In the children’s classes, each one of them participates in the different activities they do, what they like most is singing praises, going in front of everyone and mentioning verses, other things they like most is sharing time with their little friends.
The community leader informs the mothers who are involved in the ECS projects of the time and location of these classes, inviting them to bring their children. The children are left in the care of the person who teaches these Bible classes.
children removing their snack
These classes begin with a prayer and with the participation of a volunteer to sing. The person in charge of these classes searches the Bible for verses to illustrate them to the children so they can interpret and color the way they want and understand the message in a simpler way.
These activities are divided depending on the age of the children, the youngest ones are assigned songs, choruses and drawings, while the older ones are assigned verses to memorize to share them with other classmates who visit these classes.
The teacher is prepared with different verses to explain them, she brings pictures, colors, glue and different materials to make the class more dynamic, many times they do skits and mime. In these classes, crafts are made so that they develop their skills and discover their gifts or talents.
The children who visit these classes are approximately 4-13 years old. These classes last 45 minutes or all morning depending on the workshop that ECS women receive. According to the teacher, it is not difficult to teach children if you really like it, you must have love, patience and carry a clear message so as not to confuse them.
At this meeting they share a soy-based snack. The mothers are in charge of making it and the process and ingredients are divided. Some provide tomatoes, chiltoma, lemons, among others from their family garden. One is in charge of cooking the rice, another of the meat and another chops the ingredients for the meat. When they finish, they line up and go to pick up the food.
Integration of the spiritual program in the projects
The families share that through these multiplier projects they have recognized the importance of keeping the word of God in mind, not only in reading, but also in the practice of Christian values, from care and reproduction to sharing and providing to those in need.
Dear Friends of CHE, Nicaragua…
Entrepreneurial women
Many blessings on you all as you anticipate the holiday season and the celebration of our Saviour’s birth. Thank you for all you have made possible this year:
The new CHE communities near Managua are thriving The prayer and discipleship groups continue faithfully Through Community Health Evangelism those who feel trapped and helpless in their circumstances find hope in Jesus, and the abundant life he bestows. Please help us to enable Community Health Evangelism, Nicaragua, to finish the year with the funds to pay leaders the ’13th month’, or an extra month’s pay, in December, as required by the government. Prayer Requests That CHE will receive the funds to continue ministering God’s grace and redeeming mercy in every area of Nicaragua That those who have expressed interest in mission trips next year will go to participate in the ministry. For medical and dental teams to visit next year. God bless you for your generosity, Anne, Bill, Shannon, Ben, and Amanda at Partnership in Hope.
New CHE members show the finished dress
CHE leader drying cacao beans. Francisco became a Christian through CHE
Members of a CHE savings group that has 90 participants. They use their savings for school uniforms, house repairs, a bicycle to get to work, medical expenses, for example.
Young girls have joined this group, and are bing discipled by the older women.
The north of Nicaragua has a special charm. We change the beaches and colonial cities for the inland mountains and rural towns, we enjoy a cooler climate in some areas and the economy is focused on agricultural production, mainly coffee: In Nueva Segovia, one of the best in the world, as indicated by the Specialty Coffee Association of the United States (SCAA).
This area is characterized by its traditional crops, such as Corn and Beans, its people are very friendly, affectionate and charming, many are dedicated to raising livestock, chickens and pigs, thus obtaining milk, eggs for sustenance or selling them. and help each other with the finances of their home.
We are sure that anyone who visits these communities in the North of the country will want to stay for a long time, so I invite you to learn more about this beautiful country.
Day 2 :Sunday, opportunity to attend local church, afternoon activity
Day 3 :Monday, Meet CHE staff, community work
Day 4 :Tuesday, Community work
Day 5: Wednesday, Community work
Day 6: Thursday, Community work
Day 7: Friday, Special activity
Day 8: Saturday, Leave for Home
We are happy to arrange shorter, 3 – 5 day Vision Trips. Contact us for arrangements. In addition, we invite you to come simply to learn how wholistic ministry works in a community,
You will not be expected to contribute a specific activity, but will have the luxury of time in deeper conversations with the Central TrainingTeam, based in Managua, local leaders, pastors, and community members. You will witness the monthly trainings, with the combination of the spiritual and the practical, walk in the community with CHE members, and visit their homes. You will hear their testimonies of the impact of CHE on their lives, family life, and how Jesus is gradually transformimg their communities. Nicaragua is a very beautiful country. There are options for adventure tourism (volcano climbs, canyon trip, islands) visits to laid back beach communities, and historic sites.
¡Come with us!
Program That Helps Feed Families
Thanks to our generous donors many familes now own pigs, iguanas and/or chickens. They must give the first piglet or baby chick to another family and then that family does the same so eventually most families have either pigs or chickens. This has proven very advantageous during the Covid crisis to provide food for families.
Providing Food, Pastor Chico Leads By Example
Pastor Chico, the CHE leader responsible for helping families achieve greater food security, must be approaching a record for growing the most food in the smallest space! He and his wife have a small, corner lot in a development. Every year they raise chickens, both for eggs and for meat. They sell the chickens at Christmas, when they can obtain the best price, and people make sure to get their orders in for these quality chickens.
The pastor’s new venture is raising rabbits for food. One difficulty is that people think of rabbits as pets rather than potential food. Maybe if they get hungry enough….?
His patio has eggplants the size of a shrub, a worm farm, all kinds of vegetables, lemons by the dozen, herbs and ginger and all kinds of other crops. His small “farm” serves as a model of what is possible.
Pastor Chico works hard to challenge and teach CHE members to produce more food for their families.
Pray for a good harvest this year both for the small home gardens and the Nicaraguan farmers.
Finding Ways to Become More Self-Sufficient
The CHE Association has the goal of becoming more financially independent each year. This year they’ve invested in raising beans on a farm where they will be sharing the profit with the farmer. They are working on making several similar arrangements in other communities. They also are partnering with another farmer who became a Christian through CHE ministry, to raise beef in order to become more self-sufficient. Please pray for these efforts to be successful for all concerned.
Maria Felix Centeno, CHE Association’s Director of Operations, has taken on the task of selling the coffee, honey, and hibiscus flower tea, produced by women of CHE. The profits are shared between the Association, and the women. This is one of the efforts that the Association is making to generate funds, and support women with micro-businesses selling quality products.
Maria Felix Centeno
Supporting Other Non-Profits Yessenia, a CHE leader for some years, has always made her home available for meetings and trainings. Not only is she hospitable, she is also a visionary entrepreneur. This photo shows her with some of the masks she has made for the Nicaraguan CHE Association to give to organizations who have supported them, such as World Vision, the Rainbow Network and others.
The Nicaraguan CHE Association Publishing Nicaraguan Training Manuals
Pastor Jorge and the Nicaraguan CHE leaders have created a valuable way to reach/teach communities in this time of difficult time. They’ve created lessons that are written in the Nicaraguan context-language, culture and special circumstances. For example, the lesson Walking with Christ covers the following topics:
A New Way of Life 2.
New Creatures in Christ
Spiritual Breathing 4.
Prepared for Spiritual Battle
Christ has Power and Authority
Of course, this is CHE, so there is a spiritual lesson, and a practical lesson. An example of a practical lesson would be the one on immunizations and what they can do prevent the different diseases that are commonly found in Nicaragua.
How You Can Support Our Brothers and Sisters
Because of the economic crisis brought on by the pandemic, many organizations have been providing relief to the most affected communities. The CHE Association, thanks to many of your generous donations, has been able to provide food boxes to very needy families. For while CHE emphasizes community development rather than relief, there are times when we need to show the love of God through acts of mercy and kindness. However, we continue to focus on encouraging and teaching community members to plan for their own needs and do all they can to provide for their own families.
WAYS YOU CAN SUPPORT THE PEOPLE OF NICARAUGA
Pay for a community to have the newly produced manual “Walking With Christ”. $26 will pay to have one printed and delivered to a community wanting to grow in their faith and provide for their families.
Buy an animal to help a family start raising meat or eggs to eat and milk to drink. Here is the cost of what you can donate:
Pig-$58
Chicken-$11
Rabbit $7.50
Goat $60 for female/$75 male
Seeds-$4 an ounce
The Nicaragua CHE Association will send you a card with the photo of the animal you gave to a family or the garden your seeds sprouted. When you make your donation be sure to say what you are donating for and give your email address so our Nicaraguan friends can send you a photo. Maybe you can give a Nicaraguan family an animal for a present???
New Logo/New Website The CHE Nicaragua Association has not only created a new logo, they have a new Spanish web site for their Association: https://asociacionecsnicaragua.com They’ve had a Facebook page in Spanish, Community Health Evangelism (CHE) Nicaragua, for quite awhile. It is so good to see the Spanish web site, which will continue to be further developed. Visit both and practice your Spanish.
The CHE Association collaborates with Samaritan´s Purse, Canada, Saving Groups
The CHE Association supports the Learn to Live savings group, a project of Samaritan´s Purse, Canada, in El Limonal, by sending their local leader, Fátima Medina, to give the devotional at the beginning of their meetings. She also helps with some craft lessons.
Fernanda is a 15 year old single mother of a beautiful 8 month old baby boy. He’s a very patient baby, sitting in a chair, enjoying the attention from the women and children in the sewing class where his mother was working on making table mats.
Fernanda has had a difficult life: her mother died when she was young, so her grandmother took care of her, until she died herself. Fernanda had a boyfriend who abandoned her. She now lives with a woman who has befriended her. Through the gospel teaching in the Savings Group, Fernanda recently accepted Jesus, who will never abandon her. Getting up before dawn every day, Fernanda makes tortillas to sell in the market, and directly from the house. In this way, she provides for herself and her baby. Thanks to a small scholarship, through the CHE Association, which enables her to buy school supplies, Fernanda attends high school on Saturdays – a common situation in Nicaragua, as this allows students to work during the week.She enjoys the Savings Group, which promotes micro-business, as well as savings. Fernanda told me that she would like to study business administration in the future.
When Pastor Edin was installed as pastor in San Claudio, his wife, Juanita, stood beside him with tears running down her face. They had been called from their home on a lush beautiful island in Lake Nicaragua, to an area that is blasted by the sun, deforested decades ago, and where the land is contaminated from years of pesticide use on cotton crops. Their accommodation, initially, was inadequate, and some of their neighbors did not befriend them because they did not think they would be able to put up with the conditions. However, believing that ‘He who calls you is faithful’, they set themselves to be obedient to the call, loving their neighbors, and sharing the gospel.
CHE ministry in a new community may begin with the general community, a church, or with a family. In the Jicaro, Nueva Segovia communities the Jimenez family have been key in the development of a ministry that:
Has impacted 6 communities
Has 300 children in discipleship classes
500 women working in CHE
100 women have their own businesses as a result of CHE training
30 men are making hammocks (thanks to classes through CHE)
Communities have successfully worked on community projects, such as:
A well
A school
Latrines
Ovens
Efficient Wood Stoves
Scholarships
Child feeding stations, which include scholastic support
We can say truthfully that God uses families in the transformation of their communities.
The Jimenez family includes the 2 CHE Area leaders: brother and sister, Jose Luis (wearing blue) and Dania (in pink). God has given them the strength to face difficulties, as well as love and patience in their work.
Their mother, Lila, Mama Lila to all of us, and their father, Don Tulio, have welcomed CHE trainers from other part of the country, and accommodated everyone at, what must have been, considerable inconvenience. Tania, their younger sister, participates in CHE trainings, and helps her mother produce delicious meals to be consumed on their wide, shady porch.
Masiel, in red, is a capable young farmer, often to be seen bringing the cows home. The family has farmed there for over 50 years, always planting corn and beans. This year, the bean crop did very poorly, so Masiel decided to try tomatoes, with seeds provided by ECHO in Florida. (echo.org) So far, the plants are doing well, so we ask God to provide a bountiful harvest.
Both Dania and Jose Luis Jimenez are agricultural engineers, and Dania has been working with various NGO’s most of her twenties. She was sent to Japan by one group for study in crop diversification. Much of the spread of interest in CHE amongst the communities in their municipality has been due to Dania’s work connections over the last few years. In addition, CHE ministry has been able to enter the communities of Mozonte, an indigenous community, because Dania has worked there before and won the trust and friendship of the local women.
Dania is a natural leader, respected by the other CHE leaders. When there is an opportunity for the women to sell their crafts, Dania is the one to organize a sale, and make sure everyone has access to materials, even if they have to take a small loan until after the sale. She has been very active with the women involved with micro-businesses.
Jose Luis is a real doer, tireless in coordinating meetings/activities, and making sure everyone knows what is going on. When he is facilitating a training, he is very open about how much he has learned through CHE, from practical preventive health practices to drawing close to Christ through prayer and Bible study. When Pastor Antonio, from the central CHE team in Managua, visits to lead Bible studies and discipleship groups, Jose Luis takes him to all the communities on his motorcycle. When he and his brother are not working on the family farm, they enjoy teaching their horse to do dressage – which he does to the music on a cell phone.
Both Dania and Jose lead the CHE family vegetable garden project in the rainy season that has just ended. They help with advice and information on organic practices and crop diversification, both on farms, and in gardens. Their family always has a garden in the rainy season. They are also learning about medicinal plants with Angelika Keppler, a missionary from Germany. Angelika and Johannes Keppler are with the CHE Association, and work closely with Jose Luis and Dania. Johannes is also a farmer.
Dania and Jose Luis have the whole-hearted support of their family in their work with CHE ministry. When there are trainings, and special events, or visiting teams, the family throws the farmhouse open to the visitors. Delightful times are shared in the family kitchen or on the porch.
In summary, it would be true to say that they are both agents of change who put their faith into action, and reputations on the line for CHE, and for the gospel.
Women’s Cycle of Life leader: I love to see that spark in women! I love to see them come alive, and realize that they can learn! That they have talents, that Jesus can work through them to transform their families, and their communities.
For many women meeting Jesus through Women’s Cycle of Life, God is truly giving them beauty for ashes. They are new creations in Christ Jesus.
Through Women of CHE classes women have the opportunity to learn new skills, as well as refine their skills.
Two women have started their own bakeries with enthusiastic support from their husbands. Others are making their own birthday and Mother’s Day cakes, which saves money.
One woman added home-made donuts to the snacks she sells outside the school, a step which has boosted sales. Many have taken cake-decorating classes with a government program.
The sewing classes in one community began with the village seamstress generously teaching her skills, and sharing her sewing machine. The women came to learn in small groups throughout the week. Recycled secondhand clothing was used for practice. Thank you to all the seamstresses in the US who generously share their fabric stashes so that CHE women can make attractive items to sell, and begin to augment their income.
Partnership in Hope 