We will be spending 2 more days in that area this week.
We are learning to apply the words "open the eyes of my heart" in our everyday encounters and conversations. Please pray for us in that regard.

City Team, in light of your photo challenge, DR Team says " bring it on!" We love you and miss you all.

Ps. We know that you were worried that temps have dropped here, but after day 1 and 2, we haven't had anything below 80.

Quest Celebration!

2009-02-15T10:16:00.002-05:00

Parents, Mentors, Youth Leaders and Pastors are invited to the:

Quest Celebration
Saturday, February 21
Noon-2 pm
BCNE Building
87 Lincoln Street
Northborough, MA 01532

Please RSVP to quest@bcne.net by Monday, February 16. Thank you.

Game On!

2009-02-15T10:09:00.002-05:00

Greetings Fellow Teams!

The City Team is enjoying your blogs and hearing about your experiences. Praying for you. But we want you to join us in a bit of a challenge!

We would like to have a photo display at the celebration on Saturday. We are looking for photos to represent your team's experience in the following categories:

1. Best Group Photo
2. Best Ministry Photo
3. Best Abstract Photo
4. Best Scenic Photo
5. Best All Around Photo

Questions? Just comment to this blog! Game on!

Anniversary Reflection

2009-02-15T10:05:00.002-05:00

This is the 10th Anniversary for Quest! Today Questies worshiped in three languages plus English on three continents! So amazing to see where God has brought 160 and more than 20 faculty during the last 10 years! We give thanks today!

City Life

2009-02-15T02:22:00.003-05:00

Our blog last night was deleted as we got ready to post, sorry for the delay.

Saturday...
Rain, rain go away. The team was great today as they moved around the city all day in a cold rain. The dampness and sometimes cold feet didn't bring their spirits or attitudes down. It looks as though we may have rain everyday during our visit.

We toured several locations Saturday including two museums. We saw really, really, really, old items and were amazed at the history of this region. We toured a building which was the largest church in the world at one time but is now only a museum. We discussed the parallel that can take place when Christ is no longer first in our life.

We are learning about life in a big city:
>It rains sometimes, pull up your hoodie or open you umbrella, life goes on and so must you.
>During the day it takes around 30 minutes to arrive at your destination, on Saturday evening the same ride may take 1.5 hours! Standing most of the way.
>If you thought the bus was full to capacity, you were probably wrong.
>If the group runs you might make the ferry so you don't have to wait 15 minutes for the next.
>You can buy a watch for $4!

Sunday...
Today we worshiped with a group who speak the native language. A teenager the same age as our group helped us with the flow of the message. A very cool time. Many similarities but also differences of course. The teenagers and young adults joined us at lunch for interesting conversations.

This afternoon we have a brief time to relax and then dinner with some old friends. Everyone is doing well and learning a great deal. Our eyes and ears continued to be opened to new experiences. Thank you for your support! More soon.

Day 3 from Durban

2009-02-14T09:29:00.001-05:00

We thank you all for your prayers and comments!! We are just getting back from spending all day in Noorsberg. It is about an hour away from Durban and the ride was beautiful! The land here is so green (sorry all you New Englanders:o) and has lucious rolling hills everywhere you look. We spend the day at another orphanage where Deb and Barry's youth group volunteer muliple times every year. We got to go with those youth and youth workers from Westville Baptist and it was amazing to see their dedication and desire to serve within their own country, to see the needs around them and to really practice their faith in Jesus through expressing deep love!!
We played soccer, tag, frisbee and ran ourselves ragged having so much fun with the children! We are dirty, smelly and loving it! We also built a ga-ga pit, which they LOVE!! It was incredibly hot today so I think we will sleep well tonight! A few of the children latched on to some of our youth for the whole 4 hours we were there and it was hard to see their tears when we had to leave. We taught them a few of our fun songs and they the same.
Though I think hearing this little girl lead in singing about Jesus for us was far and above the coolest thing we heard today!
We are all trying to learn Zulu and a few of our guys have got it down pat! Yesterday, Deva was saying hello to everyone we passed on our bus ride
:o) but the best was when he said, "Hello, how are you?" in Zulu and the guy replied, "What's up?" in English :)
Please be praying for the amazing workers, pastors and voluteers we have met and have the honor to serve God with...they do so much to express Jesus'
love and grace. And pray for our students as they continue to share how Jesus has changed their own lives thru words and our skit~ we will be sharing at multiple churches tomorrow and schools next week!
In our new South African's friends words, we are STOKED to be here and thank God for all He is showing us!!

Catching Up from SA

2009-02-14T08:38:00.002-05:00

Here's updates from the SA team!

We made it safe and sound! Thanks for all your prayers, our travel to Durban was almost perfectly smooth and we praise God for providing for us those few times it wasn't! The 14.5 hour plane ride from D.C. to Jo'burg was a bit long :o) but being here is well worth it! We were pickedup by Deb Austwick and brought to our Bed and Breakfast in a taxi bus. It may take a while to get use todriving on the left side of the road though!! It was dark when we arrived,so we haven't been able to see too much of Durban and are excited for our day tomorrow!! Not too much to write today, but we wanted to leave you with a few things we talked about in our debriefing time tonight after we ate a delicious meal from Steer~ burgers, chips and Fanta:)

The first question we discussed was how we have already seen God impacting our lives and about our experiencesso far. Many of us had opportunities to talk to people in the airports and on the planes about Quest. Because of that, one student even shared what it means for them to trust God in their own lives with a businessman! We've begun to recognize the awesome opportunity we have in coming here and the need to pray for boldness for sharing about Jesus.

The second question we talked about was what we hope to receive from God on this trip. A few students reallydesire to allow God to use this trip to change them permanently. That this is another step towards Christ's love being deeply embedded in their lives and that they will represent Jesus well in every situation and interaction; here and at home. Students said that they really want to share the JOY of following Jesus without fear, to not look back on this trip and think about what they could have done, to stop thinking about what "others" think of them and realize we live for God and God alone, and to simplify their live and learn to trust God in big decisions.

“You just ate a King Steer, feel the power inside you”- Jared to Amber
“if that makes sense..” Deva
“Deva for President”

Day 2
Greetings from South Africa! We are sorry we haven't been able to post, we have had some internet and computer difficulties! We had a great day yesterday! We spent the morning with Deb and Barry, getting our South African orientation. In the afternoon, we spent time in KWA DABEKA, a township in Durban. We spend 2 hours playing with toddlers and babies in a government run orphanage and did NOT want to leave!! We then got a tour of KWA DEBEKA from some of the local youth in the area. We had a fun encounter on one of the roads by some local 6-7 year olds whose job it is to fix potholes on one of the roads :o) The area is gorgeous, but the people there are very poor. We then got to hang out and share some testimonies with the local youth before going to another youth group and sharing there also! Two very different youth groups, but the same in the desire to share Jesus in their own community!

I'd like to finish with a reflection from one of our youth after the time in the orphanage. "Kids walked/ran up to us right when we walked in, wanting to be loved, played with and given attention. When we had to leave, one of them wrapped their arms around me and wouldn't let go. I want to be like that with God, running to meet him and not wanting to let go.

We are off to another orphanage, to play some soccer and build a gaga pit! it is WICKED hot!! thanks for your prayers!

Experiencing the DR

2009-02-13T20:40:00.002-05:00

Today we met with an old friend Antonio in Santo Domingo and he shared his testimony with us. We will be working with him and his church this Wednesday. We have truly been blown away by the passion with which Dominican believers live their lives EVERYDAY. We headed up through the beautiful, green mountains of the Dominican on our way to our new destination San Fransisco. We will be here for several days with Pastor Gabriel, who many of you know as well. We will have the privilege of working with the church here in a multitude of ways. We also got to be a part of Dominican TV. It was truly an experience. Thank you so much for your continued prayers and comments. We are blessed by your encouraging words. Until tomorrow. Here are a couple of pictures . Many more great moments to come.....

Check In from SA

2009-02-13T17:10:00.003-05:00

Heard from SA team! They arrived safely and had a full first day of ministry. They are working out some minor gliches with their computer and should be posting soon!

Busses, Ferries, Subways, and our own two feet

2009-02-13T16:59:00.000-05:00

What a great day. Our first bus ride this morning opened our eyes to the people's City, few tourist here so we were able to see people moving around in there natural surroundings. Our first stop was a private school. we helped with some small tasks for teachers around the building and began meeting students. Just before school ended we joined the junior and senior high students for their weekly chapel. Their students led the music part of worship, then Btittany shared her testimony and Andrew led a devotion.

Later we crossed the river and attended a youth group. Many students from the school attend this group and we rode the bus together. This gave opportunity for small conversations with the students learning more about their lives and The City.

Youth group began with a dinner then after hanging out a study together. More time to connect, we will see many of these students again Saturday night. We walked down a very steep hill to the ferry which brought us back across the river. We ended our night in a local cafe.

The group is learning about the City and its people, connecting well with one another and the new friends we are meeting. Good spirits inspite of a long day which included a lot of walking in a light rain. Everyone is eating well and another night's rest will go along way. We enjoyed reading your comments tonight during our debrief time.

Tomorrow we will be tourists a portion of the day visiting the wonderful sights of the City. More soon.

Day 1 from the DR

2009-02-13T07:17:00.000-05:00

Our 1st full day was spent in San Cristobal near the capital with some old Quest friends and some new ones! We connected with Sharon (Coleman) and Juana, the pastor's wife who, along with her husband, are ministering to the young people of the neighborhood. We went to a new neighborhood the govt just finished building for a group of people who have always lived in makeshift homes by the river. The people are transitioning to their permanent cement homes but have encountered increasing crime and restlessness with the adjustment. Juana and her husband want to be able to showcase that God through the cross of Christ can supply the much deeper need for hope!
The first part of the day was spent connecting with the local kids through games and with local teenagers through rap and music. Later on, the guys and girls split up- the guys went on to play basketball with those same teens and with our Dominican brothers (Jochy, Fernando, Cristian, Vic, Hans and Arturo). They also continued to connect through rap and song- even "battling" (in a good way!) In 2 languages! The language barrier didn't interfere with sharing a message of hope and forgiveness through the raps. The girls spent the day making bracelets and connecting with the local kids.
A crowd gathered as both guys and girls got together to share some songs, testimonies, a puppet show and the team's cardboard testimonies right there on the street. We praise God and continue to pray that our words, actions and testimonies glorify God in all that we do, see and experience. Despite not having water for a bit, some scheduling setbacks, mosquito bites, and language barriers the team is focused and without complaint. Your prayers back home are not in vain! Please continue to pray that we would worship with thankful hearts and always be led by Him. Tomorrow, we will be connecting with Antonio here in Santo Domingo (past Quest teams may remember him and efforts to reach his neighborhood and with construction projects), then we head off to San Francisco to work with Pastor Gabriel! Much more to come! Con Amor, the DR team.

City Team has arrived!

2009-02-12T14:52:00.003-05:00

We are a bit tired but arrived safe and sound with all our luggage! All 19 bags. The City team checked into our hotel and then walked to a local office building for an orientation. We met a number of folks who live hear and some of them joined us for dinner in a local restaurant. A nice walk after dinner helped us stretch a bit and take in the neighborhood around our hotel.

We just finished up our day's debrief and now are headed to sleep! Tomorrow we spend time at a school and later hang out with a local youth group. The City team is beginning to soak it new surroundings, listening and learning. Thanks for your support.

News from the DR

2009-02-12T07:10:00.000-05:00

Here is an update from the DR late last night . . .

just wanted to update you that we made it down, all safe, all bags here. No showers yet, b/c running water is out. But all are happy, and now in bed. We connected with Sharon Coleman today, as well as had a good visit with Karin Hernandez. Excited about the warmth, and full day of ministry tomorrow in one of the santo domingo barrios with Juana. We'll be building relationships with teens of the neighborhood using sports with the guys as well as beading bracelets with the girls. Thinking about and praying for our friends on the 2 other teams as they travel tonight.

Across the Seas

2009-02-11T20:38:00.002-05:00

Our teams have all left the country and have crossed the seas. The DR team has even arrived at their final destination, although our other 2 teams have many miles to go.

Pray for the DR team as they get settled and begin to see and learn about the country they are serving. Pray for the other teams to rest during their flights and to adjust to time change differences when they arrive.

Prepping to go!

2009-02-03T22:21:00.008-05:00

Welcome to our Q10 blog! We are excited to have you join us on our journeys. We will try to share our experiences on this site. There will be days when all three teams log on and other days where none of us are able to connect. We appreciate your continued support as we go. The messages will be blended. Obviously, a short blog will not express the depth of each day so we look forward to sharing with you when we return.

Quest 10 is in the final days before heading out. Last Saturday during YEC the three teams met for a time of prep and during the evening celebration were commissioned. This Sunday local congregations will do the same.

This year marks the tenth year of Quest!! This is the ninth year a team has traveled to the Dominican Republic and the third year a team has traveled to South Africa. A third team was added this year and will travel to "The City." More than 133 students have participated in Quest. This year's team of 27 students represent 15 congregations.
Here are the teams:

Dominican Republic
Kathy, Columbia CT
Jimmy, Litchfield, CT
Caitlyn, Billerica, MA
Ben, Manchester, CT
Marley, Manchester, CT
Jared, Warwick, RI
Lenny, Billerica, MA
Andre’, Bridgeport, CT
Sam, Warwick, RI
Kula, Boston, MA
Carmen, Middletown, RI
Jimmy, Manchester, CT
DR Faculty
Susie, team director
Itamar
Justin, Q2-Alumni
Josh
Russell

South Africa
Kate, Middletown, RI
Catherine, Sterling, MA
Amber, Warwick, RI
Krestina, Newton, MA
Zach, Brunswick, ME
Jared, Sterling, MA
Josh, Newton, MA
Deva, Boston, MA
SA Faculty
Ken, team director
Katelyn, Q4-Alumni
Stephanie
The City
Krissy, Middletown, RI
Andrew, Hartford, CT
Brittany, N. Berwick, ME
David, Manchester, CT
Nic, Sudbury, MA
Kelsea, Sterling, MA
Tessa, Manchester, CT
City Faculty
Allyson, director
Rob
Beth, Q3-Alumni

DR -- Reflections, Libby

2008-03-27T22:31:00.001-04:00

Trying to "summarize" what I learned, saw, and grew from experiencing during our trip would take much more than just writing it out on a blog. I'm still sorting it all out & growing from it all the time. And we've been home for almost a month.While we were only there for eight days, they were the busiest, shortest, longest, most incredible eight days I've ever been part of. Getting to worship with pastor Gabrielle's church at the beginning of the week has really stuck in my mind though.

Everyone there was so welcoming, it was just like being with family you haven't seen in a while. Almost every single person we met there left only after they hugged, kissed & blessed all of us.It reminded me of the verse that says "let us love each other, for everyone that loves is born of God and knows God. He who doesn't love, doesn't know God because God is love."They were so full of Christ's love, & it was written all over their smiling faces. It was an awesome reminder to me that when we're truly following after God's heart, we start loving a little more like He does. And that's not hidden. It overflows into our actions. Our words with strangers. The way we embrace & encourage our brothers and sisters. When we're loving the Lord with all that we have, it shows up in absolutely everything we do.

I saw and learned so very much while we were in the Dominican. Whether it was when we spent time with Marsha, or being in La Canela with the sweet & energetic kids, or just any number of incredible things That God taught me there, the gratitude, Christ-centered love, & wonderful contentment of the beautiful people we met is something that really struck me.

I'm so, so thankful that I got to be part of Q9 & Thanks to everyone who faithfully prayed for our group as well as our time in the Dominican. I don't think we have any idea how powerful our prayers are. But we all caught a glimpse or two of the Lord's power on our trip and are hopefully still looking for it all the time now that we're home.

DR - Reflections, John

2008-03-04T19:54:00.004-05:00

Words truly can’t express the experiences I had in the Dominican Republic. God truly opened my eyes to a wonderful culture. I realized that no matter where we live, the Holy Spirit empowers ALL believers. The post-trip devotions substantiated this idea in the form of John 17:11 – “…Holy Father, keep them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one just as we are.” Being able to worship God in an outdoor shack was such an astonishing opportunity. God is alive and present everywhere, no matter what geographical boundaries he may place on us!

It was amazing how acting out the “Everything” skit with English music produced the same result as when I performed it in my church! God doesn’t just speak through words; and he certainly spoke through our actions. I was so inspired when I saw the looks on the faces of the crowds when they realized that they actually had clean water to drink. However, this could not compare to the faces I saw when the crowds realized that they could have living water through the Lord Jesus Christ.

The most touching experience I had was being able to witness to a drug dealer in Spanish. I can confidentially say that the spirit led me to witness to that man in fluent Spanish. The man eventually repented of his actions, and he could potentially be a leader in his local church.

The trip unequivocally changed my life and has inspired me to continue my missionary journey for the rest of my life. No matter if it’s in my school or in a different country, this trip has set me on fire for God.

SA - Reflections, Lia

2008-02-24T23:05:00.002-05:00

Lia:
Going to South Africa was an unforgettable experience and a pleasure to serve others as well as to work for God. I enjoyed every moment from the second I stepped off the plane. After meeting Roger & Meg, they kept a tight schedule for us to run on including: going to Burlington- an informal settlement, the Dream Center- an AIDS hospice, worshipping at Westville Baptist- Roger & Meg’s church, painting at Sydenham & Lambert Road, attending different youth groups, and worshipping on Sunday morning with the church in Sydenham. I learned how to serve others whether it was painting on a hot day, telling a children’s Bible story or sharing an encouraging testimony that brought a smile to the less fortunate. If I had to do it all again, I would do it in a blink of an eye.

SA - Reflections, Topher

2008-02-24T22:55:00.003-05:00

Topher:
Seven days in a foreign country, what is there not to say? Not only were my eyes opened wide to a new and very different culture, but along with that came many experiences and lessons that have molded me in such a short period of time. From meeting Zulu families living in settlements with no water, electricity or basic necessities, to Indian families of 10 living in a one-bedroom house, my sense of appreciation and my former indifference to what God has blessed me with was abruptly challenged. Throughout the week I was continually challenged to not take what I have for granted, and instead to cherish my blessings and utilize them to their fullest extent. God showed me how to be a leader by serving others throughout our week, such as sweating buckets while painting at Missionary Baptist and Lambert Road Baptist. My idea of being a leader took a full 180 when God showed me that in order to be a godly leader, instead of simply telling others what to do; I must first take the initiative to do it myself, and to serve God and his children by doing so. The Bible says that Jesus came not to be served, but to serve and I thank God for opening my eyes to this command he has asked of me.

SA - Reflections, Melissa

2008-02-24T22:43:00.002-05:00

Melissa:
This past week was the best of my life (all 16 years of it). It was the most fun I’ve ever had, but it has also been a week of rapid spiritual growth. I can’t say which day had the most growth, though. The very first day we were in South Africa, we were thrown into the country’s culture by having orientation with the missionary, Roger, then going to Burlington’s youth group. Right away I saw differences between this informal settlement’s youth group and my church’s because most of these youth were from 10 to 12 years old. I shared a short testimony for the first time on the trip. One of my favorite parts of the week was the time we spent with the Lambert Road youth on Friday at youth group and on Wednesday when we painted there and then went to the beach for ice cream. The most important thing that I learned this week was, “in the beginning God…” which means that if God is first in your life, He will be in everything in your life. I also learned that people sometimes perceive things differently than the way they are meant and that comforts others through the comfort He gives you. God has been teaching me to let others help me even if I don’t need help and to accept the comfort people give you and to never take anything for granted.

SA - Reflection, Janice

2008-02-24T22:39:00.002-05:00

Janice:

Where do I start with what God has done in my life?
In Africa in 8 days and 8 nights counting the flights
I was raised in church and know wrong from right.

But on this trip I saw the broken and weak
I saw how families that are poor, sick and weak
Walking on the streets with glass with no shoes on their feet

Forget what’s on the TV about those who live with AIDS
That won’t wake you up unless you see ‘em face to face
Sharing with them God’s amazing love and grace

I loved every minute of sharing the truth
Telling them that their lives are living proof of God’s mercy
Not knowing when God can make ‘em go poof

Painting and serving in churches in need
Was awesome getting close to others doing work during the week
Doing things to expand the Kingdom in all the heat

Travelling far to see what God does outside of the US
Using missionaries in SA relying 100% on God, no stress
It’s so encouraging helping me to minister my best

Roger’s stories of all his adventures of missionary-ing
Amazing how he’s been through so much listening
To him, I knew God brought him through everything

He stressed that “In the beginning God”
Soaked in us like butter on corn on the cob
God won’t see Roger sleeping on the job

Everything about the trip was just all Jesus Christ
He brought things to my mind bringing light
About him working in the world day and night

SA - Reflection, Kevin

2008-02-24T22:34:00.001-05:00

Kevin:

In the beginning God. That is how everything in your life should start with. Rpger Hesch was the man who taught me this and that I should see first the will of God, then I shall reap the benefits. Burlington and Sydenham were the places we went to see and help out with the Informal settlements. There I learned that I live way too comfortable of a life and was not appreciating the things I have enough. I now plan to try and keep them in my mind in America to keep myself humble and conservative. Bongani’s enthusiasm and way he looks at life gives me hope that even in a terrible situation and environment can I praise God and live a happy life. Then the houses we visited with Judy and Priscilla, showing me the photos opened my eyes to the spiritual warfare that is happening. As well, the beauty of SA truly inspires me and is breathtaking to see roll by. All of these elements came together for me in the period of one week that formed my own Quest. I thank the Lord for this trip that helped me grow and understand that God works everywhere.

Time to Celebrate

2008-02-23T19:50:00.007-05:00

Today, family, mentors, youth leaders, and pastors joined the Quest 9 Teams for a day to share and celebrate. The SA and DR teams related pieces of their story and began the process of trying to translate their experience into the movement of everyday life. Funny, challenging and inspiring stories filled the room.

As promised, photos are being added to back stories on this blog. And student stories will be added in the days to come. Thank you again for your prayer support, please don’t stop. Continue to pray for Questies as the process and apply their experience. Pray for the people of the Dominican Republic and South Africa.