Buehlers on Mission

As we were sitting around our dinner table on the 31st, sounds of roosters, merengue music and fireworks resonating from the background, we spent a good amount of time reflecting on the blessings and challenges of this last year, as well as our excitement and hope for next year, and the goodness of God through all of it.

2024 for……

Brennan… is midway through his junior year. He is currently in the initial stages of planning for university and narrowing his focus for what schools and scholarships to apply for. This year really allowed for him to step up his community service in a variety of ways.

He continued his role as one of three Executive Members of the Doulos Student Leadership Council. This group is a voice for the students with school leadership and also plans and organizes events. Brennan also went on two different Medical Missions trips as a translator for groups of doctors and nurses from the United States as they provided medical relief and evangelism for some of the poorest Dominicans and Haitians in the country. He also serves as a Junior Leader for Young Life. This role allows him to help lead the younger high schoolers and assist with programming at weekly Young Life events.

High school life has provided some additional fun opportunities for Brennan. He was able to take a beginning guitar elective, which he has thoroughly enjoyed. It has been really fun to see him pick up a new hobby and learn to strum some new songs as he practices at home.

Additionally, he got to be the coach for his class for their “Macha Basketball” (Girl’s basketball) tournament. While his “coaching style” was filled with lots of playful yelling and clipboard throwing, it was also filled with lots of laughs. It was fun to see him interacting and bonding with his classmates in such a silly way.

Mike… continued his role as Teaching and Learning Coordinator at Doulos. This role puts him directly coaching around 20 of Doulos’ teaching staff. Coaching entails helping with lesson planning, strategies for managing classrooms and students, helping with integration of the Gospel in all classes and subjects, providing counseling through the hard of missionary life and teaching students, as well as many other responsibilities. He also plans most of the professional development for Doulos and is in charge of curriculum implementation for all elementary through high school grades. One of the challenges / highlights of this position is working with staff who are all at very different levels in their professional career. Some teachers are in their first year, and are figuring out the ropes of how to be a teacher and deal with all that entails. Some teachers are much more seasoned and are looking to dive deeper within their craft. Mike works to meet all of his teachers where they are at and equip them to grow in their skills so that they can share the gospel effectively and help to provide a high-quality education to the 300+ students at Doulos.

Additionally, Mike got to step into teaching for a few weeks as some other teachers needed some extended leave times to chaperone for medical missions and outdoor education trips.

He really enjoyed the opportunity to connect with some classes of students that he had not worked with as much in the past as well as provide the opportunities for those staff members to pour into students during those trips that they would not be able to attend without someone filling in for their class.

Melissa…does so much to make the “Doulos-lives” of Mike, Brennan and Ava run smoothly as well as have a house that is a peaceful place to live in. She is also such an amazing builder of relationships and has an incredible depth, openness and boldness that endears her to many different groups of people.

One specific group that she is in community with is a group of Dominican moms (most, but not all from Doulos) who jokingly call themselves “Las Picaderas.” (Picaderas are little snacks, because when they get together, they always like to eat!)  Many of the times that they are together are simply to do life together – birthday gatherings, ladies nights, etc… But being there in all of these moments of life allows for her to share our faith in Christ when the hard of life happens.

In October, one of these ladies unexpectedly lost her mom. Having recently lost her own mom, Melissa was able to empathize with her, grieve with her at her house, the viewing, and the mass, and be a Christ-Centric support when many of the other people in her life were not believers. Being able to be the light in the darkness at such personal, private events would not have happened without the hours of intentionality that Melissa puts into this, as well as so many other relationships on this island.

Ava… The first half of the year brought a tough season for Ava, as she dealt with her grief of her grandma’s death through an unhealthy relationship that involved lots of deception and unwise choices. We are glad to say that God has done a great work in revealing those issues and providing opportunities for her to work through those sin issues. Another missionary is a counselor and has been meeting with Ava, and we have been doing lots of heart work with her at home. She has been making much healthier choices and has even worked this tough season into her Christian testimony.

God was able to use this redemptive story to further his kingdom to a group of children who are truly with little hope. In November, her class was doing some service work at an Orphanage in Santaigo (A major city 45 minutes from us.)

During that time, she was able to speak to the entire group of orphans about how how she had a faith in God, but during her mourning and processing her Grandmother’s death, the enemy worked his way in during a dark time. She finished with how God was able to do a redemptive work in her and how she does not want to go back to that path.

As parents, it is such a blessing to see her living out her faith and to see Romans 8:28 in action in working this situation to be used as a part of Ava’s witness to others.

The four of us are deeply grateful for the love and support you’ve shown us over the last 4.5 years, both financially and through your heartfelt prayers. Your generosity and faith have been a source of strength and encouragement, and we are truly blessed to have you by our side as we are the Lord’s hands and feet the D.R.. Thank you for your continued love, care, and belief in God’s work—it means more than words can express.

Con MUCHO amor,

Mike, Melissa, Brennan (16), Ava (13)

Last week was a busy week for the Buehler Family. I (Michael) was at leadership conference for Christian School leaders through the Association of Christian Schools International. At the same time, Brennan was serving again with Medical Ministry International as a Medical Translator. He was able to go with three of his classmates and two chaperones to serve for a week on the North Coast. Proud of him and all the ways he loves to serve. Here what he has to say about the experience below…

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Three weeks ago, I was given the opportunity to apply to go on another Medical Missions Trip, similar to the one that I went on last year. I knew that God was calling me to volunteer for it again, so I applied, and was accepted. So, about a week ago, I left Jarabacoa, and ventured over to Puerto Plata, a town up north, along the coast, where I would be serving. 

In the area we were staying, I was blessed with a ‘super’ comfy mattress located on the floor. Even though I didn’t get the best sleep, I just always tried to look forward, and I realized that this trip isn’t for my comfort, it’s to help others in need. Last year I was translating at the small clinic, moving from town to town, but this year I got to go the hospital, where I would be translating for surgeries big and small.

Over the six days that I was translating there I saw many interesting things such as, hernia removals, gall bladder removals, and many other smaller surgeries. I really enjoyed be the bridge for the doctors and patients as they tried to communicate with one another. It was so cool to see how so many people that could never have afforded these surgeries, were getting healed for free. This reminded me of how Jesus healed people in the Bible that thought they couldn’t be healed.

During the trip I also met so many cool nurses, doctors and surgeons, and got to hear how some of them had been serving for over 40 years for MMI. I am really glad that I got to go on this trip, and I am glad that God is continuing to use my gifts and skills to help those who need it the most.

Brennan got many compliments from the patients and the team from the States. One of the doctors even stated, “I’ve been coming on these trips for 15 years and you (Brennan) were my best translator ever!”

Thanks for those of you that kept him and his team in your prayers. This is such an incredible experience and way for Brennan, and other teens from Doulos to serve others and follow God’s daily calling on their lives.

Our God Still Moves Mountains

We live in what has been called the “Caribbean Alps,” which means we are daily surrounded by mountains. I look out my barred windows every day while washing dishes and see the southern mountains. Here we say things like, “I went down the mountain today…” when we leave town. The mountains are a real, physical presence in our daily lives here, which often keeps God’s ability to move spiritual mountains more present in my mind. 

A few weeks ago on a Tuesday morning I started my quiet time with the Lord in 1 Samuel chapter 3 using a devo from My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers. Samuel is being called by the Lord and Eli teaches Samuel to reply, “Speak, Lord, for your servant hears.” In this devo, Oswald says, “Get into the habit of saying, “Speak, Lord,” and life will become a romance (1 Samuel 3:9). Every time circumstances press in on you, say, “Speak, Lord,” and make time to listen.” Little did I know, this would become the pattern of my week over some unique circumstances I was petitioning the Lord about. You speak, Lord, I listen.  

That same Tuesday afternoon, news arrived from a Dominican friend (“Manuel”) that his mom’s right eye had been severely damaged by out of control arterial pressure induced by diabetes and was operating at 10%, and the left eye was being impacted as well. Without rapid medical intervention, she was in extreme danger of losing her vision. The day before, I had considered joining them at the doctor’s office to offer my support, as I am friends with both of them, but felt strongly that God was telling me to stay home. So here I was at home, just the Lord and I, starting to feel a little panic. What was I supposed to do….if anything?? Mike and I didn’t have the money to help with this need after handling all of my own medical issues with my gallbladder in December and January. And I already knew that this was going to be a pricey situation. And yet I also knew the dire financial situation of my frail, 108 pound, 59 year old friend (let’s call her “Mama”). Mama lives alone in the countryside in a small shack, no running water, pit toilet, surviving on the equivalent of $28 dollars each month and whatever fruits and vegetables neighbors bring her. I began to tell the Lord, “this is YOUR problem (as if He didn’t already know!), YOU are going to have to figure this out….Speak, Lord!!”    

It was in the quiet of staying home that day that He very specifically told me to contact a certain friend. And the incredible thing is, I had only recently reconnected with this friend through the course of my Mom’s death. After almost 20 years of lost contact, she reached out to share her condolences and it was as if we had never skipped a beat. As we caught up on life, she told me to keep her in mind if there was ever a need that arose that we needed help with in our work here in the DR. Though I had completely forgotten about this, the Lord very clearly reminded me as I petitioned Him to “speak.” My friend responded that she was indeed willing to help, and I literally went to my knees and thanked the Lord for bringing something sweet out of the excruciating pain of my Mom’s death. I had a sense that He was going to use this gift to restore sight to the almost blind. It was the kind of thing my Mom would have absolutely loved, especially with all of her own work in benevolence ministries.

The next morning (Wednesday), my friend’s generous gift arrived. I was on cloud nine! Because, you see, what was unfolding was so much bigger than providing medical aid to Mama. There were parts of me that had literally been feeling dead for so long. We had entered the valley of the shadow with my Mom starting in February 2023 at the news that another treatment had stopped working and the tumors in her lungs had grown 20% larger. This was the beginning of one wave of HARD after the other. Things big and small—the scare of my own breast biopsy (cancer free, praise Jesus!!), the oftentimes heartache of full time ministry, watching my sweet Mom slowly dying before my eyes all summer long, a partially torn meniscus, seemingly endless car repairs due to developing world roads, various illnesses, 3 trips to Oregon in 7 months to serve my family, gallstones—I could not escape this valley, no matter how hard I fought for and begged Jesus for higher ground. I had even very intentionally thanked the Lord for ALL He had allowed to pass through His hands into my life, thanking Him it had been THESE things and not other things, thanking Him for the protection over the 4 of us. But after literally 12 straight months of this, and the most recent 8 week battle with extreme fatigue and abdominal issues with my gallbladder, a deep discouragement settled over me. Then a subtle distance slowly developed between the Lord and me. Had He forgotten me? I had trusted Him in everything during the past 12 months, including flying to Oregon alone the day my Mom died, dangerously racing to the airport in the middle of the night when it’s really not safe to do that here, trusting in His sovereignty that I didn’t make it back to her bedside like I always imagined I would. But like a 12 month weary traveler, I had nothing left. I wondered if the Lord cared about what was happening to me and what was the purpose in all of this? Was there something I was not learning that I needed to learn? I had been feeling useless. Sidelined. For SO long.

When Manuel came to our house later Wednesday afternoon, the joy in my heart was already spilling over. I told him, “God is going to move this mountain!” Thinking back to my Sunday school days of singing, “He owns the cattle on a 1,000 hills…,” I shared, “if it’s money that we need, God has a lot of money!” (Dios tiene muchísimo dinero!) He burst into tears.

Like a wilted flower receiving fresh water, I began to feel alive again. God was beautifully reminding me that my heart sings loudest when I am serving. Someone once prayed over me and said, “Melissa, you were made to give your life away.” I believe it. There is nothing that makes me more joyful than being His hands and feet, which is why I had become so discouraged after so much time feeling sidelined. I do know that He never “needs” me, but I’m so very thankful when He chooses to use me. 

Thursday, Manuel and Mama transferred care from the primary doctor who is generally managing her diabetes to an ophthalmologist and discovered that things were worse than they thought. The right eye pressure was at 70 (normal is 10 – 20), full of broken capillaries and needed an injection immediately or she would lose the eye. This would either be the first of five injections per eye OR a combination of injections with laser surgery. I immediately felt overwhelmed upon learning that each injection is $172. We were now looking at anywhere from $1,500 – $2,000 with procedures, co-pays, eye drops… Yesterday’s mountaintop faith began to falter…Do you really have this much money, God?? “Speak, Lord!” I heard Him telling me, “Espera.” (Wait.) Mike and I felt zero clarity at this point but both knew the Lord was asking us to wait upon Him and take it one step at a time.

Friday I joined Mama and Manuel at the doctor’s office. My heart flooded with compassion as I saw the exhaustion over both of them as I entered the room. We received the good news that the pressure in her right eye had dropped from 70 to 25 overnight from the first injection, so she was now a candidate for three sessions of laser and then injections in the left eye. More praying and waiting.

Saturday I felt God giving me the green light to follow up with a second friend He had placed upon my heart. This friend wanted to cover one of the three laser treatments, thank you, Jesus! 

“And now what, Lord? What do you want me to do now? Speak, Lord, for your servant hears.” “Use your voice.” Gulp. What does that mean? “Lord, you know I don’t like to ask for money, even for someone else. And I’ve already done it twice now. Really??” He just kept saying, “Use your voice.” As I waited for more direction, I went about my day and as the evening drew near, God planted a very strong desire to call my Dad. I even tried to reason with God, as I was in the middle of something, and ask if I could finish my task. “Nope, call now.” I went to text my Dad about calling in a few minutes and he told me that he was at band practice for church. So I said, “that’s fine, we can talk tomorrow.” Then I thought, what was that all about? Why the urgency? And shrugged my shoulders. I continued to think and pray about how God might want me to “use my voice,” thinking maybe I should talk with our local pastor after church the next day. A while later, Mike and Brennan left to pick up Ava, leaving me in a quiet house. God gently urged me to come and pray, getting on my knees before Him. I prayed for several situations, including Mama. God instructed me to reach back out to my Dad and see if he might be willing to be the extension of my voice at his church that night. Maybe there was one or two people there who might consider helping? I almost felt bad asking him to do that, as it was minutes before the service was starting, and I was thinking, it’s probably too late, all the while reminded of just how much I don’t like asking for money. I shared that we roughly needed $913 just for treatments, not including meds, drops, etc. from the updated info I’d been given. Word came back that there would be a special offering taken. My heart leapt for joy and was excited to watch God work again. Mike, the kids and I stopped to pray. We texted Manuel to pray. Before we could think much more, we were blown away to learn that $1,000 had been promised. One. thousand. dollars. I started to cry…“God, you DO have muchisimo dinero.” We called Manuel and he was grateful beyond words. Mike, he and I prayed together, a prayer of thanksgiving to God for moving this mountain, for making a way when it seemed like there wasn’t one, for caring for one of the least of these.

I ended this special week experiencing the very romance with Jesus that Chambers had mentioned in his devo. The Lord knew I needed to be part of this process for my own faith. I needed to reconnect with Him after a year of weariness, to hear His voice so sharp and clear, to move a spiritual mountain in my own life, to be blessed just as much as Mama in this process. Thank you, Lord, that You are Faithful, even when my own faith falters. 

And Mama? Earlier this week she received her third and final laser treatment in her right eye, though this also came with the difficult news that her pressures were back up to 70. She received another right eye injection for these pressures and is waiting to see if she will need to have surgery as well. Laser treatment will also begin in her left eye soon. She still has a very long way to go, but we continue to trust and petition our Mountain Mover for complete restoration of her vision if it is His will to do so. 

During our fourth Christmas in the D.R., we got to engage in one of our favorite ministry activities: Christmas at Piedra Blanca. This is an event where we get to partner with other ministries that provide Christmas gifts, a pizza meal, arts and crafts, PLENTY of candy, and most importantly, the Gospel message to 80+ children living in a Haitian community just outside of Jarabacoa.  

Doing this for multiple years means that we are able to see many of the same smiling faces and reconnect with the kids we’ve seen in years past. In debriefing with our children, Brennan stated that he enjoys this time because it is a cool opportunity to give something special to kids whose families normally couldn’t afford something like this. Putting a smile on the faces of the kids is the reason that Ava really enjoys this tradition.

For Mike, it is the embodiment of the joy of giving. Being able to bless numerous children with a simple gift, but then being able to connect it to the gift of Jesus, the miracle of His birth, and the beauty of His gift to us in terms of eternal salvation is a special time. The reality of the Gospel is always prevalent on the mission field, but takes on such a special meaning at this event.

For most tenth graders on this planet, a 5 day, 36 mile backpacking trip with 7,465 feet of elevation gain to the top of Pico Duarte is not a typical part of the school week. But for the 18 students and 5 chaperones (myself included) at Doulos, it was a life-altering experience in the Dominican Mountainside. The amazing views, group bonding, and hilarious moments were all wonderful, but the real beauty was in the moments where the Lord showed up to do work in people’s hearts.

Simplify for the Struggle

When planning for the week, there are many things that the leaders hope to accomplish during the week. One of the key goals is to strip the students from everything that is the norm for them, including their friend groups, technology, and routine to allow for the Lord to work through the simplicity and the struggle.

Students were put into varying groups (see above) as their hiking group for the first day’s 12 mike hike to Base Camp. This allowed for many technology-free hours of conversations on all sorts of topics. We sang Taylor swift, discussed the benefits of beef jerky, and the wide variety of thoughts that enter 15 and 16 year old’s minds. Although there were many funny topics, the Lord worked to weave in some deep conversations between myself and the students.

One example was during a two hour stretch of the steepest part of the hike. I was walking with a student that was by himself and was having a hard time making it. (Personally, I was struggling as well, so it was great to have to have a reason to go a little slower!)

While huffing it up the trail, we talked through the hard of his life, the struggles of his broken home, and figuring out his path for the future regarding work and university. Two years ago, I was also walking with him on an outdoor ed trip and learned about a lot of his family pain, specifically around his parent’s divorce, so this provided a special time of following up on how he was dealing with the pain and where he was with his walk with the Lord. We talked about seeking God in the midst of the hard and the unknown and looking for His will in the midst of all the changes. This student is usually pretty withdrawn and quiet, so it was great to have intentional time to invest in him.

Later on at the end of the first day, I was with a group of students who were getting tired, but were also “enjoying” their breaks a little longer than they should. I kept pushing them that if they did not hurry up, we would be hiking in the dark. To that, one of the boys replied, “Night hiking sounds fun!”

Well, sure enough, they found out how fun it was. Around 6:30pm, the fog rolled in and we wound up being two miles from base camp in pitch dark. So I had them stop and get out their flashlights to which the reply was, “We didn’t pack any. We figured other people had them.” So there I was with five teenagers, one flashlight and their panic setting in. The thought of a “fun night hike” was quickly dashed as two of the girls started bawling hysterically, screaming that they were not going to walk any more, that something was in the bushes to get them, and that they wanted to go home. At the same time, two of the boys said their backs hurt too much to go on. Internally I was like, Lord, this is ridiculous. How am I going to get out of this mess? But on the outside, I was able to maintain a calm over the situation that can only be credited to the Holy Spirit. Through lots of prayers, pauses and pep talks amidst the teenage tears, plenty of stubbed toes, and a dark object following us (it was a rock…) we made it to camp 90 minutes after everyone else through the darkness of the mountains.

After settling down and getting a hot meal, one of the girls talked to me and thanked me for being so calm during that stressful time. She said that any other leader would have “freaked out” on her, but that she knew that I had her back and would keep her safe in that hard situation. I was able to use that conversation to give all the credit to the Lord and His ability to provide a peace that transcended the incredible struggle of leading five panic-stricken teens through the mountains in the dark. This is a young lady that both Melissa and I have poured TONS of time into regarding her faith, understanding the truth of the gospel, and how a life following Christs transforms us into His likeness. So for the Lord to use me that evening as an on-earth model of His peace and patience was a special way to end the day one.

Speaking on Suffering for the Lord

Day two brought us to the top of Pico Duarte!! Less than 16 hours after our night hike and the declarations of wanting to go home, we all made it to the 10,174 foot summit of Pico Duarte. The entire group was full of smiles and pride in their accomplishment of making it to the highest peak in the Caribbean together as a class. There were high fives, hugs, kisses given to the Duarte statue, and celebratory dance moves.

That evening, I got to lead the evening devotional for the students around the campfire. I focused on the passage of 2 Corinthians chapter one which focuses on the joy of suffering. I was able to explain to them that God gives universal blessings to everyone, believer or not, when it comes to having an achievement that required suffering; such as all of them being proud to have hiked to the summit of Pico, which didn’t require any of them to be a Christ follower to feel pride for their achievement. And while this is good, it is only an earthly feeling. However, the Word in 2 Corinthians is talking about how followers of Christ should view suffering as a way to disciple others. Not through simple actions, but by modeling the comfort we received from Christ in our suffering to bring comfort to others.

I also shared about how accepting Christ is not a “make life easier and prosperous” decision, but actually, that the life of the Cross is hard and with suffering. But unlike the suffering for naught of the world, it is full of a supernatural joy of living for so much more that this world can ever comprehend through a life following Christ.

Rest and Return

Day three meant packing up camp, and heading on the nine hour hike for Valle Del Tetero. 9 miles from our first base camp, this is a grassy valley, with an amazing river, peace and quiet to relax and space for kids to play. After so much energy was spent hiking, a reprieve was much needed.

Upon arrival, everyone was able to catch their breath, relax and reflect on their experience the first two and a half days. It allowed for the kids to ponder their accomplishments, their struggles, and how they felt the Lord was speaking to them. One of the girls that I talked with reflected on how the culture she lives in focuses so much on taking the easy way out, and how the trip was a great example of how the special things of this world take effort and struggle. I followed up with her thoughts and connected them to the fact that this is shown in the Christian walk- that God’s path is narrow and difficult, but it has ALWAYS been worth it.

After our day off, we packed up and headed home to our families, a comfy bed, and a shower to clean off our layers of sweat and grime. Through all the blisters, bug bites, and burning muscles, this was an experience that none of us will ever forget. During my time, I was thinking how thankful I was to be able to be God’s physical hands and feet in the DR and to be able to speak gospel truths into this group of students. Thank you soooo much for being an extension of the work that God is doing in the DR.

There are many layers of what makes Doulos an amazing ministry to work for. We just finished this promo video to highlight many of the key points of how the people of the DR are being impacted for the Lord.

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you.

Psalm 32:8

This last week, I had the privilege of co-leading a three-day conference for Christian school leaders. Located in Santo Domingo, the largest city on the island, the focus was, “Esperanza Profunda” which means “deep hope.” We were presenting to school leaders from around a dozen different school sites. They are all under the umbrella of Sinergia, a Christian organization that plants schools and churches and Christian schools in the poorest neighborhoods of the D.R.

Many of these school leaders have the passion to bring the Gospel to their students, but do not have the training, tools, or resources to maximize their efforts. The leadership of Doulos was approached earlier in the year to share the strategies and tools that we use to bring the Gospel to our students and provide training for a group of school directors and leaders. Of course we said YES!! Even though myself and my coworkers have packed schedules, we felt the Holy Spirit pressing upon us the importance of this conference and the need to say “here we are, send us.”

During our training, we focused on creating a Christ-centered vision for the school, implementing biblical integration strategies for classrooms, cooperative learning strategies, short-term and long-term goal setting, focused prayer time, devotions and many more activities. These men and women were so appreciative of the opportunity to further their gospel impact for their students. With tears in their eyes, many of them passionately spoke of the hopelessness of the areas they live in, the seeds of hope that they wish to plant in their students, and the appreciation to have a vision and tools to now make that happen.

Planning 24 hours of content over 3 days took TONS of time and effort outside of my normal principal duties. But all the hours of prep, the time away from family, and the hours of speaking were an easy “yes” to be able to move the Kingdom forward and hopefully impact the hundreds of students at these schools. Thank you, Jesus, for being our “esperanza profunda” in everything we do!