Last night was spent on our front porch watching fireworks with our roommates. After midnight struck all of the neighbors went around and gave each other hugs and blessings for the year to come. It beautiful and today I am filled with gratitude to have been given the opportunity to experience it.

El Basurero is the city dump of Granada. Mario (one of our local ministry partners) heads up a group that goes once a week with lunch to talk and pray with the people that work at the dump. Around 30 families come everyday to dig through the city’s discarded trash and salvage what they can to recycle and sell. The average adult worker here makes around $2 a day. That’s $2 a day to feed, clothe and provide shelter for their family.

Through our supporters and some extra donations, we were able to provide over 30 bags of toiletries for the families. We went down the day before Christmas Eve with toys and pinatas for the kiddos and bags of food and toiletries for the adults. It was an amazing day and such a blessing to be able to be there.

Here’s a couple of videos from the day:

You can check out some pictures from El Basurero by clicking here.

Seven of our 52 committed weeks have already passed. I am reminded of a post from our friends in Italy who wrote “the days may be long, but the years are short.” In our case, it is weeks. Each day dawns with hope and a sense of peace, and each hour is enjoyed fully. But by the end of the week, I’m not sure where it’s gone. Fridays are my “key” days. I plan ahead for them (teaching two small groups) and by the time the next day rolls around, I am unsure where the rest of the days went.

So what does daily life here look like? To be honest, it seems really slow to an American used to a fast paced lifestyle, but each week ends with a lot of work accomplished. We have a combined total of seven small group meetings, community dinners (sometimes twice a week), craft and literacy programs (more to come later), personal study and reflection, and discipling one on one.

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As we round the mid-way part of our fundraising process (59% supported!) we are continually amazed at how God is not only providing for us financially but is still using us. I guess I kinda felt that God would quit using us until we landed in Nicaragua.

I have been doing some work for a client that is trading store credit with us for my services. This has been great because this client just happens to be the best little coffee shop in Birmingham! Today Bekah was on her way to meet me at my office and a guy asked her for some money. We make it a practice not to just hand out money (nor do we ever actually HAVE money) so she refused. Half-way up the next block God would not let her just walk away. She walked back down and offered him lunch with us (surprisingly not the first time she has shown up with someone and said ‘I have someone that needs some food’).

What ensued was one of the best conversations I have had. We talked about our pasts, our beliefs and our dreams – all over some tea and paninis.

I may not have any silver or gold, but I do have credit at Lucy’s Coffee and Tea!

I came across these pictures while organizing our files. They were taken at a worship service we attended at a men’s recovery center.

Welcome to our new blog! Here you will find updates on the joys and pains of two people living in Birmingham, Alabama answering God’s call to serve the people living in Granada, Nicaragua.

Thanks for stopping by!