A group of volunteers from the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Washington State’s SAGE Ministry wrapped up a project in the Dominican Republic on February 6. SAGE stands for “Seniors in Action for God with Excellence,” and this group certainly exemplified the title. With an average age of just under 70, team members constructed a church building for the La Nueva Barquita Adventist congregation. They also conducted an evangelistic series, passed out more than 500 pieces of literature, painted another church, led children’s ministry programs, and saw nearly 400 patients at medical clinics. They attribute all positive outcomes to God’s intervention, which was especially obvious on multiple occasions.
SAGE volunteers working on the La Nueva Barquita Church building were dedicated to their construction goal: finishing the church walls so the roof could be added before worshipping in the new structure on Sabbath. “They worked hard and stuck with it until the expectation for each specific day was met,” recalled SAGE Secretary Valerie Serns. But on the final work day, a forecast of heavy rain threatened their success.
“We weren’t sure if we could put the roof on because of weather and time,” said SAGE President Rick Serns. “And they finished the roof just as it started raining!”
“There’s always a plethora of problems and difficulties that everyone has to deal with on a trip like this,” said SAGE Secretary Valerie Serns. “I just feel like God walked ahead of us and solved most of those problems with such accuracy … We knew that that wasn’t us–it was Him.”
God’s guidance also shined through a woman named Vanesa. She is a university student from the Dominican Republic who happened to stop by one of SAGE’s medical clinics. “It was not random–it was a divine appointment,” said Rick. “She of course spoke Spanish and of course was interested in what [the volunteers] were doing.” And because the medical team was in need of a translator, Vanesa offered up her services for the rest of the day. She ended up working with the medical team nearly every day for the remainder of the project. She also started attending the group’s evangelistic meetings and worshipped with volunteers on the last Sabbath of the trip. “As far as I know, she had no church background at all,” remarked Rick. “We got word that she’s been going to church every week since we left.”
Maranatha has helped plan SAGE’s annual service trips since 1995. “There’s no better way to do an international trip than to partner with Maranatha,” said Rick. Both organizations emphasize the importance of uplifting interpersonal relationships. “A lot of the time, people who reach retirement kind of lose contact with other people and lose the social aspect,” explained Rick. But he’s seen mission work restore what time has diminished. “There’s the camaraderie that you build with your work group who came on the trip but also the camaraderie with the Maranatha crew members and the local church.”
Maranatha has a long history of working in the Dominican Republic. In 1980, after the destruction of Hurricane David, Maranatha constructed 160 houses here. In 1992, the Dominican Republic was the site of a watershed moment of growth for Maranatha, when the organization coordinated the construction of 25 churches over 70 days. Dubbed “Santo Domingo ’92,” it was the first time Maranatha concentrated on one place for multiple volunteer projects. Later efforts occurred in 2003 and 2013, and in 2022, Maranatha returned once more and has been working there since.