Foothill Vineyard - Missions

2011-10-09T21:37:00.000-07:00

This is Hannah and Emma with the Youth Pastor Uriel from "Cread" Church (white shirt). Next to him (black shirt) is our new friend Ryann. He is the Youth Pastor for Dave Waters' Church in Virginia.

Sunday in Nicaragua

2011-10-09T21:29:00.000-07:00

We attended Sunday morning service at "CREAD" church. They invited the Nicaragua Missions worship team to join in with their worship band, "They (we) rocked the house". What was pretty cool was that the Cread worship band was familiar with the songs we were singing. Pastor Mike brought the message with Dave Waters interpreting. After the service many congregants came forward for prayer.

Later that afternoon on our way back to the church for aDistribution, we encountered a tropical downpour.

We handed out 40 school paks to kids from the community who waited patiently for more than an hour for our arrival. What a humbling and joyful feeling to see the expressions on the kids faces when they opened up their backpacks full of school supplies.

This special young man’s name is Noel. As a result of an accident when he was 8 months old he lost both of his legs. In spite of his disability he had a positive disposition. At 13 years of age he’s at a second grade learning level. He was blessed by the school supplies, which will help him advance in his education, as his desire is to become a teacher.

It’s a privilege for us to hand out these backpacks that arenot only filled with school supplies but with HOPE…and these smiles are resultof the efforts and generosity of you…The Foothill Vineyard Church andfriends! The smiles on everyone’s faces areyour smiles…and they truly say it all.

This is P. Mike, Mike R., Sarah & Karla signing off...till tomorrow as we will be traveling to Managua...

2011-10-08T11:51:00.000-07:00

Loading all the School Paks at the airport in Managua

Here's a collection of photos of the first day of distributions to 80 children in the villages of Cayantu and San Lucas in Northern Nicaragua. In some cases the children and their parents walked up to 2 hours to come to the events. Our worship team of Karla Walters, Bill Pope, Mike Ramirez and Hannah Ramirez sang some songs - Pastor Mike gave a greeting and the children were presented with a Gospel message from our friend and partner Pastor Jerson Gonzalez. There were faces filled with joy and excitement as they opened their Paks, with many thanks to all of you who provided them.

After the distribution we visited the home of a boy who was not able to attend due to a spinal disease. The team gathered around and prayed for his healing and the well-being of his family.

Submitted by Craig Walters

2011-10-06T22:27:00.001-07:00

10/6/11

Hello from NicaraguaCentral America. After departing LAX around 1:30AM Thursday and successfullygetting all school paks checked in we were asked to rearrange thecontents of our "carry on" items according to some "new airlinerules". Basically it was like plating musical chairs with our carry onclothes and personal items. ("Hey you take my shoes and I'll carry youshampoo and toothpaste.") We must have done alright because they letus board. With a short layover in San Salvador, (which only involvedswitching planes once!), we were on our way to Managua, Nicaragua. Afterlanding and meeting old friends Jerson and Elias, our driver extraordinaire, wehad lunch and a looong drive to Somoto for the night. It's a good thing he'sand excellent driver 'cause he scares us to death. Bill (or as we fondlycall him, Beeel) was asked to preach and sing at a local church while therest of us had dinner. The folks at the restaurant changed the Spanish music tosome 70's classics just for us. Go Bee Gees!

We then spent a short timepacking around 50 paks for our first school pak distribution at a local villagetomorrow morning. Lots of challenges today for sure, but none of them were asurprise to God who was faithful to bring us through. Gotta go, I think there'sonly two showers in the whole hotel so I'm talking mine tonight to avoid the MORNINGRUSH! If you'd like to join us, meet the team in the hotel lobby at 8AMsharp.

This is Mike Ramirez for the 2011 Nic MissionsTeam.

We've arrived! On our way to Somoto

2011-10-06T13:23:00.001-07:00

2011 Nicaragua Missions Trip

2011-10-04T11:09:00.000-07:00

The 2011 Mission Team leaves for Nicaragua in 2 DAYS! This will be our 3rd year working with Mira Ministries Internationl to bring school supplies and uniforms to the children of Nicaragua. We will arrive in Managua on Thursday, October 6th (meet up with Harrison and Alias again) and head to Somoto, our first stop.

Our mission this year also includes visits to Esteli, Bosquecito Orphanage, Matagala, La Concha, Granada and back to Managua.

Please come back to the blog, as we will be positing pictures and video throughout our journey.
The Team is EXCITED to see what the Lord has in store for us this year
!
Blessings, Sheila Barnett

We are back home!

2010-09-29T12:52:00.000-07:00

On behalf of the team we just want to thank you for all your prayers! Obstacles were evident but GOD was present all the way!

Divided and Conquered!

2010-09-25T21:58:00.000-07:00

Today was a little different we split up into two teams. One team went to paint Pastor Victor's Church and the other group went to a local Foster Home. Pastor Miguel, Miguel R, Ross, Craigo and Elias (our driver) went to a local church and painted the inside. It is interesting to see the festive colors of their choosing compared to ours. Many of the homes are painted bright greens, blues, purples, etc, so this fits right in! Pastor Mike will be preaching in this church bright and early tomorrow morning!

The second team went to visit a local foster home up the hill called Hogar "Peniel". The married couple Celtina and Misael Pineda built and operate this facility which houses 4 adopted children as well as their own natural born son Patrick. Monday through Friday they take in local kids, feed them lunch and tell them Bible stories. Part of their vision for the future is to build an amphitheater on their property to rent out to Christian groups as well as harvest coffee to help support their ministry. One thing that became apparent after visiting with the children throughout the week as well as the kids here at this home is that most of these children cannot see themselves in the future as a professionals in society. Karla gave her testimony and Mike R. gave them words of encouragement and HOPE emphasizing that nothing is impossible with God. With God's help each one of them can be anything they want to be.

As a team we discussed that two of the hotel staff with small children were in need of school supplies. The team unanimously decided to put together two school bag packs filled with school supplies to give to them. Because of the generosity of the folks at Foothill Vineyard we were able to blessed these women in a very personal way.

until tomorrow...Coco, Gregorio, Mike R., Craigo and Karlita =)

Video from the Missions Team

2010-09-25T07:06:00.000-07:00

Here's a short video from the team showing some of the beautiful children that are being helped!

Super Busy Day!

2010-09-24T21:50:00.000-07:00

It seems as though we did everything BUT the "chicken dance" today! We started our day off by celebrating the children who received paks last year to recognize their year of scholastic achievement. When we arrived at the school to our surprise we were welcomed with drill team and drum core performance. It was quite impressive....and LOUD!

We gave out backpacks to the kids from last year followed by a "Fiesta", which consisted of soda, a bag of animal cookies, and a necklace. These simple necklaces that may be insignificant to us, symbolized a year of achievement to them. Who knew a cup of soda and some animal crackers could bring so much joy. The highlight of the event was the "futbol" (soccer) in which our hero Greg Scantlin scored a goal.... against 10-11 year olds...way to go Gregorio!

We continued our journey to the "Sor Maria" for our second distribution at this church (hot box).....and it was even warmer today! We were able to bless another group of kids in this extremely poor area. It is extremely humbling to have a parent come up to you with tears in their eyes thanking you from the bottom of their hearts for something we felt like was not enough. We had an opportunity to hear the story of the woman who is the mission leader for this area. She expressed how she wished she would have had this same opportunity when she was growing up. She said her life would be different and even thinks about going back to school now, which is the reason our group decided to give her a pak. She will be attending school on Saturdays. This is also one of the reasons she is heading this up to give kids like her a better life.

The team was given the opportunity to go to a local church for their weekly youth service. After their worship time Greg gave his testimony while Karla interpreted it, then Bill sang an amazing solo, which surprised and amazed us! Next our mission worship team sang a few songs and then Mike Ramirez closed with a message of HOPE. At the end of the service the entire group gathered in a circle and prayed for each one of us on the team and thanked us for our generosity. Again not only were they blessed but we were blessed in return. We all agreed that this was OUR divine appointment.

God is so good.

Miguel R, Hannaaaah, Gregorio, Karlita y Coco and the rest of the mission team.

Second Distribution in Sor Maria and Matagalpa

2010-09-23T22:23:00.000-07:00

Today was a busy but blessed day. We started off with a bumpy ride to Sor Maria, which is in between the sewage treatment plant and the dump. This is one of the poorest areas in Matagalpa. We drove as far into the area as we could and then walked the rest of the way on a muddy path....and I mean muddy! We worshipped with the children and their families, heard stories of HOPE from the pastors and Missions Leaders and then handed out the school paks. There were at least 125 people in a church, (but what we would describe as a hot box). Before they received their paks Pastor Jerson said a prayer with them to have Jesus in their hearts and the majority of kids and parents in the church accepted Christ. It was an amazing thing to witness because their expression of hope on their faces was priceless. Once the paks were handed out we followed one of the families to their "plastic home". It was quite the hike up a slippery slope of rocks, mud and water, but it was worth it all. While on our journey up the hill we spoke with two different families and both of their daughters had received paks the previous year. Fortunately they were not there because they were in school....YAY! The parents emphasized that the supplies from last year were still being used and they felt blessed.

Due to Mira Ministries and FVC's participation last year with the school paks, Pastor Victor was able to start a local mission project in this area. There are already 10 families involved in this group. This news could not have been more exciting to us....Pastor Victor said FVC was indirectly responsible for a "church plant" in this area.....how cool is that? The leader for this mission project is a strong female power who has the love of Jesus in her heart!

After lunch and a change of our muddy clothes we went back to the school in Matagalpa that we painted last year. It was so great to see some of the same faces. Greg and Courtney saw their buddy Juan Carlos, who was equally as excited to see them. We are lucky this year to have an actual worship team, which has really made our distributions special. The team consists of Karla Walters, Bill Pope and Mike & Hannah Ramirez. The kids really seem to enjoy hearing the songs, some of which are in Spanish and English.

This distribution we handed out 100 paks. The members of the team that were here last year all felt the same way, that it was great to build on our relationship and continue our growing friendship. This was a large distribution but even during the chaos of it all, several team members were able to spot their paks and meet the child who received them. It never gets old to see the look on their faces as they open their boxes and see their treasures.

Tomorrow will be an eventful day full of excitement. We will be returning to this school in the morning to celebrate with the 100 kids who accomplished their first year of school. We will be honoring them by having a small party and giving them a backpack. We hope by doing this it will encourage them to continue on this path and inspire those kids who receive a pak this year to keep at it!

Hope you all are enjoying our stories and pictures. Keep the prayers coming our way as we continue on our journey!

Love to all,

Greg, Karla, Courtney and the rest of the gang! xo

Our first Distribution

2010-09-22T22:11:00.000-07:00

Our first distribution was at a school for the handicaped in Esteli, about an hour outside Matagalpa. We were invited to take a short tour of the school beginning in the Physical Therapy room. Three P.T. students from Spain work with some young girls. We talked with them for a few minutes before heading to a classroom for the deaf. There were about ten students working on math. Such precious, young, bright faces. Through the teacher's interpretation we were able talk with them and learn their names. It was very difficult to keep your emotions in check. After moving to the distribution room and sharing a few words form Dave, Pastor Mike and local pastor, Jerson, we sang "El Rio de Dios" to them and then handed out school paks to the twenty students that were selected. (The tough part was knowing that there were students that did not receive any supplies.) Then after the count of three, everyone opened their school paks. It was like christmas. It still warms my heart to see their faces as they looked at all the colorful supplies. It's a very humbling experience to see the delight on their faces. I remember seeing one small boy holding holding the Yo-yo like he'd found a precious gem. After a moment he put it in his pants pocket, patting it gently. How can such a simple toy bring so much joy. I watched one girl walk home with her school pak in her hand, she turned one last time with a huge smile to wave good-bye. It's hard to believe a simple cardboard box can carry so much hope.

Four students from the deaf class

School Pak Distribution

The Gift of Hope

Mike Ramirez for the Nicaragua team

Safe and Thankful in Nicaragua...

2010-09-21T20:08:00.000-07:00

Tuesday Evening - Matagalpa, Nicaragua

We are here! After a long night and day of travel, leaving LAX at 1:40 AM, the team has arrived in the mountain city of Matagalpa. This is the place where last year we volunteered to help paint rooms in a local school and met many wonderful people. The need here is great as school supplies can cost up to double here what we would pay at home, and this is often impossible for families living on less than $50. per month.

Shortly after arriving the skies opened up and we were treated to a booming thunderstorm and intense rain. This has been a very wet season here and hopefully we're prepared for lots of mud. Tomorrow morning we'll be visiting the neighbor city of Esteli where we'll pass out Paks to children attending a school for the handicapped.

Thanks again to all who have donated, prayed and supported the team and this Mission. We are believing that these families here will be blessed and that the humble gifts we bring will be an introduction to God's undying love.

Craig Walters - For the Team

The 2010 Missions team & School Paks in Nicaragua

Getting Ready For Our Journey

2010-09-15T19:30:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend the mission team along with some volunteers from the Boy Scouts got together and packed up all the supplies, backpacks and other goodies....this is when it finally felt real! We are all getting extremely excited for our trip. We will be leaving Tuesday, September 21st, around 1am and returning Monday September 27th at midnight. This year we will be taking around 230 "paks" along with T-shirts, backpacks, Bibles and more! We have 10 members traveling this year and out of that 10, 7 people have returned from last year. The 7 of us are really excited to be able to re-connect with those children we met last year. At one of the schools in Matagalpa, we will be celebrating their year of school by throwing them a party. In addition to the party around 100 kids will be receiving backpacks which will be great since their boxes from last year are probably not in very good shape! We will also be visiting a deaf and blind school which we are looking forward to. They may not be able to see or hear, but they will be able to feel God's love.

We will be updating our blog as our journey continues and we would love to have some comments if you are a follower! Please continue to keep our team and our families in prayer.

Courtney Scantlin

"All I Have" in Spanish

2010-09-08T13:12:00.000-07:00

Here's a YouTube video link for the Vineyard song "All I Have" in Spanish. Enjoy!

Day 5 in Matagalpa

2009-10-04T20:35:00.000-07:00

We started our morning off by going to church in Matagalpa at Iglesia Bautista Nueva Jerusalem where Mike was asked to speak by Pastor Victor Hugo Morales Altamirano. Dave Waters translated Mike's sermon on the Good Samaritan. Not only did Mike get a chance to speak, he also had the opportunity to dedicate two babies. The worship included dance and songs by the children's ministry with solos performed by pre-school aged girls, one of which was Pastor Victor's daughter.

In the afternoon we got ready for our fifth and final distribution at the school which we had painted the day before. During this distribution, there were several dance performances prior to the 43 packs being distributed. Emotions ran high as we realized our mission was coming to an end and our hearts had become full with such a personal connection to the people and the children of Nicaragua. In just a few shorts days it felt like we made friends that will last for a life time.

Thank you all for being part of our mission...

The Foothill Vineyard Mission Team

A Divine Appointment...

2009-10-04T19:16:00.000-07:00

The plan for Saturday night was slightly different for 3 members of our team. Joe was asked by both Pastor Mike and Dave Waters to preach at the youth night on Saturday for Pastor Victor's church, the church we would be attending Sunday morning. They came to Joe before our afternoon distribution to see if he was interested in speaking. Joe knew that it would be an opportunity of a lifetime to both trust in God to break the language barrier, and to speak to kids who have an enormous place in his heart, so he gladly agreed to speak that night. Karla was more than willing to translate for him at the service and sarah was more than happy to go along for support, and to join the local youth. Upon getting back from the distribution, Joe took the half hour he had and dedicated half of it in prayer, telling God that he was in a place where God was the ONLY way he would be able to deliver a message efficiently. The remaining time he used to put together a general outline of what he wanted to talk about, focusing on 1 Timothy 4:12, reminding youth to not let anyone look down on them because of their youth, and to encourage them to set an example to others, and reminding the youth of other scriptures of the promises of God to always be with them wherever they go (Joshua 1:9) and that God has an amazing plan for their lives (Jeremiah 29:11).

In getting to the church, we joined in with them in incredible, spirit-filled worship where every voice could be heard, continuing with what Pastor Victor called an encouraging and uplifting message from Joe, and concluding with prayer for their youth leader and the youth of the church. What was most eye-opening for us during the service was their hearts for worship. The voices sounded like 200 people when there were only about 25, and the kids shout, clap, dance, and so obviously express incredible love for our Lord. After the service, while we talked with the youth, their youth leader told us how they meet EVERY morning at 3:45 am to pray for themselves, their family, their church, and their country. They began to beg us to join them and all three of us felt led to sacrifice the sleep to join them early in the morning. We arrived at the church at about 4 am to a circle of youth on their hands and knees crying out in their own prayers. We happily joined their circle of prayer and all felt God's spirit working on each person in the room. After about a half hour, we continued in prayer for the church itself, praying over the chairs, the offering basket, the foundation, and the musical instruments. We concluded the prayer time with emotional messages from some of the youth to us, and some messages from us to the youth; as well as the youth gathering around the 3 of us and Pastor Jerson to pray over us and our mission. What an incredible way to start our sunday!

As for our divine appointment...On our saturday night youth meeting, following the service, we were approached by Pastor Victor who introduced us to a 16 year old young lady named Carelia. This young lady simply looked broken spirited. Pastor Victor asked if we could pray for her, so Karla asked what it was she needed prayer for. She was very hesitant to tell us what she needed prayer for, so we talked to her and prayed uplifting words for God's spirit to fill her. The language barrier was non-existent as both Joe and Karla did not need to wait one moment for the other. After about 10 minutes of intense prayer for this girl, we came to realize what was tearing her apart. She had lost her father a while ago, and just recently lost her mother. She has no one left! She was left some property, but does not have enough funds to keep it. Now, she is between locations and feels all alone, and has nowhere to call "home". We reminded her of the promises Joe talked about in his message, and gave her many other scriptures to encourage and lift her up. One scripture in particular that we reminded her of is when Lazarus had died and the book of John says that "Jesus wept." This verse was perfect for her to hear in this instance because it showed her that Jesus knows the struggles we go through in losing those we care about. Most importantly about this divine appointment is that we were told she was contemplating suicide that exact night, and in her coming to church that night, God was able to remind her of His promise of ALWAYS being with us, and that He has an incredible plan for her life. She is a beautiful young lady with a beautiful heart. She is the one who choreographs all of the children's dance performances, and we were able to show her how much she means to the kids and the way the kids smile when they see her. Also, she did not have a bible of her own, and it just so happened that we had 1 bible in Spanish with us that night that we were able to give to her! Normally, she does not go to the 3:45 am prayer meeting, but we persistently asked her to come. When we walked in the doors at 4 am and saw the circle of youth, the only space to kneel was right next to Carelia! We were so blessed to continue to get to know her this morning! God be with you Carelia! We all love you so much, and are now a part of our family!

Joe, Karla, and Sarah

Day 4 in Matagalpa

2009-10-03T20:56:00.000-07:00

Our plan for today was to go to a local school, Escuela Ruben Dario, and paint some of the classrooms. We arrived around 8am and painted until noon. We ended up painting 4 classrooms with the teachers of the school, and some of the children. Painting in Nicaragua is a little different than the painting we do in the USA. They water down the paint so much that it runs down the walls, forcing us to go over it a few times, still showing some of the underlying graffiti in some spots. We did, however, have a competition to see who got the most paint on themselves rather than on the wall. Your winner is....Sarah Heralda! Congratulations Sarah! haha...Oh, and the winner for "Teachers Pet" is Senor Gregorio Scantlin! Nice job Greg, i think! Overall, it was an exhausting morning of hard labor. However, it was totally worth it and rewarding to see the smiles on the teachers faces.

The next plan on our agenda was another Pack distribution. This distribution was in the most depressing area so far. We even had to drive by the local sewage treatment plant to get to this community. After navigating through the off-road terrain, we arrived at our location on the side of a street where a mass of both children and parents gathered to wait for our arrival. Unfortunately, the need for these Packs was far greater than what we could provide. It made us all realize how huge the need is here, however, we were extremely blessed knowing it was the neediest children that received a Pack. The photo of the little boy with the water bottle is just one of the many familiar faces we saw who were unable to get a pack. Lets pray that this boy, or others, will be one of the children that receive one of our Packs in the near future.

The last thing that happened today occurred tonight while most of the team was at dinner. Dave Waters and Pastor Mike approached Joe this afternoon asking if he wanted to go to the church we will be attending in the morning, to speak to the youth. It was fairly last minute but Joe decided it would be an incredible opportunity. Karla joined Joe to translate, and Sarah went along for support, and they experienced things that cannot be summed up in this blog. They got back to the hotel with enormous smiles and what Joe calls "Spirit Bumps". :) Joe will be writing a separate blog tomorrow along with some photos from his experience so make sure to check it out tomorrow!!!

We would also like to give an extreme shout out to our ministry leaders Dave and Pam Waters. This couple is simply amazing, and this trip could NOT have been achieved without their incredible leadership. God bless you both so much!!!

Good night all! Thank you for all of your continued love, support, and prayers. Keep the comments coming! Buenos Noches!

Courtney "CoCo", Greg "Gregorio", Joe "Chepe", and Craig "Craig-O"

Day 3 in Matagalpa

2009-10-02T21:33:00.000-07:00

Today we started by driving from Managua to Matagalpa which was about a 2 hour drive...and man do we have some great hosts. Our driver is Elias and our connection to the schools is Pastor Jerson.

Once we arrived we put together 36 paks to take to a local school. We prayed and sang with the children and handed out numerous amounts of candy to those who did not receive paks. The children are chosen by the local leaders based on necessity. We met dedicated teachers as well as the principal of another local school in Matagalpa. Once we handed out the paks we then drove to the principal's school that we will be painting tomorrow with the help of parents, teachers and pastors. We had the opportunity to see the conditions where the students learn. The school goes from preschool to 12th grade and they have over 2000 students but can only house 400 at a time. They have 4 different shifts to meet their needs which range from morning, afternoon, evening and Saturdays. We look forward to working with these families tomorrow to make their school a more welcoming environment.

Thank you for your continued prayers,

Greg, Courtney, Karla, Sarah and the rest of the mission team.

Precious Moments Day 2

2009-10-01T19:09:00.000-07:00

Can you say HOT! It's winter here and some are putting on their sweaters but the gringos, well, we are just sweating!

We delivered paks today to some pretty special kids. It's amazing how when you walk into the group, that has gathered to see what we have brought them, there will be that one child that catches your eye first and then your heart. For each one of us, and at each location, there is "that one" that you want to slip into your backpack and take home. We get to know them for a very short time hugging, praying and sharing bits and pieces of our lives and then it's time to say a teary "adios".

So tonight I don't want to say adios but rather, Jesus te ama to Jessica, Alejandro, Jesus, Stephanie, Angel, Victor, Ruth, Maria, Rose, Kaylee, Africa, Juan, Miguel, Luis and to all the others that we loved today. I will be praying for you all and God bless you, beautiful children.

We miss you Nicolle, Nathan, Christian, Aiden, Pam, Mom, Dad and everyone else. We love you, and know that you are very precious to us.

Love,
Debra Walters (Mom, Nana)

10-1-09 Updates!

2009-10-01T18:52:00.000-07:00

Where do we begin....What a day it has been. We started off by doing a quick devotional and prayer time in the lobby of the hotel. Courtney shared 1 Peter 3:8 about love, compassion, and humility, which summed up the previous night's emotions and Pastor Mike shared from 2 Corinthians 5:11-21 about how we are Christ's ambassadors and how we are here solely because of the work God has done in each of our lives and in our hearts. We then left to our distribution in the city of Masaya. We unloaded and began to gather in a museum and began with some worship. Karla translated for us as their pastors talked about Jesus and the importance of being a good parent. They said it takes three things to make a good family: a mom, a dad, and God. Also, they talked about how the decisions that the parents make, affect the children and their futures. Pastor Mike also shared about the importance of first, loving God, and second, loving our neighbors. We then began to hand out the boxes to the children one-by-one. We waited until everyone had received their boxes and they opened them all at once. The looks on their faces were amazing. For a majority of the children, it was the first gift they have ever received. Each team member had a unique bond with a child, or parent.

The plan was to go straight to the orphanage after our morning distribution. However, we stopped at a small village just outside the town and realized a lot of the kids and families that lived there were families we met at the distribution. This allowed us to further continue our ministry to these families and kids. Two families that we especially connected with were more than willing to show us their "homes". Although most of us have bathrooms the size of these homes, they were so honored to invite us in. These houses varied in the way they were made from plastics, to aluminum/tin panels, and trash bags. One family in particular housed 5 people with 3 beds, actually...cots! For today, this was definitely the most eye opening experience, and emotion packed event. We got back into the van and a number of us reflected on the afternoon and were brought to tears because of the relationships we formed and the lives we touched.

We then arrived at the New Life Nicaragua orphanage and met its founder Christine. She explained that they carried 32 kids ranging from birth to six, with two boys at age 8. The orphanage takes in children removed by child services mainly as a result from malnutrition, as well as children who were simply abandoned. Although the kids were extremely stranger-anxious, they eventually responded to us and opened up. Adoptions are not an option in Nicaragua except through the Government, therefore, none of us came home with new children :(

Well that was our Thursday everyone! We hope you enjoyed reading about our day and we especially hope that you feel a little more a part of this trip. We encourage you to become "followers" on our blog and even more, post comments about what you think! We love you all and thank you so much for your prayers! Talk with you tomorrow!!!

Joe, Greg & Courtney, Sarah, Karla, & Pastor Mike

ps. Debra might have been slightly exhausted/sweaty because in her post, the little girl "Africa" is really named Kenya (A country of Africa) but close enough...We love you Debra :)

Kenya is the little girl wearing Greg's hat.

Smiling Kids in Nicaragua

2009-09-30T21:58:00.000-07:00

Hello All,

After re-assembling the School Paks, we traveled to our first distribution for 58 very needy children in a village 40 minutes from Managua. The children were selected as those most deserving and whose parents agreed to follow-thru and send them to school. We sang some songs, Pastor Mike talked about these gifts from friends in the United States in Jesus' name and the team handed them out. After a count to 3, smiles and laughter filled the yard!

Blessings,

Craig

Arrived Safely and Wiped Out!

2009-09-30T12:38:00.000-07:00

We made it, everyone safe and tired from flying all night, and all 24 pieces of baggage with the School Paks made it as well! We were met at the airport by our host Dave Waters of Mira Ministries and just checked into the hotel in Managua where we'll be the next two days... after lunch we'll prep some Paks and head out for the first school distribution. The video below is the tubs coming off the plane.

God Bless,

Craig

ON THE WAY!

2009-09-30T00:46:00.000-07:00

We're at LAX, checked-in and too excited to sleep! Just talked with our host Dave Waters, who founded Mira Ministries with his wife Pam, and he's already in Managua waiting for us to arrive and begin this amazing journey. Our flight leaves in about 1 hour and hopefully we'll get some rest before the first School Pak distribution Wednesday afternoon.

Thanks again so much for all the support and prayers to make this missions outreach possible!

The McLeod Family

2009-09-29T16:53:00.001-07:00

2009-09-29T10:48:00.000-07:00

Here's a photo of the Missions Team (minus Diane McLeod) as they're packing and preparing for the journey ahead.

2009-09-25T10:59:00.000-07:00

Waiting With Anticipation...

Like Courtney, the minute I heard the Foothill Vineyard was having a missions trip, I knew I would be involved in some huge way! What better way to be involved than to actually go! I have had a missions trip on my heart for some time now, really feeling called to Africa. My heart, however, is for kids, and that is the focus of this upcoming trip. More importantly, this trip will allow us to build relationship with those in Nicaragua, with hopes of going back in the near future, allowing us to see some of the fruits of our labor. Just as the apostle Paul told his brothers and sisters in Christ he would come back to visit them (1 Cor. 16:5-7), the Foothill Vineyard has the same goal in mind, maintaining relationship with our brothers and sisters in Nicaragua. Obviously, Africa is put on hold for the moment, but God has enormous things in store for me, the 12 going on the trip, all those who filled boxes, our entire congregation, and everyone who will be impacted by our presence starting at LAX, all the way to Nicaragua! I want to give a special thanks to everyone who has been involved in this trip: those who filled boxes, those who financially supported our team, and all those who have said even 1 prayer for this trip! We love you all so much and thank God that we have people in our lives who love and support us. Continue to pray for our health and safety, and for the families in Nicaragua. So as of now, 4 days from our departure, we wait with anticipation to see what our Maker has planned out for us! We submit to His will, and follow where He leads us! ALL to His glory!
~In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps. Proverbs 16:9~

JOE ESTES

Packing Boxes!

2009-09-20T19:42:00.001-07:00

Yesterday our team and some other awesome volunteers got together and packed the boxes for Nicaragua. It was exciting to see all of the boxes in one room and then realize how many kids are going to be blessed through this process. So exciting!

Getting Ready for Nicaragua!

2009-09-20T16:33:00.000-07:00

As soon as it was announced that Foothill Vineyard was going to be taking a mission trip, I knew it was something I was going to be involved in. I mentioned it to Greg and he thought it was great for me. We had our first meeting to go over some of the basics, and that is when Greg felt God tugging at his heart. After the meeting we decided God was calling both of us to make this trip to Nicaragua. We were worried at first about the finances and the childcare. We began planning fundraisers to earn money and sent out letters to family and friends to support our mission. Things were coming along slowly but surely. While we were in Big Bear camping with the church a wonderful family voluntered to watch the kids for us while we are gone. This was a HUGE blessing for us and we knew then that things would continue to fall into place. We continued to do fundraisers and we found how generous and supportive people can be. Here we are now 10 days before we leave and the monies have been raised, the kids have a loving place to stay, and Greg and I could not be more excited to see what God has in store for not only our team but these children who's lives are going to change forever. Please pray for our family, our health, our safe travels, and especially our kids while we are gone.

Thanks,

Greg and Courtney

Steve Riddle Band Benefit Concert

2009-09-11T12:56:00.000-07:00

Here are some photos from the Steve Riddle Band's benefit concert at FVC. All proceeds from the concert went toward the mission trip. Special thanks to Karla Walters' family and the Scantlin family for all of their wonderful help with the food. Thanks Steve for the great music!