I am still reflecting on my trip overseas to the Dominican Republic. It was an unforgettable experience. I preceded the trip with a lot of prayer. I really wanted some time to talk with my son about God. He is highly intelligent and gifted by God in many arenas. I wanted to make sure he was on the right path.

When we first got into the Dominican Republic we had to exchange our currency. We arrived on a Sunday and my son was determined we were going to find a bank that first day. We didn’t find one in Santa Domingo. It may have been easier if we spoke Spanish but neither one of us did. By the time I had decided we needed to redirect our focus on finding our rental house the sun was starting its descent in the western sky.

It took us forever to find the house. I was horrible at navigating and as we snaked in and out of the mountains the thought occurred to me that I should probably be freaking out. I didn’t though, because I just reminded God that I had prayed about this trip and we needed to find our rental home. Somewhere around 9 pm we finally found it and the view was breathtaking. I think God may have wanted us to arrive that late because it was a bit cooler when the sun went down and the house was magical at nighttime.

As we continued the trip I realized how dangerous it was to be in a country where we didn’t even know the language. I thought I should be a bit more worried in case a tragedy happened. I didn’t know how to say “hospital” or “doctor” or “emergency” in Spanish so what was I to do if something happened? I could have fretted and worried, essentially wasting a lot of time on the trip walking hand in hand with fear. But I didn’t. I just reminded God that I had covered this trip in prayer and I trusted Him to protect us.

I didn’t get a chance to talk to my son about God until the night before we left. We had a very interesting discussion on that night and I hope I clarified some things for him. It was a very challenging discussion for me. I could have forced that discussion on the first night but I didn’t. I just reminded God that I had prayed that I would get the chance to testify to my son and left it in His hands. If I had forced it I may have encountered resistance from my son.

There were so many times I could have grabbed hold of fear on this trip. I didn’t though. Instead I grabbed hold of God’s hand and rested in His peace. For the record, God is the best travel agent ever.