Nicaragua July 21, 2010

Wednesday

Another wet morning. But it's partly sunny though. Beth fixed breakfast and Kearsten did devotions. I sat on the veranda for a few minutes. It's really wet in and around the house. EVERYTHING stays damp!

My stomach is still sketchy. I'm so thankful that it has not been 'emergent' while we are out serving. (no bathrooms) I'm being good with my oatmeal this week. I hope it straightens up soon. I just want to be able to serve at my best capacity.

The girls were up late giggling last night. They were very sleepy this morning.

I called Deanna yesterday and called the church today. Glenda will take care of my certified mail. Nana Ruth is going to move some money to my bank account. It's so nice to have friends take care of me back home.

The girls worked on sorting and packing prizes for kids. Beth put the women's bags together. I bounced back and forth helping. We listened to music on my iPod.

The sun is out for now. Very nice. I'm going to attempt cutting my hair. ahhhhhh~!!! Well, the haircut turned out good. yay

The visit to the hospital was heart wrenching, although I was expecting worse. Even so, it was horrible to think of people being treated there. You have to bring your own sheets (if you own any), the lunch cart was gross, the rooms are crammed with beds, it's very nasty with roaches and mice and birds inside the building. The gurneys were all rusted and the pads on them (if they had one) were brown and black and rotted out in places. We went to the new moms and gave them some packets with baby stuff. Then we went to the children's area. (Mary had to go outside because it bothers her so much) We found baby Milagro from El Zapote village. Beth and I got to hold her. She is such a precious baby. As we prayed over her, roaches were crawling across her bed. There was a lady with a child in the next bed. She had live chickens in a straw bag beneath the bed. Very moving visit.

We went to El Zapote for VBS. We had about 90 kids. The girls did a good job. I took lots of pictures and video. We used the 2 rooms of the abandoned school.

We came back to the house to rest and eat dinner. The girls went on a walk on the beach and then had a little nap. Beth made fried chicken and mashed potatoes. I ate the left over hamburger and the potatoes. yum.

I prepared a message in case we were asked to speak. It took me almost an hour. I used some scripture that I had prepared for tomorrow's devotions.

Church tonight was at Jericho Church. Christopher was my translator. I made the message too complicated with too much scripture. But we made it through. Pastor Calderon said (in English) "it good". There were a few amens throughout, although I saw Mary's eyes glaze over a few times.

On the way home, we accidentally hit a stray dog on the highway. Danilo thought it strange that we cared so much for the dog.

I worked on my devotion for tomorrow (a new one) and then journaled. Time for bed now. God is good - All the time!