Hello friends and family,
A couple things to cover before I update y’all.
- Adventures in Missions is switching to a new and improved platform called ServiceReef. This is where I will be posting all of my new blogs from now on. I have sent each of you a “follow request” email, if you haven’t received it let me know but it should be self explanatory. If it is not, please let me know. (916) 764-0033
- I just wanted to thank everyone so much for all their donations and prayers. I am officially fully funded for this trip and I’m overfilled with joy! The only way I am able to experience all of these amazing things God is walking me through is because of you. Now, let me tell you what he has been doing in me the past few weeks.
Lately, our squad has been split up in our teams at different ministries in Nicaragua. It has definitely had its ups and downs but I have to admit, it has been refreshing to have change.
The ministry the guys team went to is in a city called Ciudad Dario and it’s called “Light and Salt Ministries”. Normally, this is a school that operates 5 days a week for young boys ages ranging from about 8-15. Unfortunately, they have November and December “off” (almost like summer break).
A normal week here looks like manual labor (ex. Sanding chairs, painting, gardening, yard work, cleaning, etc.) 4 days of the week. However, every Wednesday, the kids who usually come to the ministry for school come and we do an activity. A couple times, we played soccer and baseball all day and then watched a movie or the FIFA World Cup. They all love watching Messi, he is everyone’s favorite, GO ARGENTINA!
All the kids are hilarious, they love playing with fireworks on the street because they are super cheap here ($1 USD for a big pack). A lot of them are better than me at soccer and they have only grown up on street ball their whole life. They love competing against someone a lot older and making him (me) look absolutely ridiculous.
Something God has been walking me through in this ministry has been to change my perspective. This ministry is a lot different than REAP where we would pray for people at the hospital, prayer walk, street evangelize sometimes, go to the dump, etc. This ministry is less focused on outreach, at least in this season.
This has discouraged some of us on the team and made us question of what we are doing is even considered “ministry”. At some points, it is easy to think, “how is sanding chairs for days expanding the kingdom of God?”.
Something the Lord has taught me is that no matter what, I’m blessing the ministry. If sanding chairs and painting them is what the ministry needs in this season of rebuilding and preparing for the kids to come in January, then that’s what I will be doing. If doing yard work for our ministry host helps her feel more at peace in her work at the desk, then I will bless her in that way.
I’ve also come to realize that it’s not so much of what I can do for others but how can I best utilize my time sanding some chairs? Our squad mentor, Luis, asked the question, “what does expanding the kingdom while you are sanding chairs look like?” That really made me reflect, I could be a lot more present with the people around me or just spend the time having a conversation with God. There are different levels of perspectives, beliefs, knowledge, etc. all around me from people I’ve only known for a few months.
At first, it is easy to run into this situation with the perspective that this is not even really ministry, especially coming from REAP. However, a lot of times God does not want to change your situation, he wants to change your perspective.
Love and miss you all!
Sincerely,
Gabe Veth
