Oct 012009

Nicaraguan Touchstone October 2009

Come, you who are blessed by my Father: take your inheritance, the Kingdom. Prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me. Matthew 25: 34—36

Greetings from Leon Nicaragua. We want to thank all of our friends, family and supporters who have been praying for us on our journey. For the past few years we have heard God calling us to be more for Him. We have answered the call by selling our home, our possessions and said “until Later” to friends and family and moved to Leon, Nicaragua. God has laid it on our hearts to help the children of Nicaragua. Our plans include a children's home and supporting Voice of Hope Ministries in their spreading of the gospel of Christ. We rely daily on the grace of God. Follow us on our journey to where God leads us From John What a time it has been. In the past 6 weeks I have become homeless and unemployed. This is something that several years ago would have defeated me. But God is in control. He has sent a buyer for our home, given me a sense of peace about changing vocation, in effect relying on God to provide instead of relying on my own abilities. I could not be here on my own. God has laid the path ahead of us and will open doors and close doors. I just pray for the wisdom to know what to do. I am relying on “God qualifying the called” . The past month has found us travelling many miles seeing family and friends, living out of suitcases. It is good to finally unpack and have a home to rest and relax. I enjoy every minute of every day I get to spend with Vanessa and our children. We have great adventures everyday, from discovering a sea anemone in a rock battered by waves, to watching the joy on the kids faces as the waves crash around us. From riding a crowded “bus” into Leon, learning what is available to cooking and preparing meals together as a family, there are many discoveries to be made. I cherish these times and look forward to many more. I am enjoying the slower pace after many years of running the rat race of American life. I am feeling the internal push to do more. Much is to be done and the days are short. I do not know what lies on the road ahead. I do not know how the support comes. I do know that God has led us here, He is faithful, gracious and generous. He will guide and empower. He is supportive and gracious. He is the reason that any of us has hope in life. He is greatly to be praised and is worthy of that praise. All that I know is that for most of my life I have served myself. Now I want to serve God and I want my family to serve Him. From Vanessa: We are two weeks into school and our regular teaching time is during the afternoon because that is when the neighbor kids go to school. A bit different than North America but since it is hotter in the afternoon it is a good way to spend the time. Our mornings are cool and beautiful. We wake up refreshed and ready for another day of sweating. God brings me comfort each day via my children. Each one of them will bring me a smile that warms my heart and lets me know that God is with us and leading us as we make this journey for Him. Our progress is much slower than what I had hoped for as far as meeting people and getting to know other children. Perhaps it is the language barrier which will soon be remedied. We are planning on hiring a language teacher to come to our house everyday for 3 hours. That should solve the language problem in a hurry. (continued on back)

Contact info. Email: [email protected] Blog: speigle6onmissions.blogspot.com Skype:

jdspeigle john.speigle vkspeigle

Address: Will be added on later newsletter

Do you want to partner with the Speigles on their mission work? Contribution can be sent via: Voice of Hope Ministries, attn Katie Hulsey P.O. Box 1780 Rogers, AR 72757. Re: John & Vanessa Speigle

The front of our new house

From The Kids From Sierra When we go into town, we ride the bus. Sometimes it gets really crowded. When we are done shopping we take a taxi back. Once we had all 6 squish in the back. Sydney on mommy’s lap, Kyle on my lap and Caleb on daddy’s lap. I like it in Nicaragua. From Kyle. It’s fun here in Nicaragua. It’s very hot. I miss our friends back in the states. But it’s fun here in Nicaragua.

From Caleb. It’s hot but we play outside a lot. We play more sports. We made a couple of new friends. We have lots of fun.

Prayer Needs of the Speigles :

From Sydney. I want to find pepperoni to eat pizza. It’s fun in Nicaragua. I’m having a good time.

*Making contact with right people to help us get started.

Looking to the future: We have many plans in store but to name a few: Our first order of business will be to get our application to the government for permanent residency started. That requires a trip to Managua which is 2 hours away. Not a difficult task to accomplish but a few road blocks in the way. We need to get our paper work translated into Spanish, we need to find a ride to the big city. Second order of business will be to talk with the Ministry of families. This government organization is in charge of the children and women in the community. They are the group that will either allow us to keep children in Nicaragua or not. This meeting will need to go very smoothly and we must have a positive impression for them to allow us to do this. We have found out the government is no longer allowing 24 hour children’s homes to start. Basically they are allowing day cares to start but the children will need to go somewhere else for the evenings. Not real sure how this will all work out but praying God will lead us to the right people. There are several different children’s homes in the area that have been established for some time now and we are hoping to meet the people in charge and maybe even help them a bit while we wait to start our own. God will have to work it out because everyone is very busy with their ministry. We are just praying God will place people in our lives to guide us to the right places where we can serve. From the Kitchen: We have been trying many different foods down here in Nicaragua. Most of the meals include rice, of course. So far our favorite dish is simply rice with canned peas, salt and pepper. We are able to find regular vegetables such as carrots, celery and peppers. Some of the more exotic vegetables and fruits we have not tried yet but are planning to soon and we will let you know which ones are our favorites. Our most adventuresome dish has been using green bananas and mangos as a suitable replacement for applesauce, lots of flavor but a very different texture.

(From Vanessa cont.)

I am excited to have a cook coming to our house daily to teach me how to cook with Nicaraguan foods. I will be learning how to use the tropical fruits and vegetables as well as other ways to cook rice and beans. God continues to provide for us in every way and I know because of all the prayers being said on our behave God is in control. We will wait patiently for His direction so we are always in His will.

*Making contact with the Government and the Ministry of Families to establish residency and foster parent status.

*Language development *Need of a vehicle and the funds to purchase. *Health and safety as we acclimate to new environment. *God’s continued guidance *Patience and understanding

On September 23rd Sierra celebrated her 11th Birthday. Celebration included cake, hats, horns and a trip to the beach. A trip to Masaya Volcano is planned. Happy Birthday Sierra