The days are flying by.  Friday AM more prep work was done for the conference.  By Friday 1 PM, registration began and you could sense the excitement in the air.  One by one, the Nicaraguans from many different churches in the area came in.  By 2 PM, the place was full and worship was in full swing.  As we sat in worship, we were once again humbled as we joined with our brothers and sisters praising our Lord.

The longer we are here, we begin to know more and more of each person’s personal story.  Even though one has lost his wife, his job, his house, and has to ride his bike with his teenage daughter on it for 40 minutes each way to get to worship practice, he says he has so much peace and joy since He has come to know Christ as Lord and Savior.  Riding to practice each day is an honor for him as he serves our Lord in this way.

The conference has been a blessing; last night there was a time of worship and testimonies. Pastor shared the vision the Lord gave him for the barrios which were oppressed and running rampant with suicide.  3 ½ years later, we could join him in praising our Lord for the “light of God” that now shines in many of these homes.  One of the greatest means of getting the gospel into the homes is through the children.  Over 250 children continue to come out to Bible Class each Saturday.  It is here that they receive the love of God, through the men, women and teens from the Torre Feurte church.  Not only do they learn about our Lord, but they also receive a ticket which will give them three meals throughout the week.  Once again, we are humbled as we see how the Lord’s command of caring for the children plays into eternal kingdom value.  These children are coming to know Jesus at a young age, and as Pastor shared “the fields are ready, the harvest is plentiful…”

As we come to our last day with the Adult Mission Team, we are grateful again for how the Lord sent them here to Granada, Nicaragua.  They have set the pace and opened the doors for the Youth Group which will be coming down on Thursday.  They are known around here for being hard working servants of the Lord.  They have encouraged the leaders of Torre Fuerte.  Once again we are grateful for the awesome privilege to serve our Lord in this way and to have CCCB as our home church praying for all of us.

May God Bless you for your faithfulness.  Love Betty & Doug

This morning we were blessed with a visit from Pastor Flores and his friend.  They stopped by just to tell us something, but of course we invited them in and a breakfast later we were all bless as he shared how the Lord has been breaking thru the darkest of times here in the barrios.

After a time of prayer, each of us moved in different directions in preparation for the Bible conference.  Miguel, Rick, Matt, and Juan choose  the job of going to Managua to buy a tent. It only took half of the day to get it and set it up, but each one of them have come to appreciate the Nicaraguan transportation in a new way, and will never forget their day of adventure and opportunities to share the gospel.

For the rest of us, it was running here and there, but we found time to play soccer with our new buddies and had a time of crafts with the girls.  It only took minutes to gather 50 some children.  Brian had the opportunity to share the gospel, and invited some of the adults to Bible Study tonight at Torre Fuerte.  One family and a single guy, Francisco came out.  Francisco skipped classes at the University just so he could come and see what Torre Fuerte was all about; and he shared with Brian that he would much rather be at church.

As we sat around the table tonight sharing our highs and lows we continue to praise our Lord for all that He has done; once again we are humbled and feel so blessed to be here as we get to experience glimpses of His “handy work”.

Thanks for your prayers, Blessings and Love – Betty & Doug

Wednesday was another awesome day.  The guys went to Bible Study at El Pointe in the AM.  They continue to make connections with the guys in this community, understanding more and more of how and why the drug & alcohol addiction is so high in certain areas. This has increased the desire of our team to interact with the young guys in the barrios.  Each afternoon the teens wait in anticipation for the “gringo’s” to come by and play soccer with them.  Our guys might have some years on them, but the Nicaraguan’s give them a good workout, they are finding muscles they never knew they had.  As we watch this team wait upon the Lord for the appointed times of ministry, we see how each team member has been hand picked and we are humbled.   It seems that this new found friendship is opening a door for the Youth Team to be able to do the puppet and drama ministry on their playing field.

The women worked at the feeding program in the AM and helped serve all the children in line.  The Torre Fuerte group thanked CCCB Team by picking fresh coconuts & grapefruit for them.

We ended the day with the most delicious dinner, cooked and served by our friends on the lake front, Hosea and Jamilette.  Fresh fish, rice and tortillas!!  We were humbled by the hospitality that was showered upon us.  Thank you again for your support and prayers, we are so blessed.   Betty & Doug

Today most of the team went to Piniel, it was a moving and encouraging experience. There are 120 men whose lives are being restored from a life of drug and alcohol thru the healing blood of Jesus Christ.  It is a farm on 30 acres, they grow organic coffee, beans, pepper, and soon will be raising fish and chickens.  They have plans to build a women’s center in the near future.  Pastor Frank who runs Piniel along with Pastor Charles are also in the planning stages for an after care program for the men who graduate.

While most of the team went to Piniel, Betty & Grace had the privilege to shop for the upcoming  Bible conference with Pastor Flores and his wife Miriam. The pictures will give the story of our experience, so please make sure you check it out.

In the afternoon we went to two different barrios and supported the youth group from Torre Feurte as they shared the gospel thru drama, puppets, and dance.  Our highlight was to see at least 20 children come to know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

Everyone is tired, a little dirty, trying to do some laundry, and looking forward to what the Lord has in store for tomorrow.  We plan to play soccer with our new friends in a different Barrio.  We thank you for your prayers.

Blessings to you all from the whole team, as each of us had a little input in this updateJ.

Four of our guys went to Fortin (a farm) early this morning escorted by Lester, each with their own bike thankfully.  The ride was arduous but they made it.  They were handed machetes and they went to work “weeding” the corn and yucca fields.  The work ended before eleven because it gets too hot, but God’s work wasn’t finished.  The men spent some time with the family who live on the farm.  The eight children joined their parents in welcoming the men into their 12X12 foot home.  The love of the Lord was abundant as the men prayed and fellowshipped with this grateful family.  Meanwhile, two of our ladies went to Santa Rosa barrio to help with a children’s feeding program.  They helped prepare and serve the food.  The Nicaraguan women who were there were particularly blessed when our two ladies joined them for lunch because it unusual for “Americanos” to eat the food at the feeding program.  In the afternoon some of our group went a barrio to visit some old friends.  Others set up a table in the street outside Casa Somervilla (Doug and Betty’s house) and children from the neighborhood came to enjoy arts and crafts.

On Monday afternoon, some of the men were challenged to a game of “futbol” by some boys in a nearby barrio.  We accepted the challenge and we were promptly embarrassed.  As we played, other boys from the barrio started to hang around.  Before we knew it we had played nearly three hours of “futbol” and despite the language barrier we were laughing and sharing Jesus with the boys.  One of the boys suggested we come into the barrio and do a “program.”  We agreed to go back on Miercoles (Wednesday).

We learned later that this barrio carries a nasty reputation for criminal activity.  Doug and Betty have been praying about how to get ourselves into this barrio and today God opened that door.  Praise His name!  Tomorrow, we look forward to our trip to Peniel, a Christian drug and alcohol rehabilitation center about 30 miles outside of Grenada.

Thank you for your prayers.  God bless!  Brian G.