Christmas with the orphans in Nicaragua

from an email I received…
This holiday season will be very special and unique as we join together as a team to lavish the gift of God’s love on the poor, needy, and seemingly forgotten. Nicaragua is ranked the second poorest nation in the entire Western hemisphere (while Haiti remains the poorest). Many of the destitute villages where we will minister are filled with people living without electricity or running water.
For ten days we will minister in the streets of Nicaragua with evangelistic feeding outreaches. Join us as we play our instruments and wave our colorful banners, marching through towns and villages while singing joyful songs. Our “praise parade” will beckon the lost to join our Kingdom Fiesta in the center of town and as the crowd gathers we will feed them and celebrate with music and dancing. Of course we will share the Good News, and while altar calls are given you will be able to pray for people and lay hands on the sick. Experience the raw power of the Gospel as His love pours through you!

One of our very special highlights will include two days with the orphans of Casa Betesda. We will have a special Christmas Eve dinner with the children, and then throw them a wonderful celebration on Christmas Day with music, food and dancing. We will hug them with the loving arms of Jesus, and enjoy their squeals of delight as they swing away at their piñatas.

“As you know, we will be celebrating Christmas with the poor and the orphans of Managua and Bluefields and it will be such joy to bless them with presents. There will be many children that we will give to including the unsaved poor families, Pastor Arturo’s orphans & his network of local Pastor’s children. Since Nicaragua is the poorest nation in the western hemisphere, many families cannot afford to take care of their children. Children of these families are sent to live in orphanages, but they go home to visit family for the holidays. While we will spend Christmas in Managua with 25 orphans, there are more children in Pastor Arturo’s care. His orphans are all ages, ranging from toddlers (2-3 years old) to teenagers (up to 18 years old). You are welcome to bring gifts for the children. All gifts will be given to Arturo to distribute throughout his two orphanages, Pastor’s children, and village children. Here are some ideas:”

New/Slightly used clothing (for hot weather)

New Undergarments

Tooth brushes & Toothpaste

Shoes

Toys

Art Supplies (paper, markers, crayons, paints, coloring books, etc)

School Supplies (pens, pencils etc)

Soccer Balls (deflated + pump)

Sheets (for the orphans’ beds)

Be creative! Ask for donations from your local dentist. Get your church involved and have a toy & clothing drive. For many children, this is the only toy they will get, so this is a very special opportunity to give.

How do we get The Journey involved? Is this something that has been discussed withinh the leaders from The Journey Church? This sounds interesting to me. Can we get sponsorship from The Journey to attend?

~Frank

Too late for this trip but there are others… these are not hammer nails trips… these are heal the sick, etc trips. They do these every few months to different places… I know the guy who leads the trips from back in the 80’s. These are a great way to learn if you have not done that kind of ministry before. I (and my wife and one of my sons… Elias) did a trip like this to Mexico City in ‘97 and we will never be the same. I would sure like to take a bunch of toothpaste, clothes, etc down with me.

Maybe this is the kind of thing we need at The Journey. Teach people how to help heal. Healing is a prt of growing. If we can’t heal then how do we expect to grow as a Church? We have been talking about growing as a Church for so long that I feel we have been seeing things a little differently then we should be. This could help our hearts, our souls and our relationship with Christ.

If we want to be “Christ followers” Well this is how we do it, Isn’t it?

~Frank