Faces of La Quinta

The Faces of La Quinta

                So
we’re living at a place here in Jinotepe called La Quinta Esperanza- which
means house of hope. There are 12 kids that live here, and 4 that seem like
they live here 🙂
I’ve noticed that these 16 kids are pretty amazing. I began hearing their
stories and am blown away by where they’ve come from and the effect they
are having on the community here. They do ministry every single day. They pour
out their selves to other kids that are less fortunate than themselves. They
help pray for and feed the local barrios, or neighborhoods. These kids are
beautiful examples of what God can do in your life, and I thought they deserved
to be honored here, and their stories shared. (sorry if this sounds a bit
awkward, it’s been translated) So here they are-

                Alex
said his first memory was when he was 7 years old and his mom abandoned him and his 3 siblings. Things with his father weren’t much better- he called
Alex names like donkey and animal. He said their step mother hated them, and
after a while of trying to live with her there were too many problems to make
it work. After that his Dad decided he didn’t want them either and sent them to
live with their aunt. After this was a long list of homes he was sent to-
grandmother, aunt, back to his father, cousins- no one seemed to want him. He
started stealing, drinking and smoking at 15. He said he had many friends in
the street and became entangled in that life- sleeping in the streets, joining
a gang, stealing with a knife. For 6 months he did “bad things.” He tried
living with his grandmother again, but even here he endured verbal abuse- he
still remembers her words “you’re not good for anything” so he moved again. He
began working and attending school and became friends with guy named Sebastian
who invited him to La Quinta. This was his first time with Jesus. He said “I
thought every day- I’m a thief, I was told you’re bad, it would be better if you were not
born.” But then he began to hear about Jesus. He said one night he slept in the
school because he didn’t want to sleep in the streets, and soon asked if he
could live here. Juanita told him she would think about it- and so he prayed
God please help me. He said “Jesus heard my voice” and that’s how he got to
live here. After he moved in he began to learn more about Jesus, and began
changing his life- even though he was fighting against the voices in his mind.
Its hard to explain how amazing of a young man Alex is. He speaks English, and
helps us in interpreting. He has huge hopes and dreams. He graduates in 1 year
from high school and plans on continuing to college and dreams of becoming an
Industrial Engineer, a missionary, and traveling to the US. He’s involved in
the ministry here, and is just an all around good kid! Oh and he loves Justin
Bieber. 🙂

 

                Sebastian
is another one that didn’t really want to talk about his past. He has lived
here at La Quinta for 1 year, and has been a part of the youth group for 4
years. Before he came here he lived in the Barrios- local neighborhood/slums-
with his family. He said life there was hard, his parents aren’t believers and
he had no friends. When he came here he began learning about God and then God
changed his life. He said the greatest change was that now he can understand
and get along with his parents now, and he’s praying for them to come to know
Christ.

Samuel: 12 years
old

                Samuel
is a very special little boy. He is full of energy and love- every time I see
him he’s smiling. But he hasn’t always been like this. God definitely drew him
out of a pit into the light. Sammy is the product of rape and incest. He was
raised by his father/grandpa and suffered unimaginable abuse. His mother
suffered from psychiatric problems and was unable to care for him. Under the
care of his father he was taught to drink, smoke, and to follow in his father’s
footsteps- but not to speak, read or write. When he came to La Quinta at 8
years old he was extremely malnourished and would bite anyone who came near
him. Ok I will say that Sammy has bit me, but it was out of love. God has truly
changed this little boy dramatically. He speaks some English, is always ready
for a hug, energetic, so sweet and protective- I love this little guy. When we
went to the home for the disabled he pointed at the little girl with me and
told me we needed to pray for her- then took my hand and hers, closed his
little eyes, and prayed to the Lord for her healing. God has given him the
ability to see past his own pain and to reach out to others- Gods light shines
in him.

 

Flor is Samuel’s sister, and also
the product of rape and incest. When she was 10 years old, she smoked, drank
and hung out at bars with a group of rough girls. When she was 13 she left all
that.  She was invited to a campaign
where she heard about Christ and accepted Him. 
She found out about  Quinta Esperanza through her uncle – a security
guard at la Quinta.  She’s only seen her
father one time, her mother is unable to take care of her because she’s a
person with different abilities.  She had
been living with her grandfather but he didn’t want her anymore.  She has one brother – Sammy, who’s 12.  She has experienced much abuse from her family.
Her brother is ok now, and even though she doesn’t see her family, even though
she was treated badly, beaten, and suffered a lot of pain, she’s ok.  Although her family doesn’t want her, she has
a family at la Quinta who loves her, and has supported her financially,
practically…with everything. She doesn’t want to dwell on the past and what
she’s been through but rejoices about her current life. Since staying at la
Quinta she’s given up her old habits such as drinking and smoking; she’s a
different person.  God has been doing a
lot in her life.  She’s already been
through deep hurt and experienced injustice, but this is not who she is.  Flor is a young woman with confidence in her
heavenly father and is able to bring a unique perspective and clarity to
difficult situations.  It’s hard for her
to share about her life, she realizes she’s been through things that others
have not, but she was shows brave vulnerability to share some of it with me,
and you.  She was baptized 4 years ago,
and now her life is all for God.  In the
future she wants to be a missionary. She knows out of her pain she’s come to
find God and find hope, and has peace about this. 

 Patricia: 17
years old

                Patricia
is a beautiful girl that’s full of life from Masaya.  When she was 11, her parents got
divorced.  Her mother left abruptly
without telling her where she was going. 
Her father was left to take care of her but he was busy working and
didn’t have time for Patricia.  So she
found herself living with her grandmother. 
This also ended badly… her grandmother mistreated her.  After 2 years, Patricia escaped from her
grandma and went to live with her friend. 
She lived with her friend for 2 months during this time she wasn’t
attending school.  Her friend’s mom was
often out and at parties, the two girls made do with the food available to
them.  One day, her 20 year old brother
came to visit her.  Her brother knew all
about her life and how she has suffered. 
Her brother had been living at Quinta Esperanza and invited her to
live at la Quinta as well.  At first she
wasn’t into the idea, but eventually she decided to leave her friends
place.  She came to la Quinta when she
was 13… it was very hard to fend for herself in her old life and she quickly
learned that she liked it at la Quinta. 
Patricia accepted Jesus when she was 13, and shortly after was
baptized.  Her life now and the way she
lives is very different.  She’s learned
to forgive her family, and she knows God is her only father; He will never
leave us.  She can teach children and
lead a group of teens with confidence. 
Patricia is happy to be doing productive and meaningful things with her
life.  She is a goal oriented and
motivated girl.  She’s working hard at
achieving her goal of being a psychologist. 
We can be praying for her goals, family, and future. 

 Elieth: 8 years
old & Maria: 10 years old

 

Raquel: 16 years
old

                Raquel
is 1 of 10 brothers and sisters. She came here with her brother Justo. He came
4 years ago and she came 2 years ago. She said that is very difficult to tell
her testimony because she has given the pain of her past to God, and it brings
all these things back to her. She said she visited here when she was 7 years
old and began learning about God, and then when she was 13 she was invited to
become a part of the youth group. She chose to follow the “road of God, not her
family’s road.” She said this road was hard for her and Justo, it was hard
fighting for her family, fighting with no father. Her father left before she
was born, and she never knew him. She said that she remembers how hard it was
when her mother told her that her father was gone, but someone told her that
she has a spiritual father. After suffering physical abuse from one of her brothers she
returned to La Quinta. Juanita taught her about God and how to pursue the
things she wanted. She said “God transformed my life. He filled all the empty
parts of my life.” She says God taught her to forgive, although its hard to
forgive her brother, she wants to forgive as she has been forgiven. She said “I
give thanks to God, he has a purpose in my life.”

Non Resident:

Desire: 21 years

Desire’s dad took her to the church
at La Quinta Esperanza in 2004.  She
began going to church because she was bored at home… she didn’t really listen
to the sermons or take to heart the messages of the songs.  People took an interest in her and she began
to listen to what they were saying about God. 
She accepted Jesus when she was 17. 
After she accepted Jesus she realized that everything in her life was
better.  It was difficult to abandon the
things she did before becoming a Christian. 
She’s now thankful for where God has taken her, and knows that God has a
purpose for her life.  She likes to talk
about the bible and about uplifting things. 
She’s a fiery and fun 21 year old who spends a lot of her time helping
out at Le Quinta. She’s sharing from the bible, taking care of kids, leading
teens, dancing, laughing, and singing with joy and spunk. 

Stidar: 24 years
(name changed to protect his identity)

                     At age twelve Stidar began
living on the streets where he became involved with gang activities and drug
trafficking. He helped transport drugs for three years. He decided he wanted to
get out and they wouldn’t let him without paying back double the amount he
made. He hid for three months and the traffickers threatened to hurt his
family. He fell in love with a Christian girl but he was not honest about his
previous life and when she found out she left him. He became addicted to
alcohol and didn’t want to know anyone. The traffickers came back to remind
Stidar to pay his debt, they beat him and he spent two months in the hospital.
While in the hospital Stidar had a dream about two roads, one road was bright
and happy and the other road was small and dark. A voice asked him which road
he wanted to take. He also saw two coffins, one had a friend in it and he was
asked “Is this how you want to end your life?” 
The other coffin was his and he was asked, “Do you want another chance?”
He chose the right road and began taking small steps to change his life. He met
Pastor Fabricio and was invited to church. Stidar is now twenty-four and serves
in church. He is very involved with the youth at La Quinta. He is great with
children and always has a smile on his face.

I know there is injustice and that things go on that are
horrible. But I also know that God is changing this world, one person at a
time. His plan was the Garden of Eden-perfection- and the only reason He’s
letting us hang around is His enormous grace and love- He isn’t willing that
any should perish.

Let Him change you. Help him change others.