Misión Para Cristo
Sharing Jesus as we serve
people in Nicaragua and Honduras since 1997.
February 2009
First we want to thank you for your prayers for Benny’s surgery, healing seems to be on schedule.
We returned to Nicaragua a week after the surgery. Everyone is making sure he doesn’t do things that
he shouldn’t. We would ask for your continued prayers, this time for Donna and decisions on when to
have surgery on her knees. Many of you know that they have been a problem for some time and
surgery seems to be the only option.
For the last three years Donna has had a Valentine’s
Banquet but decide not to do it this year because of the surgery and not returning to Nicaragua till the
14th. To her surprise Marina and some of the other ladies had prepared a Valentine Banquet to
continue the tradition and to honor us.j We both felt appreciation that the Nicaraguans would honor
us, but that they desired the banquet celebration of marriage enough to carry on the tradition and
learning to serve. It was a dream come true for Jesus to see them serving and encouraging each other.
SCHOOL OUTREACH
February was the start of the new school year. This year we were blessed to be able to purchase
textbooks for all subjects for every school, books in hand in pictures above. We start the year with 18
schools with over 600 children. Also we are thankful for a family in Missouri, the Murrays, who are
providing help for four students this year to attend high school. We have two schools that we need
funding to open (actually the number is 70) but two for now. On February 20 we had our first Teacher
Meeting for the year; it was great to see their excitement for the New Year and especially to hear
Martha, the preschool teacher in Apanas, who shared with the other teachers the importance of the Bible time each day. She spoke on their need to prepare for their Bible lesson time with the same
preparation they do the other subjects they teach. Ann Faris continues to develop additional material
for both the schools and the congregations we work with.
Institute for Preparation of Workers
On the 16th a new year and new design started with our Institute for Preparation of Workers (Training
Nicaraguans to Serve Nicaragua) with 19 students. The new design of the Institute working with
Sunset International Bible Institute will have six one-week session this year. The first week covered
an overview of the Old Testament. The Institute meets in Jinotega in the same area that we house the
groups. The next one-week session will be the week of April 24 with Arthur Puente, Sunset’s new
Latin Director, as the instructor. We are thankful for Sunset and for the support of the Highland
church in Texarkana, AR who provides the basic support for the institute. Luis Prada is serving as the
Director of the Institute. Teachers for this first week were Luis, Alberto, Angel, Ismael and Sergio
(intern from Baxter).
Prison Outreach
The middle picture is Jimmy and Luis marking the area to build the location for the church and the mission inside the prison. This month we meet with the new prison director and sub-director. There are number of new possibilities with the prison. We will be discontinuing the computer project and programs to teach different skills to help prisoners when they are released. The construction of the location for the church and mission has been approved inside the prison. Also the director has offered a time to basically open the prison doors for day of evangelism in the prison. That day has been a set for April 14th. We have been blessed over the last 8 years with a great relationship with the prison and God has just taken that relationship to another level. Our goal remains the same in the prison, “to bring hope to a hopeless situation” both physically and spiritually.
Bible Bowl
At Uplift 2008 we disturbed the first of the new Bible Bowl Material. In February we had meeting to set the coordination and plan for the first area competition in May with a final competition on the Book of Matthew to be July 11 at Uplift 2009. David Romero is working with this special effort for young people, over a 1,000 Bibles and booklets on Matthew have been distributed. A special thanks to John Kimbrough of Big Three Bible for the use of his material and for Spanish Literature for the translating and printing of the material. Study booklets are available from Spanish Literature…www.spanishliterature.org.
Esperanza de Rio
Mike Faris (our Deputy Director), Ismael Olivas (Director of Esperanza de Rio), Sergio and Miguel
(one of our staff translators) traveled to San Andres on the Rio Coco and the communities of
Pankanwas and Esperansa to deliver food, giving parasite medicine to over a 1,000 children, vitamins,
clothes, Bibles and over 500 pairs of boot (funds to purchase the boots was given by the Grapevine
church in Grapevine, TX). Mike was able to evaluate our Encouraging Water Project and Garden
Project and what we need to do to make those projects more effective. Thanks to Childs Med First who
provide most of our parasite medicine, vitamins and all the seed for the Garden Project. Most
importantly the trip was to encourage the congregations on the river and they were blessed to be part of
five baptisms. Please contact Mike at mikeatmpc@verizon.netThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it if you would like a copy of his report of
trip on the river or to receive his regular reports. Our next group trip schedule on the river is May 15th,
let us know if you would like to part of that trip.
The list for your prayers:
The Special Needs School in Jinotega is not officially one of the mission’s schools but it is one we
work with (especially with our groups) much like our on-going work with the work with the Casa
Materna in Jinotega. This week they approached us with the need of a deaf teacher’s aide, Francisco
(who is deaf), to work with the deaf students. $ 60 a month is need for this support.
Your prayers for the start of the “Field of Dream” project in Pantasma. With the election this past
November and the continue conflict over the results we have had to delay the start of the project. We
have funds to build the school, start the Casa Materna and Rehab but need to secure the funds for the
location for the church.
Your prayers for getting Alba back to the states for “arms”. Everything is in place in the states, we just
have to get everything here set but that has been a difficult process.
Please keep Donna in your prayers on the treatment/surgery approach for her knees. We will have an
appointment with a surgeon when we are back in the states the last of March.
We need funding to translate and print some basic material in the Miskotos language for the work on the
river. $1,000 is needed to accomplish the first level of translation and printing. Ernesto Meza of San
Andres will do the translation for us.We also need $ 2,000 to purchase Bibles in the language.
For the construction of the location in the prison of the work of the church and the mission we need to
raise $8,000. $2,000 is needed for a special program of evangelism at the prison on April 14. On that
day we will have the opportunity to touch all 600 prisoners in the prison. We need to secure $ 750
support this part of our mission.
We also need constructions group to come and work with Jimmy with construction projects in prison,
“Field of Dreams,” and two schools.
Support of individual children in our schools at $15.00 a month or $300 a month for a school.
Support is also needed for three congregations…. $300 a month is needed per congregation.
This has been little longer report than normal but a lot to share with you. We would like to end this
report with a special thank you to Beverly McDonald and Karen Chalenburg. These two volunteer
their time to be the ones that receive, deposit and respond to the support that to comes the mission,
Beverly in Plainview and Karen in Judsonia. Thanks to both of them for the blessing they are to us
and to the mission.
For a complete picture review of what is happening in Nicaragua visit our picture website…www.mpc-works.smugmug.com.
We thank you for your continued prayers and encouragement. We just would not be able to do what
we do without the support of people like you. You are a blessing.
Because of Him:
Benny and Donna
We returned to Nicaragua a week after the surgery. Everyone is making sure he doesn’t do things that
he shouldn’t. We would ask for your continued prayers, this time for Donna and decisions on when to
have surgery on her knees. Many of you know that they have been a problem for some time and
surgery seems to be the only option.
For the last three years Donna has had a Valentine’s
Banquet but decide not to do it this year because of the surgery and not returning to Nicaragua till the
14th. To her surprise Marina and some of the other ladies had prepared a Valentine Banquet to
continue the tradition and to honor us.j We both felt appreciation that the Nicaraguans would honor
us, but that they desired the banquet celebration of marriage enough to carry on the tradition and
learning to serve. It was a dream come true for Jesus to see them serving and encouraging each other.
SCHOOL OUTREACH
February was the start of the new school year. This year we were blessed to be able to purchase
textbooks for all subjects for every school, books in hand in pictures above. We start the year with 18
schools with over 600 children. Also we are thankful for a family in Missouri, the Murrays, who are
providing help for four students this year to attend high school. We have two schools that we need
funding to open (actually the number is 70) but two for now. On February 20 we had our first Teacher
Meeting for the year; it was great to see their excitement for the New Year and especially to hear
Martha, the preschool teacher in Apanas, who shared with the other teachers the importance of the Bible time each day. She spoke on their need to prepare for their Bible lesson time with the same
preparation they do the other subjects they teach. Ann Faris continues to develop additional material
for both the schools and the congregations we work with.
Institute for Preparation of Workers
On the 16th a new year and new design started with our Institute for Preparation of Workers (Training
Nicaraguans to Serve Nicaragua) with 19 students. The new design of the Institute working with
Sunset International Bible Institute will have six one-week session this year. The first week covered
an overview of the Old Testament. The Institute meets in Jinotega in the same area that we house the
groups. The next one-week session will be the week of April 24 with Arthur Puente, Sunset’s new
Latin Director, as the instructor. We are thankful for Sunset and for the support of the Highland
church in Texarkana, AR who provides the basic support for the institute. Luis Prada is serving as the
Director of the Institute. Teachers for this first week were Luis, Alberto, Angel, Ismael and Sergio
(intern from Baxter).
Prison Outreach
The middle picture is Jimmy and Luis marking the area to build the location for the church and the mission inside the prison. This month we meet with the new prison director and sub-director. There are number of new possibilities with the prison. We will be discontinuing the computer project and programs to teach different skills to help prisoners when they are released. The construction of the location for the church and mission has been approved inside the prison. Also the director has offered a time to basically open the prison doors for day of evangelism in the prison. That day has been a set for April 14th. We have been blessed over the last 8 years with a great relationship with the prison and God has just taken that relationship to another level. Our goal remains the same in the prison, “to bring hope to a hopeless situation” both physically and spiritually.
Bible Bowl
At Uplift 2008 we disturbed the first of the new Bible Bowl Material. In February we had meeting to set the coordination and plan for the first area competition in May with a final competition on the Book of Matthew to be July 11 at Uplift 2009. David Romero is working with this special effort for young people, over a 1,000 Bibles and booklets on Matthew have been distributed. A special thanks to John Kimbrough of Big Three Bible for the use of his material and for Spanish Literature for the translating and printing of the material. Study booklets are available from Spanish Literature…www.spanishliterature.org.
Esperanza de Rio
Mike Faris (our Deputy Director), Ismael Olivas (Director of Esperanza de Rio), Sergio and Miguel
(one of our staff translators) traveled to San Andres on the Rio Coco and the communities of
Pankanwas and Esperansa to deliver food, giving parasite medicine to over a 1,000 children, vitamins,
clothes, Bibles and over 500 pairs of boot (funds to purchase the boots was given by the Grapevine
church in Grapevine, TX). Mike was able to evaluate our Encouraging Water Project and Garden
Project and what we need to do to make those projects more effective. Thanks to Childs Med First who
provide most of our parasite medicine, vitamins and all the seed for the Garden Project. Most
importantly the trip was to encourage the congregations on the river and they were blessed to be part of
five baptisms. Please contact Mike at mikeatmpc@verizon.netThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it if you would like a copy of his report of
trip on the river or to receive his regular reports. Our next group trip schedule on the river is May 15th,
let us know if you would like to part of that trip.
The list for your prayers:
The Special Needs School in Jinotega is not officially one of the mission’s schools but it is one we
work with (especially with our groups) much like our on-going work with the work with the Casa
Materna in Jinotega. This week they approached us with the need of a deaf teacher’s aide, Francisco
(who is deaf), to work with the deaf students. $ 60 a month is need for this support.
Your prayers for the start of the “Field of Dream” project in Pantasma. With the election this past
November and the continue conflict over the results we have had to delay the start of the project. We
have funds to build the school, start the Casa Materna and Rehab but need to secure the funds for the
location for the church.
Your prayers for getting Alba back to the states for “arms”. Everything is in place in the states, we just
have to get everything here set but that has been a difficult process.
Please keep Donna in your prayers on the treatment/surgery approach for her knees. We will have an
appointment with a surgeon when we are back in the states the last of March.
We need funding to translate and print some basic material in the Miskotos language for the work on the
river. $1,000 is needed to accomplish the first level of translation and printing. Ernesto Meza of San
Andres will do the translation for us.We also need $ 2,000 to purchase Bibles in the language.
For the construction of the location in the prison of the work of the church and the mission we need to
raise $8,000. $2,000 is needed for a special program of evangelism at the prison on April 14. On that
day we will have the opportunity to touch all 600 prisoners in the prison. We need to secure $ 750
support this part of our mission.
We also need constructions group to come and work with Jimmy with construction projects in prison,
“Field of Dreams,” and two schools.
Support of individual children in our schools at $15.00 a month or $300 a month for a school.
Support is also needed for three congregations…. $300 a month is needed per congregation.
This has been little longer report than normal but a lot to share with you. We would like to end this
report with a special thank you to Beverly McDonald and Karen Chalenburg. These two volunteer
their time to be the ones that receive, deposit and respond to the support that to comes the mission,
Beverly in Plainview and Karen in Judsonia. Thanks to both of them for the blessing they are to us
and to the mission.
For a complete picture review of what is happening in Nicaragua visit our picture website…www.mpc-works.smugmug.com.
We thank you for your continued prayers and encouragement. We just would not be able to do what
we do without the support of people like you. You are a blessing.
Because of Him:
Benny and Donna