La Colonia

It has been a busy couple of days here in Nicaragua. Saturday was the first full day for the Alabama team working in a community called La Colonia. We started the day off by doing some door to door evangelism. It was interesting to hear people's responses to questions about salvation. Over the last two days we have gotten a mixture of answers and have had some really good conversations and some not so good conversations. One family we talked with were believers, but they had a son who was not. He was drunk when we were there, and one of our team members, Benjamin, challenged him to be sober Sunday when he stopped by again. Unfortunately, he was drunk yet again. Then, we had a conversation with a woman next door who listened to what we had to say and ended up opening up towards the end with a struggle of hers. We all encouraged her and prayed for her and invited her to attend the service last night. She showed up with her son, and that was her first time at the church, Ebenezer. So, we have had some conversations that go nowhere, but then we have had conversations that show a glimmer of hope. 

After going door to door Saturday, we went to an open field near by for VBS with the kids. It was insanely windy, which wasn't ideal for coloring. Nonetheless, the kids enjoyed coloring and playing in the field. 

We had games of baseball, soccer, and frisbee going on. 

The kids learned that God made everything from trees to dogs to families.

We did some more door to door after lunch and played some soccer and basketball with teenagers for a while before the service that night. 

One of the team members preached Saturday night in Ephesians and then another Sunday night. This week the team is focusing on teaching about evangelism and growth within the church. A growing church is not based on numbers; rather it is based on purity and maturity in Christ. We are encouraging members of the church to spread the Word of God in their community and then allow God to grow their church through them. It has been a learning experience for me as well to listen and watch how different team members share the Gospel. They focus on teaching how sin separates us from God and challenges people to think about how sin affects our lives. They use some really good examples and analogies when explaining sin and how Jesus payed for our sins when he died on the cross. I have enjoyed hearing the different approaches of each team member. 

Sunday morning we attended the service at Enenezer. One of the things everyone always comments on when attending services here is the passion these people have when worshiping. It doesn't matter if they have a good singing voice or not. They sing loud and with immense joy without caring what others think. 

We did more door to door yesterday after the service. Then after lunch we walked over to another part of the community to continue sharing. This time it was different and much harder. The first woman we talked with was very open and honest and accepting of what we had to say. Then the next few people were a little more hard headed and stubborn. It seemed like we were getting nowhere with some of them, but the point of what we are doing here is to share the Word of God and pray people realize the truth behind our words. 

We attended one more service Sunday night and Benajmin preached in Ephesians. Some of the team members brought guitars and they sang last night during worship. We heard a couple testimonies as well after worship. It was a good message and there were quite a few new people who attended. 

The rest of the night we spent at the mission house preparing for today and relaxing.