We passed the one month mark of living full time in Nicaragua; what a month it has been. We have endured heavy rains coming into our home; as well as sharing our home with iguanas who are crafty and escape our attempts of catching them. They love to feast on our plants, therefore we cannot plant our small vegetable garden until they are caught. We have experienced theft of an item off the exterior of our house and theft of our wallet while in the market place. The internet and phone service is constantly not working for days at a time which causes frustration in not being able to communicate with friends, family and handling important business matters. We walk everywhere, so weight loss has been a plus. Use of the Spanish language is still a far off dream. From the look on faces, the locals are amused at our attempts of trying to speak the language.
We have 3 college missionary students from APP State (you know that school, they beat the tar out of Michigan) staying with us for a month. They will be working in a local village prior to their church team arriving later in July. We are also looking forward to members of our church in High Point coming to Nicaragua for missions.
The highlight of the month has been the opening of the first phase of the vocational school. We are beginning the vocational training with carpentry and woodworking. Additional phases of electrical, plumbing, construction, and masonry will be introduced in the future. During the carpentry phase, the items that the students will be making can be sold in the front space of the school that has been set aside for retail. With carpentry there will be an immediate gratification that can be experienced by the students for the efforts of their training and labor.
Prior to the opening session, we spent 3 weeks meeting, interviewing and assessing the desires and skills of young men ages 15 to 23 years of age. These men came to us as recommendations from pastors of area churches. The vast majority of the men in Nicaragua are “at-risk”. The men that we have been meeting with have one advantage over the other “at-risk young men of the nation”, they know the Lord Jesus. We made a decision to have our inaugural class be made up of Christian men. The challenges of relating to this class will pale in comparison to the needs and challenges that would arise from a class that had non-Christian men in attendance. As sessions are completed and new sessions begin, we will phase in the “highly at-risk” men with the Christian men.
Our first week of classes began June 14th with 5 young men. As much as we had interviewed them, you don’t see their true interests and motives until you spend time with them. It became apparent in the first couple of days that their commitment level to the class was lacking. On one of the days during the first week, I had only 1 young man in attendance and he traveled the farthest to get to class. Commitment and accountability are areas that need a lot of work in this culture. We are having to start with a lot of basics, like getting the men to understand about these two important components. When you grow up in a culture that is as fractured as this, most have been left to themselves and their only inclination was how to survive until tomorrow.
It was a good opportunity to again review the policies of the school with the students. We are proud of the young men and their initial interest to better their lives through learning skills that will help them become employable and self-sustaining. They are like a sponge soaking up every word of teaching, both practical and spiritual. We have incorporated prayer and biblical teaching into the daily curriculum. Jesus, being the Chief Carpenter, is a great example to weave into the day’s training. As the weeks and months go on, we will tell you more about the students so you can become more personally connected to them.
Prior to leaving the United States, it became apparent that we were not to bring with us the tools that I used in my business. The things that I used in my work were also the tools I had planned to use to equip the school. All the tools I owned were donated to a ministry in the mountains of North Carolina that helps men to re-establish themselves back into life and their community. Our ministry is now in desperate need of funding in order to purchase various tools and wood supplies for the school. We need $4500 to equip the school for the basic needs and up to $6500 for a more advanced set up.
During these first weeks of school, I operated from the principal of the 5 loaves and 2 fishes, using whatever I had at my disposal for training. Now it is time to go forward; the men are ready to move beyond the elementary instruction and begin to apply what they have learned to actual practice. They are eager to start designing and building cabinets and furniture pieces.
Please search your hearts and give to the ministry what God has laid on your hearts for the purpose of seeing that the men of the Inaugural Class as well as future classes have the tools and supplies necessary to further their education. You can give on our website www.restorationofthenations.org at the “Ways to Help Us” tab or go directly to the link www.egivingsystems.org/37718 If you prefer, you can mail a check to: Restoration of the Nations, c/o Jared G. Johnson, CPA; 3540 Clemmons Rd. Ste 114; Clemmons, NC 27012. We are a non-profit tax exempt 501 (c)(3) corporation and your gifts are deductible as allowable by your individual tax status.
In order to continue God’s work in Nicaragua, we are still in need of personal support. Would you consider partnering with us monthly? Our “Giving” page on the website makes it easy to register in order to make recurring monthly gifts.
The battle here is intense, more so than we could ever have imagined. Keep us and the ministry in your prayers.
