Happenings in North Nicaragua

Jinotega, Longview, New Zealand and Back Again

2011-01-27T12:05:00.001-06:00

Hi! This is Judah Rutledge. I know there is a section on me in my parent’s latest newsletter, but since I will be away from Nicaragua (and, thus, Mom and Dad) until Christmas, I have decided to write a more detailed letter of personal plans and expectations for the year.

As I stated above I will soon be leaving the country. This is obviously the greatest change for me, but the last year has been full of numerous, smaller changes. I spent nine months living in Matagalpa with Cheree while taking a computer course and getting my driver’s license. So I enjoyed more independence last year than ever before, even though only an hour away from my parents. Cheree taught me how to set and live on a budget and how to take care of a house, versus just cleaning one. It was great to have some special time with her before she got married. After finishing my computer course and getting my Nicaraguan license, I returned to Jinotega, where I have been helping my parents for the last four months. I have spent my free hours exploring the mountains surrounding the city and making knives, greatly increasing my proficiency in both arts. In fact, I now have knives for sale in Managua and will soon be taking a group of youth up the Peña de la Cruz (Peak of the cross) here in Jinotega.

All this is drawing to a close, though, as a new phase of my life takes shape. I will be headed for the states for two weeks and leaving from there to New Zealand to start a five month Discipleship Training School with YWAM (Youth With A Mission). This will be an Adventure DTS, the normal DTS with an extra touch of hiking and extreme sports coordinated with the classes, all designed to help me dive deeper into the ultimate adventure: knowing God and his will for my life. Three months of classes will be given on a variety of subjects such as God’s nature, hearing God’s voice, intercession, how to study the Bible and, of course, missions. After the theory comes the application. With my classmates and leaders, I will spend the last two months ministering in any area of need on a South Pacific Island, probably Vanuatu. A personal goal for this time is to continue growing in independence and maturity, while still under a protective spiritual coverage. This will be preparatory for college, which I’m starting in Longview, Texas two weeks after I graduate from the DTS. LeTourneau University residence halls open the 18^th of August, and a new world awaits. I’ll finish my first semester of mechanical engineering and then come back to Nicaragua for Christmas vacation.

The year will require more of me than anything I’ve yet experienced, but all is in God’s hands so it will be great! Prayers are welcome! If you are interested in more details or have any questions, write to me at judadr@gmail.com . This year will be the best yet for me; may it be the same for you.

Peace!

Judah D. Rutledge

The Rutledge Report

2011-01-27T11:42:00.001-06:00

Jinotega, Nicaragua, January 2011

Happy New Year! Our awesome God reigns in goodness, wisdom, power, and love, and we rejoice in His steadfast character and in knowing Him. Our 2010 was a year of change for our family as well as a year of growth in relationships. We have established a prayer room in Jinotega, and have ministered to many in the area of forgiveness of past offenses and healing of previous relational wounds, allowing present relationships to improve. We have seen spiritual renewal and peoples’ relationships with Father God restored, and are discipling those who desire to grow deeper in their relationship with Him.

Earl focused on relationships in Jinotega through English classes, English and Spanish Bible studies/home groups, a marriage group and one-on-one discipleship. Other activities included teaching in Young Life Leadership camps, Youth with a Mission Discipleship School, Thompson Chain Reference Bible training, and trips to the States. Oversight of the Matagalpa church continues.

Family wise Earl officiated Cheree’s wedding in June and less than three months later buried his mom. In all these experiences of rejoicing, caring, and parting, God’s light shined giving new revelation and understanding of Father God’s love, peace and joy.

In September Bev took a break from her busy roles of mom, teacher, hostess, nurse, "pastora" and counselor, to travel with Lance to visit her folks in Minnesota for 3 weeks. After Cheree and Vicente's June wedding and Earl's sister’s visit in July, Bev spent several difficult weeks of caring for Earl's mom during her rapid decline in health until her eternal home-going the end of August. We are thankful that we had the privilege of Grandma living with us these last 8 years and for her legacy of doing all for God's glory. The void created by Grandma’s absence has greatly affected our home school, and we are thankful for Judah curtailing his study plans temporarily to fill in the large gap during this adjustment period in our lives.

Cheree and Vicente have had a great six months of marriage. God constantly provides in varied and creative ways! After five months of intense work, Cheree graduated with honors in Graphic Design and Publicity. They pray that, in this New Year, God will provide a work outlet in her career that allows flexibility to care for house and husband. Vicente works full time at a civil engineering firm and teaches classes Saturdays at a local university. Pray for the Lord’s wisdom to make good decisions in their marriage and work, confirming how they can serve Him in Estelí.

Our oldest son John is settled down at John Brown University, has a solid group of friends, and just finished the first semester of his sophomore year. He is a triple major in International Business, Marketing, and Management and is on track to graduate in 2013, 4 years after starting. Needless to say, when in school, John is a busy person. Through earning academic scholarships he has managed to pay a great majority of his college tuition. The chance to receive a quality education coupled with a positive college experience is a great blessing to him.

Judah finished high school with a 4.0 average, and has added knife making to his existing array of arts. He planned to begin a leadership school in September, but because of his Gram's death and other delays he changed plans and helped mom home school his younger siblings this past fall. He starts a YWAM Discipleship Training School in Oakridge, New Zealand this February. It consists of three months of teaching followed by two months of application through outreach. Judah is responsible for paying the cost of his outreach, $3300, and all contributions are welcome. He starts classes at LeTourneau University in August.

Lance considers 2010 a year of accomplishments and opportunities. For Cheree’s wedding, he dressed up in slacks, a long sleeved shirt and a tie. This was a major accomplishment, since he considers a collar shirt and jeans ‘’dressed up’’. In September, Lance visited his grandparents in Minnesota. Grandpa has a garage that is practically a whole machine shop, and he learned how to operate several tools and machines during his breaks from cleaning the garage and carpeting the attic. This trip was a tremendous vacation and a definite cultural experience. Lance plays soccer, sculpts with clay, and enjoys a large variety of music.

Luke has had a hard but successful year. The year was difficult because his grandmother died. He misses being able to help her and talk with her. It has also been a productive year for him in school. He is in the 9^th grade and his grades have improved significantly. Luke has a knack for connecting, setting up and operating things like computers, iPods, televisions, cameras, DVD/CD players and other electronics. He is also extremely active and enjoys climbing. He is helpful and caring with his sisters.

Kelsy has greatly missed not having Grandma as her teacher this year, but is doing well in 6^th grade. She enjoys her Bible class most and read the entire Bible this year. She likes reading and recently finished all the Narnia books by C.S. Lewis. She also likes to write. Six weeks ago on a family trip to San Juan del Sur to help with a library celebration she was excited to get her ears pierced. She has learned to cook more things this year and helps mom by taking care of her younger sister, playing “let’s pretend,” dolls, other games and having tea parties.

Esperanza, energy personified, is always looking for “something fun to do.” She enjoys playing with dolls, kindergarten computer games, drawing, and painting but prefers to be doing whatever someone else is doing and being in the middle of wherever there is action. She is Dad’s constant companion when he goes to pay bills or run other errands and is a ready student for Mom to teach.

We appreciate your prayers, letters, emails, chats and financial support. This year in ministry we are looking at new challenges, relationships and opportunities which include more travel here in Nicaragua and the US, greater financial commitments and constant wisdom from Father God regarding plans and priorities.

Please Pray for:

New and developing ministry opportunities in Jinotega and Somoto
Financial needs, especially regarding university costs and Judah’s YWAM [$8000 needed urgently]
Expanding the ministry of inner/emotional healing
Development of a network that includes our contacts in Matagalpa, Jinotega, Estelí and Somoto
Purchase of property for the church in Matagalpa
Our older three children as they marry, go to the university, and grow and mature as adults
Our four younger children as they continue to grow and prepare for their own unique destinies
Relationships as we continue to minister alongside Young Life, YWAM Nicaragua, and Bethel Church

Thank you again for your prayers and support of our ministry. We pray God’s excellent goodness and unfailing merciful kindness will follow you throughout this year; that His joy will sustain you when the road seems difficult; and that you will experience His presence and Everlasting Arms of love in a greater way in 2011.

Blessings and peace,

Earl, Bev, and family

Email: norixzeta@gmail.com

Letters, cards and donations:

World Outreach Fellowship

2011 W. Marshall Ave.

Longview, TX 75604

Write checks to World Outreach Fellowship.

Separately, indicate: “for Nicaragua/Earl & Bev Rutledge.”

Barbara Christine Hall Rutledge - December 2, 1930 to August 27, 2010

2010-09-30T11:39:00.007-05:00

Grandma Barbara, as many in Matagalpa and Jinotega called her, celebrated the last 8 years of her life in Nicaragua as a missionary serving in the gift of helps. Primarily she helped home school and care for the younger children of her oldest son's family. She also interceded for those the ministry was touching. Barbara lived in Nicaragua from 2002 until she passed away August 27, 2010.

As a child, teenager, and young lady she grew up in Seymour, Tennessee. She was known as Christine, her middle name, and affectionately called Kricket by her father, William Hall Sr. She married Joseph W. Rutledge in 1956 and gave birth to four children: Earl, Ellen, Lloyd and Fred.

Barbara and her husband Joe touched many lives in a variety of ways. In the first year of their marriage they were “tentmakers” in Elgin, Illinois, where Joe taught math in the public high school as they ministered in a Baptist mission in the city. Afterwards, they served as dorm parents at Harrison-Chilhowee Academy in Seymour, Tennessee. Leaving Tennessee, they returned to Louisiana where Joe finished a third degree in engineering. Barbara and Joe both had previously finished masters degrees in Christian Education from Southwestern Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas.

The following years were filled with raising a family as Joe worked as an engineer and later Barbara returned to the university to be certified as a teacher for special needs children. During these 16 years both attended church and served faithfully in whatever manner they could. In 1975 Barbara and Joe realized a dream they had put aside many years before and the summer after Earl graduated from high school they took their first missionary journey to the island of Jamaica. The time spent there was short, but it opened their hearts once again to serve as carriers of God’s light to the nations and people that would never think of entering a church door. Joe’s job as an engineer allowed their light to shine as they lived with their family in Mandeville, Jamaica and later Valencia, Venezuela.

When Barbara’s husband Joe passed away in 2002 she decided to move to Nicaragua and live with her oldest son. She served in their ministry as she taught and cared for their younger children. Although unable to speak and understand Spanish, this did not prevent her from showing the people that she loved God and that she loved them. In this silent yet powerful way she continued until her death impacting lives of those that came in contact with her.

August 27, 2010, at 10:25 PM, after a three month bout with illness, Barbara Christine Hall Rutledge walked through the valley of the shadow of death into the eternal glory with her Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. She passed away in her sleep at the Hospital Metropolitano-Vivian Pelas, in Managua, Nicaragua.

Barbara Christine is survived by three children: Earl, Ellen and Lloyd; nine grandchildren: Marcus, Cheree, Sarah, John, Judah, Lance, Luke, Kelsy, Esperanza; and one great grand-child Katelynn.
Her testimony lives on.

Pray for My Mom, Barbara Hall Rutledge

2010-08-21T08:29:00.001-05:00

Please believe together with us for the complete recuperation of health for my mom, Barbara.

The past 3 months she has dealt with several different health issues and is presently in the hospital in Managua because of low sodium, potassium and calcium and a major yeast infection that has spread through out her body.

All is improving well and early next week she should be out of the hospital.

Believe with us for restored proper levels of sodium, potassium and calcium; complete healing from the yeast infection; and protection of her vital organs, especially her kidney during this time of illness.

We know the healing power of God and believe it is part of our covenant blessing.

God is good.

Rutledge Report July 2010

2010-07-24T13:35:00.001-05:00

The biggest and most exciting news for this quarter is the wedding of our daughter Cheree. On June 5^th, Cheree married Vicente Diaz, a young man from Matagalpa who now works in Estelí as a civil engineer. It was a very special day for all of us: a rewarding result of 24 years of sowing into Cheree’s life as her parents, and the last 10 years of investing in Vicente as his pastor and teacher. We would appreciate your prayers for God’s favor and direction for them as they start their future together. Cheree is finishing her final graphic design project and will graduate from the university the end of November.

Our home remains the focal point of our ministry, and we are thankful for the larger area we now have. It provides privacy for the family while still being adequate for overnight guests, English classes, counseling sessions, and meetings. We are finally proceeding in our desire to establish a regular prayer room where people come to pray and receive prayer for special needs in their lives. We want to establish a “hot spot” where the presence of God is so strong that people are drawn to Him as Savior, Redeemer, Healer, Provider, El Shaddai,… We want them to leave changed by their encounter with Him and desirous to come back to enjoy His presence once again. Our prayer room will also serve as a training ground for those in our study groups, teaching them to pray more effectively for people in need.

Part of our calling is to minister to ministers, and teach those who will in turn teach others, so we are pleased to have two single women missionaries as part of our regular Sunday morning English fellowship. Earl recently started condensing his English teaching into 250-400 words and posting it in his English and Spanish blogs. Visit A Look in the Mirror. Our Sunday evening service is in Spanish, and we are encouraged by a recent increase in attendance. Pray for the discipleship process to bring changes to their everyday lives.

We also are glad to co-labor with Young Life. Three of their leadership couples and one from our Sunday evening study completed our recent eight week marriage course. We finished with a 24 hour marriage encounter in Matagalpa. The time included fun dynamics, Christian fellowship, practical teachings, delicious food, and a special night away in a hotel. Due to desire on the couples’ parts, we continue meeting to teach and expand on topics they have requested.

Bev coordinated a pastor’s wives retreat which included ladies from both Matagalpa and Jinotega. Thanks to First Assembly in Fort Meade, FL, each one received a small gift to encourage her that God does see her efforts and rewards His servants. Each was also pampered with a manicure, pedicure, facial, or a new hair style. They returned to their husbands and churches not only spiritually uplifted, but also emotionally strengthened and physically blessed.

We give thanks for the funds that subsidized the cost of these events. We know the investment of your donations will bring forth much fruit.

Bev frequently counsels and prays with ladies that are experiencing difficult emotional and relational problems. The exercise class that she attends has spurred many new ladies coming to seek prayer. God will use you everywhere that you are open to being a channel of His love.

Judah recently graduated from home school and scored very high on his SAT. We are very proud of him. Before pursuing a university career in Mechanical Engineering, he will spend ten months with 24/7, a Leadership/missions program in Mexico City.

John successfully completed his first year at JBU with a 3.85 GPA. We enjoy having him home for the summer. We are grateful for the scholarships and grants that cover the majority of his expenses and we continue believing God for complete payment of his schooling. Presently he still needs two student loans.

Prayer needs:

Successful discipleship and growth
Protection and health
Increased provision for schooling and travel
A volunteer to help with home schooling
Influence in the city

Pray for Grandma Rutledge, our wonderful helper for home school and with the younger children. She is still fighting repeated health problems, this time related to her colon.

May God richly bless you for your donations and prayers which are so vital to our ministry.

Thanks again!

The Rutledges

Camping - Lance

2010-04-29T09:16:00.005-05:00

Camping gives me an opportunity to do two things I enjoy: hiking in nearby mountains and spending time with friends.

Hiking is one of my hobbies; I like the challenge, the adventure and excitement of an unclimbed mountain. Another thing I enjoy about hiking is that it gives me a change of scenery, from concrete streets to dirt and rocks, from buildings to hills and trees. Just think of all the hiking you have to do to find a place to set camp that fulfills all your purposes. Such as a nice view, plenty of firewood and level ground.

Camping is a good way to spend time with your friends. With no one to tell you to behave a certain way, getting out into the wild changes something. You can be yourself and so can they. While sitting by a campfire, one also shares thoughts ideas, experiences and stories. Camping makes for good fellowship.

I enjoy other things when I go camping, but hiking and fellowship are the ones I enjoy most. What do you enjoy most about camping?

March 2010

2010-03-20T15:08:00.002-05:00

Friends and family,

Thank you for your continued prayers and financial support. God has truly blessed us through you! In the past several months many things have happened; here are a few of them.

Earl started December with a writing streak. In 21 days he wrote the first drafts of 34 Advent devotionals with prayers based on scripture readings and representative symbols that we as a family have selected, designed, and revised over the past several years. He condensed each thought into 130 words to allow each devotional to be read in approximately one minute. Enjoy them on Thoughts and Reflections, starting at New Life with Advent. Earl plans to revise, rewrite, translate, and record them for a Christmas radio emphasis this year.

In December we also visited a local coffee farm and taught on family unity and the value of the man and the woman. God’s love was proclaimed to more than 50 adults plus numerous children through teachings and interactive dynamics; the day ended by eating a meal with the plantation owner, Veronica. We are planning a follow-up teaching soon.

John arrived December 18^th, the same day Cheree finished her university classes in Managua. We were able to enjoy Christmas vacations as family in Jinotega. Part of our Christmas celebration included sharing the Advent tree and wreath with our English students. In a new, unique and fun way, the gospel of Jesus was presented. Christmas family time also included visits to Selva Negra and San Juan del Sur. While in San Juan del Sur Earl ministered to a man experiencing many personal struggles, as his visit there was during the last days of his brother’s life. He needed encouragement and a reminder that the only true God sent the Savior whose name is Jesus… Pray for Alberto to continue his search and that he may find the true peace only Jesus Christ can give.

The second weekend of January started a busy ten days; we divided our family into different ministry groups for various activities. Cheree and John translated for a PRMI seminar at La Fuente while Earl taught and translated at two Young Life Leadership Camps. John returned to JBU and Cheree and Judah participated in Bethel Church’s Supernatural Ministry School in Managua. In Jinotega, Bev, Lance and Luke united with Young Life to distribute Christmas toys and clothes in a poor barrio. All groups experienced awesome ministry testimonies of God’s healing love touching many lives.

We continue to provide counsel and spiritual oversight for the pastors and leaders at Iglesia La Fuente. In November, after nine years in the same location, they had to change buildings. The new location is 45 percent smaller, but much nicer in appearance. We continue praying that God would provide them their own property and building, and for understanding of God’s ways as they continue forward.

English classes resumed the 17^th of January. Six to twelve students come three days a week for an hour of class. Some students are expressing interest in our Sunday morning English Bible study. One day Connie, a young lady who travels to Jinotega four hours on the bus for Saturday classes at the university, passed by to inquire about a chance to practice her English; she now stays for our English worship time on Sunday mornings. We are praying for more students to participate in that time or join our Spanish Bible study on Sunday evenings.

Seven couples attended our first Valentine’s Day activity in Jinotega. Of those couples, three of them are not practicing Christians and two of them want to participate in a marriage study group. We are excited about this new opportunity.

We recently moved to a larger house that will be much better for Earl’s mom’s comfort, health, and mobilization (no steps and we now have a yard). It will also allow a front room to be dedicated to prayer, counseling and ministry. We are thankful for the provision to pay the increased rent, but continue praying for even more income for other new activities.

After an extended courtship, Cheree will marry Vicente Diaz on June 5, so wedding plans and preparations are also part of our current activities. Vicente is a civil engineer and a fine Christian man. He works in Esteli, another one of our target cities.

Prayer requests:
· Continued provision and protection – we are thankful for the blessing God always provides. We never want to take it for granted.
· Health – especially Earl’s mom, Barbara. She has had frequent bladder infections that have affected her kidneys.
· New ministry in Jinotega as we relate with our English students and develop new relationships with married couples. We are also increasing our ministry in counseling, inner healing and prayer for the sick.
· Maintaining links with people with our change of houses to a new location in the city.
· Continued forward movement and growth at Iglesia La Fuente, encouragement and patience for Pastors Raul and Olivia Castro, and the ability to obtain their own church building.
· Our children as they continue growing in independence and life purpose.

Thank you very much for your prayer and financial support. God has been very good to us.

Grace and Peace,

Earl and Beverly Rutledge

Iglesia La Fuente Moved Across the Street

2009-12-07T11:25:00.001-06:00

Iglesia La Fuente MOVED. God is up to something when He moves you from a big building to a smaller one.

Here are some pictures on Cheree's FB.

This is the new location. It is exactly in front of the previous one.

What Can Coffee Plants Teach Us About Families?

2009-12-07T10:05:00.001-06:00

Several weeks ago the owner of a local coffee farm asked us to organize a seminar on family relationships for her farm workers. Bev and I talked through ideas and decided to focus on three main thoughts: we all need each other; there are good and pleasant things [gold] in all of us; and we must take care of our family.

Saturday, December 5th was the agreed upon date, so we started the afternoon with a ride in a pick-up and made the 1.8 mile trip up and over the mountain in 25 minutes. It is close to Jinotega, but the conditions of the road and the steep inclination increases travel time.

The Lopez family is concerned for the total well being of their farm workers. They have built 2 school buildings and continue improving conditions for their temporary workers [approximately 500] that come to harvest the coffee cherries. This interest resulted in our visit to share with the fifty permanent workers of the farm.

We started with a couple songs and a dynamic of forming groups based on the parts needed to complete a body. Each person was given one of six parts and had to find five others with the pieces they lacked; united the puzzle was whole. We need each other and are crippled when we are missing a leg or an arm. The same is true with our family relationships. Everybody has something to offer to make the family complete.

We also taught that the external appearance does not determine worth. It just so happened that the pretty flowered bag that everybody chose as their favorite was full of trash. The other two plain brown paper bags held something of value: a pearl [godly character] or a knife [God given talents]. We all have talents and the chance to develop godly character. So does everyone else. Let’s not overlook the blessing of God in others just because their external appearance is not attractive to us.

Finally, we made a comparison between the coffee plant and the family. Newly germinated plants are kept in a nursery and need careful attention, just as babies and children require special and frequent care.

Once the plant reaches 6-12 months it can be transplanted to one of the fields on the plantation. Although the plant is strong, it still needs to be watched and protected as it continues to grow. The tree needs 3-5 years before it produces fruit. Those years for a coffee plant were compared to the adolescent years. Our teens still need godly parental guidance and love as they become more independent, ensuring a healthy future and the fulfillment of their destiny.

After the years of growth and maturing, the plant enters the productive years and bares fruit in abundance; as adults we marry and have children. Our relationships must still be nurtured. We must care for our spouse and our children; they need our love, care and concern. With proper care, the coffee tree can produce for 25-30 years. The cutting of unnecessary limbs and two or three radical prunings gives new life and increases productivity. Likewise, in our lives there are distractions that take us away from the more important needs of family, wife, husband and children. We must eliminate them in order for the family to remain strong.

As the plant advances in years it can still be productive if given individual attention. Our grandparents and the elderly have much to offer if we will just take the time to stop, help them, and listen to their years of understanding and experience.

The constant care and year long maintenance of coffee plants serve as an excellent example to teach us that we need to provide planned, continual care for our families.

We closed with a blessing for the community, the farm, the workers, the families, men, women, youth, teenagers and children. We are thankful for people like the Lopez family that are concerned for the integral well-being of their community and workers.

The evening ended with a beautiful sunset, a fine meal and enjoyable conversation, a very tired little girl, and a slow ride back down the dark hill in a light rain. God has truly blessed us.

You can look at a few other pictures on Facebook [click here].

Thank you for being a part of what we do in Nicaragua.

Thanksgiving 2009 – It’s been a blessed year

2009-11-28T17:27:00.001-06:00

We rejoice and give thanks every day, but what a wonderful national tradition to take a special day to count our blessings and recognize the awesome provision of God in our lives. Nicaragua has many holidays and celebrates many things, but there is no day of Thanksgiving to God among them. We are privileged as a family to thank and glorify Him and receive His joy as we bring His kingdom to the hurting lives around us. It has been a good year, a reflection of the goodness of our God and His faithfulness.

We are so thankful for the participation of so many of you working with us through your offerings and prayers. We could not do what we do without your support. Thank you for being instruments of God’s provision for us and all those we help here.

A brief overview for those who are new on our mailing list: In July of 2008 we passed the direction of La Fuente, the church we pioneered in Matagalpa, to Pastor Raul Castro and the leadership we discipled and established there. This past year the walk of transition has continued. The leadership has made good decisions as Earl maintained a strong mentoring relationship with Pastor Raul giving counsel and guidance as needed. Presently, La Fuente is needing to rent a different location, and is praying for funds to purchase a permanent location; please pray for them. It is very rewarding to see continued growth and maturity in the lives of the people as they reach out to touch others. They have internalized the message, “Freely you have received, freely give.”

In October 2008 we moved to Jinotega, the second of five targeted cities, to start a new ministry. Our first endeavor began with Earl teaching English classes to meet new people and establish friendships while helping them in a practical way. Some of these students now attend our small English fellowship on Sunday mornings or one of our Spanish Bible studies. Others have sought our counsel or asked us to pray for specific needs in their lives. God is working, and we give Him thanks.

The recognized gift of teaching in Earl’s life has opened new doors of opportunity and influence, allowing ministry to a wide range of people, from other pastors to coffee farm workers; a bank manager and poor country folk; Young Life leaders, Youth with a Mission disciples, and people on the street; school teachers and hurricane victims.

The Good News of salvation is for all people. (See Earl’s blog http://alcanzarelmundo.blogspot.com for a report with pictures of his recent trip to Bluefields on the Atlantic Coast to help two communities affected by Hurricane Ida.)

Our family is doing well and continues to mature. In December, Cheree will finish the classroom part of her university studies here in Nicaragua and she also works with the church in the area of Graphic Design. John, a freshman, is studying Business at John Brown University in Siloam Springs, Arkansas. Judah is finishing his high school courses and plans to attend a discipleship school before starting his university studies in Mechanical Engineering. Lance and Luke are advancing with their high school studies along with sports, art, and music interests. The house princesses, Kelsy and Esperanza, bring joy and beauty to our hearts. Finally, Earl’s mom maintains her participation as she helps home-schools the girls.

One tremendous blessing we experienced this year was the help of two young ladies in the area of home-schooling our boys. Jessica Bailey and Cherith VonBerg greatly lightened Bev’s load, enabling her to join Earl more in the ministry and also teach and counsel women. Jessica returned to the States the end of August; Cherith’s time with us has just come to an end. We will greatly miss her. Pray that others would be interested in investing in Nicaragua by ministering to us in this area.

Also, pray for increased monthly support so we can rent a larger house with family privacy and ministry space. We pray you will experience God’s provision and joy as you reflect on giving Him thanks this year.

Thanks again for your faithful monthly support and prayers.

Blessings and peace

Earl and Beverly; Cheree, John, Judah, Lance, Luke, Kelsy and Esperanza; and Barbara

Mailing address:

Earl and Beverly Rutledge

2011 W. Marshall Ave.

Longview, TX 75604

For donations write checks to:

World Outreach Fellowship.

Note: for Nicaragua Missions-Rutledge

Travels to Bluefields, Tasba Pauni and Karawala

2009-11-18T11:55:00.001-06:00

November 12-17 I flew to Bluefields with Judah and Cherith VonBerg to spend the weekend with my friend Pastor Ed Jaentschke. It was an awesome time; 8 years was much too long of a gap since my last trip. If the opportunity ever presents itself, you must experience the intriguing beauty and culture of Bluefields. You can check out other pictures of Bluefields at:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=176474&id=666028857&l=dfb6200124

While in Bluefields we visited two communities that Hurricane Ida affected: Tasba Pauni and Karawala. Due to the loss of crops, hunger is the primary concern.

Saturday we took a boat to Tasba Pauni. Since it’s actually on the Caribbean Coast instead of on the river, it received the harder hit of the two villages; poorly constructed houses and a double pass of the storm resulted in greater damage. Driftwood, trash and debris had been gathered in piles across the beach as the locals cleaned up and began repairing or rebuilding their houses. Other pictures can be seen at:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=176480&id=666028857&l=f7dfc8ee0c

Monday’s six hour adventure of a sometimes very bumpy boat ride took us to Karawala. The much neater and better organized village was less affected than Tasba Pauni. Look at other pictures at:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=176568&id=666028857&l=e4b3597c2c

Please pray for Bluefields and Pastor Ed and his wife Ligia of Iglesia Verbo as they work with people in the city and outlaying villages. The need is great and obviously many physical needs exist, but transformation of thought and philosophy must be the principle focus. Without a true renewing of the mind there will never be a lasting improvement in quality of life and living conditions.

Grace and peace.

Update, July 2009

2009-07-07T13:15:00.000-05:00

Dear Friends,
God is so good! He is faithful and true, and we thank you for being like Him, faithful in your gifts,support, and prayers although we haven’t gotten out a newsletter for months and we know that some of you have been affected by the economic crisis. We pray that each of you will continue to experience His faithfulness and provision when all around seems to be crumbling, for He is our Rock, our Anchor in the storm,and an ever present Help in time of trouble. So much has been happening here, but we will only touch the highlights.

La Fuente Celebrates their First Nicaraguan Pastor - In May we welcomed the visit of Russell Craft and Murrey Rabenhorst from our Stateside covering church. They came specifically to join us in the joyful ordination our new pastor of La Fuente, Raul Castro. It was especially exciting for us. Raul and his wife, Olivia, were our first acquaintances when we moved to Matagalpa eleven years ago, and were the 2nd and 3rd people we were privileged to lead to Christ. The transition of leadership has taken longer than we had envisioned, but all is going well; the church has even added several families during this time. Earl continues in a strong mentoring relationship with Raul, and teaching the School of Ministry classes one night a week, but other than that, our involvement is down to sporadic visits once or twice a month.

Misión para Alcanzar el Mundo (our registered mission name in Nicaragua) - We also sent out our first family as missionaries. Armin and Helen Santamaria, one of our elder couples, have moved to Chile to finish raising support and to prepare for ministering in the Ukraine. We are excited that Nicaraguans are capturing the vision of the Great Commission to reach the world with the Good News of salvation.

Judah and Lance visit the Miskito Indians - Judah (17) and Lance (15) had a spontaneous opportunity to join a team from Mexico on a trip to the Coco River on the border of Nicaragua and Honduras. After a 15 minute scramble to gather their stuff for a 4 day foray into the jungle, they piled onto a heap of supplies and equipment in the back of a pickup and headed out into the drizzling night. The long and arduous journey to the Miskito villages included 6 hours on pothole roads and 12 hours of travel by motorized dugout canoe (each way). The team was able to share the gospel message along with giving food and supplies to the people.

Impact Week/Pastor’s Wives Retreat - In addition to the Mexican “Coco River” team, there were also visiting Nicaragua a ladies ministry team, a youth team, and a men’s team making a total of 60 people from Mexico, the U.S., and England, each impacting lives in different events in various cities. Bev participated in a 3 day Pastor’s wives’ retreat, taking 14 ladies from Jinotega, Matagalpa, and San Isidrio. She was also involved in city events in Matagalpa and Esteli. Lance translated for the youth team who worked a baseball clinic, visited schools, and participated in events in the Masatepe area. We praise God for the many lives that were touched by this great team.

John, ministering in China - Our son John left for China on June 19. He spent 2 weeks working with a local church in Hong Kong, and is now part of a team teaching English to a Muslim people group in western China. He will return to the YWAM Puerto Rico base in August long enough to gather his things and then travel to Arkansas to start a degree in Marketing and International Business at John Brown University. We praise God for scholarships for his studies and we continue to trust Him for complete provision for John’s four years of university studies.

Jucuapa Ministry to Elementary schools - After months of preparation and fund raising, Cheree and the youth of La Fuente, led by youth leaders Vicente Diaz and Melba Gamez, realized a 2 day outreach to Jucuapa, a rural community south of Matagalpa. Due to the gifts of many people, principally Nicaraguans, they were able to distribute a packet of school supplies, including a Spanish textbook, to 190 children in 6 different schools. They were also able to pray for each of the students and teachers, and others that were around. Thanks to all those who were involved in this project. The next follow-up visit to these schools is programmed for the end of August.

Jinotega Ministry - We have finally been able to focus more on our new city these past two months. We have a small English group meeting on Sunday mornings and a study group in Spanish on Sunday evenings. Three of those coming have been away from the Lord for a time and now desire to get their lives back on the right path, so it is a good beginning.

English Classes, Friendship Evangelism - Actually our first thrust in Jinotega began in January with Earl teaching English classes. We have 8-10 steady students who come 3 times a week. When they surprised us with a small celebration on our 27th wedding anniversary, we felt our purpose was being accomplished, that of establishing friendships while helping them in a practical area in their lives. We believe more doors of opportunity and influence are being opened in this area.

Home School Help - We welcome the help of 2 college-age girls this summer. Since we got so far behind on our home schooling schedule, Jessica and Cherith have been extremely helpful in overseeing most of the children’s studies, freeing me up to write letters, organize items still in boxes, and start a ladies’ Bible study. They are also connecting with our English students, learning Spanish, being involved in our meetings, and seeing what missionary life really entails. Anybody interested in coming next summer?

We Appreciate You - Thanks again for your prayers and support, co-laboring with us for the harvest in Nicaragua.

Blessings,
Earl and Bev Rutledge

Spring 2009

2009-03-29T11:12:00.000-05:00

Dear Friends and Family,

It’s been awhile since our last update. Our physical move to Jinotega took place in October, but we have been back and forth between Matagalpa and Jinotega ever since, facilitating the transition with the church, La Fuente, the leaders and the people, and our family. The 21-mile-but-hour-long ride over the pot-hole after pot-hole, curvy mountain road is now very familiar. Thank you so much for your continued support and prayer without any details about what’s happening in our lives and the ministry.

For those who did not receive the update on our tour to the States, it was an awesome two months of family time and traveling with many “firsts.” It was also a healthy beginning in our children’s understanding that there are cultural differences between Nicaragua and the U.S. and they have inherited a mix of the two as Third Culture Kids. We were super blessed with the renewing of old friendships and the making of new acquaintances, and we were amazed by God’s mighty provision in so many areas and details. Thank you to all who made this dream trip a possibility!

During December and January, while we got acquainted with our new city, we also spent some great closure time as a family, knowing that family life will never be the same. Cheree, who did not get to travel to the States with us, was home for vacation, but is now once again situated in Managua. She started her senior year in Graphic Design last week.

With all the recent stateside experiences to build on, we felt John was much better prepared to now pursue life outside of Nicaragua. He left last week to Puerto Rico to participate in a six month Discipleship Training and mission trip with Youth with a Mission before he starts in the fall as a freshman business major at John Brown University in Siloam Springs, Arkansas. Pray for him as he faces the challenges of living in another culture, which is much different than a vacation visit, and pray also for abundant provision. We thank God that he has received a sizeable academic scholarship, but there is still a lot left to cover.

John's send-off last week was a blessing to all of us as it confirmed the impact our family has had on those in La Fuente. The parents expressed appreciation for John's example and the aspiration for their children to be like him. The youth also voiced their gratitude for John's role model and their desire that their parents would be more like us; they also thanked us for helping them even as we have helped our own children. Several comments to that effect were a wonderful encouragement that we have left a well-started work in Matagalpa. We trust that it will continue to flourish under the new pastor, Raul Castro, who was actually our 2nd convert 10 years ago. Our first fruit is now producing fruit. God is good! Let the harvest cycle continue, and may the Lord of the Harvest send more laborers, for the fields are ripe and ready.

We are now in the final stages of our transition. The church is doing well. The people have accepted our "in and out" status of supervision and counsel instead of being the ever-present "pastors" and have transferred their commitment to the remaining elders, especially Raul and Olivia, who are now the primary leaders. We are looking forward to finally being able to concentrate on developing our present new contacts in Jinotega.

We have overcome some taxing challenges in our new location. I can count on one hand the number of times the garbage has passed by (Oct. to Feb. -- you can imagine the fly population and some of the other problems that has generated). The plumbing is not up to par -- I can't let any water go down the kitchen sink. The creative solution to "no clothes line" has been solved with the result of needing to stand on a chair or ladder to hang out the clothes. I have just been blessed with clothespins that work, which makes it a much easier task, and the rainy season has ended for now, so hurray for dry clothes. The neighborhood has apparently been using our driveway entrance doors as the local soccer goal for quite some time. We have established better parameters of how many times a day and at what hours we will throw a ball back over the gate, but a sudden WHACK can still startle, and frequent WHACKS make it hard to concentrate and seriously tests one’s patience. Driving skills have improved out of necessity as the clearance to enter our driveway with the van is tight. Backing out with the side mirrors folded in was a real challenge at first.

The upside is that our house is the nicest (painted cement walls, windows, a ceiling, and a ceramic floor) and largest we found for a good rental price. We have a front room for private counseling and small meetings. We live on a safe block for the children to play outside with their new friends from the neighborhood. We live 2 blocks from the market and the grocery store. The smaller town (60,000) leads to quicker attention at the bank, telephone office, and stores. The people are friendly and helpful; we've already made friends and have met several people who need Jesus. The great thing is that they seem to recognize that we have something they need. People we don’t know have heard we are here and have come to our house to seek us out for counsel and prayer. We are a light in this “City of Fog,” as Jinotega is called, to penetrate the darkness and let the glory of the Lord shine forth.

Thank you for your prayers and support. They are very much appreciated. One last prayer request is for provision of new (used) instruments and a projector, since we left La Fuente fully furnished.

Remember to shine today in your workplace, your neighborhood, and your city. Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon you. Isaiah 60:1

Blessings and peace,
Earl and Bev Rutledge

Newsletter from the Rutledges

2009-02-23T13:39:00.001-06:00

Friends,

Blessings as 2009 flies by so quickly. It's hard to realize 2 months are already gone. Please read our newsletter and pray for us.

John is at Youth with a Mission in Puerto Rico for 3 months of discipleship training and then a 2 month outreach. Please pray about helping him with travel costs during the outreach. God has already mightily provided for his first 3 months and travel to Puerto Rico, for that we are very thankful.

If you want to make a financial donation you can make checks payable to World Outreach Fellowship:

World Outreach Fellowship

2011 W. Marshall Ave.

Longview, TX 75604

Grace and peace,

Earl And Bev Rutledge

--
Check out Earl's Blogs.
Start at Thoughts and Reflections from Nicaragua
www.norixzeta.blogspot.com

Family Trip July 2008 - GPS and God

2008-11-29T14:05:00.000-06:00

We have been greatly blessed on our trip in the States with lots of camping equipment on two month loan. God is good. One of the blessings provided has been a GPS system. It sure helps get from one place to another, especially when we "don't know where we're going.

The key to obtaining complete benefit and profitable results is entering the correct address and carefully following the directions given, even when you think you know better. This isn't to say that the GPS has always been right, but I've been wrong many, many more times than the computer. Mmm.

I think God must be the GPS of life. He always knows the best route for getting us to His desired location and fulfilling His destiny for our lives. Ps. 23 tells us He is "a lamp to my feet and a light into my path." I believe the same guidelines regarding the GPS will apply as we seek to follow Him. We must carefully follow Him even when we think He is wrong. "There is a way that seems right to man but the end of it is death," is the wisdom of Proverbs and Romans extends the idea when Paul writes about "the good and perfect and acceptable will of God.

Do we really believe He knows best? Do we really trust the eternally perfect and never wrong GPS of life? Have we truly put our trust in the wisdom of God Eternal? Each person must evaluate his own life to see if he himself is making the decisions in life or is he following the leading any will of God, our Eternal GPS.

"Here am I LORD send me."

Family Trip Aug. 2008 - The Zoo, Minneapolis, MN

2008-11-29T12:51:00.000-06:00

We went to the MN Zoo and it was an awesome adventure. Bears, wild boars, gibbons (they're apes not monkeys, they don't have tails), the komodo dragon, camels, buffalo, birds, butterflies, bald eagles and on and on. The diversity of God's creation is amazing and the only adequate response is one of awe and worship.

How can there be so many animals that are all so different in their own special and necessary way? It seems to me a greater faith is required to believe they all came into existence by chance, without an "intelligent designer".

Since God took the time and made the effort required to create all with such detail regarding they're need and ambient, how much more can I trust Him to care and prepare and provide for all my needs and future?

Ps 13:5-6 but I have trusted in your steadfast love, my heart shall rejoice in your salvation. I will sing to the LORD, because he has dealt bountifully with me.

Our Trip to the US - Earl and Bev's Thoughts - very late, but I'm cleaning out the drafts

2008-10-05T21:29:00.000-05:00

We are back in Nicaragua and at the point of moving to our new city, Jinotega. God has provided a house with the price $50 below what we had put as the max we wanted to pay. For a few frustrating days we thought that we would have to go over our “limit”, but God is faithful and we are thankful that once again His faithfulness has been shown. We feel very blessed to have found a house this large and nice for the price we were able to rent it.

We’re also thankful for God’s provision for our family trip to the United States this summer. God provided in so many ways for everything we desired. We were hoping for somebody to loan us a van; instead the provision was to pay for renting a new one (only 12,000 miles “old”) and in perfect condition. For our 9000 mile trip, all the family fit in so nice and snuggly with all our camping equipment, food boxes, musical instruments, and suitcases.

As we traveled, the awesomeness and goodness of God was daily revealed to me through His marvelous creation. The most constant reminder as I looked at the “big skies”, majestic mountians and immensely large canyons was of God’s power, greatness and grandeur. As I saw the beauty of the small in birds, flowers and children, I remembered that even in His all powerfulness God cares for me and my most “insignificant” needs. For God all is possible and all is important. What a calming, comforting and consoling thought. He is always there, wherever we are; and He is always aware of our situations.

Many friends and family members helped us out with our trip and many others help us on a monthly basis as we minister here in Nicaragua. Thank you very much and may God’s riches blessings return to you and your family.

St. Cloud, MN

2008-07-28T08:42:00.001-05:00

We are living in a box, our 8 passenger van, and it does all fit. Here we are just before we left St. Cloud Camping Grounds.

It has been fun and we are looking forward to the next 6 weeks.

Life in a Box

2008-07-25T11:21:00.000-05:00

Here is our home for the next 2 months. Our 8 passenger van will carry us 7000 miles. The only challenge is to fit 8 people, 9 suitcases, 6 backpacks, 5 med-large plastic containers, 1 large trunk, 1 large cooler, a guitar, several percussion instruments and other assorted items. Fun fun.

Travel Revelation

2008-07-25T10:23:00.000-05:00

Travel as an eight member family in a twelve passenger van with all your "stuff" is a great revelation. Parents serve as counselors and referees, older children are helpers and playmates, younger children are a joy at moments and a challenge at others. Yes, living in such limited space will surely reveal your true character and weaknesses. That is sure! We have only been on the road a few days and have almost 2 months left. The tests and blessings have just begun.

The trip of life presents some of the same challenges as we face change and uncertainty, especially as we deal with our church family. As leaders we serve as counselors and peacemakers. As older “brothers” we help others through crises and walk through life with them. And the younger ones are a joy to watch and a challenge to train.

The key to these challenges is “the LORD is my refuge and my strength in Him will I trust.” Daily intimacy with our Father God and constant time in His presence will help us pass through the tests and difficulties of life.

“And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek you.” Ps 9:10

Reality Is Setting In

2008-06-27T16:58:00.000-05:00

July 15 is the take off date. It is a date that for Bev and me and our family is a don’t look back date. It is a go for it date. It is a make it or break it date. It is the day we leave for our two month family trip in the States, but more than that, it is leaving the church we startes 9 1/2 years ago, La Fuente, in the hands of our qualified and experienced leaders and going to start a new church in Jinotega, a city 30 km. north of here. We’ve got to take the leap.

We must continue with what God has called us to do. It’s not that we’ll never be here again nor is it that we will not participate here, nor is it a time to not help or work together. But it is the time to let the children fly. I know they will go where I’ve never gone before; I know they will do things I have never done before; I know they will achieve heights I have never acheived; and if I don’t give the leadership to them, La Fuente will never be what she is supposed to be.

I think my monthly reflection written today speaks to me in a way that is equal to or greater than how much desire for it to speak to our people. We both need to fly and if we continue holding on to each other we’ll never get off the ground.

Inside me I hear, “Turn them loose, let them go, take your trip and go forward. They will be fine without you.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yea… it’s time and I'll always be with them. By the way, you’ll be okay too.”

Update on the Rutledge Trip

2008-06-21T17:27:00.000-05:00

Dear Friends and Family,

Bev, the kids, and I are excited about our travel plans to visit the United States this summer. As you know, they have not actually spent more than 3 consecutive weeks out of Nicaragua for the past 13 years. We have taken as ours Jeremiah's exhortation to Israel when he said to make the new nation your home, seek her blessing, and you will be blessed as she is blessed. We have seen how God has allowed this to be true in our lives. We feel very much at home in Nicaragua as we pursue her blessing by sharing the transformation power of the Word of God.

We also recognize the need for us as a family to make a unique connection with our "home country" during this small window of opportunity between transitioning from pastoring the church in Matagalpa to beginning a new work in Jinotega.

We received a good response to the letter we sent last month and we are very thankful for those that have responded with prayer, letters of encouragement and financial gifts. Praise God! Our plane tickets are almost totally paid for. However, we still need a generous amount of help as we prepare for our trip in just a few weeks. Our flight to Texas is on July 15.

One of the primary needs we have is a method of transportation for 8 people and their "stuff." Here are a few creative options that may be viable if you or a friend have a van or vehicle that could be loaned to us:

1. Loaning us a van for the +/- 6000 mile trip
2. Somebody renting/loaning us a van at the cost of $.25 per mile +/- $1500
3. Donation to rent a van from an agency, $5500 - 6000

In addition to the costs for a van (or 8 passenger vehicle) rental, we also have a budgeted need of $2500 for gasoline. Up to the moment, the rising cost of gasoline has not greatly affected our projected costs because I made the budget based on $5 a gallon since in Nicaragua we have been paying $5.25 a gallon for quite some time. We continue revising our travel schedule to conserve on distance traveled, time, and money while still allowing an educationally diverse trip with great experiences for the family. Our planned route is still around 6000 miles [reduced from almost 7000] which equals 20 days of driving 8 hours/day, and 40 days to visit people and places. We will also have food costs, camping and national park fees, and the miscellaneous costs to cover.
Friends in the Dallas and Longview, Texas areas can also help us out by loaning us camping equipment that we can use as we travel. Sleeping bags, tents, cooking stove and utensils, etc.

Well, we look forward to seeing you on the travel loop we'll be making - soon.

If you can help us out please send donations to:

World Outreach Fellowship
2011 W. Marshall Ave.
Longview, TX 75604

[checks should be made out to World Outreach Fellowship

and should include a note indicating that it is for Nicaragua]

or communicate with us about a vehicle or loaning camping equipment at:

norixzeta@gmail.com

Many thanks,

Earl and Bev

More Birthdays

2008-06-11T10:27:00.000-05:00

June 3 John celebrated his 18th birthday. It seems as though it was only days ago that he was born and now he is almost as tall as me, growing in responsiblity and lots smarter.

Friday and Saturday we spent the day in Managua after we had dropped Bev off at a Pastors' wives retreat. Indiana Jones, Subway sandwiches, walking the malls and time together was the plan for Friday afternoon and evening. It was a good time together. Our real reason for being there was that he was taking the SAT test. He will get ratings in the 700's; smart kid like his mom. Bev and I are proud of him.

Tomorrow is Bev's birthday. I'll not mention her age, but she is only 4 years younger than I am. We'll be going to Managua to take my mom to the airport for a 4 month visit in the States. We'll take advantage of the trip to celebrate her birthday, visit some friends and do the Managua thing - shop and buy.

Birthdays, Anniversaries, Mothers' Days, etc.

2008-05-31T17:43:00.001-05:00

Lot's of activity in the months of May, June and July...

Mother's day and the US date, 2nd Sunday, is different than the Nicaraguan celebration which is the 30th no matter the day it falls on.

Bev and I celebrated our 26th wedding anniversary on May 22. It has been an awesome time and the upcoming years are surely something looked forward to with much anticipation.

A friend asked what I had given her for our anniversary and I told him that we had purchased a washing machine. In unbelief he asked me if it wouldn't have been better to take her out to eat or to a night in a hotel or resort. I told him that we had gone out to eat... He seemed satisfied.

I was thinking later that I should have asked him if it would have been better to give her a Nicaraguan lavandero or a good old American washing machine. With the money saved I could have taken her out to eat a few more times, if she had the time. God bless Westinghouse!

I think he would have understood my decision, but the thought was late and I didn't have the chance.

Judah has also celebrated his birthday this month. He is now 16 years old and a fine young man. Contacts instead of glasses were his gift.

God is good and we have truly enjoyed the month.

Proud Dad

2008-05-20T19:40:00.000-05:00

Well, the video says it all.

I'm proud of Judah and the "examen de grado" in his Tae Kwon Do classes. This kick was the final part of his test to move up from yellow with a grade to green. It was a very advanced kick for his level and he executed it with precision and excellence. Good job, Judah!

Furlough - A leave of absence or vacation

2008-05-07T10:35:00.000-05:00

We are ready to TRAVEL!!!

We have talked about an extended trip to the States for quite some time and now it is becoming a reality! Last week our tickets were reserved. We will be flying with our 6 younger children to Dallas, Texas on July 15 and our return to Nicaragua will be September 18. Cheree is studying Graphic Design at the University of Commercial Sciences in Managua and does not have breaks between trimesters, therefore she will not be traveling with us.

So, what do the kids remember from the 3 week trip we made 6 years ago:

Kelsy: going to the zoo with Grandma and Grandpa (from the pictures she has seen)
Luke: "Pastor Craft's" church
Lance: eating Krystal hamburgers and riding in the car
Judah: seeing "my breath" in the cold air
John: Uncle Lloyd's, youth camp, a worship seminar and working for Mr. Iwan (John went for a 4 week visit with Earl 2 years ago)

Our planned route is over 6500 miles, +/- 500 gallons of gasoline, that will be over 110 road hours which should leave us a good 40+ days to visit friends, family and sites of interest... we are looking forward to our "visit to a foreign country". The main purpose is to take our 6 younger children on a travel / camping trip so they can better appreciate their American heritage and experience some of the enjoyable points of the United States. In the past 15 years we have traveled to the States as a family only twice and the cumulative time is 7 months.
We are preparing everything here to function smoothly while we are gone and to transition into our move to Jinotega for new ministry there when we return. The "To Do List" is lengthy, with the following being among the most crucial:

Passport renewals, two U.S. and a few Nicaraguan, with 9 people and four Nica among us there is always a passport that needs attention
Distribution of all church responsibilities, big and small, to the elders at La Fuente and their emerging leaders
Finishing homeschool for the year
Preparing the house for our two month absence and future move
Finalizing contacts and scheduling for our trip while in the States

There are several things we need to make this trip a success. Maybe you could help with something on the list:

a roadworthy vehicle for 8 passengers and limited luggage (a 12 passenger van would be nice) to use for 2 months and 7000+ miles
finish payment of the plane tickets - $2500
camping equipment for our 2 month "tour" - tents, sleeping bags, camp stove, utensils, cooler, etc. (a combination of fun and reducing lodging costs)
funds for travel expenses - gasoline alone is projected to be $40 a day or $2500 (at least it is cheaper there than in Nicaragua), plus food, lodging, and other
car seat for our growing two year old

We still need to finish paying off the last portion of the plane tickets and, above our normal monthly expenses, we will need several 1000 dollars more to make the most of this special trip with our children. If you would like to help with this dream please send your financial gifts to our World Outreach Fellowship address [checks payable to World Outreach Fellowship]...

World Outreach Fellowship
2011 West Marshall Ave.
Longview, TX 75604

...or, communicate regarding items you could loan us during this time at norixzeta@gmail.com .

We look forward to seeing many of our friends and family as we travel... see ya soon!

Newsletter - February, 2008

2008-02-08T18:50:00.000-06:00

Dear Friends,

This started as a Happy New Year's letter. How quickly pass the days and weeks! I greatly underestimate the time necessary to do things these days. It might be more accurate to multiply my estimate by three. Added to the daily schedule of home making, home school, hospitality, Ladies studies and church activities, office duties, etc. are now Esperanza's 2 year old antics, complete with mischief-making time-consuming interruptions, and of course the potty training, which is always an urgent NOW even though you never know for sure. But based on the reflection, "How quickly pass the years," I wouldn't trade these precious days for anything because the time to impact our children's lives is indeed short. We are so thankful for the goodness of the Lord working in and through each of our family members.

After a year's absence which Cheree thoroughly enjoyed with YWAM Puerto Rico including trips to China and to the Dominican Republic, she received a miraculous favor to be able to jump right back into her studies in Managua. Instead of having to repeat part of her 2nd year, she is finishing it, and in February she will begin her 3rd year in Graphic Design.

John, 17, is finishing his senior year of high school with a very sharp and quick mind. He's praying for wisdom and direction for the upcoming year, if he should participate with us as we move north to Jinotega to start a new work, or start the pursuit of a business degree (when, where, how?) He helps with the youth at church and continues doing the sound. He enjoys indoor soccer and basketball.

Judah, 15, is the drummer on the worship team and in a youth band. He is excelling in both chemistry and physics this year, has advanced rapidly in Tae Kwan Do, and also does well in a drawing class taught by a local but well-known artist.

Lance, 13, plays congas and guitar. He keeps up in school and enjoys scooter riding, reading, and making things out of clay, which he does so well that we would like to find him some sculpting classes. He's got a great attitude about life and gets along with everyone.

Luke, 11, is energy personified. He is also playing guitar and excelling because he enjoys it so much we never have to tell him to practice. Instead we have to tell him to stop playing and do his chores, stop playing and do his schoolwork, stop playing and finish the dishes, etc. His favorite past-time is to copy whatever new thing his brothers are doing.

Kelsy Joy, just turned 8, is a fine princess. She does well in school in third grade and is a constant help, especially by playing with Esperanza when Mom needs to get something done. Her name shows in her song and dance, and she is a joy to have around.

Esperanza, 2, is just beginning to talk, but that is the only thing she is slow in—she definitely moves quickly. She understands everything one says, and responds well too. Her favorite past-time is playing with our black Labrador. She will sit on him, lay on him, and also share her cookie or whatever with him, so he is quite tolerant and curbs his rambunctious activeness with her.

Grandma, Earl's mom, is a great help with the home schooling of Luke and Kelsy. She is faithful to help in so many ways when we get over loaded or have to be away from the house a day or two. She's a real blessing to us. She is recovering from some health problems, so we would appreciate your prayers for her quick and complete healing and recovery.

We thank God for His continued goodness and blessing. Our church leaders have matured greatly this year, and we are preparing them as well as new leaders, especially with the goal of expanding our ministry north to the city of Jinotega this year. Earl continues as pastor of La Fuente, but has slowly moved into the role of overseer, observing and mentoring those he has delegated responsibilities to: the every so often. He plays with the worship team, but not every Sunday. He works with the radio program, but has an assistant that does the majority of the work. We have a couple trained in to teach the marriage course which will begin in Feb. Our leaders are teaching all 4 of the class levels in the Discipleship School this trimester. Earl will be teaching the Ministry School classes, which is open to those who have finished the year of Discipleship School. We are in transition mode, and are praying for the exact time table for how things should progress so that it will be a smooth transfer.

Our desire as a family is that before we whole-heartedly launch a new work, we would first be able to make an extended 2-3 month visit to the States for our children to have a chance to experience part of their heritage and have something to relate to when they hear the words, "United States." We've only made two family trips to the States since moving to Nicaragua in 1993. Our last visit was in 2002 and was for 3 weeks; the visit before that was in 1995 for 5 months. Please pray with us for a mighty provision for us to be able to make this trip as well as the many details that will have to fall in place. We don't regret for a moment our call to Nicaragua or that we've not had frequent trips in the past, but feel it is time in our children's lives for such an event. Thank you for your prayers.

Some words we felt that God wanted us to take hold of as we started our new year was, "Behold, I will do a new thing," (Isaiah 43:19), "Behold I make all things new" (Rev. 21:5) and that to receive the blessing of new wine, we must first have new wine-skins. So on January 1st we started meeting for prayer every morning from 6 to 7 at church, inviting all who wanted God to do something new in their lives. The first day only 4 came, but within a few days we were up to 10. Each week our group has grown steadily in number to where we now have 24-28 present regularly and up to 34 twice. Some come every day, while others come twice a week. God is doing something new in us and in our people, bringing a stronger unity, increasing faith, creating expectancy, and bringing alertness for opportunities to share His Word with others during the day. Like the dew of early morning, God is giving us freshness for each day. We obviously are not in the dead of winter here, but even for those in the physical cold and those in barren and cold circumstances, we pray for God's blanket of freshness to grace your lives each and every morning. May a song of praise be in your heart, and may His Words of life be in your mouth so that you are ready at all times to minister grace and encouragement to those to whom you speak.

Thank you for participating with us in our work. May the fruit of your labors be abundantly blessed.

Co-laborers for the harvest,
Earl and Beverly Rutledge

February Update

2008-02-08T18:12:00.000-06:00

Here is a recent family picture taken just this last Sunday.

Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years and now coming up on Feb. 14th... the year is again flying by.

January 1 we started morning prayer scheduled to take place for 21 days focusing on preparing for new wine. We started with 4-8 the first week, moved up to 12-18 the second and finished with 30 the third and therefore decided to extend to the end of the month of January. The last week we were consitantly seeing 30 people show up.

School officially started the 4th of Feb and attendance has gone down to an average of 15+, but there are those faithfuls that have hardly missed. It's been exciting and we are extending the time form one more week to end the 15th of Feb. God has been good... we're expecting big things from Him.

Thanksgiving Part 2

2007-11-24T15:48:00.001-06:00

Yesterday evening we worked on some of the best "leftovers" from Thanksgiving dinner. My dearest Beverly always out does herself when she begins to cook special meals; she is the best cook in the whole world and this cherry filling topped cheese cake was proof of it. Mmmm good, yea!!!

A friend asked, "so how do you celebrate Thanksgiving in Nicaragua?"

First, it is not celebrated by Nicaraguans, but we enjoy remembering our blessings from the past year so we do enjoy the day.

This year dinner, eaten at 2 P.M., was baked chicken [this chicken was a bit different because according to what I found in the pot it had at least 10 legs], corn, mashed potatoes and gravey, stuffing [stuffed into a bowl instead of a turkey], acorn squash [instead of sweet potateos], bread , cranberry sauce and tea - a very tasty meal and worthy of eating a bit too much. Later in the evening we ate the pumpkin cheese cake mentioned in a previous blog.

Truly God has been good this year... that's not a measure of the food we ate, instead it is thankfullness because He has provided for all our needs, kept us healthy and moving forward, the minsitry has advanced and is preparing for new advances in 2008. Cheree visited China and the Dominican Republic, I made a couple trips to the States, and my mom is living with us and doing very well. We are very thankful for His grace, mercy and abundant blessing.

A Happy Thanksgiving

2007-11-22T21:27:00.001-06:00

This is the day that the Lord has made; I will rejoice and be glad init. Psalms 118:24

I will praise Thee, O Lord, with my whole heart! Psalms 111:1

My meditation of Him shall be sweet: I will be glad in the Lord. Psalms 104:34

Happy Thanksgiving! Here's one of the pies Bev cooked for our dinner today and it was good. We'll eat the cherry cheese cake tomorrow and it will be even better. Bev's Thanksgiving letter continues below. Blessings and peace.

Today is one bit of American culture that we observe that is not included anywhere on the Nicaraguan calendar, although they celebrate more holidays than does the U.S. However, we believe the number of people here that recognize God as their source of life and give God genuine thanks for His tremendous blessings are growing in number. Here in Matagalpa we have so much for which to be thankful! After the devastating flood last month that destroyed so much, life has returned to a more normal schedule for the majority of the people. Electricity is off only about 2 hours a day now; water is off and on, but mostly on -- nice changes. Prices have drastically increased, but we praise God for His promise to provide our needs for every day. He is always faithful, and His faithfulness does not depend on the current market prices. We are so glad our God is bigger than that, and His provision comes in a myriad of ways. One form of His provision is His protection.

When the dust settled from the frantic days of reaching out to the panic-stricken and suffering people, it was an amazing testimony to realize that none of our people closely ntegrated in our church had major losses. God's hand of protection was upon them, their house structures, and even the majority of their household goods. God is so good! Losses amounted mostly to mattresses, clothes, paper items and other smaller items that were swept away with the rushing water. For those that would like to help, we need to replace all the mattresses we gave away (we receive our next team of people in Dec.) and we are also preparing gift baskets to replace some of the small items lost.

We also rejoice that our helping hands also have brought a few back to the fold. The goodness of God leads to repentance (Rom. 2:4). Helping them with their more severe losses has shown them God's love in a way that words could not communicate. We pray that this time they will "stick" and become true disciples to in turn be a blessing to others. We praise God for His gracious compassion, for His truth and righteousness, for His power to make us strong in weakness. We praise Him for our health, for vigor and excitement to complete His calling on our lives, for all our children all serving God, for our church leadership rising up in maturity and strength, for new disciples and growth in all our lives, for His direction and new horizons (Jinotega in 2008), for new friendships and for our old faithful friends who pray for us and support us, thereby serving God with us in impacting Nicaragua with God's good news.

Thank you, our dear friends. May God bless you greatly in this season of Thanksgiving and celebration.

We are thankful for His grace and content in His goodness,

Fwd: A few Recent thoughts from Bev

2007-10-30T16:37:00.001-05:00

At the moment, Bev is the one on the front line. I, Earl, am still in the States and will be here a bit longer. Here are some thoughts from Bev about how it is today. Sure wish I could be there. I miss MyLady and my kids.

God is been good,
Earl

We've had days of water, and now it's irregular again. We had a weekend of electricity and last night it was off again. Normal normal there.
I've spent alot of time counseling my leaders these past 2 weeks, and a few affected by the flooding in the church finally had a delayed reaction to the trauma, but I think we're all doing well emotionally.
Due to a mix up Sun. I ended up preaching. At least I had a few minutes during the praise and worship to write a few notes. God is good, it went very well.
School got a bit behind, so what else is new.
Esperanza has been very fussy, and that makes everything take alot longer.

Love to all,
Bev

Helping People in Relief Centers after the Flooding in Matagalpa

2007-10-30T12:00:00.001-05:00

The meals we prepared, 300+ a day for 3 days, were taken to people in the relief centers established through out the city.

People in Relief Centers after the floods in Matagalpa

2007-10-30T11:57:00.001-05:00

Many, many families were affected by the flooding, most of them poor and unable to re-establish themselves some where else.

La Fuente Helping People Affected by Flooding in Matagalpa

2007-10-30T11:40:00.001-05:00

We cooked 300+ meals a day for 3 days to help those in need. Saturday major relief organizations like Red Cross and Care moved in. We helped fill in the gap until they arrived.

People in Need

2007-10-30T11:24:00.001-05:00

Many different people were affected, but the most affected, of course, were the children and the elderly.

Don Enrique is an elderly man in our church.

Flood Damage in Matagalpa

2007-10-30T11:21:00.001-05:00

Standing water and damage to buildings and bridges close to the river were common.

More pics of the Flooding in Matagalpa

2007-10-30T11:15:00.001-05:00

Houses were flooded and the contents were damaged.

Flooding in Matagalpa - 2

2007-10-30T11:11:00.001-05:00

The streets looked like this 2 days after the flooding.

Flooding in Matagalpa

2007-10-21T23:41:00.000-05:00

In this picture you can see two cars that the Rio Grande of Matagalpa have claimed because of heavy rains and flooding last week in the city and departmento of Matagalpa, Nicaragua. Here are observations Bev saw and made from Matagalpa on Saturday. I'll try to get some photos that show some of the efforts we at Iglesia La Fuente have made and some of the damage incurred as soon as possible.

The last two days have been quite traumatic in Matagalpa due to very heavy rains and flooding. On Wednesday about dusk the Rio Grande of Matagalpa, that goes through the center of the city and is usually more like a stream instead of a great river, overflowed its banks due to very heavy rains up in the mountains. There was hardly any warning of the pending doom, and many people close to the river lost all or the majority of their material goods, due to either being swept away in the torrential waters or by being damaged by the intrusion of muddy, smelly water four feet or higher into their homes. Within 30 minutes of the hit, the electricity in the entire city went out, and we remained without power until 6 am on Thursday. This left people battling the raging river in the dark, many overcome with panic, fear, and desperation.

On Thursday, trudging through the mud up to my knees to visit our families in one neighborhood, I cried with them at the devastation all around as I prayed, "God give me some words of hope for your people. What do I say? What do I do?"

A team of willing servants from the church assembled Thursday morning, and by Friday morning 450 plates of food had been prepared and delivered to the hardest hit areas. We've also been giving away clothes and other basic items as quickly as they are collected. By Friday some other groups also started giving aid, so we have directed our efforts yesterday and today including (another 250 plates of food), towards a neglected area north of town where one of our affected member's home is located. The estimate is that over 1000 families were affected, among which are 12 families in our church. One family is staying with us as they seek to relocate in another house. This is the second time this month that the river has entered their home. Wednesday's trauma was much worse than the effects of Felix, and the overall damage appears to surpass that of Hurricane Mitch back in 1998, when we first moved to Matagalpa. Eight have been reported dead, crops have been lost, and many bridges and roads have been destroyed.

The city remains without clean water, which has obviously hindered efforts at cleaning up and trying to salvage items with a good washing. Yesterday I cleaned our house gutters so that our rain water will be more usable, since that is our only source of water right now until the destroyed city pipes are repaired.

Please continue to pray for us: 1) Restoration and provision, strength and hope for those who suffered loss; 2) Strength, endurance, and a chance to rest for those that have been serving non-stop; 3) rapid restoration of city water, and enough rain to provide the necessary water until then; 4) that our efforts will show the steadfast love of the Lord and glorify Him.

A Few Recent Pics of the Family

2007-10-10T09:12:00.000-05:00

A Sunday, Family picture

My Lady and Me

Precious Little Esperanza - 22 months

Water, Water Everywhere

2007-10-10T08:00:00.000-05:00

Notes on the week of October 1-5 - written by Bev on October 5

It's been an interesting week, to say the least, and since I find myself awake at 3 am I must take advantage of the fact that there is electricity. There have been heavy rains and some flooding since Wednesday of last week. We've been without water and electricity much more than normal this week. I could say it's because we have company this week and that is something that seems to happen when we have company. At least the problems started 6am Monday, not on Wed.

Wed. afternoon we had a very hard and long rain. It came from the west instead of the north, and rain blew into the front of the house and came down the wall on which the bookshelf is. We had a time moving all the books and mopping up the water, unaware of the dangerous and more serious trouble of those along the river. Apparently the rain was also heavy up in the mountains and the river swelled up incredibly fast. With very little warning forceful water flooded several homes, carrying away all lighter items in its path. We housed 2 girls for the night, who arrived in a panic-stricken state after evacuating their house as it filled with water and mud. We were unable to communicate with many of our people who live along the river until Thursday, since the phone lines were cut off. One of our families had the water stop at the threshhold of their house. Another was able to move all damageable items up to their second floor before the water entered their house. We praise God for His protection.

Another tradegy we didn't hear about until late at night when Yolanda called to request prayer for her sister. (Yolanda is one of my leaders, married to Alejandro, one of our elders.) Her sister rides a motorcycle in her work duties, and was stuck on the edge of the river trying to get out of it's pull. Along with some others, a 17 year old young man entered the river to try to help her. He was swept away and we have still not heard if he's been found. [He was later found, dead.] Please pray for Miriam, that the images in her mind of him being swept away and the sense of guilt she feels can be dealt with correctly, and that this will spur her to seek the Lord with all her heart and that she will find a real relationship with God, peace, and wholeness through all this.

Then Wed. about midnight, an electrical fire broke out in the north-market when a transformer exploded. Between 20 and 30 "tramites" were destroyed. A tramite is a business booth, anywhere from 5 to 15 square yards each. Products vary from fruits and vegetables to shoes and clothes, toiletries, plastic items, etc. So pray for those who suffered loss, both in their housing conditions as well as their businesses.

Pray also for the girls we housed Wed. night, Indira and Waleska, motherless 18 and 16 year olds who have resisted counsel in the past, but turned to us in time of crisis. They both need to make serious changes in their lives now before irreversible consequences start to make their lives more and more miserable. The desire to change is not there. Pray that they will be able to see with the same clarity they had of escaping the river's strong currect, their need to escape the forceful current of sin and destruction around them.

On a lighter note, our trip as a family to Jinotega on Monday went very well. All the children liked it and had positive things to say. The biggest thing is that we are giving them plenty of time to adjust their thinking to embrace a move there, the thought being that we'd like to take a family trip to the States April/May and then come back to Matagalpa to prepare to move sometime in July, our favorite moving month history says.

Monday evening our guests arrived, a couple with Covenant Players, a ministry in drama who are working at establishing contacts with the other churches in this area. They will leave on Monday or Tuesday.

This week we also lent our church to a group from the Second Baptist Church in Springfield, Missouri who taught a 4 day seminar for all the pastors/leaders in the area. Earl was impressed with the quality of teaching at all the sessions he was able to attend. The seminar ended yesterday [Thursday, Oct 4]. Today, I hope, we are back to a more normal schedule. As always, it's school that usually suffers the most with the unexpected. We actually did better this week than we have during past interruptions, so that is encouraging.

Well, that's the news for the moment from Matagalpa, and I will send this as we have no guarantee of how long we will have electricity AND water pressure and there are clothes to be washed.

Continuation written October 9

Both water and electricity have been luxuries this past month. It keeps us humble and grateful. We are so blessed to have a large tank that can fill automatically when the city water does come through the pipes, and also have lanterns, emergency lights and flashlights. Many here do not have these luxuries.

We appreciate your prayers so much! Thank you for your faithfulness in co-laboring with us.

In our work focus we have been concentrating on two main areas: keeping up with the daily homeschool schedule, which keeps me plenty busy, and also delegating more and more responsibility to our leaders. We are moving ahead with plans to start another church in a city north of Matagalpa next year, and are therefore entering into a transition phase in order to give everyone plenty of time to adapt and make the necessary changes. We are still praying about all that this will entail with us as a family. Our children enjoyed a recent trip up to our target city, so their minds and hearts are also being prepared.

The idea that both Earl and I received separately in prayer as our method of entrance into people's lives is that of offering an English course. We have both resisted this idea for some time now, but believe it is the Lord's leading and have received confirmation from some of our leaders here, so we are checking out different courses to make the best purchase to start this venture. We will pilot it with our leaders here to work out some of the bugs that are inevitable.

Pray for more detailed directions as we follow the steps we have been shown.

Jinotega: A photo

2007-10-04T07:59:00.000-05:00

Here is a picture of Jinotega from the highway as we entered the city on Monday. We'll take more photos next time we go.

A Visit to Jinotega

2007-10-03T11:29:00.000-05:00

Monday we went to Jinotega as a family to "spy out the land".

We arrived a bit after 11 a.m. and proceeded to eat lunch, chat with them a bit and release them to see the city on their own in groups of 2. They had about an hour and a half to walk around and see what ever they wanted to see. Once we were all back together, we talked about their observations in the van and then in the evening we all talked again about what we had seen and thought during the day. All the kids were positive about the day, expressing their concerns, but positive and accepting.

Their positive observations were that the city is peaceful, smaller, cooler, relaxed and has nice parks. There is not much traffic; there are good sidewalks; it has a kids park; is closer to the mountains; and it is easy to get around. Bev noticed that a lot of the women are pregnant. I found out that there are three universities and a fourth one that will open next year and there are no English language schools.

The main concern expressed was the leaving of friends in Matagalpa. "Can we visit at least once a month," was a consistent request.

Bev and I know there are other questions and doubts there like opportunities to play indoor soccer, to continue with Tae Kwon Do, etc.

It is a beautiful location with lots of outing opportunities. It is a more conservative and reserved city. There are a good number of churches there but none in the center part of town and they are not unified at all.

The altitude is 3232 feet above sea level
The population is approximately 51,000 as of 2005
80% of the nations coffee comes from the department of Jinotega

The Starting of a New Idea and a New Adventure

2007-09-30T08:59:00.000-05:00

Friday, Sept 28, I was out and about, paying bills [or trying to... only in Nicaragua], buying stuff and, as normal, walking and thinking. Into my head came an idea that I have long resisted; the idea of English classes to make the start in Jinotega.

I continued home, that's the direction I was headed, and during the late afternoon mentioned the idea to Bev. She said, "I've been thinking the same thing."

Oh my, God, are you speaking? I think so.

I wrote Scott and mentioned some of the English, Alpha and coffee. Wow, a combination and it will work. I'm going to have to present the idea to Armin and see how it fits into the accounting of Al-Mundo. You know, I'm excited about this.

Securing materials, learning and preparing will be from now til Jan. Practice on classes will be here with people from the church; Jan - March. Visits to Jinotega need to start soon. D-day Jinotega will be in July.

The spark has been ignited. I'm excited. Let's go... God, touch the world through us.

History 201 - Looking to the North

2007-08-29T12:44:00.000-05:00

On night in October 1997 I had been doing a couple teachings on praise and worship at a small Baptist church somewhere in Managua and the last evening was special. It had been a combination of worship and teaching, not just an hour teaching time. It as very interesting, because I never even took the guitar off; sing, worship, share, worship, share, worship, share, etc. It was a very good night from what I can remember.

When I got home Bev and I began talking about the evening and the future. I mentioned again, having had the conversation several times before, about a recording studio. Bev "reminded" me to not get outside of my calling and, knowing the basic answer, I asked her to remind me of my callings. Teaching and worship was her answer and somewhere in the conversation was mentioned "maybe pastoring."

"Pastor? where?" I asked.

"North Nicaragua," she responded.

I had been thinking on that line already. God was leading and all we needed was confirmation and green light from our leadership in the US and from Verbo.

Look to the North!

Summer News - 2007

2007-07-26T15:49:00.000-05:00

We are proud of our daughter, Cheree, for how well she's done in communication in newsletters and thank-you notes during her 11 months in Youth With A Mission in Puerto Rico. When she gets home in August maybe we'll put her in charge of ours, so that maybe we also will manage to be more in touch. For those who haven't been on Cheree's mailing list, she's had an awesome time, experienced tremendous growth and development in many areas in addition to the spiritual aspect, and enjoyed wonderful experiences in China and in the Dominican Republic during her outreach times. She is very glad that she stayed to take the second course, Principles of Working with Children and Youth.

This month celebrates some special milestones in our lives: Earl's 50th birthday and 14th year anniversary of living in Nicaragua, and Lance's 13th birthday and our 9th year anniversary of living in Matagalpa.

We've had a great summer with lots of company. With the help of a terrific team of 31 youth and their leaders from Omaha, Nebraska, the church received a handsome inside facelift of paint and outside a new roof addition to allow the children's church ministry to expand to the back patio. We had a great week of various ministry times at the church, at the hospital, and in a poor neighborhood. The group culminated their time here with a huge Children's Festival; we had over 150 children attend, and all left happy and content. Thank you, Lord.

My lady leaders and the mothers who attended the great Festival with their children or heard about it from an enthused source became motivated to organize a similar event for the women. This time we enjoyed the participation of a great team from Cincinnati, Ohio for our Saturday of fun. Several first-time visitors joined us, and were able to see the joy of the Lord in action. I know they will be back, hungry for more. One of the purposes of this event was to introduce our new Bible study theme from Titus, "Challenges of Today's Modern Woman," which we pray will impact our ladies in many practical areas in their lives.

Rejoice, and again I say rejoice! We had a challenging week, being without a telephone line for 4 days, without electricity 42 hours, a sick baby, a team of 28 to feed, and no water. God is so good though; we didn't have to deal with everything all at once. We got the phone back after the first day without electricity, and the water didn't shut off until after the electricity came back on. God provided coolers so very little food was lost to spoilage; He provided 2 gas lanterns which lit the entire living room, and mom's oven next door works without electricity. Yeah God.

24 Hours of Prayer - This past weekend we spent our 3rd time as a church manning a 24 hour prayer vigil. For this time period we had a minimum of two people praying at all times, and experienced surges of up to 50 at a time seeking God in prayer, sometimes individually and sometimes in groups. Around 80 people overall participated during the 24 hours, with a group of 30 staying the entire night to enjoy God's presence, worship Him, and intercede for the different needs presented.

Praise reports: Our leaders are functioning well without our direct 100% involvement, which is enabling us to focus in other directions such as radio ministry and a new church plant for next year.

Our family was given a new vehicle, a 16 passenger van! What a huge blessing that this personal need for transportation was met!

Cheree's expenses with YWAM and her outreaches have been totally provided for.

God's provision is awesome. He works through so many people in a variety of ways. Every month is different, but we rejoice that at the end of it, all the expenses have been covered.

Thank you, faithful friends, for being the channel of provision and blessing to us. We trust that God will continue to multiply your seed sown in mighty ways.

Prayer Petitions

We have made steps of faith in making improvements on our present building, and continue to pray for the provision to purchase both it and the adjoining property.
The country is still experiencing a lack of electrical power, which results in frequent power outages.
Peace in the political realm, integrity and wisdom for the governing parties, protection of godliness and freedoms, economic stability of the nation

Thanks again for your support and prayers. We pray that God will perform His purpose in your life today.

Blessings and peace,
Earl and Bev

History 101 - the First Years

2007-07-09T18:14:00.000-05:00

We complete 14 years in Nicaragua on July 29, 2007 and 8 years in Matagalpa on July 26,2007 so it is time to celebrate. Even more the reason to celebrate is, it will be Lance's 13th birthday on the 26th and my 50th on the 29th. Not getting any younger, but we're going forward, full-steam.

We came to Nicaragua with Mission Aviation Fellowship in 1993 as teachers for missionary children in Managua Nicaragua Christian Academy. We served with MAF for 2 years and then transitioned to work under the covering of our home church mission organization, World Outreach Fellowship. After returning to the US for 5 months we returned to Nicaragua on a new adventure to work directly with the Nicaraguan people and churches. Our initial contact was Verbo Church Nicaragua. Sorry the linked site is in Spanish.

The next 3 years our ministry was helping various ministries around the capital city of Managua and the Atlantic Coast in the city of Bluefields. We continued teaching part-time at the Academy and with other ministries such as YWAM, Verbo Church and the Foursquare Church. November of 1998 Bev and I began to perceive a change of location and ministry.

Matagalpa, Our City in the North

2007-07-04T19:44:00.001-05:00