Missions Trip

Dominque, Malia and I had the privilege to travel to Nicaragua with a group from our church on a missions trip.  Dominque and I have come before, but bringing a one year old has definitely made the trip more interesting.

All the locals comment about Malia's curly hair and want to touch her and kiss on her.  We are constantly having to wash her hands.  Car seats are not mandatory, although we firmly believe in them, I have to admit on shorter trips Malia hasn't been in a car seat because the micro (van) we travel in doesn't have seat belts.  When we go longer distances, the missionaries take other vehicles so we can strap her in.

The missionaries who we came to visit have many different works going on in small villages.  We've had the opportunity to visit them all.  It was cool to see kids we met last visit at the feeding centers a little older.  They still remember us too!  Americans have so much to be thankful for including the availability of churches near by and enclosed buildings with ac!

While on visitation in one of the villages, a lady invited us inside her house to pray for her.  She was pregnant and had fallen.  She was now having some complications.  It was an interesting glimpse into her life to see the simplicity of her home.  There wasn't much, but she didn't complain.  The children had a few toys, and there was a couch (something you might see on the street in the USA waiting for trash pick up).  She had a fridge and two burners.   In comparison to my house, I live in a mansion.

Although I'm not fluent in Spanish, I understand enough that I can get the gist of the conversation.  Church services are always fun because I follow along in my English Bible while trying to follow the sermon in Spanish.  The heart of the people is definitely in worshipping Christ, which is something I wish I could bottle up and take back to the States with me.

We are still in Nicaragua, so I will post more, including pictures when we return home.