#27 New Experience, Reminders, Birthdays

    As I stop to reflect over the many things that have passed in the last 2 weeks and look over the pictures that were taken, I am reminded of the difference of each day and the special beauty each day holds. When we arise ach day, we do not know what lies before us; but as we trust on the Lord, he gives us the strength to climb each mountain. As I looked at the above picture, I was reminded of the power and the might that our Lord possesses, but I was also reminded of the power and the might that we as Christians can have if we call on the Lord and daily commit our lives to Him and His directing. So often it is so easy to forget that and we try to plunge on ahead on our own...trying to move mountains without the faith. Oh that we would ever remember the Lord and the might that He gives to them that choose to follow Him each and every day. We are in a warfare as Christians. We have enemies to fight against, a captain to fight for, a banner to fight under, and certain rules of war by which we are to govern ourselves (taken from Matthew Henry’s Commentary). We cannot win a battle on our own. We need the help of the Lord and our Christian brothers.

    Well since my last update. Richard & Andrea Burkholder have flown to the States for a furlough. They are planning to be gone for 2-3 months, as they will not be returning before the new bundle joins their family. Please pray for them as they spend time in the States that it may be a time of refreshment. Lloyd & Faye Zimmerman (Pleasant Valley) have arrived to house-sit and be here with us, while Richard’s are in the States. We are so grateful for their willingness to devote some of their time and spend it here with us. It has been a blessing for me to have them here so far. It is like having my grandparents here. I knew them very well before they came, and it has been great spending time with them once again. Monday evening they came to stay here with us, as Randy’s went to Granada to spend time with Barry & Colleen Zeiset (Laura’s sister & husband) before they returned to the States on Tuesday afternoon. Lloyd’s took us to La Palmerita before heading to Leon on Tuesday morning.

    Once again spending a Tuesday in La Palmerita has been a blessing to me and a reminder to be a willing giver and also the blessings of a willing receiver. Sometimes being a willing receiver calls for stepping out of your comfort zone and experience something that perhaps is a first-time experience and may very well be an experience that you may never again experience. Also am I willing to share that which I have with those that truly have needs? When I see some people in La Palmerita who are so willing to give even though they have very little.

    We started out the morning with Lloyd & Faye taking us to La Palmerita and dropping us off at Johanna’s house. We spent a little bit of time at Johanna’s before going our separate ways. I had spent some time in the last 2 weeks sewing a skirt and blouse for Johanna. She fit it on this morning and it fit very good. I was glad to see that it fit well and that it didn’t need any more readjusting. I enjoy sewing and was glad to have the opportunity to sew for her. I left Johanna’s house around 10:30 and headed up the street with my pack of pictures that I had taken for several people. I headed to Center Street where most of the people live that I had pictures for. I also wanted to do a little visiting, but somehow you never get as many people visited as you wanted to.  My first stop was at Manuel & Seneida. (pictured above with the little girl). You all may have seen a picture of her before. She is a young lady, age 25, with 2 children and is living with her man. I have come to know her and she has always been a challenge to me. They are a family that doesn’t have much, but I have never heard her complain about her needs. She always has so many other things to talk about and they always want to hear about what I have been doing and what I had planned for the rest of the week. They invited to come in and visit a spell. I hadn’t been there long and she asked me if I like “pipian in caldillo”. I had never had it, so she told me to wait and she will bring me a plate. She soon arrived with a plate of rice, pipian in a ketchup sauce, cooked platino AND................a chicken foot in the midst. Now I have never eaten a chicken foot and had never really planned to eat a chicken foot; however I didn’t know how to politely refuse the chicken foot, but in a way I did kinda want to taste it. I knew it may be my only chance to try it. Once I had finished everything else, I told Seneida that I had never eaten a chicken foot before and don’t know how to eat it. I was instructed to just eat the meat off the bone, so I proceeded to try it. It wasn’t too bad, but it was different. I enjoyed the meal very much, but it might not have been as much as the taste of the meal, as the spirit with which the meal was given. Also in the process of the visit, I had went to move my chair in the shade. I caught my flip-flop on a stick and tore my flip-flop  What a problem because, I couldn’t get it to stay on my foot. Seneida sent for Manuel to come and sew my flip-flop together and he did just that. Before I left, they gave me a small bag of chile peppers. I left there challenged to have more of a willing spirit to share and not necessarily money, but time and and whatever other resources God has blessed me with.

 

   

 The rest of my day was spent having classes with Johanna & Enma. We had Johanna’s class at 12:30. I arrived back at Johanna’s house to find all her boys sitting on the beds and when we started singing, instead of running off to play, they all stayed there and helped sing. They all took turns picking songs; and the songs that they knew well, they sang with all their heart. I was seated on the one bed with Johanna, Juancito, and Yeral. Yeral is in my Sunday morning class and at times is quite a handful. He can try a person’s patience and I try to remember and remind myself that he was not born into a Christian home and his mother is trying all she can to instruct her sons in the ways of the Lord. However today I was reminded of the potential he has. He sat in Johanna’s class right beside me the whole time. It was so special to me because some Sunday mornings he will leave class and refuse to speak to me, because I wouldn’t let him do what he wanted. As we were reading over the chapter that Virginia had picked for today’s study, he sat right there and I could hear him reading along with us. It was so special for me.

    Last Wednesday was Johanna’s birthday. Beings it was Wednesday, we couldn’t really do an afternoon/evening thing with her, so we invited her out to the house for lunch and to spend the afternoon before going to the afternoon service. Laura made & decorated a cake for her. She also had some games for the boys, which they enjoy very much as well as did their mother. It was wonderful to be able to celebrate this joyous time with Johanna. She continues to be an encouragement to me as she strives to serve the Lord and be a Christian witness in La Palmerita.

    

Randy & Laura decided to spend a Sunday evening with Richard’s before they left, so we girls decided to take the opportunity and spend some time with the young ladies who live in Leon. Karen and Denise were into doing something together, so we planned the evening. Karen & Denise made soup & sandwiches, which were scrumptious; and Virginia & I took in the salad & dessert. We spent the evening together, which proved to be quite an interesting time. After supper we got out the Rummikub game. I personally had never played that game before till I came to Nicaragua, however I do enjoy it now. We played 9 rounds, and poor Karen didn’t win a single one. I truly felt sorry for her. Thank you ladies for the pleasant evening. We began our trip to El Terrero around 9:00; however we only made it to Malpaisillo till we had to pull of the road and change a flat tire. We ladies sat on the sidewalk and I had fun snapping pictures of the boys as we were waiting. The next morning as we were leaving for Managua, randy informed us that he was unable to get the tire fixed, so we were headed to Managua without a spare tire and with prayers. Praise the Lord! We didn’t any tire problems. 

   

  

   

This past week Denise’s sister Jean was here to visit her. We had spent Friday in Leon, so they invited  us to go along out for supper in the evening. It was another enjoyable evening spent with the other girls. We went to a small, but nice quesillo restaurant in town. For those of you who aren’t familiar with quesillos, they are a native Nicaraguan food. On the bottom is a corn tortilla followed by a piece of cheese and then a creamy sauce. It is thinner than the sour cream that we have down here and has a slightly different flavor. It is then topped with chopped onions. I was first introduced to them in Estelí, when I was in language school. So far I haven’t found 2 places that they taste the same. Each place has their own unique quesillo. It was definitely an evening that I enjoyed and was glad to be able to learn to know Denise’s sister a little better.

Well before I draw to a close, I would like to introduce you to the elderly couple on 3rd Street. Their names are Sinforteano & Pastora. Pastora attends church pretty regularly at times and then it might go for a while till she comes again. He has never come to church since I have been here. They asked me to take their pictures the other day when I was there. I was kinda glad, because I did not have a good picture of them. I just ask that you might pray for them, as they are both up in age. Just pray that God would work His perfect will in their lives.

Thank you for all your prayers. May God richly bless you as you serve Him where you are. We truly serve an awesome Lord who can do more than we can think or ask.

Have a blessed day in the Lord!

#26 Filling Silo, Perfect Attendance, Fellowship Meal

    As I snapped the above picture one afternoon as I was riding home from La Palmerita, this song came to my mind. It was a dark,cloudy day; it looked like we might receive a heavy downpour. Amongst the dark clouds, we could see the bright gleam of a rainbow; its colors so beautiful. But this picture and song also reminds us of the ever-present spiritual darkness in the La Palmerita Community. Satan has so many holds on this community and he is always trying to discourage the faithful few. But as the song says – one bright gleam I see. Amidst the darkness, there continues to be one bright gleam from day to day. Please pray for each of us as staff and the native members as we all strive to be the bright gleam to those in darkness.

    We ask you to rejoice with us as another soul has realized their need of the Lord as their Saviour; and we also ask you to join us in lifting him to the throne of grace as he begins to make changes in his life and as he strives to serve the Lord there in La Palmerita. Julio (pictured above with his nephew) has been attending church faithfully for some time and had been thinking of the step that he needed to take. Last week he had got into a fight with another man from La Palmerita and some nasty words were exchanged. However the Lord was working in the heart of Julio and he was convicted of his actions, so he found the other man and asked for forgiveness. The other man called him a coward for not wanting to get into another fight. Julio went home, knowing that he had tried to make restitution. After the Wednesday night Bible Study, Julio came to Ramon with many questions. That evening Ramon had shared on Baptism, Last Supper, & the Feet Washing ceremonies. Ramon told us on the way home that he felt Julio was very close to making a decision. Jason went to Julio’s on Thursday for their weekly Bible Study. While he was there, the fellow who had got in the fight with Julio went past, calling him names once again. Julio said to Jason “Today is my day to be the strong man. I want to be strong in the Lord” He lives with his woman, Mirrna. They are not married, but have expressed their desire to be married as soon as possible. Mirrna attends church quite faithfully as well. He also told us that his mother told him that the day he joins a church that is not Catholic, he is no longer her son. Please pray for Julio as he strive to be a Godly example to those around him and for Mirrna that she might realize her need also to commit her life to the Lord.

    As you can see in the above picture, Virginia is  washing some clothes. The other Saturday after my morning girls’ class, I headed to Johanna’s house to see how she was doing. After having seen her so sick on Wednesday, I was not sure what to expect. I arrived to find her sleeping and Virginia was out back washing the mountain of clothing & Yeral was taking a bath in the soapy wash water coming out of the pila from the clothing that Virginia was washing. I took my backpack into the house and found Johanna waking up from her nap. I took the opportunity to sit down and spend some time talking with her. She was feeling much better and didn’t have a headache. She received an injection once a day for 5 days to help get vitamins back into her body. When I arrived at Johanna’s house this Tuesday and found her finishing up her laundry and feeling much better. I went and visited Lidia for about an hour before returning to Johanna’s for her afternoon class. Continue to pray for Johanna as she strives to serve the Lord and be a Christian witness in La Palmerita and also as she strives to raise her children for the Lord.

    Right now some of the corn is just right to make tamales. There is about a week in the growing time of the corn when it is perfect to use it for fresh eating and making tamales. I will tell you it is not like sweet corn, but it is really good. I have helped to make tamales in several different homes now, and each cook has her own different way of making them. When we arrived to help make them at Johanna’s house the other week, we found Maria husking the corn and Johanna was cutting it off the cob. Once it was all cut, they put me to work. I had the privilege of grinding it all. I have come to enjoy grinding corn be hand. Grinding this corn did not take near as long as grinding corn for tortillas. The day we helped make them, we also put some cuajada ( a Nicaraguan cheese that I have finally learned how to make) in each of the tamales to give it a little cheesy flavor. After the corn was ground, it was mixed and a little bit of the juice that we collected as I was grinding it, was added to mixture. You then take the inner leaves of the husk and spoon the mixture in there and wrap it up. It it then put in a kettle to cook for several hours. They are the best eaten right after they come out of the kettle.

      

    The 2 little boys in the above pictures are both in my Wednesday night class. I have recently started using attendance charts to see if it will help bring up the attendance in the class. So often there is 3 or 4 children, but the last little bit, I have had at least 6. Both Nicholas & Juancito had perfect attendance. We have just finished the first chart and I am anxious to see what happens with the next several weeks in the attendance. Both of my classes have been quite poorly attended recently, so maybe the attendance charts will serve as a motivator. Right now in my Wednesday night class I have a lot of 2 & 3 year olds, so it takes a little more effort to keep them occupied till the adults are finished with their class. I enjoy spending time with each of these children and pray that my life would leave a positive influence on each of them.

    Last Sunday, beings it was the 5th Sunday, we did something a little different for the people that came to church. We decided to take lunch to church and spend the noon meal with all the people that showed up.  Laura made Dominican Spaghetti, and we had tortillas & chocolate cake to finish off the the meal. After we finished lunch, we attempted to try and play water balloon volleyball. However we did not have much luck at all. So we gave up and everyone had fun just throwing water balloons at everyone else. It was a fun time to spend with all the children and just have fun. Some of the children are still laughing at who they hit with water balloons.

    The family that I would like to introduce you to lives on 3rd Street. Usually the four pictured above are at church on Wednesday night and sometimes Sunday morning. The girl’s name is Yoconda and she is the only girl. She has 4 brothers, 3 of which are pictured here with her. The little one that she is holding is Juan Carlos. The little guy in the the bib overalls is Maynor and the one in the blue-striped shirt is Memor. Juan Carlos and Maynor are both in my Wednesday night class. They always come to church, so dirty and muddy. Just in looking at them, you can feel their plea to be loved. Just last night, when Yoconda arrived at church, she wouldn’t talk to me; all she would do was stick out her tongue. I could not think of a thing that I had done that would offend her. Who know what it was. This morning we rode to La Palmerita and stopped in for a little at their home.

Well, I shall bring my email to a close. We are leaving for Leon at 2:00 and we just got back from La Palmerita. I have added a personal picture for you. Right now the morning glories are so beautiful, so one morning we decided to snap a few pictures.

Have a great day in the Lord!

#25 Birthdays, Ladies' Day, and a Death

    As I snapped these pictures the other Sunday morning, the above verse came to mind and it has stuck with me through the last several days. No matter where we are, God still knows where we are and He will still provide us with the strength we need. As I watched this plane come down and spray the field and soar back up in the sky for the next round, I was reminded of the day when we will all leave this earth and be caught up to meet our Lord. The thought brings tears of joy to my eyes as I think of that day. "And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. Revelation 21:4" This verse has also been a comfort to me as I think of our Lord's return and as I also reflect on the past 2 weeks. Are we doing all we can to share God's Word with those around us? Do they realize the need to make a decision to serve Christ with their whole heart?

    Sunday morning, the 10th, they decided to spray the field across the road from the house. Poor Nicholas - when he heard the plane, he took off running for the house, crying because he was soooo scared of the plane. I was able to crawl under the fence and get some good pictures of the plane as he was spraying.

   

    Well so much has happened in the last 2 weeks. The night I sent my last update, the 7th,  we needed to drive to La Paz Centro as the black truck had some issues. Joel & Karen were headed to Managua Thursday morning to pick up Delmar and had some problems with the truck. So they parked it along the road and caught a bus to Managua, Between buses and taxis, they made it to the airport and then back to the truck. We soon had all the men peering under the hood trying to decide what to do about the problem. After putting water into the truck, the Leon folks decided to try driving the truck. However we were not too far down the road till the water started pouring out of the truck. So here comes the job for the El Terrero truck - it needed to pull the black truck to Leon. We arrived in Leon around 6:15 and hurriedly did the things we needed to or wanted to before church. I ran to the Cyber to send my emails and call my mother. When I arrived at church it hadn't yet started, but all the benches were full as you see in the above picture. Virginia & I, as well as a whole string of others sat on chairs behind the last bench till the children were dismissed for classes.

    On Friday, the 8th, we took Larry Bowman (Canadian board member) and his friend Pete to see some of the sights that we country folks have close to our home. We started out be going to Lake Assosoca. It is so beautiful this time of year. Every thing was so nice and green. Randy & Laura walked up to the lookout, while the single staff and the visitors walked down the lake and hiked back up. We then took the scenic route from Assosoca to La Paz Centro where the visitors bought us lunch at the little comedor pictured above. I had a plate with chicken, rice, and beans. It was very good. La Paz Centro has a lot of pottery shops, so we stopped at several shops. There was a few new shops that had opened since the last time I did pottery shopping. A lot of the places have some of the neatest pottery. I bought a nice candle holder for the dresser in my room. It makes it really nice when there is no electricity. On Saturday, we took the Canadian men to Managua to fly home. It was great to have them here and learn another face to the OBMM board.

      

    On Monday, the 11th, we ladies had a day out. We met in Malpaisillo at 7:30 and headed to Estelí for the day. When we arrived in Estelí, we first stopped at Los Pipitos to see if any of our Spanish teachers were in. Neither of them were there, so we headed for Mocha Nana; however they were not yet opened. We decided to do some walking and window shopping till 10:00. We started making our way back to Mocha Nana, when who should we meet in the street, but my Spanish teacher - Gioconda. We were across the street from Mocha Nana, so we all went in and talked with Gioconda for a little, before ordering our Frozen Mochas. FROZEN MOCHA!! Hurray!! They are so good and hit the spot. We then headed down the street, stopping at different shops along the way. We spent the most time in the fabric store, before heading to the Chinese restaurant for lunch. As usual, the food was wonderful and we had a great time together - sharing our hearts and our thankfulness for each other. After lunch, our next stop was La Casita. It was great to see all the plants there and just enjoy the beauty of the place. It added a wonderful end to the great day. Thank you ladies, for the wonderful day!

    

    The above pictures are pictures from a Tuesday in La Palmerita. I rode out on Beulah and Virginia was on her bike. She went up 3rd Street for some classes, while I headed for Center Street to do some visiting. My first stop that day was at Leonardo & Marta. I spent about an hour & half there, before riding to Lydia's house. I found her at home with a pile of wash to do. I offered to was some for her, not really knowing what I was getting in for. She does not have a pila like a lot of the other people use to wash their clothing. She has a concrete scrub board setting on top of a barrel. This scrub board is rougher than the pilas and is not nice to hands that are not used to washing clothing by hand. I do wash some of my clothing by hand, but it is not near as dirty as little children's clothing. I proceeded to wash some of the clothing, but it wasn't long till I had rubbed my wrists and fingers raw. I was never so glad to see Virginia and she offered to do some of the washing. The people here have told me time and time again - the reason I have so much trouble washing, frying rice over wood fire, grinding corn...the list goes on, but the reason is because I am left-handed. If I would be right-handed, it wouldn't be so hard for me. When we finished at Lydia's, we headed to Johanna's class and had time with her. Virginia was in charge of the lesson and the lesson gave me a lot to think about. I then went with Virginia to Enma's house for the last class of the day. At Enma's house, we have class with Enma, Sindy, Yesina, and sometimes Yorlenis. By the time that class was finished, it had started thundering so we decided to leave and head for home. Lydia had given us an  iyote (pumpkin) and I was the one elected to carry it home because I was on the horse. I was very glad when I saw the house, because holding a pumpkin and trying to ride horse can be a little difficult. (and the pumpkin was HEAVY!) But it was a great day!

      

    Last week there were 2 people that had birthday parties. Thursday was Karen's birthday. However it believe it was a birthday that she will never forget. Wednesday night her brother, sister, and nephew flew into Managua. Richard's picked them up and they stayed at Richard's place overnight. Thursday morning the Leon staff met for prayer at Nate's house. In the meantime, her family walked to her house and were sitting in the living room when she returned from prayer. After church Thursday night, some of the young girls from Karen's girls class dumped powder on her head. It wasn't sparingly either!! On Friday, Esnayder celebrated his birthday and we were all invited to the birthday party. In the picture above, his mother is Yesina (the girl in the yellow. She is only 16), his grandmother Enma is holding him, and his aunt Sindy is in the orange/white. There was so many ladies at the party that I had not seen in a a long time. It was quite the big party for such a little boy. They had a huge Spiderman piñata for the children.

    The above picture is of my girls' class. These 3 are my regular attendees. From left to right is is Katerin, Magdalena, and Noelia. We are now holding the Saturday classes in La Palmerita at the home of Katerin. We have class 3 Saturdays a month. They have been working on embroidering pillow tops. I decided however the other week to give them a break and let them paint these bags that Christine Nolt sent down. They had a lot of fun painting them and so did I. I enjoy this class very much and it is my heart's desire that this class would bring honor and glory to God. Also that it would be a way of building relationships with each of the girls and they could see their need for a life totally surrendered to God.

        

    On Sunday, the 17th, 2 young boys arrived at church and asked if we could take Yacadelis(13 years old) to Malpaisillo as she was vomiting blood. We quick went home with our truck load and Randy & I left almost immediately and headed back to La Palmerita. When we arrived, we were informed that they had already left with the tractor to take her to Malpaisillo. We returned the house, only to receive the sad news later that evening that she had died. We have heard so many different stories; however I will try to write what we heard from her mother, Albertina. Saturday evening, Albertina found Yacadelis and a young boy from La Palmerita embracing. She was upset; however Yacadelis and the young boy soon left. Albertina did not know where they had gone. Early Sunday morning she went looking for them, as someone had told her where they where. She found her and brought her home. Some said once she brought her home, she beat Yacadelis; however she says "I punished her for her disobedience." They ate breakfast and around mid-morning Yacadelis said she was dizzy. She soon started vomiting. She had drank poison and died on the way to Malpaisillo. The doctors said she drank so much, so fast there was nothing they could do. (the picture above from left to right is Yacadelis, Juan Carlos [her brother], Albertina[her mother], and Marvin[a cousin] The staff from Leon was here at our house when we received the news, so Rich's offered to stay with Hans & Nick, while we went to the vela(viewing). We spent several hours there - most of it sitting there talking with others from La Palmerita. So many of the people were so giddy and it made me wonder if that was their way of dealing with grief or if the reality had not yet sunk in. Just before we left, they brought the casket out on the porch and the family asked me to take some pictures of her in the casket. Monday morning we left her around 7:00 and headed to La Palmerita. We had been asked to transport the casket and some of the family and friends to Momotombo, where they were planning on burying the body. The funeral procession consisted of the the truck and the tractor & trailer from La Palmerita. We had a few truck problems on the way, but thanks to God, they didn't amount to anything. We were almost at Momotombo when Jason knocked on the truck. We were about to lose our back wheel. The lugs had come loose and were almost out. We tightened the lugs and once again went on our way. When we arrived in Momotombo, we did not go straight to the graveyard, but went to a home there. Some of the mother's family had not arrived and they wanted to wait for them. We sat there for several hours, but at 12:00, the mother's family had not yet arrived, so we offered our condolences and went home. As I sat there watching many of the people, you would have never guessed that you were attending a funeral. It appeared that it was just another party to some of the people. As I thought about the events that had taken place, the thought came to my mind "Did Yacadelis know that the poison would kill her? Or was she just doing to get attention?" I will miss her very much. She was always such a happy, bubbly young girl. Please pray for her family as they adjust to life without Yacadelis and that God would reveal  to them their need to surrender their lives to Him. She left behind her parents and 4 brothers: Juan Carlos-15, Marvin-12, Kevin-8, and Fernando-2.

    Please pray for Johanna. She has been fighting a severe headache for several days and Tuesday night Randy & Jason took her to Malpaisillo as she had been throwing up. She has been struggling financially as well. We spent several hours with her yesterday and she talked to Virginia for a little bit; however she did not get up at all. She stayed in her bed the whole time we were there. Please pray for the boys that they would sense God's arms around them and protecting them.

    Here are a couple common day pictures. The neighbors here visiting, giving advice...this so often reminds me of evenings at home when the neighbors and friends would stop to visit. And of course, all the children waiting in the waterway for us, so they can jump on the back of the truck and get a ride to church.

      

Please pray for:

• La Palmerita - Satan has such a strong hold on the community.
• Johanna - that she could sense God and His presence through this time of trial
• Yacadelis' family - that they would feel God's presence amidst the grief
• Us as staff, as we relate to the people from day to day.

Thank you so much for you prayers. Blessings to each of you as you serve the Lord in your respective places.

 

In His Service in Nicaragua, Andrea

 

PS. I would love to hear from you as well :) :)

#24 Rain, Making Rugs, and Parties....

Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer. Psalms 19:14 

 

    Greetings to each of you once again from Nicaragua. Time keeps stepping right along and each day is passed and gone before you have time to think twice. As I spend time reflecting in each day that has passed, the above verse is my desire - that all I might have done that day brought honor and glory to my Father in heaven. Each morning we arise, we don't have the promise of the entire day and going to bed that night. God gives us each moment and it is only through Him that we have the breath to live out each moment. I just would like to leave this as a challenge to each of you. Serve Him with your whole heart. Speak slowly, so that when each moment and day is passed, you will not have any regrets. I came across a small phrase the other day - Lord, please keep your arms around my shoulder and your hand over my mouth. May all that we think and do today bring honor & glory to our Father.

    On Friday night, September 24th, it started raining and rained heavy. It rained for almost a whole week and not just a little. It came in downpours some of the time. By Sunday morning, we had doubts of being able to get to church. However we decided we would try, but the truck refused to start and it was rain heavy at the time. So Randy tried calling Jason; however he did not answer his phone. The only option was to push the truck, but with pouring rain, we could not get motivated to push. Even if we would push-start it, we might not even be able to get to church. The river bed that we usually drive to get to church was full of water and the only other option would be to go the whole way around. We decided to just stay home, so Randy went and talked to the neighbors and told them we would not be going to church. We spent the morning here in our house listening to a sermon on Virginia's computer till the computer battery died. Laura, Virginia, and I played Rummikub for a while in the afternoon. In the evening Ramon, Lucia, and Rosibel came up for soft pretzels and we played several rounds of Memory.

    Due to all the rain we received in the last 2 weeks the yard once again started looking like a field instead of a yard. We had to wade through knee-high weeds. We hired some young guys from La Palmerita to come chop grass. They spent several mornings and afternoons here cutting grass. One day it started pouring while they were cutting but that did not stop them. They kept right on chopping as you can see in the above picture. Thanx to each of the boys, we now have a nice green yard, that looks like it has been freshly mowed. They also chopped some of the grass/weeds in the pasture, which now makes it easier to get to and from the back pasture. I now can get back to the pasture to bring my horse in for water without having to wade through high weeds. I enjoy walking back to the back pasture at least 2 times a day and each time I bring my horse front for some water before taking her back and tying her in the grass.

    And then off course with all the rain, it would not be normal if we didn't find Nick playing in the puddles during the day. The puddles just seem to call him there as soon as he steps outside. Whether he is riding through them with his bike, running through them, or sitting in them - there is soon a muddy boy to clean up.

    We ladies finally started the project that was so long in coming. For the longest time we were cutting up our old dresses in strips and rolling them into balls and sticking them in a suitcase. With all the rain that we had, we got the suitcase and Virginia taught Laura & I how to crochet rugs. I knew how to crochet so it was just a matter of Virginia telling me what to do. I have completed one rug so far, which we put in the laundry, and have been sewing quite a number of strips together to make another one. It is amazing how little time it takes to actually crochet the rug. The thing that takes the most time is cutting apart the dress and them sewing all the strips from the one dress together so that you have one big strip. Virginia finished the rug that she had started for my room, so I have it laying along my bed. I am hoping to make another one to put in front of my armoire, so I need to start sewing strips together. Laura has made one and is almost finished with her 2nd one. If it is a rainy afternoon or evening, you will be sure to find us getting apart dresses or crocheting.

    While Jason's parents were here visiting, his mother had invited Ramon & Rosibel to supper one evening. She had made a big pot of chicken pot-pie. Rosibel really liked it and kept asking me when we could make it again. I got the recipe from Phyllis and finally we set a date to make it. We decided on a Monday evening and I attempted to make it. It turned out pretty well and they all liked it. It hit the spot that evening, because it was rainy and cold. I made Cappuccino Mouse trifle. Sir Nicholas was so tired, he couldn't even finish his dessert. After we cleaned the supper, once again out came the all-famous Memory game. The young people around just love to play that game.

    On Friday October 1st was Angel's birthday. Angel is the father of Ramon, Lucia, and Rosibel. Mariana, their mother, had asked us to help with the meal preparation. Randy gave a turkey and a chicken to prepare for the birthday feast. Friday morning started quite early. The first task was to catch and kill the turkey. However, we ran into a few problems - 1st one was that we did not have keys for the tool shed or Randy's house. Well, we decided to chase the turkey and catch it. Then we would worry about how to get into the house. However till we got the turkey & chicken killed, Jason arrived with keys for the house & tool shed. Ramon killed the birds and Virginia, Rosibel, & I cut them up in pieces. We then cut up potatoes, chayote, carrots, and bread to make filling to put with the meat. We baked 2 oatmeal cakes. Around 1:00, I went down to Angel & Mariana's to help with food preparation there. About 2 weeks ago, Mariana had cut her finger tip and it still isn't totally healed, so they asked me if I could come down and help make cow tongue. Angel had bought a tongue that morning and it had been cooking all morning. I cleaned the skin off and cut it in small chunks. I then fried it in a little oil and added potatoes, chayote, and carrots. We left that simmer for a little before we added ketchup, mustard, salt, and vinegar. After that had cooked and all the vegetables were soft, we took it off the stove and made a big pot of rice. I left around 5:00 to go up to the house. We had youth night that night as well, so after the Palmerita young people left, we all headed down to Angel's for the party. Virginia and I had the privilege of dishing up the food for the crowd of about 30 people. I got enough of food and I think everyone else did as well.

    On Tuesday October 5th was another day of food preparation. This time found us preparing food in the Johanna's house. On Tuesday, the men started putting sides on the church building, so we asked Johanna to make lunch for the men on Tuesday & Wednesday. Tuesday morning I saddled up Beulah around 8:30 and rode out to church, where I got my backpack out of the truck and headed Johanna's house. We started by frying rice for lunch. This can be quite a task, but I am starting to learn how to do it like they do and I am enjoying it. After that, she had me grind the corn for the tortillas and then mix in some water before grinding it a 2nd time. Once that was ground twice, we set it aside and starting cooking the pasta for the salad. Once that was soft, we set it on back of the stove and put the chicken over to cook. Once the chicken was cooking good, we added potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, and onions. At the end we added some ketchup. Just before the men arrived, we fried some tomatoes, peppers, and onions and tossed the pasta with that and added some cream. To top off the meal, we had fresh tortillas and soda. Around 10:00 am I rode out to the church and took some pictures and also around 2:00 I took some more pictures. After class, I helped Johanna clean up her house before riding out to church for a few more pictures. I then rode home, tired from a long, but enjoyable day.

    I was in charge of Johanna's class on Tuesday and it went better than I thought, but I was spited that Laura & Virginia could not be sitting in the class. We have started taking turns leading out in Johanna's class. It has stretched me once again as I study and teach in Spanish. It is getting a little easier to study, but it still takes time. I just asked that you would continue to remember the young girls' class that I teach. At times it can be discouraging when only a few girls come. Right now the attendance has been really poor, but I am determined to put my whole heart into it, no matter if it is 2 girls, or if it 6. Just pray that God would reveal to them their need for a life committed to Him.

        

    Featured Young Girls: The young girls in this picture are 4 sisters. ranging from 21 to 15. From left to right; Adelys, Yamilet, Noelia, & Esther. Adelys & Esther, the 2 oldest girls each have a little boy. They come from a very sad home situation. Virginia is having class with Adelys on Tuesdays. Noelia, the youngest, comes very faithfully to church. Yamilet had lived up north for a while and has come back just recently. Please pray for these girls, that they might see that there is truly a better life out there - a life that surrendered to God. Pastora is the grandmother to all these girls and is a dear sweet lady. She comes to church quite often as well. As long as anyone has known her, she has had a terrible cough, but she still comes to church. If it is a little rainy, she still comes with her plastic to put around her.

    And here are some little faces from La Palmerita. The boys on the the left are Juancito and Wilbur, Johanna's boys. On the right, the little boy in orange is Alexander, Adelys' son and the one in the red is a brother to the featured girls.

 

    This is all for today and I hope I have not been too boring.

 

    Thank you for all your prayers! I would love to hear from some of you and what has been going on in your life.

 

    Serving Our Lord in Nicaragua, Andrea

#23 New Places, New People, Birthdays, Visitors

    "What shall we then say to these things "If God be for us, who can be against us?" Romans 8:31

    As I spent the last couple days thinking and working with different people, the above verse came to my mind quite often. If we have God on our side, there is nothing that Satan can do to separate us from the God & His love. If we purpose in our heart that nothing will be able to separate us from our Lord, there is nothing Satan can do. When Satan attacks us and tries to get us to fall, we need to do just what our precious Savior did there in the wilderness - "Get thee hence Satan, for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve." Satan is doing all he can to win us to his life of bondage, but we all can have victory if we only turn to God and give our lives wholly to Him. I just leave this as a challenge to each of you. Give your lives wholly to the service of our Lord.

    The above picture is of the water surrounding the island that Johanna grew up on. We had the privilege of driving past and seeing from afar the farm that Johanna grew up on. The farm was situated on  a small island and it just reminded me of a place that would be perfect for a get-away retreat. You can't see in the above picture, but there were men out fishing.

    

 Mari Luz (Johanna's sister)    

         

Johanna's youngest sister(I do not know her name)

 

    We took Johanna and the boys to El Cua to get the birth certificate for Yeral-her middle son. We left around 6:00 on Friday the 10th and headed north towards Jinotega. The farther north we went, the cooler the climate and more then once, I wished that I had at least grabbed a sweater. We arrived in Jinotega around 8:00-8:30. Johanna wanted to stop in visit her sisters (pictured above - the one in the pink is Mari Luz and the one is the white is Johanna's younger sister; however I don’t remember her name) so we headed out of Jinotega; Johanna trying to direct us the right way. We arrived in San Rafael del Norte and we decided to stop and ask directions. Here we had missed a turn back pretty far so some police said they would show us a road that would be a shortcut. This road wound up, down, and around mountains and it seemed like we were back in the sticks. After driving for 1-1/2 hours, things started to look familiar and we soon found ourselves in the house of Johanna's sisters. We spent 1-1/2 hours with Mari Luz. She served us each a cup of coffee and a piece of bread. We left her house around 12:30 and headed for El Cua. Once again we wound up, down, and around the mountains, seeming to me like we were going farther back in and away from civilization. We stopped several times to make sure that the road we were on was the road headed to El Cua. We arrived in El Cua and were surprised to find a very nice town, almost like Malpaisillo. The roads were done in paver blocks. We found the Alcaldia (the place she needed to go for the papers) and Johanna went in while we walked up the street and found something to drink. When we arrived back at the truck, we found out that we needed to wait till 4:00 for the paper, so Randy and the boys took off exploring the town.

  

Laura & Hans on the bridge @ the river          

  

   Yeral, Wilbur, Juancito y Johanna

 

They came across a nice river so we all went down to the water and Johanna left her boys go swimming for a while. At 4:00 we had the paper and were headed out of El Cua. We left a different way then we came. After we made one turn, Johanna thought it might have been a wrong turn; however I had seen a sign for La Dalia on the road that we were on. We decided to continue on the road and after a while we came to an intersection and memories started flooding my head. If we would make a left-hand turn, the road would take us to Waslala, so I told Randy that we were on the right road, headed for La Dalia and Matagalpa. From then on, I lost tack of time. We stopped in Matagalpa for supper and kept heading for La Palmerita/El Terrero. I was never so glad to see my bed that night. However I had a wonderful day and enjoyed seeing others parts of Nicaragua.

        

Noilyn - age 8

 

     Featured Girl: Virginia and I had a little visitor the other Sunday afternoon. Noilyn asked if she could come home with us after church and spend the afternoon at our house. We had both decided to do some visiting that afternoon, but we told her she could come. She was all excited and could hardly wait to go, but not before her mother gave her all kinds of strict instructions and told her to obey. In the afternoon, we sat down and made some magnets using those little beads that you iron once you are done. She just loved doing them and made 3. When it was time to get ready for church, Virginia raided her stack of girls' clothing and found one of Janae's dresses that Esther had left here. It was a little short but fit pretty good. I then combed her hair in 2 pigtails. It reminded me of getting my sisters ready for church. On the way to church, she kept saying to me  "Si mi mama no viene a la iglesia, voy a su casa otra vez." (if my mother doesn't come to church, I am going to your house again) She had all kinds of reasons why her mother might not be able to come to church that night - maybe  she couldn't find anyone to guard the chickens, maybe she was too tired to carry Lester or maybe Lester was sick...the list went on and on. Much to her dismay, her mother was at church when we got there. I had a great time with her and I hope she enjoyed it as well. I think she did 

       

          Happy Birthday  Juan, Rosibel & Lucia

    The neighbors came up one Wednesday night to hang out after church. Virginia was decorating several cakes for the next day and she decided to decorate a cake for the neighbors that had birthdays in the August & September. So we had a feast of chocolate cake afterward. I spent several hours that evening typing a research report for Alicia. It was getting later and I noticed that she still had several pages to type so I offered to do it for her, so she would be done for school in the morning. It took a little but we soon had it done. It was great to hang out with Lucia again. Lucia is the one in the red shirt. She is Rosibel & Ramon's sister, however she lives in Managua and comes to visit every now then.

    Yes well, I shall close before I bore you all. Thank you for your prayers. Have a great weekend and serve God with all your heart!

 

Committed to Him, Andrea