Michael Jackson

I just have to blog about a funny conversation with our four year old. A few weeks ago Jacob was listening to my MP3 player just before bed. I was on the other side of the room, busy with school planning, etc… Jacob said, “Hey Mom! I didn’t know you had Michael Jackson on here?! Look. He’s playing guitar.”


Mom: “What? Michael Jackson? Bring it here…Honey, that’s not Michael Jackson. That’s Jeremy Camp. And besides, how do you know who Michael Jackson is anyway?”

Jacob: “Duh Mom! He’s the President of the United States?!”

There’s rarely a dull moment here. And don’t worry; I will start him on some history lessons this fall!

Absolute Privilege

Wow! I can't count the number of times that DeNiel and I have discussed how much FBC St. James has impressed people literally all over the world. During our time in Costa Rica, it was great when mail day finally arrived. It seemed at times that FBC St. James was the only church in love with their missionaries! Missionaries began to ask, "Can we join your church?" We had goody boxes filled with the necessary nutrients for increased memory, language development, and walking 5 miles a day. You would think those nutrients would be found in a "nutrient bar" or a "one a day vitamin" but for us, they were stuffed in these little packets called "fudge rounds, oatmeal cream pies, star crunch and Hershey chocolates."

Well, here we are in another country and the packages are still arriving! We are feeling like the only missionaries on the face of the planet. FBC has shared the love again. They sent us cards, gifts, candy, baking goods, and letters of encouragement.

It’s an ABSOLUTE PRIVILEGE to be a part of FBC St. James, Mo!

We love you FBC St. James,

The Gillens

New Address

Happy New Year! 

We find ourselves amazed and overwhelmed in looking back in 2010.  What a journey it was not only for us but for many of you as well.  We pray that the Lord will deepen all of our faith in 2011 and teach us how to walk deeper with him (Micah 6:8).

We wanted to give you all our new address and remind you that we have to pay around $2.00 per pound to receive mail from Agape! Please remember this when sending packages. If you know what the weight is, it is safe to put the money inside of the package and we can pay Agape with that money.

Mark & DeNiel Gillen

c/o Agape Flights DMG 25869

100 Airport Avenue

Venice, FL  34285

This must be copied EXACTLY as above.  

Thank you for your prayers and keeping up with us!  Also, the new blog colors/template is a work in progress.  We will be more dedicated to keeping the blog up to date in the coming year (with the help of Ryan).

In Him,

The Gillens

We're Back in the Dominican Republic!

There's a lot to catch-up on! After spending 8 months state side, we are finally back in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. It's good to be back, but we would like to give you an overview of our time in the states before we give you the low down here.

After his time in Haiti in April, Anthony preached over 20 messages through-out Missouri. We were blessed to tag along for most of them and meet new friends. We spent lots of time with family and friends, snow sledding, fishing, swimming, etc... We were blessed with a nice home in Springfield, MO provided by South Gate Baptist Church. We were also blessed with a car for those 8 months, thanks to Bill & Randi Fetters. Thanks to Lance Mayfield, our Farmers Insurance agent, we even had a free cell phone! Our kids are old enough now (most of them) to see how God has richly blessed us using His people. Thank you everyone. There are too many to list.

The entire family went through the IMB 'medical clearance' process. Since Adelyn was suspicious for Cystic Fibrosis, each child had to undergo a sweat test (see pic) and blood work. No other CF mutations showed-up in the other 3 kids. We were released to go back in late June. We flew out on July 8th. I cannot describe the smooth travel because you wouldn't believe me! God blessed our travels. Adelyn was just over 7 months and weighed 14 Ibs! She had come a long way from 1.14 Ibs!

We arrived in Santo Domingo in the afternoon. Our fellow missionary friends gave us a warm welcome/birthday parties for Ryan & Kylie. Our sweet friends had our house clean, cookies made, and even had washed some of our mildewed laundry! We have been on our knees praying for our language and cultural acquisition-again. God has been faithful. Next week we begin a Bible Study with the kids in our apartment complex. Please pray that they are faithful to participate and invite others. The girls are very excited about this. I (DeNiel) am also in the process of inviting the maids (there are about 5-8) to our home. We also pray that God would open a door for Bible Study with them. They are so sweet and seem open to the Lord and His word.

So, here we are. I realize I jumped from here to there and every where trying to recount the main points of these past 8 months. But the latest...Anthony and Kylie went on a mission trip to the east to translate for a team from Texas. Pray for their Spanish! And the Big news?

Adelyn's blood test shows NO CYSTIC FIBROSIS! We cried tears of joy for God's amazing grace. I had to post this picture of Addi taken tonight after her bath. She's holding on to her mosquito net and talking away! I cannot thank you enough for each prayer you have spoken on our behalf. God has been listening and answering. Please keep it up! We have some new requests above and below:

• Pray for Alejandro (a Dominican friend of Anthony's) & his church and how God would use us in that area.

• Praise God for good health.

• Pray against any dengue or malaria. There is a dengue outbreak right now.

• Pray for our safety-especially with the crazy traffic here!

"Then I said, 'Here I am, I have come-with the scroll written for me. I desire to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart." -Psalm 40:7-8

Update on our family

We are so thankful for all of your prayers for our family. Especially, for Addi's growth and health. We can now say that Adelyn has absolutely NO known health problems -thank the Lord! We do praise God for his grace and answer to prayer. Since Addi was born about 8-9 weeks early, her development will be 8-9 weeks behind a full term baby. Already, she is watching us and recognizing our faces and voices. She smiles and giggles at us (especially her silly daddy!).

Though we are still in the States waiting for medical clearance in order to return to Santo Domingo, we have been very busy. On top of seminary, Anthony has been preaching every Sunday at different churches around Missouri. This has been rewarding for our entire family. We have met some amazing people that love missionaries. Please pray that God will continue to use Anthony to speak to His bride, the church, here in the United States. Pray that the hearers will be open to receive a word from the Lord.

We are hoping to return to the field in late May or early June. Please also pray that God will prepare our family to live overseas again. Our Spanish is rusty and I'm afraid that we've gotten quite comfortable with our spoiled life style here. The good thing is, we are all excited to get back home to the Dominican Republic.

Thank you again for all your thoughts and prayers.

"Yet their Redeemer is strong; the LORD Almighty is his name. He will vigorously defend their cause..." Jeremiah 50:34 NIV

New Addition

We wanted to post a picture of our sweet preemie, Adelyn. She came early on November 27th weighing 1.14 Ibs. Many of you have been praying for Addi. We hope to have our blog up and running with news and pictures of our family and ministry very soon.

Currently we are in the States because of our little medical emergency as you can see in the picture. DeNiel had an emergency C-section the day after Thanksgiving. Since Adelyn is still on a small amount of oxygen, we are awaiting our return to the Dominican Republic. Please pray for continued healing and growth for Adelyn. Kylie, Brooklin and Jacob love her to pieces! But, we are all ready to go home to Santo Domingo. Thank you for keeping us in your thoughts and prayers.

Adjusting in the Dominican Republic

I can't believe we have now been living in the Dominican Republic for a month! We are currently learning all about our Island, "Hispanola" and still trying to understand the language here.

We have had some amazing opportunities to visit a few churches here. At one of the services they asked Anthony to give the message (with no warning!) and then they called me (DeNiel) up front to say something and to sing a song-in Spanish! It was difficult, of course, but it was such a rich experience for all of us. The kids aren't sure what to think about a church service being outside and in the dark, or in someone's garage. It is good to know that God can make His church wherever He pleases!

We have visited a museum (picture up top), where the girls had to choose 5 pieces to write about. It was a lot of fun and a great learning experience. We have also been to a beautiful beach just 45 minutes from our house. Jacob's favorite thing to do is swim, swim, swim.

Brooklin turned 8 on September 7th and we are having a party for her. Kylie has been reading like crazy. The kids are adjusting well and even the heat does not keep them from having fun and enjoying life here in Santo Domingo.

I couldn't help but add this picture of a typical "trafficy" day here. These rows of traffic actually look straight, but don't be deceived! Please pray for the following as you think of it:

• Safe travel in the car.
• That Anthony & DeNiel will find language partners here.
• Our family will be active wherever God is at work.
• Understanding of the Dominican language.

One last picture of the girl's new beds! They are watching a movie here. They all say hello and we thank you SO much for your thoughts and prayers. May God bless you.

New Address

We wanted to give you all our new address and remind you that we have to pay around $2.00 per pound to receive mail from Agape! Please remember this when sending packages. If you know what the weight is, it is safe to put the money inside of the package and we can pay Agape with that money. Our address:

Mark & DeNiel Gillen
c/o Agape Flights DMG 25869
100 Airport Avenue
Venice, FL  34285

This must be copied EXACTLY as above.  

Thank you for your prayers and keeping up with us!  Also, the new blog colors/template is a work in progress.  We will be more dedicated to keeping the blog up to date in the coming year (with the help of Ryan).

In Him,

The Gillens

We're in the Dominican Republic!

Well, here we are in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic at last! We have been settling in for almost 2 weeks now. We still have no Internet, but we're borrowing from a friend for now. We absolutely LOVE it here! The traffic is certainly different & the language is it's own, but it feels like home. We are where God has called us!

We plan to post some pictures when we finally get Internet. But for now here is a small update and a few prayer requests. Please pray that:

• DeNiel will find courage to drive in the crazy traffic!
• We will not be so fatigued from the heat.
• God will use us mightily here for His glory & the furthering of His Kingdom.

The kids really like our new home. Kylie & Brooklin will be home schooled this year (Jacob too, of course!). During this next year Anthony & I will be training for his new position & learning more language (Dominican!) culture. The IMB is a wonderful agency to be with. Thank the Lord that He really is taking care of His missionaries through the churches giving to the IMB.

Thank you for keeping-up with our blog and for your prayers. We hope to post again soon with some pictures of our new country.

The last two months ...

Well, we have had a wonderful, yet busy two months since our last entry. As you can see from the pics below, our Christmas was packed with friends, family, fun, trips and even a paper Christmas tree! DeNiel's parents came from Missouri and we went to the beach, a coffee plantation, a nice restaurant up the mountain, and a few other fun places. We really had an amazing time together. The week went very fast! Our Nicaraguan family came to our house for a Christmas dinner. The children got stockings and a gift. They were very thankful. It was Pascual's first Christmas to celebrate as a Christian! Please continue to pray for this family. Pray for consistency with our Bible Studies and pray that Pascual Jasmina will invite others to join us.

We are still learning Spanish like crazy! Pray for us as well, that we will continue to learn the language and more importantly, to stay fervant and committed to our daily time with the Lord.He is good! Thank you for your prayers. God has been faithful.

"Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen." 1 Timothy 1:17