#39 Birthdays, Street Ministry

In the harvest field, now ripened, there’s a work for all to do. Hark, the Master’s voice is calling. To the harvest, calling you.

Does the place you’re called to labor seems so small and little-known. It is great if God is in it and He won’t forsake His Own.

 

Little is much when God is in it. Labor not for wealth or fame. There’s a crown and you can win it. If you’ll go in Jesus’ name.

 

When the conflict here has ended and our race on earth is run. He will say, if you’ve been faithful,

“Welcome home! Welcome home! Welcome home, my child. Well done!”

 

    As I was sitting at my computer sorting pictures and preparing them for another update, the song above was playing and it challenged me in many ways – Little is much if God is in it. I know too often for me, I expect something large and grand to take place, but I am reminded that little steps are just as great if God is in them. Each change, big or small, is worth it all. May each of you be challenged to continue shining for God and serving Him wholly, even if you feel like your part is little and insignificant.

    We try to have a joint church activity on each 5th Sunday. Sometimes we all go somewhere and play games or sometimes we sing in Central in Leon. That is just what we did on the 29th. We all met at Palabra de Vida (Leon church) around 4:00 and then loaded into 2 trucks and went to Central. The majority of us gathered in a group under a large tree and began to sing. Two native brethren took “Para Ti” (Just for You) tracts and began walking along handing them out to the people that were there, whether they were street vendors or whoever they came in contact with. We had people that stopped and listened to us as we sang songs of Christ and His love for us. We had several people stop and take pictures of us as we stood there. After spending about 1 hour there, it is amazing how many people pass through. We may never know here on this earth how many lives were touched by the songs. But even if one soul was brought to the Lord, it was worth it.

    After spending the afternoon in Central, we all returned to the community center/social hall that adjoins the Palabra de Vida Church. The ladies from Leon had prepared a supper for all that had come out to sing. We had gallopinto, salad, and tajadas (fried plantain chips) and finished off the meal with a piece of birthday cake. Angie’s birthday was also that day, so Andrea B had made several cakes to help celebrate her birthday. Afterward everyone hung around playing games and talking. I helped play several rounds of Golf (a card game with Skip-bo cards) The children had fun playing with Legos and little puppets that were in the closet there.

    I spent that night in Leon as I had an appointment with an ophthalmologist the following day to open and drain a stye-like lump on my right eyelid. I had the procedure done almost 3 years ago and the doctor had told me it is highly possible that I could get them back. I didn’t have any problems, but while I was home for my last visit in the States, my eyelid started getting puffy and sore. I hoped it was just a stye and would go away. I returned to Nicaragua and it still didn’t get any better. It started getting bigger and became more irritating. Jason recommended a clinic in Leon and I went and the doctor told me what it was and that if it didn’t clear up after a week of drops and ointment that he gave me, he would need to open it and drain it. Well it didn’t clear up so May 30th found Denise and I headed to his office to have it drained. (Here’s a little cultural difference: He saw another patient before he took me into the office, however he came out into the waiting room and put in drops to numb my eyelid. Not something that you would find in the States.)  Once I was in the office, he out in some more drops to continue numbing it. Once he got started, everything was going fine till he clamped a little device to my eyelid to hold it open. My ears started closing on me and I became all clammy and I felt all panicky. I could still hear the doctor asking me questions, but I couldn’t answer. I finally was able to squeak out a faint “sí” when he asked me if I was dizzy.  Within seconds, he had my feet elevated, a fan blowing full force over me, and was wiping sweat off my face and giving me some water to drink. It scared me a little, but he was able to finish the procedure. The whole thing tired me out  but I just had to laugh when I saw myself in a mirror later on  He patched it all up with such a thick patch, I couldn’t even wear my glasses. But praise the Lord for the wisdom he has granted to the doctors. My eyelid looks normal now and it didn’t even turnblack & blue!

    The above clouds have been becoming part of the normal from day to day. We haven’t yet had as much rain this year as last year, but it rains a little every couple days. On Tuesday as we spent time in La Palmerita, we watched big black clouds coming towards us. They continued to move closer and soon Momotombo was totally hid from view. You couldn’t even see a faint outline. Wednesday afternoon as we were waiting for church to start, it began to thunder and lighten. Before church even got started, it began to pour. I had taken the children into the classroom, but it was raining that hard that I needed to shout. We tried to sing a few songs, after which I had prayer. I gave them coloring pages and whenever the rain would let up, I would tell a little bit of the story. They listened very well and were able to answer the questions. The water had begun to seep into the Sunday School building before the rain began to let up. Everything looked so fresh and clean after the rain.

    On Monday, we all made a trip to Leon. The doctor wanted me to come back to look at my eyelid and make sure it is healing properly. After my visit, I tried to call Randy’s to find where they were, but had no success. I was waiting at the San Juan bus stop, when Denise and Yesenia walked up. They, of course, wanted to know what I was up to. I didn’t have much of anything in mind, other than to get out of the rain. They invited to join them on their morning outing. I had a great time with them and we topped off the morning with a stop at La Rosita for lunch. While Denise and Yesenia studied together, I answered some emails and caught up with some friends and family.

    On Tuesday, Christine and I braved a trip to the local health center with Owen to get some of his immunizations. I had only ever visited this clinic a few times before, but was just going along and not actually being the main person to try and communicate with the nurse. The dear nurse kept calling Owen a little girl. the poor little guy received 4 immunizations. Two were shots and two were given in a liquid by mouth. Never know that you can be immunized by a liquid taken by mouth. They of course had to weigh him and measure him to make sure that he is growing.

    Tuesday was the first opportunity that we had to take Christine along to La Palmerita for Tuesday classes. Keith & Christine have a break from Spanish classes this week, so we invited her to come along with us and see what our Tuesdays in Palmerita are like. This week we only had 2 classes as one of the ladies was not at  home to receive class. I am hoping to go out on Thursday afternoon if everything works out. We were able to visit some people that we had not seen in a long time and it was great to be out there once again. I think the part that made it so much fun for me was that all the ladies (Laura, Christine, and Megan) were along.

    The other night at church Juancito was giving Franklin a ride on the horse. Little Franklin is such a happy little guy. We think he possibly has cerebral palsy. At the current time, some people are working at getting a stroller of some type for his mother to use to transport him to and from church because he is getting so heavy for her to carry. One morning I came over to the other house to find Nick and Hans trying to walk around in Jason’s boots. Nick could do it pretty good, other than when he had to lift his foot up onto the porch. However Hans didn’t have much till he was flat on his face. Nick had a birthday on June 1st, so we invited the neighbors to come up and celebrate with him. L aura made 2 cakes and we served Pepsi as well. Nick turned 4.

And once again there are some new babies on the little farm. Randy’s pelibueys each gave birth. Sombra had a little female and Biscuit had a little female and a little male. Oh and those little mothers are so possessive of their little ones. You get too close and they start stumping their feet.

That is all I have for now. The next update will possibly be late, as my parents and siblings arrive next Wednesday for a 1-1/2 week visit. I am looking forward to introducing them to my friends and show them around the area.

Until the next time! God bless!

Committed to His Service, Andrea

#38 Moving Day, Zoo

Greetings to all of you in the name of our Precious Lord and Saviour. I pray that this finds you all doing well and serving our Lord with all your mind, soul, and body.

    Each week continues to bring something new and leaves many memories behind when the week has closed. One of those memories was making a new friend. I had to come the whole way to Nicaragua just to meet a young lady, Hannah Stauffer (pictured bottom right with her father Glenn), who lives only a couple minutes from my house on Hopeland Road. And to add to that is that my dad knows her dad and has worked with him on jobs. We live in such a small world! Another happening that gave us some laughs was a truck that left us set along the road...Ooops! One Sunday afternoon we were headed to Leon for an afternoon/evening at the beach when we found ourselves stranded by the road. The problem........an empty gas tank! The gas gauge on the white truck has not worked for a while, so we had no way of knowing that we were running on “E.” We were not far out of Leon, so Richard came with the other truck and pulled us to the closest gas station (pictured top left). We arrived on the beach a little later than planned, but we were able to enjoy the water. It was such a beautiful afternoon and the water was the calmest that I have seen in a long time. Hans was a little cold after getting out of the water, as you can see, but he was enjoying the water as well. After he was all dried off, he soon got wet again. He just couldn’t seem to stay away. To finish off the evening, we made a campfire on the beach and roasted some wonderfully, scrumptious sausages that the Ephrata Menn Seniors brought along. The final touch of the evening was some songs sung by a quartet made up of the 3 senior guys and Daryl Weaver – a teacher. It was a wonderful end to a great day. The quartet also blessed the children’s class with some songs that they learned in Spanish.

    Once again, here are some more pictures of the continuous work at Randy & Laura’s house. However, as usual till I send the pictures the house does look quite different. Some of her kitchen cabinets are now on the wall. The top picture was of one of the first cabinets to be mounted on the wall. In the bottom left, Benito is laying the shower tile. The shower is now completely finished, however the water pressure isn’t the best, so hopefully in a couple weeks they well get that taken care of. One afternoon and evening, I went out to the house to help Laura finish up the painting in their bedroom and the kitchen. We finished up around 9:00-9:30 and  then got the house partially set-up so they could stay there that night.

    As you can see above, it was moving day. Randy & Laura were able to move into their house on Friday. Praise the Lord - the rains didn’t provide too much of a problem and they were able to get the majority of their things moved to the house. They still have several things here in my house that they will move once they have more cupboard space, but they have the necessities in their new house.On the one trip to the house I was on the back of the truck holding a rope attached to Ranchita – the dog, so  she wouldn’t try to jump off the truck and run back to the house. They kept her tied for several days and then they left her loose. She stayed around at their new house until the other day when we were all went to Managua. We returned to the El Tererro house to find that Ranchita waiting for us. She apparently ran home sometime during that day.  However we didn’t have such success with the cat. He jumped out the truck window as we drove down the road.

    To add to everything, Laura was making lunch for the men last Saturday and cut her finger while chopping carrots. I was in LP at the time having girls’ class, when Randy came to get me to watch the boys so he could taking her to the clinic in Malpaisillo. The poor little boys set up a wailing when their parents left, but they soon calmed down and I finished the lunch and got them down for naps. I then set to organizing and cleaning up the house. The boys were still asleep when Randy & Laura got back at 2:00. They put 3 stitches in  her finger, gave her a tetanus shot, and some oral antibiotics.

    At first, it seemed a little strange to have so many children around here in El Tererro, but now it seems like a “new” normal. One day this week, I had the pleasure of a young girl’s (Megan) help to clean my house and get it re-organized, since Randy’s moved to their new house. It is always so much more fun when you have someone to help you with it. I still can’t figure out how a house can get so dirty with one person, though it has started raining so there isn’t so much dust anymore. Little Eva kept me company one morning while her parents were in language class. I was typing some emails and she was sitting on the flour talking to me and playing with her stickers. Baby Owen has a cold, but he is such a happy camper after a long nap. He lays there smiling at everything and cooing. It amazing how much he has been growing since they have come. Babies just don’t stay little  And then Riley, Nick, and Hans – a naughty combination. What one doesn’t think of, the other one will. And I have never seen such dirty little boys – they have so much fun and they are so forgiving. One moment they can be so mad at the other one and the next they have totally forgotten what just happened.

    On Tuesday Randy’s and Keith’s decided to take the day off and go to Managua. The first stop of the day was the Zoo. I am so much a child at heart – it was so much fun to be there and see all the animals. Just seeing all the animals just reminds of the Creative God that we serve – the brightly colored birds, the elegant peacock, the spotted leopards, the striped anteaters. There is so much beauty around us, but it doesn’t even compare closely to the beauty that will surround us in Heaven. The children all enjoyed the animals as well. We had lunch at Papa John’s before heading to the Masaya marketplace to do some hammock shopping. It was a great day, but everyone was ready to get home.

    On the church end, there are encouragements and disappointments as always. On Wednesday night, we had a full church – an attendance of 60 adults and children with 45 of them being natives. I had prepared for 20 children and till all was said and done, there was 19 children in the class. There were some children there that had not been to church in a long time. It was a blessing to see them all again and to spend time with them. I always enjoy teaching so much more when there is more, even though they can get pretty rowdy at times.  

    Johana was at church on Wednesday night as well. We need to continue lifting her to the throne of grace. She came to church with her veil on, which took us all by surprise because it is the first we have seen her with it on since she had taken it off and had stopped  coming to church a while back. However she is not wearing it in the house and throughout the week. She said that she doesn’t need to wear when she is in the house. It is only when she goes to special services, such as a church service. She is so deceived and still thinks that she is not living in sin. She has told us that she has repented and wants to do the things of God. Please pray for her that she would sense her need to submit to the Lord in all areas of her life and  that she would realize that it needs to be a total commitment.

    Thank you for all your prayers! I would love to hear from some of you again!

Committed to His Service, Andrea

#37: Rain

For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:

So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void,

but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. 

Isaiah 55:10-11

 

    These verses came to my mind last night as I watched the dark clouds form and it started to rain. The parched ground just seemed to open and willingly, eagerly receive the soft, gentle rain. As I pondered the thought, I thought of the task the Lord has place before us “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:” Matt 28:19. We, as believers are called to teach and live God’s Word, and in a sense our witness is the soft, gentle rain to a dry, parched soul in need of a refreshing drink – God’s Word. I want to leave that as a challenge to each of you – Spread some of God’s rain today!

    After spending 2 weeks visiting my family and friends in PA, it was time to come back to Nicaragua. I enjoyed my time but I was also anxious to come back and get back into the grind here. On May 3rd, it was time to return and my father took me to meet Keith & Christine Nolt and their family on Linden Grove Road. Keith & Christine were also flying to Nicaragua that day as well and I flew with them. Keith & Christine have 4 children: Megan-8, Riley-5, Ava-2, and Owen-7 weeks. We flew out of BWI at 11:45. The children all did very well on the flights. One of them did get a little sick on the last flight, but all in all they did great. I was impressed on how well they all did. We were all so ready to get away from airports and airplanes. It was so great to arrive to my home here in Nicaragua.

    Please pray for Keith & Christine and their family as they adjust to life here in Nicaragua. They have already got a “good” taste of life without electricity. The electric went out around 9:00 Tuesday night and didn’t return till 4:30 Wednesday morning. It was hot and humid and hardly anyone got sleep. Some of the native neighbors also said they were unable to sleep, because of the heat. Keith & Christine have started with language school this week. They are studying here in the house and at the current time, Jason is their teacher. While they are studying in the morning, I have the pleasure of baby-sitting the children. I am enjoying baby-sitting them – it has been great.

    Randy & Laura’s little boys had great fun spending time with Keith & Christine’s children. One of the first nights they were here the boys came inside covered in dust and dirt from head to toe. In the picture above, from left to right: Megan, Riley & Nick, Ava, and Riley & Nick again, but all dirty. I think the children might go through withdrawal after they are separated when Randy’s move to their new house.

    Little by little, inch by inch the work at Randy’s house is coming along. They have several walls painted in each of the rooms. They painted the boys’ room blue. The kitchen is beige with the one wall being a green. Keith made the cabinets for the kitchen. Laura and I spent a morning sanding down the cabinets and preparing them for painting. At the current time, they are working on the bathroom. They need to clean out the well, as a cat fell into the well. Please pray for Randy & Laura as they continue to work on the house and for strength as they make the move to their new house and get adjusted to the newness.

    It has been great to be back and to get into the grind once again. It was great to see everyone again and to spend time with my friends in La Palmerita. I had an enjoyable time with the each of the ladies on Tuesday and I am looking forward to my girls’ class on Saturday. Please pray for us as we continue to work with each of the people here in El Terrero and La Palmerita.

Have a great week!

#36 Wherever You Are

Wherever You Are

Are you standing at a crossroad, wondering which road you should take

And you’re dreading the decision, and a possible mistake

But the will of God won’t lead you where the grace can’t keep you

And you will never be out of His care. Remember that the Lord’s already there.

 

You are waiting to hear thunder and see lightening in the sky.

Oh but God can work His wonders through a still small voice inside.

So keep listening and learning and continue on the journey

Just following the One who is the way. Oh, He’s the only road you need to take.

 

Wherever you are, wherever you're going.

God is right there beside you seeing and knowing.

Wherever you go, He already knows what lies ahead; what’s behind.

You’ll always find; He’s never too far from wherever you are.

 

    This song really  challenged me as we sang it several nights ago as we sat around the fire under the starlit sky. No matter where we are, God is also right there. Too often “we are waiting to hear thunder” as the song says, but if we would only stop and listen; we would hear the still, small voice that is there. I just want to challenge you to place your life in the hands of the One who knows the past, present and future. Yes, at times He does speak through the thunder, but I challenge you take time alone in quietness and listen for the still, small voice. Allow the still, small voice of the God to guide as you make the next decision.

 

  

    The picture above is a collage of random activities that we did with the senior group from Pleasant Valley Mennonite School. They arrived March 31st and spent a week here with us in El Tererro. The picture above is of the fun activities that we did with them. There will be more pictures farther on in the email of all the work projects that they helped with while they were here. One afternoon we took them out to the crater lake, Assosoca for a hike and a short swim. We spent a day in Leon with them. While in there, we toured the cathedral at Central, walked the through the souvenir market, took the ladies fabric shopping and ended the day with a trip to the beach and supper on the beach. One evening we took them to Cerro Negro to climb the volcano. We built a fire and had a mountain pie supper at the base of the volcano. A quick overview of the pics in the collage starting at top left: Souvenir Market in Central, a random pic of the girls at Assosoca, inside shot of the Central cathedral, the ocean view from the restaurant, mountain pie supper at Cerro Negro, the guys on top of the Cathedral, and the guys giving a hand to a guy that was stuck in some deep sand.

    The men have been working very steadily on Randy and Laura’s house and that has meant for some late nights. The photos in the first collage were taken while the men were fixing up several walls at the house. There were several walls that needed to be replaced. One evening we took supper out to the men. It was getting late so the boys got to take a bath in the big pila. Nick was scared and was screaming to get out. Hans however was in his glory to be able to play in the water as you can see in the picture below. The house is now totally closed in with the walls fixed and windows and doors put on.

 

    While the group of seniors was here from Pennsylvania, we were able to do a bunch of clean-up work. We ladies spent one morning cleaning up trash, taking down a mesh that was attached to a barb wire fence and raking everything together and burning it. The fellows helped a native fellow, Hector take down all the roof tiles and clean them up good. We also had some guys hauling away piles of brick junk from the old walls and then there were several who dug ditches. One morning the girls went out to the church and spent the morning staining the church house. They then returned to Randy and Laura’s house to do some staining there as well. We also cleaned the church house and Sunday school building one morning. With all the dust of dry season, it was time to once again give it a thorough cleaning. We also spent a couple mornings cleaning both mission houses there on the farm in El Tererro.

    The seniors came prepared with a lesson and activity for each of the church service while they were here. On Sunday morning they did a skit about David and Goliath. It hold the attention of the children very well. They then helped the children make bookmarks using foam stickers and also gave each of them a little coloring page. Wednesday evening they did the skit of the Good Samaritan and we had an attendance of close to 20 children. For an activity, they helped the children paint boomerangs with markers and also some more coloring pages.

    As usual, time keeps moving right along here. Each Tuesday is spent in La Palmerita. We leave our houses at 9:30 and usually do not return until 3:30 or 4:00. We have three Bible studies that are spread throughout the day. In between classes, we take time to visit other ladies in La Palmerita. Our first class starts at 10:00 and is with Mirrna. Mirrna has been attending church faithfully for the last year and accepted the Lord in March. Our second class starts around 12:30 or 1:00 and is with Lidia. She is a young mother with three children and made a commitment a year ago at revival meetings. Our third class starts at 2:00 and is at Enma's house. Enma, her two daughters Sindy and Yesnia, and her daughter-in-law Yorlenis are the ladies who make up this class. Enma and Sindy are always there for the class, but Yorlenis and Yesnia don't always show up. Please pray for each of these ladies that the Lord would continue to work in their lives and reveal to them the areas that they need to change.

    We have several new animals on the farm. The other week Randy got a Boxer puppy. One morning shortly after we woke up to find 2 small puppies on the porch and then the cat that lived at Randy’s new house abandoned her kittens. The little boys are in the glory with all the animals that are there.

    Pleasant Valley Senior Class 2011

Back Row: Jeremy Martin, Nathan Weber, and Sheldon Risser

Middle Row: Ryan Martin, Shavonnah Martin, Rosa Martin, Kate Hurst, Kendra Weaver, Mitchell Hoover, Kent Martin, and Trent Musser

Front Row: Larry & Karen Weaver, Darren & Emily and Thatcher Fox

    Anyway I think I will draw to a close. May God richly bless you all!

In His Service, Andrea

#35 Between Here and Sunset

Between Here and Sunset

Between here and sunset, there’ll be rivers to cross.

The winds may be ‘round me, my ship may be tossed.

But the pilot that’s guiding my vessel can see.

Between here and sunset just what’s waiting for me.

 

And he hold back the sun if the need should arise.

If the mountains too steep, he’ll just lower the skies.

He exalt every valley, when they’re too rough and steep,

And between here and sunset, God will take care of me.

 

As sure as the years, number thousands and more,

And as sure as the sand lies to rest on the shore,

Just as sure as the clouds roll the rain from the sea,

Between here and sunset, He’ll take care of me.

 

And between here and sunset, God will take care of me.

 

    As I watched the sunset the other evening and marveled at the beauty of it, the above song came to my mind. God will take care us, amidst whatever may come. He will take care of you and I, each and every day. No matter how long He tarries, He will take care of each of His children until He calls us all home. It thrills me to think of what lies beyond each sunset – a new sunrise. Beyond the final sunset lies a new Sunrise beyond anything human minds can comprehend. Are you anxiously waiting that new Sunrise as you serve your Saviour here or would you rather not think of it, because you have not been washed in the blood at Calvary? Or maybe you have been washed in the blood, but have fallen aside. God is waiting with open arms to receive you back into His loving embrace. My friend, I beg you, don’t delay. God is coming back! Are you ready?

At the current time, another house in El Tererro is undergoing construction. This house is located along the outskirts of La Palmerita and needs to be repaired and some walls need to be replaced. This is the house that Randy and Laura will be moving into, Lord willing, the end of April or beginning of May. Lord willing, May 3rd, Keith & Christine Nolt and family will be joining our team there in El Tererro and we be moving into the house that Randy’s are living in at the current time. The last several days the men have been putting in long hours, laying brick. In  the picture to the left, Randy and Benito were working on the back wall and getting it ready to lay brick. Since I took these pictures, they have laid the brick and put a window on the wall were Randy is standing. They have also got a nice amount of brick laid on the front wall of the house. To the right of the front of the house, they took out a door and put in a wall and window. The wall between the boys’ bedroom and the family room/kitchen needs to be replaced as well. It will seem different once Randy’s move to the new house, but I look forward to getting to know Keith & Christine and their family.

We once again had a service in Rota, the little town that is about 30 minutes from El Tererro. No one from the community came to the service. When we arrived, there were men sitting under the trees there in the middle of town, but all of the got up and left before the service was half-over. I just would like to ask you to pray for this community. Sometimes there seems to be an interest and the next time it seems as that is the last thing on their minds. The Catholic church as well as the Jehovah’s Witness have a very strong hold on the people there. Pray for us as we relate to the people and search out God’s will as we minister to the community. The picture to the left is of a little girl and her brother that walked past us while we had the 

service. They were returning from buying some bread at the little venta. My heart went out to her and I wished I could have taken her home and given her a bath. And of course the other picture is of people coming to the town well to fill the barrels with water for the next day or next several days.

    Last evening after church, the children was in the mood to play. The children’s class was finished before the adult’s class so Laura & I played “Flying Dutchmen” For those of you that are not familiar with this name or game, I will give a little explanation. You all stand in a circle facing in and holding hands. Someone crosses under another person’s arms until the entire circle is facing out and then you run in a circle as fast as you can and try to stay connected. The ones that let go and fall are out of the game and then you make a circle with the rest of  the people and continue the game until everyone has fallen and is out of the game. We played several rounds of that. (and my arms are very sore this morning.) After that they got a lively game of soccer started and that went on for a while. A bunch of lively 8-14 year olds playing. They eventually chased the ball around the church house and had quite a lively game, but they didn’t appear to be as tired out as I was  Julio joined in the game for a while and gave them some competition.

 

And of course some pictures of the growing little boys. I was recently looking at pictures from when I first come to Nicaragua and saw how much some of the little children from La Palmerita have grown, but then I looked at pictures of Nick and Hans and they have been growing just as much as all the other little children. I took these pictures while playing with them on Monday evening. It was fun to spend time with them and interact with them. I think they had just as much fun as I did 

 

Anyway I think I will draw to a close and get this email sent to you all. Have a great day & may God richly bless you. A thought to ponder – What are you doing with your time “Between Here and Sunset”?

 

In His Service, Andrea

#34 A Spiritual Birth...a physical birth

What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nice in the wilderness,

and go after that which is lost, until he find it? And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing.

And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbors, saying unto them, Rejoice with me;

for I have found my sheep which was lost. I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth,

more than over the ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance. Luke 15:4-7

   

    This verse has come to my mind so many times in the last week. First I read it in my personal devotions one morning and was abundantly blessed and challenged. Sometimes you wonder if you are making a difference in their lives and then the Lord sends this blessed reminder that the angels rejoice over the one that repents. I was reminded by a the father of one of my friends & a pastor from my home area that those that fall away are not rejecting me. They are rejecting the Lord. We are just His laborers and so often we forget that. Then Brother Wendell Heatwole used this passage in his message on the first evening of revival meetings as He was explaining the love of the Lord. I was blessed to be at the service and look forward to attending several more before the week is over. Lastly – but most important, we rejoiced to hear of another soul that has committed her life to the Lord. The lady is pictured to the right with her father after her graduation this past November and lives in La Palmerita. Her name is Mirrna and at the current time is living with a man that has also been attending church and has recently accepted the Lord as well. We had been visiting her when we would go to La Palmerita on Tuesdays and Laura decided to approach her to see if she wanted to study and find out if she is a Christian. She told Laura that she had just recently accepted the Lord one day while reading the Bible. They desire to be married. Please pray for Randy & Laura as they counsel with them and pray for Laura & I as we begin studying with her on Tuesdays and as we relate to her as sisters in the faith.

And since we are talking about a new spiritual birth, I would like to announce a newphysical birth. We, of course ask that you pray for the mother. Her name is Yamileth and is not a Christian. She at one time had accepted, but has fallen away and has not been living victoriously. Please pray that the she might realize her need of the Lord and His strength to raise her daughter. Tuesday, a week ago, when we arrived in La Palmerita, her mother stopped us and asked us if we would be able to take Yamileth to Malpaisillo to the clinic, as she had been to the local clinic and they told her to go to Malpaisillo. We quick went and canceled classes for the day, because we weren’t sure when we would return. We returned to her house and waited about 15-30 minutes until Yamileth and her mother were ready to go. We took her to Malpaisillo and dropped her off because she still had a little bit to go. We returned to Malpaisillo the following morning and found out that she had been transferred to Leon around 8:30-9:00 on Tuesday evening. We went to Leon for the night and Thursday morning we tried to find them in the hospital in Leon, but without success. Thursday night we received a call from her mother wanting us to pick them up, but when we arrived, we found out that the nurses were refusing to release the baby, because the night air could make her sick. Friday morning we made a trip to Leon and waited for them to come from Leon in the bus. We waited for close to an hour before they arrived and had to make a stop at the clinic and also at Terminal to buy some things before we headed back to La Palmerita. Yamileth had a little girl early Wednesday morning. At the current time, she weighs about 6 pounds and her name is Belkyn Vanessa.

    We once again have a “big snake” story; however I will immediately comfort those of you who remember the story of the boa that was killed almost 2 years ago and was cooked and the staff attempted to eat it. We DID NOT eat this snake! I am not a fan of snakes, and definitely not a fan of eating them. We killed this on Friday afternoon. We had just returned from taking the neighbor ladies to La Fuente and we had dropped them off at our gate, as they said that they would walk home. However, they very quickly changed their mind when they saw this snake in the road. They told Virginia to drive over it with the truck, which she did several times until Laura arrived with the machete. Virginia  parked on top of it while Laura proceeded to cut off the head. It is guessed to have been close to 8-feet and we think it was a boa constrictor. It was nice and fat and had appeared to have just eaten something, whether it was a chicken we don’t really know, as none of us had the nerve to get it open. That is the closest I have been to a boa and I still am convinced that I don’t like snakes! That was enough of excitement for a while. I don’t look forward to seeing another one anytime soon.

    Once again our Wednesday evening children’s class is quite small. At the current time, we only have about 10-15 boys coming and it is usually some of the same boys each night. Sunday mornings are usually anywhere from 5-10 children and can sometimes vary from Sunday to Sunday. The picture to the right is the Sunday morning class. Tonight I had to wonder if I was getting anywhere with the children. It took a while to get them settled down and then only about half of them really paid any attention to the class. I don’t like to bribe them to make them behave, but sometimes that is the only thing that will calm them down. If they know that they won’t receive anything after class if they misbehave, they can be such little angels, but then sometimes that doesn’t even help.            

    Below is a collage of snapshots that were taken in the last week. Some of the people may be familiar faces, but others may be new faces.  The lady in the top right is Sylvia and with her is her growing son. He is getting so big, but it seems like just yesterday when he was born. Sylvia is not married, but lives with a young man named Pablo. Pablo used to attend church very faithfully until he went north and found a girlfriend. Once he returned from the north, he stop coming to church. However on Sunday Sylvia was there and tonight both Pablo & Sylvia came to church. The center picture is 3 little children from the clan, known as the “ratas” or thieves of La Palmerita. They showed up after church on Sunday because they wanted some pictures taken. The top left is Yorbin and he is the son of Lidia. Lidia accepted the Lord at revival meetings in July 2010, but at times it seemed like she could care less about studying and growing in the Lord. I was blessed and once again encouraged as I sat in on her class on Tuesday as she asked for prayer, because she realized that she has failed as a Christian and desires to grow more like her Savior. She is still living with her man – Casimiro. Please pray for us as we relate to her and instruct her in the Christian walk. The man in the lower left is Cidiaco. Up until November, he had been living with Maria. They had a child together that is now about 2 or 3. His name is Franklin and he appears to possibly have cerebral palsy. However he has never been tested so that may not be an accurate diagnosis. Franklin can’t stand on his own and is very floppy and doesn’t talk. Cidiaco has a tendency to be drunk and Maria finally had enough of it and went north the end of last year. On Tuesday while we were in La Palmerita, he appeared up at Johana’s house and one of her boys took this picture. He was actually sober that day, which I believe was the first time I have ever seen him sober. I have seen him passed out, stone drunk on the ground so many times. The little boy on the bottom right is Juancito, one of Johana’s boys. We stopped in to see her when we went to La Palmerita on Tuesday. She is not a happy woman. She was at church last Wednesday night, but has not returned again. I just ask that you would say a special prayer for each of these people in the coming week.

 

I think I shall draw this to a close. Thank you for your prayers! We feel them as we work with people from day to day. God bless you all as you strive to spread His Word in your own special way.

 

Until the next time, Andrea

 

PS. As mentioned in the last update, I plan to visit PA in April. However I wrote the one date wrong. It is April 20th to May 3rd. I look forward to seeing some on you then!

#33 Lord, Let Me See the People

Lord, Let Me See The People

Lord, let me see the people. There’s so many now in need.

Lord, let me take a message. Let me plant a seed.

There’s someone now that’s hurting. They’re broken deep inside.

Oh lead me sweet, sweet Spirit in your love let me abide.

 

Lord, let me see the people. Lord, let me see the people.

Lord, I’m just a steeple pointing to the sky.

Let me go where they are hurting. Cry when they cry.

Lord, let me see the people. Lord, don’t let them die.

 

Lord, let see my neighbor. There’s so many that I love.

Lord, let me be a blessing. Lead me Holy Dove.

There’s a baby somewhere crying. There’s a broken-hearted lad.

There’s a mother that is missing and a home that needs a dad.

 

Lord, let me see the people. Lord, don’t let them die.

 

    As different events took place in the past several weeks, this song came to mind many times when I was wondering “why.” It is my heart’s desire to see the hurting ones and to be there for them. The last verse matches the story of the little boy on the top-right in more ways then one. Many of you may recognize him from many other emails. He is Yeral, the middle son of Johana (Just a refresher for some of you that may not know her – she is a young mother that has had contact with the mission for several years. This past June she was baptized and received as a member of the La Palmerita congregation. However she no longer is faithful and has been living with a young man.) On Tuesday, the 15th, we ladies all went to La Palmerita for our normal day of classes with different ladies. While Virginia was out inviting children to an afternoon of activities & games, she found out that Yeral was running a high fever and one of the ladies made it sound as if he was seriously ill. Johana had left on Saturday the 12th, and left Wilbur-11 & Yeral-10 in La Palmerita. She told them she would return on Sunday the 13th. However on Tuesday, she still had not returned. After our classes, we decided to go see if we could find Yeral. We found him in the neighbor’s black plastic shack. When Virginia called his name, he responded calling my name. We found him in the back corner on a cot. He was running a fever and seemed a little delirious. After talking it over, we decided to ask him if he wanted to go to our house. Without any hesitation, he said “yes.” He told us that he had a headache and fever when he came home from school, so he had walked to the clinic. They had given him some pills but he still had a fever. His fever was 102° - 103°, so we gave him a Tylenol and some juice. We brought him over to our house as Randy’s were headed to Managua. It took him a while to relax and so we asked him if he wanted to listen to some music. He was out in 10 minutes. He slept for several hours and he still had a fever when he woke up. We gave him an Ibuprofen. When he woke up at 9:00, he seemed much more himself and was hungry. We prepared some supper and then he went off to bed. He had no fever the following morning, so Randy took him back to La Palmerita so he could go to school. Wilbur told us that he did not go to school, because he started running a fever again. Johana returned sometime Wednesday afternoon. As I helped take care of him, I asked myself how she could leave her sons like that. They are so young and still need their mother’s love and care. Please pray for Johana that she might she her need to recommit her life to the Lord and be the godly mother for her boys.

To the left are numerous photos that were taken over the course of the month. The top-left picture is of Melvin and Yolisabet. This picture was taken the day of Melvin’s birthday. Yolisabet is some relative of Melvin – I don’t know exactly how. The center picture was taken on a Wednesday evening. We have been having rather small classes once again. Some times we don’t have more than 10 children. This particular evening our lesson was on Bartimaeus. My friends brought a cute little craft to go along with the lesson. The top-right is of my 2 girls in my Saturday morning class. It has been great to once again have class and to interact with the girls. I look forward to those classes very much. We are studying through the book “Lies Young Women Believe & the Truth that Sets Them Free.” I am hoping that a few more girls will start showing up for class. The bottom-right is Johnny and his two sisters. The one on the left is Connie and the one on the right is Blanca. Once in a while they will come to church. Connie is the mother of twin girls that are a little over a year old. Blanca has been invited to the Saturday girls’ class and I hope to see her soon. The bottom left picture is a morning that we spent cleaning at church. It took us several hours to clean everything good, but once it was done it looked so much better. We took all the benches and table out into the grass to wash them.

    We decided to do a daffy supper with the church members and the ones in instruction class from both congregations on the 5th Sunday night of January. It was held at Randy's house and we were in charge of coming up with place settings. It made for an interesting time of preparing. We had a supper of garlic bread, spaghetti, and a lettuce salad. We had some very unique place settings, such as an ice cube tray with a straw for water, a dish with mixer beaters for plate & silverware, small dish with a knife, large Utz popcorn container for water... We all got some great laughs trying to eat our food or watching someone else with their setting. We served dessert on normal plates. After supper we had several games going – Dutch Blitz, Uno, and maybe some others – I can’t remember. Most everyone was a good sport and did their best with what they had.

    We were invited to the 1st birthday party of Marcia. Marcia is the daughter of Maria Luisa – a lady from Malpaisillo. Maria Luisa attends church in La Palmerita on Wednesday  afternoons. She made a cute pink dress and hat for Marcia to wear at her birthday party. It was a typical Nicaraguan birthday party, complete with music, food, and a piñata. She served us plates of party rice with a tortilla and a soda. One thing that the Nicaraguans tend to do is throw the little chicken bones in with the food they are making. I was aware of this and was trying to watch out for bones. 

However a little piece got missed and I soon found myself with a chicken bone stuck in my throat. It took a little bit, but after a while I was able to get it dislodged. I had a sore throat for the next several days. There was a nice amount of children and they all were having great fun trying to break the piñata. After the piñata was broken, they came around and handed out little bags of candy and crackers to each of  the guest. They then served a small piece of cake to everyone before they left.

    On the 19th of February, three of my friends – Karen Gingrich, Audrey Martin, & Michelle Landis, arrived to spend almost 2 weeks here in Nicaragua. I was blessed to have them here and we made so many memories while they were here. It was great to be able to spend time with them and catch up on their lives and the things that they are doing this year.

    On Friday the 11th, we girls went on a day trip to Managua and surrounding area with Nathan Miller’s family. We started out the day by going to the CAM base, then to Mount Zion Bookstore, before heading to the Masaya Marketplace and Volcano.We also did some fabric shopping in Masaya. We had a great day and all had red noses & arms from riding on the back of the truck that day. We finished off the day with a stop at Pizza Hut in Managua.

    While the girls were here we also spent a day in Leon. We went into Leon of the 5:45 bus. Delmar invited us to his house for a good breakfast before we started our day. We then emptied our backpacks at Nathan’s before heading to San Juan to do some more fabric shopping. For lunch we went to a small Nica restaurant , before catching the bus to Nathan’s to rest before we went to the beach. We headed out to the beach around 3:00 and just hung out for a while before heading back to Leon. We stopped at the taco place and bought take-outs for supper.

    On Valentine’s Day, we invited the neighbor girls to the house for supper and a party afterward. We had a delicious meal prepared by my guests. The appetizer was a tortilla spread with cream cheese & strawberry jelly and rolled up and cut in pinwheels. The main meal consisted of rolls, ham balls, cheesy potatoes, cucumbers & carrots with dip, and applesauce Jell-O. After supper we played several rounds of Dutch Blitz. It is a new game for the neighbors and so it took some time trying to teach them how to play. We served dessert around 9:00. Dessert ended in a cupcake fight. There was cupcake on faces, on the floor, and I don’t know where else. Before they left, Rosibel wanted to iron her skirt as the following day was her first day of school.

    One day we cleaned all the kitchen screens and windows. Everything gets so dusty & dirty right now. Some evenings we would sit down to some games of Dutch Blitz or Skip-bo or maybe we were just having fun sharing past happenings or laughing at comments.

    The Friday before the girls left, we planned an afternoon of activities for the children in La Palmerita. We were going to start at 1:30, however it was later till we got started due to transportation problems. Randy’s had gone to Masaya with his folks so we were without a truck. We decided to take 3 horses and 2 bikes. It took me some time to catch our horses and get them saddled up. Randy’s horse refused to allow me to put the strap around her tail. So we saddled her as best as possible before heading to Angel’s for the 3rd horse. They saddled up Rojo and Michelle mounted up. As soon as Virginia let go of the horse’s head, the horse went crazy and tried to throw Michelle. She was able to stay on the horse, but had a very sore foot for several days because he ran her up against the side of the house. It was 1:30 till we ever left the house. We arrived at church shortly after 2:00 without further problems. There was a few children there, but soon a few more showed up. We played water games with then, tied a balloon to their feet, and had a water battle. Most everyone was drenched after we finished the water battle. When it came time to leave, we all saddled up and prepared to head out. I had a tight rein on Randy’s horse when we were riding to church; however on the way home she wanted to run and I couldn’t hold her back. We weren’t far from church, when she came to complete stop. Flat-out running + instant stop = laying in the ditch, covered with dust. I had to wait a while before I could even try and mount her again. I was able to make it home without further incident. Some of us were sore for a couple days afterward. It was a great day in all and it was great to be able to spend time with the children.

    On Saturday night we invited the neighbor youth over for a pizza party & soccer. After supper, we did some unique games before sitting down and playing card games. They all hung around for a while  that evening. It was great to spend time with all of them.

 

Anyway that is a slight overview of the past month. It has been a busy month, but the Lord has been with us and has given us strength for each day. Thank you for your prayers and continue praying. Your prayers are felt in each and every day.

 

For those of you who may not have heard, I will be in the States between April 20th and May 5th. I hope to see and spend some time with some of you.

 

God bless each of you in your work!

 

In His Service, Andrea