Mission Trip Presentation

We will be doing our mission trip presentation for the sermon this coming sunday at the First Christian Church. Services start at 10:15 am. Luke will present the sermon on our mission trip and we will show our last video...the best video. Please come and see how God worked in our lives through this trip and how He doesn't want to stop there but start with you!

Not as Planned...but God's Plan

Not everything went as planned but it went as God planned. We have had such difficulty getting videos to upload and we even have a video ready for upload now but a new problem, the program is saying insufficent memory. (We will get it though, keep watching.) Customs never released our shipment over with goodies for the kids. Finally on the last day, after realizing the bears and toys weren't going to come, we got the items we needed through the missionaries and went to the orphanage to give to the kids. We never got to go to the Children's Hospital because they quarantined it due to the Swine Flu, so that was probably God keeping us safe. After they lift the quarantine in a few weeks or so, the missionaries will pass out bears there for us. Another mission team was there for the first of our trip, but we really learned a lot about bringing a mission trip over just by watching them. We never planned on seeing Sister Ruby but that was probably the most encouraging for us all and personally for me the place I felt the safest. I was praying in her prayer room and remember thinking I just want to stay here, I felt so safe, so at peace and we were in one of the roughest neighborhoods. We were never in that neighborhood at night.

For Wayne & Elaine things haven't gone as planned either. This is their 3rd year there and one of their schools was burnt to the ground by gangs not too long ago. When they first went down they believe they were supposed to have their school in the dump grounds. They signed a 50 year lease with the city for land, built an expensive wall around 3 acres of land for the city just to say the lease was no good. The wall still stands as a reminder. They didn't go home either, they didn't give up and things didn't go as planned. They have had children from their school go into prostitution, be kidnapped and just stop coming to school to stay on the streets....but their faith keeps them strong.

Day Four & Five Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvGWAHJgZDs

Comments

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Going to Church

We are on our way to church this morning. It is 80 degrees (27 C) with 80% humidity. It looks like it is about to pour, and most people walk to their destinations. We are going to a church congregation of 6,000 that used to have service in a tent every Sunday. They just got a building but it only has fans for air flow. We will pass through numerous beggers, some children, some children holding their own children to get to church. Our translator, who also works at the school here, was beat up one sunday for his watch trying to get on the bus. The missionaries said he made it to church a little late with blood on his shirt. I am thankful that I have a car to get to church, I have security in my small town, I have an air conditioner in my church and I have the ability to give my children food, clothes, a home, and safety....but I only have all those things because of God, I am thankful God has blessed me more than I could ever imagine. These people didn't choose to be born here just like I didn't choose to be born in America.

Day Two Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PXOooR8Oo0A

What in the world are we doing in Nicaragua?

Today was actually our free day in Nicaragua. We went to market and got a few things. They are really big on pottery, hammocks, and jewelry. After market we really sat down and discussed why we are here. Wayne & Elaine's true mission is to give these kids hope. They have 2 schools that feed the children at the school. This country is so poor that they have heard many stories that the meal they serve at the school is the only meal some of these kids receive. When it comes to poverty at this level these children grow into adults who know that they really don't even matter, it is just about getting money to eat. We are here to love these children, to smile at them, hug them, play with them and for a lot of them, give them something small like a bear, candy necklace, bouncy ball or match box car. Yesterday, we went to Salinas to another school. After games and singing the children would just walk up behind you and touch you just to be touched. We are here to touch these children.

Day One - Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1-hiH8pXRk

The Beauty within the Ugly

Their homes are just some sticks with tin sometimes thrown on as a roof and if they are lucky as siding, but if you look close while driving by some have beautiful mosaic tiles as a porch. The people here make and sell the expensive tile roofing sold in america. According to Wayne & Elaine (the missionaries we are staying with) the average salary here is between $60 to $100 a month. Trash is just thrown everywhere here. But in the all the ugly of the trash, poor living conditions and so on... sometimes there is a beautiful roof or tiled porch. What is everywhere here though, is beautiful trees and flowers beside those huts. Trees like lemon, coconut, avocado, palm trees, you name it...it is probably here. There is a verse in the bible that just came to mind in connection with this place and the fact that God is here.

"The poor and needy search for water but there is none; their tongues are parched with thirst. But I the Lord will answer them; I the God of Israel will not forsake them. I will make rivers flow on barren heights, and springs within the valleys. I will turn the desert into pools of water, and the parched ground into springs. I will put in the desert the cedar and the acacia, the myrtle and the olive. I will set pines in the wasteland, and the fir and the cypress together, so that my people may see and know, may consider and understand, that the hand of the Lord has done this, that the Holy One of Israel has created it." Isaiah 41:14-17

La Escuela...notice gate and wire on top of fence

Roads

This is a picture of the road near the school, just all of a sudden large chunks of the road was missing. Most vehicles are SUV, standard diesels for all you guys. They usually have grill guads but they call them donkey killers here. Lots of people ride motorcycles too, there are cops but most don't have vehicles, they are just on the street. Buses are loaded past full potential.

Street vendor selling water....they are at every intersection

Arrival in Nicaragua

After getting up at 3:45am to make or flight out of Dallas, we finally made it to Nicaragua. We left the airplane and stepped into the Nicaragua airport to see all airline employees with masks on..talk about a little scary to us. Then we had to stand in front of an infared detector to see if we were running fever. Apparently they had their first Swine Flu case yesterday and 20 possibles. We went straight from the airport to the christian school to play soccer (or football) and frisbee with the kids at the school. Tommorrow we head to another school they started to play, visit and teach the kids. We have video and pics, but our blogger page isn't working so check back for video. It is SO hot, but we are blessed to stay in an airconditioned house that is considered a luxury here. We ate at TJIFridays and they even had an english menu for us! The first thing we noticed was how crazy everyone drives here, we thought we were going to get hit getting out of the airport. Everyone honks and no one even looks to see who honked. Our shipment of bears, coloring books for the children's hospital and other activites for the kids are being held in customs. Please pray that it is released soon.