Sorry, this is a little overdue. I have been in Nicaragua for 5 weeks and only have about 2 days left here. Africa’s no service sort of messed up my blog-writing streak, but we’re back.
Nicaragua has consisted of prayer-walking, farming, construction, feeding programs, practice with Spanish, volcanoes, pico de gallo, coffee dates, wobbly bunk beds, seeing my parents, laughs, intense worship, freedom from fear, new friends, thrifting, free personal training at the gym, discipleship, teams working alongside us, TheVoice, and much more.
We arrived to Nicaragua LATE on March 6 after a long bus ride. We drove from Costa Rica to Nicaragua after a few days of an event called Awakening. Long story short, Awakening is a racer-run event where different Adventures in Missions teams come together to share what God has been teaching them on their journey. At that time, some groups were only on the field for 2 months and others for 7 months.
In Nicaragua, my squad is working with REAP Granada. We live on a beautiful farm right next to Mombacho volcano. The days are hot and breezy and the evenings consist of gorgeous sunsets. Three days a week, we all wake up at 5am to pray and watch the sunrise. These times have been very fruitful for me because I have been able to talk to God in absolute silence and few distractions. After breakfast, we start morning ministry. It has been either farming or prayer walking. With farming, it pretty much means do whatever our hosts tell us to do. We have pick-axed roots, cleaned up trash in the streets, moved bricks, construction, planting, etc. And, with prayer walking, we get to go out into the neighborhood and share God’s love with them. Some of them are actually the ones to encourage us, however, with that, there are beautiful moments when we can get on our knees with these people and pray for their families and work and health. I think there is such a beauty in coming together as a body to pray diligently for others. Other times, we have been able to share the gospel and bring people to Christ through testimonies. We have some of the best guides and translators who walk with us through the neighborhood. We always have a fun time with them and they always share wisdom with people we meet. These guides and translators are bold, no doubt, and I am so blessed to serve alongside them.
These last two-ish weeks in Nicaragua consist of my squad of 50 working alongside a team of 50 high schoolers from Ohio and Indiana. We get to disciple them and show them what prayer walking has looked like for us and to invite them into so much more. I remember when I was in sophomore and junior year and how distant I was from God. I was merely living for good works and wasn’t living out of the confidence of God’s love and plan for me. If I could disciple myself at that age, I would teach myself to not worry about what people think but to dive into God’s purpose for me boldly. I missed out on a lot at that age because I chose timidness over boldness.
The first night that the new group was here, when there was only 20 of them, we got to worship with them and it was one of the best nights of worship on the race so far. People were freed from fear, rejoicing and dancing took place, people cried and raised their hands and received healing, and we came together in corporate worship whilst still being in individual worship with Abba. I love praising and worshipping God.
I also want to mention how amazing the staff and interns are here. The first day we were here, Jenn Esposito welcomed the whole squad with hugs. She has such a heart of hospitality and we all felt God through her. Scott Esposito, Jenn’s husband, has been an amazing example of how to live life completely for God. He has been leading my squad in a book study and has shared so much wisdom with us. Scott and Jenn started REAP. Nathan, who has worked at REAP for a few years, is just so intentional with our squad. The first night we got here, he welcomed us when it was the middle of the night. The next day, he led our squad in worship and just invited us into what God was teaching him. Ever since then, he’s been like a friend. He joins us in prayer-walking and translates for us, he hangs out with us, and just encourages us to step out. Amber and Madi, who are both interns, have been so fun. They are both like friends to our squad. They join us when we go into town, show us around, and also join us in prayer-walking. Katelyn, who works at REAP like Nathan, does a lot. She has organized things for us, been a friend to us, and has displayed what it looks like to be bold. Katelyn also helps with REAP’s Tamarin Project. There are trees on the farm called Tamarin trees. With the seeds inside, Katelyn and a team of Nicaraguan women make bracelets and necklaces to sell. Then, Diane and Mike. Mike helps with a lot. He left after PVT a week or two ago, but before he left, he helped with construction stuff and just being a welcoming soul. Diane is Mike’s wife. They are both retired and wanted to come serve somewhere. Diane leaves before April, but she has been all of the above. She has been like a mother figure to us, encouragement, fun, and good conversations. I have loved spending time with every single one of REAP’s workers. Then, they also have numerous Nicaraguan workers who cook, do construction, and of course, translating and guiding prayer walking.
That’s pretty much what Nicaragua has looked like this far! Leave any other questions below for me to answer! My mind is just so busy that I forget some information some times!
Love you all so much, talk soon!
