Day 2 - Friday - Heat, Work, Joy!

Well, we said we were open to whatever God has for us and that includes a different schedule and format than what we've been accustomed to. In the past, the team has been divided into two and worked on two homes simultaneously during the week. This time, today one team did construction while the other went into Masaya to go door to door talking about Jesus and inviting kids to VBS. We will do this for three days, building one house. Next week, we will do the same thing, only building another house in another area. It sounds a bit confusing, but you'll get it as the days go on.

 

Hola! Dore here!  I must admit that I am a bit tired as I write this, but here is a quick recap of our Friday in Managua. J Our day started off at 7:00 with a great breakfast of pancakes, sausage, watermelon, and my new favorite, white pineapple.  At 8:00, we boarded a bus and rode about an hour to the southwest of Managua, where our team was split, with half doing street ministry and VBS and my group helping in the building of a pastor’s home.  

 

I really did not know what to expect in the building project- as well as a majority of this mission’s trip- It’s a whole new world! Their houses consist of a wood frame, cement blocks for the walls, and tin for the roof- so simple and the families/people so grateful!

Moving block

 

I met a woman by the name of Paula while at the building site. Neither of us spoke one another’s language, but even with that barrier, we were still able to connect with laughter (so thankful that laughter has no language). J

Finishing the framing

 

 At 1:00, we met-up with the other team and took a break and had lunch- which was something that was needed for me-the heat is something that will take me a bit to get used to. After lunch, the teams split up once again and our team went back to building. By the time 3:30 rolled around, I believe it’s safe to say everyone was ready for a Siesta. J Leaving the building site for the day and looking at the progress made was quite amazing to say the least. The house we had started only just that morning was about half complete.

 

All in all it was a long, exhausting, hot, and busy first day in my first mission trip experience, but I can honestly say that it was well worth it.  And other than maybe not drinking enough water and not know Spanish, I do not regret or wish to change a bit of what I have experienced. I cannot wait to see what else is in store!

-Dore’

 

Hola gringos!

Today we got an early start and headed out to the villages. We were fairly close to the area where we worked last year. We split into two teams as Dore mentioned, the first team started working on Pastor Jose’s house, while my team got back on the bus and drove about 30 minutes to Pastor Jose’s church, La Iglesia de Shalom in Masaya, a larger town. We roamed the block next to the church and invited the families to VBS at two o’ clock. It was fun to try to communicate with the little Spanish I know, and I was glad for the help of our translators.  

 

 

After meeting back up with the other team for lunch we headed back to start VBS. We began by dancing to music with the kids and then we shared the gospel message with them.

Gerry entertaining with his juggling skills

 

 Dancing with Eduardo and the kids

Afterwards we painted the girls nails and made beaded bracelets with them.

Grace helping with bracelets

Tim, helping with bracelets

 

We than played a few games with soccer balls, that ended up becoming chaos eventually.

When the other team arrived, we got back on the bus and left. We arrived back at the compound at 5:00, in time for a delicious dinner that I am about to go eat. It was a very hot and exhausting day, but it was a lot of fun.

                -Eli

 

And these say it all!