Nicaragua News

As many of you know, I will soon be moving to Matagalpa, Nicaragua in order to serve the community as an English teacher at a new Christian school.  I am thrilled that the Lord has called me to this ministry, and at the same time I am sad to be leaving each one of you.  I deeply appreciate your prayers as I make preparations to transition out of my current ministry at Advent and into this new ministry in Matagalpa.  

Below, you will find some more specific information, and the answers to at least a few of the most frequently asked questions.  I would love to talk to you more about my plans and the Lord's work in Nicaragua - shoot me an email or give me a call!

About

My hope and heart is to witness the transformational restoration of Nicaragua through the work of Jesus Christ, who is the Creator, Sustainer, and Reconciler of everything.

As a Missionary Ventures Field Specialist, I will be a self-supporting, full-time missionary serving as a part of the MV team in Nicaragua. MV is an interdenominational mission organization with a vision for “Involving People to Impact Nations for Christ”.  I feel very blessed to be joining an international organization, and a team in Nicaragua, through whom the Lord has been working for quite some time.

Nicaragua is the second poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, following closely behind Haiti.  In the last three decades, Nicaragua has seen dictatorship, Marxism, and Capitalism – all promising better things but leaving the country destitute.  The political and economic spheres have been defined by corruption, power struggles, fatalism, and economic dependency.  In the country of 5.7 million people, 54% of the population is unemployed or underemployed, and the average income for a family of 4 is $120/month.

In a country that belongs to its youth (half of Nicaraguans are under the age of 20), Nicaragua’s public education system is broken.  Officially, 20% of the population is illiterate, although among rural poor the rate is 41%.  Teachers are underpaid, class sizes are large and lacking basic teaching materials and supplies.  The education system is plagued by a Socialist methodology set up during the Sandinista era which employs rote memorization and very little higher-order thinking.  50% of students do not pass grade 4.  31% of girls and 45 % of boys do not pass grade 6.  Only 30% of the nation finishes high school and 8% go on to obtain a college degree.  Whereas public schools are supposedly free to nationals, parents are asked to pay numerous fees, or students are denied test results or grades.

About NCA Matagalpa

Quality education opportunities in Matagalpa with a Christian emphasis are very limited.  Currently, there is one Christian school operating in the city offering classes from Pre-K through Sixth grade.  In response to the need in the community for academic excellence with a Christian foundation the Association of Nicaragua Christian Academy began researching the possibilities of opening a 3rd campus in Matagalpa.  

Nicaragua Christian Academy was founded in 1991 in Managua to educate the children of missionaries.  In 2005 the second school was founded, NCA Nejapa. NCA Matagalpa exists to equip the children of Christian parents with the spiritual discernment, moral courage, and academic excellence to make an impact on society with their Christian life motivated by a true love of God. NCA Matagalpa seeks not only to give quality education to the children in Matagalpa but also to be a model and mentor school to other Christian schools in the region.

NCA Matagalpa will begin with first though seventh grade with plans to add a grade or two each year as God provides infrastructure, students and teachers.

Support Information

If you are interested in supporting my ministry with Missionary Ventures in Matagalpa, I am honored and blessed.  There are several ways that your can make a tax-deductible donation:

1. You may write a check made out to Missionary Ventures, with a note saying “Field Coordinator Ministry – Preference for Elisabeth Elliott”, and mail it to:

Missionary Ventures International

P.O. Box 593550

Orlando, FL 32859

2. You may make an online donation using a credit card by clicking here.  You will find a secure online donation form.  Choose the amount you want to donate and in the section for Select “Field Coordinator Ministry – Preference for” write my name, Elisabeth Elliott.  There are options for one-time, monthly, quarterly, and annual donations.

3. You may sign up for monthly, automatic ACH or Credit Card donations by filling out the form found here.  In the “Missionary Support” section, fill in the amount you want to donate and write my name, Elisabeth Elliott.  This option allows you to avoid the credit card fees charged for online donations.

“Notwithstanding any other statements in this communication, please remember that any contributions to MV are under MV’s full discretion and control as required by the IRS regulations.”

el puro fin

Well, I'm back. In fact, I'm sitting in my very own bed! Now let me fill you in on the last two weeks....

After leaving Lily and Melvin's house Tuesday, July 28, I went and stayed with Anita and Benito for two days in their house about thirty minutes outside of Tirrases. Anita is a Peruvian missionary who has been working on the re-structuring and development of Capilla for five years. A little less than a year ago, she married Benito, who grew up in Tirrases and Capilla, but has worked his way out of poverty and is now an engineer working for the government. My stay at their house was honestly a bit awkward, but it gave me a really nice time to relax, get some good sleep, and talk to them about missions. I even got to watch CNN in English (cable TV) and go out to dinner!

Finally, on Thursday I moved in with my last family: Victor Hugo, Kattia, Keren (9), and Yurvik (6). I already knew this family pretty well, and they have hosted a number of people from our church before, so it was very easy and comfortable from the beginning. Although they are basically on the same level financially with the majority of Tirrases (currently, due to a real estate deal gone wrong), it was infinitely easier for me to relate to them than any of the other families I have been with. Kattia had four years of university education and was a teacher before the children were born, and Hugo went to accounting school, is the sales manager of a trucking parts company, and travels in the U.S. and Central America often, which shows me even more clearly that the majority of the differences I have seen between the people and churches of Tirrases and those of middle-class America are not cultural but due to socio-economic level and education. The ease with which I was able to relate to Kattia and Victor, and their ability to see Tirrases from an outside perspective was extremely valuable for my last two weeks, but also made me realize how hard it has actually been for me to relate to the very poor people of Tirrases and Concepcion. It makes me sad to understand that, although I can share in their lives, I cannot enter into their struggle - I have never been poor. I have never felt the desperation or hopelessness that plagues so many of my friends in these communities, and due to the safety net enjoyed by the wealthy, I most likely never will. Sometimes this leaves me feeling guilty and helpless, but it also leaves me feeling hopeful knowing that I can nevertheless pray for them in the knowledge that Jesus can and has entered into their struggles.

Saturday I was able to spend a night and day with the family I stayed with when I came to Tirrases as a senior in high school (Marlene, Michelle - 13, Edier - 10). I was happy to be able to spend some time with them because I haven't seen them much over the past months, but left sad because all three seemed to be depressed and still struggling very much with the absence of their father/husband who left them almost four years ago. I also went with them and the youth group of another church on an afternoon trip to Palmares, which is a nice little town out in the country. I met and visited with quite possibly the nicest woman I have ever met - I still don't even know her name or why I was at her house (I normally just nod and go where everyone else does...), but after talking to her for about twenty minutes over a cup of coffee, I would absolutely come back to Costa Rica just to spend a week in her house (sadly, I don't think this would be possible because I still don't know who she was...).

Sunday (Aug 1) was the clean-up/work day in Concepcion, and one of my favorite experiences of the entire summer. The objective of the morning was to clean the trash and sewage out of the gutters and sidewalks of the main street in Concepcion as well as to plant some trees along the side of the street. he most exciting part of the day was seeing so many neighbors finally emerge from the oppressive darkness, dampness, and lonliness of their houses to help clean not only the areas in front of their own houses, but all along the main street where we were working as well as the areas of town that we had not even planned to work in. I also loved being able to plant the trees. The metaphor behind planting the small little trees in the midst of rocks, trash, and sewage, putting stakes up around them to support them, and watering them to help them grow could not be missed. So similarly is God using this tiny church to plant His seeds in the hardened hearts of the people of Concepcion, placing loving brothers and sisters in their lives to support and defend them, and watering them with his Word. One of my favorite images of the day was seeing kids run into their houses to get cups of water and follow behind us watering the little trees we had just planted in front of their houses. It showed their excitement to have something living and growing in their neighborhood, as well as their acceptance of the church and what it was doing.

That Wednesday night when we were leaving Carmen, Mauro's 1985 no-brand station wagon finally bit the dust. We pushed it up and down the hills of Carmen until about 11 pm when it miraculously revived. I was shocked, assuming that after 34 years of faithful service, Pichidilo (the mission wagon's name) had finally gone to be with the Lord, but I was the only one. Everyone else had been fully confident that our prayers to revive Pichidilo would be answered with a resounding "YES!", and the were right! On our way back to Tirrases, exhausted and still unsure that if we let up the gas Pichidilo would keep running, we passed another group of people pushing their car. Not thinking about whether or not stopping would keep us from making it back to Tirrases, Mauro stopped, turned around, and pushed their car to where they could coast home. I have not seen a more clear example of a Good Samaritan story in a long time. Nine-year-old Keren had decided to come with us to Concepcion and Carmen that day - she was a trooper through it all and by the end, everyone was sure she would soon be a missionary. In fact, through watching the way she un-reservedly loved the dirty kids she had never met, I was convinced that kids make the best missionaries, and reminded that we must become like them. On Friday Mauro, Keren and I went out into the street in Concepcion with some jump ropes and chalk, and before we knew it we had twenty kids playing with us. Almost all of those kids showed up to church on Sunday. I wish that I had had the freedom to do more of that throughout the summer.

Sunday was my last service both in Concepcion and at Capilla, and the beginning of a very long goodbye process. I brought fruit and ice cream to serve after the service in Concepcion as a way of celebrating all that they are doing, and was excited to share it with a much larger crowd than normal! Monday and Tuesday I went to visit several families to say goodbye (and was fed at each one.... most certainly adding to the extra pounds with which I've returned.), and early Wednesday morning Kattia, Victor, Keren, Yurvik, and Raquel drove me to the airport and sent me on my way!

I had almost all day in various airports Wednesday to re-adjust to speaking English, warm water in the bathrooms, and the ever-available supply of food. I have to admit that I like sleeping in houses with walls that reach the ceiling, my mother's cooking, and being able to walk down the street without being automatically noticed as someone who does not belong. But as I sat in the Atlanta airport, at last surrounded by people who look and talk like me, I had the weird realization that I do not feel completely at home here in the United States anymore. I am thankful for that - I am thankful that I learned enough from the poor this summer to not feel completely at home with the rich. Moreover, I know that I will never feel completely at home in this world, because it is not my home, and I am thankful for that.

I cannot thank each one of you enough for your prayers and support for me this summer. I know this is an experience that I have not even completely understood myself yet, and it is something that I will continue to learn from for many, many years to come. I hope that as I begin to be able to put into words some of the things I have learned and am learning, I will continue to be able to share that with you, so keep your eyes peeled in the next few days and weeks for more updates here. Thanks again... lots of great, big American love!

hold your horses.

Sorry it´s been a while since the last update... things have been busy around here lately and I haven´t been able to get to the internet long enough to update the blog. Know that things have been great over the last two weeks, and I´m looking forward to a great last few days. I promise I´ll give a full review of the last few weeks and a look back on my time here in general soon after I get home on Wednesday!