March Happenings!

This past month has been so fun filled and entertaining and has gone by EXTREMELY fast. There have been some huge changes and happenings lately here at CFCI Nicaragua. First and foremost, my friend Kate Maccarone came to visit me for a week. She got here March 8th, and we had a great time exploring and viewing the beautiful country of Nicaragua. We visited the tourists’ attractions of course, with my wonderful host family as guides. We went to Granada, and Catarina and the Masaya Volcano. She really enjoyed her time here and it was great to catch up and to be able to share my experience and what I do daily with someone so special to me. I miss her so much but it was great. I think we watched a totally of four movies while she was here. We were in no way bored, but it was her spring break from school and we wanted to relax. I took her to work with me for a day and it was great to have here there! The clinic was not as busy as it usually is on Mondays, but she got a little taste of what I do. The next thing that happened was another medical brigade from South Carolina came down and the CFCI staff and the team ventured to Matagalpa. It is about a 2.5-hour drive from Managua into the northeastern part of the country about 4,300 feet above sea level. It was very chilly at night and very relaxing and quiet where we stayed. We stayed at a hotel named “Selva Negra”, which means black forest in English. It is owned by Germans, so the food was prepared and usually not the typical Nicaraguan food. It was very nice to be able to work with a team that got along and mixed so well. We had three different generations there and we all got along so well. Usually at the end of a week mission trip as many of you know, there tend to be little cliques formed and this group had none! I could talk to someone 62 years old and then turn around and talk to someone who is in their mid 40’s and enjoy my conversation just as much with both people! It was awesome to see God move in people’s lives. I saw miracles happen. 40 people accepted God as their Lord and Savior, one man said he wants to move to Nicaragua and that he has known in for a while, he just needs to act, and I saw patients (like as a doctor). These were all things that I remember clearly from the brigade. I saw about 60-70 patients during the compilation of these four days and each day was a totally different experience. Some of the days I did not feel great, but I knew I had to keep going and push through, because these people have never had an American team visit and needed this blessing more than I needed to lay down and rest. This pain I had was causing me to lean over because it was one of the only comfortable positions that allowed me to feel a little better. I saw a number of patients who needed the typical Ibuprofen or Acetaminophen for pain that they get regularly down here because they live in this dreadful heat and do not drink enough water. It is very common here for the locals to get headaches or back aches and overall body aches because they do not drink even the equivalent to one bottle of water. But I also got to see some patients who needed just someone to listen to them and others who needed some cool things like warts or moles removed. If you know me well, I am into things like that and getting the self-satisfaction of taking away things that people think are ugly; my prime example and ultimate favorite is popping pimples. I know it may seem gross, but it is something I like doing. I also got to inject a muscle relaxant into a ladies knee. She was having joint pain and Dr. Kyle (orthopedic) helped guide me to where to inject this medicine and it was a great experience. This team brought down 19 people. Two doctors, two physical therapists, a PA, guys for construction, people to work in the pharmacy, people to work triage, and people to play with the kids. Usually with a team that size, you have a great effect on the community you are outreaching to. We saw 40 people accept Jesus, which is awesome! This country has a huge Catholic influence and it is hard to sway their views. I was able to pray for each of my patients individually and it was a blessing to be able to pray in Spanish with each person. Some would look at me and give me a huge embrace before leaving the consult area and others would shake my hand and thanking me for all I did. I was in awe of the kindness of people and their willingness to open up to me as their doctor. This was a great team and I had the pleasure of getting to know everyone on a deep level! I have even looked into Greenville (the town in South Carolina) as a place to possibly live in the future. A lot of people said they would house me until I get on my feet. I am definitely considering it! Praise God for people who are willing to be so kind and courteous! I am having the time of my life down here and I wouldn’t change it for anything! Traveling and getting to serve the people of this beautiful country is what I absolutely love! Another huge thing happened this past month. Shelby; the other missionary and my beloved friend left to go back home to Minnesota where it is cold and so I am once again solo ☹ Many people were blessed by her abilities and gifts she used while she was down here and it was great to work along side her and see her gifts reach the hearts and souls of Nicaraguans and the people she shared them with. She was so happy and such a joy to be around all the time and it was great having her here with me to share my stories with and to hear her progress as a person and in her work here as well. I loved how she was so devoted and a “go getter”. She felt bored on some afternoons so she made it appoint to look into working with another organization and made her mark there as well! It was an awesome person to be with for the past two and a half months. She is already greatly missed here! I hope she is not freezing in the snow in Minnesota! I hear it is quite cold up in the states for this time of year. Well, you’re lucky, I would trade a week of snow for a day of this heat. Trust me people, you have it good! As many of you may know already or heard through the grape vine, that I became sick or have been sick for a little while and just went to get tested and found that I have something that many people get doing missions or traveling. I am on medications for a certain intestinal worm, but still 100% unsure of what one I have, and who knows, maybe I will never bee 100% sure. I have had God guide the steps of people into my life to specifically help me and advise me on what they think should work best with past job experiences and things they have researched for many years. I have also come to realize and have known for a while that some of the most vulnerable people are those who are sick. Sick people with terminal illnesses, sick people with chronic reoccurrences, and sick people with unbearable pain are the most vulnerable. I think I would place myself into the last category. Sometimes this pain required me to stop all activity and just sit and rest and just wait until the pain went away. I have told my mom that if it keeps happening, I am coming home soon. I was determined that I would come home and leave because it was so bad. I know this attack is from the devil and it is a spiritual attack. The devil knows what I am up to for God and he is mad. The devil is angry and wants to pull me back down to where I once was. But too bad, the devil needs to face it and know that I will NEVER turn back or be the person I once was because those times are forgotten and forgiven by the gracious and loving king I call my father and Lord of my life! He is my creator, my life, my soul, and my reason! Nothing else matters with out him because I would not be matter with out him ;) This week I am not at work once again and I feel bad, I feel like I have skipped this whole month at the clinic. This week in Nicaragua is “Semana Santa” which means holy week in English. It is about that time of year for Easter to roll around and I am going to miss hunting in my house for an Easter basket ☹ (maybe I am a little too old for that) But I like living as a kid every once in a while. I have had many special people on the CFCI team step up to bat for me while being sick; taking me under their wing, bringing me to their house to stay, bringing me to their house to enjoy some games and a meal. I love the team I am here with and it is such a cool thing to have Christian friends and be able to share the same beliefs and hang out! It truly changes your desires and your perspective on life when you are continually filled with people who uplift you rather than try to derange your thoughts and pollute them with bad things. I am so blessed to be a part of this team! It is an answer to my prayers! Thank you all for keeping me in your prayers! Specific prayer requests I have for this upcoming month and next couple weeks: Please pray that this sickness is eradicated and the tests are negative when I get re-checked for the intestinal worm I have. Please pray that as I start to look for job opportunities at home that doors are opened and so is my heart to new possibilities. Please pray for these last 5 months to be the most impactful and that God continues to use me as much as he can! I am so honored to be a follower of Christ and love every second of it. Without the help of all my financial support and continued prayers, I would not be sitting here in the heat sweating and writing this blog post! Keep the prayers coming! I am on this wonderful journey and only want you to feel like your by my side! Enjoy! Thanks for reading!

6 month video! Thanks for your support!

God is your life. Living in surrender to HIM.

I have been studying the book Deuteronomy lately and I absolutely love it. I have realized that Moses did a lot of work and spent a lot of time with the Lord. He would spend 40 nights and days at a time in his presence totally consumed by him. Today that is nearly impossible for people. We have technology that exceeds the speed we have never thought possible. We have “to-do” lists that are extremely full and have no room for one more thing because it may be impossible to finish the tasks we have set before us for one day. We have the capacity to schedule years in advance at the touch of our fingers on our “smart phones”. Moses obviously didn’t have that; he had it much better and much more convenient than we do today. He had total access to God and his presence. You may be thinking, we have total access to God as well and you are absolutely right. Today I am going to explain the recent findings I have come across while studying the best tool given to humans today; the bible. In Deuteronomy, the main passages or the most important passages that have impacted me the most are these four that follow. Deut 30:20. …”you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the Lord is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.” How amazing is it to think about the fact that the Lord is your life. What does that mean to you? Because to me, it means that all these things of this world are only a vapor, a short time, and the things we do today affect our eternity. In James it says 14 whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. This makes me thankful for the life I have been given; the freedom, the free will to choose to love God and serve him whole-heartedly and trust in him for everything. I have never before attempted to seek him like I have since I have been here in Nicaragua. I have time to think. I could choose to use the time to make negative thoughts, think about what to do tomorrow, what I could be doing better. Those are all thoughts of the devil. Thinking about tomorrow is pointless because God holds the future. He holds your life, he is your life! Negative thinking is something that has been a huge part of my past. When negative people surrounded me, my attitude would turn and make a 180 turn down the wrong path. My mom even took notice to this. She could detect this change over the telephone (but all of us know our moms have a 6th sense and know when their children are hurting). If your thoughts are consumed with what you could be doing better; it’s the devil saying your not doing good enough. As missionaries, our boss is God. What we do for Him that brings glory to His name is all he asks. He desires a relationship with his children. Deut 20:4. “For the Lord your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you your victory.” Now regress to what I just mentioned above; the devil putting negative thoughts in your head. God fights the enemy for you. When you devote your time to him and allow him access to the fears, He will take them and discard them elsewhere. I know this all to well. I have been afraid way to many times and haven’t given God my fears and tried to take them on my own. This is a heavy and hard burden to carry. It weighs you down, makes you tired, makes you want to give up, and even quit on the things God may have put on your heart for you to do. In Isaiah 41:10 it says: Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’ I know this verse all too well because it is the verse my mom sent me once while I was down here and told her “I am done”, “I can’t do this anymore”, and “I want to come home.” God fought my battle and my time passed and now I am at peace and have confidence he is the one leading me each and every day. I used to wake up and think, “Ok, what do I have to do today?” With that kind of thought process, I was easily tired, and most definitely easily disappointed because I was trying to work, giving of my time, loving the people, AND trying to fight my own battles. People, trust me, it doesn’t work all that well (especially when you can’t understand the language your are engulfed in). Deut 10:17-20. “For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality and accepts no bribes. He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the alien, giving him food and clothing. And you are to love those who are aliens, for yourselves were aliens in Egypt. Fear the Lord your God and serve him. Hold fast to him and take your oaths in his name. He is your praise; he is your God…” I absolutely LOVE this verse. I believe it describes the missionary life. We have the God of gods and the Lord of lords on our side! He doesn’t accept bribes. Our boss won’t let us leave early if we promise to work harder tomorrow. Each and everyday, he expects our best; our hearts, our souls, and our minds to be completely fixed on Him. He will then take our hand and lead us to where he wants us to go. He is mighty and awesome! I know those seem like mundane words that are used to describe our God, but in actuality the word “awesome” means something causing awe or terror. The word mighty means having or showing great power, skill, strength, or force. I would say these words fit God perfectly and probably will use them less now for the things of this world. Loving the alien is what us missionaries love doing (or at least I do). Loving the people most people ignore, loving the aliens that most people look down upon, and loving the broken who have lost hope in themselves and don’t know who holds their future. The little acts of giving someone food and clothes can go a long way in today’s world. And especially in the country we are in. The simple act of telling patients at the clinic that some medications are donated puts a smile on their face; a sigh of relief shortly follows. Its like I can hear their thoughts (“glad I don’t have to sacrifice my food tonight for 30 more pills to control my blood pressure”, or “Thank God this medication for circulation was donated because the doctor said my heart has a lot of hardened and almost clogged arteries and if I don’t get something to help me, another heart attack is right around the corner.”) It makes me happy that the people at the clinic I work at have the opportunity to receive free medicines and makes me appreciate the people in America a little more knowing they package and put time, money, and energy into us down here in Nicaragua. Fearing the Lord your God for Christians means something that is very much a relief to me. In Hebrews 12 it says 28 Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, 29 for our God is a consuming fire. This reverence or deep respect and awe should be the motivating factor for us to surrender to the Creator of the Universe. Deut 4:29. “But if you from there you seek the Lord your God, you will find him if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul.” This is a short verse, but so perfectly said. Think about how you personally seek God. Is it on the way to your job in the car? Is it praying in the early morning at 4:00AM before no one else is awake and the world is quiet? Is it at night right before you get into bed and prepare yourself for a new day ahead? For me, it is turning my music on, shutting my eyes, meditating on the words of songs and either humming them or singing them softly. They are my words to God. I absolutely love music and the beautiful sound it makes and when I turn music on to meditate and think about God, I feel fully consumed and devoured by his presence (in a good way of course). But you have to put forth the effort. God won’t open to door if you don’t knock. He won’t carry you if you hold on to your own baggage and fears. He won’t comfort you when you don’t confide in him. These are all things you have to surrender to him with ALL of your heart and with ALL of your soul. In Matthew 7 it says it perfectly 7 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. I am challenging my fellow friends and family to do just this. Spend your quiet time fully consumed by his love and his spirit and allow your thoughts to be his thoughts and your work to be his work. This is a hard task. We must renew our cup with his spirit and passions, because ours will eventually run out of fuel. This past weekend I was in Costa Rica and I absolutely loved it. At church the preacher had a candle and fish bowl and was preaching on a verse in Revelations but I could not understand much because the accent there is a little different and the echo of the microphone also didn’t help me pick up much. But, I kind of was thinking what I am about to share while he was preaching about something using the same artifacts. 1. Picture a fishbowl and picture a lit candle. The candle is you and your fire for God and the fishbowl is the world. 2. When you are surrounded by the fishbowl, upside down it represents the world. This world is heavy; though you don’t feel all the weight. This world is draining and surrounding you at all angles. This world is suffocating and will eventually burn your fire or light out if you are surrounded by it and don’t give up time each day for God to operate on your heart and allow you to breathe and share with him your heart. 3. Scientifically, the fire will eventually be put out because oxygen is not reaching the candle and allowing it to keep burning. 4. It metaphorically represents the world and the weight of the world on our shoulders. Like the verses earlier, we need to seek God with all out heart and soul, and allow him to fight our battles. 5. Now picture the fire lit and your inside the fishbowl and it is right side up. 6. This represents you in the world, but spending time with God each and everyday. The fishbowl represents God’s shield he places around your heart when you devote and dedicate your time to him. You won’t be burnt out and your heart won’t wear the weight of your problems and your shoulders will feel relieved and lightened when you hand over your problems to him. I ask you to think about when and where you spend the most time with God and this week definitely go there and give God your heart and your soul. He is your life! I absolutely admire the work God is doing in each of our hearts and each of us has an important role to play in this thing we call life. I can’t even begin to understand God and why he does the things he does. But I totally understand He loves me and desires me to love him and seek him with my whole heart and soul. He desires for all his children to spend time with him and he wants us to have a relationship with him. He wants us to surrender and he is willing to carry us when we fall and when we stumble. We will all make mistakes and none of us our perfect, but we have a God that made the world and is perfectly protecting our hearts.

NICARAGUA explained

Today is a day I have taken a brake from my schedule and reflected thus far on my time here in Nicaragua. I have decided to explain my time here with the letters of this country. "N" is for NEW beginnings. I have started a new life, have met new people and have planted myself into a new atmosphere. I am currently in the process of helping to start a new church! God is bigger than anything and only with the power of him and his never ending love am I able to have the wisdom to help start a new church in Nicaragua where there is none. I was contacted by a person who was on the last medical brigade and he was thinking of starting a new church and I told him I was interested in helping. I know he and his wife are great people and his passion is life is bringing people into relationship so that they can learn and see God's love through what he does. Carlos and Luisa have an amazing story and are full of God's love. They live solely off of His timing and it has been awesome to meet them and get to know them on a more personal level while talking about this church planning. Today is the first meeting of discipleship and I will have to miss it because I am feeling sick. "I" is for INTERESTING. When i was first introduced to Nicaragua through orientation and was told there will be things while I am here that will be "different". I thought (well duh, its a totally new place) of course this will be different. At that time, I thought Americas ways of doing life were superior and much more sensible. Since I have been here, I have changed and my mind set is different. The way people live here is beautiful just like some lives in the states. Of course everywhere you go, you will have poor decisions that were made, leading to poor lifestyles, but as well you have people here that are left poor and make great lives for themselves. This can happen anywhere, but you see it much more when the odds are against you (a country like Nicaragua). I have fallen in love with the people of this country and the differences that make us each unique in our own ways. God has designed each of us individually and given us each our own way of coping. Since I have been here, I have learned that when someone asks me my take on something; for example, the work I do in the clinic, I say "it is interesting, but I love it". I don't always add in the little tidbit that I love it, but things that I have come to love, I definitely don't leave the sentence bland and empty with the word interesting. There are many interesting differences here all the way from raising children to caring for the sick. I have learned to accept each of them as interestingly different and think I may even adopt some of them as my own when I start a family one day. "C" is for companionship. I have had a few people that stick out in my mind that have become companions since I have been here. One has been by my side this whole trip; my mother here (Isabel) and one that I have recently met that has taken me under her wing (Esmeralda). The group of missionaries I work with also are people I consider companions in different ways. I have found these two individual people who have walked with me through my struggles and held me close when I needed it most. Without a companion to help you or people to listen to you, I think you might go crazy. I am in a totally unique environment and working under a different set of standards here that I need to express how I am feeling sometimes to people who live here. These two people have helped me learn more about the culture and explained it in words that are easily understandable to me in the language I am still learning each day. I have found that with close companions, I can share my heart and these people accept me no matter what. They are both Christians and are people I admire greatly. My mother here is a leader in our church and is very smart and strong in everything she does. My friend Esmeralda is studying anesthesiology and is interested to help me grow and learn more in the language and my career (she let me practice starting and IV on her). These people have gone out of their comfort zones to help me adapt more; trust me! "A" is for ANXIETY. I have had anxiety many times since I have been here that it would be unfair to write that only good things come when you are serving God. I think anxiety in small spurts is healthy for normal human functioning. You need a little of anxiety here and there to keep you human and help you realize that you are living in the same world most humans live in! I had anxiety starting my new job, meeting new people at church, work, and my family. I had anxiety my first time taking a taxi, the first time riding the bus alone, and many firsts I have had to do. The first time I have tried foods, a slight, tiny, itsy bitsy ounce of anxiety came over me because I didn't know if I would like it. I have thought to myself before I even tried foods (what if I hate this whole plate of food?). I have loved every food I have tried here and the things I am not so fond of are not common or are usually snacks that are purchased when desired. "R" is for RARE. There are rare things I have seen that have made me look twice. Like every new place you go, your always on the watch for things that are different. Here it is common for people to carry huge bags of plastic, or pushing large carts with the whole thing filled with plastic so they can make some money. It must not be much, because these people have a full bag or full bin and are still collecting. I also find it rare that children are juggling mandarin oranges in the streets for money rather than eating them for nutrients. I find it rare that IM injections are given in the butt all the time here no matter what! I find it rare that men claim to be Christians and leave their family to have another mistress and start a family with her and then return to the family he once had and act like everything is ok. There are many rarities here but I know that God has shown me what he has to learn from them and pray to accept them with a non judgmental heart. "A" is for ALIVE. Since I have been here, I have realized that the city is alive during all times of the day and even through some nights. On December 7th and 8th, fireworks are shot off at all hours. On December 24th, fireworks are also bounding throughout the city and especially on December 31st, the whole country is alive. The town is alive. Every time I have been running at 5:00 AM in the morning there has been at least one person up and one bus running, showing me that this city is never dead. There is always someone working somewhere making money for themselves; whether its my host sister coming home at 2:30 AM from work, or a drunk man begging for 1 cordoba in the middle of a 3 lane highway at stop lights to buy his next drink, or a prostitute waiting for her next client to make money to bring home the next meal for her children. I have seen many different instances and heard many stories that have allowed me to see the variety and severity of the meaning of this word. Some people may take it as a bad thing, but others may be thankful for the job they have that keeps them alive. I have been thankful to be in the city to see the celebrations and the culture light up the night on certain occasions. "G" is for GRACE. I recently explained to a couple that I never pictured myself as missionary. Even growing up in the church; the term missionary was never appetizing to me. I always thought the biggest house, the nicest car, and the most expensive clothes was what pleasing God was all about because that is what society tells you. Of course this isn't the devout, loving, and disciples following Christ religiously kind of people I used to admire. It was television, movies, music that brought these thoughts into my mind. Here I have received God's grace and he has allowed me to see that through relationships I have formed and the person I am becoming is not possible without him and his love. I am nothing without him and I am saved by his grace. It has allowed me to be here and blessed by the things and people in this country I have come across thus far. "U" is for UNITED. I have found this term used specifically for families all throughout Central America. People here whether you are related by blood or through marriage, you stand as a united unit through everything. As a family grows up here, the mother and father have a house in a particular neighborhood. As the children bro up, they purchase houses across the street, or on the same street or even next door to the main person of this family. This process continues through any generations, therefore you have generations either living together or side by side and everyone is around all the time for all events. It is a beautiful site and I love watching cousins being able to play with one another by just crossing the street. It wasn't as easy for my sisters and I to play with relatives considering our family based themselves in Florida and everyone else was in a difference states hundreds of miles away. I may find it so interesting and be mesmerized by it because it wasn't easily attainable for me. I appreciate the unity of families here. Even if they may be broke, they are still mostly accepting and united. I love that! "A" is for ANSWERED prayers. God answered my prayer and allowed me to be in this country which I have absolutely fallen in love with. I am doing his will for my life and I would desire nothing more. I have met amazing people, people that have lifted me up, have helped me get to where I am. Supporters who have helped answer my prayers with their prayers and continued support. I have learned so much thus far. I am so thankful for a faithful God. He has answered so many of my prayers from a suitcase being returned and have covered every expense I have needed. A little update on things that have been happening: Liam and Gorge Luis started school in February. I will be traveling to Costa Rica the 28th of February to renew my visa (AKA; I have been here for 6 months!). I will have one of my friends (Kate) come to visit March 8th-15th. I will be helping a medical brigade on the 16th-24th of March from South Carolina. I attended a medical bridge in Esteli with a Mennonite team from Ohio on February 17th. My missionary friend here (Shelby) may leave soon because she doesn't have much funds to last her another month. I am not looking to get my residency anymore. Please pray for my stomach it has been upset and not well the last couple weeks. I hate being sick and I stayed home from my usual Thursday meeting because I felt nauseous and had a fever this morning. Thanks for your continued support and prayers. I appreciate you all so much. May God be glorified through all we do! AMEN!

Humbling Myself and Showing God's Love

I have recently returned from another medical brigade. I was invited to accompany a team from South Carolina that makes a trip down every January to visit communities in need of Medical attention, activity for kids to participate in, and prayer. This team was very fun to work with. I met many new people and have changed a lot of my views on my life as of now and maybe for the future. The team arrived and the first day, we worked at a camp started by two Christian men from the states. During this time, I worked with a plastic surgeon who called himself "Buck" because he thought it was cool. He met a boy who needed his help and his skills for surgery because he had facial bones that didn't fuse together when he was born and if something wasn't fixed; he would eventually go blind. So Buck offered to return in June and do the surgery and hopefully I can help out. He wants me involved with this little boy. His name is Fernando. Please pray that Buck can return and Fernando doesn't lose his eye sight before then or anytime after! His mother and grandmother were in tears when Buck told them he was going to come back and perform this surgery. I was blessed on the second day and was reminded of Honduras. We went to a part of the country that is called "the dump". I went to one in Honduras as well. These times open my eyes and make me see how good I have it. I have complained many times about things that are inevitable compared to how these people live from day to day. I met the pastor of this area's church. It was such a neat experience to see the day care they have set up. There is a day care in this area; and associated with the day care is a feeding center. Kids come for food everyday and while the parents are out working, this day care provides care and activities for the kids to do. It was so cool to see such a neat organization working hand in hand with the poorest people. I was helping to translate for some doctors at this place and then moved into the pharmacy to help distribute medications prescribed. On day three and four we worked in a school located at Masachapa. This is right on the coast in the southwest area of the country. It was beautiful. During these last two days I worked in the pharmacy and I got to experience feet washing. It was a great time. Before feet washing, I literally had to prepare my mind. I had to focus on what the importance of this whole thing was. It wasn't to make myself feel good or accomplished. It was humbling myself like I do before I enter into prayer; and loving these kids and creating small talk to get to know a little bit about them. It was ultimately showing them the love of Christ. I used to hate feet; but after this experience it hit me that feet are what keep me going. I walk and bring the word, God's love, and Christs' example to the places God guides me to. I am being HIS hands and feet! I seriously was so blessed to participate in this. I wish I could accompany this team every year just for that experience. This team was very welcoming and blessed me with prayers, some finances, and stories that lead them to where they are now in their lives and why. I learned a lot about myself during this time. I am asking you to help accompany me in prayer. I was debating on whether to make this public or not; but God has put it on my heart and I need prayer. I need prayer to purchase my residency here. It will be a residency for one year. I prayed to God during this trip that if He wants me to stay here, He will provide a way because I am just a poor missionary and don't have the luxury to spend money as I wish, like most of the members of the teams that come down here. I was given the money to cover purchasing my residency because GOD IS FAITHFUL! That has been my motto from the beginning of this year. I just need prayer that the papers travel smoothy in the US and from the US to Nicaragua and the contacts that my family has here will be sufficient for me to make this a possibility. I really know God is guiding me. Home is where the heart is; and my heart is secure down here in Central America. I love every moment, every opportunity, and everyone who has welcomed me here. Please keep our base here in Nicaragua in your prayers as well as del are still trying to raise money to purchase our office and that each missionary accomplishes what they need to do to help spread the gospel of Christ throughout Nicaragua. Please also pray for my church I attend here "Amor Viviente" as we are fasting this week to pray for the church and the future God has for us as a church, people, and as a country. I have felt moved by his hand and work here in our church. It is so nice to feel welcomed with open arms and hugs and smiles every Saturday night. I hope this is a nice little update. I am sorry it wasn't too long and full of information, but I am on a tight schedule today. We had our devotion this morning and now I need to go prepare my prayer for church tonight for the offering we have after the service. I appreciate all of my followers and thank you for your continued support.

One person can make a difference.

Hello Friends and Family that are following! I have had such a busy last couple weeks (with no work; yes, weird, but true)! I hope this finds you all well! I have been thinking about what to write about; the amount of food we eat for Christmas, the amount of food we eat for the New Year, or the amount of food I ate while my parents were here and treated as royalty. Well as most of you probably have already figured out, I have eaten a lot lately! This month of December has been full of fun, food, and family (three of my favorite things). The CFCI team I work with had “off work” since December 13th and my days of vacation started a little later. I had a 2-week vacation from December 24th until January 7th. I was blessed to be able to take off two weeks because as most of you know; health care is a constant need. I was able to relax, rest, and re-charge my batteries for this wonderful new year of 2013! I have been praying to have a light and a fire for God that cannot be extinguished no matter how hard, how tired, or how much I want to quit. I ask you to partner with me in this prayer and I challenge you to pray if for yourselves as well. God calls each one of us to serve Him wherever we are and to influence those in our own personal “influential spheres”. I challenge you to count the number of people you spend an hour around during a normal day throughout a week. The average number of people we influence by spending over an hour or more with these people is around 12 (17 at most). Mine is about 14. I am pretty amazed. God has given me 14 people to reach out to and hopefully make a powerful impact so that when my time on this earth is done and my time in Nicaragua is through; they will be forever changed. In some way, shape, or form I desire to make changes to the people in my influential sphere. Everyone has a chance to make a difference. And that is what I want to talk about; making a difference. I want to reference Noah (considering I am reading the whole bible this year in chronological order). I have read through the first twelve chapters of the Genesis and have realized that Noah was one person who made a difference in this world. Something I constantly need to be reminded of is “Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us” Hebrews 12:1. People watch what we do; no matter if we know or not. Everyone around you watches you. I am not saying this to try to creep you out or convince you that you have stalkers. But the human mind is scientifically proven to learn from experience. A lot of people would admit they are visual learners. Since Noah listened so obediently to the word of God, he made a difference in this world. I desire to have the same effect where I am at today. Last year I struggled with the thoughts that told me “I am not making a difference”, or “I haven’t evangelized to one person”, or even “Melissa, you’re wasting your time; might as well go home and actually start your career.” ALL of these thoughts were the devil speaking to me and trying to convince me that my work for God’s kingdom is worthless. I know that God is being glorified no matter if all I do in a day is fill medicines or if I get to be a part of a medical brigade and pray over sick people all day. Every little second of my time spent here is making a significant difference for his kingdom and for my eternity. Another thing Noah did was made he a difference for his family. He was chosen out of his whole family and with that, was allowed to save his family because of his salvation and his heart. He found favor in the eyes of the Lord. He made a difference for his generation. Come on people; Noah started a generation! He also made a difference for God. He obeyed God and built an ark even though it took 120 years. He kept doing the things he was told. I mean for me, I personally would have probably given up around year 2. People today want things done quickly and efficiently that we don’t hear when God whispers into our hearts and tells us how we could impact this world in His timing. The society has taught us that fast and in large quantities is best. If I had that attitude down here I would be disappointed day after day. I would be losing and captured by the thoughts of the enemy. You have to wait on Him. God is never late in anything! His timing is perfect and his plan is perfect (He is also perfect as well; so you’re ok, the maker of the universe has it under control). I have noticed, or should I say others have noticed me. I stand out like a sore thumb here in Nicaragua; even after I dyed my hair! People can notice “cheles” (or Americans) like it’s their job. I get stared at everyday. I hated it at first and wondered why people have to be so rude and stare. Now, I hardly notice because I am still busy looking at the city and thinking how my God is watching from above with a huge smile. I am making a difference by being different! I am a 23 year old girl who has stopped my life and handed it over to God to see how much more impactful I can be when I listen and obey Him. I have seen miracles and smiling faces everyday I have been here, and that has been my biggest blessing. Like a lot of other firsts in my family; after being the first in my immediate family to graduate from a 4-year college, I have left and taken the title of a missionary. I wasn’t afraid to do something no one in my family has done before. It takes a lot to literally scare me out of doing something (which is a good thing). All of you probably know the story of Noah pretty well. Noah made an ark because God saw that the world was evil and he was ashamed he made man. He told Noah to make an ark and his whole family and two kind of every animal will get on this ark. He allowed it to rain for 40 days and 40 nights and there was a flood and all the people and animals of the world that were not in the ark died. He then promised Noah with a rainbow that he would never flood the entire world again. I want you to take another look at a rainbow the next time you see it and instead of thinking about God’s promise, think about Noah and how ONE PERSON MADE A DIFFERENCE. Noah obeyed, made a difference, stood out, and wasn’t afraid. All of these things have crossed my mind at least once since I have been here and I am proud to say that I see myself a little more like Noah everyday. To give you an update on my busy couple weeks: Christmas is celebrated on the 24th here, my parents came to visit over New Year’s where big stuffed dolls were burned at a stake, and a miracle took place! Christmas here is celebrated on the 24th here and it is a little different for me. No present were exchanged (except for Liam of course). Kids get luxury at Christmas; but that’s worldwide I think. I called my parents and they said they were having a “different” Christmas this year. They had Christmas brunch and were missing me. I was sad, but realized I was experiencing something I may never experience again. I embraced it and it was fun. We had a huge meal and stayed up till about 1:30 AM and talked and hung out and watched fireworks that made the whole city of Managua alive. Fireworks are used all throughout December and into the first of the year of course. My parents came down and got here a little late (unexpected) because their plane that was supposed to arrive on Friday the 28th at 2:00AM actually arrived 12 hours later and on a different airline. It was fine with me; because I got more sleep ☺ I was sad, but I could wait. It meant 12 hours less in their presence, but it was for a reason (not sure what, but God does). They arrived and when we got back to the house, we realized we were missing a suitcase. “Que lastima” (what a shame) as my grandma would say! It really was such a shame, considering all the clothes I planned on blessing the women in my family with were in that bag. I was so upset and that night when my parents and I laid down for bed at 9:30, I didn’t fall asleep until about 2:00 AM. I was troubled asking God “why did this have to happen?”, “what could I have done to prevent this?”, “God, my parents are going to hate Nicaragua and think it’s more dangerous than it actually is.” The next morning I got up at 5:30 (since I couldn’t sleep) and wrote in my journal since my heart was troubled. I had a talk with my Nicaraguan mom about it over coffee, and I started crying. I was so upset and I told her “there was all these clothes in that suitcase for you, Karen, and Silvia. I feel so bad, like it was my fault.” She said “No, Melissa, God is in control. God gives and he takes away. If someone stole that bag, then they needed it and God knew that. We have bigger treasures than earthly ones. We have an eternal promise with God and we will get bigger things in heaven. The things of this earth don’t matter.” Wow, she was right. She opened my eyes. I prayed then that God take away the trouble I felt and the thoughts of anger I had toward this missing suitcase. I asked the group that donated the clothes (Venue Reach, Bayside Community Church) to pray that this bag would somehow show up and that I was sorry it was lost. I know that a lot of people saw this and hopefully prayed for it to appear. Well New years went by, my dad left on new years day at 2:00 AM (horrible hours with Spirit). My mom stayed till the 4th and we went to the airport 3 different times trying to get a copy of the claim my dad and my Nicaraguan dad made on the day we realized we didn’t have it in our possession. On the way to airport I prayed and told God that if the suitcase was not there, I would forget about it and leave it up to Him and prayed the person who had it would use the clothes for good and maybe the person that stole this suitcase was poor and needed it. I had no clue what God had in store. My mom eventually left on another 2:00 AM flight on Friday the 4th. While my parents were here we got to see Granada, take a boat tour of some islands that were formed from a volcano, see Catarina, which is now a lagoon that was formerly a volcano. We got to go to Masaya and visit the volcano park. We got to go to the clinic where I work and enjoy an amazing meal with the doctor and his family. I made them take the bus with me to experience what I do everyday. I wanted them to experience a little bit of what I do here in Nicaragua. They came to church with me and met a lot of the people I see in a regular week. I was so excited to show them my city, where I live, and what I do. My mom stayed a little later and she helped me one day in the clinic in the pharmacy. I had to translate for her, but she did give about 5 injections! I was blessed to have my mom with me and help me with what we both love doing. I think the biggest fascination for my parents was the number of people and age of those riding motorcycles. The max they saw on one motorcycle was four. I have seen five; child in front, dad driving, another child stuck between the mom holding an infant. It is a way of life here; it’s normal. Just embrace it and be thankful it’s not you! Back to the suitcase story; my parents met this man on the way down here from Costa Rica who was married to a Nicaraguan woman. They had eight suitcases for three people and my parents checked an extra one on for them because their limit was exceeded. They got to know this guy pretty well and my dad gave him his business card. After we lost our suitcase I asked, “Why didn’t you get that guys number?” and they were wondering the same. So my parents came and went. I forgot about the suitcase and I was texting my dad the day my mom got home and he was asking about his favorite little boy (Liam). I was updating, sending pictures of him swimming in the pool and playing and being the cutie that he is. And my dad said, ”guess who called?” I couldn’t believe it; the guy they met on the plane called and had our suitcase! I screamed and my mom thought something terrible happened. I told her “the suitcase; the guy has it!” The whole house was screaming and thanking God! Well long story short, we picked up the suitcase and I was able to bless the women of my family with some new clothes. They loved them and were so thankful. So thank you for those of you who prayed and my reminder for this whole year is that GOD IS FAITHFUL. Take every blessing with gratitude and believe that even when it looks bad, God is there. He loves hid children and will bless those who trust him. I have a great outlook for this New Year! God is good! Gracias a Dios! This past week we sang God of this city (in Spanish of course) and it spoke to me. God will change Managua Nicaragua and I would ask all of you to pray for this city, the clinic I work in, and the church I attend. We are desperately praying for the money to come in to purchase the property and are praying to our faithful God that the funds will be provided. I also ask you to pray for my dream; to run an orphanage. I was told today in my devotional meeting (held every Thursday) that I have a heart for kids. I immediately felt compelled to tell my CFCI team that I have always dreamed of running an orphanage. I was in tears by the end of this little speech because it is such a passionate subject and a desire that I hope to fulfill one day. I know God can do great things for his children who desire to serve His kingdom and do good for Him. I know that with His power, His plan, and the motivation He coerces me with I can do anything and nothing is impossible for my God! Thank you all for your continued prayer and support! Enjoy the pictures!

Merry Christmas from my family to yours!