Our February 2006 trip’s theme to Nicaragua was Juntos Para El Señor, which translated means "Together for God".
Ecclesiastes 4:12 states "Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken." As we "intertwine" with God and the national church in Nicaragua, we are part of a wonderful thing that neither we or the nationals could do alone. We have been working side by side with Partnership Ministries in Central America since 1998. Their philosophy of encouraging, enabling and allowing nationals to lead and direct work projects has produced much fruit. We may have technological and other advantages over the local Nicaraguan, Guatemalan or Honduran, but we lack the ability to be truly effective because we are not part of their culture.
Many mainstream churches have constructed numerous church buildings in the Third World that are now abandoned or poorly utilized because they lacked the grassroots participation of the local clergy and people. The church is much more than a building - what a concept, eh? By partnering with national leadership and organizations, we can bring together the best of both our worlds. North America churches surely have the financial resources desperately needed in the Third World, but if the church is to survive, it needs to have a solid foundation of national leaders.
My first trip to Central America in 2002 told me quite a bit about my faith in God - that I had a tendency to be more self reliant than I ought to be. The spreading of the Gospel of Jesus in Central America far exceeds what we see in our towns and cities in the United States. The brothers and sisters in Christ I have met demonstrated to me that faith in God is real and daily apparent - that their existence is truly a direct result of the Grace of God. Grace is a concept that is truly woven into the hearts of the believers in both the churches we visited - Altos de Santa Maria and Llanos de Santa Maria.
The Christian love we will experience in the Third World churches far surpasses anything our church can muster... its purity and genuineness is quite uniq
ue. Oh, sure we prepare meals for the housebound, ill and the mourning, but that is a result of an event. These Third World churches do this daily - they may not have what we have (wealth & material possessions), but they share it all the time! Maybe we could learn from our brothers and sisters in Christ!
Our February 2006 trip’s theme to Nicaragua was Juntos Para El Señor, which translated means "Together for God". 
Ecclesiastes 4:12 states "Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken." As we "intertwine" with God and the national church in Nicaragua, we are part of a wonderful thing that neither we or the nationals could do alone. We have been working side by side with Partnership Ministries in Central America since 1998. Their philosophy of encouraging, enabling and allowing nationals to lead and direct work projects has produced much fruit. We may have technological and other advantages over the local Nicaraguan, Guatemalan or Honduran, but we lack the ability to be truly effective because we are not part of their culture. 
Many mainstream churches have constructed numerous church buildings in the Third World that are now abandoned or poorly utilized because they lacked the grassroots participation of the local clergy and people. The church is much more than a building - what a concept, eh? By partnering with national leadership and organizations, we can bring together the best of both our worlds. North America churches surely have the financial resources desperately needed in the Third World, but if the church is to survive, it needs to have a solid foundation of national leaders.
My first trip to Central America in 2002 told me quite a bit about my faith in God - that I had a tendency to be more self reliant than I ought to be. The spreading of the Gospel of Jesus in Central America far exceeds what we see in our towns and cities in the United States. The brothers and sisters in Christ I have met demonstrated to me that faith in God is real and daily apparent - that their existence is truly a direct result of the Grace of God. Grace is a concept that is truly woven into the hearts of the believers in both the churches we visited - Altos de Santa Maria and Llanos de Santa Maria.
The Christian love we will experience in the Third World churches far surpasses anything our church can muster... its purity and genuineness is quite unique. Oh, sure we prepare meals for the housebound, ill and the mourning, but that is a result of an event. These Third World churches do this daily - they may not have what we have (wealth & material possessions), but they share it all the time! Maybe we could learn from our brothers and sisters in Christ!
