Greetings from Leon, Nicaragua:
We touched down in Managua at 12:05 AM on Friday morning May 14. It was good to see the face of our friend, interpreter and assistant, Scarleth, waiting for us as we departed customs. We arrived with 13 pieces of baggage consisting of trunks and personal luggage which filled up the back of the large van. Our first item of business was the customary stop at “On the Run” for a “coca-light” for Preston and drinks for everyone to satisfy us on the 1½ hour drive to Leon.
The 2 weeks prior to our flight was very interesting as God totally destroyed our plans. We were delayed leaving Winston which left us only a week to reorganize our plans and appointments before flying out. There were some places and people which we were not able to see before our departure. There were other individuals whom we got to spend time with who were totally not on our original calendar but came to realize that they were divine appointments.
In the last 3 weeks some amazing opportunities have come our way. We had a meeting, prior to leaving the States, with a large US based ministry operating in Nicaragua who are interested in what we will be doing. We discussed ways in which we may be helpful to one another’s ministry and work together.
On our first morning here we met with a US team from Tallahassee to discuss our ministry. They represent a church that wants to be very involved in ministries working to make a sustainable difference in the lives of the people of Nicaragua. They have been involved with Pastor Pedro of the Iglesia Comunidad Cristiana de Nicaragua (our church in Leon) to help him in his efforts to mobilize area pastors to work together. Pastor Pedro invited Preston to preach during the monthly youth gathering attended by the area churches to be held the next evening. His message was very timely for the ongoing teachings of the past weeks.
We made contact with a Pastor of a small, extremely poor church in a “barrio” here in Leon. Pastor Natividad (do you like the name?) has a heart to see the young men of her area receive training for the purpose of becoming employed in any trade. Most of them have not completed grade school, so additional help will be needed to increase their reading and writing skills.
On one of our morning walks we discovered a building for rent one-half block from where we live. Upon viewing the property we discovered it to be so much better for the school than the previous building we had found in January. This one is convenient to the San Juan Park square that acts as a crossroads of sorts; also to the open market, the bus routes and has loads of foot traffic. It is better laid out as well as being larger; and the best part is it is Mucho less rent per month. God is so good.
We’ve made a trip back to Managua to get supplies for the house from a store that resembles Costco, a piece of home in the midst of this country. However, when you purchase the American brands the pricing is higher than back in the States. Until we fully develop our taste for Nicaraguan cuisine, the occasional shopping trip will be on the agenda. It was refreshing to get the usual hot dog with unlimited refills on the sodas which were a real treat because refills are unheard of in all stores and restaurants.
While in Managua, we stopped at a school run by a fellow American who teaches iron work and blacksmith. We have been in touch with him for almost 2 years and it was great to finally meet and talk with him face to face. He took us to a ministry called Nehemiah Center that he felt would be of great benefit to us for sharing information and networking with other ministries in Nicaragua. We plan to attend the monthly roundtable meetings.
We have already gotten involved in an English weekly bible study with several couples in our church including the pastor and his wife. Last week we had the meeting at our house to join in on the house rotation. We made a mango cobbler for a snack. We eat mangoes every day and will be looking for more recipes.
We like the idea of vendors stopping by the house to sell us fresh fruits and vegetables. We made a deal with the avocado man to come 3 days a week. The first day he took advantage of the gringos with the pricing, but our house manager informed him that if he did it again he’d be selling his stuff back on the corner of wherever he came from.
Our house manager, Teresa, is a true gift and we could not function without her. The atmosphere in Leon is always filled with very fine, hard to see volcanic dust as well as auto exhaust. It coats everything and the house needs to be mopped and dusted daily. She has techniques that have served well for centuries and we scratch our heads in amazement. What has turned out to be a luxury here is a bath mat that we brought from the States. We now step out of the shower onto a soft clean mat instead of a gritty, dirty floor that may have been mopped only 2 hours before. She does our marketing because when we would go to market all that the vendors could see were gringos with dollar signs tattooed to our foreheads. She can get everything cheaper for us. Teresa is a beautiful Christian woman who is another of God’s gifts to us.
The rainy season has started so that means it rains every night. Now when we say rain you need to envision a monsoon. The first couple of nights the thunder and lightning were intense. Since we were awake any way, we decided to look out our front door only to find the road flooded and cars either stalled or waiting for the water to subside. It was amazing to discover so much traffic at 2 AM. The other discovery was that our roof leaks in many places and the front courtyard had 15-18 inches deep water and within 3 inches of overflowing. This was not near as disturbing as you would think because we feel like we have been tested in dealing with the storms in prior visits.
Next week the adventure continues as we are to get the keys to the “school” building and we are anxious to get started. We are contacting local Leon pastors for referrals and praying for the right boys to attend the school in order that we can pour into them to build a foundation for the program.
We still need funding to purchase tools as well as initial inventory. We are also short on support for the general fund. Please pray and consider how God would have you partner with us. All donations are tax deductible as we are a 501(c) (3) nonprofit corporation. You may donate by mailing a check to Restoration of the Nations, c/o Jared G. Johnson, CPA; 3540 Clemmons Rd, Ste 114; Clemmons, NC 27012 or go to our website www.restorationofthenations.org and click on “Ways to Help Us” for a list of specific needs and donate online.
It was a joyous occasion in our home that night, Freddy and Noel together again after more than 2 years. The boys laughed and talked for hours before we insisted that lights had to be turned out. Noel and Engel shared clothes with him because he had nothing but what he currently wore. The next morning we went to the market to buy shorts and underclothes.
