Nicaragua Update: Thursday Edition

Wednesday -- We went to Emmanual in the morning to do VBS with the kids. We also continued building the house for Carlos and hope to finish the house by the end of the week. The remainder of the team spent time evangelizing throughout the barrio, and one woman accepted Christ. Praise the Lord! That afternoon we continued helping Chosen Children Ministries with a building on-site to use for their ministry. It's such a blessing to serve a ministry who is continually serving others, including our team. A few of us headed to Marvin in the afternoon to work with the people there and see some old friends. Nicole managed to fall in love with a monkey, but don't worry, she will not be taking it back with us! Every night we have a devotion, but last night's was the best yet. The Lord was so obviously present.

Thursday -- Today we went to the dump. A few hundred people live off of the dump, searching from sun up to sun down for things they can recycle like plastic bags and plastic bottles. These people have absolutely nothing. No house. No job. And, without Jesus Christ, no hope. We met their physical needs with food as well as their spiritual needs with the story of Christ

One of the reasons I love Chosen children Ministries is because they continue to minister to the Nicaraguan people long after our group is gone. The people of the barrio are connected to a church with a pastor, who Chosen Children mentors and teaches. Short-term mission trips are often criticized for leaving the native people high and dry after telling them about Jesus. In each barrio that we work with, Chosen Children Ministries has a constant presence, which allows the people there to grow a deeper relationship with Christ. So, while we may only be there for a short time, the Lord's name is continually proclaimed. Can I get an Amen?

Nicaragua Update: Wednesday Edition

Wednesday -- We went to Xiloa, which is the same community we worked in last year. It was beyond wonderful to see familiar faces! It's hard to explain the feeling that comes over you after seeing a child running toward you, barefoot, down the streets of a small Nicaraguan barrio. The same child that you've been praying over for an entire year. It's even harder to explain the type of connection that you can make in just a week. We did VBS with the kids of Xiloa and were able to walk through the barrio telling people about our Savior, Jesus Christ. We also stopped in at a new community called SMP and met with Edgar, the community leader. We encouraged and shared with them the advantages of getting involved with Chosen Children Ministries, since this was the first contact Chosen Children Ministries made with the community. We assessed needs, and the entire community was really excited about CCM's involvement. The people of the community are desperate for a church. 

Thursday - We are heading to Emmanuel to build Carlos a home. We will also be doing VBS as well as evangelism.

Nicaragua Update: Monday Edition

Here is the latest update:

Sunday -- Things at Sombrano went really well! We did Vacation Bible School with the kids and spent time simply loving on them. Hugs have a way of breaking down the language barrier. 

Monday -- Today, we went to the orphanage in Juigalpa, which is home to 30 kids. Of course, the term "kids" is used lightly. There are 2 girls, ages 12 and 14, who were raped by their father. Both of these "kids" are now moms. Both moms are on the honor roll, and one of the moms recently earned an academic award. Praise the Lord! We were able to take the kids on a field trip to the zoo. It was so exciting to see all their faces light up! They absolutely loved it, and we loved that they loved it! We fell in love with the kids, and goodbyes came way too quickly. 

Tomorrow -- We will be in Xiloa and The Flags, which are the same two barrios we were in last year. Several team members from last year's trip are anxiously awaiting reuniting with some of the relationships formed last year. 

Every night our team gathers in prayer and cries out for God to show up, use us, and lead us. Our team is praying that God would take this trip and make it His. We are also praying that we would be sensitive to the Holy Spirit and His lead as to where we need to go, who we need to talk to, and how to direct the conversations.

Nicaragua Update: Sunday Edition

Bienvenido a Nicaragua! All 24 team members arrived safely without any hiccups. Prasise the Lord! We hit the ground running, so here's a recap of what we've done so far:

Saturday -- After we landed and made it to the mission house, we helped construct a building on campus for Chosen Children Ministries. That night we spent time seeking the Lord through prayer and scripture. What a joy it is to worship the Lord here in Nicaragua! We wanted to be sure our hearts were focused on what we have been called to do here this week.

Sunday -- This morning we went to church in Managua with Guillermo, Chosen Children's International Director. Reagan Sinclaire shared her testimony, and Rachel, Kaelynn, and Courtney sang special music. This afternoon we are going to Sombrazo to do our first VBS and sports camps.

More updates to follow!

Para nuestro Dios

It’s that time…

The rubber is about to hit the road…

After months of hard work, we find ourselves just hours away from Switchboard’s very first mission trip.

It’s surreal… We’re truly blown away by God’s loving kindness through all of this. He has turned what was once just a passing thought into a full-fledged, functional organization. He has turned our “filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6, Philippians 3:8) into something amazing, something that He will undoubtedly use to bless individuals all across the globe. We are thrilled to get to be a part of what He is doing for the people of this world, exceedingly humbled by His grace and eager to see what He has in store for us in the future, namely the next few days.

Our destination… The beautiful, exotic nation of Nicaragua…

Our partners… Chosen Children Ministries… These wonderful people have committed their lives to serving the people of Nicaragua for the glory of Jesus Christ. Their website says it best…

        

“Chosen Children Ministries exists to share God's love and the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the people of Nicaragua, serving their spiritual and physical needs in ways that bring God glory, by planting churches, equipping leaders, strengthening families and individuals, evangelizing and discipling children and adults, establishing child sponsorships and giving humanitarian aid.”

To learn more about CCM or about how to be involved in their ministry, visit their website at:

http://chosenchildrenministries.org/index.htm

Our team… The Lord has assembled a team of 23 students from 6 different universities across the South, including Louisiana State University, Louisiana-Monroe University, Texas A&M University, Texas Christian University, the University of Mississippi and the University of Tennessee-Martin. Also, we are beyond excited that a member of our wonderful Board of Directors, Amy Woodby, has chosen to accompany us on our inaugural journey. And, not to be forgotten, we have been blessed with OVER 60 PRAYER PARTNERS from all over the United States. They’ve joined our team specifically to pray for each and every one of those travelling. It’s breathtaking to see our beautiful and gracious God work to bring us all together, and we have no doubt that He has orchestrated this ENTIRE team to achieve His purposes.

Our mission… As a team, we will be doing about three main things everyday.

For the children, we will do a Vacation Bible School of sorts and then run Sports Camps for them. The main focus, though, is on loving on them. We will come into contact with a multitude of children who just want to be loved. Whether we need to give piggyback rides, play tag or paint fingernails, we just want to show each and every child that they are indeed valued and loved just as Jesus does for us.

To reach the adults, we will do lots of one-on-one evangelism. These people are often times hurting, broken and lost in the chaos of their everyday lives. Our only aim is to, as the apostle Paul wrote, preach Christ and Him crucified (1 Corinthians 2:2) because He is the only true Healer and the only One who can bring perfect peace.

How can you help?

PRAY!!!

We’ll tell you the same thing that we told our prayer partners…

“In these first days as we all get adjusted and settled in, we ask that you would pray for safety as we travel both into the country and as we travel between the "barrios" and the mission house.

Pray that each of the team members would drop their inhibitions and step out onto the ledge. It will be hard for us, even those that have come before, to let go of our assumptions and preconceived notions about this new world around us. Please pray that we would truly surrender to whatever God has for us in these next 7 days.

But most importantly, pray that we would be cognizant of the true reason that we have come, to spread the love and good news of Jesus Christ across the world. Pray that we would remember that while we will have fun and enjoy our time together in such an exotic place, we have come to boldly proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ because, in the end, nothing else can satisfy but Him.”

Please join in with us as we bring the good news of Jesus Christ to the people of the world.

We’ll have more updates soon, so make sure that you at least log out of Facebook long enough to check back here in the next few days…

Until next time… Adios Amigos!

The Body of Christ

            A couple weeks ago I started having this tiny little backache.  It’s not a big deal whatsoever, but it’s just annoying.  Every time I take a wrong step, or bend over wrong, or twist awkwardly it inhibits my once effortless movement.  On a scale of 1-10 of pain and severity, this back ache is a 0.  It’s nothing- miniscule, but it consistently affects my daily life in the smallest of ways.  However, it stops me in my tracks to imagine a more serious pain.  What if I had a bullet embedded in my skin from 10 years ago?  What if my nose had been cut off to signify I was a child soldier, or my right arm blown off in an explosion?  Even worse, what if I didn’t have ANY access to medical care?  No ibuprofen bottle sitting around to numb the shooting pains, no antibiotics to stop an infection…nothing.  How in the world would I go about living daily life?  The physical pain would get to be at times so unbearable my mind would literally shut down and make it impossible to focus on anything other than the immeasurable hurt going on within my body.  There’s absolutely no way I could work a full day, or sit down and focus entirely on any sort of task.  Not to even mention having a fruitful quiet and prayer time without crying out to God begging for any sort of healing. 

Unfortunately this hypothetical situation, as far-fetched as it is for us here in America, is the norm in Uganda.  While in Africa a couple of months ago, we heard story after story of physical ailments that plagued the Ugandan people’s everyday lives.  They weren’t complaining or whining; they were stating facts.  Their people are in a world where pain casts a dark and haunting shadow over absolutely every part of their lives.  It’s not that they are lazy or unwilling to work to start picking up the broken pieces a 25-year war left behind, they are physically unable to.  We’ve often been asked why The Tuli Initiative includes the “body” part of our mind-body-spirit approach.  The Nameless Project’s main mission is psychological healing, and Switchboard Missions’ focus is on spiritual awakening- so where does physical healing come into play?  As deep as their scars run emotionally, we can’t expect healing in their minds or spirit until the body is mended.  And what better way to present hope than by introducing them to The Great Physician?  By establishing the fact that we care about their physical needs, whether it’s providing a roof and bed for orphans, or clean water to drink, or doctors to perform life-changing surgeries, we can help provide freedom from constant pain and thus open thousands of doors in their hearts to a healing far more eternal. 

The Tuli Initiative: An Intro

Walt Disney was once quoted saying, “It’s kind of fun to do the impossible.”  We wholeheartedly agree.  A standard mission trip with two nonprofit organizations in June quickly turned into the opportunity of a lifetime.  No, not the “opportunity of a lifetime” sleazy car salesmen kind of way, but rather the “opportunity of a lifetime” orchestrated entirely by God to change an entire country.  Rather than bearing witness to some of the greatest problems of the modern world and becoming overwhelmed, we quickly discovered God had clearly lit the way to a solution through a destined partnership between The Nameless Project and Switchboard Missions.  After meeting with over 40 government officials and the Governor of the Northern Uganda province and being offered full governmental support, there was really no option but to proceed.  The project is called The Tuli Initiative, and through it we plan to provide complete mind-body-spirit rehabilitation to war-torn villages.  This is no small endeavor, as we have committed to being a long-term presence in this country for years to come.  We have hired a Ugandan native named Walter Ogwang to serve as a full-time representative and presence for The Tuli Initiative. 

I can tell you stories from the people we met that would probably make you cry.  I could go into detail about the 25-year war that has rampaged their lives and ripped loved ones out of their arms.  I could recall the bullets still embedded in their skin or the desperation in their eyes when they pleaded for our assistance.  It would indeed make you stop and think, but we as Americans are pros at busying our minds to avoid harsh realities, so you would soon forget what you read.  To be honest, I’m weary of writing stories with orchestra-themed background music meant to tug at your heart strings.  We’ve come to realize that no matter how hard we work and how badly we want change, it is impossible to do alone.  Thank goodness we are all but alone.  Every single molecule of this project, from a chance meeting in a coffee shop to this very moment, has been entirely God-breathed and orchestrated.  He has already begun to assemble an All-Star team of the perfect combination of people born to make a difference.  It’s not our job to tug on your heart strings or pressure you to help, as I assure you God has been laying bigger things on your heart long before you read this blog.  Our job is the same as yours- to do what we were called to do.  You are out there right now reading this-born in America with every single resource possible at your disposal.  What are you doing with that?  You were born with a specific and unique set of talents and gifts to be fitted perfectly within your calling.  Over the next several weeks, we are going to further explain the vision behind The Tuli Initiative through a series of blogs.  We want to fully describe that which God has laid on our hearts to anyone who wants to listen.  God will make it abundantly clear to those who are supposed to join in this effort.  Not everyone is made for this, we know that, so to those whose passions are elsewhere we pray you keep searching until you find what you were made for.  Because changing the world…it’s not optional.  And believe me- it really is fun to do the impossible, because all things are possible with God.