Another year has come and gone and we are so blessed and grateful! We are blessed to see God move in the lives of so many and grateful to be able to be a part of what God has done this past year. Without a doubt, you have played a huge role in all of this. You have continued to lift us up in prayer and invested financially into a cause that is greater then both you and I. We could not have had the year we had without all your support, and for that, we are blessed and grateful to have you in our lives.
Looking back, I must admit it was a new adventure in January when we moved our family, of five, from San Jose, Costa Rica (Where we were studying Spanish for all of last year) to Nicaragua. Even though we were already living “overseas,” the two countries are so drastically different in many ways; politically, climatically, and culturally. As a family, we were so eager and very excited to finally arrive in the land of our calling.
Kendra and I knew that we needed to learn and adjust as a missionary family. We have found that we have been adjusting and learning all year. There is nothing better to build upon, for life and ministry, then a good foundation in the Lord that is well balanced for the family and ministry. We were encouraged to know that many missionaries that had gone ahead of us have had families, with spouses to care for and children to train. We knew we only had one chance to introduce a life of missions to our three little ones and to God’s glory, not only have they adjusted, they have embraced God’s heartbeat towards missions.
Nicaragua, with a population of 6 million is the poorest of the seven Central American countries. Half of the population lives below the poverty line and almost 80% of them live with less than $2 a day. No matter where you go in Nicaragua, you can sense that the people here have little hope. As new missionaries this past yeat, it’s about slowing down. It’s about seeing what God is seeing. It’s about feeling what God is feeling and being that person God has called us to be, for such a time as this.
Our hearts’ desire from day one was to come along side the local churches here and serve them in the area of compassion evangelism, to help them reach the youth and children of Nicaragua. After a decade of very little focus towards their young people, the national church was so excited for our family to be here to assist them in this area. Their desire for us, this past year, was for us to build relationships and get to know their churches. So that is what we set out to do.
Thank you for your continued love, prayers and support. We couldn't do what God has called us to do without your help. It is great to be a team and we are blessed that you are part of it!
