Nicaragua Part 1

Compassion International headquarters for Nicaragua

Compassion International headquarters for Nicaragua

The man in charge of letters from sponsors showing us the letters he will check in and get translated that day

The man in charge of letters from sponsors showing us the letters he will check in and get translated that day

Nathan meeting the pastor at the one of the programs in Managua

Nathan meeting the pastor at the one of the programs in Managua

A classroom at the Compassion program in Managua

A classroom at the Compassion program in Managua

The folders kept for each child in the program with their educational, medical, social, and letter history

The folders kept for each child in the program with their educational, medical, social, and letter history

β€œLet the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these." Mark 10:14

β€œLet the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.” Mark 10:14

A boy welcoming us to the second Managua program reading to us from his Bible with Mario translating

A boy welcoming us to the second Managua program reading to us from his Bible with Mario translating

The nicer streets with just a little water running today - it hasn't rained for a week.

The nicer streets with just a little water running today – it hasn’t rained for a week.

Our first home visit - mom shows us her home

Our first home visit – mom shows us her home

With the children out front

With the children out front

Nathan walking down their steps to leave - this is the "stream" of sewage the children jump every day to get to school and it's low now

Nathan walking down their steps to leave – this is the “stream” of sewage the children jump every day to get to school and it’s low now

A washing station at one of the homes we visited

A washing station at one of the homes we visited

One of the kids we played with most back at the school

One of the kids we played with most back at the school

To view larger images of the pictures, just click on them.

If you’ve been following us for a while, you’ll know that we’ve always been very passionate about children’s welfare and poverty relief. We’ve been working in conjunction with several organizations to protect and nurture the most vulnerable children in the world through sponsorship and awareness of issues like poverty and trafficking. Next to people knowing Jesus, this is probably the thing I would most like to share with the world and over the years we’ve gotten hundreds and hundreds of kids sponsored in developing countries.

Most recently we’ve partnered with Compassion International and this past week we had the privilege to go to Nicaragua with them. It was a hard, amazing, educational, eye-opening, overwhelming experience all rolled into one. I knew that Compassion was an organization with integrity, that they have an outstanding reputation and are one of the top rated charities in the world, but to see the program in action really took it from paper to reality for me. It was truly an incredible trip!

We flew out of Columbus on Monday, and met up with about half the team in Houston. There were several other artists on this trip, all going to see Compassion’s work in the field. Unfortunately, we had no idea what anyone looked like, so while we knew they were on our plane, we didn’t know who they were until we got to Managua! We got in, got introduced and went to the hotel for dinner and to wait for the other half of the group who were coming through Atlanta. There were 16 of us plus 4 Nicaraguan staff members (who rocked by the way! Thanks, Corina, Milagro, Mario, and Carlos!!). It was a very diverse group with artists from around the US and all different genres and audiences, and yet, God is a common denominator. What a fun group of Christ followers! It’s like going to camp – we may have only spent several days together, but you come back bonded. πŸ™‚

The next morning we started very early because they wanted to show us a broad spectrum of the work happening in the country and we didn’t have much time. We started with the national offices where there are about 50 people on staff. Compassion has 45,000 children in its programs in Nicaragua, and we were so incredibly impressed by the efficiency and professionalism of this office. What was more impressive, though, were the hearts of the people working there. Over and over we heard what a privilege it was to serve children and families in the name of Jesus, and it was obvious in everything they did. I especially loved learning how the letters come in and get processed and translated and sent to the field. They do 10,000 letters per month just in Nicaragua! And speaking of which, if you sponsor a child, please, please write to them! Everywhere we go we hear from the kids how important their sponsor’s letters are to them, and sadly, we hear from many who never get a letter, even when they write asking for one. Please know how much your letters mean to them, and get writing!

After the headquarters, we went to a church partner in Managua to see an urban program. Compassion always works through church partnerships, and the pastor of this church welcomed us with open arms. He touched my heart so much – he was very animated when we got there telling us about his programs and the church, but as soon as he started talking about the children, he got so choked up he couldn’t talk for quite a while. These children aren’t just pictures in a folder to him – these children are his children. They are real, and this program is so invested in their future!

While there, we saw the whole program, met the staff, and got to see the level of detail and involvement they have in the kids’ lives. They keep a record for each child of the school history, help needed, medical history, even their dreams and plans for their future and a plan the staff has worked out individually with each child to help them reach their goals. It was incredible! These folders were 5 inches thick, and they have one for each and every child in the program worldwide. One of the greatest needs of people everywhere is to be seen, to be known, and it was very obvious that what this staff was saying to these kids was, β€œI see you, I know you, you are valuable.”

We had lunch with the staff there (yes, it was only lunchtime!!) and then headed to another urban partner church to see their program and play with the kids. We also had the opportunity to have some home visits. They split the team up, and our smaller group got to visit two homes where sponsored children live – they were next door neighbors. It was very sobering. We walked just a few blocks from the church down charming, poor but nice houses painted in bright colors. The worst part was the sewage running through the middle of the dirt streets, but it wasn’t too bad. We walked one block behind those houses though, and entered a different world. We saw the β€œstream” where are the sewage was headed. It was wide enough that I literally had to jump over it, and when I did, I realized that we were in the front yard of our home visit house, and it was a shack made of tacked together plywood and pieces of tin with rusty barbed wire hanging at head height being used as a clothes line. The small children living here had to jump that river of sewage every day just to get to school. We had had 5 clear days, so it wasn’t high when we went, but they had had flooding so bad the week before that it ran through they house and washed their lavatory down their hill. Their mother had her hand bandaged because she had cut it with a machete while gathering firewood the week before, and she’d had to dig a new latrine in their yard with her damaged hand.

It was a terrible situation. But after getting past that for a few moments, I realized that what was most striking about this was that even in spite of the poverty and desperation of their situation, this mom had such dignity and joy. She was proud to invite us to her home, and she had dressed in her best dress. She had a son and twin daughters, and they were obviously wearing their best clothes, and she was clearly proud of them – they were all so loving to each other. Her house was neat and as clean as she could make it with a dirt floor. One of the twins has some special needs, and her brother and sister both treated her kindly and hugged her continually – they were obviously friends. She told us how much she appreciated the education and medical care her kids were receiving, and what a difference it was making in their lives. We asked how we could pray for her, and she asked for prayers for her husband’s safety – he was away in the army – and that her children would have a different future than hers.

The second home was similar. Two things stood out here – when we asked if the children received letters from their sponsors, the mom pointed to her son and daughter and said, β€œHe writes and gets letters, and she writes but gets no letters.” It was so sad. The other thing was when we asked the little boy what he would want to pray for, he said, β€œFood!” He is six, and how I wish he’d never had to wonder if there would be food. I was so struck by the fact that when we asked the parents at all of our visits this week what they wanted most or what we could pray for, they did not ask for what I thought would be obvious or for things for themselves, but instead asked that we pray for a different future for their children. As a mom, that really spoke to me.

After that we drove about 3.5 hours up the coast to Chicandega, checked into our hotel, and basically collapsed. It felt like a week’s worth of experiences in one day, and it’s going to take us a while to process everything we are seeing.

To sponsor a child today, please visit Compassion following this link!

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