Volleyballs and Mini-Malls

Taking a break between games

Today we left the mountains with a sense of happiness for serving God in such a tangible way. We have new friends from La Esmeralda and look forward to seeing them again sometime in the future. Our hopes and prayers are with the doctor and nurse in the clinic, that they might be able to minister to the village people by providing them with outstanding healthcare where there was none before.

I had some of the team post some of their own thoughts but we lost the information for some reason before we posted. We'll try again tomorrow.

Second place team

The temperature difference from the mountains to Manaugua was easily 25 degrees. As soon as we got back to sea level, everyone started sweating. Some were happy to have heat again. Others were missing the rain of the jungle.

We stopped by the mall to eat at the food court and to give the students from Managua a chance to finish school before we started the volleyball game. Last year, the team made great inroads with the Nicas by playing alongside each other. This year was no different! We had three gringos and three Nicas on each team and worked our way through a single elimination tournemant to finally crown the champions! Scott, Rene' and David were members of the winning team. But they had lots of help from their Nica counterparts.

And now, tomorrow, we'll have more oportunities to grow friendships by travelling to a dormant volcano together and swimming in the crater! Many of the staff members from the church have never been so it should prove to be exciting for all of us. The team has been challenged to learn something new about each Nica during our time together. We'll let you know how it turns out when we return to our hotel.

It's getting late and the team is running down. God's hands are clearly orchestrating our every move. We look forward to serving Him again tomorrow!

In Him,
Clif