Here I am at Fort Lauderdale airport waiting for a flight that has been delayed at least 4 hours.
That’s OK. God is in control. The older I get the easier it is to say that! I booked a midnight flight, got to the airport 3 hours ahead of time to be prepared, to check in my luggage, get a good seat and make sure everything is in order for the flight. Don’t want to miss the flight, just paid $400 for the ticket! Today was my last day in USA. My focus has been to get ready for this trip back to Nicaragua. Last minute phone calls, last minute errands, oh and packing my suitcase, which can now only be 40lbs. Not enough, I had to get online quickly and book an extra suitcase, so I could bring 80 lbs! Anyway, my focus today has been The Trip. Getting ready, doing what I needed to do in order for it to go smoothly and successfully, for 2 reasons, 1) I want to get back to Nicaragua and 2) I don’t want to lose my $400 investment in the ticket.
So here I am at the airport waiting, I am not in control, no matter how much I plan, things change.
As I reflect on this, the question that comes to mind is how much do we focus on our spiritual journey? That trip has also been paid for. More than $400!! The Life of Jesus was the price. We belong to Him now. Our lives should reflect His Glory and bring honor to His name. Our main focus needs to be on doing what we need to do in order to stay on the path that God has prepared for us. God’s trip!
Backing up a little, the Pastor of my church in Nicaragua has been teaching recently about being led by The Holy Spirit. I remember one particular Sunday he acted out an example of life being led by The Spirit. He put his arm around the shoulders of one of the men in the congregation and walked him around the church saying, “Oh, don’t go that way, it’s dangerous there, go over here, there’s a blessing for you here.”, and “Wait, come here first, there’s someone who needs you to pray for them….” And so on. I thought that looks fantastic, I want that! What do I have to do in order to achieve that kind of guidance? Well, our Pastor didn’t leave us there hanging, he continued the lessons on how to lead a Spirit filled life.
In Psalm 27 David asked the LORD for “one thing” it was an all encompassing “one thing”, and so was mine… as we entered our 40 days of fasting and praying together as a church body my “one thing” was to draw closer to God and have a deeper understanding of who The Holy Spirit is in my life. As I fasted that was my prayer, and as The Holy Spirit began to reveal Himself to me, with specific words, and specific directions about what to do in a given situation, just like the example our Pastor had given us, and I wanted more. I wanted to be even closer, so I stepped up my fasting and prayer time. I wanted to crucify my flesh and live by The Spirit. As I heard more and more from The Holy Spirit and as I followed His directions, I was blessed beyond my imaginings. I started to list all of the blessings, but there was no way I could keep up with God and all that he had for me. Each blessing could be at least a 20 minute story, so I can’t go into all the details, but they were extravagant and rich, much more than I could ever ask or imagine.
Living a life led by The Spirit is amazing, I am learning to see God’s hand at work in everything, even this four hour delay at the airport, is God saying: “Hey, I’ll give you free internet, get to work on all those emails you are behind on, then when you get back to the house, the one I provided for you, you can spend time with me. I’ve got more to show you, more to tell you.
I am at peace here in the presence of The LORD.
Thanks to Spirit Air for the flight and the offer of worldly rewards, non transferrable, I won’t settle for that, I’d rather fly with the one and only Holy Spirit and receive the rewards that are valid for an eternity, no restrictions, no blackout dates!
God wants to lavish His blessings on us, much more than we could ever ask or imagine. So much so, that, as a Prophet I recently met said, ‘The fat will be falling off you onto those around you and you cannot help but be a blessing to others!”
That’s where I want to be. Thank you LORD!
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Saturday, June 4, 2011
Covenant Church Managua celebrates Children's Day!
I am grateful to have been planted in Covenant Church Managua for this season of life! I love all the community outreaches and activities that we do together as a church family.
Many thanks to all who worked so hard to make Nicaragua's Children's Day very special. We celebrated it in Managua on Saturday and up in Diriamba with our sister church on Sunday.
The smiles from the little ones say it all. :)
I hope you are able to open the link and see the photos:
Share this album with anyone by sending them this public link:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1956152258101.2113988.1071554244&l=9a2393357b
Many thanks to all who worked so hard to make Nicaragua's Children's Day very special. We celebrated it in Managua on Saturday and up in Diriamba with our sister church on Sunday.
The smiles from the little ones say it all. :)
I hope you are able to open the link and see the photos:
Share this album with anyone by sending them this public link:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1956152258101.2113988.1071554244&l=9a2393357b
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
pictures, at last!
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| The miracle of a new life never ceases to amaze me. LORD you are good! |
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| Baby Selah Grace, 1 day old. Born to a scared young girl of 13 years old who had been raped by a 70 year old. |
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| By grace, placed in a Christian home to be loved and cherished as she deserves. |
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| Your life is in God's hands little one. |
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| I just LOVE this photo of her, at just a day old! Beautiful! |
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| Go girls! |
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| 7 year old Luviana has one false eye and is almost blind in the other, but nothing stops her from climbing and exploring. She is one brave little angel! |
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| Five of the younger children having dinner together :) |
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| 13 year old Ruby weighs about 19 lbs and is not yet able to walk. She loves to sing and listen to music. She sure knows how to enjoy Praise and Worship with us! |
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| Hang in there Luviana!! |
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| Luvniana and Somari having fun! |
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Holy Spirit
RAIN, Rain, rain!!
After months of no rain in our dry season here in Nicaragua, we celebrated the first heavy rainfall this Rainy Season!! (Yes, it did rain a little a few days ago, but ended all too soon.) (Oh yes, and the outrageously curious hail storm a couple of weeks ago!! hmmm, explain that one with temps up to 103 degrees?!)
Well, last night we had a great, heavy downpour. Hallelujah!!! I was up at the orphanage in El Crucero, and the children were so excited! There has not been a supply of clean running water at the home for about two months now. We have had to fill up buckets and barrels from the end of the street, or drive down to get it in town by the barrels. After going to flush a toilet for so many weeks with nothing happening or turning on the taps for a shower with no results it was such an extravagance for the children to go outside last night and enjoy their first shower in ages! (They have been bathed in the mean time!) It warmed my heart to see their excitement as they went out with their shampoo - they were all smiles. I wish I had been able to capture it with my camera; it was a truly precious sight!
On the subject of rain, and my prayers for The Holy Spirit to reign/ rain down on us, I woke up this morning with a longing to see The Holy Spirit. I have an image in my mind about how God The Father looks, and of how God The Son, Jesus, looks, but The Holy Spirit, hmm, I wasn't getting a picture at all. I confess to actually doing a Google search for descriptions of The Holy Spirit. There were several responses posted, but there was one that caught my attention. Below is an excerpt from it, and a photo I'd like to share with you that gave me a mental image of The Holy Spirit. Mighty and Powerful, flowing freely, cleansing, refreshing, and providing life. As we move into our Rainy Season, I pray for an outpouring of The Holy Spirit, a harvest of Souls for God's Kingdom, a revival in the church for God's people. I will be reminded of this with every drop of rain that falls.
"God described the restoration of His people using the language of rain to illustrate the work of the Spirit: “For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants” (Isa. 44:3, NIV; cf. Eze. 39:29; Isa. 32:15; 44:3). In Joel, after announcing the coming of the early and latter rains, God added, “I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions" (Joel 2:28, 29, NIV). "
Praise be to God! May your will be done, not mine. Amen!
Monday, April 11, 2011
technical difficulties...
Well my friends, I have tried to sit down and write an update for so long now, without success thus far. It has been one thing after another.
We have had several power outages again recently and lots of problems with internet access.
There was a really bad accident at the bottom of my road last night. A semi truck was flying down the hill without brakes and ended up crashing into a shopping strip mall. As I drove by shortly after the accident, the mess was indescribable, mangled cars and lamposts/powerposts knocked down, sidewalk all cut up, a dreadful mess! We learned this morning that 6 people died. News reported that the driver of the truck had just called home to tell his family the brakes were not working and he is quoted to have said, "I am going to die tonight, I have no brakes on this truck!" SO sad. We have been praying for his family and the others who lost their lives in this tragic accident. One of the 3rd grade students told me that God would find a way to make something good come out of it. Yes LORD, we pray for your goodness, grace and mercy to shine through. May it be a reminder to us not to take any chances in our vehicles. If something needs fixing, fix it! It is not only your life at stake but the others around us at the time. Don't gamble with life.
Now my trusted friend, my laptop, is failing me. It keeps shutting itself off mid word and not saving anything in memory!! Yikes!!!!!!!!!! I have re written some emails 3 times before finally getting a shortened, snappy version of my intended message sent out. Will send this out asap just in case!
My heart has been to share news and photos of what has been going on around here these past couple of hot and dusty months. Alas, all the pics are (temporarily I hope) lost in the darkness of my dead laptop, which I shall call Lazarus for now. I do believe it will come back to life long enough for me to get all my pics back!
Last Saturday, I went up to the orphanage in El Crucero again to cook our famous spaghetti dinner for 35 people. It went well, even with the challenges of no running water. Makes doing dishes afterwards a little challenging, not to mention cleaning all those spaghetti hands and faces afterwards!
The weekend before, I went straight after work at 2:30 pm and spent the weekend up there so that the house mum could take a weekend off to go on a ladies retreat. Thank you LORD for faithful friends who came up with me to share the workload. Many hands make light work, and more fun!!!! One of the young girls, Joselyn, 14 years old, was released from hospital that day after having a c-section. She had been raped by a 70 year old and got pregnant. She did not want anything to do with the baby: Selah Grace,a healthy little girl at 5 lbs 18"long. Selah was taken immediately by a Christian family from USA who will care for her here in Nicaragua. Joselyn slept with me the 1st few nights incase she needed anything. She did remarkably well, obviously bathed in prayers. Thank you to all you faithful prayer warriors who cover us all in times like these. I truly believe it makes a difference.
Our next prayer is that the water problem is sorted out up there soon! It is hard looking after 16 children without running water. And 4 of us came back with a nasty 24 hour stomach bug. Thank goodness we all made a speedy recovery and that the children were OK.
13 year old Ruby had another seizure last week. She spent the night in hospital and was put on medicine for epilepsy. Praying for recovery for little Ruby too. I want to include pics of her, (I hope I can add them later.) She is 13 years old and weighs about 16 lbs. She cannot walk and her legs are so thin. She doesn't seem to want to eat much either, is really only fond of her gallo pinto, (beans and rice) so it is a challenge to get her to eat! Ofelia was the same when she first came to Managua too though. Almost 4 years old with the appearance of a 4 month old baby. She had been discarded as handicapped and the authorities said she would never walk, and doubted if she would even survive. Well, you should see her now! She runs around and climbs up on everything. I told Ruby she would be right there with her soon!
LORD God you are so awsome. I thank you that you allow us to be even a small part in the lives of these children. That we can be co-laborers with you. I see your hand at work all around me. Even in the difficult and challenging circumstances. You are always with us, you have promised never to leave us or forsake us. I truly believe your Word Father God and stand firm on it's truth.
As the moments rapidly pass by, with the ever increasing threat of blackout, I shall end here and hit the publish button. I hope it gets to you wherever you are. I want to keep in touch as best I can,
hugs and blessings galore,
love always in Christ xxx
We have had several power outages again recently and lots of problems with internet access.
There was a really bad accident at the bottom of my road last night. A semi truck was flying down the hill without brakes and ended up crashing into a shopping strip mall. As I drove by shortly after the accident, the mess was indescribable, mangled cars and lamposts/powerposts knocked down, sidewalk all cut up, a dreadful mess! We learned this morning that 6 people died. News reported that the driver of the truck had just called home to tell his family the brakes were not working and he is quoted to have said, "I am going to die tonight, I have no brakes on this truck!" SO sad. We have been praying for his family and the others who lost their lives in this tragic accident. One of the 3rd grade students told me that God would find a way to make something good come out of it. Yes LORD, we pray for your goodness, grace and mercy to shine through. May it be a reminder to us not to take any chances in our vehicles. If something needs fixing, fix it! It is not only your life at stake but the others around us at the time. Don't gamble with life.
Now my trusted friend, my laptop, is failing me. It keeps shutting itself off mid word and not saving anything in memory!! Yikes!!!!!!!!!! I have re written some emails 3 times before finally getting a shortened, snappy version of my intended message sent out. Will send this out asap just in case!
My heart has been to share news and photos of what has been going on around here these past couple of hot and dusty months. Alas, all the pics are (temporarily I hope) lost in the darkness of my dead laptop, which I shall call Lazarus for now. I do believe it will come back to life long enough for me to get all my pics back!
Last Saturday, I went up to the orphanage in El Crucero again to cook our famous spaghetti dinner for 35 people. It went well, even with the challenges of no running water. Makes doing dishes afterwards a little challenging, not to mention cleaning all those spaghetti hands and faces afterwards!
The weekend before, I went straight after work at 2:30 pm and spent the weekend up there so that the house mum could take a weekend off to go on a ladies retreat. Thank you LORD for faithful friends who came up with me to share the workload. Many hands make light work, and more fun!!!! One of the young girls, Joselyn, 14 years old, was released from hospital that day after having a c-section. She had been raped by a 70 year old and got pregnant. She did not want anything to do with the baby: Selah Grace,a healthy little girl at 5 lbs 18"long. Selah was taken immediately by a Christian family from USA who will care for her here in Nicaragua. Joselyn slept with me the 1st few nights incase she needed anything. She did remarkably well, obviously bathed in prayers. Thank you to all you faithful prayer warriors who cover us all in times like these. I truly believe it makes a difference.
Our next prayer is that the water problem is sorted out up there soon! It is hard looking after 16 children without running water. And 4 of us came back with a nasty 24 hour stomach bug. Thank goodness we all made a speedy recovery and that the children were OK.
13 year old Ruby had another seizure last week. She spent the night in hospital and was put on medicine for epilepsy. Praying for recovery for little Ruby too. I want to include pics of her, (I hope I can add them later.) She is 13 years old and weighs about 16 lbs. She cannot walk and her legs are so thin. She doesn't seem to want to eat much either, is really only fond of her gallo pinto, (beans and rice) so it is a challenge to get her to eat! Ofelia was the same when she first came to Managua too though. Almost 4 years old with the appearance of a 4 month old baby. She had been discarded as handicapped and the authorities said she would never walk, and doubted if she would even survive. Well, you should see her now! She runs around and climbs up on everything. I told Ruby she would be right there with her soon!
LORD God you are so awsome. I thank you that you allow us to be even a small part in the lives of these children. That we can be co-laborers with you. I see your hand at work all around me. Even in the difficult and challenging circumstances. You are always with us, you have promised never to leave us or forsake us. I truly believe your Word Father God and stand firm on it's truth.
As the moments rapidly pass by, with the ever increasing threat of blackout, I shall end here and hit the publish button. I hope it gets to you wherever you are. I want to keep in touch as best I can,
hugs and blessings galore,
love always in Christ xxx
Sunday, March 20, 2011
3rd Grade Field Trip to Orphanage in El Crucero.
HOW DID WE DECIDE ON EL CRUCERO FOR OUR FIELD TRIP???
God did..........
The Miskito Coast, also known as the Atlantic Coast of Nicaragua came up in a social studies class last October,
which led us to talk about the Miskito people, culture and community,
which led us to talk about the orphanage in El Crucero who cares for neglected, abused and abondoned children from Waspam, the Atlantic Coast.
The 3rd graders asked if we could go and visit them one day, one day, sure, one day...... but we got busy with stuff, school, life, Thanksgiving, Christmas, vacations, life......
BUT, the 3rd grade never let up, their hearts had been touched by the stories of some of the children who lived in El Crucero. They did not forget. They kept asking, we realised they were serious, their teacher, Ms. Gina finally made it happen.
One of the parents who came with us made this wonderful DVD for us all to share...
http://gallery.me.com/kdoutt#100428
Many lives were touched by the trip. Go God!!
God did..........
The Miskito Coast, also known as the Atlantic Coast of Nicaragua came up in a social studies class last October,
which led us to talk about the Miskito people, culture and community,
which led us to talk about the orphanage in El Crucero who cares for neglected, abused and abondoned children from Waspam, the Atlantic Coast.
The 3rd graders asked if we could go and visit them one day, one day, sure, one day...... but we got busy with stuff, school, life, Thanksgiving, Christmas, vacations, life......
BUT, the 3rd grade never let up, their hearts had been touched by the stories of some of the children who lived in El Crucero. They did not forget. They kept asking, we realised they were serious, their teacher, Ms. Gina finally made it happen.
One of the parents who came with us made this wonderful DVD for us all to share...
http://gallery.me.com/kdoutt#100428
Many lives were touched by the trip. Go God!!
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Ancianos Coronados
Covenant Kids did a wonderful job today with their ministry to over 75 older folks at Ancianos Coronados, Managua. They opened with praise and worship, then prayed over each person present, shared Valentine cards that they had hand made, and finished by serving a lunch with special Valentine cake dessert. Hallelujah and Amen! I am so proud of you warriors for Christ xx
It was a truly amazing day filled with the presence of The LORD, 5 folks gave their hearts to The LORD in response to the children's prayers!
Jesus loves you!
Our kids at Covenant church made Valentine's Cards for the old folks and hand delivered them with love.
This is Jairo and his little sister. Jairo was so polite and chatty, he took me to introduce me to his father! What an honor.
These very special people really touched my heart. Grandma Dina with her granddaughter Dinita. When I asked Dinita what she wanted to be when she grew up she didn't stop to take breath before replying: "I want to be a Pastor!" (but in spanish!) Dinita promised to pray for my grandchildren, how encouraging! Thank you Father God! I went to bless, but got blessed in return more than I could ever have asked or imagined.
It was a truly amazing day filled with the presence of The LORD, 5 folks gave their hearts to The LORD in response to the children's prayers!
Jesus loves you!A friend loves at all times. Proverbs 17 v 17a
Our kids at Covenant church made Valentine's Cards for the old folks and hand delivered them with love.
This is Jairo and his little sister. Jairo was so polite and chatty, he took me to introduce me to his father! What an honor.
These very special people really touched my heart. Grandma Dina with her granddaughter Dinita. When I asked Dinita what she wanted to be when she grew up she didn't stop to take breath before replying: "I want to be a Pastor!" (but in spanish!) Dinita promised to pray for my grandchildren, how encouraging! Thank you Father God! I went to bless, but got blessed in return more than I could ever have asked or imagined.
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