Sunday, October 31, 2010

Noel

We received a new student 2 months into the start of the session.  Noel Diaz is 15 years old and living at Remar, the international facility with which we now have a relationship.   After 3 weeks, I thought it was time that I try to get to know Noel.  He is VERY quiet and shy.  When I started to ask questions, it was evident that he was extremely uncomfortable.   I explained to him that I did not want him to think of it as prying but as my way of trying to get to know him better and I have asked all the other boys the same questions.



The first question I asked was how he came to live at Remar.  He said it was because of his brother.  When I asked him if his brother was worried about a substance abuse problem he might have, he looked shocked at the thought of it.  He said he has no problem.  He and his brother have lived at Remar for 4 years in the Managua facility because they had no where else to go.  They had different fathers, which is very common in this nation.  Noel's stepfather would beat them in his drunkenness and they ran away.


A couple of months ago, Noel was transferred to the Leon facility; separated from his brother.  I asked him about his parents and he said "they probably think we are dead".   Noel has had no communication in 4 years with family members.  In Nicaragua, families who have no roots move frequently, thus making it easy to lose track of each other quickly.  It's hard to imagine children being totally abandoned.


We have noticed that he stays in the background during class, like he is trying to be invisible.   We sense that he longs for attention but will not seek it for fear of being rejected.  He is very polite, courteous, conscientious and wants to please.

We enjoy having him in the class; he works hard and is a good example to the couple of boys who present behavioral issues.  I will continue to draw him out and encourage him to share more in conversations with the other boys.
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Sunday, October 24, 2010

Changes

We are approaching our six month "anniversary" of being in Nicaragua full time.  With that six month date comes a mandatory departure from the country for a period of a couple of days.  When we enter the country, we are given a 3 month visa.  At the end of the 3 months we are allowed to renew it for another 3 months and then we must go.   We arrived in Nicaragua with a round trip air ticket, but are strongly considering forfeiting the ticket and travel across the border to Costa Rica to satisfy the non-resident requirements.  This option would be far less expensive.

Which brings me to the topic of this blog:  CHANGES.   Through the last six months we have had a handful of people be very generous in their donations to our ministry.  However, these donations still did not adequately meet the financial obligations of operating in Nicaragua.  We have not taken any salary and our interpreter has only received a limited amount of money for the work that she has done for us and the ministry.   This lack has forced us to make some necessary changes which are vital to the continuation of the work that God has called us to in Nicaragua.  These changes do not affect the day to day operations within the ministry as much as it will mean drastic changes in our living conditions and comfort.

As of Monday, we will truly be living like Nicaraguans by operating the carpentry school out of our home. We canceled our lease on the building that was being used as a classroom and shop.  We moved all the equipment and wood into the front portion of our home.  Most Nicaraguans, whether professionals or shop keepers, use the front portion of their residence for work and live in the remaining rooms.

We rent a large home and had hoped to use it to house short term mission teams.  However, at this time, our home will be turned into a school and carpentry shop.   The front portion of our home had a living room, dining room and double car garage (yes, they park cars in the house next to their rocking chair).   We can still have a display area for the products that the students will be making and hope to sell.  We have an iron gate on the front of the house, thus we can leave the front doors open without fear of theft, and passer-bys can see inside at the work in the classroom and the products. We are still on a heavily traveled street with vehicles and foot traffic.  Word travels very fast in this community, so we will be easy to find despite the move out of the school.

We are also combining the morning and afternoon class sessions into one afternoon session daily.  This will reduce the cost of the salary for our interpreter.  Not only is she needed as an interpreter, but she has the potential to be an excellent instructor.  Scarleth enjoys the time with the boys, she has a heart to see them get ahead in their lives.  Scarleth has been faithful in giving of her time, but it is now time to begin to pay her on a regular basis at full wage.

The hardest part of having the school and shop in our home will be adjusting to the changes within the home and the "mess" that is sure to result with sawdust blowing everywhere.  We will also be entering the dry, dusty (dirty) season for the next 6-7 months and not only will there be sawdust everywhere, but the black volcanic dust combined with it.  For as long as is necessary, we have made a decision to lay-off our housekeeper, Teresa.  She has been with us for just shy of 3 years and it was with tears that we both said "goodbye".   This was an extremely hard decision because it deprives her of an income.  Her husband has been out of work for over 2 years and they have one teenage son.   We hope that this will  be a short and temporary change for us and Teresa.   The time needed to do all the work in the house will take precious time away from Sandra's responsibilities to the ministry, not to mention the toll on her physically.

We have had several people ask about what our house looks like and we had been planning to post a story and pictures to describe it. Now, the story and pictures will take on a totally new dimension.  Hopefully, within a couple of days, we will get this updated and posted.

With the challenges and changes that we have experienced in the last 6 months, it has stretched us in all ways.  We are more excited about what God has called us to and we would not want to be any where else.  It is a privilege to be used by Him to make a difference in the lives of teenage boys and equip them with the skills to one day become self-sustaining and to know the love and faithfulness of their Heavenly Father.

As we conclude this post, the thought comes to mind:  are we making "Changes" or are we just learning to live a life that is "Flexible"?
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Kevin



When I think of Kevin, it brings a smile to me. He is good-natured, energetic, funny and a hard worker. 


His name is Kevin Antonio Sanchez Rodriguez and he is 15 years old.  He lives with his grandmother and father; the oldest child with 7 siblings.  They do not all live together.  


He is the only person in our morning session (that we currently know about) that is able to speak very limited English.  He is studying English in school and one day would like to become a translator.  In the mean time, he knows that learning carpentry is good in order to have another way to work and earn money.  
Kevin describes himself as happy, restless (we need more clarification on that one), friendly, likes to study, likes to work and as a typical  teenager--likes to go out.  

Do not let his appearance fool you, as clean cut as he is, he is extremely poor.  He wears the same shirt to school almost every day, freshly laundered and pressed.  In this culture, he may launder and iron his shirt himself.   
As I mentioned in an earlier post, boys are obsessed about their hair.  The picture of Kevin with a hat makes me wonder if he was having a bad hair day.

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Monday, October 18, 2010

Abner





Abner Gutierrez at 20 years of age is our oldest student in the morning session.  He lives with his mother and two out of the six of his siblings.  He is not only the oldest, but the tallest and the most quiet of the students.  He discontinued school in his 11th year.  







He has worked some in the past as a "helper" in construction.  He really seems to enjoy the math that he has learned in our school.  As you can see in the picture, he volunteered to work on some fractions for the benefit of the others.  He thinks math and fractions help him to refine his skills in measuring.  So far, he said, he likes everything that has to do with carpentry.  He is more meticulous in his work than the other students which is not surprising to us.




He likes basketball, watching TV and being with friends.  He was quick to add "healthy fun" with his friends.






I mentioned that he is very quiet and is comfortable in his own space, which he has claimed for himself in the window area of the building.  Abner is a very dedicated young man, serious about his relationship with the Lord and serious in his quest to carve out a future for himself.








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Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Mission Team Visit


Recently,  a small group of people from multiple churches in the High Point, NC area traveled to Nicaragua for a short term missions trip.   We were privileged to have them stop in Leon and minister to the students in both sessions of the school.  Pastor Eddy from La Casa del Padre Iglesia in Managua accompanied the group.

The team prayed over the morning session and immediately started getting Words of encouragement from the Lord for each of the boys.  One of the students is an adult who pastors a small church in an adjacent town; Pastor Oscar was deeply touched by the group's visit.

On the following day, we took time to talk to the class about what they had experienced.  The boys said they were grateful for the prayers and the Words spoken over their lives.  Pastor Oscar shared that it was a miracle for him.  The mission's group had no idea that he had been wondering how he was going to feed his family that day because he had absolutely no money.   Before the group departed, they blessed him with money.

One of the boys was absent from school when the team visited.  We did a quick teaching to the class about how to hear from God; then we asked each of the students to share a Word with Nelson.   Every one of the boys and Pastor Oscar received a Word from God to encourage Nelson.  As each one spoke to Nelson the message they had received from God, it became evident that there was a connecting theme throughout.  Nelson received a tremendous blessing from his peers.  We typed up what had been spoken, dated it and gave it to him for future reference.

It is hard to describe the changes that have taken place in Nelson from that experience of knowing that God notices him and used his fellow classmates to pray and encourage him.   He has come alive and exhibits a new found confidence.

The team stopped by the school to meet the afternoon session.  God showed up in a powerful way.  Tears flowed, hearts were touched, walls crumbled, lives were forever changed.  Each boy was touched in an individual unique way, a healing that was designed especially for him from Father God.

A father's blessing was spoken over the boys in each session by Mike Adams from Center City Church and his wife, Sharon followed with a mother's blessing.  Most of these boys do not live with either parent and the boys in the rehab facility haven't known the presence of a parent in a long time.

We invited the boys of the afternoon session back to our house at the end of the next day's class for refreshments and some dialogue.  We could see the changes in their faces, in their walk, in their peace and we wanted to hear what they had been experiencing during the last 24 hours.

One boy, Michael, was still emotional and he said he didn't care if his friends saw his tears.  He said there was a time when no one would see him cry, but now it didn't matter; God changed that for him.

Israel is the young man from Honduras who is very quiet and keeps to himself.  The changes within him seem to be the most noticeable amongst all the boys.  His face is so much softer and when we ask him what God is doing in him, he says "something new, every day".

One of the changes we have implemented in the classes is the addition of HUGS.  We announced that it would take effect immediately.   At first some of them were a little stiff, but most of the guys now welcome the hugs.  A couple of them enter our presence with their arms wide open in anticipation of getting their hug.
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Friday, October 8, 2010

Ander

Ander Laguna is a student in our afternoon session.  At 17 years of age, he finds himself living in the Remar rehab facility.  For five years he had been abusing alcohol, marijuana and crack.  His mother sent him to the facility here in Leon for help.  His parents have not lived together and his father has been at the Remar facility in Managua for one year.  Ander has 3 younger sisters.

Ander is not as talkative as the other students. He associates with the other boys and works hard at the projects, but usually has very little to say.   He is polite, well-groomed and has a desire for change in his life.  His wants to go back to school and one day work full time in order to help his mother.




To look at him, it is hard to imagine someone of his age being anyone other than a "normal" teen, hanging with his friends and doing what teens do to have fun.  Life must have been unbearable for him to make the choice to begin using mind altering substances at such a young age.




He now has hope for a future and we know that God has His eye on him.  Last week, a group from New Day Church in North Carolina came to Nicaragua for a short term mission trip. They spent time in our school praying over the students.  Ander was one of the many boys who received a life-changing touch from Father God.  Tears drip from his chin, a sign that life will forever be different.
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