La Iglesia de Fe, Esperanza, y Amor

Yesterday was a day of many successes. We started off by having a party for teacher appreciation day at La Iglesia de Fe, Esperanza, Y Amor in Masatepe (a town outside of Managua). We once again worked alongside the team from Omaha, Nebraska. The party began with a few speeches from the adults to the teachers telling them how important their job really is and how special they are to the world. Rip came up and Priscilla translated for him. This was the first time she had done this in front of an audience of this size and she felt accomplished when she was done!

After the party, we were the leaders of a job to clean up the school library located in this church/school. We had the Nebraska girls help us and it turned out great. The books were organized, the puzzles cleaned up, it was a new library all together. Go team work!

At lunch, a group of adults told Priscilla about all of the opportunities she had to teach in Nicaragua. She was offered a classroom position right then and there. The pastor and wife that we have been working with lately are sort of the owners/presidents of the school connected with the church and it is crazy that she is being connected with all the right people. For now she is just praying that God leads her and shows her clarity for what he wants her to do in Nicaragua in the near and distant future.

Margaret also experienced an amazing God moment at lunch. She recently decided to change her ticket to leave at a later date. She is now leaving this Sunday and we are ecstatic about that! It cost her a total of $80 to stay these extra days at Rip's house and she payed him right away. Rip ended up telling her that one of the youth pastors at church really needed a new door for his house and Rip told him that he would pay for it. Knowing that he didn't have the money right away, Rip still told him he would buy it for him, he felt that God was telling him to do so. He didn't know where or when he'd get the money, but he obeyed God. When Margaret gave him the room and board he took it thankfully. While eating lunch, he told Margaret about the door he felt he was meant to buy for this young man and said God had sent it to him. Want to guess how much the door was??? Yup, $80.

Art and dance was next on the agenda. The Nebraska team had already been working with the kids on some art and a couple of dance numbers the day before. The three of us walked around and helped them out as much as possible. Margaret and Priscilla translated most of the time and Delanie helped while the kids were painting and tried to learn a dance move or two. The dance group performed for everyone in the afternoon and the kids really enjoyed it.

After eating homemade tostadas at the pastors house (yum!) we went back to the church in the evening for a youth service. The service was similar to ones we used to have at the Matchbox and it felt nostalgic. Out of nowhere, the youth leaders were calling Priscilla up to the stage to translate. No biggie, until they asked her to translate an entire sermon in Spanish! She prayed, and let God be the words in her mouth and ended up accomplishing this feat. It was rough, but she did something she never would have thought possible.

It was a great day filled with work that we love to do. We really felt that we were making a difference all day and that felt fulfilling. We did not get home till late and then continued to stay up later than we should have (of course). It was one of those amazing days that we look forward to relive in the near future. This is why it's all worth it to be here.

I am today what yesterday has made me; tomorrow I shall be changed by today's experiences.

xoxo

Priscilla and Delanie