sea to shining sea

I've been working a lot recently on the Sea-to-Sea Nicaragua trip that is planned for December 29 through January 8. Rather than do a lot of explaining here, you could go to the website I put together and from there get a better idea of what's happening.

I will mention briefly that the whole intention of the ride is to raise funds for Hurricane Felix relief along the northern border of Nicaragua, where the Miskito people lost not only all of their crops, but also all of their seed (among other losses including homes and livestock). Because we had been working in the area previous to the hurricane, we were in a good position to facilitate and organize appropriate relief efforts. We're working in conjunction with Acción Medica Cristiana and The Canadian Foodgrains Bank (CFGB) to help the people there get seeds, learn new agricultural techniques, and learn how to cultivate new varieties of plants. That in addition to the health training that was already in place.

I haven't done much fundraising of my own for this even, but each person who is involved in the ride is asked to raise $500 to cover the cost of the trip, as well as $1000 which will go towards relief efforts. The exciting thing is that for the second part, all of the donations are eligable for 4:1 matching by the Canadian goverment through CFGB. If you're interested in donating even 5, 25, 50 dollars or more, your contribution will multiply automatically. For example, a gift of $20, after being matched 4:1 yeilds $100. A gift of $100 yeilds $500. The fundraising goal of the entire event is $100,000 (20 riders raising $1000 + matching funds). Check the "donate" section of the website.

If you'd like to see the profiles page, you'll need a password. That password is "bike me" without a space. Please be selective in how you share this password with others. There is personal information on that page that should not be accessible by just anyone.

Prayer items:

-pray that all of the planning goes smoothly, and that we as organizers have wisdom and forsight in all areas
-pray that the Lord moves in the hearts of people to give so that we will reach our goal
-pray for a successful trip, and health along the way for everyone
-please also pray that the Lord uses those involved and the resources raised to spread his good news and draw others to himself

september update

Good morning to everyone (or good afternoon or good evening). It's been a while again since my last post. Things have been busy, as usual.

Completed CCDH Video

About two weeks ago at 9pm I finished and delivered a video I'd been working on with Hermes. Hermes is a Nicaraguan that received a class at the Nehemiah Center on basic film production. He's very talented artistically and self-motivated and his relationship with the Nehemiah Center is enabling him to develop his skills in the area of video production. We filmed 2 or 3 days and edited twice that for a 9 minute video that would be shown at a Partners Worldwide global convention. We got very positive feedback from Partners about the work we did, which was very encouraging for both of us. I hope to have the video on the Nehemiah Center website in the coming weeks, along with other work that we've done at the NC.

CCDH is the "Christian Center for Human Rights" and is a community based, volunteer driven organization that aims at education on citizens' rights and responsibilities through local trainings. They also have a force of lawyers that give their time to fight justice cases in three main areas:

• the acquisition of legal status; many people aren't officially registered when they are born, and the process requires a laywer; without this status, they are unable to vote, get a license, go to university, or get a job, among other things.
  
• the release of prisoners at the end of their served term; unlike in the US, this release often requires legal representation

The CRWRC has been working with and supporting CCDH in many ways.

Media Studio Gets Vision Boost

Last week Professor Mark Volkers (digital media) from Dordt College visited to explore the possibilities of Dordt's collaboration with the Media Studio. It was about five years ago that he visited the NC and spoke on the importance of a Christian presence and influence in the area of media. Now here again, he was thrilled to see that we had taken the talk seriously and sees huge ways that the Media Studio could grow and influence Nicaragua and Latin America. Follow this link and click on "digital media blog" in the right hand column to read his reaction to the trip.

We already have a job description and are looking for someone trained in video production who can take the Media Studio under their wing, teaching Nicaraguans what it means to be a Christian in the world of media, teaching skills in pre-production, production and post-production, and facilitating projects through the Media Studio.

Much of Latin America's media (movies, documentaries, mini series, etc.), and especially Nicaragua's, are imported from the US or other countries. They are importing in a big way the culture and values of the US, but they are also missing out on the richness of their own culture and their own challenges are often going unseen. The scope of what Nehemiah Center hopes to accomplish through the Media Studio in the area of development includes producing material locally for national TV; productions such as documentaries about the environment, agricultural trends, injustice, 30 second promos for voting or keeping Managua clean or recycling. The ideas were flowing while Volkers was here. Now we'll need to get back to building the foundations of such a vision--but it was definitely good to set our eyes on the goal again.

Little Friends

Remember those two little guys, Breyling and Mauro, I started hanging out with just before I came home in July? I've had the privilege of spending more time with them. I took them to the beach a couple weeks after I got back here, which they absolutely loved. They found a couple of boogie board and I basically had to drag them out of the ocean when it was time to come out. They fell asleep during dinner and only woke up briefly to get in the car and get out of the car. Then this past weekend we went to the Monkey Hut, a relaxing little place on the volcanic lake of the Laguna de Apoyo. Again, they were in the water all day, hardly giving me time to take a nap. :) They swam and used the kayaks and had a great time. Because of a car problem we had to go on public transportation (taxi, microbus, and moto taxi) and ride home in the back of a truck. It actually allowed us to spend more time together talking and laughing.

One of my hopes of hanging out with these guys is that they will be encouraged to try harder in class. Breyling had been getting poor grades in his "conduct" because he wasn't behaving well in class. He told me this past trip that he has raised his conduct significantly from a 60 to an 80, and he was excited to tell me. Yet, I hear that Mauro's conduct has worsened somewhat. I realize that I am not the only force in their lives, and that ultimately it is the Lord who works in and affects their hearts. All I can do is be there for them and encourage and love them.

Facelift

The Nehemiah Center website did get a facelift. Feel free to check it out--just follow the link on the right side of the page.

Prayer Items

- Pray that the Lord works through me to make Breyling and Mauro feel special and be motivated in all areas of their lives.
- Pray that the media studio is successful and has many positive impacts on people and communities and the society of Nicaragua (and beyond!).

recycling, computers, and videos

I've been pretty busy since I arrived back in Managua. After a very good two and a half weeks of vacation in Michigan, spending quality time with family and friends, I came back to much work and hit the ground running.

Before I write about the work, let me say that I really enjoyed the opportunity I had to come back to Brookside and share about my work there. To my surprise about 40 people showed up to hear me talk about the Nehemiah Cener and my role there, and see a couple videos to validate my stories. :) It was a great opportunity to see many people face to face and personally share my life and ministry. Thank you for coming and encouraging me. If you'd like to know how you can pray for me, stay tuned because I'll share some prayer requests at the end of this message. And if you're interested in supporting me financially, follow the link on the right side of this page (...yes, over that way --> ).

Since arriving back I've definitely been reminded of why working/serving at the Nehemiah Center is so appealing. It is clear that the Lord is working here and the ways that he is using me and guiding me in my work are continually developing. I've been drawn into/forged a few new projects that weren't on my original job description (halfway down this page), and others are growing and the vision is forming.

One new project I'm taking a lead in is recycling at the Nehemiah Center. Recycling is a relatively new concept for most of Nicaragua. It's something that they tried to start at the Nehemiah Center a while back, but the only thing that stuck was using the organic waste to make natural fertilizer. So we've had our first couple of meetings--one internal and one with an organization that collects recyclables--a new organization formed by people who live near Managua's dump as an alternative to the horrible conditions of working in the dump. We'll be trying to sell this idea to the rest of the Nehemiah Center, and forge ahead as a leader in this area.

I'm not sure how much I've written about this before, but since starting, I've been working to form a "Systems Team" that guides the Nehemiah Center as it develops technologically. We've met now probably 4-5 times officially (taking minutes and everything!) discussing things from how to deal with pirated software and viruses to strategies in shifting to free software and training our staff on how to use it. Recently another member of the team caught my vision for turning this Systems Team to face outwards as well--eventually encouraging and training our partners in the benefits of free software. At the Nehemiah Center we work with more than 80 Christian schools, some of which have expressed a desire for training in the area of computers. I would guess that 95 or more percent of Nicaragua uses pirated copies of Microsoft products, which presents virus vulnerabilities and other moral issues. We are in a perfect position to create awareness, affect change in this area, and train leaders how to understand technology as Christians. We would be looking to forge relationships with North Americans interested in supporting appropriate technological advancement in Nicaragua and be a channel for resources and relationships. This is an exciting prospect for me not just because it's a big need, but because I see clearly how I/the Nehemiah Center can play an important role. I've been exchanging emails with a former professor of mine from Redeemer--the computer science prof--who's expressed a desire (through World Missions) to share his expertise and teach others around the world how to understand technology in light of the Scriptures.

I've been working less in the studio recently, focusing more on those things mentioned above, but it looks like we'll have another project here starting as soon as we can. One of the organizations of the Nehemiah Center Partners Worldwide (more specifically, their Lawer-to-Lawyer program) is working with a local organization of lawyers called Christian Center for Human Rights (CCDH). Completely volunteer driven, this organization seeks to promote justice by educating Nicaraguans on their rights as citizens and taking justice cases, as well. They have many "houses of justice" sprinkled across Nicaragua, and are doing great work. Anyway, the project will be to produce a 3-5 minute video about their work for a presentation at a Partners conference on October 2-4. This will require some speedy work, but I think we're going to give it a go.

In other news, the motorcycle is still broken and I'm waiting on a mechanic to come back from a long visit to the US to fix it, soccer season for a small team I'm on starts this Saturday, and ... and ... feel like I need a third point here... and there's a possibility I'll be substituting for a friend of mine at NCA this Thursday/Friday...just one class.

One more thing to mention. I am still looking for enough financial support to cover my budget, and am coming up a bit behind my target. If you'd like to see my budget or have any questions about this, please let me know--I'd be more than happy to share more specific needs with you. A huge thank you to those of you who have given and also to those who give regularly. Your financial support makes it possible for me to be here serving the Lord in these ways and more. Also please consider supporting me through prayer--another thing I need in order to be effective in my work! Thank you very much to those who do remember me in prayer--please let me know if I can also pray for you. Below are some of my requests.

Prayer Items:

-Pray for vision and resources for the "Systems Team" as we try to understand God's plan for us internally and externally.
-Pray for wisdom and focus as I try to tackle a wide array of responsibilities--I'm afraid I could be getting stretched too thin.
-Pray that I/we have enough time for the CCDH video, and that it turns out well.

home again

I know it's been a long long time since the last update, and this isn't exactly an update, but I did want to let you know that I am going to be doing a presentation of sorts at Brookside on Sunday August 3 during the 10:30 service. I apologize to those of you to whom I wrongly told that it would be this Sunday, July 27--it is not. We'll be watching two of the three videos that the Nehemiah Center put out, and that I have been involved with. I would love to have you come and watch and participate in the discussion. Hope to see you there!

slowing, refreshing

Things are finally starting to slow down. I kept thinking that they would slow down "next week." Well, the 'summer' is here. I put summer in quotations because while for most Americans, that's exactly what time of year it is, for Nicaraguans, the recently begun rainy season marks the beginning of "invierno" or "winter." But because it's summer for the Americans, that means that Many make trips back home and those who stay behind might get a little bit of a rest, too.

What's been keeping me busy since I wrote last? Not surprisingly several things have been doing that. Something I mentioned last time is that we were preparing for the country team evaluation. A group of 5 people came down from GR to evaluate the work of CRWRC and CRWM in Nicaragua. Every 7 years they'll do one. It includes a day of presentations from the country team staff, and then several days visiting partner organizations, communities, and projects that the CRC has been supporting. Some of our partnerships are as old as 9 years, while we also have several pilot projects with new partners. We told them about our mission, our vision, each of our partners. We shared our challenges and success, and in the end, they were able to give us some good feedback and encouragement. That first day was definitely the longest for me. We started at 7:30am and ended at 6:30pm. Presentations all day. I wasn't presenting, but I was responsible for having all the presentations in order and doing any last minute printing.

Last week I finished my first video project after many hours of editing. The final product was for an organization called Tesoros de Dios, which seeks to serve children with special needs and their families. The video will be used by those involved with the program to raise awareness of what they're doing, and will also be shown to groups that come through the Nehemiah Center. I hope to show it at Brookside when I'm back this summer.

I shared another first with Lennin, my roommate. I saw a Kiwi fruit at the store when shopping with him, so I figured we should buy some so he could try it. No surprise that he liked it.

June 9 marked the beginning of a 60 Day Challenge, offered by the youth group leadership at NCA. I decided I would accept it and challenge myself to read the entire New Testament in the time between school ending for the summer and beginning again at the end. I've read through chapter 19 of Matthew how, and it has already been rewarding and the Spirit is calling my attention to many things. It's not too late for you to join! :) Just pace yourself to catch up, and follow the same schedule on the website. Let me know if you're doing it.

A few weeks ago I finally made the decision to invest in a better motorcycle. After several repeated problems and a few new ones, I had had enough. For only $400 more than the original cost of my 200cc Chinese bike, I was able to close the deal on a Kawasaki KLR 650. Now I can be more sure that I won't have silly problems that leave the bike non-functional. I am having some final work done on the Chinese bike while it's still under warranty, and then I'm selling it. The Dama de Hierro (my truck) had it's first major problem just recently. Still not resolved, the problem is that it will not move out of first gear. Looks like it's in second, the clutch still engages and disengages fine...but the stupid thing is not going to get out of first. Don't know exactly what to do with it now, but I'm sure I'll figure something out soon.

At the CRC Latin America spiritual retreat a couple months we talked about listening to the Holy Spirit and feeling his nudges...and then doing what he's nudging us to do. I shared with my small group that I've been feeling a nudge to be a sort of big brother to a few certain students from my two years teaching. This past week I finally felt it was time to move on that and wrote an email to a friend who works with them explaining my readiness to commit. His response was a great confirmation, explaining that the timing was amazing. We'll be meeting early this coming week to talk about what it will look like.

Thanks for reading. I just want to remind you of two little things. If you are feeling led to support me there are two ways you can do that right now. I always list prayer requests at the end of my blog posts, and there is also a link on the left for making monetary contributions. Your support in both of these ways is greatly appreciated. God bless.

Prayer Items

- Praise God for his timing and nudging with respect to focusing on the relationships with my former students. Their names are Breyling and Mauro. They're in 3rd grade. Pray for us.
- Thank God for his great provision. Things have slowed down. The weather has cooled down and everything has turned green. He has offered me refreshment in many ways.
- Pray for wisdom and understanding as I continue to plow through the New Testament. Pray that the Spirit continues to open my eyes to see my life in a new way so that I can continue to work on being a better servant of him and others.