Final thoughts on DR 2023
How has the week gone by so fast!?
This week has been such an incredible blessing to so many people, on the team and to our friends in the Dominican. This team worked hard and served well. I’ve asked the all to respond to one of he following three questions:
What advice would you give to someone considering going on the 2024 DR Mission Experience?
Where did you see God this week?
Share one highlight from our time with the Lighthouse.
Here is what they had to say (in order based on how they were sitting on the plane ride home):
Question #1: For anyone considering going on a trip to the DR for mission, I would 100% recommend it. This is my second time going, and I will be going again next year. You will see some things that you won’t like, but overall, it is a very humbling and educational trip. It could also be considered as a break from reality, as you simply just forget about everything [back home] for 10 days. – Aidan
Question #3: I had many highlights this week but my biggest one was probably seeing how happy and excited the kids were to see us. They weren’t shy at all and were all so grateful for us to be there. They were awesome to talk to and play with so that was probably one of my biggest highlights. - Brayden
Question #3: These past 10 days I’ve had many memorable moments, but if I had to chose just one it would have to be all the days we would pour concrete and lay bricks. The reason I loved these moments so much is for multiple reasons. The first is because the work was fun but challenging. Number two is because of the amazing view of the mountains in the background as we worked. The final reason is because I could tell that God was working through me and the team the whole time. We could tell based off of how excited the community was (especially the kids) based on all the hola’s and high fives as we walked through the community - Hunter
Question #1: I saw God this week in many different moments and at many different times. One of these moments was just as simple as me watching the city come to life as the sun rose over the city, I saw God in this as they got together as a community to set up for a local market, everyone talking and working to get things set up as quick as possible. Another time I saw God on this trip was when we hosted some activities for a local neighborhood we had been doing construction in, and the smiles as the kids greeted us was a sign from God that we were in the right spot. Throughout the week God was all over, but I was told no longer than a paragraph. – Josh
Question #3: If I had to just choose one of the many amazing moments and memories during our time at the lighthouse it would probably be when we went to church on Sunday. I will remember going to church for many reasons. One of them would be how differently they worship God by having their speakers at full volume and all of them singing and dancing together. Even when the power went out in the church, they all just continued like it was a normal thing. That is why one of my highlights is going to church. - Ben
Question #3: One of the ways that I saw god at work during the week, was when we spent time with the kids on Tuesday. It was amazing to see how happy they were at every little thing and how us doing something so small whether it was playing games with them, painting their face or making bracelets with them, made them so happy. And how much energy the kids had. The first thing they did was ran up and gave us hugs, then just jumped right into playing games. Especially when we got to go into the pool with the kids in the afternoon, just the smiles on there faces when they jumped in was so cool to see. The other moment where I saw God at work was when we went to church on Sunday. I have never seen so much passion or joy put into worship. The whole church just jumped right into singing and dancing, and it was amazing to be apart of. - Julia
Question #2: Throughout this whole trip, God was ever so beautifully prevalent and present within the team, the Lighthouse, and the community as a whole. One moment when I saw God moving in specific was during church. On Sunday, we had the privilege of attending a Haitian church. As we were approaching the church, before even entering you could hear the loud and mighty praise coming from the church. The whole time we were worshiping, it was like a massive dance party for God. And quite literally. Everyone was out of their seat dancing, raising their hands, worshiping with everyone around them as a family of Christ, and just embracing the Holy Spirit. As with a lot of the buildings in the community, the church building was not anything fancy and was simply just a square building with 4 walls, a small stage, and some chairs, but that did not matter. For me, this was such a strong reminder that the church is not a building but the people. We often get so caught up in production and the business of life that we forget that our God is present no matter where we go or how we worship. Being able to see how these people worship their hearts out was so moving. I can’t wait for next year when I get to attend church in the Dominican again! - Abby
Question #2: I have seen God moving in some pretty cool ways during these last 10 days. I have seen Him as we gather, mornings and nights, as a team to reflect and pray, I’ve seen Him when we worshiped at church, I’ve even seen him through the sweat as we poured concrete! One of my favorite times I’ve seen him was with the kids. I may not have understood all of what they were saying, but like we learned as a team, love is the universal language. I have the amazing, and beautiful opportunity to just simply hug and high five these kids and while doing so saw a joy in their face like I’ve never seen before. It warmed my heart and forced me to take a step back and think of where this joy is coming from. A joy like the joy I saw on these kids faces and felt in my own heart cannot come from the world but comes only from Jesus Christ. I pray I will never forget this joy and that I will carry this joy, God’s joy, back home and to those around me. So thankful for this trip and all the experiences I was blessed to be apart of. - Jess
Question #1: Biggest advice I think I can give for those coming next year is to simply be ready to have a servant’s heart and attitude. This is a gift God has given me, so it often comes naturally to me, however, there will always be room for improvement. Between lots of bus rides, constantly being with others and learning how to function as a team and work with them, and stepping out of your comfort zone to do lots of construction or whatever the Lighthouse team needs that specific year… it can really push people to the edge of their comfort zones. That being said, we were extremely blessed by the grace of God that we had a team that meshed well (even though there were times that didn’t happen, which will always be the case), it goes to show how God creates us all differently on purpose so that we can accomplish more than we originally planned for. Jesus is the perfect example of what servanthood looks like and how to be bold, patient, kind, and love on your neighbours, and through our morning and evening devo’s it was cool to hear everyone’s perspective and experience as we saw God hard at work. - Tymon
Question #1: Biggest advice I can give is if you are worried about anything financial, God Always provides. I can say this Because the 2 years I have been on this trip I have worried about it and God Does provide even if you don’t know he did. - Nick
Question #2: I saw God in the people around me. The people at the lighthouse working all day to serve their community. In the team where they are always cheering each other on and motivating others to work in God’s name even after this trip. For we sometimes forget that we are supposed to serve god all the time even if it makes us uncomfortable. In the people at the little Church that we went to serving god even though that had so little. In Manoah working form Monday to Friday and working with the lighthouse to serve God every chance he gets instead of resting. That is where I saw God this week. - Nathan
Question #3: ONE of my highlights was when we went to the church. Everyone just seemed so connected to God and excited to be praising Jesus. Even though the service was not in English you could still hear how passionate they were in their voices. Everyone was singing along and dancing and just so happy to be worshiping God. - Anna
Question #2: It’s no surprise when I say I saw God in everything we did this past week. However, I’d like to focus solely on the amazing students we travelled with. I saw God in the way some encouraged the other members with words of affirmation, or even a good joke! He was apparent in the words that were shared in our daily devotionals. It’s rare to see that kind of spiritual maturity. I was amazed at their thoughtful insights in how they viewed the activities we participated in each day. Even when asked to pray over the group, the words shared were beautiful, eloquent, and overall a true testament that God was speaking through them. I loved watching them be challenged in new areas (construction for some, learning to interact with kids who speak a different language for others) and then rise to the occasion with smiles on their faces and joy in their hearts. It was very incredible for me as a leader to witness changes in the youth over such a short time. This can only be due to the work of God. To the students I would like to say, thank you for your hard work and your trust in the Lord for choosing to come and give of your talents and time to further His kingdom. You’ll be blessed for listening to His calling and I hope you learned a lot about your spiritual growth - Kathryn
From Windsor to Guatemala to the Dominican Republic, Compass Students spent 25 days on mission, serving those in need in 2023. Our vision as a church is to see the spiritual transformation of people, families and communities, and so we partner each year with the same ministries to work towards that vision. God is giving Compass Students a bigger glimpse of His work in and around us. We were discussing in the DR about how we are not bringing God to these areas, but joining God in a conversation he has already started. Cristian (from the Lighthouse) told us that God chose each person to be on the team for a reason and we need to keep our eyes on Him.
God has once again blessed this team by allowing us to join a conversation and work He is doing in the Dominican Republic. We are so blessed.
Thank you for following along, supporting this team financially and prayerfully. Please keep asking us questions about our time at the Lighthouse… God still has lots to say through each person on the team.
Blessings,
Rod & Kathryn & Tymon