Rod has not worked out consistently for almost three weeks due in-part to a sickness and the storm (Noel). He had been in bed with the flu and bronchitis. As scheduled, he reluctantly got on the scale and, as suspected, he had gained 5 pounds since the last weigh-in.  Rod is feeling better now, thank the Lord, and recommitted to working hard with a goal of losing 5-10 pounds a month.

“Still eight months to go…and I am not giving up!”
– Rod

Please keep Rod in your prayers as he is struggling to get his children to school due to a vehicle break-down. If you would like to help Rod out with the biggest loser program please read the original post. If you would like to help Rod fund a new vehicle please contact us.

Weigh-in Update:

Weigh-in #5 (November 4, 2007): 302 pounds
Weigh-in #4 (October 4, 2007): 297 pounds
Weigh-in #3 (September 4, 2007): 311 pounds
Weigh-in #2 (August 4, 2007): 325 pounds
Weigh-in #1 (July 4, 2007): 342 pounds

Next weigh-in December 4, 2007.

The vision to provide housing for teams and an apartment for the Davis family is under way! Thanks to the McQuiddy Construction Company we have embarked on phase two of building the T.E.A.R.S. Center housing project. The second floor, over the office area is now being transformed into a three bedroom apartment in which the Davis family will live. This will free up the main dwelling for small short-term teams of 10 to 20 people to stay on the T.E.A.R.S. center property. The property is located on the outskirts of the barrio Maria Auxiliadora close to many T.E.A.R.S. outreaches including: T.E.A.R.S. School, El Camino church, the Haitian outreach in Soto and the Church planting outreach in Los Pomos. This will also help cut cost for teams making it easier for them to come and build relationships here in the D.R. The McQuiddy will be arriving on November 3rd with a team of builders to add a traditional A-frame style roof and to help with the first phase of electrical and plumbing work. We are so excited and grateful for the generosity and servant’s hearts of Kirk and Barb McQuiddy and their team.

If you are interested in bringing down a team and being a part of Phase-three of this building project please contact us and we will give you all the information you need! God is doing great things here in the Dominican Republic, and you can be a part of it. We hope to see you soon!

I am so grateful to everyone for all the support and prayers. I really feel like I am not in this alone. I have been in the states for a bit now, both for the T.E.A.R.S. Board meeting and to visit some churches. Boy has it been a challenge! As soon as I got of the plane in Miami, Florida my senses were bombarded by hundreds of smells, signs and colors telling me to come try the food, desserts, coffee and snacks! It seemed as if my cravings went into hyper-drive! Everything looked so good and smelled so wonderful. I was sure that they piped the smells into the walkways just to get to me! So, I found a little place that had salads and ordered a small Cesar along with a bottle of water. The total cost was $13.95, wow! I could have purchased two Whopper deals for that much at Burger King! It seems as if this whole trip has been like that for me. There are so many great restaurants and junk food places (like Cinnabon, an old favorite of mine) lurking around every turn.

All said and done I realized I would rather feel good than give in to the pressure of bad habits. So, I am still drinking tons of water, and it helps a lot. I have increased my run/walk from two miles a day to three! I have allowed myself an occasional treat but that means extra sit-ups before bed. I am now down below 300 lbs. As of October 4, 2007 I officially weigh 297lbs. It has been years since I have been under 300lbs and it feels great!! Thanks again for your prayers and encouragement.

The Biggest Loser,
Rod

Weigh-in Update (a total loss of 45 pounds in 3 months!):

Weigh-in #4 (October 4, 2007): 297 pounds
Weigh-in #3 (September 4, 2007): 311 pounds
Weigh-in #2 (August 4, 2007): 325 pounds
Weigh-in #1 (July 4, 2007): 342 pounds

Next weigh-in November 4, 2007.

Rod is still going strong in his “Biggest Loser” program. We are proud to announce, through this program, Rod has lost another 14 pounds! That puts his total lost at 31 pounds! Rod would love continued encouragement and for you to prayerfully consider pledging in order to help him achieve his goals of losing weight and supporting his family financially. Learn more about supporting Rod with “The Biggest Loser.”

Weigh-in #3 (September 4, 2007): 311 pounds
Weigh-in #2 (August 4, 2007): 325 pounds
Weigh-in #1 (July 4, 2007): 342 pounds

Next weigh-in October 4, 2007.

Rod has the following message to share regarding his program:
Let me start by saying how grateful I am for all of the support and prayers.
I feel great! It’s a real challenge to say no in this “eat together, all the time, relational society”, or even to myself. This is especially true, since saying “no” has never been my strong point. I am realizing lately that the benefits definitely outweigh the challenges. I feel sharper mentally, physically and spiritually. I am thrilled to have gone from a 54-inch waist down to a 46-inch in my pants size and from 5x shirts size to a 3x! Overall, I have more energy and feel more effective in whatever I am doing.

A Day in the Life of “The Biggest Loser”

I am usually in bed by 11:00PM and up by 5:30AM for prayer and my morning walk. I make it back by 7:00AM to shower and have fruit, yogurt and 32oz of water for breakfast. At 7:20AM I am off to Santiago to take the kids to school. I will usually finish my 32oz carry around water bottle (second one for the day) before I get back to the office. I am in the office from 9:00AM to 12:00 (noon) in which time I will knock-off one more 32oz bottle of water then home for a light, low-carbohydrate lunch and chat with Twila.

When siesta time is over around 2:00PM I am off to Santiago again to pick up the kids in which time I have another 32oz of water. I return home by 4:00PM and I have visitation time (with my Dominican friends) until 6:00PM and then a semi lo-carb dinner with 32oz of water. From 7:00PM until 9:00PM, while the kids are doing homework I try to catch up on various work projects while have another delicious 32oz of water! After I am finished and the kids get ready for bed I will pour myself a yummy 32oz big mug of water and put my feet up to while I catch the evening news or read a good book.

Before I brush my teeth and get ready to go to bed I treat myself to a delectable granola bar or a mouth-watering piece of fruit and a 32oz jug of water and then hit the sack. Then I get up to GO TO THE BATHROOM and back to bed to pray myself to sleep. Mommy always said to drink lots of water. If she were here she would be proud of me!

In His grace,
Rod

As I walked through the barrio Los Pomos in the city of La Vega, my heart was burdened. I looked into the eyes of so many hurting, discouraged people - young and old alike. Huddled on the stoops, gathered in front of the little corner stores, passing around a $1.30 bottle of rum going nowhere fast. Adolescent girls with their babies playing in the filth, absent fathers leaving them to fend for themselves, forcing them to live off their over-burdened parents seemed the norm not the exception. As I contemplated their situation I was overwhelmed by the enormous needs and hardship they were facing daily. The astronomical unemployment rates, lack of adequate health care and the marginal opportunity for education seemed to have a merciless cast iron grip on them.

I knew that talking with them about a bye and bye, pie-in-the-sky religion would not cut it for a people that is only living for today. At the same time my heart rejoiced at the opportunity of inviting them to become part of the “Unshakable Kingdom of God” that gives confidence for today and hope for tomorrow. Our T.E.A.R.S. church planting team, after much prayer and several visits, decided that this would be a place that the love and grace of God could abound, so we set out to make disciples and share about the King and His Kingdom to whoever would listen. The openness and receptivity of the people was amazing!

In our first big activity last week, we broke out the sound system, loaded the buses with visiting teams from Lebanon, Oregon and Calgary, Canada and set up in a seeming abandoned community center on the main street of the barrio. The music was turned up and “Virus”, a Christian rap group (composed of Fernando who is on the T.E.A.R.S. Team and some brothers from El Camino Church) started to share the gospel through song and personal testimonies. Before long, the little tin roof was jumping and the people started coming!

I was leaning on a fence across the street just taking it all in and thanking God for what He was doing. Something caught my attention to my right and I looked down the street to see two scantily dressed women making their way towards the activity. They were bouncing to the beat of the music and appeared to be somewhat intoxicated. As they drew closer, one of them looked over at me with a shocked, then shamed stare and then called out my name, “Rodrigo, what are you doing here?!” Then I recognized her: “Maribel, is that you?” “Yes, yes!”, she cries out, “This is my barrio. I live around the corner.” Maribel was a beautiful young lady that I had met some years ago through a close friend in the barrio Maria Auxiliadora. She had seemed so full of hope and promise, and to see her now looking like a drug-addicted prostitute was saddening. We talked for a bit then I encouraged them to enter the activity. To my surprise, they pushed their way right up to the front and stayed for the whole service.

Afterwards, Maribel found me, and with tears welling up in her eyes she asked me, “When are you coming back?” The hunger for something more, the gospel, was evident in her gaze, so with great joy I told her that our team would be hanging around for a good while, sharing with anyone that wanted to listen. She smiled and said, “please come visit me; I live right around the corner”, and then walked away.

We are all so excited about what God is doing in Los Pomos. We ask that you would stand with us in prayer as we seek to reach this hurting community with the news of what Jesus has done for them! Once again we see that, “where sin abounded, grace did much more abound”. Thank you Jesus… you are so faithful!

As you might know, Rod has created a “Biggest Loser” Dominican Republic style. We are proud to announce, through this program, Rod has lost 17 pounds so far! He has received tons of support from people just like you and would love encouragement and for you to pray-fully consider pledging in order to help him achieve his goals of losing weight and supporting his family financially. Learn more about supporting Rod with “The Biggest Loser.”

Weigh-in #2 (August 4, 2007): 325 pounds
Weigh-in #1 (July 4, 2007): 342 pounds

Next weigh-in September 4, 2007.

Rod had the following thoughts recently regarding his program:

Why am I the size I am? Why can he eat anything and gain no weight yet I can’t without gaining weight? I guess that I should ask some even deeper questions like, why is food so important to me? Is it more important than looking good on a date with my wife? Is food more important than having energy for special times with my daughter? Is it more important than being able to play ball with my boy? Even bigger than them all, has food become a pseudo savior that I run to in times of emotional need and hurt, or look to in an attempt to satisfy that deep longing for self-justification and reward?

Why I am the way I am, I am not sure but one thing keeps me going. Knowing that as messed-up as I am, He paid to justify me and show me my true worth. He died to show me how much He loves me and to pay for my faults. If I could only remind myself daily that I am accepted and that I don’t have to prove anything, that He is my recompense and my treasure, maybe this food addiction would start to pale away in comparison to His love. Oh, that I may just see Him today, just today.

Through T.E.A.R.S. of joy,
Roderick Davis

Every time I travel to the Dominican Republic, to co-labor with my 2nd family, the Davis’s, and the T.E.A.R.S team, I am always “Moved to Tears.” Sometimes outwardly but mostly inwardly, and this time was no exception. I came, not knowing what to expect but at the same time I was expecting God do great work in me. It would be an understatement to say that my expectation of God was met, for it was surpassed. I came to receive training and to gain a little more information about T.E.A.R.S and the work that God was doing through them. I received so much more than just the “how T.E.A.R.S. does it” in the barrio or an overview of daily T.E.A.R.S. team activities. During my five day, 9am to 3pm training, along with some good Dominican food I might add, I gained valuable information. The Focus was not really about T.E.A.R.S, it was about GOD and His Glory, His Kingdom, His Church, His Gospel and His work.

I was cut to the heart and challenged by God, about my viewpoints, my methodologies and my understanding of the Gospel. At one point I found myself thinking, “Man! I’m back at square one, what have I been doing all these years?” You see the greatest challenge for me was not anything I would experience in the DR, but how I was going to apply and convey all this wonderful knowledge once I returned home. I can’t just continue the routine Americanized Christian life that so many Christians live here in the states. I can’t allow my culture to dictate my biblical world view. I must let my biblical world view dictate how I engage my culture as well as cultures outside of my own. What a blessing, that God would use this experience to grow me in Him for His glory.

Now, I was also encouraged to see the maturity and growth of some of my Dominican brothers and sisters in the Lord. Bothers like Fe, Danny and Bau. To personally see Fe and Danny behind the pulpit as it were, preaching, teaching and instructing the people of God. And to hear Bau express his concerns for the church, and his philosophy of ministry as they work through different issues. I was pleasantly surprised by the growth of mi hermanita (for “my little sister” in Spanish), Shekinah Davis, Rod’s daughter. Well, she is kind of Dominican since she was raised there since she was about 3 years old. I also observed the sense of community amongst the Dominicans. House after house of families and friends just hanging out, loving on each other and building relationships, things I long for myself. As I consider my future involvement with T.E.A.R.S. I have been encouraged and strengthened in commitment to them.

Well, I could go on and on but time does not permit me and neither does this blog section. So I leave you with this quote:
“Jesus loved me so much that He came and died for me, but at the same time I was so sinful that He had to.”

In the Master’s service

Derek “Slack” Drew

Rod Davis, T.E.A.R.S. Director, has had a life long struggle to maintain a healthy weight. This year, he is determined to get it off with the support of his friends and family! He is launching the “Biggest Loser - Dominican Republic” this month in order to become healthier and more energetic in every area of his life.

Above: Rod July 2007.

Your participation in this challenge will encourage Rod to reach his weight loss goals, and as a bonus, your pledges will go toward monthly support of the Davis family.

As a supporter of the Biggest Loser you can make a pledge to donate per pound lost. Rod will weigh-in monthly for one year and keep supporters updated on his journey.

Weigh in #1: July 4th, 2007: Rod’s current weight is 342 lbs.
Next weigh-in date: August 4th, 2007

To make a pledge, email biggestloser@tears.org. Please include the following information:

I would like to help Rod reach his goal! My pledge is in the amount of $_______/pound lost for the duration of the Biggest Loser-Dominican Republic event (one year), paid monthly after each weigh-in.
Name:
Email Address:

You can also write to encourage Rod anytime you like, by emailing him at biggestloser@tears.org.