Merry Christmas from Belize!

Sulmi with her brother and sisters in front of the neighbor's "Christmas Tree".

Dear Friends and Prayer Warriors,

Thank you for praying for us and following this blog this year. One friend said, "You sure have had a lot of drama this year." I think that the drama is part of being in the middle of what God is doing. Sometimes there are astounding transformations in people's lives that are so rewarding. I just spent an hour praying and reading the Bible with Edgar. Yesterday he sent me a letter: "Please, can you and I study the Bible? I want to follow Jesus. Please can we meet today?"

I asked Manuel if he would lead worship while I am in the states for Christmas and minor surgery on my finger. He jumped at the chance. (YES!) I reminded him I would not be here to drive, so everyone would have to get to church themselves. He's already planning what he wants to preach on. He's telling everyone to come to church on the 27th. He is so excited. He is so "called". I praise God because a year ago he had turned his back on the church. Now he is letting the Holy Spirit lead him to do God's will. It's one of God's transformations.

Finances? I don't know how God does it, but I am just so thankful how blessed I am, from people who send Dr. Wonder Workshop videos, books for school and church, a computer for me, a projector for the church, money for the school to build a bathroom, Christmas gifts for the children, a HUGE box of seasonal crafts, Crystal Light, and money to support transportation needs...

All these blessings and answers to prayer remind me daily that God is working here in Belize. There is drama, and attacks from dogs, mean people and other diversions, but God answers that with blessings and support and change and your encouragement. So I think of all of you this Christmas and thank you for being part of God's plan and work here in Belize.

Our theme this advent has been "O, Come let Us Adore Him". I pray, as I write, that you will encounter the Christ child, and living Jesus with unbridled adoration, just like the wisemen, angels, Mary, Joseph and all of the shepherds who ran to find him, then knelt to worship him.

With love,

Nancy

This is the Day That the Lord Has Made!

On Sunday Alejandro and Edgar were baptized. It was a beautiful, warm, sunny day. We chose to worship at the pool At St. Lucia's Hotel instead of in the church so that we would not need to drive somewhere in the middle of the service. Galen and Phyllis Groff came from Guatemala to join our group of 18 deaf people, some small hearing children and the mother of one of the boys. The worship began as we always do with prayer and members each leading a song. I taught about why baptism is necssary. I wanted the boys and the church members to have a handle on the concept so they could be confident, and be able to give an answer to anyone who asked, "Why do you get baptized?" Manuel taught the story of Jesus' baptism in the Jordan River. Then the two boys, Edgar and Alejandro came forward and each made a confession. They were honest and sincere. We then proceeded to the pool. We baptized each boy individually. They knelt and I asked them questions of faith: Do you believe in God the father who created the world? Do you believe in Jesus, his son, who died on the cross to reconcile you to God? Do you believe in the Holy Spirit of God that comes into your heart at baptism and gives you power to resist temptation and do God's work? Do you want to join the church and help the church do the work of the Kingdom? Do you want to grow in faith and knowledge of Jesus through prayer and Bible study? They answered the questions with yes and a smile... and then I baptized them. I kind of expected the heavens to open up and for God to say something wise to all of us. It was a moving moment for me. We closed by welcoming our two new brothers into the congregation and sharing hugs and blessings. Everyone stayed for a fellowship meal of rice and beans and chicken.

It was also Edgar's birthday. He turned 16...so we had a cake and sang to him.

Edgar walked home saying, "Will we continue to meet on Friday's for Bible study?" He enjoyed the two months of Friday night Bible studies that we had in preparation for his baptism. I am asking God to guide me with what to do with Friday nights. There are several ideas I am tossing around and am not sure which way to go. God will make it clear.

The Friday Night "Girl's Night" Bible study became a mothers with children Bible study and we often had more children than women. It was hard to concentrate and made me think that these mothers need to get together. Maybe the focus should, be something to do with healthy mothering...games to play with your child, how to make playdoh, how to get your child to go to sleep at night, how to discipline your child, how does a deaf mother "read" to their child? how and when do you teach your child about Jesus? Yet the best time for "Mother's Night Out" might be during the day...maybe in the mornings or afternoons when I have school. Transportation is difficult at night but most could walk or ride the bus during the day. Hmmmm. Where is the best place for this idea? (probably at the church). How do we organize it? Who leads? Do we have food? Do we need childcare or is the focus including the children? How long should it be?

For a while I have also had the inkling that we should do a Believer's Bible study...this would be a continuation of the study that Edgar and I did... it would probably be held during the week right after school (4- 5 PM?) because the boys live far away and I dont want them traveling in the dark. Yet, I wonder if they would be too tired from school to launch into this. I wonder also how often an after school teachers' meeting woud conflict with this time. Should it be Believer's only... a small group... a committed cell group, or should it be more open to anyone who wants to come?

If anyone feels called to take a leap of faith and bring their ASL signing skills to Belize, I think there are a number of different kinds of groups like this that God would help you lead (smile).

Ups and Downs

We had 24 people for worship today. That is the most we have had in about a 12 month period. The extra people were hearing brothers and sisters of the deaf people. There is still a peace that is hovering among us. I praise God for that. This is a picture from this morning. Pastor Chon had a "Bible Institute" in his church so we had to find another place to worship. We used the empty building next to my house. Everyone loved it because it felt like "our church". I prefer to be in Pastor Chon's church because the space is larger. Yet, even though we were shoulder to shoulder, "cozy" is nice, too.




The sugar is tassle-ing. I love it. It's so beautiful to see a field full of it blowing in the wind under a blue sky.




The pointsettia trees are in full bloom. (Yes, here in Belize they are trees...not cute little plants.)



I'm healing. I thank God and the many people who prayed and helped me especially Mrs. Briceno who took me to the hospital on Sunday night and waited with me three hours while I got a drip and some insulin. She also gave me a good lunch each day. Now I am finally feeling stronger and there is just a little pain at the site of the wounds and some are even itching and the scabs are coming off. So the long and short of it is... whew! I'm glad to be alive and can't wait to get back in the classroom on Monday.



And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus. Always give thanks to God the Father through Jesus Christ.

Colossians 3:17

No one was hurt this morning when a big red pick-up truck driven by a young Mennonite man swerved around us and crashed into the left bumber of the van. We were driving slowly on the "Sugar Road" that is a dirt road that runs between the sugar factory and Yo Creek on our way to pick up more people for church. There were three children in the van and two were sitting in the very back. They yelled that the man is coming "crazy fast". I didn't hear them. The road was recently smoothed over and more dirt put down on the holes so you can actually fly about 60 to 70 mph on it. When he caught up to us I think he did not calculate the distance he needed to overtake us since we were not going very fast...and he got too close before he was able to swerve into the other lane. The passenger side of his truck got pretty wrecked up, too. There was a woman sitting in that seat holding a baby. Fortunately she did not let go of the baby. So in the end, no one was hurt.
I made a police report, went to the insurance agent's house and made the insurance report, and will go to see Mr. Estrada (body shop) tomorrow to get an estimate.

It could have been worse. It could have been a lot worse. So I thank God for protecting us, again.

Jesus' Deaf Church

These photos were taken two weeks ago. This is pretty much who is in our group on a regular basis (except Sherwin and Kristel are both missing and they are almost always at church). I thank God for these friends and faithful people. Sometimes the journey has been rough, maybe even tumultuous, but we're blessed with a peaceful period right now.

They used to come to church to socialize with other deaf people. That's always a big draw...even more than food. We who are Deaf need to be with others who understand us, know us, and can communicate with us no matter what age they are. The difference in the past few months is now they are also coming to learn.

If there were some kind of developmental research to explain how deaf people grow through stages in church membership, I think it would look like:

1.) curiosity

2.) wanting to be with other people who are deaf so badly that they will sit through the preaching and music, sleeping possibly and daydreaming certainly, reluctant to participate or share. They are just waiting for it to be over so they can visit and socialize.

3.)They come to socialize AND to learn.

4.) They come because they want to worship and praise God. They see God working in their lives and want to take time to thank him. They want to learn what God is doing in other people's lives. They want to honor the commandment to remember the Sabbath and keep it holy. In other words, they come because of God.

5.) They sense a call on their lives to be part of God's Kingdom plan and want to help God to communicate His message to other Deaf people. They want a role in the mechanics of the church.

I think we have rounded the corner. Although some are still in stage 2, many are showing an interest in learning. They now answer questions and share their thoughts and experiences. It's a big step. Stage 2 is self-centered. Stage 3 starts to show some openness to others and to God.

Manuel is growing weekly as a leader and in the knowledge of Christ. We all love to see him share a song or Bible story. He puts so much heart into it. He knows he is called. I think it is a huge responsibility for him...maybe too big. It's not up to me. It's God's plan. It's in His hands.

Please continue to pray with us to grow in Christ, to grow in expressions of love, and to be patient and forgiving of each other.

The School Garden

Sulmi and Kristel wrestling in the garden.

Cilantro (the naturally growing Belizean variety) in the back. Basil and peppermint (in a sunken pot so it won't spread too much) in the front.

Beans, then okra starting to sprout, habenero, then lettuce and cabbage.
The potatoes that didn't grow well are in the back.

While my North American friends and family are buttoning down the hatches and bracing for winter, we are planting seeds. The Special Ed. Unit is responsible for maintaining a school garden. I love this aspect of my job. In fact, if someone asked me what I do these days for "fun" I would say "play in the garden". Some of the children also love it. Yes, there are some who vie for the title of "who can stand around and do the least amount of work", but others are really proud of what we have joined God in creating. It's fun to keep it looking nice. The children are obviously proud of it. Luis said, "Maybe we will get an award." I smiled because there is no award for school gardens, but it showed how he was proud of the fruits of his labor. A kind-hearted British woman who married a Belizean is helping us. She's given us manure (lots of it), many plants, seeds, and lots of encouragement. I thank God for her support and friendship.
What's growing?
We have a lots of stuff to watch:
Tomatoes and green peppers from seeds
radishes, carrots, squash, cucumbers, okra and beans sprouting from seeds
chaya, calaloo (both green leafies) transplanted from my house
cabbage, lettuce, and habenero pepper plants
mint, sweet basil, thyme(or oregano... it's different than the US variety) and cilantro
some potatoes (it rained too much and they got kind of soggy so we will have to plant them again)
Pretty cool, eh?

Ugh! I'm not impervious to bad things. Shucks!

This is a terribly unflattering picture...but I wanted to show off my battle scars.
Last Tuesday I was bitten by a pitt bull, several times. Here's the gruesome story.
Most people here in Belize have "guard dogs". I have a dog, who jumps up and kisses the strangers who come to the gate, saying with his ears and eyes,"Are you here to play with me?". He is not a guard dog. The Belizean guard dogs are kept on a "short chain" and loosed at night to roam the yard. These dogs are mean. They are there to protect the family from intruders.

A teacher I work with has a husband who is a nice man and does wordworking professionally. He often does small woodworking projects for me for free. On Monday he made something for our school garden, so on Tuesday I went to his house and brought him a Coke to say thank you. He has said in the past when I offered to pay, "Nancy, you don't need to pay friends to do things for you." Taking that as an "oops...American idea" correction I went to his house with Coke in hand at noon. I have been there more times than I could count and the dog is always chained in the back of the house. On Tuesday it was inside the yard. I noticed it too late. It bit my left arm...with deep tooth marks on both sides. I briefly got away and then it bit my right arm tearing the flesh with a shake of its head. The owner and two other men were trying to get this enraged dog off of me and couldn't. I was on the ground crawling when it bit me the last time...on my butt. The gash on the right arm took about 6 stitches inside to sew the muscle and 5 on the outside. It's slowly healing but... oh so much pain!

First I went to the private doctor that I know and trust since the hospital is a crazy, not so sterile place, IMHO. Then I went to school. The principal said to get rabbies shots at the hospital, so another teacher took me there for a tetnus injection. We reported the dog to the health department and they are going to watch it to see if rabies develops. (They'll notify me and I will get the shots, but I doubt that the dog is rabid). Then I came home and my neighbor applied Maya medicine. I think that probably worries my parents. Two of the puncture wounds were still draining blood 48 hours later. The neighbor got it to stop with tetracycline directly on the wound and then covered it with an onion peel. (huh?) It was an ingenious idea because the onion did not stick to the wound and could be peeled off...the hospital had sent me home with gauze on the wound and it stuck. They also wrapped it in a tight bandage. The neighbor said it should not be covered. On the swollen part she put aloe vera plants. That was so refreshing. I worried, though about sterility and about getting infection. I continued to wash everything with alcohol and hydrogenperoxide. It's now Friday, 3 days later, and I still have pain (yes, I'm taking various meds from the first doctor) and there is no infection that I can see. I do wish the swelling and pain would go away.

The Angels are Still Rejoicing!

Every Friday night Edgar (16) comes to my house carrying his Bible. He says he wants to learn more about Jesus. I give him scripture to read at home and he comes back next week having read it...not always understanding it, but reading with the help of God's Spirit. When we are together we read a passage and try to understand what God is saying in each verse. In this picture he is reading John 3 about Nicodemus and being "born again". Just like Nicodemus, Edgar puzzled over the concept of how he could be born again? He can't go back inside his mother? He wondered out loud, "What does Jesus mean?" I let him struggle, like Nicodemus did for a minute, not giving him the answer, emphasizing the "you must"...repeated twice at this point. The next verse said with the Spirit and with water. He started to catch on. Jesus meant a different kind of birth. "Ah Ha!" he almost shouted.
Well, from here on it gets theologically sticky because there are different interpretations of what it means to be born again. As we studied we knew that the water was to wash away our sins... to wash away the old and clean ourselves ready for the new. I told him that when he is baptized on Dec. 6 he will have a chance to come to the water like all the people John baptized including Jesus. With repentance he will need to ask God to forgive him for all his disobedience. The washing, or actually "dying" by being dipped into the water and rising again is a symbol of his being born again to a new life. The magic is not the dipping in the pool, but that God forgives and then fills us with his Spirit. He can go back to stealing and lying or he can allow his heart to be born again by the Spirit and walk in God's love.
He seems pretty intent on trying to follow Jesus, but temptations are all around. Two weeks ago he stole $50 from his mother's purse. He lied about his job. The whole church was in shock, "You lied? All this time you said you had to hurry and go to work at 1:00...but you never had the job?" At church he cried when Manuel said, "You lied to us!" I don't think he can stop overnight. I pray that God's word, his deaf friends support, and God's Spirit will get him on the right path. Please pray with me.

The Angels are Rejoicing

  I never gave up hope.  In fact I had a vision that one day Steven* would be leading a children's story for church and telling his testimony about how God changed him.  In the vision no one believed that he used to be violent, damaged property, shoved women to the ground (including me) and had a variety of addictions that ruled his behavior.  Listening to his testimony and not knowing the "former Steven", they would stare with their mouths open and say, "Steven? Really? No! He was like that? ...but he's such a strong Christian and such a gentle man."

That was the dream I had for this 22 year old man who attends our Deaf Church.  But I never imagined that it would happen this soon. I assumed it would take a lifetime for him to choose to follow Jesus and give up his need to control everyone.

Last Sunday the sermon was about the Rich Young Ruler from Mark 10.  The story is a sad one.  Jesus gives the young man a choice: Go home and live like you always have, or sell all you have, give it to the poor, and follow me.  He was too rich, or too attached to the responsibility of maintaining his wealth, or just liked his life the way it was.  For whatever reason, the man looked at Jesus, shook his head sadly, and went home.

We talked about making the choice of following Jesus or doing things the way we have always liked to do them. "Our way".

A few of the children acted out a "happier" ending to the story: sharing with the poor, giving up addictions, leaving their "nets" behind and following Jesus.  When the sermon was over I asked if there was anyone in our group who wanted to make the choice to follow Jesus.  Steven and another boy, Adam* came forward.  Steven said "Oh, yes, yes," and tossed his hands up in submission.

I asked Steven to share why he came forward.  He said, You know for a long time I have held my life, drinking, sex, weed,  in my right hand in front of me like this, and church and faith in my left hand.  I've always tried to have them both, right here, together.  But I realized, I can't have both.  They can't survive together.  So I am tossing this out and making a choice to follow Jesus.  Then he tossed the imaginary contents of his right hand over his shoulder.  We kneeled and prayed.

I told the rest of the church to embrace him and pray that Steven can keep his commitment.

Today, Tuesday, the girls (Sulmi and Kristel) and I took Steven and Adam out to eat to celebrate their new life and to give them prayer support.  It was a wonderful evening.  Steven said that he had seen how Jesus had changed Manuel and made him "improved".  He's impressed with how Manuel has become a new person...that God is obviously leading him on Sundays when he teaches.  Steven said he wants that too.  He wants to learn about God, study the Bible,  and learn the stories so he can teach, too.  He said "I just really want to learn."

When a deaf man who walks around Orange Walk begging for money for beer approached our table to talk and beg, Steven encouraged the man to come to church.  When the begger walked away, Steven said that the beggar is making  bad choices.  He realizes that now.  Steven said he has "stopped" drinking.  He said getting drunk is just a temporary high...followed by a hangover.  He said he is going to stay away from the women (the streetwalkers who are deaf and approach him and vice versa.)   He said that, too, leads to a headache.  But following Jesus leads to peace, heaven, and joy. He asked to be baptized and wants his parents to come and watch, if he can get them to come. (He thinks they don't care about him.  They do, but he's been terrible to them....I am praying that there can be some reconcilliation and he can apologize to many of the people he has hurt.)

So, whew!  It's been a long hard 5 year journey.... with lots of resistance and even threats.  But nothing is impossible with God. Pretty amazing, huh?

I'll keep you updated.  In the meantime, please pray for Steven.

The Adam story is just as amazing.  I can't tell you how much this guy has stolen from me and others.  After stealing 4 times from his boss at SP (a department store), they caught him with his pockets full and fired him.  He spent a night in jail, but was released the next day.  He asked me to help him find another job.  I didn't want to find a quick fix to this issue.  I was hoping he would suffer a little bit and realize the consequences of his actions...which I had warned him about many times. ("If you keep stealing you will be fired!").   So I was not very keen on helping him.  Daily he came to my classroom after school and asked me to go to another store with him looking for work.  We walked all over Orange Walk and probably talked with 15 different businesses, including Landy's, Coca-Cola, People's, M and A, and the bakery looking for an opening for Adam.  Adam was discouraged.  I told him that I don't think that God will reward him with another job until he turns his life around and truly says to God that he will stop stealing. When we obey God's commands, God gives us favor and answers our prayers. He replied by coming back the next day with another idea of a place to apply and ......stealing $50 from me.  I told him I was done looking for him.

His mother took over the challenge and tried again at the bakery.  She has a relative who is the manager there. 

They told her they did not have an opening. 

A month passed.

Last Sunday Adam came to the front of the church and said he wanted to follow Jesus.  He said he would not steal anymore.  He said he wanted to choose the right path, the straight path and be baptized. He kneeled and prayed.

The next day, Monday,  the bakery called and said they needed him if he still wanted work.

Amazing, huh?  Pray for Adam.  Pray that he makes good choices, that he keeps his commitment to follow Jesus.  Pray that he can resist the temptation to steal. 

Dear friends, please also pray for Manuel that he remains faithful to his calling.  

With love,

Nancy

*names changed