ave to wait. I do want to say that we feel so blessed to be part of what the Lord is doing there at CINAFE. I feel like we have the best of both worlds of ministry. We have the freedom to minister when, where and to whom God puts before us… and honestly, there’s never an end to that opportunity for any of us. But, we are now in a situation where we are able to not only minister to others, but to start building some long-term relationships. This is an answer to prayer for us and some of the folks we are working with there are absolute treasures. But I need to go back to what I was beginning to write before and finish that before starting something new here.A week ago last Friday night, Miguel (Tipitapa) called and said that Danelia had invited us to come to her house for lunch on Saturday. We would go there before our classes began. We told Miguel we would love to come for lunch and we just assumed that Miguel and Elizabeth would be there, also. Jim and I talked again about what a special family they are. The weekend before, when we were there dropping off Kenneth’s Sustagen and produce items, Danelia told me that Arturo wanted to talk to me in private. I went in to the house while Jim, Danelia and the kids stood outside and visited.
Arturo started out thanking me for all that we do for their family. He then held out a $100 cordoba bill (which is about $5). He told me that was their first payment on the “loan” we had made to them last fall. He said that he thought he could pay back about that same amount each month. I reassured him that we weren’t in any hurry and that it wasn’t necessary for him to do that. Between you and us, when we “loaned” them that money, we did it with the intention that they would most likely never be able to pay it back. In our minds, it was a gift. Arturo pressed the money in my hand and told me that they appreciate all the help we give them and that he wanted us to know that they would pay back the loan.
As much as I didn’t want to take that money, I knew I needed to do so. Arturo would be offended if I didn’t and I would be undermining one of the very qualities that we admire so much in him and that is that he is a man who wants to provide for his family. They are not a family who desires to live off charity. They are a family who has been bombarded with some very difficult circumstances and they are doing everything they can to keep moving forward.
I took the money and thanked Arturo. He smiled and I think he stood a little taller. I told him that the food we bring each week is not part of the loan and that it is something we want to do to help with Kenneth’s nutrition. He thanked us again for that and said that he thinks it is helping Kenneth to stay strong during his chemo treatments. I tucked the money in my jeans pocket and went back outside and neither Arturo nor I said anything about it. Even though Danelia already knew and they knew I would tell Jim, somehow it just seemed like it was much more respectful to not discuss it.
We arrived at their house that Saturday about 10 minutes late. It took longer at the market than we had anticipated but 10 minutes late in Nicaragua is still about 20 minutes early. The neighborhood where Arturo and Danelia live is a rough area. The dirt roads are deeply rutted and filled with trash. Many of the houses are just pieces of tin put together and they are all crammed together. No one has any type of indoor plumbing. It’s a sad and depressing place but I think that must be true only to foreign eyes. The kids in the neighborhood are always out playing and they usually have smiles on their faces until they lock eyes with a gringo. Then they are still and sober…and very leary.
When we got to the house, Kenneth and Lindsay came running out to meet us and the little boy across the road came running to the fence. He watches us come every week and this week, I got him to speak to me. His mother also waved for the first time. The little boy is probably about 3 or 4 years old and is usually just in his underwear. He reminds me of the Peanuts character “Pigpen” as he has to be one of the dirtiest little guys I’ve seen. I would almost swear that when he runs, swirls of dirt fall off around him like little dust devil tornados. But the dirt can’t hide what a cute little guy he is. His hair is light brown, almost blonde and his complexion is much lighter than a typical Nica’s complexion. He almost looks more European than Nicaraguan.
He always stands and solemnly watches us as we carry in the bags of produce on our weekend visits. It is getting harder and harder each week to see that little face at the fence. I have imagined all kinds of things that he must think. I wonder if he questions why Kenneth and Lindsay get yummy fruit each weekend and he gets nothing. I don’t think I can keep doing this and yet I know that his eyes aren’t the only ones that watch us week after week. Where would we stop? With him…or with the other little boy who lives next door to Danelia?
He sits out on his stoop and also watches our every move…he, too, knows we are bringing in food. It’s hard to hide a 24” papaya or a big, round watermelon. Then there is the house two doors down and across the street. There must be 5 or 6 children who live there. They give us the same solemn stare every time we leave and drive by their house. People often comment about how they wish they could do something like this. It’s true that we feel incredibly blessed to be the conduit for folks in the States to do God’s work here. But, I would caution you…be careful what you wish for…it’s not always as it appears. Sometimes it’s incredibly difficult in ways you would never imagine and the choices that we often have to make are almost unbearable at times when it comes to deciding who gets food when so many are hungry.
Kenneth and Lindsay excitedly took their packages of food in. They are always so charged up to see what things are in the bags. It never fails to touch me to see the kids so eager to receive fruits and vegetables. We walked in to the house to see that Danelia had covered an old wooden table, which normally sits out back, with a plastic tablecloth and had it sitting in the middle of the room. I told her how pretty it looked and she smiled. She told me it was their 14th wedding anniversary and they wanted us to celebrate it with them. We had no idea that it was a special occasion!
I told her we didn’t know that and we were so honored that they would ask us to share that special day with them. She smiled and asked Arturo to show us where we could go wash our hands. They live in a small neatly kept two room concrete block house and so we knew we wouldn’t have far to walk. We went through the doorway which opened up in to their bedroom and out the back door to the small outside covered kitchen.
There was a small wood fire going with a huge pot of soup on it. There was a bar of soap in the pila and water already run for us to wash up. There was no towel so after shaking our hands we wiped them on our pants. Lindsay and Kenneth stayed right with us and watched us carefully…I guess they wanted to make sure we wash our hands the same way they do. I love the curiosity of these kids.
D
anelia fixed us a wonderful meal. She told us that she wanted to feed us a traditional Nicaraguan meal as she remembered that I said I like Nica food. She prepared a chicken soup that was delicious. It had pieces of chicken, (including the bones) along with potatoes, ayote (a type of squash), onion, peppers, garlic, platanos and spices. She also prepared rice and served tortillas that she had purchased from one of her neighbors. As is usual when we eat at someone’s home, we were served first and the portions were huge! Lunch was served in cracked plastic bowls and chipped mismatched glass plates. The mismatched spoons were of very thin metal…we were given the two large spoons which were the nicest of those set out. I describe these things so that you will have a better idea of how little these folks have. The other side of that is that we had a great time visiting over great food with great folks and it doesn't get any better than that no matter how costly the china might be or rich the sauces. We had a feast!After lunch, we sat and talked for awhile. Danelia showed me a book that she is using with a project that their church is doing in conjunction with Compassion International. It’s a great program and will minister to about 140 children in their barrio, teaching the children about Jesus, about preventative health care, about life skills, and so on. The church is also going to have a feeding program for the kids that are involved. Danelia said that she was so honored and excited to be part of this project. She told me that she felt like God had blessed their family so much…that Kenneth is still living, that He had brought us to walk this journey with them (now you know that was a humbling and tearful moment) and that she sees His hand on their lives every day.
She got their picture album and showed me a timeline of pictures from their wedding, 14 years prior, to pictures taken not that long ago. She showed me a picture of a former pastor that she loved and respected. He had died of cancer. She then showed me a picture of a woman that had been her friend. She died last year – with cancer. And with tears in her eyes, she looked at Kenneth and said that she felt it was time for her to try to give back and she told me she had an idea and wanted to know if I would help her with it.
She turned to a picture of a bunch of kids – all ages. She began pointing to different kids and telling me the ones that were involved with drugs, the ones that have been caught stealing, the ones whose fathers no longer live with them, the ones who have suffered abuse, and so forth. Each child had a story. Danelia said that she wanted to have an “event” at her house and invite those children and their families. She wants us to do a Bible study with the parents and she will do lessons with the children. She said most do not know Jesus and they are hard people to reach…and she told me they were poor. I guess poverty is relative. She asked if I could help her with the materials and help her put it together. I immediately said “yes” before I could let all the obstacles and objections take form in my mind.
I love Danelia’s heart and her desire to pass on the blessings she feels she has received. I love that she wants to give to her community. I love that she knows that there is a bigger plan in all their lives than the oppressive reality of Kenneth’s cancer and I love that she’s so willing to step outside her comfort zone to answer a call that she believes God has put on her life at this time.
This family has so little and yet she is willing to share what she has with those who have even less. How many Christians live in the Land of Excuses…their homes aren’t “nice” enough, they don’t have enough time for ministry, they don’t know what to do, they will do something someday, etc. All God has asked is that someone be willing to let Him use them now. Danelia may not have a spacious home or designer décor but she has one of the most beautiful and Godly spirits of anyone I know.
Her enthusiasm was contagious and we talked about what kind of supplies she would need. The thing about Danelia is she doesn’t hesitate to ask but she never asks out of greed and she never asks for herself. Her requests were small – to us – but were needs that she knew she wouldn’t be able to meet herself. She asked for 15-20 pencils and for the same quantity of small little Spanish Bible books. They were miniature paperback books of children’s Bible stories that we had gotten Kenneth and Lindsay. I asked her if there was anything else and she said that she would like to have notebooks for each of the children. Notebooks here are very expensive and I know that when she mentioned those, she did so with the thought and mind that I would tell her “no”. I told her I thought I had some at home and would look and see. Danelia just glowed. She was so excited that this plan of hers might actually come together.
We said our good-byes and headed off to the church for our English class and Bible study. Danelia was going to come a little bit later. We talked about her idea and we felt it was a wonderful opportunity for Danelia and the people she will ask to attend.
Later that week, we went to the office supply store at the mall and bought 20 small notebooks and although we couldn’t find the exact little storybooks she had requested, we did find others that will work and we bought 20 of those. Of course, I have the pencils, erasers, etc. with my school supplies so we’re ready to get started whenever she decides. She wants to wait until we get back from the States to finalize the date and the “program”. I know her mind is going to be working overtime getting things all lined out.
Re: Kenneth…he’s in the middle of yet another round of chemo. Each time he undergoes this, I wonder if he’s going to come out on the other side of it. The cortisone makes him swell so badly and the chemo makes him so sick with tachycardia and terrible nausea. The pediatric oncologist told Danelia that she needed to start giving Kenneth more juice, especially carrot juice.
Why, I have no idea…he’s eating a good amount of fruits and vegetables every day now and I would think that the whole fruit or vegetable would be far better than just getting juice. Purchased fruit juices are costly and most have added sugar. She could buy a 2 liter bottle of Coke for a fraction of what a quart of juice would cost her.
Jim and I discussed it and we both agreed that it is so frustrating that the doctors are always recommending something that is beyond the reach of this family…or most families here for that matter. It creates even more worry and burden if the families try to comply. Danelia said that she knew she could squeeze oranges and lemons but she didn’t know how to do carrots. I asked if she had any kind of blender. She laughed at that question and shook her head no. I should have known the answer to that.
I told Jim that when were in the States, I thought I would look for a cheap juice extractor to bring back for Danelia. I didn’t mention it to her as I didn’t want to get her hopes up since I didn’t even know if it was something I could find at an affordable price.
While we were at Sinsa this week to get something else, I happened to walk through their house wares section and lo and behold, what did I see sitting on the shelf? A Black & Decker Juice Extractor! Sinsa is not known for reasonable prices…not by a long shot. I held my breath as I picked the box up to see the price. It wasn’t much more than what one in the States would have cost us! I stood right there on the aisle and thanked God out loud. I think I probably scared the sales girl at the end of the aisle who was watching my every move. Not only did she think I was a shifty-looking gringa, I’m sure she was convinced that I was also crazy and talking out loud to myself. I know it’s not the best by a long shot but if it works at all, it will be worth every penny.
We had to go to Tipitapa this week to speak with Miguel about the night guard issue and we took it with us. Danelia happened to be at the church working on the Compassion International project. I stood outside the iron gates and called her name. She immediately came out and was surprised to see us there on a weekday. I told her we couldn’t stay as we needed to get back to Managua but that we had something we wanted to give her. She smiled apprehensively, not at all sure what Jim was getting out of the back seat.
She looked at the box for a minute and we could tell the exact moment th
at she realized what Jim was holding. She obviously thought she couldn’t adequately express her appreciation nearly enough as she thanked us repeatedly and kept saying how God had blessed them again. She hugged me tightly and whispered something in my ear. I didn’t catch it all but I heard Kenneth’s name, God’s name and the word love. I could fill in those blanks a myriad of ways. But the simple truth is that we do love God, we love Kenneth and we know God loves Kenneth. It doesn’t matter how you turn that sentence around, it remains true. And once again, we experienced the truth that there is joy in the giving.If you are someone who happens to help with the financial support this ministry, I want to thank you. And, I want to pass on to you that it is because of you that Danelia was almost giddy with excitement. That it is because of you that there will be a group of kids who will hear Bible stories while their parents have a Bible study, that there are orphaned and abandoned children who are now having Bible studies and crafts, that hungry families are gifted with beans and rice, fruits and veggies, that Kenneth is receiving additional nutrition, that adults are learning English and studying God’s Word, that seriously ill people are able to have medical testing and medications that they wouldn’t have otherwise, and so many other things. Your faithfulness and your generosity does not go unnoticed. Trust me.
