Twenty-one people representing 6 Vineyard churches, 3 countries, and multiple personalities hopped in 2 vans on December 2 headed for Managua, Nicaragua. Our mission: build relationships, construct a roof for a church plant, have a Christmas party for the children, do the work of the Father. We had a few snags getting there...like a flat tire in the middle of no where...
But once we got back on the road we were all fine. We got pretty comfortable with each other in the vans. Most of us got really comfortable, too.
Like any good trip, we came well prepared. We stayed well hydrated and fed.
We were a little worried about crossing the boarder, but Tito made sure the way was clear.
We did have to walk between the two countries. It was quite an adventure, but at least we had our walking shoes on.
We went right to work.
Even the children pitched in to lend a hand. We removed all the bricks from the walkway and stacked them over to the side. Several large holes were dug and metal poles were welded together. This was preparation for a roof.
We met lots of wonderful children. They even taught us how to take leaps of faith.
We bought some toys for the kids for Christmas.
We shared the light of Jesus with the poor.
We saw some knock-offs...
We shared our hearts with each other.
Life definitely moves differently in Nicaragua...take this one horse power engine, for example...
Or what this lady uses instead of a shopping cart...
Or another way to avoid sitting next to someone who smells on the bus...
I also kept getting strange comments about my height. Like I am tall or something.
But I did finally find some one taller than me to hang out with.
There were many things to think about. For example, we parked our vans IN the church (postly because there was no street parking, or safe parking outside. Oh yeah, and almost everyone walks to church, there was only one other person with a car.) I wonder if I would have ever walked to my Vineyard in Michigan because I didn't have a car...
In one of our prayer walks we found this family. The baby has a food allergy to rice. She has huge welt-like rashes all over her body, her hair is frail and brittle, and she is sick all the time. When I asked her mother what she eats, her mother said rice and beans. They have no money to afford milk, fruits, or vegetables. It absolutely broke my heart to think that this child could be healthy, but there is a complete lack of resources.
These people live in plastic-bag shacks near Managua.
God did show up in awesome ways, too. For instance, a small group went on a prayer walk and met a woman who had terrible cellulitis in her legs. She told us she had dealt with significant pain in her legs for years and they were very swollen. We prayed for her and God healed her legs. All the pain left. She started yelling to her daughter, "My legs don't hurt any more! The pain is gone!" Praise the Lord!!
Overall it was an amazing trip. The friendships and relationships that we built will continue to grow.
