History, Real Life, and Faith
I can’t imagine giving birth in a jungle. Picture yourself, however, as the typical girl in the Rio San Juan area of Nicaragua. You finish school, probably around fourteen, and live in a small village– perhaps one like Las Colinas (the hills) or the prosaically named Kilometer 20. You meet a nice guy, probably don’t get married, and find yourself…
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Christian missionary work has always been based on sharing the good news that Jesus Christ died in order that men and women might be free from the guilt of their sins and able to live with God forever. The original Christians who witnessed Christ’s life, death and resurrection eventually sallied forth from Jerusalem to tell the world what they had…
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Knowing me, some friends were surprised to hear I was headed to the jungles of Nicaragua. Who could blame them? While it’s true I’m a seven-year veteran of the Cub Scouts, the mother of three Eagle Scouts and I once spent 9.5 straight weeks camping (hey, it was Europe), I’m not known for my fondness for hot weather, insects or…
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The Rio San Juan area of Nicaragua is such a poor area that health care opportunities are far flung or often unavailable. One of the reasons our church, along with the Santa Rosa Sunrise Rotary Club and other partners with San Juan Rio Relief, have returned for five years to run eye glass clinics is there is no optometric help in…
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I visited Nicaragua in 2011 to serve in an eyeglass clinic. Twelve members of our church, St. Mark Lutheran, handed out 500 Bibles, nearly 2000 pair of glasses, and saw 1079 folks. A total blessing and a terrific trip for all of us. We flew to Managua, the capital of Nicaragua, on TACA airlines and thence to San Carlos at…
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When I signed up for our church’s glasses ministry, I suddenly realized I’d never been on a missions trip before. Then my husband reminded me we painted an orphanage in Juarez, Mexico, once. I’m not sure that counted. We stayed at an American friend’s house with a shower, and crossed the border daily. This time, we headed up the San…
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