Pray

The Lord is answering specific prayer for me in bringing up men who are eager to learn spiritual disciplines.
Please pray that God would allow these relationships to develop and solidify in the coming weeks. Pray that God would continue to lay the ground work for developing discipleship groups to start with Nicaraguans that I have been coming to know over the past year.

His plan is perfect, His plan is good. Pray for these things.

Thank you guys.

Joey

Don't Just Pretend.

The Lord has been faithful in continuing to conform me to the image of Christ (Rom 8:29) by addressing issues of my heart that are not of Him. The part that sucks is this is not fun. You see, I really really like the encouraging, walk beside me, father-like love that I naturally lend to be sum of who God is and what he does for me. He does encourage so well. Romans 8:31 undoubtedly says that He is FOR us. But His love comes in so many other ways.


He will not watch his children walk down a path He knows they shouldn't be on and look the other way. And so Romans 12 has recently been brought to my attention. I read it this weekend for the first time in a while and I haven't been able to get away from it. Literally the Lord has been faithful to put it in my mind Romans 12:9, "Don't to pretend to love others, really love them". I mean, am I really listening or just looking for the next opportunity to talk? I want to walk with the fervency and compassion of Christ. I'll try to explain.

There is no doubt that Christ had purpose in everything that He did. One example is Mark 5:21-34 when Jesus was on His way to heal a man's son who was quickly dying. With large crowds following and surrounding Him, one woman who had been sick for a long time made her way through the crowds to touch His clothes knowing she would be healed. He was in a hurry to get to this boy and to move through the crowds but He stops as she touches his clothes and He addresses her faith and heals her.
That's the fervency and compassion that I want. Father, conform me to that.

Another thing I have continued to pray is to see everything with eternal perspective. God is always at work and His purposes are different than our own and often beyond our understanding. How encouraging are these words that we know...

Isaiah 55:8-9

8 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the LORD.
9 “As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Cross reference that with Romans 8:28, that He is working all things for our Good and there's fuel for eternal perspective. When all I see is today, it's hard to trust his ways beyond what I see. He's also promised us light for the next step (Psalm 119:105). Just trust me for the step you can see and know that I'm doing the rest. Be faithful with what you know and you can be trusted with more (Luke 16:10).

I guess my aim was to encourage myself and us to have compassion and eternal perspective to love others based on these verses.

Father, make it so.

Renewing My Visa

Looking back on the summer it seems to have slowly flown by. Some memories and accomplishments seem like they were yesterday and in the same thought they seemed to have happened years ago. Our 15 interns are heading home one by one week after week. Soon, the full time staff will be back to running this place without all of the much needed help we've had this summer.
God has been good and his grace has been sufficient every day. It also blows my mind how much I continue to grow up and learn more about myself as God reveals more of himself to me. It happens here every day. Some days I almost want to escape it because as God cuts off parts of me that aren't holy and reflective of Him and the healing hurts. We crave and were born to be loved by God, but part of his love is his discipline to make us more like Christ. Romans 8:29 and sanctification have taken a new meaning for me in the past few months.

My Spanish has improved and more conversations with my Nicaraguan co-workers and those living in the communities we work in have gone from horizontal to vertical. This is very rewarding. Since day one down here, I've longed to share my heart with all the people I've built lasting relationships with and God is allowing it to happen as I learn new phrases and words every day. I'm moving more from practical to conversational...thank you Father.

Please pray for our staff to continue to be unified and grown. We have been very intentional by meeting together and keeping each other accountable. Again, addressing our faults and seeking redemption as a group can be hard. Pray that we continue to see it as necessary and rewarding; that His grace would be sufficient for us through all that we do here.

Tonight is opening night of Peter Pan in Villa Catalina. Many of the kids in the play were a part of our project to move families out of the city dump and into healthy, thriving communities. They are now exploring arts and taking part in theater productions. The whole community comes out and watches. I'm fortunate enough to be in this one. I'm Smee. Just wait for the pictures...

I hope to see you all sooner than later. I'll be around Georgia and Alabama in late September.
Until Then,

Joey

Amigos New Property

Construction on our new property is bumpin'. Our latest addition is our new Rancho. All our Devo's and meetings will be held here starting next year. Our community development team has got it together. We are all still standing in awe of this new structure.







Meanwhile, Julio has been working hard making new beds. We have several weeks this summer with over 60 short term missionaries coming down. That puts us about 30 beds short. So, Julio gets out his tools and welds together 20 new bunk beds...no big deal.








More to come...
Joey

what we need is You

We have been praying to see through "an eternal lens" lately.
The world through my eyes is a scary place. My selfish motives, pride, and negativity can blur God's amazing creation and story into a dark and dreadful place. We are asking God to grant us more of Him, nothing more. What we need to set us free and live this story right is to be satisfied and see Christ's love as sufficient, nothing else. When this happens, the world begins to look like a much more pleasant place, and we start doing wonderfully crazy things. Jesus and Paul's backwards, selfless teachings make more sense. The needs of those around us take precedence over our own. We give sacrificially to those in need and we do it with a cheerful heart! Apart from Christ, these ideas just don't make sense to me. I'm too committed to me. But with the clear focused lens of Jesus' unwaivering, sacrificial and abundant love in our lives we begin to live like Jesus and become more like him. Romans 8:29 says we are being "sanctified" which simply means we are becoming more like Him.

Father, grant us this. We want to see things the way you do. We want your backwards teachings that shook the world and made pharasees stand still in awe to grasp our hearts in a way that we can't describe.
More of you Jesus.

...2 months of photos

The Amigos Worship CD is finished and in Nicaragua! I have been working with the the staff on this project for the last 3 months and it's finally ready.




A surgical brigade just left us. They performed over 40 surgeries. This is the Post-op room full of grateful patients.




Praying for the patients right before surgery.









The staff went to the beach for a night.




We had our very own Nicaraguan Crawfish Boil. The shrimp were BIG.



One of our high school groups from the spring having a bible study out in the street.



We moved into our new office. Katie Fitzgerald, one of our long-term missionaries is on the front porch area of the new office.

New Wells

We are starting 16 new water projects over the next couple of years. Amigos for Christ received a grant from Cross International to build 15 new wells in rural communities without running water. One of the questions we were asked by Cross International was why do we seek out such rural communities to build wells and build water systems. The answer was simple. If we don't, who will? We have drilled over 100 wells in and around Chinandega and recently God has been clear to us in our mission. We need to take care of all in need within our reach, not just the high impact communities. If we only look for large numbers of people for impact and immediately look over smaller communities who's needs are just as drastic, we miss the point. We are not drilling wells just to provide clean water.

In this part of the process, our Directer of projects, Luis and our well team travel to these prospective rural communities to interview the people and get to know them. Rancho Pando is one of these communities. While we were there we learned the closest water supply is 3 miles away and many people walk this rocky path several times a day with 5 gallon jugs. The water supply is a river. These people bathe, wash their clothes, and drink from it. After hearing these stories, Rancho Pando is one of the first on our list of new projects. Imagine being born into a family that lives 2 hours away from any sort of civilization. The whole concept of poverty takes on a new level. The problem isn't that these people don't have an income, they have no means to get one either. From day one, their concept of life is to survive. These people need water and love just like everyone else. Please start to pray for these communities. Pray that God would lead us exactly where we are supposed to be and that bonding and trusting relationships would start to form between us and these people.

Thank you for your prayerful support. Please pass this along to others who will spread the word and pray as well.

Joey

Summer is upon us

We have returned from Cincinnati from our visit With Crossroads Community Church.
Our time was very encouraging there. There is a sense of authenticity with everyone we met. This alone opened the doors so much for us to be vulnerable and really learn from each other. We are currently working on implementing some of the ideas that we picked up from them. One of which is a prayer area. Starting this summer, there will be an area in Casa Blanca that will be dedicated just for prayer. Mission trip participants will be able to post prayer requests and leave them for future participants to pray over them. This will be an ongoing process and we're excited for it.

Over 15 "longtermers" (college/high school kids that stay and help with mission trip operations for more than a week) and summer interns will be joining us in May. Starting May 7th we have constant trips coming down until the end of August.
Please pray for the cross cultural interactions with week long mission trip participants and the Nicaraguans they'll be working alongside. Our time digging pipeline in Chonco is nearly finished and the relationships between us and the Nicaraguans living there grows every time we go dig with them. Pray for this to continue.

More to come
Joey

I am wearing jeans and a sweatshirt. The current temperature in Cincinnati is 55 and windy. It is good to be home. It is especially good to be in Cincinnati for a week.

Kristin, Jeremy and myself are visiting Crossroads Community Church in Cincinnati this week. We will be meeting with staff members all week long to hopefully learn and pick up much of the useful strategies of this Christ-centered, authentic church.

Please pray that God would use this week to build us up as well as teach and train us for the coming months in Nicaragua.

Everyone up here keeps apologizing for the cold, dreadful weather. My response has been the same to everyone. It's a nice change. I'm grateful to be home for a couple weeks.

More to come,
Joey

30 Day Water Challenge

We have a new campaign to raise money for new wells being drilled. Watch this powerful 2 minute video and see what life is like in Nicaragua without running water.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsjyJd1sEtM


The 30 Day Water Challenge
30 DAYS of your life can change EVERY DAY of someone else's life.



COMMIT. to drinking only water for 30 days.

PREPARE. Find an empty gallon jug.

COLLECT. For the next 30 days, when you would buy soda, juice, or bottled water, just drink tap water. Put the money you would have spent in the jug.

INSPIRE others to join you.

CHANGE THE WORLD. Give the money to provide clean water to rural families in Nicaragua.


If you'd like to do our 30 day water challenge and want to raise money for these water systems, you can make your donations here.



Joey

Come All You Weary....

Colossians 1 assures us that we were created by Him and for Him.
There is a desire within us that never seems to be filled.

If you find yourself weary at the end of the day, you are not alone. Our souls grow tired and weak with every passing moment of striving on our own. The simple truth is, we were made to function on every level of life walking along side our Father.
Until we are truly connected and in communion with God on a continual basis in heaven, we will grow tired. He is refining us here on earth. All the desires of your heart, mind, and spirit are meant to be filled by Him.
When you're tired, know that we all are. In those moments, embrace the fact that He wants to "fill your life with good things, and renew your youth" (Psalm 103). He knows what we need, and knows we need to grow weary and tired to acknowledge where our strength comes from.

What a beautiful picture He is painting in our lives. Strokes of blue like the skies and strokes of red like pain all come together for our freedom as he orchestrates all things for our good.

This is a story where you end up at His feet at the beginning and the end. He is continually drawing us to Himself.


Lean back into the open arms of grace.

Me and another Amigos missionary Steven moved into our new house a few weeks ago. Appropriately, it's called "Casa Rosita". Notice the graffiti out front. When I saw that some of the neighborhood kids were Rock N Roll fans, I knew I was home.

First Nicaraguan Wedding

We knew we could be late because nothing starts on time here. Twenty minutes really means an hour and 3pm is actually 4pm. We were relieved when we arrived 45 minutes late and the bride was nowhere to be seen. The dust from the dirt road added the missing element to all of our clean clothes.



We patiently waited and she came walking down the road with her groom by her side.
Here we were, at a church in the middle of the woods with a dirt floor.



There was a service in progress that came to a stop when the bride and groom arrived. They marched the two up front and said a few words about marriage.

After the pastor had welcomed everyone and made a special announcement that there were "Gringos" present, the greeting began. One by one, everyone in attendance walked up front and gave both the bride and groom a big hug and a "Felizidades".

We don't need much to make us happy, and these two had found what little it takes. It seems almost everyday I meet another person who is happier and more fulfilled than the last. I am continually encouraged by the simple and humble lives that the people of Nicaragua lead. Stories like that of Belkie and Vanessa from my support video are so frequent. The Lord is refining my heart here.

It's comforting to know that the Lord knew where we would be today.
Acts 17
26 From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. 27 God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us.

All that you see and experience is designed to bring you back to His feet. Embrace and enjoy this truth. He loves us enough to give us what really satisfies us. Himself.

More to come.

Joey

His light shines on El Chanco

We arrived with a group of eager teachers ready to jump in with games and crafts but no kids were anywhere in sight. Kelly and I took a walk through the village. One by one, kids started running towards us with excitement while their parents waved and smiled in the background. My words are falling short of doing justice to what our visits are like to this rural community. Most of these children, like Belkie and Vanessa from my previous post, have never stood under running water. The water they cook, wash clothes and drink from comes from a large barrel. What little they have has been paid for and walked many kilometers in each direction.

These are parents and children that now know us by name after having worked in their community for over a year and a half. They offer the only plastic chair they have for us to sit and visit with them. Pray that these conversations continue to move from horizontal to vertical; because He first loved us, we are compelled to love others. Very soon we will celebrate having clean running water right outside their doors.

Settling in...

I've been permanently moved to Nicaragua for about 2 and a half weeks now. Just started on my second 2000ml bottle of water for the day, got one more to go to get my usual gallon and a half. It's 92 today. Friends, enjoy your winter.

The first week I was here, me Jeremy and Steven, 2 other full time missionaries down here, went on a cross-country exploration trip. Jeremy heads up a program called Mission Adventures. We were searching new terrain for rock-climbing, camping and other adventurous excursions for future mission groups. It took us 5 days to get across to the east coast and back. Four of those nights were spent at random Nicaraguan's farms along the way. We were sleeping amongst piglets, calves, chickens and ducks al night. It was quite an experience.

We are preparing for our first wave of groups. All of March Casa Blanca will be full of short-term mission groups.

Last night all of the boys cooked a huge valentine's dinner for the girls. It may go down as the best meal in Chinandega ever.

More Soon.
Joey

....packing my bags...

I am currently stuffing my life into 2 bags and a carry-on.
See you soon Nica.

take a look around

"Lift up your eyes on high and see who has created these stars, the One who leads forth their host by number, He calls them all by name; because of the greatness of His might and the strength of His power, not one of them is missing." Isaiah 40:26

We ought to be steadily reminded and encouraged of his great love for us from all that we see. It is clearly evident in the Bible that God created the world to reflect his story for us. The gospel is displayed continuously throughout creation! Jesus taught the gospel in parables with earthly examples about harvesting crops, mercy rising like the sun, flowers blooming and many many others. He had endless creative power when presenting His message of life and the gospel, and he used examples from things that we see all around us. He created this world to reflect Himself. Psalm 19 says that the heavens declare his glory...day after day they pour forth speech, night after night they reveal knowledge! He created this world to reflect Himself. When we stand at the grand canyon and see the massive cuts in the earth stretch farther than our eyes can see, we think of Him and how endless and deep and long and unending his love is for us! The sun rises in the morning and so does his mercy for us (Lamentations 3:23).

His reflection in His creation continues far beyond landscapes and picturesque sunrises. He created in us the many facets of his personality. We were created in His image (Genesis 1:27), so that we might reflect His love to each other. Every good thing you see in your neighbor is a reflection of the one who created you and knows you better than you know yourself.

I have been praying recently that God would uproot the distorted images I have of Him in my mind. I want to see God for who he is, not what I have made Him out to be. If He is a father to the fatherless and a shelter from the storm and our stay and our hope and the ultimate encourager that the Bible says He is, I want to see Him as that. I want to pray to and trust in a God that I truly embrace as a friend, a father and a companion. Through answering my prayer, He has opened my eyes to see His character, love, encouragement, and faithfulness being directly fulfilled by people in my life. His unwavering and unconditional love to me is displayed through his children here on earth. If the whole world was created for His glory, and it reflects His glory, then so do we. We are his love and compassion to each other here on earth.
Lets embrace each other as Christ does us. Love and encourage each other along the way, just as He continuously pursues us.

He loves us regardless of what we've done, and despite what we will do. He doesn't credit His love to us based on what we will become for him someday in the future. This is the kind of love we all seek on earth, because it is the Love that we were created for!

Show your friends and neighbors that unconditional, unwavering, committed, lay down your life kind of love; we will be so positively affected that we will be left with no other options but to surrender daily to what He has been pursuing us with since before we were born. Unending like the heavens and deeper than the oceans is His love for us. Take a look around and embrace what He has done for you. He has displayed himself in all of creation, in the world and in each other.

2 weeks, still need strings!

If you or anyone you know wants to donate guitar strings let me know. That is the last thing we need before I go.
joey@amigosforchrist.org

"...ain't you goin' to Mexico soon?"

The day after my birthday I'll be headed down to Nicaragua for good. Most of you I won't see until September when I come home for our month of fundraising. For those who are coming down to visit and join in with what's going on, I'll be getting your musty beds ready.

I have been praying a very consistent prayer for the next year. I hope you'll join with me.
Colossians 3 has been on my mind and heart for the last year and encompasses what I have been praying for the American missionaries I'll be joining as well as the Nicaraguans we'll be working with. That "...the peace of Christ will rule in our hearts...." I could stop here and have enough to dwell on for the year but the passage goes on. It continues with "...let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom." I can't think of a better place to start. One thing the Lord has confirmed in my heart through the years is the simplicity of what he has called us to do. I often end seasons of life in confusion and evaluation and am often brought back to the simple truths that saved me. That is, He is Lord and He is the only thing that satisfies. So pray with me that we would start and end our days right there. His peace ruling in our hearts is where we need to be focused before any work is done. We are worshipers before we are workers. I pray that all of us find ourselves more often in the role of Mary, sitting at Jesus' feet, seeking our Savior for satisfaction and identity. His design will bring us back to his feet whether we are willing or not. He is jealous for our attention and His glory. Let us walk with Him and surrender our hearts and lives to the satisfaction and meaning that we were created for from the start. That "...His peace would rule in our hearts…", first and foremost. Once the creator has His right place in our hearts the passage goes on to say, "...whatever you do, do it with your whole heart as though you are working for the Lord, not for men."

Father, fill our cups with the endless love and satisfaction of You. That your peace will rule in our hearts in the morning and the evening so that all we do, we do with our whole hearts, working for You.

See y'all across the border.

Joey

Merry Christmas!

Well, it's getting close. I am less than 2 months away from moving to Nicaragua. I have been starting to gather things that I will use over the next year. Someone asked me what I needed other than financial and prayer support. So, I decided it would be a good idea to compile a small list. If you have any of these things or know someone who does, please let me know. I have no budget, other than what is raised for me to live on to buy these things, and we definitely need them.

If you have any questions, send me an email at joey@amigosforchrist.org

We can also work out a tax-deductible receipt for all gifts.

Thanks everyone.
Merry Christmas.

Joey

Needs List
New packs of acoustic guitar strings (30 packs)
Any new/used sound equipment from mics and stands to cables and connectors
Beginner used acoustic guitars for guitar lessons. (up to 10 GUITARS)
9V batteries (10 batteries)