As reported in our last post from El Viejo the team left Marshal Poe in Nicaragua until his flight on Wednesday. Marshall arrived home safely yesterday and has sent us a few more photos from the continued work in El Viejo. As you can see in the photos the wall being built at the front of the church for security is almost complete. Marshall also visited the church in Esteli Nicaragua which was where Pequea sent two teams in 2008. He sent back two photos of the inside of the church in Esteli where they have now built a platform.

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Thank you again for all of you who have supported us through this experience whether it was financially, through prayer or in words of encouragement. Keep the team in your prayers this week as we process and adjust back into the American culture. Continue to pray for Marshall Poe who stayed in Nicaragua to work with the local pastors and prepare for an upcoming missions team from Canada traveling to Nicaragua later this month. Also please remember to pray for Sugey in her ongoing medical healing. Pray for Pastor Marvin and the church in El Viejo. At our farewell service we promised to uplift this church in prayer. May we remember them often in the coming months and years to come.

If you are interested in attending a short term missions experience to Nicaragua be sure to check out our Nicaragua page online by clicking here. Be sure to fill out and submit the Go Global missions application.

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Soon after we said goodbye to Sugey we arrived at our hotel in Managua, unloaded our luggage, checked into our rooms and prepared for our coffee plantation trip. As you can see by the photos below the change in scenery was quite drastic from what we had been experiencing throughout the week. Our drive to Marshall’s son Keith’s coffee plantation was about one hour of uphill driving. It was apparent as we climbed the hills the difference in climate. The temperatures were much cooler, the humidity was gone, and there was a constant breeze. We arrived at the coffee plantation and Keith immediately proceeded to tell us a bit of background on his purchase and upkeep of his small coffee plantation. The group got a brief lesson on how to pick the coffee, careful not to damage the crop for an upcoming bloom. Some of the team wore a traditional basket used by Nicaraguan coffee harvesters. Although in January there is not as much coffee to pick we were still able to feel what it was like to hunt for coffee and harvest it. After about one hour of working we reconvened to see how much we had picked. The coffee was dumped into one basket that we couldn’t even fill. Keith explained to us how one filled basket would equal 50 cents (US) in wages for a Nicaraguan worker. It was a shocking thought for many of us. He explained how a good picker would be able to fill about 7 baskets in one day.

While we ate a simple meal for lunch at Keith’s house he continued to explain how coffee is grown and handled here in Nicaragua. Keith then explained how they process the beans. From the time the beans are harvested until they are ready to be consumed, it takes about one week. In rapid form (skipping the beans soaking and drying) the team was taught the entire process. We started by removing the pulp from the bean and separating the lighter immature beans from the mature beans. We were then showed how the beans were cleared from any parchment layers surrounding the beans. Meanwhile Keith was brewing a fresh pot of coffee he had picked just one week ago to share with the team. We were all so thankful for this experience. Through our time with Keith we got a glimpse into something completely foreign to many of us and and idea of what it is like to be a worker in Nicaragua.

Tonight we enjoyed a meal at the hotel in Managua and had our final debriefing time as a team. It would be fair to say that the team is quite tired in so many ways. Daryl probably put it best tonight when he shared how we made the most of every opportunity we had throughout this entire trip. We got up early, worked hard all day and went to sleep late. Many of us needed to adjust to eating different food, working in the heat, adjusting to the language barrier, sickness, and living amongst the economic challenges of the region just to name a few but, together as a team we accomplished our mission which was to share the love of Christ with the people of El Viejo Nicaragua. We are thankful to so many of you who have been following along as we blog our experience in Nicaragua. Many times it is hard to express the moments and feelings we have each had in words or through pictures. Our hope would be that you each have seen how sharing Christ to the entire world can happen in real and tangible ways. May you challenge yourself as we have, to seek out God’s plan for you as you share the love of Christ with your neighbors, family and friends.

Tomorrow the team will leave the hotel at 5:00 a.m. for the airport. Our flight out of Managua is around 7:00 a.m. We will fly through Houston on our return to BWI tomorrow evening. Please pray for the team as we travel tomorrow. Pray for the team as we make our flights and move through customs and security in the airports. While many of us have tried to ignore your comments on the chill of Lancaster we will soon be home with all of you cold people! Look for another update tomorrow acknowledging our safe return and any additional stories.

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This morning a few of the team members wanted to get to the job site early since we were only scheduled to work until noon. Manny, Dan, Daryl, and Geoff taxied over about 1 hour before the rest of the team. When we arrived the tin was in place on an entire half of the roof and the other side was being prepped with more welding and some painting. Dan and Manny continued to get over there fears of heights by helping to paint the welds. On the ground the rest of the team painted the remaining tin for the roof. The rest of the morning we saw the remainder of the second half of tin being placed on the roof it was an exciting feeling knowing that we were going to be able to accomplish putting on the roof.

Since about mid-week Antonio insisted that we would all plan to eat under the roof on Saturday for lunch around one big table rather then outside spread across multiple tables. So, just as lunch was being served the final piece of tin was put in place and we all took a break for lunch. After lunch the team spent time with our new brothers and sisters from Nicaragua and prepared for the afternoon baseball game.

Tonight the team attended a farewell service. While Sugey, never made it to the service since she needed to remain in the hospital, the rest of the team did make it to the service. Some of the team sang “Open the Eyes of my Heart Lord” in Spanish and later in the service everyone was invited on the stage to personally speak the the church in El Viejo. We each took just a few moments to share our thoughts on the week. Common themes included thanks for the food, hospitality and Love that had been demonstrated to us throughout the entire week. The people of El Viejo truly showed selfless love towards us and it will be something we will soon not forget.

While what happened at the baseball game was truly unexpected and really shook us up emotionally we as a team really needed to pull together. Through this experience we have all grown closer together. The entire team is now exhausted from a very long work week and quite and emotional day. We are sad to say goodbye to the church and the people we have met here but we each have lifelong memories and experiences to take home with us.

Tomorrow the team will wake up pack the van, eat breakfast and head for Managua. We will unload our suitcases at our new hotel and travel to Marshall’s sons house to experience a coffee plantation. We hope to spend a few hours exploring what it is like for an average Nicaraguan to work and eat on a coffee plantation. Many of us are looking forward to this experience. Keep us all in your prayers as we will be doing a lot of traveling tomorrow. Pray for us as a team as we process all of the many emotions we are each individually feeling. Look for another post tomorrow night from Managua internet permitting!

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The team enjoyed yet another wonderful meal prepared by Pastor Marvin’s wife Maritza and her mother Ramona. Today we had chicken, beans, rice and an orange cantaloupe drink freshly squeezed this morning. After lunch almost everyone was involved in preparing the children’s ministry. Geoff, Daryl, Kate and Dottie blew up balloons while Lea, Kelly, Dan and Sugey prepared for the final bible story and craft. About 45 kids joined us for the Easter story and making of salvation bracelets. It was a great afternoon! It was sad for us to think that we were saying goodbye to some of the community kids who will not be joining us for tomorrow’s farewell service. Shortly after the children’s ministry, we headed back to the hotel a little early to do some shopping. By the time we left the church, nearly half of the tin on one side of the roof had been put in place. We are anticipating that by tomorrow morning all of the tin will be on one side of the roof.

Later this afternoon the team spent some time shopping for souvenirs in downtown Chinadega. Geoff, Daryl, and Kate got boots. Some of the rest of the team got pottery, coffee and other small things to bring home. When we came back to the hotel we had some a time of prayer and devotions. Manny, Kelly and Sugey headed into Chinadega for some food while the rest of the group taxied over to “Paradise” for dinner and live music! The culture of Nicaragua and it’s music has inspired a few of the team members to take up Salsa dancing thanks to Manny’s instruction. In fact as this blog is being typed, they are dancing up a storm!

To answer a few questions from the blog: Luisa, Abigail, and Perlita (from Esteli) are doing well. They actually live just 5 or 6 blocks from the church in El Viejo. They are attending Luisa’s father’s church where he is the pastor. Indeed there were chicken’s in the tree. The chickens were actually perched for the night during the evening worship service. Sugey is doing a wonderful job translating and none of us have heard a single Canadian “eh”, sorry Dale.

Tomorrow a few of the team members are going to leave early for the work-site since we will only be working until lunch tomorrow and they are really motivated to get as much work done as possible tomorrow. Antonio (the foreman) really wants us all to eat under the church roof tomorrow for lunch. After lunch the team and most of the teenagers and kids we have been connecting with all week will play a game of baseball. Manny is especially excited about playing baseball and many of the teenagers are very excited too. Tomorrow evening we will be back to church for the farewell service where we will hear Pastor Marvin preach for the first time. The team is learning a few worship songs in Spanish and are hoping to sing them tomorrow night at the service.

Thank you for your continued prayer support and comments! Please be in prayer for the team tomorrow for continued safety and health. Pray for us as we say goodbye to the church family we have met here in El Viejo.

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All around, today was one of the most productive days construction-wise since our arrival. Part of the excitement was because we were really able to see progress. When we arrived on site this morning Victor and Antonio had already placed the two end trusses and were getting prepared to run a straight line string across the church. Throughout the rest of the day the team got the remainder of the trusses in place. Daryl, Victor, and Antonio welded them in place. Manuel, for the first time in his life tried welding. Victor, the expert on-site welder gave Manny an A grade! We will have to trust the grade because it was translated through Manny himself!

Those who weren’t helping in the church placing the trusses continued to paint. Today they spent the day painting the tin roofing. From a painting perspective this was much easier then the previous painting we had been doing all week. They got a lot of the tine roofing painted!

In the afternoon a group of about 35 children arrived for children’s ministry. Today’s story was on Daniel and the Lions Den. Dan played the character of Daniel while Sugey told the story and Kelly and Lea, dressed in Lion costumes, played the role of Lions. The children absolutely loved it! The children made sock puppet lions to take home. Dan and Sugey organized a crowd roaring “baloon game”. Both the adults and children absolutely love this game! The two remaining boys got so anxious to use there hands Dan and Sugey had to tie them behind there backs.

Later in the afternoon the team rushed home to get cleaned up to head back to El Viejo for a church service. Tonights service included worship, prayer and a message. During the service Sugey, Lea and Kelly sang the children’s song they have been singing all week with the kids. Later in the service Daryl preached a short sermon while Sugey translated. Sugey did a great job translating the message even though she was very nervous. After the service the team went for dinner and headed back to the hotel for debriefing, devotions and prayer.

Tomorrow morning we will head back to the work site to continue the work on the roof. Please be in prayer specifically for Victor who will specifically have the most dangerous job of welding. Pray that we will continue to develop stronger relationships with the children, workers, and people of the church. Please continue to prayer for the teams health and safety. Enjoy the photos!

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At lunchtime Antonio (the foreman & co-pastor) invited us back to his house to visit. The whole team took this opportunity to walk back to his house. Antonio was not even a part of any church just three years ago and has since become the associate pastor of the congregation. In October of this last year at a church event his 18 year old son was hit by a car and killed during a 10 minute break in the church event. This is still obviously something that is fresh in his mind. Antonio is married and has a younger son William who is also helping out on the work site with painting. Antonio’s house (which he built himself) is much larger then most houses in Nicarauga. Antonio’s home seems to be a bit nicer then most homes we can see by walking and driving and even includes a plantano (plantain) tree. The team was thankful for this experience and Antonio was honored and happy how we took time to come back to hiss house.

At 2:00 p.m. each day we hold our children’s ministry. As reported yesterday we had over 50 children in attendance. Today however we had closer to 15. We are not sure why there was such a significant drop in attendance, whether it was through mis-communication or something else. Although it was a small group, it allowed the team members an opportunity to connect on a one-on-one level. This was refreshing and was successful in a different way then numbers alone.

This afternoon we left the job site and headed back to the hotel to get cleaned up and re-energized. By 5:30 p.m. we were walking to the BIC Church in Chinandega (the town where our hotel is located) on our way to a Birthday Celebration for the Pastor. The construction at the Chinandega BIC Church was started through a team from Pequea Church. Marlin Groff was one of the team members. It was a special moment for him to see the work that has been done to the church since he left it a few years ago. We met a few church members at the Chinandega church and were led to Pastor Herman’s house for the celebration. The evening was definitely a special moment for the team. Pastor Herman opened his house for a time of worship and celebrating his birthday. For Marlin it was emotional reconnecting with the people of the church. For Marshall it was emotional because of his long standing relationship with Pastor Herman. For Manuel and Daryl it was a connection through family members who had previously helped at the church. The entire team, even through the barriers of language, could feel the overwhelming love pouring out from this body of believers. We left encouraged and excited about the impact this church is having, and will have on the community.

Tomorrow the team will head to the work site in the morning to continue painting and constructing the trusses. In the afternoon we will not have the children’s ministry at El Viejo church but we will be taking our ministry on the road to the El Viejo church plant. Pastor Marvin has told us to expect at least 50 children. Most likely some of us will leave to help with the children’s ministry while others continue the work at the job site. We will also attend a time of worship at the church right after the children’s programming. Pastor Marvin and a lot of his church members travel each Wednesday and Saturday to the church plant to have church. They are truly planting this church together. Continue to keep us in your prayers for safety and good night’s rest. Thank you again for all of your comments! We have been reading them each night, so keep them coming!

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We arrived at the El Viejo church to find many of the church members preparing for the construction. Daryl, Marlin, Geoff and Manny took their places inside the church to work on welding. Manny stepped up to the primary translator for this project (which he admitted was sometimes difficult, since he didn’t even know the English construction terms!) The guys were pleased at the way they worked so smoothly with the foreman and his workers. They found that there was a lot of “give and take” and they tried multiple techniques to find the best way to do things. The foreman, Antonio, is also the associate pastor of the church.

Jeremy, Kelly, Kate, Dottie, Dan, Sugey and Lea spent the morning painting steel beams for the trusses. It was challenging at times to try to coat the beams while conserving the watered-down paint which wanted to drip off the beams. We were assisted by Pastor Marvin and some elderly men and adolescent boys from the church. Throughout the morning, we enjoyed watching and smelling our lunch as it was being cooked in the same area we were painting. One woman from the church did most of the cooking from a two fires-a campfire and one burning out of barrel which had been cut in half. When it came time for lunch, we enjoyed an enormous amount of food that was delicious. It consisted of cabbage salad, fried chicken, platanos (fried plantains), rice and fresh squeezed fruit juice.

Soon after lunch, we were bombarded by over 50 children! Pastor Marvin had announced that the children’s ministry would begin at 2:00 pm, and they arrived promptly. Some even came by busses! They ranged in age from toddlers to adolescents. Most of the team participated by reading the Bible story (Esther), playing soccer, helping the kids make foam crowns and maintaining the crowd. You can be in prayer for us that we manage and find more supplies, and figure out better ways to communicate with the children as we continue to serve and love them.

There were many interesting events throughout our day at the church. We were able to learn some of the stories of the people we interacted with. One event that shook us up was when a young boy from the church went into an epileptic seizure, most likely triggered by the brightness from the welding. As soon as his seizure began, many adults and children from the church hurried to help him. Pastor Marvin embraced him and held him until the seizure ended. It was awesome to see the unity and care within this body of believers. Please continue to pray for this boy as he struggles in this way.

Just to confirm-it is incredibly warm here, and we love it! We hear things are slightly cold back at home! The heat did get to a few of us, so please pray that we would use wisdom in taking care of ourselves as we work in the heat.

We left the church around 4:30 pm and headed back to the hotel for showers and rest. There was no church this evening, so we headed out on the town of Chinandega. In town we found dinner. Some of us ate at a local food chain while Manny Sugey and Kelly found some food from the local food stands. We came back to the hotel to debrief and read the comments from the blog. Thank you all so much for your words of encouragement! Keep them coming. Later, some of the team walked the streets in town while others just relaxed and headed to bed early.

Thank you for your continued prayer support and words of encouragement. Everyone on the team is holding up well, even the older team members! Tomorrow the team will again be working a full day at the church in El Viejo. In the evening we will be visiting with the Chinandega Brethren In Christ Church. Pastor Herman is celebrating his birthday and we are invited to his house for a celebration. Marshall Poe has been asked to give a sermon.

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