Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Monday, March 21, 2011
Home Again, Home Again, Jiggety Jig
We arrived safely back to campus around 2:15am! We just had to make one pit-stop at a fast food place to keep Greg, our fearless driver, awake. One thing that we joked about coming back was how we had to consciously think about saying simple phrases in English, not Spanish. Things like "thank you" instead of "gracias" (with a silent s because the Nicaraguan dialect drops it), "What's up?" instead of "Que pasa?", "Hello" instead of "hola", and "yes" instead of "si". I know that I had an early class this morning and I said "gracias", without thinking, to my professor after she handed my test back to me!
Muchisimo gracias for your support and prayers pre-trip and during our time in Managua! Even though the trip is over, the mission never is. Pray that we have opportunites to share about our experiences on campus so that we may "leak Jesus", as Bob Goff says (if you don't know him, look him up!), to everyone we encounter. Also, please pray for all the children and the youth in Nicaragua. They have settled into a very special place in our hearts and there's nothing like seeing God's love through the eyes of a precious child. May that never fade away!
Muchisimo gracias for your support and prayers pre-trip and during our time in Managua! Even though the trip is over, the mission never is. Pray that we have opportunites to share about our experiences on campus so that we may "leak Jesus", as Bob Goff says (if you don't know him, look him up!), to everyone we encounter. Also, please pray for all the children and the youth in Nicaragua. They have settled into a very special place in our hearts and there's nothing like seeing God's love through the eyes of a precious child. May that never fade away!
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Layover
Hey all, this is Russ speaking! We are currently in the San Salvador, El Salvador airport. It is currently 2:48pm and I'm writing this on Elly's iPod! We've been here since 7am...awesome 7 hour layover!! Things I've done in the last few hours: search for an El Salvadr soccer (futbol) jersey,el eat some breakfast at subway, look around all the stores with a few people, take a mini nap, had a debriefing meeting where we discussed missions and core reasons/excuses people come up with for not going, walked from one end of the airport to the other (736 steps), random security check for those on our side of the airport, and some accountability/discipleship time with Greg. 736 steps = 368 paces. my pace count is 65 paces/100 meters. So....that means the airport is approximately 560 meters long!
Anyways, our time of living and serving in community has been great. Going to be honest though, we've had some rough patches this week: arguments, conflicts, anger, miscommunications, etc. Christians aren't perfect, but we have a model to follow after. Jesus!!!! I truly loved witnessing our family grow closer as we learned the true art of forgiveness and grace.
For anyone that reads up on this right away, please pray that we continue to grow towards Jesus together, we serve God wherever we are and that our experience in Nicaragua, Lord willing, may lead to conversations of what God accomplished in a week and opportunities to share the Gospel!
I love you all!!
Anyways, our time of living and serving in community has been great. Going to be honest though, we've had some rough patches this week: arguments, conflicts, anger, miscommunications, etc. Christians aren't perfect, but we have a model to follow after. Jesus!!!! I truly loved witnessing our family grow closer as we learned the true art of forgiveness and grace.
For anyone that reads up on this right away, please pray that we continue to grow towards Jesus together, we serve God wherever we are and that our experience in Nicaragua, Lord willing, may lead to conversations of what God accomplished in a week and opportunities to share the Gospel!
I love you all!!
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Con Lágrimas Y Sonrisas
Hey everyone! This time it's Amanda's turn! So please excuse any nonsense that might show up, if this were a letter it would be covered in tear drops.
The title for this particular entry, which translates to "with tears and smiles" describes exactly what's going on with my face as I sit here and type. The group just finished meeting with the Vargas family and some of the youth with whom we have been spending our time here. I can honestly say that this is one of the most difficult goodbyes I have ever had to say...and I'm pretty sure it's safe to assume the same for the rest of the group. Especially since we've been saying our goodbyes since 8pm local time...its now 4 hours later and the last of the students are still standing in the yard; about to walk off of the property, but never out of our hearts.
Yesterday was a bit of fantasy, as we all tried to ignore the fact that time is barreling down on us like a speeding freight train. We started out our day with a trip to the old school; a property which has been unusable as a school since the flooding of a nearby lake which covered the area in about 4 feet of water. The views there are absolutely gorgeous, with the lake in the background, cattle grazing in a nearby field and an immense array of banana and mango trees. We got to see the buildings in which Henry started his ministry and the results of the flooding. I'm sure the majority of those reading this will be able to see the hundreds of photos we all took and get an idea of just how beautiful this place is, even after the devastation of a flood!
At night we went back to the parking lot in the Vargas' neighborhood. We sang more songs with the kids and watched "Left Behind", a movie about the rapture; which is a totally different experience when it's entirely in spanish and without subtitles!
Today was an absolute dream...We woke up at the ungodly hour of 5 am to go to a prayer service at the school. It was so refreshing to see some of the kids bring their parents. I was so blessed by one girl in particular. Her name is Fabiana, she is a gorgeous 12 year old who has an amazing gift for singing. For those of you who don't know me, I am absolutely in love with music and take any chance I get to sing. On our first night here, Dave and I lead the kids in a worship song and Fabiana also sang for the group. The next day Henry asked if I wanted to sing a song with her and, of course, I said "ABSOLUTELY!!!" So, after practicing with her over the past few days, we sang a spanish/english combination of "Lord You Are Good"for the whole group. She arranged the whole combination by herself, and I simply followed along with it. The love for singing she showed reminded me how important our gifts are and how much we should value them.
The rest of the day was spent in the car...nothing fun, just your typical stop to a volcano filled with water and the market....ok, so maybe I'm being entirely sarcastic. It was the best day EVER. If it wasn't for the knowledge that it was our last real day here, it would have been flawless. The view was absolutely breathtaking. We swam in the volcano while waiting for lunch and ate right along the waterfront! After some sunbathing and a little more time in the water, we headed off to the market. Where we haggled, bargained, and spent our remaining Cordobas like they were going out of style.
After stopping at a delicious restaurant in the city, we headed back to the house. The majority of the group went to the local tienda for one last helado (ice cream) and returned to the house for our final goodbye. Which is where todays blog began.
I can honestly say, without a shadow of a doubt that this week has been one out of the storybooks. We found out that our trip has been the little push necessary for the students to see God moving in their midst. The things that have happened during this week have shown all of us just how much our actions and demonstrations of God's love are capable of affecting those around us.
I don't think I have ever cried so much...scratch that, I have never in my life cried this much over leaving a group of people I just met a week ago. Nicaragua tiene un lugar especial in mi corazon. "Nicaragua has a special place in my heart." And I wholeheartedly plan on returning as soon as possible, as do the majority of us in the group. As I told everyone here during our meeting, I feel like a little piece of home will always be missing for me because I have felt so at home here.
The people we met this week have become our new family of sorts, and what a family it's turned out to be! Dios bendiga Nicagraua! "God bless Nicaragua!"
~Amanda
The title for this particular entry, which translates to "with tears and smiles" describes exactly what's going on with my face as I sit here and type. The group just finished meeting with the Vargas family and some of the youth with whom we have been spending our time here. I can honestly say that this is one of the most difficult goodbyes I have ever had to say...and I'm pretty sure it's safe to assume the same for the rest of the group. Especially since we've been saying our goodbyes since 8pm local time...its now 4 hours later and the last of the students are still standing in the yard; about to walk off of the property, but never out of our hearts.
Yesterday was a bit of fantasy, as we all tried to ignore the fact that time is barreling down on us like a speeding freight train. We started out our day with a trip to the old school; a property which has been unusable as a school since the flooding of a nearby lake which covered the area in about 4 feet of water. The views there are absolutely gorgeous, with the lake in the background, cattle grazing in a nearby field and an immense array of banana and mango trees. We got to see the buildings in which Henry started his ministry and the results of the flooding. I'm sure the majority of those reading this will be able to see the hundreds of photos we all took and get an idea of just how beautiful this place is, even after the devastation of a flood!
At night we went back to the parking lot in the Vargas' neighborhood. We sang more songs with the kids and watched "Left Behind", a movie about the rapture; which is a totally different experience when it's entirely in spanish and without subtitles!
Today was an absolute dream...We woke up at the ungodly hour of 5 am to go to a prayer service at the school. It was so refreshing to see some of the kids bring their parents. I was so blessed by one girl in particular. Her name is Fabiana, she is a gorgeous 12 year old who has an amazing gift for singing. For those of you who don't know me, I am absolutely in love with music and take any chance I get to sing. On our first night here, Dave and I lead the kids in a worship song and Fabiana also sang for the group. The next day Henry asked if I wanted to sing a song with her and, of course, I said "ABSOLUTELY!!!" So, after practicing with her over the past few days, we sang a spanish/english combination of "Lord You Are Good"for the whole group. She arranged the whole combination by herself, and I simply followed along with it. The love for singing she showed reminded me how important our gifts are and how much we should value them.
The rest of the day was spent in the car...nothing fun, just your typical stop to a volcano filled with water and the market....ok, so maybe I'm being entirely sarcastic. It was the best day EVER. If it wasn't for the knowledge that it was our last real day here, it would have been flawless. The view was absolutely breathtaking. We swam in the volcano while waiting for lunch and ate right along the waterfront! After some sunbathing and a little more time in the water, we headed off to the market. Where we haggled, bargained, and spent our remaining Cordobas like they were going out of style.
After stopping at a delicious restaurant in the city, we headed back to the house. The majority of the group went to the local tienda for one last helado (ice cream) and returned to the house for our final goodbye. Which is where todays blog began.
I can honestly say, without a shadow of a doubt that this week has been one out of the storybooks. We found out that our trip has been the little push necessary for the students to see God moving in their midst. The things that have happened during this week have shown all of us just how much our actions and demonstrations of God's love are capable of affecting those around us.
I don't think I have ever cried so much...scratch that, I have never in my life cried this much over leaving a group of people I just met a week ago. Nicaragua tiene un lugar especial in mi corazon. "Nicaragua has a special place in my heart." And I wholeheartedly plan on returning as soon as possible, as do the majority of us in the group. As I told everyone here during our meeting, I feel like a little piece of home will always be missing for me because I have felt so at home here.
The people we met this week have become our new family of sorts, and what a family it's turned out to be! Dios bendiga Nicagraua! "God bless Nicaragua!"
~Amanda
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Scratch That...Literally AND Figuratively
Yesterday, Amy reported over 200 bug bites within the team. Scratch that. Today, that number has multiplied! And "don't scratch" has become a regular advisory.
In terms of the figurative, we originally planned to come to Nicaragua and make bricks for the school. Between yesterday and today, that plan changed. As we talked with Henry over dinner last night, he decided that we won't be making bricks today. Instead, we will be making soccer goals because that's what's for the children and that's kind of what his mission is all about! He has told us that if we are working on a construction project at the school and a child comes up to us, we are to drop what we are doing and play with the child. The reason for this is that Jesus is all about relationships. Bricks or protective walls are temporary. Relationships are what is truly valued. And lemme tell you, the kids here do not make that a difficult thing to do! Just like we said on Sunday...it is not hard to observe the Sabbath in a place like this! These kids have been pouring blessings in muchos abrazos y besos (MANY hugs and kisses), sonrisas (smiles), los manos sucios (dirty hands), and countless laughs!
Our time at the school today was just the beginning of bittersweetness as we realized that we only have one more day with them after today. We did one of our skits for them -- the funny one that we call "Sin Chair" (we tried to upload videos on here but they take so long to upload and then they don't show up--lo siento!). We also did another craft with them in the afternoon: popsicle stick cross necklaces!
Greg, Daqueque (Dave and Niquelle's couple name), Kate, and Elly stayed at the casa in the afternoon to make the soccer goals. Henry chilled with us and cracked so many jokes (and snuck in a quick snooze in a chair while the rest of us did the dirty work, hahaha. We still got love for the man! After all, he makes us supercalifragilisticexpealidocious comida!).
We all piled into the truck (clown car style) to go to the old school grounds to unload a very big truck full of donated desks. Really nice desks! Heavy lifting for sure! It was really cool to see the actual buildings and compare that to where the school is being held now, which is in a parking lot under 5 tents. The old school buildings have not been used recently due to flooding that happened awhile ago.
Tonight, after a delicious dinner of rice, beans, and stew, Henry and his wife, Elizabeth, sat down with us in the living room and told us their story. So many laughs! Henry asked Elizabeth to be his wife on their 3rd date. Hold on, it gets better.......this was over breakfast at McDonalds! Amy quickly chimed in, "This is a romantic story!" Cue the laughs otra vez (again). Henry's testimony and his and Elizabeth's story of how they met have truly touched us and inspired us beyond the words that we can merely contain in this blog. Please join us as we continue this trip and return home in prayer, that we may remember these stories and never forget the way they made us feel and how they inspired us. Most of all, pray that we are always reminded of what God has done in our lives and what He has done for us! Dios es bueno....siempre fiel (God is good....all the time)!
In terms of the figurative, we originally planned to come to Nicaragua and make bricks for the school. Between yesterday and today, that plan changed. As we talked with Henry over dinner last night, he decided that we won't be making bricks today. Instead, we will be making soccer goals because that's what's for the children and that's kind of what his mission is all about! He has told us that if we are working on a construction project at the school and a child comes up to us, we are to drop what we are doing and play with the child. The reason for this is that Jesus is all about relationships. Bricks or protective walls are temporary. Relationships are what is truly valued. And lemme tell you, the kids here do not make that a difficult thing to do! Just like we said on Sunday...it is not hard to observe the Sabbath in a place like this! These kids have been pouring blessings in muchos abrazos y besos (MANY hugs and kisses), sonrisas (smiles), los manos sucios (dirty hands), and countless laughs!
Our time at the school today was just the beginning of bittersweetness as we realized that we only have one more day with them after today. We did one of our skits for them -- the funny one that we call "Sin Chair" (we tried to upload videos on here but they take so long to upload and then they don't show up--lo siento!). We also did another craft with them in the afternoon: popsicle stick cross necklaces!
Greg, Daqueque (Dave and Niquelle's couple name), Kate, and Elly stayed at the casa in the afternoon to make the soccer goals. Henry chilled with us and cracked so many jokes (and snuck in a quick snooze in a chair while the rest of us did the dirty work, hahaha. We still got love for the man! After all, he makes us supercalifragilisticexpealidocious comida!).
We all piled into the truck (clown car style) to go to the old school grounds to unload a very big truck full of donated desks. Really nice desks! Heavy lifting for sure! It was really cool to see the actual buildings and compare that to where the school is being held now, which is in a parking lot under 5 tents. The old school buildings have not been used recently due to flooding that happened awhile ago.
Tonight, after a delicious dinner of rice, beans, and stew, Henry and his wife, Elizabeth, sat down with us in the living room and told us their story. So many laughs! Henry asked Elizabeth to be his wife on their 3rd date. Hold on, it gets better.......this was over breakfast at McDonalds! Amy quickly chimed in, "This is a romantic story!" Cue the laughs otra vez (again). Henry's testimony and his and Elizabeth's story of how they met have truly touched us and inspired us beyond the words that we can merely contain in this blog. Please join us as we continue this trip and return home in prayer, that we may remember these stories and never forget the way they made us feel and how they inspired us. Most of all, pray that we are always reminded of what God has done in our lives and what He has done for us! Dios es bueno....siempre fiel (God is good....all the time)!
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Mixing the blog up with a post by Amy!
What a day! Today was fantastically wonderful for several reasons. But before you get to hear about it - a recap of some very good moments pre-this-day.
While I was getting into bed I watched an ant running for its life (on MY pillow - they terrorize our beds!) and said to it, "You know I'm going to kill you, why you gotta run away like that?"
At the breakfast table Niquelle said to sleepy Greg "Leche me" which she meant to mean "pass me the milk for my cereal." All of us had a fit of overtired, hysterical, uncontrollable giggles because 'leche' in spanish means 'milk'. So put them together and she said "Milk me." Five minutes later, a confused Dave asked what happened and Niquelle (still laughing ridiculously) said "I told you to MILK ME!!!"
But as for the wonderfulness of this day, well here it is:
Again we were greeted preciously by dozens of smiling Managuan children. (Really though, I would pay money to see faces like these every day.) Before we even got out of the truck the kids had left their seats in class to grace us with hugs and questions of "Quieres jugar?" We may not speak spanish like pros but we definitely play like pros! Most of our day was spent with the much anticipated futbol and frisbie but we were aslo able to make sure every class got to make a wordless bible which the kids and even one directora loved.
Already God is working in our team and as for myself, well, he has changed my expectation entirely. I came into the trip thinking that I speak un poco de español and would be totally helpless in communicating with the kids. So I was completely willing to let my contribution be in the labor our team would do for the school. However, since Monday I have done nothing but run, kick, smile, throw, sweat, clap, juggle (con balones de fútbol), smile some more, and did I mention run, oh and kick. I now see that smiling and play are the universal languages and English or Spanish have very little to do with friendship and teaching. When I heard yesterday that we would actually be away from the kids to work on a soccer goal project for them, I was so happy that we would be making something the kids are going to go totally bonkers for. I was also sadened by the fact that I will have to give up the time I have here that I would much rather spend getting dirty with the kids.
Ok, that was about el dia now time to hear about la noche. Before you even know what happened I just want you to know that it was a total SUCCESS. We and probably 50 students or so gathered in a parking lot near our lodging where our team sang them songs, most notably a song Dana taught the kids about everlasting love that was muy divertido to dance along with and the song of the week "Mighty to Save", aka "Grande Para Salvar" that we learned en espanol and tried to teach to some of the students in english. After the songs we did two performances, the first being a comedy about how we are stuck in sin and not even the strongest man can pull us away from it - release from sin comes from Jesus alone. The second skit was about the worldly distractions that keep us from having the kind of dependant, fulfilling relationship we should have with Christ our creator. These were non-vocal performances and it was amazing to see the kids react and understand how serious the meaning behind them both were, I also think they enjoyed watching Greg prance around with soccer balls stuffed in his shirt to enhance his muscels (as a heavy weight lifter in the comic skit) - not that he really needed them...
Following the skits we heard two powerful testimonies by Dana and Ezekiel that could speak to everyone present about suffering but also the confort and protection that Christ can give to all his children.
As we do every night we convened on confortable couches to discuss and reflect our experiences through out the day/week. This evening we discussed spiritual gifts in reguard to missions work and discussed what we were seeing in ourselves and others. For some we are seeing not only what our strengths are but also the weaknesses we have that we need to work on through out the week but in the future as well. It was nice to hear that our team members view Kendra and I as goers, always ready play, interact, or help out somewhere, while others are great Mobilizers like Niquelle with her preperation of the crafts. Some of us are also finding out we are Prayers like Dana and others are Speakers like Ezekiel and Heather. Although I only mentioned a few of the serious stuff that is happening in all of us, our gifts continue to grow every day.
On another note: the locals think that Americans' response to being whisttled at in the back of a truck is a a totally unflattering chicken squawlk. To our surprise that did not deter their attention.
AND as a community we probably have over 200 bug bites. Pray for our legs!
While I was getting into bed I watched an ant running for its life (on MY pillow - they terrorize our beds!) and said to it, "You know I'm going to kill you, why you gotta run away like that?"
At the breakfast table Niquelle said to sleepy Greg "Leche me" which she meant to mean "pass me the milk for my cereal." All of us had a fit of overtired, hysterical, uncontrollable giggles because 'leche' in spanish means 'milk'. So put them together and she said "Milk me." Five minutes later, a confused Dave asked what happened and Niquelle (still laughing ridiculously) said "I told you to MILK ME!!!"
But as for the wonderfulness of this day, well here it is:
Again we were greeted preciously by dozens of smiling Managuan children. (Really though, I would pay money to see faces like these every day.) Before we even got out of the truck the kids had left their seats in class to grace us with hugs and questions of "Quieres jugar?" We may not speak spanish like pros but we definitely play like pros! Most of our day was spent with the much anticipated futbol and frisbie but we were aslo able to make sure every class got to make a wordless bible which the kids and even one directora loved.
Already God is working in our team and as for myself, well, he has changed my expectation entirely. I came into the trip thinking that I speak un poco de español and would be totally helpless in communicating with the kids. So I was completely willing to let my contribution be in the labor our team would do for the school. However, since Monday I have done nothing but run, kick, smile, throw, sweat, clap, juggle (con balones de fútbol), smile some more, and did I mention run, oh and kick. I now see that smiling and play are the universal languages and English or Spanish have very little to do with friendship and teaching. When I heard yesterday that we would actually be away from the kids to work on a soccer goal project for them, I was so happy that we would be making something the kids are going to go totally bonkers for. I was also sadened by the fact that I will have to give up the time I have here that I would much rather spend getting dirty with the kids.
Ok, that was about el dia now time to hear about la noche. Before you even know what happened I just want you to know that it was a total SUCCESS. We and probably 50 students or so gathered in a parking lot near our lodging where our team sang them songs, most notably a song Dana taught the kids about everlasting love that was muy divertido to dance along with and the song of the week "Mighty to Save", aka "Grande Para Salvar" that we learned en espanol and tried to teach to some of the students in english. After the songs we did two performances, the first being a comedy about how we are stuck in sin and not even the strongest man can pull us away from it - release from sin comes from Jesus alone. The second skit was about the worldly distractions that keep us from having the kind of dependant, fulfilling relationship we should have with Christ our creator. These were non-vocal performances and it was amazing to see the kids react and understand how serious the meaning behind them both were, I also think they enjoyed watching Greg prance around with soccer balls stuffed in his shirt to enhance his muscels (as a heavy weight lifter in the comic skit) - not that he really needed them...
Following the skits we heard two powerful testimonies by Dana and Ezekiel that could speak to everyone present about suffering but also the confort and protection that Christ can give to all his children.
As we do every night we convened on confortable couches to discuss and reflect our experiences through out the day/week. This evening we discussed spiritual gifts in reguard to missions work and discussed what we were seeing in ourselves and others. For some we are seeing not only what our strengths are but also the weaknesses we have that we need to work on through out the week but in the future as well. It was nice to hear that our team members view Kendra and I as goers, always ready play, interact, or help out somewhere, while others are great Mobilizers like Niquelle with her preperation of the crafts. Some of us are also finding out we are Prayers like Dana and others are Speakers like Ezekiel and Heather. Although I only mentioned a few of the serious stuff that is happening in all of us, our gifts continue to grow every day.
On another note: the locals think that Americans' response to being whisttled at in the back of a truck is a a totally unflattering chicken squawlk. To our surprise that did not deter their attention.
AND as a community we probably have over 200 bug bites. Pray for our legs!
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Wordless Books
We went to the school again and worked in a couple different groups. One group played a pictionary-like game to help the students with their English (and our Spanish, as it turned out!). Another group participated in a worship rock concert led by Dana. Dana was rocking the braids and a colorful bandana so once we threw the guitar on her and had her jammin on a stage, the hippie look was complete! The kids definitely made the mosh-pit effect as well! A third group made wordless books with the students in the classrooms (which are tents). These wordless books are simple bracelets made from a string of hemp and with black, red, white, green, and gold beads to symbolize significant parts of the Christian walk of faith.
It rained around 4 pm today so school was dismissed early! Because of rain! We were pleasantly surprised and quite joyful to be caught outside in the rain :)
Here are some pictures from the last two days that we got the chance to upload:
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| Nos encanta siestas. (We love naps!) |
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| Bringing nations together, one nail at a time! |
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| This is our mode of transportation to the school everyday: Nicaraguan style in the back of the truck. |
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| Russ picking up the 5 boys! |
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| Playing "Grand Pumba" |
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| Los chicos playing "duck, duck, GOOSE!"....except they said "pollo" instead of "goose", hahaha! |
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| Girls and their (borrowed) technology! |
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| Voted: The Most Beautiful Eyes. |
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| Yo necesito muchas massages! Lifting so many kids all day makes sore muscles all night! It also encourages team bonding :) |
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| Counting hemp in spanish in cute voices. |
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| We didn't plan to all wear gray shirts today. Believe it or not. |
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| Hippie style |
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| And they think they fit in! |
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| Rock concert! |
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| For those of you who appreciate Monty Python :) |
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