El Salvador: Reaping the Harvest

We had just left a home visit and basically floated to the truck given the events of the previous 30 minutes when this man, Nephtali, who had hitched a ride with us earlier, came sprinting to the truck as we were ready to pull away.

His smile was effervescent.  His demeanor overflowing with joy.  It was such a shock that I took this picture because when he was riding with us before there was really no emotion....yet here he was talking a mile a minute and very, very excited.

As Marguerite (pink shirt in picture and another leader from Enlace) told us what he was saying, all the pieces started coming together.

30 minutes earlier we had been in a young couples home far down the hill.  They had the cutest little girl you could imagine (about 2 years old) and another baby on the way.  We were there to deliver food to them from the local church.  They were not believers in Jesus but were willing to talk with us.  The pastor spoke with beautiful stories connecting everyday things with Jesus and what it is like to have a relationship with Him.

The husband said it bothered him that some of the people he knew who said they were Christians acted so badly.  And the pastor said there are plenty of sinners in church but the decision to follow Jesus is a personal one because in the end God asks each of us to make a decision about his Son.

A team member felt at that time it was important to say something he had prayed before coming to El Salvador.  He knew these home visits were going to happen, and he knew that even though God wants to have a relationship with everyone, it would be impossible for the team to meet with everyone in the community.  So, the team member prayed for God to direct the team to homes where the people in those homes needed to hear that message RIGHT NOW....the message being that God wants to be in relationship with them.

So, that message was conveyed & translated by Marguerite with the final statement being "Jesus sent us from thousands of miles away so that you would know that He loves you and wants to be in relationship with you.  The home we are standing in is your home.  You are the person he wants to hear that message right now."

The pastor talked a little while longer in Spanish with the man.  Then he and his wife both accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.  We all laid hands on this husband and wife and prayed over them.  As happened Sunday, this prayer isn't one person praying and everyone else listening, everyone is praying out loud over this couple.

It was just incredible to be a part of this moment where multiple languages are being prayed over this couple with one message of Thanksgiving being sent up to God.  IT WAS AWESOME.

We then headed up the hill a ways to an older couple's home, gave them food from the church and started talking to them about God.  This older couple seemed resistant as well but as the Pastor talked they started to open up.  The same kind of message as outlined above was stated by our team and then the man said he has been an alcoholic his entire adult life.  That he wanted so much to quit but never could.

AND IN OUR GROUP were two men who battled alcoholism most of their adult lives, had tried every AA type program, in treatment programs etc but nothing ever worked.  They always went back to the bottle.

Each of these men accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior and allowed Him to invade their hearts.  Once that happened to each of these men, these lifelong addictions ended and neither one of them has touched alcohol since then.

When our team members gave their testimony combined with the knowledge that God wanted them to hear this message right now, both of these older people committed their lives to Jesus Christ.  This experience had a dramatic impact on both of the men on our team as they were able to see directly how their struggles for so many years were finally being used for good to bring others into the Kingdom.

We walked out of the house and a team member said "it's all because of Jesus!" and about a minute later AJ (who was in a backpack on my back) said as we were walking up the hill to the road "It's all because of Jesus!" and everyone just laughed and there was so much joy.

We got to the car and were speaking with the other team about all that had happened and were just about to drive away when Naphteli came sprinting to the car and began to joyously, excitedly talk to us.

The young couple had been his sister and brother in law.  The old couple was his mother and father.  He explained that he had been praying for 8 YEARS that they would come to accept Jesus Christ and TODAY WAS THE DAY!

He said when he walked into his parents home he saw joy on his father's face for the first time he could remember.  Awesome.  Just awesome.  One of the best experiences of my life.

We went to another home where Naomi told us her story, listened to our story, and she too committed her life to Christ.  Tears were flowing now from various team members as the blessings flowed.  The seeds had been planted by many before us leading to this day.  We had the privilege of reaping the harvest.  Glory to God in the Highest!

Team Marguerite with Naomi

I asked the Enlace team what happened next for these new Christians?  And they said that the Pastor of the local church would come and visit each personally.  Then they would be connected to small groups in their area to continue to grow in their walk with Jesus.  Amazingly, the local small group actually meets right there in the older couple's home!  They have a good sized home in a good location and even though they didn't believe before today they allowed their home to be used for these meetings.  Needless to say, all of these individuals will be connected into that small group and I'm very hopeful for each of them.

Please pray for their continued growth in Jesus Christ...just pray for Naomi + Naphteli's sister, brother in law, and parents.

One other comment as a dad....at the end of the day we talked about all that had gone on that day.  Even though V and S had not been in these homes, I was so impressed with how it still impacted them and what they had to say about it. My greatest prayer is that each of my children will truly give their hearts to Jesus and live their lives in His Name.  I see growth in each of them and I'm excited as a dad to see how they will continue to grow.

Other Memories from the Day:

• The last home visit was to a Catholic leader in the community.  She has been so encouraged by the growth in faith in the community and all the good works that have been going on the past 5 years.  She was just wonderful and showed the girls how she sews with a machine her mom handed down to her.  

• We visited a coffee processing plant this morning that employs over 400 people from the local community, saw how coffee is actually made, tested, and sent out to places as far away as Jordan, Germany, and Canada from this factory.  We spent time with the 'taste tester' of the plant (great job if you love coffee) but he was very, very proud of his job and took it very seriously.  The coffee lovers bought coffee including some for people back home (yes, Ron and Nathan your coffee is on the way).  
• There was a LONG delay in actually buying this coffee which was very odd.  The finished coffee was all around and we had the cash ready but for some reason it took about 30 minutes to finish the transaction (which should have literally taken about 30 seconds as everyone who was buying knew exactly how much they wanted and there was only 1 flavor here).  We assume this delay had its purpose because we met this woman carrying ice cream up the mountain on the way to our work site.  We stopped to give her a ride and then when we reached where she was going we asked "Can we buy some ice cream?"   And she said 'yes'....and we bought pretty much everything she had.  Her prices were so inexpensive we overpaid on purpose and I'm certain this woman had one of her best business days ever and a story for the kids that night.  

• We got to the work site very late as a result of all the delays BUT we ended up being incredibly efficient with how we worked together (another lesson learned) and got the work done that we needed to get done.  The house is starting to take shape...

Finally, I just love our little guy AJ.  I think it is safe to say that he is the greatest 2 year old Missionary to ever visit these hills in El Salvador!

El Salvador: Building Relationships by Building a House

Enlace is an organization that links churches together both from the US to El Salvador as well as within El Salvador itself.  Walter, one of the leaders, is with our team this week and he said one of the key principles behind how Enlace works is that they want the local church (and thus Jesus) to get credit for everything.  So, they work in the background and take no credit for things that might happen in various communities based on what they have helped 'link' together.  It is a beautiful and humble principle to live by and even more wonderful to see in action.

Walter said something important to our group on Sunday night.  He said "Tomorrow you will start building a house for a member of the community, but what is more important are the relationships you build.  It is those relationships that Jesus uses in His own way to further His purposes.  The relationships are the most important part of the week."

I'm really glad he said that.  Our team member Chris was without question the first person to start breaking the ice with the kids.  His knowledge of Spanish + his fantastic, outgoing personality with kids got things going early on.  Then AJ started making friends, the Salvador kids let their guard down, started playing tag with the girls, climbing trees with whoever would climb, learned how to play the card game 'Uno' (much fun), and finished the day with a game of soccer.

If building relationships was the purpose of this trip, we are off to a very good start!

Chris got things going with the Salvador kids

AJ joined in and was a big hit as the day progressed

You know your child is playing hard when one of the Salvador kids says "He is very dirty!"  And he was...

The tree climbers

Rachel and Emily making lunch with the ladies (the Salvadorans had never made PBJs or Ham & Cheese Sandwiches)

New best buds

UNO!   Since we are in a Spanish speaking country should we call it ONE?  

I know this looks like S is kicking the Salvadoran kid, but she really wasn't (I think)

Sorry Phil, wide left.....

V, Walter, H (ps Walter was REALLY good)

Hey, who's that guy in the red shirt scoring a GOOOOOOAAAAAALLLLL!  

The Soccer Crew! (notice AJ holding the ball ;)

I might add as well that Emily mentioned at dinner tonight that the relationships built with the Salvadorans was great, but she also valued the relationships being built within the team itself.

Oops, didn't mean to post that one ;)  But in all seriousness, we are forming some great relationships here on the team as well....

Richie & Andrew

AJ Phil Rachel

Look at those PIPES!  Not bad for a 60 year old dude....

Let's see, what else happened today.....oh, yes,.....we made some pretty good progress on the house we are building!

Site near the begininng of the day

Direct quote from Walter "Sarah is a hard worker! She is like a machine."  And she really was an incredibly hard worker all day.

Just before lunch.  

Best looking laborer....EVER ;)

The Girls left their initials in the concrete they helped pour earlier in the day

End of Day

Most of the afternoon, we dug trenches for the cinder blocks that are in the foreground and then we had to take about 4 inches off about half the floor to level it out.  We were thinking we worked pretty hard and then I asked "Did you all bring in a machine to dig this site or do it all by hand?" (notice the hill is dug out and at the highest point is about 7-8 feet high).

I knew the answer as soon as the words left my mouth.  Of course they dug it by hand with the same pick axes and shovels we had been using to clear a wimply 4 inches!  Chris, Phil and I just kind of stared in awe at the sweat that must have gone into clearing away all that hill and leveling as much as they did.  Anyone who says the poor aren't hard workers is a fool.

The house itself costs around $6,000.  It is being built for a single mom who has 4 kids.  Her brother loaned her the land (it it right next to his home)  In fact the entire area is filled with homes belonging to this family passed down from a large parcel 100 years ago to smaller parcels and homes now.  Her brother also helped us throughout the day building the house.

Here is a view of the area where the house is being built.  I don't know how to put pictures together and overlap.  I just took 3 pictures left to right and you get the idea.  The house is over on the far right.

Other Memories from the day:

• We were a little goofy this morning.  The trucks were late so we did some team building exercises including cartwheels (hilarious), hand stands (some better than others...AJ got the biggest laugh) and upside down push ups.  
• Richie nearly passing out from heat (literally looked close to death), camped out in a hammock for a couple of hours, and then came back to not only work at that the end of the day but also scored 2 goals in the soccer game.
• Richie's moving devotional tonight based on Romans 12.
• AJ tears (while trying to be brave) at having to ride solo with the driver in the truck with his car seat.  We figured out a way to get Rachel up there too and he was happy
• Swimming pool after we got back.  We were filthy and it felt AWESOME.
• AJ learning to effectively splash
• I have a ton of video of the kids playing.  It was really endearing to watch all the kids play.
• AJ wanted to work so he got a trowel (which he called a little shovel) and helped move concrete mix from one area to another.

Sunday in El Salvador

Yesterday we had an 11 hour bus ride from Nicaragua through Honduras (and the drug searching police & dogs) and arrived in San Salvador, El Salvador around 3pm.  The rest of our team from our church in the USA arrived around 9pm and we were set to go this morning.  One point of interest...our last night in Managua there was a wedding with loud music until after midnight....and of course the place we stayed last night also had a wedding with loud music until after midnight.  Sigh.

Woke up to a great breakfast and saw some old friends from Enlace (the organization we partner with here in El Salvador).  Here is our team just before we left for the 2 1/2 hour drive to our hotel in Chapeltique, El Salvador.

Left to Right: Ron B, Rachel, Andrew, AJ, Chris, H, Richie, S, V, Pastor Phil, Walter, Emily, Arturo

AJ made new friends during the car ride.  One of the team members said "It has been great on previous trips seeing our team members play with the Salvador kids....so it will be nice this week to see the Salvadorans play with one of our kids!"  

Checked in to hotel (previous team members say it is MUCH nicer than where we have stayed before), ate lunch and headed out to the area in the mountains where we will be working this week.

The first 10 minutes of the drive is on a normal, paved, winding mountain road.  The laws are a little bit different on what is allowed as far as how people travel in vehicles.....

Then there is a turn and afterward 30 minutes on the bumpiest, steepest, non-paved road I have ever been on.  The truck literally goes about 5-10 miles per hour on this road because any faster would throw everyone off and ruin the truck.

I didn't even try taking pictures of the road because nothing can do it justice in a picture.  Rachel has been here several times and has tried to explain this road to me, shown me pictures, shown me videos...but nothing in my mind connected to how bad the road really was.  So, I'm not even going to try to post pictures of it.  Instead, I'll post another of my girls arriving at church!  

The community church has been under construction for 2 years and is nearing completion.  They started the church 2 years ago when the community finally got electricity (see light in center).  

Church starts at 1pm and goes until 4pm.  It starts so late because families from around the area walk as long as 90 minutes to get to church and it is the one community event of the week.  Yes, it was hot!  One of my daughters commented that one of our team members looked like he had jumped in a pool (and that was a pretty accurate description).  

The Community Church - nearing completion after 2 years.  All that is left to do is the front entry way and the stairs into the church.  

View from back of church: Notice all the women and children are on the left and all the men are on the right.  This is not common in El Salvador.  It was a choice of this church because unmarried couples who only got to see each other this 1 time each week would sit next to each other and only pay attention to each other versus the message!  So, the community and church leaders came up with this seating arrangement as a solution.  

View from front of church.  Each team member introduced themselves and when the microphone reached AJ I  asked him what his name was and he said into the microphone 'AJ!!!' and he pretty much won the whole community's heart right then and there.

The service was very passionate.  There is something interesting that happens when the pastor starts praying out loud....everyone starts praying out loud and this roar rises to heaven as one voice of many.  They sing loud, play music loud, raise hands, and speak forcefully and passionately.  I loved it.

Our Pastor Phil gave a sermon that focused on our true Identity in Jesus Christ.  Without knowing this was the topic of his sermon, I mentioned to Phil early today a man by the name of Luke who gave a fantastic message in the church we attended in Noosaville Australia.  The focus of his message was on seeking our Identity in Jesus Christ....that once he started doing that he just started praying to be Love, to be like Jesus.  

In praying to be Love and focusing his Identity in Jesus, he found patience came, love for his wife came, wisdom in parenting came, a service oriented attitude came and no one could ever take that Identity away from him.  He also said that when your Identity is in Jesus Christ you will not be able to help but bear good fruit.  You won't need to work at it, it will just happen....just as an apple tree doesn't try to make apples.  It just happens because that is its identity...its an apple tree, therefore it produces fruit.  When your identity is Jesus, you will bear good fruit and won't be able to help it.  It will be natural as that is your identity.  

So, I mentioned to Phil this message that really impacted me and he looked at me and said "I have been praying about whether I chose the right topic, and your comments are a confirmation to me that I have as I'm speaking today about our Identity and how we define it versus how God defines it and how he really sees us."  Anyway, Phil's sermon was really powerful and the response from the congregation was fantastic to witness.  

I posted the picture below especially for our Pastor and church leadership team.  This is what the leadership team of this church presented to the congregation as the final plan for putting stairs on the front of the church.  I think we can save some significant dollars going forward using their architects!

And, yes, AJ was a big hit at the end of the service.  The ladies were just all over him passing from one woman to the next.  The lady holding him has the most awesome spirit about her and just loved all over our little boy.

This week isn't so much about building a house (though we will do that).  It is about building relationships.  I think we are off to a good start.

Nicaragua: Darlin

We started sponsoring Darlin when she was approximately 6 years old (she is 13 now). We had sponsored two boys and our twin girls wanted to sponsor a girl.

They picked Darlin because:

1. She was their same age
2. She was a girl
3. They liked her name and
4. In her sponsor package picture she was NOT smiling. The girls said "we want to sponsor her and then maybe she will smile."

Mission Accomplished!

We drove from Managua to Leon in about 90 minutes. It is interesting driving along the highway at a pretty good speed, feel the van swerve right and then left, and realize the reason for swerve was to avoid a little horse and buggy that was also using the highway.  The drive went through papaya tree farms, rice fields, and sugar cane fields.

Nicaragua has many active volcanoes and we saw a number of them on the drive out. 

We also passed through an area where the red soil makes for a good brick making business. Imagine a truck pulling out in front on you stacked 25 bricks high filling an entire flat bed truck WITHOUT a single strap holding the bricks in place. One bump or little accident = a very big mess!  (wish I had a picture but I was too busy preparing to duck if the bricks came our way)

Also of interest while driving... people on the side of the road holding up  geckos....our guide / translator Rolando said they were selling them.  He said we would see people on the side of the road selling parrots, monkeys, and even snakes!

As we drove into Leon, the difference in the city itself was striking.  No graffiti. Few barb wire protective fences. The downtown area was much more inviting vs what we saw in Managua. Having said that, the fast food chicken place where we ate lunch had an armed security guard at the door as did the Burger King across the courtyard.

Our guide said that Leon was leveled during to 1950s by a volcanic explosion. He said it was one of the nicest towns in Nicaragua now because there are a number of universities around the city and the tourists like Leon and help the economy.

We met Darlin, her mother Brenda, older sister Sonia, and younger brother Isaac (other 6 yr old brother Moses we met later at their home). In addition the principal and secretary from the school at the church were there.

After initial greetings, we saw the church and the classrooms. This school is in addition to their regular school and focuses on teaching kids about the Bible and morals. The young kids come 2 to 3 times a week while the older kids come 1 to 2 times a week.

They have 4 teachers and from what I could tell the school has pretty much maxed out its space. It is in the city and is surrounded on all sides by other buildings.

It was really touching to hear Darlin read a letter about what our sponsorship has meant to her.  She said it was a prayer and a dream of hers that we would come to visit her and she felt so blessed to have our whole family there. The principal later said we were the first sponsors to visit their school in 2 years and they were honored to have us. Our guide mentioned during our drive out that the Compassion International team coordinates about 400 visits a year in Nicaragua which represents 1% of the 40,000 sponsored kids.

As expected Darlin was a bit shy when we began he visit but warmed up as the visit progressed. She said she wants to grow up to be a lawyer so that she can help underprivileged kids. Her favorite subject in school is social sciences and she says she is an ok student.  

Here is a video of Darlin talking about what she has learned at the school, what she wants to be, and then at the end of the video her mom on their front porch talking about our visit.  (link in case video doesn't work below   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ykkrC1FX3hs  )

Her principal was very proud of her for entering a baking school as she also likes to cook. One of the pictures in the packet Darlin put together for us was a picture of her graduating from that cooking class.

I also loved how her principal said "When we change the children we change the country"  Rachel and I both thanked her for the work she is doing in Jesus Christ's name.  We could just tell how much she loved the kids she worked with and pray her ministry continues to bless the kids of this area. She also said a big focus for her with the older kids was the importance of purity.  I think this was said as a reminder to Darlin given that her sister got pregnant at age 14. It's hard to break the cycle of poverty when having children outside marriage at such a young age.

After taking a few pictures in front of the church, we headed to her home where we sat on the porch and told family stories and heard their family stories.

From Left to Right: Ms Espinoza (school secretary), H, Rachel, Brenda (Darlin's mom), Isaac (2 year old brother), V, Darlin, Dorian (son of sister), Sonia (sister), S, Andrew, AJ, Mrs Pachecho (principal)

Darlin lives on a dirt road in a house with no electricity.  The footprint is about 20 feet wide and 25 feet deep with the kitchen out back. Currently at least 8 people and 4 generations live in this house (Darlin's grandmother, mother, father, sister, 2 brothers, darlin + sister's son).  The house has been in the family since the early 1980s when her grandmother bought the place.  

Darlin's House

Looking down Darlin's street...her mom says the road is impassible during raining season

The 'not very nice to animals' neighbors across the street.  When we left for lunch, this crew was really whipping another horse who looked just as malnourished and just wanted to lay down for a rest.  

We had told stories about our family on the porch and listened to stories about their family.  It was a wonderful time and very memorable.  

One of the things the girls got for Darlin was nail polish....so they turned the front porch into a salon for the day and took good care of Senorita Darlin....

We ate lunch in town at a chicken fast food place (that was actually quite good) and was in this little 'mall' opposite the Burger King.

Courtyard at the place where we all ate together

After lunch, we dropped the family back at their home, said our goodbyes and headed back to Managua.

We came to Nicaragua specifically to see Darlin before heading to El Salvador to work with our church in a community our church sponsors.  When we told her we came here especially for her, I wish I had been video taping because she just lit up.  

It was a wonderful visit and well worth the effort to make it happen.  

To bed now for a few hours as we have to get up at 2:30am to catch our 4am bus out of Nicaragua to El Salvador.....

AJ with our Guide / Translator Rolando from Compassion International