Saturday, July 14 (Day 6)

After breakfast at the hotel our team walked to a park one block from the El Reyes Hotel. Pastor Lee had asked our team to help fix up the park for children in the community.  9 of the 10 swings were missing and trash and limbs were littered throughout the park. What we all thought would be a simple project took several hours as we were missing several parts needed to hang the swings.  Pastor Lee went to four hardware stores to find the necessary parts.  Each swing seat has a LIFE.net stamp imprinted on hardwood.  Each swing seat costs $20, but provides a great service to the community.  Pastor Lee has replaced swing seats in several parks in surrounding neighborhoods and intends to do more in the future.  It was an extremely hot morning in Belize, so our team tried to stay well hydrated with lots of water.  Several of the gals on the team assembled the swing seats, several guys hung the swings and made sure they were level and others on the team picked up trash.  It was a great feeling knowing that we have improved this park for the kids of Belize and gotten the word out about Pastor Lee's church.

For lunch our team was treated to pizza at a restaurant called Peppers.  We had cheese and pepperoni pizzas, garlic bread and waters or sodas.

After lunch we went door to door in the Belmopan community, passing out flyers, inviting people to LIFE,net church and praying for those that expressed various needs.

At our evening team dinner we surprised our team leader Mike Diefenbach with a carrot cake for his 49th birthday.  Each team member took time to share "words of affirmation" with Mike by telling him one way in which he has touched their life.

Friday, July 13 Free Day in Belize
       The kids and adults were excited to have one day set aside to explore the sites in Belize and get some well deserved rest.  After breakfast at the El Reyes (The King) Hotel, we boarded an air conditioned bus to go tubing and caving exploring at Cave Branch (in the Nocoche'en Ecological Reserve).  It was about an hour and a half bus ride to get to the park.

      Upon arrival we were all given life jackets and an inner tube.

Our group had to hike 45 minutes into the jungle to get to the place where we embarked on our water journey.

Talk about an "unBelizeable" time together as a group - wow!  Each of us was given a head-lamp that would help us in the dark caves.  As a group we started floating down the pristine water-ways, praising God for His awesome handiwork,  We navigated our way through limestone caverns, sometimes only being able to see a few feet in front of us.  We saw stalagmites, stalactites and natural salt formations.  Fortunately we did not see any bats!

       At the half way point in our journey, we were able to get out of our tube and walk around in the caves.  There was a large rock from which our team members took the opportunity to jump into the water and swim for a bit.  Then we plunged back into the waters in our inner tubes and floated the second half of our journey under the jungle canopy.

After our relaxing day in the water, we had an awesome lunch prepared by our tour guides:  bottled coke, water, water-melon, home-made salsa and chips, chicken fajitas, beans and everyone's favorite, chocolate chip banana bread.  Can you say "yummo"?!
     
After heading back to our hotel to clean up, Pastor Lee brought by a tarantula for the team to enjoy!  Pastor Lee poses with a small tarantula that he found in his yard:

Our special evening out dinner was at a restaurant called "Ketchup."
       For the evening our team went over to "Destiny House" which is a hang-out for Christian youth.  It is kinda like a coffee-house with load music.  There were probably 50-75 Belize youth that showed up just to hang out with one another.  Some of the kids are even on a local TV show called "SWAG," where up and coming Christian artists can showcase their music.

Everyone had an awesome "free" day and are well rested and ready to complete our God assignments over our last two days in Belmopan.
 

A bittersweet day for our Belize team today ... leaving Pastor Caleb and Aida is difficult ... good friends, and not just a "mission trip" for us at GCC.

On the other hand, we were very excited to head off to the captal of Belize ... Belmopan ... and meet Pastor Lee Brockinton ... even though we had a plan for this portion of the trip, there were so many "unknowns" and so much we felt very unprepared for because this is our first encounter with him here in Belize !!!!!

When we pulled up to our hotel (the El Rey Hotel) Pastor Lee was waiting for us.  It was a quick check-in to get our rooms set-up, and then it was right down to business ... Lee didn't waste any time ... he had his IPad out and we sat in the lobby getting our marching orders ... a bit different pace than in San Ignacio ... 3 things to describe Pastor Lee ... ON FIRE ... GROUP RELATIONSHIPS ... YOUTH ... Lee and his wife came here from Texas and his passion is building relationships and living the Gospel ... church here is really a 24/7 life event ... Here is how we served Lee and the people of Belmopan today

FREE ROADSIDE WATER ... AND CHURCH INVITES ...

PRAYER WALKING AT THE UNIVERSITY OF BELIZE WITH LEE

   ISAAC "RAPPING" WITH A LOCAL FAMOUS ARTIST

YOUTH GROUP NIGHT AT LEE'S HOUSE

On a final note ... Isaac and Margo each shared a powerful and emotional testimony to the youth ... AWESOME ... missions are not always about who we visit ... much of the time it's about what GOD has for us as a team ... Mikayla, Bailey, Margo, Chapman, Isaac, Austin and Cade have been the most amazing young ambassadors !

Hola from Belize ..Wow, another delicious breakfast with Pastor Caleb and Aida. We had fresh eggs, corn tortillas, biscuits, and amazing goat cheese. Then off to Benque, a little town east of our hotel and on the border of Belize and Guatamela.  We arrived with great anticipation and were not disappointed when 70 showed up.  Again, the team was fully engaged with the children..giving and getting lots of hugs and high fives.  Our youth gave ALL they had.  Our boys....Isaac, Austin, and Chapman were so enthusiastic while running down the street with swim rings around their heads...the kds loved this relay game. I think they just liked watching our boys look silly:) . While the boys were outside, Cade and Aaron were sharing about how Jesus is THE SUPERHERO.  When we asked the kids to name superheros, they yelled GOD!!! Isn't that great??? They already know Jesus is the the Hero....what a testimony to the church leaders in this Latin community,  Then to end the day our youth all sat with children to help make a superhero necklace.  We  loved watching Bailey, Mikayla, and Margo sit with the kids in the floor patiently stringing beads and crosses. We pray that many families lives will be changed because of the message that was shared today.

After a hard day serving the kids, we took a long hike up a big hill to see Xunantunich,,,,,the ancient Mayan ruins on the way back to San Ignacio... great tourist attraction and lesson in history ... also a great lesson in what happens to people who serve a lesser god than the true GOD of the universe ...

And another great GCC Missions bonus ... Brother Hector took us to an amazing spot on the river ... he grew up visiting this spot as a kid and loves to "play hard" after working hard ...  the photos speak a thousand words !!!!!

Of course, another great chicken dinner ... I think this is the only mission trip where we actually GAINED an inch !!!!!!!!

Off to Belmopan in the morning ... hate to leave Caleb and all our friends here in San Ignacio ... but bigger things await us with Pastor Lee in The Capital city

God Bless us all !

1st Day of VBS

     Our first day at work here in Belize ... a great day here in San Ignacio always starts off with a big breakfast with Pastor Caleb and Aida, then it was off to the town of Santa Elena across the big river that separates these two towns ... The church in Santa Elena is called LIGHTHOUSE and its a tiny building with alot of character ... We had LOTS of great helpers from the main church, ARMS OF LOVE, as we set-up for VBS ... THE KIDS HERE ARE SO CUTE AND SO QUIET AND HUMBLE that it takes a huge effort to get them to participate ... but once they break those first fears these kids start jumping and laughing and genuinely do NOT want to stop or even let us go !   

     Our teens were awesome ... what a great group of young adults willing to jump in there and DO VBS ... Yes, Kim Palmer was the lead person and Aaron Hosea delivered the message, but the youth really drove the event from the music to the dancing to snack time and then the crafts .... these 7 guys and girls really made the difference and set a great example to the local youth that church stuff CAN be fun and fulfilling...   70 kids showed for this first event, and we even got in the pastor's little pick-up truck and filled the back with neighborhood kids ... The church here in Santa Elena is really growing and they really have a heart for the kids as they push to grow their presence in that community.

     Also drove out to Benque ... the town we will do the next VBS ... to hand out flyers in the neighborhood to invite the kids to Wednesday's VBS ... GOD WILL call the children for this and we really felt a sense of excitement and anticipation as we walked the streets and called on the parents to "bring the kids.. it's gonna be a great time"

     Finally, we had a "Prayer Service" at Arms of Love Church ... the end of a LONG missions day ... but we were really refreshed as our talented Cade, Austin and Chapman played and lead worship along with 4 of the local girls who sang with them ... a much needed time of prayer and filling with the Holy Spirit .... AWESOME

More tomorrow ... please pray for our young adults to see/have a vision of Christ that they never saw before !!!!!

Hello again my friends ... Had a great dinner with Pastor Caleb and his wife Aida ... they are now living at the main Arms Of Love Church and all their kids are off on their own now ... Caleb has done a remarkable job on the church as well as reaching the local community ... We also had an awesome music session this evening as Cade, Chapman, Austin lead all our group and gathered with several of the youth at dinner to practice some new worship songs together ... What a huge blessing to see our young adults put aside their pride to build a connection with the local youth ...  Our plate will be VERY full, so please pray for energy and stamina these first few days here in Belize

God bless everyone at home !

Belize Mission Team Has Arrived

Hello from San Ignacio, Belize,

We arrived smoother than faster than ever ... everything from the check-in in Charlotte to our passing through Customs in Belize was obviously "paved" for our arrival ... Pastor Caleb and Brother Hector met us at the airport. We had lunch at the "usual" stop ( an excellent filling sit-down lunch for 14 people was $48 US ... Yeah) and we are all checked-in at the Venus Hotel and enjoying the sights and sounds ... its funny coming to Belize to get a break FROM the heat !!!! 

Have more for you later/tomorrow.

All safe and ready for VBS with the kids first thing in the morning ... Already have a date to pick up 5 kids tomorrow whom we met walking around the "old" Arms Of Love Church ... Pray for more kids than we could possibly handle !!!!!!

Belize Trip Flight Information

Outbound Flight
US Airways Flight 1141  - July 9
Leave Charlotte @ 10AM.  Arrive in Belize City @ 11:22AM.


Return Flight
US Airways Flight 1142  - July 16
Leave Belize City @ 12:50PM.  Arrive in Charlotte @ 6:12 PM. 

Final Day of Conference

Final Day of the Conference, tomorrow early, but not too early, we fly home.

Our Brother Aaron writes the following:

Wow what an awesome final day to the Men’s Foursquare Leadership Conference here in Esteli, Nicaragua. Over one hundred men heard the messages from three team members today.

Juan spoke first on being the “Light” of Christ in this world. His testimony was quite powerful – you can tell that Juan is a man who has a deep desire to share God’s truth with other men.

I had the honor and privilege of speaking second. I spoke on “Harmony” in the home and in the church. A key to harmony in the home is affirming our spouses. I had the men at the conference spend a few minutes building one another up in Christ, as often we forget about how awesome each one of us is in the eyes of God.

Tom Simonson spoke last on “Victory” explaining how we as men need to put on the full armor of God, if we are going to have success in this life. Tom also gave every one of the men a one-year reading plan in Spanish, that also serves as a bookmark, to help them remember to read the Word every day.

The conference concluded with the gift of a book on how men can be leader in all areas of their lives. It will be sad to leave, but every one of the men on this trip poured their hearts out – every man gave their all for the sake of the Gospel. The Good News was proclaimed and men’s lives were forever changed. We look forward to hearing the mighty things God will do in the coming year in the lives of these Nicaraguan me, both in their families and in their churches!

Our Brother Tom writes the next report:

It was a joy to see many familiar faces as I spoke to the men of Nicaragua today. I was fortunate to be able to provide a brief recap after each session. This gave me a chance to work out the jitters before I shared the message at our final session! More importantly, it gave me special insight into the words the Lord gave each of our team members. The heartfelt words that each shared were so interwoven, only He could have been the author! Experiences were shared, tears were shed, and we were bonded together through the common language we share through our God our Father. I'm ready to come home, but can't wait until next year...

Our work, HIS work through us in Nicaragua is now done. So many more stories and blessings than we can write. Now pray for our travel mercies.

Thank you.

ddd

Lights Out!!!

Greetings from Nicaragua

Sorry this blog is late, the reasons will be revealed in a moment.

The time came to start our formal presentations. After an introduction of the team by Butch and of course prayer Matt kicked us off on the topic of Unity. His presentation went overwhelmingly well that many came to the front for continued prayer.

Soon we were a little behind and we were asked to limit Lon's presentation on Purity to finish at an exact time as dinner was waiting. Here is Lon's report:

What a night and what a difference twelve or fifteen minutes can make. The time allotted for my task had to be shortened because a meal was coming up right behind me. I decided to abandon my script altogether ad speak on the subject extemporaneously. The men were really engaged. Later, one of the Pastors, with tears in his eyes said to me “Thank you”, for that message God spoke to my heart, he meant that message just for me. God knows what he is doing. Lon

OK so now are in the midst of our presentations and the lights go out!!! Not just in our conference area but he whole town. Did that stop us? No!!! By the light of three very small flashlights, we continued. Not a man walked out, we could not see much except perhaps beating in expectation of what would come next. Here is Dean's report:

What an incredible experience! Under different circumstances, the changing agenda could have dampened the energy in the room. Not with this group of Godly men! even though at times I couldn't see them, and my talk followed a full meal that took us into the evening, the rousing response to Gods word was energizing. The room was dark, but the Holy Spirit illuminated the hearts of the participants! Dean.

Hmm, the Lord is surely playing laughing with us as tomorrow's first topic to be presented by Juan is..... you guessed it!!! "Light". It will be followed by Aaaron on "Harmony" then Tom on "Victory". Keep sending prayers...

And so we begin...

The day starts early with devotions. We are anxious to start the work the Lord sent us here to do and at the same time realizing that our work began the moment we said, "Lord, here I am, Send me" (Isaiah 6:8). In the morning we visit the site of the church we began constructing last year and pray with Pastor Douglas that the Lord will provide what they need to finish. After that we wash up and change clothes to head to Foursquare Church Number 1 where Pastor Butch (here called Pastor Bush" delivers a strong message.

Tomorrow our formal presentations to more than 200 men some who will travel for more than 150 miles to hear us. Matt will be the first up who will speak on Unity, followed by Lon on Purity and then Dean on Love. Please pray for these three men and the rest of the team that the Lord will grant us HIS words.

ddd

Nicaragua, we have arrived

While the majority of you were tucked away in the comforts and warmth of your homes seven men woke up very early. Some may have bid a quiet good bye and prayer to their families, others prayed with them for a moment and then drove the quiet dark streets to the airport to the first part of a journey called by God. Before six this morning these magnificent seven men they met for their flight to Nicaragua.

Magnificent Seven they are Aaron, Butch, Dean, Juan, Lon, Matt and Tom not because of who they are but because of who the know, who they love and who they follow. They follow Our Lord Jesus and his call to bring his message to the men of Nicaragua. Hundreds of books tucked away in their luggage but more important the words of our Lord tucked away in their hearts. The words that they will lay upon the hearts of Church Pastors and Leaders during the men's conference they have planned for months but the Lord planned since before time.

After an unscheduled "equipment check" stop in Orlando, Florida they arrived in Managua perhaps a bit tired by the journey but eager to start. By the grace of the Lord they are in Nicaragua, sustained by your donations and prayers.

To be continued...

Team Has Arrived

The Nicaragua Fall Missions Team has arrived in Nicaragua, later than scheduled but they arrived safely.