Tuesday, February 10, 2009

“Now glory be to God! By His power at work within us, He is able to accomplish infinitely more than we would ever dare to ask or hope!” Ephesians 3:20 NLT

As we prepared for our landing into Managua, Nicaragua, this afternoon, God’s glory was evident in the mountain peaks and the land below. The thirteen of us were excited and eager to be greeted by our driver, Rafael, and Claudia, our interpreter. Rafael with the help of 4 other men hoisted over 800 lbs. of luggage atop the AMOS van. That didn’t include our carry-on bags that we carried on board the van. Please know that we are leaving at least 100 lbs. of that weight in gifts of vitamins, toys, shirts, candies, books, felt, etc. with Drs. David and Laura Parajon in Managua. Some of the rest of our gifts will be carried to Ketly and Vital Pierre in Bluefields, Nicaragua, and to Gary and Mylinda Baits in Costa Rica.

Driving through the streets of Managua on our way to our hotel, we were struck by the poverty in the housing, most without paint, and the rundown condition of many of the businesses. We also saw a Pizza Hut and a Kia dealership which is hurting from the world economic crisis. Gasoline is $6/gal. Most every house and business had bars over the windows and doors. We arrived at our hotel, Casa del Sol. In sharp contrast, it’s a beautiful enclosed fortress of luxury with large beds and white linens, beautiful terra cotta bathrooms and marble rock floors. We are forbidden to walk outside the walls for safety reasons.

AMOS (A Ministry of Sharing) is only a few blocks from our hotel, but Rafael was back to drive us to our dinner there. Drs. David and Laura and their son, David, were waiting for us shortly after we drove through the gates onto the compound. There were smiles all around as we greeted each of them. Dr. Laura shared a brief orientation about our week as we ate a delicious dinner of chicken and rice with “strange” but delicious veggies.

We ended our first evening on our mission field with devotions centered around allowing the Holy Spirit to work in and through each of us as we minister in Jesus’ name. A dear friend told me twice today that we should “prepare ourselves to be amazed!” Yes, by His power at work in us, He is able to accomplish infinitely more than we would ever dare to ask or hope! After a time of prayer, we left with high expectations of what God would do tomorrow.

— Pam Davies and Sue Fitzgerald