Nicaraguan Adventures - Highlights from Week 2

Sunday, June 9th - I was wandering around the compound waiting for the van to arrive to pick us up for our trip to Leon, when Hart came out and asked if I had called my parents yet that week. "I can do that?!" I asked in surprise. She lead me into the "library" and handed me a cordless phone. I could hardly believe it! I nervously punched in the numbers, hoping desperately that it would work. A few tries later, my dad answered the phone and I started bawling. I was so happy to hear his voice! That was a good day. :)

Sunday evening Hart, Monica (a speech pathologist that was helping Hart), Mary Ann, Rebekah, and I climbed on the van and headed for a town an hour-and-a-half away. We arrived that evening in Leon, Nicaragua and were dropped off at "Hostal Italian". The hotel rooms were air-conditioned, so I was VERY grateful!

We spent that week going to a preschool that was established 12 years ago. It took about 30-45 minutes to get to the village where the preschool was located. Monica worked with the 3-year-olds, and Hart worked with the 4- and 5-year-olds on identifying and writing their names. Goodness those kids are DARLING! :) While the three of us worked at the preschool, Mary Ann and Rebekah were across the street teaching the mothers of the preschoolers how to sew and do different crafts!

Nathali was a smart little 3-year-old! She is the most darling thing ever.

Hart working with two of the kids from the 4- and 5-year-old group!

Since the work at the preschool only took up the morning hours, we were free to explore the town of Leon, shop, or just rest for the remainder of the day. It was a very relaxing week all-in-all. We even had the opportunity to go to the beach and have lunch! Another bonus of the place we stayed was that there was a little coffee shop across the street. (Oh wait...maybe it was a downfall...) They had coffee, frappes, and desserts for a very reasonable price. So yes, we didn't hesitate too much when taking advantage of it!



Our team for the week. Love these gals!
R-L: Monica, Me, Hart, Mary Ann, and Rebekah

When we finished our work with the preschoolers on Friday, we came back to the Project H.O.P.E. base. Saturday morning was a memorable experience for this Missouri gal! At 11:34 that morning I was introduced to my first legit earthquake. The ground didn't shake as much as ROLL. And it kept on rolling for at least 30 seconds. It was strange, and made me rather nauseous! I looked it up online later and found out that it was a 6.5 magnitude earthquake! It was a neat thing to experience...but only because it was 50 miles from the coast!

Later on that morning, our host family invited me to come with them on their "family day"! I was thrilled to join them! We went to McDonald's for lunch and then to the theater to see "Man of Steel".

Well that pretty much wraps up week two of Nicaragua! The Lord is continually blessing the work down here and keeping everyone safe. Praise His Holy Name!

 

Nicaraguan Adventures - Week One

Hola from the very warm country of Nicaragua!! :)

I thought I would give you all a summary of my adventures here thus far!! So here goes!

My first week in Nicaragua had its ups and downs. I flew into Managua on the same flight as Hart (A bilingual speech pathologist that I am learning from and semi-traveling with). When we disembarked the airplane, we met most of the other people on our team! The team was from a church in Rogersville, and they were staying one week.

My first impression: I was very homesick, and the place I was staying had no internet. BUT, it proved to be a blessing in disguise for my spiritual life. Since I didn't really know anyone on the trip (and I couldn't talk with my family), I had to lean completely on Christ! It seemed like every time I opened my Bible, God powerfully spoke to me through the words that I read. A few times I started crying as I realized that God knew exactly what I was struggling with and He Himself was going to comfort and uphold me.

I serve an awesome God.

I also found it difficult to adapt to Nicaragua in the beginning because, even though it IS poor, it is so much better than Haiti. I had to learn not to compare Haiti with Nicaragua, but instead see the people and the country through an untainted view.

We arrived late Saturday night on June 1st. The team loaded Project H.O.P.E.'s school bus and was driven to the Base. We were greeted by the sweetest host family ever! Roger and Kiki Gibson and their three kids are priceless. They are so welcoming and godly...it's a pleasure to be around them! A quick meeting was held outdoors, and then we all charged the dining room area to get some delicious dinner. :)

I was so grateful to see that there was electricity, air-conditioning, and hot showers on base! And the food here...wow! It is INCREDIBLE! The cook for Project H.O.P.E. used to work at the American Embassy, so the food is nothing short of amazing. :)

On Sunday we went to church (it's a church for missionaries, so it was in English!) and heard a message on "Immanuel - God with us". Again, I felt as if God were speaking directly to me and comforting my heart through the sermon!

That afternoon we headed out for the village of Mateare. Throughout this year, Project H.O.P.E has 19 teams lined up to come to Nicaragua and help finish building the community of Mateare. Originally this group of people lived by a lake here, but three years ago they were flooded out. They moved to a plot of land, and for three years PH has been bringing in teams and helping these sweet people build their tiny houses. 2013 is PH's last year in Mateare and they are building the last 72 houses this year. :)

Every morning we met the Nicaraguans at a large tree in the village and we worshipped God and had a devotional together. Then we broke into small groups and had another devotional/share time with the people. Afterwards, we went to work laying bricks, putting on roofs, nailing in siding, and laboring side-by-side with the Nicaraguans!

The kids here are so super cute! They hang all over you and say "HOLA!!" so many times you think your ear might fall off! ;) There is almost always a little one nearby who will prance right up to you and grab your hand. But it's not just the kids that are welcoming...the adults will give hugs, eagerly talk to you, and display a heartfelt smile if you happen to walk by them. It truly is amazing how friendly and kind these people are!

Before leaving on our trip, everybody from our team was given a Nicaraguan family (sometimes two or three people shared a family) for which to buy household items. The assigned family was then each individuals adopted family for the week! Throughout the week we would spend time with our Nica families and build up a relationship with them! It was like an immediate acceptance!

On Thursday afternoon, everybody on the team (about 50 of us from Missouri) met up with our Nicaraguan families and went to their shacks with them. Our gifts of household items(and a few other fun things) were packaged up in large rice sacks. I shared a family with Hart and her granddaughter! Our family in particular was made up of a husband and wife, two boys (5- and 12-years-old) and a grandmother. They were the most precious family! We gave them our gifts, and while watching them unpack the different items, I couldn't help but think "I wish I had something more to give them!". They were so poor, but so grateful. After opening the gifts, the father shared his testimony and we all talked for a while.

Oh! I also got to give them a laminated photo of my family!! It totally amazed me to see their faces as they looked at my sisters, brothers, and parents. They were mesmerized by people they had never even met. They were also ecstatic when I told them the picture was for them to keep! :)

Well, that pretty much sums up (in a LOT of words) my first week in Nicaragua! Right now I'm almost done living out week three, so obviously I have a lot of writing to do yet!

"Praise the Lord from whom all blessing flow!"

Another post!! ;)

I just got the urge to go camping. I think it's because I'm sitting in my room, the sun is starting to peek through the blinds on my windows, and I keep hearing a little bird chirp a little ditty outside.
Isn't God's creation wonderful? It's especially noticeable to me in the spring when the daffodils started poking their heads above the slowly warming ground; when the sun gets just a tad warmer and gently kisses your face when you step outside; when the once-brown-yard suddenly turns a gorgeous shade of green; when it unexpectedly pours down rain and the sky flashes with lightening; when you start taking long walks down trails because the beauty of everything blooming around you is overwhelming.

Talking about it almost makes me warm up. Almost.

But truly, what a magnificent God to think about the tiny details of what He created and making them pleasurable for us!! He deserves so much praise!!

Well, I'm sorry for the short post, but I must get ready for church! :)  Oh, and if y'all happen to think about it, I would love some prayer for this upcoming piano federation. I have two solo pieces and one concerto to memorize by March 9th. The solos are coming along fairly well, but I just recently got my 16 page concerto . . . . so I'm rather scared on that one! I would love prayer that God would give me patience and a good memory to memorize all of these pieces. Thank you!

My Prayer

God, help me to have a passionate longing for You.
May I not be satisfied with a mediocre relationship with the Creator of the universe.
I pray that my days, hours, and mere moments would be centered on YOU - my Lord, my Savior, and my King.
Help me to cast all my cares upon you. (1 Peter 5:7) Make me to realize how much you care for me.
Lord, I pray that you would help me to have a deep compassion and unfeigned love for those around me. Give me Your grace and impartiality when I look at others.
May 2013 be a year I always remember and look back upon as being incredibly strengthening in my walk and relationship with You, dear Father.

November Happiness

Since I can't think of anything particularly interesting to write about, I thought I would just jot down a bit about everyday life around here. :) 

Today I got to stay home all morning!!! :D It was wonderful. . .and quite relaxing. I did school and laundry. And nothing else until 1:30 when I had to go to piano lessons with Jerusha. We decided to go to the mall after lessons. We went in through the food court area so I could introduce my sis to a few of my co-workers. Oh! I don't think I've mentioned that. . . I got a job almost four weeks ago! . . . but I'll divulge that story in a later post . . . ;)
Anyway, then Jerusha and I walked towards JCPenny, making a quick stop by Starbucks first! Speaking of which, Starbucks has come out with their Christmas flavors!!!!  I'm rather split in my opinion of that . . . On the one hand, I think it is *much* too early to be thinking about Christmas. . . On the other hand, I absolutely *love* going into the mall and seeing the beginnings of Christmas decorations and sipping on a holiday drink. So yeah, I can't make up my mind. Speaking of drinking coffee at Starbucks. . . I don't like coffee. Unless it's frozen. And steeped with sugar. And milk. And whipped cream. And chocolate. And blended together in delicious goodness. Only then (when it can't really even be called coffee anymore) do I quite enjoy coffee. :p

After shopping for a bit, Jerusha and I came home and I got ready to go on a walk with momma. It was so beautiful outside!! We had a lovely time walking and talking together. :)

THEN. . . .(it's a good sign when the description of your day is full of "then". . . . that means it was a full, most likely productive day!) ...momma, Jerusha, and I met Jessica for dinner at a restaurant here in town. Oh lands, it was delicious! We had such a great girl time together! <3

THEN. . . :) we came home, got settled down in the living room and watched a chick-flick together.

I feel so blessed! Hey. . . that's what we should be thinking about this November. I mean, THANKSgiving is first. . .Christmas isn't until December! We should be counting our blessings. . . not thinking about our "Christmas wish lists" or what we can get/want. I guess that's my challenge to y'all. . .be thankful today for how God has blessed you. On days like the one I just wrote about, being grateful should be a piece of cake. . .but what about those days that are just awful? Nothing seems to be going right. Can we really be thankful then? Well. . .hard as it may seem. Yes.

"In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you."    1 Thessalonians 5:18
 

Don't get me wrong, I'm NOT saying that being grateful in the midst of trials is easy by any means! But the Bible *does* command it, so that is my challenge to you. And myself. Can we be thankful in everything?

Not Sure What to Call this Post.... ;)

So yeah. It's been a looonnng time (in blogging time). But I'm back! :)  Last month my parents and I took a trip to Haiti. We were there for almost 2 weeks and we stayed with some long-time missionary friends who run a clinic in Northwest Haiti. I can't really even describe the plethora of feelings during the trip. There was some culture shock...and despair...and wonder...and awe of God.  I wrote most of the following on the plane coming back from Haiti.

How can I even put it into words? Should I mention the constant noises at dusk? Should I describe the insistent knocks and phone calls for petty demands? What about the scores of children sitting by the side of the road - waving. And begging. Should I describe that? How about the worse-than-dry-creek-bed roads? The illiteracy? The shacks piled so close to each other that you can barely differentiate one from the other? The broken down huts? The hypocrisy? The wailing? The total acceptance of "spiritual" things, without any absolute knowledge of a relationship with the One True God? How can I describe this place called Haiti?

When I caught my first glimpses of Port Au Prince, the poverty of the country immediately struck me. The housing was a dilapidated mess. Did people actually live in this city? The rain barraged the window pane of the airplane, blurring my limited view. After unloading we were corralled into a maze of tunnels and security workers directing us into the customs line. Everything seemed different. The Creole wording on the signs, the immense clamour of voices, the collision of bodies while claiming our luggage.

After we climbed into the van our taxi driver brought, we closed the door and started our long trek to a Mennonite Mission where we were to stay the night. I'm not even sure how to describe Port Au Prince during "rush hour". There were very few driving rules being followed, yet - much to my amazement - we did not witness a single crash. Everyone seemed to know when the four lane road should suddenly become three lanes one way and one lane the other. And nobody seemed to care that the hundreds of motorcyclists just cruised their way in between lanes of traffic and went into just about whichever lane they could squeeze into. An hour and a half (5 miles) later, we found ourselves gazing at a hefty blue gate as it swung open, seemingly effortlessly. The land beyond the gate was entirely altered from the previous world through which we had passed. The green grass and palm trees waved to us with welcoming features. We drove up to the house. The first thing I noticed was the doors. It had actual functioning, locking, wood doors - something that I hadn't observed much at all during our drive. We opened the door and immediately felt blessed to stay in so nice a place when compared to the rest of the hectic city.

Anyway, that's as far as I've gotten in writing about our trip. I kept a journal while I was there, but it was more of a descriptive action-by-action type journal. . . At 5:00 we started a dinner of pizza type journal. lol ;) 

I'll try to post more often now that my life is seeming to settle into somewhat of a routine! :)

Don't Give In!

Have you ever had a time when you knew Satan was attacking you with lies and discouraging thoughts, but you were too weak to fight back? Too tired to even care if he pervaded your thoughts with deception? Deep down inside you probably knew it was wrong to give in to those thoughts. Actually, it's quite unlike our natural sinful self to fight against this propensity for self-indulgence. Why else would God tell us to

"Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world." 1 Peter 5:8-9

 Apparently it's common to all of the human race to give in to the deceits of Satan. I just had this happen recently to me! I was super worn-out and all I could think of were unrighteous thoughts about myself and other people. Satan noticed this bad attitude on my part and used this small window of opportunity to drag me further down. It was then that he started building on the small deceptions in my mind and elaborating my dreadful thoughts. The sad thing was, I knew he was doing it! I just felt as if I didn't have the strength to fight back.

So what do we do in those situations?

Well, look back to what we just read. One way to resist the devil even when we're feeling overwhelmed is to remember that thousands of other Christians are having to do the same thing! You're not alone. Sometimes the fact of doing something with a person (or at least knowing that someone else is going through the same thing) is a comfort and even creates a sense of renewed determination.

In 1 Peter 5:7-9, the Bible says "Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you." This one verse is a tremendous help for anyone fighting the devil. When you're worn-out and beat-up, you have an advocate with Jesus. He'll never let you down! He will share your burden...He will walk the whole way with you.

"Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." Matthew 11:28-30

But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you. To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. 1 Peter 5:10-11