We know we made a differnce for one

Our trip is coming to a close. We did our last presentation to the only high school and middle school here in Nagarote. Here in Nicaragua children go to school in shifts. The first shift comes in at 8AM and leaves at 12PM. The second shift comes in at 1PM and leaves around 5PM. We had a rowdy crowd of over 600 students in our morning presentation. This is a public school, yet we were allowed to present the gospel in its entirety to these hurting teens. Elmo started with his magic to get the crowd warmed up. The students especially enjoyed when Elmo called the principal up on stage. I think some of them were hoping Elmo would make her disappear. Thanks to Pastor Dave´s talents, we adjusted our presentation to fit our audience. Our Life House drama, where sin keeps Tabby from reaching Christ kept their attention most, along with Daniel´s very powerful testimony. Oh, by the way, Daniel was treated like a superstar the entire time. The girls were going crazy over him. He was loving every minute of it. Pastor Dave shared Alex Riner´s story while Amaris translated. This powerful testimony continues to bring glory to God and is reaching the lost far beyond our little town of Winter Haven.
The second group of high school students were older and a bit more hardened. Yet, they were more attentive and seemed to grasp more of the messasge Pastor Dave was presenting. The response at first was slow. At the end many came to pray with our group. We went into each classroom after our presentation was over and handed out small bags of popcorn to each student. This is not like any high school found in the states. Each classroom consisted of three full walls and one partial wall with bars. These classrooms were generally connected. The entire school consisted of about 15 classrooms. Some "desks" only had a chair and a bar where a writing space should be. The only A.C. was that provided by the wind. There´s just so much we take for granted.
Pastor Rafael took a group again to Sueño De Luisa, which is a school ran by a sweet American woman with a passion for the children of this community. Pastor Rafael and the team handed out salvation bracelets and presented the gospel message.
Our shadows got shoes today. They gleamed with joy when they came to show us their brand new school shoes. These were not Nike, Converse, or Reebok. They were those ugly school shoes your mom used to buy you that lasted all year long. Now they could go to school and were very excited.

We had a little fun today and got to go to Gertrudis´farm. There was no electricity nor running water. There were cows, exotic fruits, and peace. The hotel host let us borrow two A.T.V´s. The look on Alisha´s face while she was riding was priceless. Dave broke down and actually was able to fix his A.T.V. See Rachel, he canfix something!
During our late evening meeting, one of the young ladies from the high school came looking for Amaris. She had three tracks and a letter stapled together. Our first assumption was that it contained a love letter for our infamous Daniel. There was a love letter, but there was also a letter of gratitude to the group which also included a very touching personal testimony. Amaris read the letter to us all. There was not a dry eye in the room. If in all of our efforts, we only made a difference in the life of this one young lady, we have fulfilled our mission of bringing the lost to the feet of the cross.
Thank you for your prayers. Everyone is feeling much better. Tomorrow is our shopping and fun day. Please continue to pray for us and for a safe trip home. We all miss you and can´t wait to be home again.

Honey, can I bring home a baby?

Finally, a day of rest. Not! Today we split up into three groups and went to visit three different churches. It´s amazing to see how they freely worship God in spite of the fact that the music is not amazing, coffee isn´t being served, and the AC is nonexistant.
Three little boys came into our church. They were clean and very well dressed. At the sight of these boys, we were in tears. Let me first introduce you to our little shadows. German, Darwin, Christopher, and Victor were always at the steps of our hotel. These little boys were always dirty, mischivious, and always asking for something. They always have on the same clothing and could really use some soap on their little faces. Mike H. even tried giving them a baby wipe bath, to no avail. These beautiful boys walk a mile and a half each morning to visit us. All they really want is a hug and a little bit of food.In just these few days, we have seen the difference the love of Christ has made in these tender hearts. Honey, can I bring them home?
God answered our prayers. He said no.:) The rain came, and it never stopped. Dave was really worried when he heard that possibly 10,000 people could show up. Thank goodness God knows our limitations better than we do. We had about 300 in attendance. It was amazing to see how attentive they were to such a simple film. We had many children make professions of faith. The local pastors prayed and spoke to the children about the wonderful decision they had made. Rose gave a very moving testimony and shared experiences the audience connected with. God pulled her up on the stage. He knew exactly what his children in Nagarote needed to hear.
Tomorrow we are going to present the gospel to 1500 teens using Alex´s story. Please pray for Dave and Amaris as they share. Also, continue to pray for the hearts of those listening. There are some of us that are a little sick. Don´t worry mommy, we´ll be o.k. Hugs and kisses to all those we love and miss terribly.

It really is better to give than to receive!

To say we are all exhausted is a major understatement. This wonderful group has worked, has endured, has shared, and has smile more in the last few days than most have all year long. Dave and I left early this morning to visit missionaries in Managua. They have a beautiful ministry which they started from their own home 14 years ago, and has now expanded to five cell churches. They now have 600 members. Sounds a little familiar, doesn´t it:o) We were able to help them with supplies they needed to finish their buidling. Pastor Ramon shared with us how we were an answer to prayer. It really is humbling to hear someone say that to you. Seeing the joy a few bags of cement can bring to a pastor´s face is cool enough. However, when this humble servant tells you that your gift has lifted his spirits, that he was ready to quit, and your visit has helped him see again that God is still with him. Now that Bible verse comes to life. It is nice to get gifts, but, wow, it is amazing to give! His time is always on time. Thank you for allowing us to be here. Thank you for giving us up for a little while, so that we can make a difference for eternity.

We had three construction crews today. One finished painting Gertrudis´families home. The other crew continued to work tiredlessly on the Sunday School room and bathroom, while yet another crew finished painting the outside of the church and made a beautiful sign.

We came back for a quick lunch and headed to a church close to Managua, where we did our final VBS. It really wasn´t controlled chaos. It was really just chaos. We started with only about 30 kids. That was before we sent out three teams with bullhorns to let the neighborhood know about our little Festival for Jesus. Amaris returned with a group of kids following behind her. Her team looked like little pippers. We were up to 250ish kids and adults. We had several accept Christ as their Savior. Each child and adult there left with a little something. We handed out salvation braclets, balloons, crackers and juice (prepared by James and Mike H:o)), a stuffed animal and a sticker or two. It was amazing to see what these children and moms would do for something we can pick up at a yard sale for a quarter. Since this was our last VBS, we asked the pastor to bring in his church members and have them sit by family. We then gave them complete soccer uniforms, toys, and other trinkets. Even the pastor received a jersey!

It´s amazing how our ladies, other than myself, are so organized. This trip would not be going so smoothly if it wasn´t for the organizational talents of Linda, Danielle, Dorothy and Brenda. With Linda as manager, these ladies work their magic with everything from balloons, to stuffed animals, to well, everything. God really outdid himself when he put this group together:o)

Tomorrow is a big day for us. We will be showing the Jesus Film to over 2,000ish people in an outside arena. Please continue to pray for the hearts of all who will be watching. Please also pray for the rain to stay away, again.
We love you. We miss you. Be ready to stop at our favorite pizza joint, McDonald´s or Crispers when we get home.

Sweatin´ for Jesus

It is the end of another amazing day. I am sitting here in our hotel "lobby" with everyone fast asleep. I have never seen so many people sweat and work so very hard, yet still have a smile on their face. Heartland has produced the most willing, joyful, sacrificial servants I have seen in many years. Our morning started at 7AM with a strong breakfast of beans and cheese. We headed for the streets and started announcing our VBS. Daniel went walking with me as I used my bullhorn to announce our festival. We met a sweet, blind lady on the way and led her to Christ.
There are these cool bicycle taxis here that will ride you around for 50 cents! These "taxis" seem to follow us where ever we go. Elmo entertains them with his magic tricks, and they help bring in the crowds.
Our VBS´ are geared towards children. However, an adult always shares their testimony in Spanish. Brenda bravely shared her testimony today. You could the impact it had on the mothers that were there with their children. God used her testimony to tell those ladies He loved them.
I always ask the children to tell me what part of the VBS they enjoyed most. The answer is always the puppets. Rachael and the puppet crew kneel on concrete in the hot sun while holding their arms to make their puppets talk. It´s not as easy as it looks, especially when you have no idea what your puppet is saying:o) They have not complained once and joyfully bring smiles to the children of Nagarote.
We are really sweatin´for Jesus and lovin´every minute of it! Our construction crew is amazing. They left our hotel at 8AM, returned for a quick lunch and didn´t return until after 7PM. The others began painting the outside of the church where the construction team was working. If you have a teenager at home that needs to learn about work ethic, please send them to Matt or Ryan! Those boys worked so very hard.
Another part of our team visited Rainbow, which is an organization similar to The Mission in Winter Haven. They give children meals, and other necesities. It is located in a very rural area surrounded with beautiful, lush views of a volcano. We were able to give soccer uniforms, coloring books, salvation bracelets, and stuffed animals to about 40 children. It´s amazing how these simple things bring such joy! The older children and teens put their uniforms on right away, right down to the socks!
I apologize for not being able to put a video on the site. The internet connection is very slow. I tried downloading a video. The bar said I had 4 hours remaining, and logged me off after 57 minutes. I will never say my internet at home is slow ever again!
We are going into the capital city of Managua tomorrow. Our construction crew will stay behind to finish. Please continue to pray for our safety and that the Lord will continue to use us. Hugs to all the ones we love.

There´s a Storm Comin´

It is always difficult for me to put our day into a few paragraphs. There are so many amazing and glorious events that happen all around us. How do I narrow it down to give you, our family at home, the best picture of what we are experiencing? Our construction team is amazing. To watch these men humble themselves and joyfully work for the Lord is the perfect picture of what true Christian love should be. We are building an awning and a bathroom for a local church. We have also adopted Gertrudis´ family and are painting their very modest home. They have so little, yet always have a smile and sincere joy in the midst of such poverty. We are humbled as a group and see how so very spoiled we really are. Flexibility is our key word, and boy we are learning to use it! Our VBS , as we have come to call it, went wonderfully. We didn´t know how many to expect. The church itself would only hold about 150 children and adults. We decided to hold the event outside. Everything was going great, until clouds, wind, and a few drops of rain came our way. Joshua, Danielle, and Linda got together and asked the Lord to stop the rain, and He did! There was actually a circle of dark clouds around us, yet the rain never came. It made it cooler for us outside, and the strong breeze was really refreshing. God cooled us off and kept us dry:o) We had about 175 children and adults in attendance. Elmo and his magic tricks are a hit. The kids and the adults love him! He doesn´t even need a translator! We went to the highest point in the city, where we saw a magestic view of nearby volcanoes. We took pictures there and prayed for the city of Nagarote. When we looked down from where we were, we saw Elmo surrounded by children and adults. He was smiling from ear to ear while he amazed them with his magic. We cannot believe we have only been here 3 days. It seems like so much longer. We have done so much in such a small amount of time. We will continue with construction and VBS for the next couple of days. On Sunday, we will show the Jesus film to over 2,500 people in an outside arena. Please pray for the Lord to prepare the hearts of those watching. Continue to pray for us. We miss our families, yet we are so very blessed and humbled to serve our Savior.

Wow! What a day!

We had a wonderful, yet exhausting day. We started our day with a breakfast that included black beans and rice. Don´t worry. The food is quite yummy. We are very well fed:o) We started the day with an official government tour of the beautiful city of Nagarote. However, we didn´t forget we were on a missions trip. We handed out tracks and candies along the way. We even prayed with Gerturdes´ aunt who just lost her husband. Dorothy and I helped lead a young man to Christ. We came back for lunch. Then the fun began! We went to a church in the outskits of Nagarote. We ministered to the beautiful children there. It is honetly too overwhelming to explain the poverty we saw. Yet, there was a smile in every face. Please continue to pray for us. We had a wonderful first day.

We are in Nicaragua

After a long day of traveling, lost luggage, stressed Dave, and swine flu scares we made it safely to Nagarote, Nicaragua! Alisha lost her personal luggage so please pray that it will turn up tomorrow. The hotel is BEAUTIFUL but simple.

God has already begun working. Since Gertrudis came early to make arrangements for the group, she was able to lead her uncle to Christ. Gertudis´ uncle passed away today and is in the arms of Jesus.

Our key word is flexibility, and we´re all very hot. The food is quite delicious.
Please continue to pray for the leaders, group participants, and their families at home.

What a team! What a service!

Today we came before the church. We are a motley crew going on this trip. We have teens, we have moms, we have rockin' seniors, but most importantly, we have a group that is ready to serve. Not only are we armed with balloons, Bibles and puppets, we are also ready to make a significant difference in the churches of our dear brothers and sisters in Nagarote. Our church lived up to its name this weekend. Heartland Community Church sacrificially gave on a moments notice. We can now help the pastors in Nagarote disciple those we bring into their doors. Please continue to pray for our group. We are nervous, excited, and ,yes a little scared.

We are leaving this Tuesday June 16th

Can you believe it? We are only a few days away from our departure date. Today 13 of us came before the church. Pastor Dave created an amazing video, Pastor Ed prayed for us, and an offering was collected for the churches in Nicaragua. Tomorrow we will come before the church again. We will also meet between Sunday services to pack our suitcases with goodies for the Nicaraguan people. Please continue to pray for our nerves and for the people we will be ministering to in Nicaragua. Gertrudes is already in Nicaragua making preparations for our team. Please continue to pray that God open doors for her.