Milagro en La Palma

Esta es la Comunidad de la Palma , ubicada en la Isla de Ometepe , con unos 120 casas, donde la mayoría de las personas prefesan la religión católica , desde hace mas de 2 años hemos estado visitando esta comunidad y desde que iniciamos fueron jóvenes entre los 14 a 17 años las participantes la mayoría mujeres , al principio hubo bastante oposición con el Liderazgo Catolico el delegado de la Palabra el señor Salomon Alvarez fue quien nos dio el recibimiento y nos pregunto sobre nuestro propósito en la comunidad , le hablamos de las bases de ECS y que era ECS en la realización de un seminario de visión , se dieron los pasos correspondiente , para la certificación de l programa en la comunidad y que este contara con el apoyo de las fuerzas vivas en ella , y asi fue .

 Gracias a Dios hace algunos meses con los temas que hemos estado impartiendo tanto físicos como espirituales creemos que Dios ha venido realizando el trabajo en estas jovencitas . El dia 23 de mayo del corriente año impartimos , la lección de la Bendicion de Dios , pero además incluimos la cita de Juan 6: 35 , Dicho esto por el contexto que hibamos a realizar era la elaboración de pizza y queríamos darle un poco mas de propiedad espiritual a la enseñanza , fue entonces que hicimos el llamado a las jóvenes cuando le mencionamos que ( es muy lindo a prender hacer pan , repostería entre otras cosas , pero mas lindo era el saber que si creíamos en Cristo NUNCA mas tendríamos hambre , ni sed .

 Fue entonces que ocurrió el milagro de que estas jóvenes las 19 aceptaron a Dios en ese momento , la verdad la hermana Juanita Alvarado Lider de Zona en la Isla y Yo NO lo podíamos creer ,preguntamos 3 veces y fue la misma respuesta , inmediatamente proseguimos a orar con ellas y la profesión de Fe. 

Creemos que Dios esta en control de todas las cosas , ahí no mas llegaron los lideres cataolicos y dijeron que eso que ellas asian era normal ya que ah ellos les ahn dicho que ellos también tienen a Cristo en sus vidas , nosotros le dijemos que lo que se había hecho , hecho esta , asi que Dios sabra lo que pasara . ahora nosotras estamos muy concientes que daremos el seguimiento y discipulado a estas jóvenes con mucho cuidado , ya que sabemos de la oposcicion que tenemos .

Les pedimos sus oración por estas jóvenes . acontinuacion fotos y lista de nombres de ellas .

Dios les bendiga

Comunidad de la palma 23 de mayo de 2012

sewing patchwork bags, El Congo

Praying before the sewing class begins in the new church building.
It is unfinished at the moment, but was a lovely, airy space
for sewing.

 Our sewing project was a patchwork bag with a bit more style to it than the simple nine patch tote we started with last year.  


We do projects that women can make from scraps and remnants, so that the materials can be found in the home and community.  


Patchwork with a design is not a tradition in Nicaragua, although people will sew remnants together to make a curtain, and women have become inspired by the idea of saving scraps, or usable parts of worn clothing.                                                                         

Mirna, ready to teach in her new sewing apron

        

The idea of the patchwork bags is that you don't need a
machine to sew them..... however, since there was both a machine
and a seamstress.....! 

The women we've met love to work with what they call 'happy' fabrics.  We collect donated fabrics - using CHE principles, we look for the resources within our own communities.  Although, Heide is also always on the lookout for happy fabrics on sale!   As part of the sewing class at a local high school, girls make little draw- string bags which are filled with the necessary sewing notions, mostly donated by friends, and church members.  


  
At the end of the class, or soon after, the women have a bag they can use.  Later in our stay, we met several young girls carrying papers from an employment training in their bags.
The simple project is an introduction to sewing for some people, and the beginning of an idea for a sale-able item for others.


Darling, Nicaragua's Women of CHE trainer from the national team, says that the classes we offer give the CHE women in the communities something extra to attract women who haven't been involved in CHE,   and helps them make the initial connection with the other women.

This boy was great with the machine.  Heide is reviewing his work.

From that point, the CHE women will visit the new women, and encourage them with friendship, and the Good News.

Some of the women who come are very young, and we even have some children - 10 and over, who love to participate.

 

CHE ministry, Ometepe 2012

The old FIEMCA church, El Congo, Ometepe

Interior of the old church

Our first stop in El Congo was at this lovely, little church.

You will see the new one, next door, later, but this is where we were welcomed to the community by the Community Health Evangelism women,  their pastor, Edin, and his wife, Juanita.
Juanita is the Regional Leader for Women of CHE on Ometepe island.  She heads a team of 10 community leaders.  Edin rides his bike many kilometers a week to pastor the people of El Congo.  While we went about our activities, he cared for the people who came, calling various people over to pray for a boy who accepted Christ one morning, and 2 women who reconciled with Jesus one afternoon.

Pastor Edin and Pastora Juanita

We go to Nicaragua under the leadership of the Nicaragua National CHE Team; we offer activities, planned with them, in support of their ministry in communities. Darling's work with Women of CHE, Ometepe, is funded by Samaritan's Purse, Canada.  We brought  sewing and baking projects, Fatima taught jewelry-making, as well as helping Kelly and Darling with baking.  Tania and Darling also led devotionals.

                                                          


We all stayed in nearby houses, Bill and I stayed with Marta, right next to the church, and all of the classes: jewelry, sewing, and baking were held in her patio, as Nicaraguans call the part of their property that immediately surrounds the house.  Everyone ate all our delicious meals there, too.  Brother Antonio gave spiritual leadership, and his wife, Mirna, an accomplished seamstress, worked with Heide on the sewing project.
                                                            

Marta is keeping an eye on her grandchildren
 while doing embroidery with me

The best thing about these last 2 trips has
been being part of an integrated team.
Below, Fatima, Tania, Anne, and Kelly enjoy
dangling their feet in the water, each other's company,
and the Lord's exquisite creation.

                                                      Marta suggested we all go down to the dock, a few hundred yards away, to    watch the sunset.  We watched a magical sunset turn the cap of cloud over the volcano a rosy pink, and listened to the Congo monkeys passing on their nightly patrol through the enormous mango trees hanging over the edge of the lake.  They make an echoing, roaring sound that I would never have connected with monkeys.  Marta led us into the twilight under the mangoes to watch a mother and baby.