Day 2: A Tour, An Ice cream, & a Swim

What more do you need to make a day complete? Some may say more, but not this group of 23.  I am sure we would all like to be watching the new episode of Project Runway that came on tonight. (I only know that because my wife is an avid fan…no seriously…I promise) However, this team has embraced life in Nicaragua with cold showers, dirty feet, and the gnats that seem to be nature’s way of annoying us.

Today truly was a great day to mark our first full day in the country. We started off with a delicious meal of eggs, bacon, and fresh fruit. (Ok so it’s not that primitive) We then got together for our tour of the orphanage complex and the local school. After disrupting classes by touring the school, (I am sure the kids didn’t mind) we headed out into the local village of Vera Cruz where the orphanage is located. This is always such an amazing experience for the group because it gives us a chance to see what it might have been like for Jesus and his crowd to walk into a town. Along with our peach colored skin, and our blonde hair, our clothes and cameras help us to stick out like sore thumbs. This displacement from our normalcy invites kids and families from the dust covered streets to come out, greet us, and join us for a leisurely stroll through town. We had the chance to meet and love on many strangers today who may have tagged along for the ice cream we bought them or candy that we passed out but I think many may have done the same 2000 years ago. All in all, we grew as a team and people in a small town of Nicaragua knew they were cared for and not forgotten by the world around them.

After a great experience in town, we headed to the local pool with all of the kids from the orphanage. This trip provided us the time to play with and get to know the kids that Spring Branch has committed to serving through their support of ORPHANetwork. We have such a great opportunity as a church to work with the same group of kids, at the same orphanage, in the same country year after year. This type of relationship truly cultivates community and the ability for relationships to grow through barriers such as distance and language.I often see this trip as a family reunion. I make this analogy because I often only see some of my family once a year, if that, and I know what kind of great relationships I am able to have with them. If that is possible, these relationships not only stand a chance, they are real and active. You would be very proud of your students as they jumped right in to making real connections with the kids here at Casa Bernabe.

We finished off the afternoon with a quick stop for ice cream and enjoyed it at a park nearby. It was fun watching Dare and Jordan try to figure out the see-saw as the kids were significantly lighter than them and to see our students holding hands to get on the bus despite the sticky, ice-cream covered fingers.

 

Tonight during our porch-time, a time we take each night to process the days events, we discussed James 2:14-17 and how the God of this universe calls us all to live out our faith in Him on a daily basis through the way we “…as Christians, are to take responsibility for the irresponsibility of others.” (Peppermint-Filled Piñatas ~ Eric Michael Bryant) It was exciting to hear many of your students, when asked “Where do you see people taking responsibility for the irresponsibility of others?” answering with the names of their parents; you! I want to end this day’s blog by thanking you, parents, for having the courage and trust in myself and our leadership team to send your children, your precious children, to a foreign country to experience God in such a life changing way. It is obvious the influence you have on your children’s lives and I promise you, they miss you. Keep the comments coming as they are greeted with excitement and laughter.

Much Love from Nicaragua,

Kevin