Tales from the Dominican Republic

California Coast Bible College is a ministry of The City Church and, every year, we have the awesome privilege of serving with, praying for, and sending out these incredible young people on missions trips. Their experiences are always life-changing and I know you will be greatly encouraged and inspired by their stories. Allow me to share with you some great words from Carter Howard, one of our second year students who went to the Dominican Republic. Enjoy!

Xo,

Bethany

I am so deeply thankful for all of the prayers and donations. We saw the results of every single prayer sent our way! I think that was actually one of the biggest lessons I learned during this trip: the power of prayer. We, as a team, started praying for this trip four months before we went. I have realized that before we see God move, He asks us to step out in faith and in crazy prayers!

But where do I begin with my trip?! There is too much to tell. So many stories. So many testimonies. This was the greatest missions trip that I had ever been on. I saw God do something amazing every single day. I have never been a part of a team more unified. I have never seen so many people come to Christ and be healed. My faith was inspired for sure!

To start, let me say this. Over the two weeks that we spent in the Dominican Republic, we saw 139 people receive salvation and we saw 54 people get healed. 80% of the ministry work we did was evangelism, where we would go throughout the neighborhood and just talk with people, spend time with them, and pray for them. For at least four hours each day, we would do this. It was cool because there was nothing physically that we could have prepared for this. The only way we could prepare was spiritually! We saw the Holy Spirit move in amazing ways. It was also really special to see people healed. I personally had not experienced a lot of that before, so to be a part of that was inspiring. We saw tumors disappear, blind people see, casts be thrown away, bed-ridden women jump and run around with joy, broken legs healed, and even more. GOD IS SO GOOD.

That was just the healing. God saved 139 people. These weren’t just people in a crowd that we didn’t know. These were people that we spent time with, sat down with, and personally got to know. We saw, right in front of our eyes, people touched by God and saved from sin and set free! It was especially cool because it reminded me that I made a goal in the beginning of the year to have the opportunity to personally lead twenty people to Christ. Well, Jesus allowed me to exceed that goal. He is so good!

There are many stories that I could tell you, but I will share one of my favorites in particular. During one of the last days that we were evangelizing, we were just about to leave and head back home when we found out the truck tire popped. We used two trucks everyday so one group went back on the truck that still worked while half of us stayed back and waited for them to return. The second I saw that the tire was popped, I was SO excited! I knew that there was no way that happened on accident. Immediately I said “Awesome! This just means that God wants to save more people. There is someone here He still wants to talk to. Round two, people. Let’s go!”. So, me and my friend Zach started walking around to chat with people. We ran into a 14 year old kid named Moses. This was the first person that I had met in the entire two weeks who did not know who Jesus was. Everyone else not only knew who Jesus was, but they believed in him. They just didn’t have relationship with Him.

Zach and I got to explain the whole gospel to him and his friend who stopped by. They both ended up accepting Christ and we got to baptize them a few days later. The day after they got baptized, we were out evangelizing for the last time and we were in that same neighborhood. I invited Moses to come with us so that he could learn what it looks like to tell people about Jesus. This was the quickest form of discipling that we could do! Haha. The last man we met was not a Christian and he ended up accepting Jesus. I asked Moses if he knew what prayer was and he said “No”. It was amazing because I got to show him what prayer was and we BOTH prayed for this man named Domingo. ALL BECAUSE OF A FLAT TIRE PEOPLE. God is so good and He always teaches me that the little things we could be frustrated at, can be the things He wants to use to get our attention. He will do anything for even one person. Even pop a tire.

I could share for hours, but I’ll share one more story with you. On a Saturday night, our whole group was going to visit a nearby church that our ministry partnered with. We were going to go and sit in their service. When we got there, I asked myself what I would speak about IF I had 5 or 10 minutes to speak. They didn’t tell us that we would get an opportunity to do that, but I was just thinking just in case. About 30 seconds later, our pastor walks over to me and says, “So…it turns out that we are running the entire service. Would you want to preach for about 20 minutes?”. UHH. HECK YES! Those are my favorite ministry opportunities because all I have to do is step out and let God do the rest! Our whole team killed it! We did worship, some skits, some testimonies, all out of the blue just stepping out in faith. It was so cool. And God gave me a sermon to share and it may have been one of the best ones I have ever done before. People were set free and the Spirit was moving big time! It was so insane. What was cool is that the next night, we visited another church and we got 20 minutes of ministry time and my pastor asked me if I wanted to speak again! UHH HECK YES! It was such a blast. Speaking is one of my favorite things to do and God gave me opportunities to do that and I didn’t even know it would happen! I got to speak again at a widows ministry about the danger of unforgiveness.

This trip was so amazing that the hosts of the missions home (who run the entire ministry) told us that they didn’t want us to leave. They then told us that they have never been able to tell any group that and they have had over 3,000 people come through their ministry!!! HOW INSANE IS THAT! The City Church made this possible. Your prayers, your encouragement, and your donations. Every piece was a piece of the puzzle. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. I will forever be grateful for you support!

 

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What do You See?

Hello! My name is Casey and it’s such an honor to contribute to Beautiful Stories! Some of you may already know me, but for those I’ve yet to meet, here is a little bit about my story. I’m a City Church rookie and avid fan. From my first week in college in 1995, to my time as an intern, throughout my years serving as the Intern Director – the family of faith at The City Church (both in Seattle- now Churchome- and Ventura) has deeply shaped who I am today. The gamut of life journeys with this beautiful community of believers taught me to engage in genuine worship, dive into the Word, value prayer, cherish international service trips, build lasting relationships with people, and above all – to know and love God more.

In 2014, I was sent out from The City Church to relocate to Jerusalem, Israel, in order to engage in local mentoring and discipleship efforts in the Middle East. This has been the most challenging, adventurous, faith-provoking, courage-inducing, awe-inspiring thing I’ve done in my life thus far. The prayers and support from many dear friends at The City Church have helped me stay the course and bear much fruit for the Kingdom of God. I’m so honored to have a strong home church to stand with me as I serve in this delicate region of the world – and I always encourage people to come visit me in Jerusalem!

A couple of weeks ago was Tu-B’shevat (ט״ו בשבט) in Israel, a cultural holiday celebrating “New Year for the trees.” This holiday is often celebrated by partaking of a new type of fruit, or one of the fruits mentioned in the Torah in regards to the bounty of the Land (grapes, olives, figs, dates and pomegranates).

The almond tree is the first of the fruits to “awaken” to the spring. As I prayer-walked this beautifully complex city this Shabbat, I was amazed to see the many delicate blossoms of the almond trees, even as the crisp winter air lingers. I couldn’t help but consider this passage from Jeremiah 1:11-12:

“And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ‘Jeremiah, what do you see?” And I said, “I see an almond branch.’ Then the Lord said to me, ‘You have seen well, for I am watching over my word to perform it.’

The play on words is lost in the English translation. The word for almond (sheked, שקד) in Hebrew is nearly identical to the word used for watching (shaked, שקד). Each spring, even as the nation of Israel languished in captivity under an oppressive superpower, Jeremiah witnessed the miracle of the almond blossoms bursting forth from the barrenness of winter. That image undoubtedly brought to mind the Lord’s promise that He faithfully watches over His Word to perform it; He would redeem His people and honor His covenant. Just as Aaron’s rod, cut off from the life-giving nourishment of the tree, miraculously budded and bore fruit as a testament to the sovereign power of God, the Lord assured Jeremiah that He is faithfully watching over His promises for His people, even when the branches seem barren and dry.

God’s covenant promises still remain for Israel and the Jewish people today, even when the branches seem to be cut off and barren. He will yet restore the miracle of life and bring forth fruit. There are signs of life here in Jerusalem. Because of His enduring faithfulness to Israel, we can trust His covenant promises to us as those who are grafted in by faith in Jesus Christ, his death and resurrection. This is the entire premise of the structure of the book of Romans (esp. 9-11).

What do you see? What are the covenant promises of faithfulness God has spoken over you, your family, your community, and your walk of faith with Him? If your vision is blurry, take some time today and ask Him to revisit those promises. He is gracious. He wants us to see well. The almond blossoms continue to testify that He faithfully brings forth spring out of winter and He remains true to His Word. Be encouraged today, for He is passionately watching over His Word to perform it – in Israel, in the nations of the world, and in your life.