Back in the USA

Yes, we made it safely home yesterday. Only a few delays and some really sketchy turbulence coming into Atlanta, but all of our medicines made it back without being checked by customs! We are happy to be home, but we miss our friends in Nicaragua.

approximate Team Totals: we saw just over 500 patients and 50 people accepted Christ! Just one precious Nicaraguan would have been worth the trip.

Thank you so much for your prayers, and for following our blog. We continue to pray that the work we started will continue and that we can take with us everything we learned there.

Here are a few pics from the trip:)
God Bless, Kristen

mission accomplished :)

[from Michael Overcash]:
Hi, Kristen asked me to post - they have had little to no internet access all week, and apologize for the infrequent posts. She promised more photos once they return Monday (5:18PM Delta 1082).

from Kristen: "We had a great morning at CALT (Christian Academy of Las Torres, the school we sponsor) - we saw 57 children and they were all quite sick, so we really feel we made an impact physically and spiritually.

Today we are having a blast at Montelimar (this is our "free" day): Boogie boarding, horseback riding, hanging out at the pool... some of the team even did some poolside Latin dancing :)
We are headed soon back for a debriefing meeting and an early wake-up to get to the airport - 4:30am.

We will miss all the people we connected with here.

Answered prayers:
1) Our team was amazingly united, the entire time, both among ourselves and with the locals.
2) We were able to give $600 as a donation to Nathan, Amber and Mary this am with left over team funds. It was much appreciated."

I will see some of you at the airport -
until then,
prayerfully yours,
Michael O.

Coming full Circle

We started our day with devotions from Acts chapter 10. This was a time for us to quiet our hearts so that we could speak to and more importantly, hear from God. It has been important to start each day with a vertical line of communication between ourselves and God.

During the day we were able to experience a horizontal relationship with our Nicaraguan brothers and sisters in the form of small groups that ate together over lunch. We were able to ask questions about what their daily lives were like and also learn more about their culture. We share common experiences and most importantly we laughed as all families do. We were also able to expand this sharing as we worked side by side in the clinic.

After heading back to the hotel for a quick shower and dinner break, we returned to the church for a night of praise and worship. We were blessed to experience a service in Spanish. We sang many songs familiar to the El Rosario church members and we even were able to piece together a choir at the last minute to serenade them. We sang “Open the Eyes of My Heart” in both English and Spanish. They were really impressed, however we may have been the most impressed with our skills. Finally, the message spoke about who is our neighbor and it was evident last night that the Nicaraguans were our neighbor, but we were reminded of our neighbors in the US as well. Here the horizontal and vertical relationships joined together in unity, one mission under God, one circle of Holy Spirit and children of God.

Medicine in Nicaragua

Hola todos, y buenas noches! It's only day 3 of clinic, and already we are able to see God's great work among the people in Rivas! We played with countless children today, both in the clinic and outside. We wish we had pictures of the Children's Ministry workers (Will, Mark, Amanda, Meg, Bailey, and Lindsey) - they were so dirty from playing soccer and baseball in the rain, but had smiles on their faces, even at the end of a long, hot day! It's amazing to see how they keep up with 30 children running and yelling, "Gringo! Gringo!" The highlight of their day, though, was working together to make at least 30 necklaces for the children, who stood perfectly still in a straight line until their necklaces were finished!


We were able to work alongside Dr. Aracelys today (a physician in Nicaragua). She is a wonderful doctor and teacher, and we were able to assist and perform procedures that we performed only once in PA school! We are so grateful for Dr. Aracelys and the time she took to teach us and show us what it means to be a great clinician: spending quality time with the patients educating them about their health and the medicines they would be taking, but also taking time to pray with them. We were able to minister to many of the women in the community because many of the Nicaraguan women desired to see her as a provider. We saw one woman who battled breast cancer and was still doing well 11 years later. What a blessing to give her such great news and rejoice over God's blessings!

We saw a total of 101 patients in the clinic today. Of that, 11 people give their life to Christ, and 5 people rededicate their lives to Him. The church in Rivas is the heart of this ministry. Although we have the opportunity to help the physical needs of the Nicaraguans, more importantly, we are reaching their spiritual needs as well.
We thank you for your prayers and your love for us. Please continue to pray that we would remain strong physically, emotionally, and spiritually as we continue to do God's work here in Nicaragua. Much Love!

~Jackie and Brittany Z.

Home Visits in El Rosario

Today was another incredible day at the church in El Rosario! We saw a total of 105 patients, 15 of which accepted Christ and 13 reconciled!! A few of the team members were also able to attend two house visits in the surrounding community. One of the patients was in kidney failure and the team was able to counsel his wife on his care and provide him with antibiotics for an infection. The other house visit involved an older Nicaraguan who was diabetic, had a bladder infection, and had injured her foot. The house visits were incredible because it allowed us to fully dive into their culture by being welcomed into their home and we were also able to see their faith and appreciation in a whole new setting.
Other amazing moments of the day included a woman who was 5 months pregnant got to hear the fetal heart beat for the first time, many patients regained the ability to read with new glasses, and a woman was able to walk with limited assistance after receiving a cane! It has been truly amazing to see God's work through the team members, the volunteers at the church, and the faith that shines in the patients! We miss everyone at home and are very thankful for your support, prayers, and wonderful comments on the blog! God bless and Goodnight!

~ Rachel Sammis ("Stinkerbelle")

First Day of Clinic

We had our first day of clinic today and it went beautifully. Everyone jumped in and went right to work. We saw patients handed out glasses and played with the kids.

It was very touching to be able to pray with one lady who has been out of the church for a while. She had been experiencing severe "bone pain" all over and was very unhappy. However after praying with her and sharing how much Christ loves her and His power to heal her pain she left with tears and a smile. That is why we are here - to share the hope of Jesus and His love, Amen!

Stats: We saw 91 patients and 28 people accepted Christ!

First Day in Nicaragua

Yes, we have made it safely to Nicaragua! We are so sorry that we were not able to update the blog sooner, but there was no internet connection until we arrived in Rivas.
The entire team is doing great. We toured Managua today and we just got back from meeting the church members in El Rosario where will will hold clinic all week.
We are so excited to be here and look forward to what God has prepared. Thank you all so much for your continued prayers. We will let you know how our first day of clinic goes tomorrow:) God Bless, Kristen

on their way to Nicaragua!

This morning's scene at Charleston was a flurry of suitcases, labels, scales, and tearful goodbyes. After a Charleston Delta Delay (is that redundant?) they found a plane, and now the team is safely on the way from Atlanta to Nicaragua. I hope to have some news from the field tomorrow, until then let us all be in prayer for the team's safety and unity. To God be the glory.

Mock Clinic: Final Preparations

Today we had our dress rehearsal for Medical clinics in Nicaragua. All of us took turns running pharmacy, triage, glasses, and the medical provider station. It was a lot of fun and we are ready to serve the people of El Rosario!