Day Four recap

Working at LaJoya today included first prepping buckets for water filters and then delivering 11 of them to homes, getting materials for skylights and installing 1 (Tom's first, but he wasn't on the roof, yet), teaching dehydration, diarrhea & fever tips with 15 women (and reading Spanish Scripture with them) and the most fun of the day was teaching 60 eager children (about Jesus and the Samaritan woman and dental hygiene) who loved, loved, loved the parachute play after our work was done.  It was loud in that little green church Monday afternoon.

Cindy, our very capable team leader from MOST, led our devotional time after dinner at the hotel. The Colossians 2 passage Pastor shared  on day one inspired her to Luke 14 and The Road To Emmaus.  The disciples were kept from recognizing Jesus.  She talked about how St John's is "walking alongside" the people of Nicaragua, not giving out "junk for Jesus" but to "walk alongside" the people.

Cindy said she has learned that short term mission work can be effective or it can be ineffective.  As long as we walk alongside the people of LaJoya, we can be very effective ... and that is just what we are doing.

The song we sang to close  our devotional time was "In Christ Alone" by Keith Getty.

Cindy then summarized for us the Spanish sermon we heard Pastor Marvin preach on Sunday. God made man on the 6th day and was told to enjoy. Man did not set aside the 6th day or a 10th of his income. That is just foolish. We need to be reminded we are God's creation.  Only God is the one and only true God. Romans 6:3  ... We are baptized into Christ. Just as a caterpillar eats thru the leaf and it dies, so we too die without the living Word of God.

Highlights from today:
Working with the children who know no English
A translator is a lawyer taking time off for this ministry
Amazed at how happy the people of LaJoya are with so little in the way of material processions
Great respect for a woman who has a completely immobile small child who needs 24/7 care ... a baptized child who sat in nearly 100 degree weather, being ministered to by Pastor Marvin who sat on the edge of her bed (on the porch) and swept the flies away as he sang her name to her.
Meeting a pastor at the Christian Mission in Chinandega who cares for the garden that helps the budget for the Chistian Mission.
Seeing how the older kids take care of the younger ones.

Our able skylight installation leader, Jose plans to have his son, 17-year-old Jeff, join our team one day this week. Jeff is at university in Chinandega. Jose is expecting baby 5 next month.

A wonderful day in LaJoya with a team that has been united in purpose, in Christ, in hot weather.