Nica News

Day number four on the mission field here in Nicaragua was a success! Our day began with a devotional by Ryan which was out of Isaiah 52:7 and Matthew 5:13-16. Ryan reminded us about our call to mission and about the blessing that it is to be able to go into the world and share God’s story with both out words and actions.

After another delicious breakfast, Rob and Kim went to the radio station to share their testimonies. Rob also preached briefly over the radio out of Ecclesiastes, explaining that all of the pleasures and wealth we can acquire in life are meaningless with regard to having a relationship with Jesus.

Once our speakers returned to Casa de Shelly, we went out to the because we care farm. During the morning we burned brush, gathered some hay and helped clear the field of sticks and stones. Later after lunch we traveled to the village of Esperanza where we were passing out food, medicine, toys and connecting with the villagers.

Some of our highlights from our time in Esperanza include Daniel, Zach, Rob, Jesse and Jon played a game of soccer with a group of very talented young men, they lost! Jesse is shocked that they were able to score even one goal against the villagers. Additional I got to have a conversation with Pastor Ray about how the church plant in Esperanza is going. Pastor Ray told me that seven people were baptized last year and two have already been baptized this year. It was encouraging to hear about the work God has been doing in the village.

On a more serious note, we also observed much brokenness in Esperanza. We saw very young children whose stomachs were bloated from hunger and malnutrition. There was also an eighteen year old girl who was handicapped and only had a makeshift wheelchair, made out of a lawn chair with cart wheels screwed on. Rob also saw one little girl who was born without one of her hands and he observed she was obviously lacking the medical attention she needs. As we reflect on the brokenness we saw, we are constantly reminded of how blessed we are. Our team is also reminded of God’s sovereignty and we are thankful that Because We Care Ministries is here in Nicaragua. Their constant presence can only improve the lives of the villagers as they work to reduce the harsh conditions these people live in and, most importantly, by sharing the gospel with them.

As we returned to the Casa de Shelly we were again able to pass out clothing and candy. Upon returning we each continue to reflect on God’s work here, and the lessons He is teaching us through our time here. Additionally, this evening at Casa de Shelly, Ryan was able to play soccer with some neighborhood children. It is always a blessing to see how all people, regardless of age, language, race, culture, or any other barrier, are able to connect when we show His love through us.

Tomorrow will be another event filled day! But we cannot praise God enough for allowing us to be a part of his mission. Please keep Aletheia College Park in your prayers as we continue to serve as the hands and feet of Jesus here in Nicaragua.

Hola amigos! Today was hump day! It hard to believe we are already half way through our trip. We cannot thank God enough for giving each of us the opportunity to be here to serve. It is truly inspiring to see God at work in Nicaragua.

Our day started with a devotional from Rob. Rob read out of Colossians 1 and reminded us that we serve because Jesus is King, because of the mission of the King and out of gratitude for the King. After the devotional Daniel, Ryan and Jon went to the radio to share God’s impact on their life. Don also included a beautiful message about what a disciple of Christ looks like.

Once the three of them returned to Casa de Shelly we departed for Pascuala where we were again repairing and painting houses. Today Zach, Daniel worked alongside the homeowners and got to paint the houses a vibrant watermelon color. Meanwhile the rest of our team was able to interact with the local children through nail painting and soccer.

After this we returned to Casa de Shelly for a lunch break. During this time we also prepared what Zach calls “Santa Sacks of Sustenance”, which are bags filled with cooking supplies, sugar, coffee, flour and other food supplies. We then loaded the bags in a truck and we brought them with us when we visited the village of Pajuil in the afternoon.

While in Pajuil, we did many of the same activities we have been doing for the past two days including medical ministry, serving food, and entertaining children. We also got to pass out the “Santa Sacks” and clothing. Pajuil is a newly discovered village for Because We Care Ministries so it was a blessing to be with them and show Christ’s love through our actions. While we were in the village, Kim and Rob shared the gospel with a large majority of the people living there. Please be praying for the relationship that is forming between because we care and Pajuil and that the people there will come to know Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

Some of the highlights from the afternoon include Jesse and Zach got to play soccer with some young boys, however, someone accidentally kicked the ball into and beehive which interrupted their game. Luckily no one got stung! Additionally this afternoon, the doctor was able to see sixty five patients, which is about twenty more than normal! Rob met a group of women who were listening to Ryan Adams and he was able to use the love song as an opportunity to explain Christ’s love to the women. Lastly, while in the village I was able to have a lengthy conversation with a boy, his name is Steven, who was also visiting family in the village from Costa Rica. We talked about a variety of topics, one of which was about why I was in the Village. I was able to explain to him that I was on a mission trip with my church and he told me about the churches in his home town and the missionaries that visited his home. From our conversation I was reminded of how big God is and also have vast His mission is.

Lastly today Kim was able to finish an irrigation system on Because We Care’s property which will be extremely beneficial to the agricultural program. As the day closes out we are joyfully anticipating the service opportunities, God moments and chances we will have to show God’s love for the remainder of the trip. Keep us in your prayers!

Hallelujah!

January 14, 2014

Today is a day the Lord had made, be glad and rejoice in it! Aletheia College Park has made it through another exciting day here on the mission field of Nicaragua!

On this lovely, sunny Tuesday, Daniel began our day with a devotional in Romans 12. He reminded us to use our bodies as living sacrifices to God. With that in mind, we began another day at work as the hands and feet of Jesus.

Shortly after breakfast Danielle, Daniel and Ryan all went to the radio station to share their testimonies. However, the power went out before Daniel and Ryan were able to share! Even so, we know that God is in control and they are both excited to share about God’s work in their lives tomorrow!

After returning to Casa de Shelly, we departed for Pascuala to help repair and paint two more homes. During this time we were also able to build relationships with many of the local children. During this time, Ryan, Jesse and Danielle taught the game “ninja” while Jon and Rob played soccer.

Once we finished repairs on the house we returned to Casa de Shelly for lunch and after that headed back out a village called La Carreta. This village was further away from where we were staying, so we ended up driving for about 45 minutes before we arrived. While driving our group saw much of the beautiful landscape, many mountains and country hillsides, all reflecting God’s glory. In Carreta we collectively participated in medical ministry, serving food and fellowship with the villagers. One highlight while in this village was that Zach was able to teach many of the young boys how to make paper airplanes and had a paper ball fight in the village.

After leaving La Carreta we began the trip back to Casa de Shelly. On the way back we stopped to get “coke in a bag”, which was definitely refreshing after such a hot day! On our return we were also able to pass out clothing and candy.

As another day on the mission field closes, we ponder upon the people we met and served and the blessings that God has given us. We are now resting and preparing for the villages will visit tomorrow. Please keep us in your prayers!

—

Dr. and Mrs. Donald M Gillette
PO Box 14132
Roanoke, VA. 24038
WWW.BWCM.ORG

Today was Aletheia College Park’s first day on the mission field here in Nicaragua! After a long day of travel yesterday everyone was excited to get our hands dirty and serve!

Our day started at 6AM with an awesome devotional by Jon out of the book of Colossians. We were reminded that the work that God had called us to do both here and in the United States is under God’s sovereign control and we are just his servants. With this reminder we began our day of service.

Before breakfast we helped cut boards which we used later in the morning to help repair some houses in the Village of Pascuala. Shortly after, Zach and Jesse got to share the beautiful story of God’s redemption on the radio and thousands heard the gospel message through them.

After their testimonies, we headed to Pascuala to repair and paint some homes. It was a pleasure to be able to serve and to spend some time with the people in the village both through work and by playing soccer. A beautiful picture of the gospel could be seen as both our team and the villagers worked side by side with nothing in common except Jesus.

After a much needed lunch break, we headed out to the Village of Laredo where members of our team were all able to serve in different ways. Collectively we were able to do medical ministry, pass out food and play with many of the children in the village. God was truly at work blessing both our team and the villagers. Some of our stories from the afternoon include Ryan got to pray with a large group of men and Rob played Frisbee and shared the gospel with a group of children. The most impactful event that happened to me, Danielle, was that I was able to talk with a group of girls, even though I am not very good at speaking Spanish, these girls were so patient with me and they even shared the gospel with me! When coming here as a missionary I was expecting that I would be the one doing that! It was amazing to see how the people here are being impacted by the gospel and take God’s word to heart.

While traveling to and from Laredo we were able to pass out candy and clothing to people on the side of the roads. It was an exciting yet humbling experience for our team.

That’s pretty much what happened today! We are excited to see what God has planned for tomorrow! Please be praying for us!

You would have thought that climbing up the mountain yesterday to Cacoa and worshipping up there with them would have been the pinnacle of the week – but you would have been wrong! Today was very clearly the pinnacle of the week.

While our friends had freezing rain in Roanoke, we went out into dry, dusty 93 degree weather after devotions and breakfast. We took the passenger racks out of the rear of the truck (our ever-ready ‘burro’!), then went down the lane outside of Casa de Shelly and filled it with all the trash we could pick up along the street.

This is how Christ asked us to love our neighbors today.

Then a few of us drove to the garbage dump for Somotillo and unloaded the garbage – and handed out Manna packets to a number of the children who were working through the trash. Near the end, some of their mommas also came out from behind the garbage mounds and we gave a box of Manna packets to them to distribute to some of the others who did not come out to the truck. (I know I was tired today, but it was easier to cry today than any other day.)

A little later, because the local jail gave us permission to speak to the prisoners, we were able to tell them about the love of Jesus as we prepared a pot of soup for them. They are almost completely at the mercy of their family and friends to provide for them; we got the impression the jail would not be giving them very much. As I shook hands with all of them and prayed for them, my closing comment was, “Don’t lose heart; trust the Lord to be able to change the trajectory of a man’s life.” A few of the men literally burst into tears when I encouraged them to not lose heart. There was woman who was being held in a separate cell who had been picked up the night before and our women were allowed back to talk with her. She responded to the gospel. We gave them multiple bowls of soup but still had extra so … back to the garbage dump to hand out the rest of it. Mostly children and one mother were on hand to get a hot bowl of soup.

Our final service opportunity was to drive about 20 km up to the village of OJoche. This is a charming, well-ordered village with good leadership and a strong church. We spent the remainder of the afternoon loving on these people, playing volleyball, stickers and fake moustaches on the children, talking with everyone, serving soup and playing a good, long game of “Cato, Cato, Pero” , a verison of our “Duck, Duck, Goose.” O yeah: and we had a difficult time changing a flat tire which Don says is only the third time in all these years that they’ve had a flat while out on mission.

Our hearts were overflowing as we drove back to Somotillo and I think we unloaded an awful lot of love in each of the last items of clothing and candy that we gave out along the road.

Sometimes God said, “It was good.” But today, “It was very good.” It was a very good day to be on the mission field! Thank-you for your prayer coverage of all that we did today.

We began our day with a wonder devotional on the Ministry of Reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:11-21). It is truly our privilege to be a part of God’s plan and to be a part of what HE is doing. We then we spent some time in group prayer lifting up several individuals we have come in contact with this week as well as for the events of the day. After breakfast we headed to the base of Cacao and began our ascent to the top. Armed with candy and oranges, we engaged with local residents throughout our journey. Once we reached Cacao we spent time playing and engaging with the children. We then shared a wonderful time of worship with the community and Pastor Santos while Pastor Tom Oster shared the message. Pastor Santos then blessed our team and the entire congregation shared their love and appreciation as they embraced each of us individually. It was such a sweet special time that we shared with them prior to our descent. After a few mild tumbles and minor sweat bee stings we made it to the bottom. Dirty and dusty but blessed beyond belief from the events of the day. Looking at our dusty feet at the end of the day I was reminded of the example Christ set by washing the feet of his disciples. I would imagine the dirt and dust that would accumulate on their feet was very similar to today. After our devotional this morning, it all wove together beautifully. We serve an amazing God that demonstrated his love for us in the most sacrificial way possible. God doesn’t need us-He allows us to be a part of His most wonderful plan.

After a long travel day yesterday and a good night’s sleep at Casa De Shelly, the missionaries woke up ready to serve today. After morning devotions and a great breakfast, we all loaded up into the back of the big white truck (praise God for the repairs!) and headed out to Pascuala where we continued upgrading and painting the homes of the village. As usual, we had help from the people of Pascuala at all 3 homes and lots of work was done in only a few short hours. The team also got to engage with the kids playing a variety of games including: frisbee, football, duck-duck-goose (or as we called it here, “gato-gato-perro”), bubbles, stickers, temporary tattoos, fake mustaches, etc. All in all, it was a great morning spent being the hands and feet of Jesus. We returned to the mission house for a quick lunch and then some team members rushed off to the radio station where we have been asked to do radio broadcasts each day at 12:30. Steve, Sam, and Tasha all shared very different but equally powerful testimonies that people in parts of 3 countries must have really enjoyed. When they returned from the radio station, we were off again to spend the afternoon in another village known as La Fragua. We were very busy all afternoon as the mission team divided and conquered with each person using their God-given gifts to engage and serve God wherever they could. For instance, we set-up a medical station and the local doctor as well as a doctor on our trip treated dozens of children with a variety of ailments. Others served by helping cook a big pot of chicken stew that fed the entire village of ~200 people. Others painted fingernails, played games, and handed out bags of food. At the end of the day, lots of people in Nicaragua (and everyone on our mission team) was touched by God who used His people to draw us all closer to Him.

Nica News 12/31

Happy New Years Eve! The team kicked off the holiday with a second visit to Principe de Paz radio station. Our two youngest members shared scripture verses and reached listeners in Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Honduras. Three other team members shared their testimonies and all in the radio station and at Casa de Shelly joined in on a beautiful rendition of “How Great is Our God.”

The team returned to Pascuala in the morning, getting the chance to reconnect with many of the villagers from yesterday. Work continued on the houses, with many participating in painting and reinforcing concrete board. While some were working on the houses, others engaged the children with games of Frisbee, duck-duck-goose, and follow the leader. The team also painted nails, coloring pictures, and did puzzles. The team enjoyed the fellowship with one another and the community.

After a hot morning, the team gladly returned to Casa de Shelly’s air conditioning and Mama Maria’s world famous chimichangas. Team Leader Mark Tanis was especially excited for this delicious treat! It was a great chance for our team to take a break, rest and recharge, before heading out for the afternoon.

The team loaded up on candy and black bags full of clothes to distribute and began the nearly 40 minute journey to the village of San Francisco. Once we arrived, practiced hands set up the necessities for cooking food, seeing patients in the medical clinic, and unloading 50 Manna bags. These nutritious bags were given out and will feed a family of six for a week. The recipients were overjoyed at the gift, and this met a huge need within this community. Our clinic saw more than 70 patients, mostly moms and babies. Many were well and just wanted the reassurance that they were healthy. Those who needed medication were provided with free medicines.

While food was prepped and patients were seen, Team Leader Tamalyn engaged the children with a beautiful skit about the need for Christ in our busy world. Using children as actors she challenged a blindfolded boy to pick out the voice of another children representing God. The challenge: all the other children are shouting his name, as well as God. The boy cannot hear God’s voice amidst the noise. Tamalyn gracefully described the need for Christ to bridge the gap between God and man. After a lot of laughs and a powerful message, the children prayed together.

The ride home from the village allowed team members to distribute items to the outlying community. Many came to the roadside as the gringos drove by, full of smiles and expectation. Clothes and candy were passed out, and the team returned home with an empty truck and full hearts. It was a great way to spend the last day of the year!

After a great breakfast, some team members shared their testimonies and a song on the local radio station. It was a true blessing to the locals as well as the other missionaries and all who listened enjoyed hearing about what God has done in everyone’s lives. The mission team then spent the morning in Pascuala and the 14 missionaries and 5 interpreters all stayed very busy. Some fixed and painted homes in the village while others engaged the kids of Pascuala with frisbees, footballs, fingernail painting, stickers, coloring, kids’ jewelry, and lots of fun. We used all of these activities as opportunities to share the Good News whenever possible. After lunch, we headed back out and made a 45-minute drive to a new village called “Sweet Name of Jesus” where we spent the rest of the afternoon. In addition to more fun and games with the boys and girls (you could hear their laughter and joy from all around), we took a doctor with us to do medical and many children were given the medicine and vitamins that they badly needed to treat malnutrition and parasites and other ailments. We also cooked a hot meal for the entire village in a huge pot full of fortified rice, vegetables, and chicken. After Donald used a Man/God/Jesus skit with 3 boys in the village to explain how we all get everlasting life with God, we fed the 150-200 villagers. On our dusty ride back to Casa De Shelly, we distributed lots of donated clothes and shoes and hats and stuffed animals and other goodies – as well as lots of candy – to the Nicaragua people on the roadside. Christo te ama!

Today was a great day on the mission field. We bagan the day with Radio and the whole team sang Ten Thousand Reasons. Like the song states when my strength is failing I will keep on praising. The team is growing a bit weary but it has been a great week. After radio ministry Richard and Mike and David Clark our missionary from Living Stone continued to use their welding skills to help a young couple in need of security doors and windows. The ladies went to the special needs school which is always a treat for us. We shared the gospel message through song, salvation bears and a scratch craft. While waiting for lunch we walked through the new clinic building which will be a blessing to so many in the near future. After lunch we ministered in a village which was new to Suck Spring Church. The village name was La Perla . This was indeed a real jewel with very sweet people some of whom walk miles to attend Prince of Peace Church. The doctor saw many sick children. Rose painted nails and engaged the children. We distributed necklaces and bracelets. Jordyn and Michaela entertained the children with balloons. Donald gave the salvation message and several ladies prayed to receive salvation. We made stew, handed out food packs, oranges and caramello. The rain held off and it was a great day on the mission field. With sad hearts we leave Somotillo until we meet again.