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Happy Birthday Momma

So I just want you all to know how much I love my Mom. Anita Seipel is one of the best mothers someone could have. I have screwed up so many times, put her through hell, and yet she never once turned her back on me. I have said some painful things to her because I was stubborn, pious, and just a jerk. Yet she was always there to love me and give me the best she had. I have lived a wonderful life. Any problems I have, I have created myself. Heck, she has saved my butt over and over again. I never can appreciate her enough.

No, this isn't a Nicaragua blog entry. But the Title of this Blog has always been Journey with Jesus. Well, I can promise you that this Journey wouldn't have been possible without the loving and wonderful Mother I have. I love you mom with all of my heart. I couldn't have been blessed with a better example to follow. You are amazing and I praise God every day for the gift you are in my life. I am sorry for any pain I have put you through. And I hope you know that I try to live my life in a way that I hope makes you proud of me. You deserve the best, and I can never give you that. I can just give you a big hug and tell you that I love you. Thank you, for being you.

Happy Birthday Anita Seipel. World's best mother!

Wedding Bliss

So I cried this weekend. Quite a bit actually, and I'm not afraid to admit it!

Coburn Murray and Melissa Buzbee got married. It was a great time. They build a bridge across the pool and got married in the center of the pool while we were around them. It was a wonderful day. The weather was amazing, the decor and reception was amazing, and most of all God was there. I have no doubt about that.

So it's been a busy first few days back. I have been driving around Coburn's family and friends. I took them to the volcano, market, and Los Brasiles. It's been fun so far.

I had a great morning worshipping our awesome God with the girls house and Luis. Luis is living with me the next month while Michael is gone. It's just nice to not be alone. So my buddy will be here all the time.

On a sad note, I ask that you pray for a couple of the girls. 2 of them didn't come back after break. One really wants to come back, but her step dad will not let her. So I pray that God shows her parents that she is better off in the house. The house isn't the same without her!

Well.... this week is going to be really busy. I get back into the swing of things. Please pray for all of my ministries that I work with. The two rescue homes and the School in Los Brasiles. Lift them up so they can have a blessed year. Thank you for your support and prayers. Love you all!

Almost time to go back to Nica!

So we are sitting here having a debate about being spoiled. I love the everyone, but we all know all of us Americans are spoiled. I just went to an all you can eat buffet tonight with ribs, catfish, and so much more country cooking. As we talk about being spoiled, i think back to my kids at my pre-school in Los Brasiles. We are going to start school back up from Christmas break a little earlier than the other Nicaragua schools. The main reason, because the kids aren't eating at home and need our lunch that we provide at school.

So I am being a glutton as the children that I love in nicaragua are probably very hungry. I honestly feel horrible right now....

I need to change that. I can't wait to get back to Nica and work with my kids. I need to focus less on me. I really do.

So as the new year starts, lets remember about being spoiled. Lets not indulge in more than we NEED. Lord, I ask that you help me and give me self control to not yearn for more than I need.

Nicaragua end of year review!

So I am home for the Holidays!

It's is wonderful to be here. I am also excited to go to Murray soon. I have a lot of work to do though. I have tax receipts to print off for my organization, I have a newsletter to make, and I have fund to raise for next year!

But for now I am enjoying golfing, tennis, and family time here in Savannah. But I find I am thinking about Nicaragua a lot.

It's the end of the year. So like all of the 2011 year end show's that summarize the best and worst of 2011, I decided I will follow suite!

So here is my top 10 best memories of Nica 2011 and My Least Favorite memories of 2011:

Top ten favorite Nica memories of 2011:

10. Worship service in Leon
9. Birthday Parties at Casa Havliah
8. Buying car
7. Buying shoes for Casa Robles and Havilah
6. Having my first mission group in nicaragua
5. Eidder's Quinceñera
4. Providing scholarships for the boys school
3. Buying Land in Los Brasiles
2. Passing out Rice and Beans in Los Brasiles
1. Going on nursing rounds with Elizabeth and Ruth Daughaday in the dump!


And you know every list also needs a "worst" list... So here are my top 10 worst things about Nicaragua so far!

Top 10 worst things:
10. Nicaraguan Cheese
9. Sunburns
8. Traffic in Nica
7. having my Camera/ipod stolen
6. Pre-paid phones
5. Cold showers
4. Police that pull you over for no reason!
3. Washing Clothes by hand.
2. Sweating!
1. rain washing away wall in Los Brasiles

Well... that's my list!

It's been a great 2011 so far..... I hope 2012 has a lot to offer too! Time to go play Tennis with Dad. So I'll catch you all soon. Merry Christmas all!!!

So I have had a packed last couple of days......
Yesterday I started off by going out to Los Brasiles. Mr. B called me and asked if I could host a group at the school. They wanted to hang out with children. So I said of course! It was also nice that it was the last day for the Pre-schoolers! I was going to by a pinata for the kids, but this group really came through. They brought 2 pinatas, tons of candy, a ton of coloring books, and 2 cakes.

So they gave the kids coloring books and crayons and they colored and had recess for a while! Then we destroyed the pinata. Well, actually the pre-schoolers were not strong enough. They hit it though. Some were more scared at the pinata. It was sooo cute. But finally we asked Anthony.... the nephew of Lisseth to hit it, he is in the afternoon classes but was there. He destroyed the sucker!

The kids dove on the ground to grab candy. A couple like Dyana are too shy and didn't get any. So I dove on the ground and got a handful and gave to them!

Then we had cake......

After the cake I gave my first tour of Los Brasiles. I think I did pretty good. I showed them the new barrio (community) and they handed out candy to all the children, some coloring books, and one of the ladies even bought like 40 ice cream bars and handed out to some kids. It was a blast. When we were walking back, one of the ladies mentioned "we were going to give out rice and beans to another community, but this one looks like they could use the help even more!"

They asked if they could hand out bags of food, I said of course! They left to go get food and I went back to the school.

What happened next was pretty cool for me. I paid the final deposit and signed papers with a lawyer to buy the land next to the school. Imagine ministries and Xalted Ministries are partnering up. More on this later, but I think Xalted Ministries is being assimilated by Imagine Ministries! I still need to raise all of my own money, it's just going to be easier to have an organization with my own accountant to take care of all of my money! So anyway.... We are now partners and I have new land in Los Brasiles thanks to a special Sponsor that will be named later and some faithful donors!


So the group came back to Los Brasiles..... They brought 75 gallon bags full of Rice and Beans!!!!!

It was amazing watching them hand out food to the community. The people were soooo grateful! I loved seeing their faces light up!

I am so in love with this community and the people there! I have been to a handful of communities around Managua.I have NEVER seen people as nice as the ones in Los Brasiles. They are truly amazing. I see myself there for a long time!

So after all of that.... I had to pick up the girls and take them to the Buzbees for the Christmas party. We had a party with the two houses. It was a blast. It started off with swimming. Brinson and I jumped in the pool with jeans and all of our clothes on. It was fun. They opened presents, we had an amazing Lasagna dinner, and the I took them home. I am REALLY going to miss those kids while I am home for Christmas break.

Then today....

Today was the 15th birthday party for Lisseth's daughter. She is an amazing young girl. Super nice and very caring. Lisseth worked really hard to make the day perfect. And it was. First, I had no idea how big a 15th birthday is down here for girls. I guess it's the day a girl becomes a women in nicaragua. It looked like a pink wedding! There were a lot of matching little flower girls, matching brides maids, and the families were dressed to impressed. They had a 5 layer cake!

It was amazing. I loved it. I helped a lot since luis and Coburn couldn't make it. So I even felt like a proud papa.



It was a great day. I had a blast. I love working here! Thank you Lord for using me. Now I get to go back home and convince people to let you use them too!

Praise Jesus!

Time for a little change...

I just moved....

Nothing big. But I moved a couple blocks down the road into a house with another Missionary friend of mine. His name is Michael, and he's pretty cool. He does some amazing things with his Ministry "Project Isaiah". We have fun debating about stuff and he is definitely passionate. (Don't talk to him about Tebow) But I respect the guy a lot.

I moved in for many reasons. First and foremost, Michael's roommate and my good friend left and Michael was stuck paying rent. So he needed another roommate. It's the same cost of what I pay at the boys home, so of course I would help him out. Also, I am looking forward to having him around to be an accountability partner. We will keep each other in check and challenge each other spiritually. I can have deep conversations again in English, when all i said at the boys home was in Spanish. And last but not least, it will be nice to have privacy when I want it. To have friends come over. I am 30 yrs old and it is nice to have a place to myself again.

I will miss being in the boys home. I already do. There is an energy there that I won't have anymore here. It's fun to walk out of your room and hug a ton of precious kids. But my relationship with them won't change. I still plan on going over there almost every day and seeing them. I will stop by for Angelica's cooking :) It will almost be the same, but I will be sleeping somewhere else. That's all.

I also think this next year is going to be very big for me. I am working more and more with Imagine Ministries and the school in Los Brasiles. It's wonderful. I will soon have groups here from Coburn's church in February. I can't wait. We will also be hosting people here over the next year. Since this house is so big, we have 10 extra beds right now to hole people. It's a little bit like a missionary complex.

Other news.... Today is the promotion day for Luisa and Angel. They go from Kindergarten to 1st grade I believe. They have their little caps and gowns. It will be cute. I am looking forward to it. I have had a lot of parties and graduations this last week. and I have more next week. It's crazy in December.

I am also busy trying to get things ready to leave. I leave on the 19th for Savannah to see my parents. I'm looking forward to hanging with them and playing really bad Golf. I've played like 3 times in the last 2+ years.

Then I go to Murray at the end of December and hang out for 3 weeks. I get to cheer on Big Country and the Arnett girls in Basketball and get fattened up by Diana and her cooking. I can't wait.

A big part of all of this is also fund raising. I am about to send out letters and tax receipts. But now is the time to collect all of the money for next year. So I need to ask people to pledge again. I hope God can bless me with as much as I had this year, if not more! Now that I have a year under my belt, I have so many projects to finish. I have playgrounds to build, Ranchos to build, children to sponsor, and so much more. I am soooo excited about what's going on down here. I couldn't do it without any of you though! If you are interested in donating to my area's of ministry.....The Boys Home, The Girls Home, or to the school I run in Los Brasiles.... You can email me at tom@fccmurray.com to get more info or you can donate with a credit card through paypal on my website at www.xalted.org.

I can't wait to see what God is up to. I hope you can enjoy this trip with me!

God Bless, and see you soon!

Christmas is coming....

And the geese and Tom are going to be getting fat. I have lost about 35 lbs since coming to Nica. But I have a feeling being at home for Christmas and then living with the Arnetts and eating Diana's and Jean Carol Ridley's food is going to put it all right back on!

Well it's been a crazy last couple of weeks. I have been putting a lot of stuff on Facebook including pictures. The kids are graduation and moving to the next grade. I have gone to 2 different dance programs in the last week. Took the girls swimming, the boys to the volcano, and have been keeping busy in Los Brasiles. I am excited about the end of this year and how much I've done. But it really feels like it's just starting. It really is. We have to start building on the land I bought. That's going to be crazy. I need to raise funds for next year when I'm home in January.

I will be leading maybe 9 groups this year. I am going to be in charge of Coburns groups from his church, and I hope to have 1 maybe 2 of my own.

That is going to be very busy! But I am excited. I also can't wait for Luis to get back from the US. He has had a blast there. But I miss my little buddy. I can't wait to see how his English has improved!

So FYI..... I am not buying Christmas presents for anyone this year. All the money is going to Children in Nicaragua. For Instance I am going to buy a Christmas tree for the girls house this week. If anyone wants to join me on this endeavor, let me know and I can tell you EXACTLY what your Christmas Money is going for!

Anyway, time for dinner with the boys. Love you all. God Bless!

I am a bad person!!!

Cause it's been forever since I blogged!

I've been busy, but at the same time I've been doing a lot of the "same stuff different day" stuff.

So there hasnt been much to talk about. I've been sick. I have my typical cough that I normally get for a couple of months every year. Gotta love it. It has to be some kind of allergy. Oh well!

I had a big first for me. I raised the money thanks to some of you wonderful people and I bought the land next to the preschool. I am officially a Nicaraguan land owner! It ended up costing $5,500. Unfortunately that included a little house on it that we are going to tear down. It woulda been a lot cheaper if it was just land! Now Coburn's job is to raise the money to build the walls around it and start building the land up. It is going to be pretty amazing! I think it is going to be a great place to host community things in the future!

The boys and girls are great. 7 of the 8 kids in Robles made the Honor Roll. That's the most they ever had at the same time! Praise God for that!

The girls are doing well. I worry about the older girls personally. Please prey for them. I see them becoming more and more focused on the worldy things and less on God. That causes a couple of problems. 1) its bad for them and their spiritual growth. but 2) I can see some of the younger girls looking up to them and trying to follow in their footsteps. Other than the house mom Kenia, they don't have many options as female role models that are around all the time.

As for the boys.... I have built some pretty amazing relationships. I have been focusing on Marcos (the oldest) a lot. He is the one struggling the most in school. He says he is going to be a professional soccer player. I wish he could follow that dream, but with his life, he doesnt really have the opportunities to chase that dream.

We have been hanging out a little bit here and there. I try to take him out alone when I can. He is 4 years older than the next boy. So he is kind of growing out of that "kid" age and becoming a teen. I think I am the only person in the house that can relate to him right now. He really is a great boy!

I will be moving out of the boys home soon though. Ever since Coburn left, his old roommate and my good friend Michael Folsom is now living by himself in a house with like 6 bedrooms and 4 baths. Not only is he lonely, but it is not very safe to live by yourself down here. It's always good to have someone to hang with. So I will be moving in with him in Dec.

I will still be just as active with the boys. Going over in the afternoon a lot and hanging out with them. Going on activities with them. All of that wonderful stuff. The only difference is I will be sleeping and waking up in a different place. My new house is really close to the boys home too. So it won't be that much of a difference.

I have realized God's will for me down her. I can now say I know it's a relational ministry. I am going to focus on the two houses and the relationships i have there and the big brother/father figure they see me as. I hope I am a good example of what a man should be like. Not like a lot of their fathers who aren't around anymore.

And second, I am focusing on Los Brasiles and the preschool. I have been spending most of my time with the morning preschool children. I love hanging out with them. These are 3-5 yr olds that are just so precious.

I see Los Brasiles as my focus in Nicaragua for a while. Now with Coburn gone, I am going to be taking charge of his mission trips that come down, and a lot of other stuff. I am going to be pretty busy here soon. His first group comes in February!

I am finishing up my "Holiday" newsletter. I figured I'd do one at the end of Nov for Thanksgiving AND Christmas.

For those of you that know me really well, you would know I hate this time of year and the holiday season. It really all revolves around Christmas. And mostly around the music. I can't stand Christmas music for the most part. And here's why:

They will play the same songs EVERY hour! Actually sometimes more. You will hear "White Christmas" 3 times in one hour. But oh wait... it's ok because one was Bing Crosby, one was Amy Grant, and one was Harry Connick Jr! I'm sorry for your Christmas lovers, but I don't care who sings the song, it's still the same freakin song!!!!!

So the music annoys me. It always has back when I was little and the music would start in the beginning of Dec. But wait..... I have seen it start before Thanksgiving through my teen years, and now it starts in Oct!!!!!

Seriously!!!! enough already. But like I said. I love Nicaragua Holiday season so far. Maybe it's because it always feels like Nica is 20 yrs behind the state, but I haven't heard any Christmas music yet!

I won't go on and on, but music is just one reason. I hate how everyone wakes up and thinks "PRESENTS!!!" instead of thinking "Praise God for the gift of Jesus on this day". Christmas isn't about trees, presents, music, lights, and Santa. It's about Jesus Christ. So i struggle on a holiday where we take the focus off of God and bring it to our worldy possessions.

Don't get me wrong. I love the beauty of the trees and lights and such. But we need to remember CHRISTmas is about CHRIST!

Ok.... more about me.

I'm struggling with my faith. I am tempted everywhere I look. Just like all Christians are. But recently I have been giving more attention to possible temptations. Does that make sense? I'll see something at the store and I will want it and crave it, and it is hard for me to have the self control to not buy it. Or when a kid is driving me crazy, it is getting harder to have more patience. Or when I dont want to get up in the morning and do my quiet time, It's harder and harder to get up. Don't get me wrong..... I am keeping the faith and fighting the good fight. It's just harder sometimes than others. I think that once I live with Michael, that will help. Because we will both be able to keep each other accountable. We always have a great time together discussing great Godly things. We've had some great talks. I'm looking forward to it.

Well.... these last couple of days I've been driving kids from the school in the dump to a free health clinic. It's a wonderful opportunity for these children. I had 30 people in my 15 passenger Microbus today!!!! Crazy stuff! That's Nicaragua for you.

Well, right now I am reading "Don't waste your life" by John Piper. Good book! I am off to go read some more. Time to draw closer to God, spend some time in prayer, and praise God!

Love you all and talk to you soon..... no, really!!! :)

Long time no bloggy

I know it's been a while.... I have a lot to share. I'll make a huge blog this weekend to cover the last few weeks. Love you all. God bless!

Rain Rain GO AWAY!!!

So today I am not very busy. The kids are not in school because it's raining. Lol. I wish we got out of school when I was younger because of rain!

I got a call this morning from one of my workers at the school in Los Brasiles. The rain has torn down a wall of the building and is starting to tear down the actual school itself. We could use some prayers. Please pray for the teachers, the children, and myself. It's going to be a long process of repairing. Here are some pictures! :/ This is not good. Will keep you informed. But Please pray....

Josh is here!

So Josh and I have been busy. That explains the lack of blogs. We have seen a movie, gone to church, played with pre-schoolers, visited the dump, checked on an old friend, at cow tongue, had communion, climbed a volcano, surfed down a volcano!!!, and went swimming. It's been busy so far. Tomorrow we are going down south to surf and hit the beach. We are having a blast and I can't wait for him to go home and tell everyone about it. Well I need to let him use the computer. Talk to you all and SEE you all soon!

Love,

Tom

Same age, but very different....

No, I'm not talking about me. :)

I'm talking about the children here. I just took my 8 kids to Pizza Hut for a treat since Judy and Angelica were celebrating their Anniversary.

It is amazing how you can see the difference in their upbringing when you go places. They aren't used to nice things like going to restaurants. So I have 8 year olds trying to stand on tables.

My role here in the house is definitely the affection giver. The two house parents are not the affectionate type. I am always hugging, holding, tickling, and telling these kids how much I love them. But that is a problem sometimes. Because when I get them alone without the house parents, they feel like they can do whatever they want because the "Disciplinarians" are not there. Don't get me wrong. I feel that the parents love the kids. It's just that a) they aren't their real children, and b) the culture down here is a little different.

So..... I am the good guy that they come to for love. So it's very hard to admonish them. So when one turned off the tv tonight in Pizza Hut by standing on the booth, When one of the boys opened the door to the girls bathroom while someone was in there, and when one was shooting spitballs across the table, they didnt understand why the loving teddy bear Tom was angry. I know some of you are probably laughing at that and thinking..... that sounds like the perfect kids for me! They are perfect in their own ways. As I am typing this we are watching Star Wars III. And Kenner just ran past me out the front door. I yelled at him and said "where do you think you are going". He said he was going outside to pee. LOL!!!! This is what I am dealing with. I said... um, no.... go use the bathroom! That's what they are used to in their homes though. So I can't blame them completely. It's a different culture.

As I am writing this I have a lot of things on my mind. I am really excited about Saturday. Josh Garland is coming down here to visit. I have such a week planned for him! Since it's only the two of us, that means we are doing to do some amazing things. I was thinking Volcano Surf, Relax in some hot springs, Camp out, and much more. We will do all of our Ministry work in the morning like visit the Dump, but we need to get in some fun too. The best buddies are back together, and we are gonna have a blast!

I am also thinking about coming home to Murray in a couple of weeks. I am PUMPED. I will be "Tom Arnett" for the week. Being adopted by the Arnetts for the week is such a blessing. It will be great to be home, especially out in the country and enjoy some nature.

I am sure my week will fill up FAST!!! I have a handful of important lunch meetings with some people already. Not to sound arrogant, but if you want to hang out, please let me know asap so I can make sure I don't forget someone!

I will be at church for 2 weeks. It will be different being there for the first time as a "member". I'll enjoy sitting in both services and worshipping instead of "worryshipping". Cause as a church staff member, Sundays have a lot of responsibilities and stress along with the wonderful worship. It will be nice to not have to worry about different things. I am looking forward to seeing a lot of people. And I am looking forward to seeing what's different. I am sure the Holy Spirit is working. I know they found 3 people to cover my previous responsibilities. I am sure they will do a fine job as long as they are focused on the Lord and His will for the church. That is the hardest part of ministry. It has been for over 10 years I've been serving. I still struggle even here in Nica to decipher what is His will versus mine. And I know from experience.... no one wants mine! (Well, maybe except me sometimes! :)

So it will be a fun 10 days in Murray. I am sure I will hunt, play Basketball. Hold my Goddaughter, go to a Skillet concert, watch some football, eat fattening food, and laugh a TON!

Well..... I think this about wraps it up for me. I have one thought for you. How is your faith??? Is your faith in Jesus unquestionable? When you lay down on your bed do you wonder if it will hold you. Or when you sit in that pew on Sunday morning, do you question if it will break? Of course you don't. You have faith in those things that they will hold you and never let you down. In the same way, your faith in Jesus should be the same. Jesus should be that secure spot in your life that you never question. Just like that chair.....

May The Lord Bless You And Keep You!

In Him,

Tom Seipel

Groundhog's Day

I love the movie Groundhog's Day. Every morning Bill Murray wakes up to the same song, does the same stuff. He lives the same day over and over!

Well, sometimes my life looks like that! :) It's not a bad thing. But that's why I haven't been updating my blog as often as I said I would. It's because I don't have anything exciting to say.

Well this is exciting news.... I bought a little motorcycle. Driving a 15 passenger bus around is expensive with gas and it is also a lot of wear and tear on the bus with these horrible roads. So I bought a motorcycle that is an on/off road bike. It will be cheaper in the long run. I am excited about riding it.

I have hit a spiritual bump recently. Nothing to worry about, but as you all know.... I like being transparent with all of my friends. But when I got down here I was on fire for the Lord. I was preparing my heart for Nica. The first couple of months were the best spiritual months of my life. This last month has been rough though. Some stuff is starting to get on my nerves. I almost got out of my car to kill a guy who was walking through the cars at a red light and punched my car. I opened the door and he started running and i thought... "what am I doing? That's not what Jesus would do!"

I have been busy and have put God on the back burner sometimes. I missed a couple quiet times and I knew I need to get my butt in gear. God wants all of me, not most of me.

So I am looking forward to being home in Murray in a couple of weeks and recharging my batteries. It will be nice to sit out at the Arnett's house and meditate and pray in the country. It will be great to just be home.

But in the meantime.... Please keep me in your prayers. Satan wants nothing more than to see me get complacent and to stop worshiping our God. But that will never happen. The battle belongs to the Lord. I am just a soldier in Him mighty army!

Keep trusting, keep living..... for Jesus

Fresa y Arándano

That means Strawberry and Blueberry....

Yesterday I bought some strawberries and blueberries at the closest thing to a Sam's club we have here in Nica.

It is amazing. Can you believe that most of the kids in BOTH houses have NEVER had a strawberry of Blueberry?!?!?!

So I went to the girls house and let them try some and they were in love. Yes, they have had strawberry flavored stuff. But these fruits are VERY expensive. I paid about $15 for a thing of strawberries here. But it was worth it to see the kids faces after they had them. It was fun introducing them to a little food I eat back home.

The boys weren't as impressed. They loved the flavor. But they didn't understand why having them was such a big deal. The girls realized that's a treat that they won't get very often. Sad how eating a strawberry is a blessing that they might not have for another 15 years.

That's how simple but at the same time different life is here. Just thought I would share that with you.

God Bless all...

Every Day.... In Nica....

Every day I wake up in a sweaty bed.

Every day I take a cold shower (not by choice)

Every day I eat Gallo Pinto (Rice and beans)

Every day I see a salamander in my bedroom.

Every day I give change to the boy at the street corner who wants to wash my windows at the red light.

Every day I pray that God will use me.

Every day I see that happen.

Every day the children make me laugh.

Every day I don't understand a lot of what people say to me.

Every day I can tell what people mean through their love and actions.

Every day I see a volcano.

Every day I see flowers.

Every day I see coconuts.

Every day I turn on the fan to keep me cool.

Every day I constantly watch my back because I am a foreigner.

Every day I speak Spanish.

Every day I sin.

Every day I ask for forgiveness.

Every day I am forgiven.

Every day when it rains I watch water leak in our house.

Every day I kill a cockroach.

Every day I am soaking wet with sweat.

Every day I see hungry people begging for food.

Every day I see children begging to be loved.

Every day I see kids playing soccer in the streets.

Every day I see people drive through red lights.

Every day I am happy.

Every day I wonder what I am going to do the next day.

Every day I wonder if I am going to be alone forever.

Every day I thank God for the people I do have in my life.

Every day I drink filtered bottle water.

Every day it is hot.

Every day I see dogs walking in the street.

Every day I see people selling grills made out of tire rims.

Every day I get mad at how taxi's will just slam on their brakes and stop for people in front of you.

Every day I realize how lucky I am for even having a car.

Every day I see a cow, horse, chicken, dog, bull, or donkey walking down the middle of the road.

Every day I miss my friends and family.

Every day I wear clean clothes while a lot of people are covered in dirt.

Every day I wear flip-flops

Every day I talk on the phone.

Every day I get on my computer.

Every day I read.

Every day I sing.

Every day I pray.

Every day I eat.

Every day I sleep.

But Every day I look at the poor, lost, and needy people of Nicaragua, and wish that I could give them what I get..... Every day.

I am blessed to be able to serve, to love, and to live.

I will worship Jesus with all my heart.

Every day....

It´s the little things

Ok.... first off, Im on a spanish keyboard right now and I cant find the apostrophe button. So deal with my bad English!

But I was walking the girls to school today and there is a tree (I believe it´s a red Azalea bush) that over hangs the sidewalk. I is almost low enough to hit my head on, but the girls cant reach it. Every day we walk under it and they always want a red flower to put in their hair on the way to school. It is the perfect climate here for this bush, because it flowers year long. So there are always enough flowers to take a couple. But it is so cute. They beg me to grab a flower off they bush and of course I give in to the precious smiles. After they put it in their hair, they are beaming from ear to ear.

Its the little things down here that are so special. I am sitting in the preschool at Los Brasiles and I am waiting on the kids to show up. I know that one little girl will drop everything when she sees me and give me a huge hug. Her name is Haydi. I think she has some mental problems. She is always staring off into the sky. It is sad, but Im pretty sure she isnt all there. But one thing she loves is being loved. So when she walks in, most kids would take off their backpack, say hi to the teachers, and sit down. But she will drop her bag the second she sees me, runs over to me and hugs my leg, and has to be peeled off of me. That makes my day. This little girl that lives in a 12x12 shack around the corner from the school, walks around barefoot on the muddy floor of her house, and is always dirty has the most amazing little smile in the world. She can break the hearts of the most hardened.

I have been told a lot that ¨you can hug little children in America, you dont need to be in Nica¨. I love my little kids in Murray. But the difference is that in Murray I might be one of many special people in my kids lives. But here in Nicaragua there is a good chance I am the only person, ESPECIALLY only male that loves them and gives them hugs.

One of the kids has a 14 year old sister. She was so excited her 14 year old sister was having a baby last week. I couldnt believe it. Thats whats sad here. It is normal for most girls to have children between the ages of 16-18 here. Its because when a guys shows them attention and love, its normally the first time they had attention from a guy so they fall for them. I hope to change that with these little kids. I hope to set the bar high for what a good guy is. I hope they look at me and compare guys to me and realize that these guys that show them attention arent worth it.

I am not the perfect guy by all means. I wouldnt be single if that was the case. But I would like to think I can set a good example to children boy boys and girls of the man they want to become and the man they would like to marry. There are a lot of scum men in Nicaragua. I met a guy a couple days ago that has 8 children all with different women. Thats not uncommon here.

I started off by talking about the simple things.... and I am preaching now about something totally different. I guess the Holy Spirit had a word for me to share.

But I love life here. I am working on many things. I want to be here forever. I know thats a big statement, but I do. I am always blown away at the happiness i get to experience with kids here. There is no whinning about stuff. They dont need an xbox. They need you to hold their hand. That is what makes their day special. And that is what makes my day special. Its the little things.

Lord,
Please let these children see Jesus through my actions. Let me be a mirror that reflects the Holy Spirit. I pray that you lift them up and let them know that they matter and are a perfect masterpiece. Let that mirror be a reflecting glass in a lighthouse that shows them there is a better way and a safe way to live. That safe way is with you. That your kingdom is here right now. Let me help show them that kingdom here on earth. Eternal life starts now. Not when we die. Lord.... thank you for the gift of love and laughter. Two gifts I could not live without. I love you Lord. Thank you.
Amen!

It's been a while.....

So I know it has been a while since I blogged. The main reason is I haven't had much to talk about. I got back to Managua after finishing my spanish school and I have taken the last week to chill and relax a bit. We had a couple birthday parties for kids and those pictures will be on Facebook soon. I just finished my newsletter and that will be going out next week.

Today I went surfing with Chachi, Brinson, and Michael. It was fun. My whole body hurts. I am not used to paddling on a surfboard that's for sure! We had a fun time. I enjoy hanging with the guys every once in a while.

I have been working in Los Brasiles a few times each week. The pre-schoolers and totally warming up to me. The are so cute!

I see a lot of stuff happening out there. God is good.

I am really excited about October. I bought a plane ticket and will be home in Murray Oct. 14th for about 10 days! I have a lot of people to see, equipment to buy, clothes to bring back. I am excited about coming home. Plus, I get to go to a Skillet concert!!!! SOOOO pumped for that!

Well I am about to take a nap. Been a sore day. I know, it's a tough life sometimes. One day you are playing with poverty stricken children, the next you are surfing. God is good! All the time!

Lots of stuff happening here!

So new season is coming. I am finishing up spanish school in a couple of weeks then I will have a lot on my plate.

My good friend Coburn just got engaged to one of the Buzbee's daughters. They will be leaving to live in the states for a while. He has a school that he runs and a feeding program in Los Brasilles. He asked me to oversee it after he leaves. So Xalted Ministries is now partnering with Imagine Ministries to help the community of Los Brasilles. I will be out there in the community a few days a week helping out at the school and also becoming a new face in the community. I will be paying the teachers and workers, overseeing the needs, and reporting back to Coburn about everything. This is a wonderful opportunity. I saw a huge need in Los Brasilles since the first day I was there. I am really excited about this and I know God has a lot of things in store for me and for the community.

I have spent the last couple of days hanging out with Coburn and my friend Michael. Coburn is leaving, so that will be tough. He has really helped me a lot in getting my feet on the ground here in Nicaragua. I have been blessed by his friendship and I wish him and Melissa the best of luck in the future together!

So I head back to Leon tomorrow morning for 2 more weeks. I am not really looking forward to going back. I have learned a ton in 2 weeks. But i feel i need to practice using it now. But we will move on to even more stuff these next two weeks. I feel like I will forget half the stuff I learned if i don't practice it. I am only going to take a month. I realized a month is long enough. I might take another couple of weeks next year to get to the next level. After all.... my brain can only learn so much so fast!

Well.... time to have my last dinner with Coburn for a while. Please keep me in your prayers. I am going to be very busy once I get back from school. Afterall, God wouldn't be using me to sit around and be bored! :)

Love ya all. God Bless!

Happy Birthday Weekend!!!

Well I went home last week from school a day early so I wouldnt miss Angel's birthday party. It was a good time. The girls can over to the boy's house and whacked a "Fred Flinstone" pinata. It was a good time.

Friday night my friend Coburn proposed to his girlfriend Melissa and she said yes. So I was happy for them. Well saturday about 15 of us went down to San Juan del Sur and rented a beach house for the weekend for Coburns Birthday that was on Sunday. We had a blast. You get a group of missionaries together and they go crazy! :)

But I had fun trying to surf and hanging. Was a good break from a busy summer.

Now I'm back in Leon studying Spanish. I am counting down the days till I am back in Murray! 43!!!! But I am even more excited to see my Best Buddy Josh here in Nicaragua before then.

I Hope you are all doing well. Keep the prayers coming. These people need your support!