Pray for Nicaragua on Sunday, March 2, 2014

Lectionary Selection: Matthew 17:1-9

Prayers for Nicaragua:
O God, on this day I would like to thank you for breathing life into our lives with your words. Your words live and reveal light and guidance for your children in the Christian Mission Church in Nicaragua. Just as Peter, James, and John listened to a fervent desire to praise, obey and make your Kindom grow, so do the people working here at the Christian Mission Church. They have a burning desire to follow you and they come to you often in thanksgiving for your kindness and care. Be with them on Sunday, March 30. It is election time for the Christian Mission Church. She will select a presidential pastor who will lead her church board. Be with the pastors in the church who will accompany her new leader for the next three years. O God, we pray that your church members recognize this new process for the church as a blessing. God, let the church see this time as a time to be united and uniting in all her work. Let the church “Arise, and be not afraid” as they move boldly into a new day.

Mission Stewardship Moment from Nicaragua:
The Christian Mission Church of Nicaragua (La Misión Cristiana) is a home-grown pentecostal denomination situated in the barrios of Managua and in the rural areas outside the capital. The church has as its mission the preaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ. This preaching is done in words and deeds, so that the gospel is embodied through the testimony of the church, and its commitments to the values of justice, solidarity, equality and respect for diversity. Their vision is to encourage and support social transformation which is good news for the most vulnerable sectors of society: the poor, the sick, women, children, and people excluded from our socio-economic systems.

My work here is devoted to environmental education, food security and conflict transformation. In my first month in this beautiful country my heart ached when I saw people throw garbage onto the street. Were they unaware of the impact?

After a few weeks here in Nicaragua I was invited to give a workshop on environmental awareness and reforestation to a youth group of the church. The bible chapter they used for my presentation was the creation in Genesis where God gives us everything on the earth to steward with care. These young people did not perceive this land as their Eden and they had not received training about environmental issues so they were unaware of the impact of throwing trash onto the street. It took being engaged with the community to understand this.

In October we took these same young people on a journey to see the Reforestation at Villa, Nicaragua. We also travelled by bus seven hours north to visit the Christian Mission Church. Many of these young people had never left their homes on a long journey like this. They were immersed in nature and learned and practiced stewardship of the earth. We worked the soil with our hands planting trees, all to renew their way of seeing this land and to recognize the God given gift of this earth.

We are grateful for your prayers and support of Global Ministries in the United Church of Christ and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) churches. Your gifts are supporting the environmental projects and helping us teach young boys and girls about reforesting and the environmental impact of their actions. Please pray for these children of the church as they grow into being good stewards of this Garden of Eden, God’s gift of this Earth.

(Prayer and Mission Moment by Magyolene Rodriguez)

Mission Partners in Nicaragua:

More information on Nicaragua:
http://globalministries.org/lac/countries/nicaragua/

Global Ministries Missionary in Nicaragua:
Magyolene Rodriguez, member of Iglesia Pentecostal de Chile, Curico, Chile, serves with the Convention of Churches Christian Mission of Nicaragua. She works in environmental education, food security and conflict transformation.