So one month has come and gone in the blink of any eye, and in two days I’m leaving Nicaragua for Costa Rica. We always talk about this phenomenon on the race- how the days can be so long but the weeks fly by. Each day is full of things to do and places to see, but each week is so overwhelmed with activities that every time my team debriefs the week on Sunday I can barely remember what just happened. Its all a blur.
I arrived in Nicaragua late on March 6th, and I’ll be leaving on April 10th. Its weird to say that I’ve only lived here for five weeks, as that sounds like a really long time. Still, the last time I moved was from Ethiopia, and I had lived there from December to the beginning of March. By comparison, I have lived in Nicaragua for a very short amount of time. I’ve met a lot of amazing people and seen many wonderful things, but it hasn’t been enough time.
Just between you and me, I wish I had spent another month in Granada, Nicaragua. I wish I had more time to pour into these people, to learn more of their stories and serve them more. This has been one of my favorite ministries to work with. Some of my best friends here are the kids I got to play with- especially Mariana and Emily. I also loved going on house visits to see the local people. I’ll never forget the times I got to encourage Jacklin or pray with Esmerelda or learn wisdom from Maria. I didn’t get to spend enough time here, but I consider Nicaragua as another home.
My ministries hosted (Scott and Jen Esposito) are two Americans who came to Nicaragua about seven years ago. While many missionaries in Nicaragua fled during the crisis last year (as they had no more protection from the US government), Scott and Jen stayed to help the local people. They provide food and work in a country that needs both so desperately. Theres a rule that no one on the farm goes hungry- no one who is working or hanging out at Scott and Jen’s during meal time isn’t fed.
Leaving Nicaragua isn’t the same as leaving Cambodia or Ethiopia, simply because I haven’t lived here as long. Five weeks may seem like a long time but it just isn’t. It just isn’t enough time. I travel the world and make a home wherever I go, and while I’ve learned how to make a new ministry site my home really fast, that doesn’t make it easier to say goodbye.
Nicaraguans pray for five things- their families, their health, their home, their country, and sometimes their faith. Keep these people in your prayers friends, God is doing a mighty act in Nicaragua. This nation is so broken and so lost, but a movement is starting in the church. In time, we may yet see Nicaragua become a country after God’s own heart.
~CLS
