Julie and I have begun the final countdown until we leave for Nicaragua. We’re excited to be going along with Earl, who's been there before and Michael, a first-timer like ourselves. We’ll also be joined by Earl’s sister-in-law Dorothy and her husband Mark, both who've been to Nicaragua several times.
I’m continually amazed at the way God works things out. Julie and I have been talking about visiting Greg and Vicky Stout, in Nicaragua and seeing their Safe Water International Ministries at work. However, I really HATE flying, so while Julie had decided she was going to go along, I was still pretty hesitant. But evidently God had other plans for me.
Last November, Julie and I had Stout’s, Earl and his wife Margaret over to our house for supper. That’s when we found out that Dorothy and Mark were planning on going to Nicaragua the next time Earl went. We inquired where they live. “Springfield.” We asked which church they attended. “Asbury United Methodist.” That got our attention.
Denny and Peggy are some of our very best friends in the world and were our next door neighbors in Sumner. Guess where they live now? “Springfield.” Guess what church they attend? “Asbury United Methodist.” Almost immediately, Julie and Margaret were on their cell phones quickly sending off texts to Springfield, wondering if they knew each other. I didn’t think the chances were very likely since Denny and Peggy had only moved to Springfield about a year ago and Asbury UMC is a large church. But was I wrong! We found out that they had been together just a few days before at a leadership event at the church. After several phone calls from Julie and sharing a meal at Mark and Dorothy’s, Denny and Peggy decided they wanted to join the group going to Nicaragua. Well, I didn’t want to be left out, so Julie and I applied for our passports and bought airline tickets. I decided I had let fear dictate my answering God’s call for too long. I’m still a bit nervous about it, but I am confident that God does not give a spirit of fear.
I’m sure this trip will be an eye-opening experience. So many things which I just assumed would be there all my life; clean water to drink, electric lights to read by, indoor plumbing, and safe food can’t be taken for granted in Nicaragua.
I am taking my laptop along and hope to be able to occasionally post update while we are there, but it's not like I can run down to the corner Starbucks and get on-line, so that's a wait and see kind of thing. I’m planning on producing a travelogue about our trip soon after we return with video, pictures and stories about our experience. Watch for more information about that.
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