Our first ministry trip into Nicaragua went well. It began several weeks ago fixing the old kia. Welding the frame , fixing CV joints, bearings and a rack and pinion. After 4 failed attempts by a machine shop to seal up a leaking steering rack, by Sat night we just cut the belt and commited to drive it without power steering... Think tired hurting arms after a thousand or more pot holes. Why the old kia? It has tags and legal paperwork... still waiting on lic plates for the new kia and Nic will not allow it to enter without tags.. Our American visitors head north to the airport with Jr and we(Me, Lisa, Jenny, Carlos) head south to Nic for an outreach and plead with Gov. officials for permission for medical team in Febuary. The road south is very bad. After just 10 miles of potholes the front end of the kia begins squeeling like a bad bearing... We pray and press on. Hard to miss them when it is hard to steer. Pick up our Nic counterparts at the border and keep going. The journey takes us close upa nd all the way around the large still active San Cristobl volcano that is alway in view. We can see it from Choluteca. First stop Chinendega. Health officials rudely deny our request for a medical team. Undeterred, we press on to the city of Leon. Visit the other two locations and receive a very warm welcome with locals. Leon is a quaint clean city with a Mayberry/Norman Rockwell feel to it and baseball is popular. Where children play in the street and everyone sits outside where it is cooler. Kind of like I remember Fla. was when I was a kid. Fewer TVs and unlike Honduras, we never saw police anywhere other than a couple of cars pass by. Even the bicyclist obey the street laws(thousands of them. many are 3 wheeled pedal taxis) As we drive around the first two churches seen? Mormon and JW.. hmm. There are a half a dozen large 200 yr old historic catholic buildings. After a quick check pulling tires to see if a wheel was falling off the locals made lunch for us. Then the still squealing Kia becomes a bus and we make 3 trips picking folks up for a movie and preaching time at an impromtu side of the road location near property we might plant a church. The local news shows up and interviews Carlos and films the entire activity. 2 adults and 13 children come forward for salvation. I lead a very humbled man named Victor to my Saviour. Afterwards he asks about his family and I shared with him how he was the God ordained leader in his house and how to begin teaching them out of the bible I also gave him. Several come forward just asking for prayer. I found this very telling. We take everyone back, pack up and arrive at captian Juan's home to sleep. He gives us his home for the night and goes to sleep with neighbors then returns early to make breakfast of fried tuna sandwiches. We take an early drive out to the beach and see the Telica vocano smoking a bit the whole way. Beautiful ride and we see the LORD in so many ways. We return to Leon and go to visit the ministry of health. It is the fifth time pastor Ruis and Captian Juan have requested permission. They again say no until Lisa steps in as the American rep explaining things and eliminates all objections. It takes an hour but in the end we got the approval letter. There is strong objection in Government officials toward the USA because they feel the US just treats Nic as a garbage dump... It has been 30 years but you can still see a remnant of old soviet presence. Cuban cigars and russian vodka can easily be had russian tractors sold and working fields. Our captain knows russian, and a few very old russian 4x4 trucks around. But mostly kias, japan and USA cars on the roads..and lots of 3wheeled bicycles...hard to miss them with slow heavy steering. Almost no big usa names on signs, no fast food places. But US goods are readily avail. Coke candy ect.
The previous night our captian tears up with joy as we talk about the friendship between our Nic pastor and the US preachers who visit. And how we have preached on the Honduras military base with both USA and Nic preachers who were once enemies. I learn more details about our preacher's old wounds and we drive by where he was shot by a US aircraft. We also take time out to visit a lawyer to see the requirements in starting a ministry in another country. It is very much like Honduras... just need money as usual. Hoping to set things in motion when we return in a few weeks so we can accept the property to start the church on. We have to create a Nic entity and get residence visas. A great door is open and I see 2 church plants in the near future if the LORD provides. One in a very poor neighborhood and the second in an industrial area with several factories and new gated communities surrounding it where hundreds ride their bikes to work in the mornings...amen. We arrive back into Honduras with a still squeeling Kia and all wanting to rest...Everyone was in agreement... the LORD was pleased...amen
To our northern friends... It was 95 again yesterday but wind chill made it feel like 92. This photo page was Tue morning devotion time looking at God's picture book. He spoke loud and clear what His will is. Mon night we slept without airconditioning and I got a mosquito bite on my toe that woke me up to read my bible at 4am...Little things...
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