Through another set of eyes

It's always nice to see Granada and our ministry here through other need greater's eyes.  After awhile, the sites and sounds here start to become the norm for us.  Fortunately, we had a couple visit a short while ago and she took pictures of everything.  I think she took well over a thousand actually!  Here are some of the pictures she sent to me.  Enjoy!

Service break sitting on someone's steps.

Leaving the hall in Glynis' and Bob's truck.  (I've since stopped wearing that heavy book bag!)

Getting ready to head out into the ministry!

Another service break.  

Hanging out

Not sure what I was looking at here :-Z

Pet geese ( I think they are geese??!) outside a study's house.  They kept walking into the house to stare at their reflection in the television :-)

The rest of the family relaxing while we had our bible study.

Man carrying wood in his horse cart.  This is one street over from where I live.  I never really noticed how pretty the plants look.

Cautiously petting the goose.  Hey, do you know how many people get mawled by geese, annually??  Probably none, but you never can be too careful :-)

Bible study.

Bye, bye!

Me in front of the house where I live.

Our yard.  The brown door leads to my room :-)

Cement tub we use for water when we have water outages.

Cooking beans in the back yard. 

Letter Writing

Some days we are just too tired to walk miles and miles in service so we letter write.  This is a great way to reach people with whom we have had a good conversation with in the ministry, and then can't find at home again due to work etc.  I've had some encouraging results.  One girl I was studying with got really busy at her university.  I started writing her personal letters every month and leaving the magazines for her.  When I finally caught her at home again she thanked me for not giving up on her.  She brought out all the letters and magazines and showed me which articles had come at just the right time in her life.  Her excitement made me excited.  Michelle (below) is great at organizing and personalizing her letters and often gives me great tips.  I think we all bounce off of each other's tips and successes :-).  On this day, several of us got together to write and have Coke floats...mmmmm!  Sorry the pictures came out kinda weird...I had to use my phone.

Yummy!

Alexander is proud of his letter!

Corazon de Vaca

I walked into the kitchen just now to find Clemen making a sauce that looked really good.  I always watch her cook so that I can try to recreate some of her dishes.  She started telling me what she was adding tomatoes, onions etc.  I was on board.  I decided to use it for chicken but she insisted it was better with beef.  She turned and added the final ingredient-a bowl of finely diced "beef."  I've seen her make miracles with alot of kinds of meat but this one was a little different.  She kept insisting it was just beef.  "What PART of the beef?"  I asked more specifically.  "corazon de vaca" she replied with a shy smile.  In English this is "cow heart."  Suddenly my face changed to horror and our conversation became "No!" "Si"..."No!" "Si"  "Nooooooooooo!!!!!"  Finally she just reached in the pan and offered me a piece. At first I hesitated with a frown then figured what the heck.  I stared at it on the spoon for awhile.  Sniffed it, poked it.  I made sure I had plenty of peppers and onions mixed in with the meat.  Finally, I put it in my mouth and...well.... not bad.  I don't think I'll be craving it anytime soon but I have to give it to her, she can make some pretty good cow heart!

Those are fried plantains on the left.

Get to Know Our Need Greaters- Bob & Glynis

Bob & Glynis

Where are you from?

I'm from London but after we got married, we served in Robert's old congregation in Brecon in South Wales.

Why did you choose to be a need greater?

I think it choose us! Plus, we were too old for Gilead.

Why Nicaragua?

My friend David, was serving here and we came to visit him on vacation. After spending 3 weeks here, we realised there was a lot of work to be done here and few people doing it.

Have you served anywhere else?

Technically no. When I moved to Wales, the congregation was small, rural and had no pioneers. When we left to come to Nica (after a year) there were 8 pioneers. I like to think we encouraged the pioneer spirit in the time we served there together.

How long will you be here and how long have you served thus far?

We will stay here until Jehovah sends us somewhere else or we are forced to return to the UK to care for family needs. In October, we will have been here 2 years.

How did you prepare to come?

Lots of prayer mostly, and we talked with the Circuit Overseer and mature friends and family.

Were you worried about anything before coming?

My own limitations, worrying whether I would be able to keep up a schedule and not tire out. Starting over, making new friends. Dealing with the bugs.

Have you had to overcome any challenges to get here or while serving here?

Like in most places, there were some issues that made it difficult when we first began serving here, but Jehovah gave us wisdom and determination and we endured some challenges.

Do you have any highlights or good experiences from being here?

The highlight is sticking at the assignment when things seemed hopeless, and being at the meeting when it was announced that Granada English group is now a congregation!

How has being here brought you closer to Jehovah?

You definitely have to rely on Jehovah more. Everything is different, living conditions are very different. Sometimes I feel I can't cope and I need to get back to reality/normality. At times like that, I talk to Jehovah. He has blessed us by keeping us busy, for which we are truly grateful.

What do you do in your free time?

I like to read and spend time with my new friends. Robert likes to fill his truck with as many people as he can and go to the beach or Laguna de Apoyo and swim and kayak and sunburn!

What advice do you have for others thinking of coming?

Earnestly talk to Jehovah about your desire to serve where there is a greater need. Talk to your CO and other mature friends/family. Write to appropriate branch. Do some research on the place you are intending to go to. Visit for at least 3 months - that is long enough for you to know whether you could cope with the adjustments you would need to make, and the living conditions etc.

How do you finance being a need greater?

We sold our house and all our possessions, so at the moment we are living off the proceeds. When that money runs out, we will have to return to the UK and work.

I'll take door number 1!

I went to the pulperia yesterday to buy a bag a chips.  The shop keeper seemed adamant about me getting a particular kind.  All I could tell was that she kept saying some thing about ketchup.  Were they ketchup flavored?  She seemed so excited that I went ahead and got the bag.  As I walked away, she kept yelling, "Free!!" in Spanish.  As I walked away I noticed an advertisement for ketchup on the bag and figured there was a coupon for a free bottle inside.  Once I opened the bag, I found my prize.....not sure if I was supposed to use the packet on the chips or what :-Z

We finally got a new ceiling!

Our hall is the very last one in Granada to be renovated.  We spent the last week or two putting in a new ceiling as well as painting inside and out.  You can see some good "before" pics in this post.  I was giving a talk the other night and a huge piece of styro-foam (old ceiling) floated right down!  I'm glad to say that will not be happening any more :-).  I quickly realized I'm not the best painter in the world so I requested "low profile"areas.  I ended up painting along the ceiling in the second school :-)  Also, while we were working, we were given applications for the RBC (regional building committee).  We currently don't have one in the country but it looks like it's in the works!  The work is speeding right on up!

The brothers would shimmy up the trees and get coconuts for breaktime.

Learning a new skill

Me :-)

The white side is the before and the silver is after.

We used to take turns sitting on this rock when we arrived early for the service group and the hall was locked.

Now we have cute little cement bucket seats!

Workin' Girl!

Only in Jehovah's organization will you meet someone for the first time and they treat you like a long lost relative.  That's what happened for me when I went home to work.  I had never been to the mid-west a day in my life.  The friends immediately gave me warm clothes to borrow so I wouldn't have to buy any.  Everyone wanted to cook for us.  The day I met the sister I was going to stay with, she gave me a tour of the house, gave me the code to get in, told me anything in the fridge was mine...welcome home!  It's true that not everyone has the means to serve where the need is greater but love and hospitality like that is just as important in getting the work done!  Many of us leave all our material possesions, family and friends to serve but to know that whereever we go in the WORLD, we will have loving family to support us, is beyond comforting.

So as I mentioned in the last post, I started working only a few hours after arriving.  The harvest lasts anywhere from 2-4 weeks depending on the weather.  We worked 7 days per week, 12 or more hours per shift for the role I was in.  Oh yeah, I forgot another way Jehovah worked things out!  I was able to get the night shift.  That may not sound like a blessing but, it means that I was able to make all of the meetings, get out in service and keep up all of my personal study and bible reading.  I ABSOLUTELY had to pray for "strength beyond what is normal" (2 Corinthians 4:7) for this.  There is no way I would have been mentally alert enough to put one foot in front of the other much less all of that with out Jehovah's help.  We had several days off due to the weather so I even got to explore some of the rural territory and local territory.  The beets we processed were white, not red so I did not leave work everyday looking like an ax murderer :-).  I got to learn how to work the machines, train people on the machines as well as fixing the problems and assisting in a bunch of office stuff too.  Suffice it to say, I know way more about the technical aspects of processing sugar than I ever thought I would!

We had a GREAT time at the harvest.  There were need greaters from 5 different countries working and most of us were together.  We were able to tell each other stories about our assignments, and just have fun.  The work was tedious but knowing why we were there, made it all worth while.  Our coworkers and supervisors couldn't help but notice our giddiness so there were plenty of opportunities to witness to them.  Many were people who drift from one place to another and otherwise would not have had anyone to knock on their door.    We had many good experiences with people who hadn't wanted to speak with Jehovah's Witnesses in the past, but since they had gotten to know us, they were more comfortable opening up.

We had many opportunities to show slides and talk to some of the young ones in various congregations about being need greaters.  I was really impressed by some of the goals and hard work many of the young ones are putting in already.  I wish I had that focus when I was their age!  All in all, it was a great experience!    Here are some pictures of a family in Atlanta that was kind enough to invite my parents and I to their house for family worship night.  I was really impressed and encouraged by all of them :-)  Thanks for taking some pictures, mom!

Headed to the Midwest

After getting the info about the beet harvest from the friends, I could really see Jehovah's hand moving things.  Because I knew the friends, I was able to find a direct contact.  Otherwise, I would have had to wait another year.  The guy was really nice, and after a short phone call, he told me to come on up!  It was so easy that I started to second guess it as being too easy.  Another lesson I am continually learning is that when Jehovah has his hand in something, it flows as smooth as silk.  I told the friends I'd met that I was definitely coming up.  I think they were surprised and excited :-)    Although we had only had that 10 minute conversation at the convention, they arranged to pick me up from the airport so that we could carpool the 5 hours to the area where we would be working.  They even reached out to the friends they were staying with so that I could stay with them.  There were several other sisters coming up as well so we would just spread out in sleeping bags, couches etc.  I was thrilled!  In the initial conversation with the company, I was told that I would be outside directing trucks and keeping the beet piles swept up and clean.  I was fine with that but in the back of my mind I was concerned about the cold since I tend to get sick easily.  Right up until the time that we went to the office I continued to make it a matter of prayer that Jehovah sustain my health long enough for me to complete the harvest and so that I wouldn't be so sick once I returned to my assignment that I would take a long time recuperating.  Again, stepping out on faith taught me a lesson.  As we were driving, we got a call that another sister had opened her house to some of us so I would not only have a bed, but a room, score!  Once we got to the company, we filled out our paperwork and low and behold, there were some spots in the laboratory processing the beets.  The laboratory is INSIDE so I was out of the elements!  Hooray, no pneumonia!! Although we weren't supposed to start for a few days, the man asked the sister and I if we could take on a special role and start in a few hours.  So, that's what we did!

Refined into a beet picker

As seen in a previous post, I visited Honduras a few months ago for their District Convention (click here for the pictures!)  There was a missionary couple staying at the same house as me.  One day on the way to the convention, the sister asked me how need greaters support themselves.  I told her I wasn't really sure since my savings were almost gone and I wasn't quite sure how I would continue to support myself financially.  I could see the wheels turning in her mind but she didn't say much more on the topic.  I had been making finances a matter of consistent, detailed prayer.  I asked Jehovah for a job where I could make what I needed in a short period of time without having to waste money going back and forth to the States often.  I also asked for something that would not have me working full or part time on a constant basis here since I wanted to be able to stay focused on the ministry 100%.  During the lunch session, the missionary sister introduced me to another sister, and said that she may have info about work.  We talked for a few minutes and she told me that she and her husband work a harvest once per year in the Mid-West.   It would be coming up in the next 2 months.  I nearly blurted out "I'll take it!!!!!" while she was in mid sentence!  So what is this glorious job that will allow me to keep serving Jehovah in my assignment??!!  The sugar beet harvest!  I thought it was hilarious but I was all for it.  I couldn't help but think what a sense of humor Jehovah has.  I was looking for a cushy corporate job like I'm used to and he said, 'nope kiddo, you're gonna get down and dirty for this one!'  I've always liked working with my hands and getting into my work so we swapped info and I started to have dreams of sugar beets (what ever those are!) in my head.

Lesson in Depending on Jehovah

My current journey here in Nicaragua began about 14 months ago in September 2010.  Before coming, I sold/gave away 90% of my belongings and saved up enough to be here for 1 year.  In the back of my mind, I knew there was always a possibility of staying longer, but one year is what I had decided on.  Around May of this year, I made the trip back home (to Atlanta, GA) to see family and friends and to work for a few weeks in hopes of being able to stay in Nicaragua longer.  I learned a valuable lesson in depending on Jehovah during this time.  Before heading in back home, I did some leg work prepping my resume, making a few calls and sending out emails.  I even had a backup plan of doing some errand work if nothing panned out.  The problem is, I thought I was leaning on Jehovah but really, I was still leaning mostly on my own abilities.  This is a lesson I've definitely been refined in this past year but Jehovah took this as an opportunity to really show me how to depend on him.  I got to Atlanta and nothing came through job wise....NADA.  I couldn't even find a job walking dogs or holding a sign in traffic (believe me, I tried!).  Although I was a bit concerned, I was never panicked.  I enjoyed my time in the ministry everyday and remained diligent in prayer, asking Jehovah to show me a way to continue serving in Nicaragua.  By the end of the two weeks, I had not worked a single day.  I still was not worried.  A few days before I was to fly back, I talked to Jehovah a long time about my desire to still serve where the need is greater.  The only thing holding me back was finances.  I decided to use the money I still had in savings to buy what I needed for at least another 8-10 months.  I did so, confident that if it was Jehovah's will, he would provide just what I need right when I needed it.  Right before I got on the plane, I received a gift that covered what I had purchased.  As the plane took off for Managua, I knew everything was going to be just fine.  

Two Whole Months Without a Post?!!

I really fell off of the map there for awhile!  With no posts for so long you probably figure I was really busy or  either absolutely nothing was going on.  Fortunately, it's just because I was (and still am!) CRAZY busy!  In a good way though!  I'll try to catch you up to speed in the next several posts.  I'm going to try to keep them short since they will mostly be words without pictures because I have bad news and worse news.  The bad news, I didn't have time to take many pictures.  The worse news, all the pictures I did take, accidentally got erased!  I know, I know.  I'll try not to let it happen again :-)  You will be happy to know that I am finally getting some responses to my "Get to Know Our Needgreaters" questionaires too, so you will get to know some more of the friends here too.  So,without further ado, here's what I've been up to......

Nica Chica ;-D

What is on my roof??!

Every morning I hear the same thud on the roof at 5:00 AM .  This is followed by the sound of talons as the animal slides down to the edge.  I subsequently hear every foot step as in waddles all the way across the roof.  For a whole year I have heard this every morning.  Finally I got to see what it was......

Beet It!

Hey there!  Long time no post!  Things started getting good with the interviews and then I just disappeared!  Just to let you know, I'm waiting on some more responses to the interview questions.  Everyone is either super busy or super shy.  I hope to have some soon.  In the meantime, I am actually in the States right now working.  Some of you wonder how we support ourselves.  Well, at the moment, I am in the midwest (never been here before) to work the sugar beet harvest.  Yup....sugar beets.  I'm on a night shift starting at midnight working 7 days per week so needless to say, I don't have alot of time to blog.  Once I get a break, I'll try to post some more and give some details on how Jehovah blessed me with this job and all the great friends I've met here. 

TTYS,
Nica Chica ;-)

Get to Know Our Need Greaters- Alexander & Michelle

As promised, this is the first of many interviews with the friends serving here.  Enjoy!

Alexander & Michelle

Where are you from?

Somos Canadiense y Estadounidense. (Or, in English, Alexander is from Canada and Michelle is from the United States.)

Why did you choose to be a need greater?

Simply because we wanted to serve Jehovah the best that we could, and we had the circumstances to do it. Ever since I was a child I wanted to be a missionary and serving where the need was greater just seemed like a definite right step towards that goal!

Why Nicaragua?

Alexander:   Originally I wanted to move further north in Canada and help where there is a need there, but a friend of mine invited me to go with him to Nicaragua to see if we would like to go back and serve there longer in the future. We went, and as soon as we went back to Canada I knew that I had to go back and serve in Nicaragua – there was just a great need!

Michelle:     I had served in another place before, and there was a need but it wasn’t as physically challenging as Nicaragua. I wanted to serve Jehovah with everything I had, including my physical abilities that I have in my youth.

Have you served anywhere else?

Alexander: In Canada I served in Grande Prairie, Alberta. I have also worked seldom worked territory several times in Alberta and the Northwest Territories, plus helped on dozen of Kingdom Hall construction projects across Canada and even one in Nicaragua – which was where I happened to first meet Michelle!

Michelle:  Crescent City, Florida; Mazatlan Mexico, and some unassigned territory in Kentucky!

How long are you here for?

Life! We will continue to leave the matter in Jehovah’s hands, but currently we can afford to live here for several years more, and we have no plans or reasons to go back home. Granada is home now.

How did you prepare to come?

In order to move here permanently we both had to sell our vehicles, quit our jobs, and get rid of unnecessary material things. Within the time it took to make all the preparations to move here we were dating, and then engaged, and then we got married. Our focus was on serving where the need was greater and not so much on our wedding day. Thus we kept our wedding very small and simple. This enabled us to have our special day without all the complications and debt that many people experience. As a result Jehovah blessed our efforts and we were able to successfully save enough to move here and share our life of serving where the need is greater together!

Were you worried about anything before coming?

Alexander:  Bring it on I say! Well, I was a little worried about learning Spanish. However that isn’t much of a concern serving in the Granada English Congregation, and the Spanish slowly coming along quite well.

Michelle:    I was worried about safety, people always make comments about 3^rd world countries being extremely dangerous right?  Not any more dangerous than where I came from in the states.  I was also worried about leaving my family.  Many times I asked myself ‘is this really the right thing to do?’ My mother told me ‘there will be plenty of time for that later’.  What did she mean?  Think farsighted, not shortsighted.  This is the biggest campaign to never again be repeated, and we will live forever in paradise with our families.  Now is the time to preach!

Have you had to overcome any challenges to get here or while serving here?

We arrived here after being married for less than a month, so moving to a foreign land and adapting to married life has been somewhat of a challenge. However, serving Jehovah with your best friend is a true blessing. We’ve also had to learn balance and good organization since we are so busy with Bible studies and the congregation. However Jehovah has blessed us very much for all our hard work! (See next question!)

Do you have any highlights or good experiences from being here?

We met each other here, so that is a big highlight! Seeing Bible students come to the meeting for the first time and seeing how much we encourage our family and friends back home is great. We received a letter from my aunt’s study back in Florida saying how much she appreciates the work that we do and how impressed she is that we would move here to do it full time in a foreign land. How encouraging! Alexander just had a Bible study join the Theocratic Ministry School, and he has his first talk in a few weeks!

How has being here brought you closer to Jehovah?

We are fully relying on Jehovah now since we are not working secularly. It has been very faith strengthening to see how Jehovah has provided us the means to serve him here. Since we are talking to people about the Bible all the time it has really impressed even deeper into our minds that this is the truth, and that this is the best work we can be doing!

What do you do in your free time?

We like to sit around the campfire with our brothers and sisters, sharing experiences and getting to know each other better while we cook hotdogs and roast corn. Lately we’ve also enjoyed doing a little yard work and gardening, and sometimes watching an episode or two of old black and white TV shows together. Stovetop popcorn is the best!

What advice do you have for others thinking of coming?

What are you waiting for? Do it! Seriously pray to Jehovah about your desire to serve where the need is greater and ask him to bless your desire. Don’t make excuses – there are people from all over the world of all different ages and different circumstances all here serving where the need is greater. Don’t get caught up in the shortsighted dreams of this world – see farsightedly that this really is the best thing you can do with your life and that you can do it. Act along with your prayers by doing some research about where you want to serve. Talk to people who’ve done it, and I’m sure that they would be more than happy to help you get right at home here. You can do it!