The week did not go as planned due to the heavy rains we
had.  We did play baseball, visit couple
of villages and three orphanages.  On the
ball filed we may not have played the game well but we played for the glory of
God and HIS purpose as well as the villages.
After the games or practice time or feeding the village a player or two
gave their testimony on how they became a Christian and what Jesus means to
them.  At the only sugar cane village we
were able to interact with, the young boys and girls played kick ball, piggy
back rides as well as keep away, the villagers would take a players hat and run.  It was sometimes funny how the boys would run
after the child and both laughing hysterically.
Then the kids led us to big pasture where some of the older Dominicans
wanted to play baseball.  Interesting
playing ball with a Bull as the third base coach and if you did not catch the
ball it was lost in the tall grass.  But
what fun everyone had, even Bob and I participated.

Sunday was church service in San Pedro in a house church
that began last year.  No matter what
language the service is in, the message and songs are the same.  After settling in for the evening the rains
came.  Then our schedules have changed.

Not much more to say that has not been posted on the BLOG
this week, but with no air conditioning or TV or electronic games these young
men did not lack for entertainment as well as entertainment for others as
well.  An FCA Missionary advised that he
enjoyed sitting down and listen to them banter at each other.  Was not derogatory or insulting but good Christian
fun.  Other group leaders also provided
compliments to the way the boys handled themselves with others.

It was a pleasure for me to be part of this amazing trip
this year and looking forward to see how each player grows from this experience
as they grow deeper with GOD.

Of all the good we have done in the Dominican Republic we
have done, it is good to be getting home.
Adios from DR and see you tonight.

In HIS glorious mitt

Coach Murdock

-Josh

Today was quite a great experience for me.  Since of all the rain we’ve been getting
lately, we had to play a double header today, one over in San Pedro and one in
our complex.  However, when we got to San
Pedro in the morning, the raining made home plate and the pitching mound wet,
so we had to cancel the game, but the team decided to do a practice for both of
us.  There, we practiced hitting and
infield and outfield.  The field there
was a field next to a village with a bunch of little kids.  The kids were a crazy bunch, they wanted to
borrow the bat I had in my hand and kept wanting me to give them piggy-back
rides.  Even though I kind of learned
some Spanish and they didn’t speak any English, I kind of felt like I
understood what they were saying.  In the
afternoon, we were able to play our game against a Dominican group.  However, because we didn’t have enough
players, we had to mix up the teams since the other team had more than
enough.  It didn’t matter who won or
lost, but that we had a whole lot of fun on that field.  In the game, I pitched in the 1^st
and 2^nd inning and played First Base from the 6^th to the 8^th
inning.  After the game, I gave my
testimony about my walk with the Lord and what he’s been doing for me.  The Dominicans may not have a whole lot, if
any, money left, but they still love and care for each other and the Lord and I
wish them the best of luck.

-Richie

I knew today was going to be different, from the first thing
that happened in the morning. This was the first morning that we were not woken
up by, “It’s time to get up fellas!” This morning we were woken up by Mr.
Waggoner calmly telling us we had to start getting ready. So right off the bat
it was a different day. For the past couple days it had been raining non-stop
so baseball was not an option, so today the plan was to play a double header.
One game was to be played in San Pedro and one game was too played right here
at the Highlands. However once we got to San Pedro our plans changed once
again. The field was still unplayable, so after playing with the little
children in the village, who by the way can hit pretty hard, we got to practice
with the team there. Their coach taught me more in about an hour and a half
than I have learned the past couple years. The coach was awesome, he knew so
much about baseball and was happy to help us and show anything he believed
would make us better baseball players. At the end of practice Josh and I gave
our testimonies. I talked about attending catholic school, my uncle passing
away, and how important God is to me. After the practice we got back on the bus
and got a warm goodbye from the children of the village who chased our bus all
the way till we got to the road. We got back to the Highlands and had lunch
then Matt, Matt, Sean, Richie, John, Fleming, and I went to the cages to get
ready for our afternoon game. Josh unfortunately couldn’t go because he may
have the worst case of sunburn I’ve ever seen. So after hitting and warming up
the other team arrived and it was time to play ball. Because we had such a
small amount of players, we had to split teams with the opponents. This was a
lot of fun because we got to interact and play with kids from the Dominican
Republic. Both teams played hard and it was a really good game but my team came
out on top! Richie and John gave their testimonies at the end of the game and
we had a lot of fun just taking pictures, messing around, and making jokes with
the kids from the other team. They really liked our shirts so a lot of us
traded with them. After we said our goodbyes we went back for a nice taco
dinner and we had some chill time. We played a lot of basketball and hung out
with Wyman and Grace. It was a really great day and I know all of us had fun
and are now exhausted. Tomorrow we go to Santo Domingo which should also be a
lot of fun. This trip has been great and I will never forget some of the
amazing people I had the opportunity to meet and hang out with here in the
Dominican Republic.

-Ian

Today was a very long and tiring day.  We woke up this morning expecting to play 2
games, a morning game in San Pedro and an afternoon game here at the
Highlands.  We arrived in San Pedro to a
pretty decent field ready to play a baseball game.  However right when we started to warm up we
were told that we would not be playing because they did not want to mess up the
mound as it was still wet from all the rain that’s come down the last few
days.  So instead of playing a game the
other team invited us to join them in one of their practices.   This turned out to be a really good
experience as their coach was very knowledgeable about baseball and taught us
all a lot in just a short amount of time.
Just from the practice we were able to get an idea of the level that
some of those kids were at and it is probably a good thing we didn’t play the
game as we would have most likely been killed.
The entire practice their were kids from the village running around all
over the field, asking to use our gloves to throw with each other, etc. They
seemed to really be enjoying themselves and the chance to interact with us and
use our stuff, even if it was only for a few hours.  After the practice we came back to the
Highlands for lunch and a baseball game on one of the beautiful fields across
the street.  Since Josh was bed-ridden
with his sunburn, we were left with 8 players.
When the team got here they arrived with many, many players, so we
decided to mix the teams.  The game was a
lot of fun and playing on the same team with some of the Dominicans was really
good.  After the game Richie and I gave
our testimonies and we must’ve spent another half hour on the field just
talking with some of the kids.  A lot of
them wanted an FCA shirt like we were wearing so a few of us traded shirts with
them and some of us just gave our shirts to them if we had an extra.  A couple of the kids could speak pretty good
English so we interacted pretty well with them and it was clear that even the
ones that didn’t speak English enjoyed just talking with us after the
game.  Today was one of the better days
as we really connected with a lot of the baseball players from both the team we
played and the team we just practiced with.
It was great to just interact with them and see the pleasure they got
from interacting with us.  Tomorrow’s our
last full day here and it’s definitely going to be tough to leave as I’ve seen so
many things and met so many people who have had an impact on me.

—- John

Matt WaggonerClick to view slideshow.

During our stay we met up the Mike Shaheen, FCA Baseball Ministries in DR for SCORE.  Why I mention him is he has a six year old son, Wyman who has taken a special interest in Matt Ferretti and same for Matt.  I enjoyed watching Matt coach Wyman on the field and at bat.  He will make a great father some day.  The other boys interact with Wyman as well but Matt and Wyman hit off great.

The boys say they are enjoying their time here and it looks like it as well.  Tomorrow we have a game in the morning and buy food for a village in the afternoon.  Look for another blog posted tomorrow evening from two players.  Should be another beautiful day on DR.  The weather is not getting hot and humid.  We were lucky the first few days.

Happy 4th of July to everyone and miss all.

in HIS mitt, Coach Murdock

Day 3 begins with the sound of rain pouring onto the tin
roof of our dorm.  After a warm wake-up
call from Coach Murdock saying “get up fellas, it’s already 7” we grumpily roll
out of bed not wanting to go ANYWHERE.
None of us thought there could be anything better than our beds.  Well, I must say, the orphanage we visited
was soooo much better.  This is my 4^th
missions trip and my 3^rd time to La Romana to visit the girls’
orphanage there.  This has always been my
favorite orphanage to visit.  Immediately
we were swarmed by little girls, some who were saying to their other friends,
“este es mi novio”, translated, “this is my boyfriend.”  Last I checked, I thought the guy had to be
the one to make the initiative, but I guess it’s different here in the DR.  The orphanage consisted of coloring, jump rope, volleyball and basketball, along with giving fake high-fives and saying “no comprendo” many times.  I know all
the guys had a great time and I know the girls enjoyed having people come play
with them and interact with.

After a great fried chicken lunch, we all made it back to
our beds and relaxed for about an hour.
Despite all the rain we got in the morning, the field dried up and we
were able to have our game.  We
discovered the first pitcher that threw against us has been clocked at 92
mph.  Just a bit faster than the average
fastball.  After going down by about 12
or so we pulled our act together and scored about 6 runs in the last
inning.  Even though we lost, it was
still a lot of fun, and we have a nice sprinkling of rain to keep us cool.  Sean and I gave our testimonies after the
game and Coach did devotion for the players.
They were all very grateful to have us and we were grateful for their
hospitality.

After our game we had the rest of the day to ourselves,
playing some basketball, soccer, and some duck-duck-goose.  Hanging out in the game room concluded the
night, along with a great talk from Mike, one of the missionaries here.  I can speak for the group when I say we are
all sore, exhausted, and in desperate need of sleep, but we are having an
amazing time and love how God is working through us.

Fleming

Day 3- Like every day we wake up to the peaceful voice of
Coach Murdock yelling, “wake up fellas its time for breakfast!” Then of course
we all stayed in bed because it was 7 in the morning and we are teenage boys
who sleep until 1 in the afternoon. After breakfast we got onto the bus to head
over to the all girls orphanage. As soon as we arrived there was a storm of
girls waiting at the gate. Once we took one step into the gate the girls
attacked us and mainly Ian. The orphanage consisted of coloring, jump roping,
volleyball, basketball, getting made fun of in Spanish, and getting hit by the
girls. I know that Matt Ferretti was the butt of all the girls’ jokes. Every
one enjoyed playing with the girls and trying to communicate with them as best
as we could. The girls also loved the company as well.

After lunch we all went to sleep including Josh who has
slept more then he’s been awake. We drove over to our game and found a new
definition of heat. The starting pitcher was throwing 92 MPH which seemed
impossible to hit, because it was impossible to hit. As soon as they brought in
a new pitcher we started hitting the ball. Being down by 12 going into the last
inning we managed to score 7 runs off pitching we see at home every day. After
the game Fleming and I gave our testimonies to the team. Coach Murdock gave a
devotion to them and they were very grateful. We had the only English speaking
player on that team come up to us and thank us for what we are doing. They all
greatly appreciate us being there with them.

After our game we had some time to ourselves, it consisted
of basketball, soccer, hitting in the cage, playing in the game room, and
duck-duck-goose. While we were in the game room Mike, who is one of the
missionaries here, gave us a talk about FCA. We are all tired, sore, but most
of all we are having a great time and loving every minute of it.

Sean

Matt Ferretti

Coach Murdock

Today we did many things that impacted me while we have been on this trip to the Dominican Republic. First, we made our journey on the bus to the Rawlings baseball facility. It was one of the nicest fields I have ever played on. We then proceeded to play two five inning games. The first game we played was against a group of a Dominican team. Next, we shook things up a bit by mixing both the teams; Americans and Dominicans vs. Americans and Dominicans. I believe eight people from our group gave their testimonies. We then took a bus ride to an authentic Dominican restaurant and ate lunch. We then traveled to the market where we bargained our way through and came out with machetes, jewelry, knives, hammocks, sunglasses, etc.. We ended our day with a CornHole tournament (basically a beanbag toss game) and closing devotionals.

My Testimony:

I accepted Jesus Christ into my heart at a very young age. I thought I understood everything on how to be a Christian. In the last couple of years I realized that being a true Christian means to have a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. Over the last couple of years I have grown in my faith by praying every day and talking to the Lord, reading the Bible, and doing devotionals. As well as these things I have been growing in my faith with the Lord through having fellowship with and surrounding myself with strong Christians.

ALLEIGH

I read in a book once that there are only two things that are completely universal: smiling and God. To me, this has never been clearer. Throughout this trip, I have seen the brilliant light of God shine through the boundaries set up by language and cultural barriers. The evidence for this could be seen in the smiles on the faces of the kids in the orphanages, the children and families in the villages, the Dominican baseball players and especially our team. As a group, there have been an extreme range of emotions. From laughter to tears, I don’t believe that anyone is walking to this trip completely untouched. If spiritual growth did not occur, then I think at least the seed was planted.

Today, I said my testimony after the baseball games. I didn’t have long to prepare what I was going to say so I sat and I prayed. Like many of the kids on this trip, I grew up in a Christian home and accepted Christ at an early age. I felt like I didn’t really have anything important to say but God kept putting Romans 12:1-2 on my heart. “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this will be your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—His good, pleasing, and perfect will.” I realized that I didn’t know what a Christian life was until I heard these verses and I pray that these verses will touch someone else half as much as they continue to touch me.

Although this whole trip has been absolutely life changing, the most powerful moment on the trip for me was on Sunday at church as we read Philippians 2:9-11. This is the passage that declares that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is the LORD. As the pastor spoke those words in Spanish and as I heard them again in English, it echoed in my mind the importance of the work we have been doing here. As Christians, we are called to drop everything and follow Jesus and I know that He has led us all here for a reason. Whether the guys were playing baseball or we were having “caballito” races in the villages, God’s work was being done. We were confessing that Jesus is our LORD and hopefully leading others to do the same. It has been amazing to be a part of this trip that has touched all of us and hopefully made an impact in the lives of many people here.

Mi Americano’s,

Hey everybody! Today (Wednesday) was a day of fun and fellowship where we ministered by playing baseball and sharing our testimonies in the morning, and then we enjoyed some authentic Dominican food and bargaining in the market later in the afternoon. In the morning, we went to a baseball complex built by Rawlings to play a Dominican team. The fields were absolutely immaculate. It was so much fun to play the Dominicans on a really nice field and the game was very competitive, but still fun and loose. The first game we won 2-1 and the second game we did a little mix-up of the teams. This allowed for us to interact with some of the Dominicans through our broken Spanish and their broken English. However, one of the kids could speak English pretty well. We were talking to him, and he told us that their catcher just recently signed with the Marlins and several other players were being looked at by the Mets, Red Sox, Yankees, and Devil Rays. They were very competitive and it made for two great games.

After the two games, a few of us gave our testimonies and we handed out used baseball equipment. They were very appreciative and seemed very receptive of our gospel. I was one of the kids to give a testimony and I basically told them how the game of baseball is very similar to our gospel – the good news of Jesus Christ. I told them that even the best hitters in the game only get on base 3 times out of 10. That means that 7 of those 10 times they fail and those are the best players in the game! No one bats 1.000, no one strikes everybody out, and nobody has a perfect fielding percentage. The point is that baseball is a game of failure, miserable failure. This point made a great transition to how we as humans fail to live up to God’s standards of holiness (Romans 3:23) and that we are sinful and need God to step in and save us in order to go to Heaven and have a relationship with Jesus Christ. I told them that he offers them forgiveness and fulfillment found in nothing else on this side of eternity. To summarize, I told them that it was the most important decision I have ever made and it changed my life forever and that it could do the same for them if they accepted Jesus’ sacrifice and made him Lord of their life.

Hello everybody,                                                                                                                      Tyler Deen

Today we played a baseball game, gave some testimonies, ate at a Dominican restaurant, and bargained with different people at a market. In the morning, we played two five inning games against/with a Dominican team. Although most of them did not speak English, we were able to minister to them through the game of baseball, in which both teams love. In the second game we shook it up a little bit and mixed the two teams together. I had a blast playing with the other teams and talking to the few Dominicans who spoke English. This Dominican team had a couple players who have signed with major league teams, one of which was the catcher to play with the Marlins. After each of the games, 8 total people gave their testimonies. Part of my testimony was about the growth and knowledge gained during this mission’s trip. This mission’s trip has been a very good learning experience to me and I feel like I have grown closer to the Lord through it. After the games we went to an authentic Dominican restaurant in the downtown part of Santa Domingo. The restaurant had amazing food and great service. Next, we went to a very old cathedral which featured a variety of stain glass windows and other antiques. I heard from one of the score staff that this is one of the oldest cathedrals in the Northern Hemisphere. Finally, we traveled to a Dominican market in which I was swallowed in by the shouting calls of the salesman. I eventually bargained a knife for half of the original price. I was very proud of myself considering I have never really had to bargain for much. This was truly a once in a lifetime experience. I am very honored and glad to go on this trip.   Click to view slideshow.

Our last full day today we will play two 5 inning games at the complex that I am sure everyone will talk about for a while.  First game will be FCA vs Dominican Players and second game we will mix the team up and then shower and head off to do some sightseeing and eat a real Domincan meal with our interpreter Gio.

Thank you for all of your prayers back home and trust me when I say they have been heard and felt.

in HIS glorious mitt, Coach Murdock

Jarod Sutton

Today was the most exciting day of the week. The people of the second sugar cane village seemed have been more well off then the previous villages we visited. They were not interested in the physical positions we had, only in our physical presence and interested in having a good time. I stepped off the bus and a little boy grabbed me by the hand and commanded me as he wished. He constantly wanted to be on my back and told me to correr, not to mention its blazing hot. I pulled out some of my Spanish, mainly “consado” meaning tired. He was usually very kind and awarded me a break once he figured out I wasn’t used to the Dominican elements. We played all day with the children of the village and it was sad to leave them in the end, but is looking forward to the festivities tomorrow will bring.

Logan Claybrook

Today was probably the most memorable day of the week.  First we went to Jackie’s, a small orphanage in the Dominican Republic.  There I met a young man by the name of Israel.   He has a disease where his bones are very fragile.  Just hearing him speak on life made me appreciate my life even more.  When Israel prayed for his all he asked for was safety of others, and he didn’t pray for himself.  This touched my closely because if I were him I would be asking for help in my surgeries to come, but he didn’t.  The last thing we did today was go to a sugarcane village.  At this village all we did was play with the kids.  Every one of them wanted to be on my back and would say “correr, correr”.  I was so tired by the end of the day.  Thankfully I learned some Spanish words so that I could have a break from the running.  This trip has truly changed my life for the better.

                                                                                                                                                Kyle Burger

I thought that today was one of my favorite days because we went to Jacky’s House I thought that this was one of my favorite orphanages because I got to met Israel. Israel was a very religious individual who had a condition with his legs. Israel is trying to raise money so that he can come to the USA to have surgery on his legs so he can walk. After that we went to a village where all we did was play with the kids I was playing with two kids by the names of Francisco and Willy all they wanted to do was ride on my back but I got them to play imaginary baseball.  When we came back during devotions we learned that Will Henry accepted Jesus and we welcomed him to the family. I think that this trip will change my life forever.

Dalton Taylor    

Today was a great day! We started the day at Jackie’s house. This is an orphanage that was about an hour away from where we were staying. There was a young man that lives there and he really stuck out to! His name was Israel. He has a disease that makes his bones very fragile. He is probably the strongest Christian I have ever met. He prayed for us at the end of the time at Jackie’s and it really touched my heart (I cried like a baby). We then left Jackie’s and went back to lunch. After lunch we went to our third sugarcane village…it was amazing! I had a three year old on my shoulders the whole time (he called me his horse). After playing with the kids for a while it was time to leave. This was the hardest parts of being at the village. These kids had nothing and the joy on their faces while we played was amazing. We then left and went back for dinner and “chill” time. This was one of my favorite days! I am sure tomorrow will be also because we are playing on the brand new Rawlings facility, which I’m guessing will be the best field I will every play on. I am having a great time here! I will see you when I get back! God Bless. –Dalton Taylor