Mercy in Motion

Sunday, November 30, 2025 - [click here to support the continuing work at MOHI]  

Today's update is from Renée and Jonathan

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As we wrap up Thanksgiving week, my heart feels full beyond measure. Gratitude always has a way of sharpening my vision and helping me see God’s goodness tucked into so many corners of our daily lives. Scripture reminds us that “His mercies are new every morning” (Lamentations 3:22–23), and this week has been one beautiful reminder after another of His mercy at work through ordinary people doing extraordinary things.

Before I share a few updates, I want to include Jonathan’s reflections from this past week. His words capture the heartbeat of so much of what we experience here: mercy that steps into the chaos, love that shows up, and people who choose to walk alongside one another even when the road is uneven.

JONATHAN’S Reflections

I was once taught by a very wise friend that mercy is the willingness to step into the chaos of another person. I think of that often - I believe it was a phrase loosely coined by a Jesuit priest named James Keegan - but lucky me, I’ve seen it personified in the faces of friends and strangers alike for the better part of the past fourteen years of being involved in international work. And even in a time where the world seems often - meh - there is no shortage of examples of people who enter willingly into chaos in service of others.

Last week, I was fortunate enough to be able to accompany MOHI’s nurse here in the D.R., Marlouse, on some of her community outreach work in the villages not terribly far from the center of town here in Luperon. The village is positioned beautifully right on the pristine coastline, complete with white sands and picturesque scenery.

Marlouse’s work is limited in many ways given that she’s not an MD - but her work is invaluable just the same. She keeps tabs on locals who’ve been seen by and consulted with MOHI’s partner at Bless Back - and ensures compliance to medications prescribed, does wound dressings and monitors blood pressures and more.

As locals brought us chairs to sit on, offered us coconut water to drink, and insisted we visit for a bit first, her local patients started appearing one by one. As she pulled out her notebook, I couldn’t help but notice how attentive to her patients she was, and how personal her approach was to each individual. Granted, she’s known these folks likely for some time, but she knew who would have high blood pressure - and why. She knew that one of the guys wasn’t adhering to his meds simply by counting what he had left in his bottle of pills. She knew patients who liked too much sugar in their juice, or too much salt in their food. She certainly knew those who imbibed a bit too much on some local rum or other spirits, as they say…

Later in the week, I had the opportunity to make the drive from Luperon over to Santiago, where a good friend from Miami, who has a mission in Haiti, was visiting with a surgical team from various South Florida hospitals and medical practices. This group of professionals used to make twice-annual trips to Haiti for this purpose, but given the security situation in Haiti, has since started coming to the Dominican Republic. Haitians in the D.R. who are not documented are not permitted to go to local hospitals - which, at one time, were free for all to seek care at, however now are risky and costly visits for many of our Haitian friends living in the country. It just so happens that one of MOHI’s leaders in the D.R. was in need of a surgical procedure that this visiting team from Miami said they could perform.

While the surgery and recovery of one of MOHI’s leadership team in the D.R. was happening, the group of practitioners from Miami broke into a smaller group, and invited me to accompany them on a visit to a rural migrant labor camp - home almost exclusively to Haitians - who were unable to leave the perimeter of this labor camp - in order to bring some basic care and medications to them. I decided to follow them and their two busloads of supplies and medical personnel, so that I could return to Santiago in time to pick up a colleague who was having a surgical procedure back at the main base for this clinical operation.

While we were en route, one of their two buses - the bus carrying the medical teams - blew a tire. We all stopped, staring at an impressive flat tire - (they tend to explode more here, vs. simply “go flat”). I made the decision to invite them onto the van I was in - and we took off in time to meet the people waiting for us on the other end.

We laughed a bit about how all of the pieces of our respective puzzles seemed to fit where they needed to be, when they were needed. There were a dozen things that happened that day that were not a part of my plan. Just the same, as the events unfolded, needs were being met, relationships forged, and mercy extended to so many.

When I get anxious or feel overwhelmed by things like flat tires, immigration raids, people showing up late for appointments (or sometimes, not at all), I’m reminded by some wise words another good friend often reminds me of: Never grow weary in the service of others.

Overflowing With Gratitude

Jonathan’s stories echo what we see throughout MOHI each week — people stepping into hard places with compassion, patience, and courage. “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few” (Luke 10:2), yet again and again God sends the right people at just the right time.

Our hearts are especially full this week because we’ve been celebrating Thanksgiving with so much joy. Lex and I, along with our daughter Alexis, her husband Alain, and their three little ones, traveled to Arizona to spend this special time with our son AJay, his wife Cherie, and their precious one-month-old baby, Alexander. Little Xander has been an absolute delight. He studies every face so intently and seems especially captivated by the cousins’ singing and dancing. Watching AJay and Cherie step so naturally into their roles as parents has filled us with gratitude. Their tenderness, unity, and quiet confidence are such a blessing to witness.

This week has been a gift. A gift of family. A gift of connection. A gift of gratitude. A gift of mercy in motion.

Hope at Work in Haiti

Back in Haiti, we received a report from our assistant school director and Haiti sponsorship coordinator, Roselande. One of our preschoolers took a fall during nap time and hit her head on a cot. Head wounds bleed heavily, and it was understandably frightening for everyone nearby. Moments like that remind us why we are so deeply grateful for the clinic right there on campus — a clinic strengthened and supported by our incredible partnership with Bless Back Worldwide.

Our schools in Grand-Goâve and St. Etienne continue to be places where hope takes root every single day. They are far more than classroom buildings—they are safe, nurturing spaces where children’s spiritual, intellectual, emotional, and physical needs are cared for with intention and love. In communities where instability touches nearly every part of daily life, the schools stand as steady beacons of possibility. Parents tell us often that MOHI’s schools give them hope for a better tomorrow for their children and for Haiti as a whole. Through daily meals, compassionate staff, strong academics, and the constant presence of God’s Word, our students are growing into young men and women who can one day help rebuild and transform their nation.

Faith in Action Through Business Training

In the Dominican Republic's , Aquilina continues leading the Bless Back Business Academy with a heart for the community. This week’s lessons focused on negotiation, integrity, resilience, and navigating hard economic moments with wisdom and perseverance. Her biblical lens — “He who walks in integrity walks securely” (Proverbs 10:9) and “There is profit in all hard work” (Proverbs 14:23) — anchors this training in truth.

I really appreciate the way Aquilina steps into the community each week, visiting business owners, praying with them, and helping them apply the practical lessons they’re learning. Her follow-up with students like Esteban, Prospere, and Zechariah brings the classroom to life in such meaningful ways. This program is far more than business training. It is discipleship. It is empowerment. It is mercy and hope woven into the everyday lives of men and women who are earnestly working to provide for their families.

Upcoming Events

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Giving Tuesday

As we enter this season of giving, my thoughts often turn to those who simply do not have the capacity to celebrate Christmas the way many of us do. Scripture reminds us of God’s heart for the vulnerable: “All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I had been eager to do all along” (Galatians 2:10). This call is woven throughout the life of the early church and remains just as vital today. In recent years, a global movement known as Giving Tuesday—the first Tuesday after Thanksgiving—has emerged as a way to refocus our hearts after the busyness of holiday shopping and turn our attention toward generosity that uplifts others. If you are prayerfully considering where to invest during this meaningful time of year, we would be honored to have MOHI on your heart. Every gift, large or small, allows us to feed children, support families in crisis, strengthen our medical and dental clinics in partnership with Bless Back Worldwide, and bring hope into places where it is desperately needed. You can participate securely at Giving Tuesday at MOHI. Thank you for remembering those who need it most.

Gratitude for You

As I reflect on this week — on family, ministry, healing, learning, and hundreds of everyday mercies — I keep returning to one thought: none of this would be possible without faithful partners.

Your prayers strengthen us. Your encouragement sustains us. Your generosity fuels every part of this work — from medical and dental care in Haiti to community health outreach in the D.R. to business training that restores dignity and opens doors for families.

You step into the chaos with us. You choose compassion. You choose hope.

We are honored to serve alongside you and are endlessly grateful for the ways you bless our lives and those we love so dearly.

May the Lord continue to make His mercy visible in and through each of us in the days ahead.