LISA LANDIS-Here are a few pictures from Managua Market Monday:

Market girl selling peanuts

Which hat should I choose?

FIA executive director Tim Johnston & his wife Jan

This is the lady who creates the leather scrolls that Tim uses as a “Thank You” to donors

Market lady selling cacao powder

Flower at The Best Western Managua

Best Western Managua across from the airport

Airport art

lisa@wjtl.com

Buenas Tardes from Managua, Nicaragua!

I arrived in country around 12 noon (2pm Eastern time) today (Monday, March 21).  I had a smooth, uneventful flight (just a bit of turbulence leaving Harrisburg) with Friends in Action Intl. Executive Director Tim Johnston and his wife Jan.  Wow, am I loving this tropical climate!  Not too hot here yet.  We were in the mid to upper 80’s today, but the severe high temps and high humidity haven’t yet hit.  Nicaragua is entering the dry season after an extra wet rainy season.

This week we are getting a closer look (& listen) at Friends In Action Intl. and the amazing work they are doing to bring the Gospel to people groups around the world that have not had the opportunity to hear about Jesus Christ.

We are staying the night at The Best Western in Managua, conveniently located across from the airport.  This is where FIA brings work teams before flying out to “the field”-in this case the village of Boom Sirpi, which is located approximately 12 miles outside of Puerto Cabezas (which is where we will be flying tomorrow) and an island called Rama Cay-a half-hour boat ride from Bluefields, on the Caribbean coastline, where FIA is helping the Rama people build a village among other projects. (I will visit there later this week).

Had a wonderful time today strolling through the Managua open air market stocked with artisan crafts like hammocks, chairs, leather goods, clothing, toys, and my favorite-PINATAS!  Pictures coming soon!

On a personal note, it was 12 years ago this month that my husband and I spent 3 1/2 half weeks in Guatemala finalizing the adoption of our son Alex.  Now my son is several weeks away from turning 13 years old!  Everywhere we went today I was reminded of that sweet time in Central American with my husband and me trying (as new parents) to figure out what to do with this new little baby Alex and to get him to settle down and go to sleep :0)

Speaking of sleep, it’s off to bed for me.  I’m going on 21 hours in my day so it’s time to sign off.

Buenas Noches

Learn more about how FIA is at work in the world at FIAintl.org.

STACEY GAGNE – It’s 5:30 am and I’m so excited for this day to begin.  WJTL’s 26 Hours of Compassion is here.  This is the culmination and purpose for my trip and experiences in Ethiopia… to let others know about what Compassion is doing and give you an opportunity to  get involved.

This morning I got really excited when I saw the link go up for the children needing sponsorship from the FBI (Faith Bible International) Project.  These are the kids that will be filling the classrooms and playgrounds that I walked through!!!

So here is your invitation!  Listen in!  Check out some child profiles … and please pray!  Then give us a call and sponsor a child!  We’re looking forward to hearing from you.

STACEY GAGNE – I just clicked on our direct link to Compassion International from WJTL’s web page.   I noticed that as I went in a couple of pages there are many pre-teens and older teens in need of sponsorship. I wanted to take a moment to highlight this group of kids.  I think it’s often the case (at least it was for me) to have that excitement to start a sponsorship with a child from a very young age.  I, personally, love the idea of walking with a child through their years of growing up and knowing I was along with them every step of the way.  I started sponsoring both of my children from early ages.

The thing is for these teens, what has most likely happened is that for one reason or another they lost their sponsor somewhere along the way.   I’m sure financial troubles have been a large factor due to the economy as of late.   These students are in a crucial time in their life as they finish out school, deal with the many issues that teens deal with, etc.  It’s their final push to finish out the program and possibly move on to university!  They can use encouragement and support now more than ever.  I just wanted to put out an encouragement for anyone who might consider sponsoring an older child… you might only have them for a couple of years, but your impact on their life will be great.  If you have a heart for teens, or like the idea of being able to motivate and encourage a child as they finish out the program… there are children out there who would love to meet you.

STACEY GAGNE – One of the things that I’ll never forget about Ethiopia was the coffee.  DELICIOUS!!!  I brought back my own clay pot and several bags to share with friends and family and co-workers here… and it’s all going too quickly.  We were served deliciously strong and perfectly sweetened coffee pretty much everywhere we went.  The coffee ceremony is not only a show of hospitality, but part of their culture and tradition.   Great time and care is put into preparing the beans and serving the coffee… I was served popcorn, roasted barley and coffee served in beautiful little glass tea cups in a tiny tiny little one room home that is smaller than my office.  (We also were often served soda in glass bottles… which seemed to taste much better to me… but I digress…)

When we visited one of the churches, where the Yeka Meker Church Child Development Center is held; “PK”  the Project Director there, shared about how they use coffee as an opportunity to share Jesus with the parents of children who are involved in the Child Sponsorship Program.

I love that the ministry of Compassion International is reaching into individual families with the Gospel.   As families see their children receiving the tangible benefits of child sponsorship, they are also receiving the more lasting benefits in the seeds of truth being planted along the way.

STACEY GAGNE – Yesterday I was going through a bunch of video clips from my trip to Ethiopia.  I was reminded of many things including the dinner and then panel time we had with the Leadership Development Program students.  I had the opportunity to have dinner with a young man who we called “Serious”  (that was the meaning of his name which I couldn’t pronounce).  He was a very charming and intelligent 21 year old and we had a lot of fun chatting at dinner.

Serious grew up through Compassion International’s Child Development program from age 6 because of his sponsorship.  He shared with me and my friend Joe how he had been so blessed by the ministry of Compassion.  It became especially intense and important to him when he was 16.  At age 16 his mother passed away and he was left alone.   He was in the midst of preparing for his National Exam and so this was a really crucial time in his life.  He shared how Compassion was the only one to provide for him,  support him through this time and enable him to pass his test and go on to University.  When he graduated from the Child Development Program he received a new sponsor for his Leadership Development Program from which he is a recent graduate.  He studied Animal Science at university and is anxious to find a job in his field that will help him help his community.

During the panel discussion time, Serious shared with the group that through Compassion he and the other LDP students realized that they have value.  That as they received love and care through the programs offered through their sponsorships Compassion became a part of their “background” and story.

I’m so thankful that someone decided to take a chance and sponsor Serious and help him move into a life filled with possibility!

STACEY GAGNE –

Yesterday at church we were singing the worship song “Forever Reign” and tears came to my eyes when we sang the lyrics ” … the riches of your love will always be enough”.   It reminded me of the quote “The opposite of poverty is not wealth,  the opposite of poverty is enough”.   It reminded me of  the fact that my idea of what a home with “enough” looks like has changed both in the spiritual and the physical.

I saw the riches of God’s Love on display in the faces of so many children in Ethiopia.   I saw the light of hope.  I saw how God is providing for basic needs for these children through their sponsors and the volunteers at the churches.   They are learning about Gods love for them through scripture and through the ways they are being provided for by Christians who’ve never even met them.   They are learning about God’s love as they are fed, clothed, educated and cared for.

Oh God shower the riches of your love on these kids!  I am anxious to see how God will use our audience once again to bring His “enough”  into the lives of many children next week during our 26 Hours of Compassion.  Please join me in praying for this.

STACEY GAGNE –

On our daily trips around the city of Addis Ababa it was common to encounter people begging for money.  Sometimes they would be trying to sell us something and others they would yell “Money” or approach our vehicle hoping for some spare change.  I wished that I could help out each and every one of those people… but of course there are many reasons why me giving a few birr (Ethiopian currncy) to every person that asked was not going to work for many reasons.

The children, of course, were the hardest to pass by.  On our first day we did some sight seeing and a little gang of boys followed us around trying their hardest to get us to give them money.  At that point I hadn’t even changed  over any of my American dollars so giving them money was literally not an option.   Another day 2 boys approached the van while we were stuck in traffic and asked for money then began singing the chorus “This is the Day”.  I had to wonder if they even knew what it meant … and it broke my heart.

I can tell you that there is an obvious difference in countenance between the children out on the streets and the children in the program.  Their home life situations are probably quite similar… but there is a light of hope in their eyes.  The children in the Compassion projects are being taught ways to earn a living such as wood working, sewing, among other life skills.   They are being instructed that there are better ways to survive than begging.  They are being cared for,  fed, and clothed.  Most importantly,  they are being shown the love of God both tangibly and through scripture.

I am confident that Compassion International is making a difference in the lives of children and their families because of what I’ve seen in Ethiopia and therefore trust it’s the same way around the world.  This, to me, makes sponsoring a child an obvious choice.

STACEY GAGNE –  You might wonder what happens when sponsors designate money specifically toward a special gift for their sponsored child… be it for Christmas, Birthday, etc.  The children have the opportunity to choose how that gift is used so they can choose a toy, clothing, candy… you name it.  One story I was told while in Ethiopia by Salam, one of the staff in Addis Ababa was of a child who was given their birthday gift money and asked if they could please use it to fix the door in their home rather than shopping for a specific gift.  WHAT!  I was amazed and immediately in tears when she told me that story.

Our group noticed that when we handed out candy at one of the projects, some of the children were breaking up their one little twizzler strip into tiny pieces to share with the little ones who were not “getting in on the action”.  They only received a small piece of candy to begin with, yet they shared it.

When I handed Senait (my sponsored child)  her goodie bag and pulled out the 3 lollipops that were inside, she immediately gave 2 of them to the little ones nearby and only kept one for herself.   I am certain that this child does not get candy very often, so sharing this treat was a real act of selflessness.

It was moving to see how people share in this culture.  Those that have little share what they do have because they don’t know the next time they will have it to share again.

In thinking about these facts, I realized that as we invest into the lives of these children  through Compassion International;  we are not only impacting them, but their families, neighbors and villages, too!  What an opportunity to help build up a community!

WJTL’s Stacey Gagne gives us a tour of Faith Bible Church in Ethiopia, a new project partnering with Compassion International.