Our journey in Nicaragua ends today… but the mission does not. This is something we train and press in to all of our mission teams. We are not missionaries because we go on a mission trip, but simply because we are followers of Christ. He has saved us and sent us on the mission to make disciples wherever we go. For us, Nicaragua just happens to be one of those places. We tried to squeeze every opportunity for ministry –…
Today is a day that I look forward to every mission. It’s our team visit to prayer at Sister Ruby’s House of Prayer. Ruby has since passed away, but her legacy and ministry lives on. What a mighty warrior of God through prayer she was. Her mind was sharp, her witness bold, her love for God deep and prayers powerful. And her house stands as a bastion of hope in a neighborhood that needs hope and also a welcome place…
Many of the team (we won’t name names) we a bit excited to know that today was the last full day of construction. But we started off by praying for stamina and for the endurance to give our best and finish well. We had a good amount of projects left incomplete and a few new ones we were hoping to tackle. But this meant a significant investment in hard work. Which also meant being hot and sweaty. Which then leads…
We are closing in on the home stretch of the mission here in Nicaragua and we think our bodies are letting us know. After full days of construction, it does get a bit harder to get up in the morning knowing we have another full day ahead of us. But God is good and kept the Nicaraguan air conditioning (breeze) going all day long. Which felt good, but masked the fact that most of us are getting quite crispy in…
We were off and running for our first full day of construction. Knowing that we are a “combo” team means that everyone does both, but most certainly has an affinity for the camp & kids or for the construction & work. But we always remember that God uses and needs both on our team and that it what it is like to have different gifts and passions, but serve the same God and mission. When we arrived to the Ranch,…
It’s hard to believe that we have completed a week down here in Nicaland. As usual, the time seems to go by far too quickly, but today provided a much needed Sabbath rest and break from our routine. After a very full and exhausting week of camp and construction, we now were able to take a day to rest and recharge. All of our mornings, post-breakfast, we gather as a team where one of our students leads us in a…
You can never fully prepare yourself for the last day of camp in many ways. First of all, the excitement, fun and activities (namely the waterslide) are like sensory overload. We arrived and prepped for all the activities of today and then shortly after, the kids arrived. Nearly every camper we had this week came back to participate in our big camp finale. We start with a rigorous hike – but worth every step – up to Chapel Hill. This…
We are settling into a bit of a rhythm here with camp and construction. Our schedule is still a bit sandwiched with starting the day working on our construction projects (while the kids are in school) then taking a break for lunch and getting camp going, only to finish camp and do a bit more construction before heading back. Today was officially, the last day of camp. Those are always hard words to write and to realize, however, we do…
It’s peaceful down here while I write these blogs each night. The students have all crashed and I usually sit under the stars enjoying a nice breeze and listening to the crickets and other creatures of the night. And even though we are working hard, this mission does bring us rest and renewal. And I can personally attest to how necessary this is for my life. Mission Nicaragua always comes on the heels of back to back camps (high school then middle…
Today was our first full day of camp and so the bus ride was mixed with prayer, preparation and a bit of nervous anticipation. We came rumbling up the dirt road to make the turn into Ruby Ranch only to see about 30-40 kids waiting at the entrance off the main road. We were a bit stunned as (1) this meant we had to hit the ground running and (2) we never start with such a big crowd ready to…