Mission Nicaragua :: Day 1

We have made it and awoke to a beautiful morning here in Nicaragua! Despite being pretty exhausted we had a good team time in the Word last night looking at John 14. We are praying that the power of the Holy Spirit would fill us and do a mighty work this week. Our hearts are united and we are definitely praying for the "greater things". We are asking God to show up in power and do a work that could only point credit and honor His direction!

Our travel day yesterday was relatively uneventful. Our first stop after leaving Tallahassee was my parents' house in Jacksonville where they had an amazing spread for us for lunch (we'll do anything to avoid airport food & prices)! Then we were off to Jacksonville to find Chelsea and celebrate her birthday. Again this year, we overloaded the tiny prop plane with 50lb bags full of supplies and clothing. They asked 3 people to get off due to weight restrictions - luckily none were on our team!

Touched down in Miami with only an hour layover, which if you've ever been on Concourse D is about how long it takes to walk from one side to the other (which we had to do) and we had to grab dinner. Our plane was late to arrive so it did give us a delay in which to eat our dinner before boarding.

God gave us some great opportunities for our team to share the Gospel and about our mission on the flights and in the airport. I'm excited about this team's willingness to "be ready to give an answer to anyone who asks about the hope we have" and engage in gospel conversations. We've been strong on the "deed" and the "hands and feet" and now most are gaining the confidence to speak the truth in love!

Today we will get our supplies ready and head down to Campo Alegria. This will give us a head start on the kids from Las Parcelas who arrive on Friday. We'll spend the afternoon setting up our stations and doing some test runs so we will be ready to hit the ground running. Pray for our travels to camp and for these kids that will be coming!

Shameless Persistence in Prayer

Grateful seems like a lackluster word when it comes to God's revelation and work in one's life. This summer was an amazing time that couldn't of come at a more crucial time in my journey with Christ. As draining as a summer in student ministry can be, it is always also such a rewarding time. So much prep and prayer goes into our camps, activities and mission trips that when God shows up and works powerfully in our students' lives... it is so encouraging. But none of that compares to being closely connected with Christ and personally renewed and challenged.

I wish I had been more disciplined to journal everything in real time, but now I'm looking back in a more collective way, but also want to hone in on one specific area. I went into summer with a desire to really hear from God and be better disciplined in prayer. And God was faithful to answer my heart's desire.

Learning to listen in my communication with God has been one of the more difficult tasks. I've always been good on the talking end of things. But thankfully God is in the process of sharpening my hearing to recognize His voice and notice His movement around me. But just recently He opened my eyes to another aspect of prayer that has largely been neglected in my life. And He did this through a familiar passage, and a real life example.

My three boys all share a common trait... persistence. All three are unique and persistence shows up differently and with different foci and what's interesting is I don't recall ever teaching them the value of persistence. My big boy is persistent when it comes to an activity he wants to do or something he feels he just has to have. The three year old, at this point, is the most persistent when it comes to my attention. It usually takes the form of "dad, dad, dad, dad..." until I respond. The little boy shows his persistence through grunts and pointing - especially when hungry.

Jesus actually explains a very similar father/son scenario in Luke chapter 11 when He was teaching His disciples how to pray (in response to their request). He likens God's response to His childrens' prayers like a father who hears His kids requests and responds.

But the verse that really captured my attention was verse 5, "if you keep knocking long enough, he will get up and give you whatever you need because of your shameless persistence" (NLT).

Shameless persistence. Two words I would love my prayer life to be described with. Not whining, not nagging and not on the opposite end of thoughtless toss-ups. But a persistence that comes before the Lord, imploring Him to respond. A dedication to faithfully come into God's presence believing He hears us and stands ready to answer.

I am more and more aware that He is always speaking. The question now becomes am I willing to labor in prayer with a shameless persistence that is aligned with His will? Will my life be marked by dangerous prayers and bold dreams? Can I follow Christ's example of constant communication with the Father? Do I truly believe the more things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams?

Shameless persistence in prayer... only by His grace and for His glory.

Mission Nicaragua: Day 17

It is always a difficult day realizing that it is your final day on the field. Of course, at 4:30 in the morning - you aren't doing much processing. We had a long day of travel to return to the States and praise God a pretty uneventful one. We had two good flights and a really long layover in between to do some individual reflecting and to start decompressing a bit from the mission.

There is so much about these missions that breathe life into our soul and give us a glimpse of Heaven that makes it difficult to leave. They are mountaintop moments that create a greater longing for the things of God as we've labored for the Kingdom. I'm always amazed, year after year, how God shows up in power and meets our teams and works in and through our teams as we make our lives available to do His will.

This year was no exception. God has done a good work in our teams and in our hearts individually. He spoke and we listened, He loved and we loved in return, He gave and we received, He called and we answered. He allowed us to deepen our relationships with Him and each other, but also to form new relationships with brothers and sisters in Christ hundreds of miles away. God graced us to see the work of our hands - in the construction at the church, painting at the school and running the camp.

We're all a team together and we all work side by side, but there are some amazing leaders who labored for the mission and poured into our team that need my thanks... Debbie, Joel, Rhonda & Clay - you guys were awesome and I can't thank you enough for how you loved our students and stepped in to serve behind the scenes and without prompting.

To all of you that supported us - whether financially, through prayer or simply by reading and following our mission teams - we are very grateful for you. It takes more than our team on the ground to complete the mission and we realize that. So it is from the bottom of our heart that we first and foremost thank God for giving us the opportunity to go and the abilities needed to serve. We also thank our church family for the support and and all of you who stood in the gap for us. Finally, I can't thank my family enough for making the sacrifice to allow me to fulfill my God-given calling and to be away for extended periods of time. I know the sacrifice isn't always easy, but the rewards will be eternal.

At some point, we will all have to accept that Mission Nicaragua 2010 is over - our work is done - but we also know full well that THE mission is never over and we have MUCH work to be done! So let's not waste our lives!

Mission Nicaragua: Day 16

Today we rode the wave of emotions in all of our activities and ministry time. We started our morning with a visit to La Chureca (the Managua city dump) which is always an eye-opening experience. There are so many parallels to the dump and the sin in our lives. It is heart-breaking to see the conditions that these families live and work in. But there is a ray of hope in the dump - Colegio Christiano Esperanza is the school in the dump that the Buzbees run. It was such a blast to stop by and see the children and to have some time to play with them.

After our time in the dump, we went over to Sister Ruby's for our time of worship and prayer as a team. God definitely met us in that upper room of her home and the Spirit was moving freely. God had many encouraging and challenging words for our team. Our hearts were drawn closer to the Lord and to each other as a result of our time there. Praise God that Ruby's ministry continues on after her death.

For our afternoon, we had our tour day and this team chose like the last to go to the market and then to the zipline. The market is an experience that you don't quickly forget and the ziplines were likewise, an awesome experience. We had to navigate them in some rain, but it didn't damper anyone's fun!

As if our day wasn't busy and exhausting enough, we capped it off with our team dinner out. We ate a La Finca and had a great meal and a great time of fellowship together.

It's always hard to come together after your last full day... especially knowing that the morning is coming really early for us. We'll but up by 4:30a to head out to the airport for our first leg. Please be in prayer for us as we travel and as we return. Pray that the good work God did in us and through us would be etched into our hearts and minds.

Mission Nicaragua: Day 15

The camp team traded in their hats today for some construction helmets as we went to work in Los Cedros today. Our team divided and one half tackled removing rock from the new room at the church and then back filling it will dirt to prepare it for the concrete floor. The other workers were busy welding and getting the support beams in place for the roof. It's not quite ready to open for use, but it's getting closer by the day.

Our other half of the team trekked over the Christian school to help bleach the stone sidewalks that get algae growth during the rainy season. This team worked diligently spraying bleach and scrubbing to bring life back to the sidewalks. One of our construction teams laid nearly all of the sidewalks out at the school (some 450 stones) in 2006.

Both teams joined up for lunch at the school and to see many of the kids we took to Campo with us. The younger kids go to school in the morning and the older kids in the afternoon. We enjoyed seeing them in the classroom and also participating in recess with them.

As we walked through Los Cedros, we also found many of our kids at their homes and were warmly welcomed to come inside, have a seat and meet the rest of the family. We heard from the parents what a great impact the camp had on their kids and many shared stories when they returned all evening long. It was a great reminder that God only knows what an eternal impact that camp had on the lives of the kids and their families. God truly orchestrated these meetings as we really had no idea where any of the kids lived!

We also took the time to stop by Mauorje's house (2008) and Sylvia's house (2005). Three of Slyvia's kids came with us to campo. This is always a special time for me personally to spend time cultivating relationships that have formed through the years, but also special for the current team to feel the connection to teams of the past that have labored for the Gospel in Nicaragua and specifically Los Cedros.

Tomorrow is our last full day here in Nica and we'll start the day with a visit to the dump and to Sister Ruby's for prayer. Then we've got our tour day to have some team time together just having fun. Thanks for your continued prayer support!

Mission Nicaragua: Day 14

We knew this day was eventually going to come... the last day of camp. As tiring as camp can be, it is always difficult to say goodbye to the kids. God has shown up in such a powerful way at camp. Not only has our team done an amazing job working together to pull off camp, but God really seemed to be at work in the lives of the kids. The kids asked great questions, listened well to God's Word and a good many even accepted Christ! And besides all of that we just had a great time with them and were honored to provide that experience for them.

I can't imagine the stories that are being shared even tonight as the children returned home. Some are definitely returning to less that ideal conditions whether it be family dynamics or socio-economic conditions. Yet what they have experienced and received can never be taken away from them. Our prayer is that they would always remember what God did in their hearts at Campo Alegria 2010.

After our morning sessions we brought everyone back together for a going away celebration. We started it off right with a whack at our pinatas. There's nothing more fun, yet scary than these kids with a baseball bat in their hands and swinging it around blindfolded! We then gathered together for our closing assembly. I was able to share a simple blessing and prayer for their lives. Then we showed the camp highlights slideshow - and the kids love seeing themselves up on the screen. Finally, we handed out the backpacks that we provided for them. Each one was loaded with school supplies, toothbrush, toothpaste, floss, bubbles, t-shirt, small toy and a stuffed animal. They were so excited to open them and so grateful to receive them. What a blessing for us to be able to provide this for them.

Then in true Nica fashion we chased the bus down the drive to say our final goodbye. But it will be a short lived goodbye as we are going to their community of Los Cedros tomorrow to visit them at school and even visit some of their homes. I'm sure it will be an eye opening experience for us to see where they come from and how they live.

We also had a good team time tonight. Many thoughts and ideas where shared about camp and how we can improve for next year. We also talked through some expectations that weren't met and how sometimes God can show up in unexpected and unplanned ways. We are all trying to train our eyes to see God moments and train our ears to hear His voice. And above all we want to see and know Him for who He is and live our lives in obedience to Him. Please continue to pray for us in our remaining time here.

PS - A special anniversary shout out to Santee from Rhonda here in Nica!

Mission Nicaragua: Day 13

With each passing day I believe I understand more what Jesus meant when He called to some little children who had gathered around and said, “Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God." There is such innocence and joy in the eyes of a child. Yet wrapped up in such a small package is a heart that is sinful and separated from God. But praise God for the opportunity to point them to Jesus!

Today was our last full day here at Campo Alegria. It's amazing how smoothly things are going and how well our students are doing in their various roles. We are really bonding well with the kids as we share life together here and I know tomorrow will be a tough day for all of us as we have to say goodbye.

This afternoon the camp staff created an awesome water slide that pumped water up from the lake. The kids flew down the dunes on plastic into a small pool at the bottom and had a blast! Our team joined in the action and amazingly we all walked away accident free. We also opened up the zipline again. These are activities that these children would have never normally had the opportunity to participate in and will give them lifelong memories of Campo.

Tonight was also a special night during our evening worship. The kids have been working on learning verses all camp during their Bible class and tonight they were able to stand before everyone and recite them. How awesome to see God's Word being hidden in their heart. Then I had the privilege to preach the Gospel tonight and give the kids an opportunity to pray and receive Christ. Many indicated that they were already Christ-followers but we also had about 10 or so kids pray to receive Christ tonight! We always love seeing those pass from death to life and become adopted into the family of God. Praise God!

We will be capping off camp tomorrow with a shortened schedule but a full one. We are praying that God does a mighty work on the last day of camp - in the kids lives and in our hearts as well. Thanks for your continued prayer support - it is evident all around us!