Mission Nicaragua :: Day 5

It was our last full day of camp today out at the RR.  I have really been amazed at how flexible and creative our team has been, how responsive the Parcelas kids have been, how much fun we've had, how the Spirit has been at work and the list could go on and on.  It is so easy for me to see the vision for the RR after spending time out there in December and now being the pioneering camp team for the RR this year.  What a magnificent piece of property and opportunity for continued growth and ministry use.

I can't help but think about the Kingdom during our time out there and today was no exception.  The Kingdom of God is here, yet the Kingdom of God is coming.  He has by His grace grafted us into His Kingdom and then given us a role to facilitate it's expansion.  In Las Parcelas the Gospel seems to be in the infancy stages of penetration.  There isn't a strong church presence and the spiritual education level is low, but the fields are ripe for harvest.  Being able to sow Gospel seeds in word and deed there each day has been a privilege.  We are praying the soil is fertile and will reap a spiritual harvest as we continue to build relationships and as the RR allows the Gospel to go forth.

Today was one of our hotter days, but God has been good to give us good shade and a nice breeze to enjoy and allow our energy to last a bit longer.  The kids are non-stop action and we do our best to keep up with them, whether on the Tarzan swing, the trampolines or on the bicycle race track.  We also taught and played a game of baseball with them.  After making the trek to Manuel's house, we had to draw on some energy reserves, but the team did great and jumped right in to the construction project.  We finished making all the rebar today and got it in place to mix and pour concrete for the vegas (vee-guhs).  Manuel and his family were still working right alongside us and he continues to amaze us with his faith and joy in the Lord.  God is really united our hearts and we have a deep affection for he and his family.  We can't wait to finish the house and dedicate it, but we still have a long way to go!

Tomorrow we head off to church with the Buzbees.  It is always a great experience to join with the nations in worship of Almighty God.  From there, we aren't really sure what God has for us, but we continue to practice asking and listening and God is definitely guiding and leading us.  He has been so faithful to move in our students hearts.  During our team time at night and in our small groups, the honesty and authenticity are really providing opportunities for walls to come down and the Spirit to move.  We are continuing to pray for healing, growth and a greater awareness of His power and presence in our lives.  Thank you for supporting us in prayer!

Mission Nicaragua :: Day 4

It is so funny how you learn to just roll with things down here.  I am the director of a large camp in the States that takes an amazing team to facilitate the 300+ high students that attend.  We have a budget and a schedule and we stick to both.  However, here in Nica it's a different story...

We arrived to the Ranch this morning and I didn't think to get the keys to the house from Brinson, so we had kids waiting while we were locked out and Manuel was off on his bike to find another set.  To fill time, I taught the kids how to play manhunt and then we did a scavenger hunt.  When we finally got unlocked and set-up, the power was out for the community.  One of our stations requires power.  So we adjust.  During one of the sessions, the main gate was left open and three horses walked out (we don't have horses at my camp in the States) and thus I've never wrangled horses before - especially ones that I presume don't understand English.  However, crisis averted and now I have a new skill.

It was getting close to lunch time and the lunches weren't there.  So I borrow one of the kids bikes to ride through the neighborhood to find Brinson.  Should have checked to see if the brakes worked, but that just made the ride that much more exciting - along with the potholes and curious stares from the community on why a gringo was riding a bike through their neighborhood.  But the lunches finally made it.  God provides.

So on the ride home it gave me some time to think about how today's events would have reeked havoc on my world (camp in the States) and today, I didn't really blink an eye.  We just look to God and figure He's got it all in control and it will all work out.  Note to self: bring this principle back home with you as it is definitely transferable to the States.

It really was a great day.  We installed a Tarzan swing yesterday and launched kids as young as two years old high into the sky.  OSHA wouldn't have approved, but the kids were delighted.  Our team did great running their stations and all the campers are "getting it" (the Gospel) at the Bible station.  Some are even asking great questions about Jesus.  After lunch, we had a great time playing and just hanging with the kids.  But then we peeled out a bit early to head over to Manuel's home to help on the new build.  This truly is a super team!

To tackle camp and construction in the same day is quite a feat.  We were all worn out, but everyone jumped right in and put in two solid hours of work on the new house.  His whole family was out helping us and continually brought out fruit to eat (not too many takers, but I seem to be the "Mikey will try it guy."  Not sure why, since I have a Mikey on my team this year).

Tonight we talked about hearing God from His Word.  I was encouraged by our team's honesty in revealing their struggle to be consistent in God's Word and to really hear from God through His Word, yet also encouraged to hear their desire and dedication to jump in and try.  God has been speaking and moving and we are all learning to better tune in and engage.  I continue to rejoice hearing them share where God is stretching them and challenging their faith.  Please continue to pray for us!

Mission Nicaragua :: Day 3

We feel a bit like pioneers as we have successfully completed our first day doing camp at the Ruby Ranch.  It is our hope and prayer and many more camps will follow as the dreams and vision of the Buzbees for the Ruby Ranch comes to fruition.  It is such a beautiful piece of property and even the basics - shaded tree areas, a playground with two trampolines and a large field made for a great day camp.

It definitely isn't what we are accustomed to, but that is where God definitely has not only prepared us during our training, but stretched us in our time here.  Ruby Ranch is located in the Las Parcelas community (where we took kids from down to Campo last summer).  So it is great to be able to continue and build upon the relationships we have previously formed.

We drove up in the bus to a watching and waiting crowd of about 50 - mainly campers with a few adults.  Nearly 30 of them participated in our camp last year, but we do have some new faces.  For many of us, we were able to pick-up where we left off.  For some of our new teammies, they were able to hear from the students how camp impacted them last year and how many found new life in Christ.

I couldn't have been more proud of our students who are totally running their stations (arts, Bible, music, sports and English) and leading groups.  All their preparation paid off even in new surroundings.  Every year I sit down and blog about how awesome it is to see the body of Christ at work.  So this year is no different.  The talents, passions and abilities that God brings to the team each year is incredible.  Then to see them in action is even better!

The kids had such a great time at each station and we could see the nervousness and shyness wear off as the day progressed.  Of course, launching kids on the trampoline and chasing the soccer ball through a field of horse poop tends to do that.  But they were able to just run and have fun and we enjoyed doing the same.  We were also able to provide hot lunches (while supporting the local economy) to each of the campers.

I was able to sneak away with our construction foreman to start specking out the site and ordering materials.  Praise God that we are going to be able to use the foundation laid by Manuel and his father in law (see yesterday's post).  This will not only save us some on cost, but will complete the step of faith the family took ten years ago.  This home construction will be one of the more ambitious and the largest home we have constructed to date.  We will start work tomorrow after camp.

Out team time at night has been a blessing.  They are all sharing stories of how they are seeing God at work in their hearts and simply where He is moving throughout the day.  We spend time in God's Word together and then also in prayer.  Then we move to our small groups and God's Spirit is definitely working as we are all striving to be open and vulnerable.  There is such a sweet spirit and team unity.  We can sense the prayer support we are receiving back in the States.  We continue to wait in expectation for all that God has for us and those we are ministering to.

Mission Nicaragua :: Day 2

Our first full day is now nearing completion.  As I sit up here on the third view looking out into the darkness, a cool breeze envelops me (even though my legs are burning with my laptop on them) and it is a gentle reminder of God's presence that has been all around us so far this mission.  I've been leading our team time at night through a study on having an intimate relationship with God - really learning to listen, follow and walk with Him.

I'm always curious as to why His presence seems so much more palpable down here.  It's not that I believe that He is here in greater dosage, but that our senses are much more aware as we are outside our normal routine, comforts, technologies, distractions, noise and the list could go on and on.

We started our day with some great time alone with God after breakfast and then had the morning to unpack all the donated clothes that will be used in various communities down here.  Since we start our first day of camp tomorrow, we then loaded up and headed out to Las Parcelas - the community where the Ruby Ranch is - and where we are hosting the camp.  This is quite a change for us as we all anticipated and prepared for using Campo Alegria again this year.  But as we are learning together - God is in charge here and we want to be moldable and adaptable to His plan.

You see, last year, we worked a day out at Ruby Ranch doing seemingly mundane tasks of clearing trees and cleaning up at the playground (see post here from August 2011) where most of the team really struggled to see the purpose.  Then in December of 2011 when I was down here with my family, we held an awesome block party out at the Ranch (see post here) which allowed me to see some of the purpose of what we had done earlier that summer.  Then today while we were setting up at the Ranch, the light clicked on for many of us who were on the team last summer.  Little did we know the work that we were doing last year would pave the way for us to be the first team to use the Ranch for a camp.    God is so patient with our lack of vision and understanding and then gracious to give us glimpses of His awesome plan at work!

So we are excited and a bit apprehensive about our camp starting tomorrow.  It's in a new location, different amenities and just all-around 'new'.  But in our wondering, God has already said to us, "I'm here, I've planned this and I've got this."  Whew... that is always a relief.  We are just praying we continue to learn to trust and walk in greater faith.

Another unexpected this year was that this team would turn into a full-fledged construction team as well.  God is yet again surprising and challenging.  We did some small construction projects last year, but this year we are going to do a complete home for a great family.  Manuel currently lives in a 1-room  home with a side "kitchen" that probably isn't much larger than 8' x 10' with his wife and two daughters.  We surprised them "Extreme Home Makeover: Nicaragua-style" with the news today and they were overwhelmed.

You see, 10 years ago, Manuel sold all his goats to purchase construction materials to build a new home for his family.  He got an area leveled out and about 4 rows of blocks up all the way around before he ran out of money.  For 10 years now, they have looked in faith to God to provide.  How awesome that God chose to use us to help his vision become reality.  What a great lesson to us in stepping out in faith and trusting - through a long wait - for God to provide.

We are praying God will do a good work at the Manuel's home and at our camp.  We've already seen some of the kids who came to Camp last year and even one of the ones who gave her life to Christ.  We are praying for more to do the same this year!

PS - You can check out some of our mission pictures here

Mission Nicaragua :: Day 1

Hey we've made it!  Touched down here in Nica and boarded the bus for the Buzbees.  We had an incident free day, ate overpriced airport food and tried to catch a bit of sleep on the planes since most of us have been up since 5:30am.

But we've settled in and are really excited about what God has in store for us on this mission.  Each mission and each team is so unique and I was reflecting on the fact that this is the 10th mission team (I think... old age memory loss is setting in) that I've lead down here.  It's pretty cool to think all the high school and college students that have been a part of our Nicaragua teams over the last 9 years and how God has used this mission to save the lost, call others to a deeper walk and given all a greater understanding of our purpose as Christians being taking the Gospel to the ends of the earth.

We've had a few wrinkles in our plans, but it just reminded me that they should never have been our plans anyway.  In our team training, we talk a lot about being flexible and following God's plans over ours and I think we are going to really learn how to do that this mission.  We are still following the framework of previous missions, but it definitely will be a new a different experience.  But in true God form, He shows up in our weakness, dependance and brokenness and that is the attitude we are praying for individually and corporately as a team.

We appreciate all of you partnering with us in prayer.  We'll do our best to keep everyone updated here, on Facebook and also on Twitter.

koinonia

Koinonia.  Fellowship.  The characteristic of Christianity that marks true disciples as followers of the way - their love for Christ and for each other. 

Fellowship is an term that has continued to need reshaping and reforming as I've tried to better understand what Church is all about.  My earliest recollections were definitely hearing this term in the context of church, most closely associated with a picnic after that followed or a potluck supper.  Then later it become more of a descriptor of a location... usually followed by the word 'hall'.  Which then was usually synonymous with fried chicken.

No doubt these were well intentioned methods, strategies, events or locations that hoped to display the reality that Christians need each other as much as we need Christ.  Christianity as an island is a concept that is foreign to Scripture.  The book of Acts vividly paints pictures of koinonia in action.  The most noted passage is in chapter 2...

⁴² They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. ⁴³ Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. ⁴⁴ All the believers were together and had everything in common. ⁴⁵ They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. ⁴⁶ Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, ⁴⁷ praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

I think Luke is teaching us something here of fellowship that is obviously beyond a simple 'togetherness' of believers, whether over a meal or not.   Koinonia has as its root the idea of having in common and sharing.  This is where it starts to get a bit radical.  John Piper says of this text, "In a moment Luke is going to talk about times of eating and praying together—what we usually call fellowship.  But that is not his first illustration of fellowship.  His first illustration is that the believers were so bonded that if one was in need, the others did not feel they had the right to live on in prosperity without giving up something to meet the need.  So they would sell possessions and use the money to meet the needs of the poor in the church."

Koinonia now becomes an amazing reshaping of what Church - the body of Christ - is all about.  We are all in - for Christ and for each other.  What is mine is yours and what is yours is mine, because really it all belongs to Christ anyway.  No one will lack among us - especially the least of these.  In fact, we will be known by not only how we love each other (which is always easier, by the way) but we also will be known by how we love those outside our circle.  And incidentally by loving those outside our circle, we are actually doing what Christ has commanded with the intention of them becoming a part of our circle.  It's koinonia in action and coming full-circle... inward and outward and outward and inward.

This is what I desire for our student ministry.  I hesitate to call it a strategy and would rather say it is just an outworking of a continual striving to align our ministry with God's Word, but it is new for us and has been strategic in its design.  How amazing and God honoring to be known for our koinonia - how we love each other and love the world.  How we live open-handedly.  How we so enjoy our community that we can't help but invite others to experience it as well.  May it be so.

The Mystery of the Cross

Isaiah 52:13-53:12
Colossians 1:19-23

The cross.  We see and recognize its power even printed as words on a page.  An instrument of death that mysterious contains beauty and life.   But how?  How can such a tortuous means of death bring life?  In asking this question, we are really asking, “How can God transform evil, rebellious people like you and I, and make us acceptable in His sight?”  The cross.

You see, God reconciled sinners to Himself through the blood of the cross, as we read in the first chapter of Colossians.  And as Isaiah prophesied, there could be no other way for this reconciliation to take place other than in the cross of Christ.  And this happened for us, when we couldn’t have been farther from God.  We stood as His enemies – spiritually dead – and then we murdered His one and only Son.

Yet amazingly, in a mystery beyond our comprehension, that is how God made peace for us and with us.  The cross.  We can draw near to God, or as the author of Hebrews says, boldly approach the throne, because of the very act that pushed us the farthest away from Him.

And so today we rejoice, because God did not just save us from our sin, but He saved us with our sin.  And he did not just save us with our sin, but with our worst sin.   At the cross.

The worst sin imaginable – crucifying Jesus Christ – is actually what makes our sanctification possible.  In the greatest of mysteries, we realize that we are actually saved by the very thing we need salvation from.  The cross.

This is what makes the mystery of Good Friday a sorrowful, yet blessed day.  A day that a vile act was committed, yet we call the day good.  A day of darkness yet filled with inexplicable light and hope.  What an amazing God we serve that can work even the hatred of those who love Him for our good!  It’s the mystery of the cross.

Awesome God in Heaven, I thank you for the cross.  I can’t imagine the sacrifice you made in sending your only Son, Jesus, to the cross to die in my place.  Without the cross I am nothing, and yet with it, I have gained everything.  Thank you for saving me from our sin and crediting Christ’s righteousness to me – that I can now be known as son of the King.  Amen.