Lex's group safely arrived at the Chapel

After a long day/night of travel, Lex's group (Steven/Andrew's senior boys and all senior girls) has made it safely back to the Chapel with happy hearts from an amazing trip. All groups are now home safe. We are so thankful for all the prayers that kept us safe and healthy all trip.

Make sure you plan to join us for the Student Ministries Missions Experience on Sunday, August 4th at 6:30pm to hear the full report from our trip!

Lex's group has landed in DC

Lex's group has landed in dc. Our estimated arrival time at Chapel is between 6 and 6:30am. Unless something changes dramatically, we will update again when we reach Richmond.

Luke, Craig, and Hawleys group has arrived at the Chapel!

Luke, Craig, and Hawley's groups headed to the Chapel

Luke, Craig, and Hawleys groups are back on the road after dinner headed back to the Chapel.  Our current estimated time of arrival is 11:30pm at the chapel.

Slight delay for Lex's flight

Lex's flight (Steven/Andrews senior boys and all senior girls) has been delayed. Our new departure time is 9:54pm with arrival in DC at 12:28am. We will update the blog again when we land in DC.

Luke, hawley, and Craig's groups (sophomores, juniors, Dante's small group)

Luke, Hawley, and Craig's groups joined up at Reagan and are all on the bus heading back to williamsburg.  We will be stopping for a quick dinner near fredricksburg and so we will update the blog again after dinner.

Lex's flight (Steven & Andrew's senior boys & all senior girls)

Lex's flight has landed safely in Miami. Our next flight is delayed approximately 30 minutes. We will update again before we depart for DC.

Luke and Hawleys group (sophomores and juniors)

Luke and Hawleys group is on the bus heading to Reagan airport to pick up Craig's flight.  We will update the blog again once we pick up Craig's group.

Craig's Flight (Dante's Guys)

We have landed in DC, we will be picked up by the bus with the sophomores and juniors and will hit the road down to Williamsburg. See you soon!

Luke and Hawleys Flight (sophomores and juniors)

Luke and Hawleys flight just landed in DC.  We will update the blog again when we get on the bus.  We will be picking up Craig's flight first before heading to Williamsburg.

Lex's Flight (Watt's Guys All Senior Girls) On Time

Lex's flight is taking off on time for Miami!

Luke and Hawleys flight (sophomores and juniors)

Luke and Hawleys flight has boarded the plane for DC.  We will update again when we get to DC.

Craig's Flight (Dante's Guys)

*UPDATE* Craig's flight has boarded the plane to DC - Reagan. We will update when we land in the nation's capital.

Craig's flight has landed in Atlanta. Will update when we are about to board our Flight to DC.

Luke and Hawley's Flight (sophomores and juniors)

Luke and Hawleys flight has landed safely in Houston.  We will update again when we are about to take off for DC.

Luke and Hawely's Flight (Sophomores and Juniors)

Sophomores and Juniors are all checked in and will be boarding shortly. We will update the blog again when we reach Houston.

Nicaragua Team Update - Wednesday, June 26th

The entire team had a great night of sleep and then headed to breakfast provided by the Norome debrief site.  After breakfast everyone headed back to their cabin for the second of three debrief small groups.  Each of the small group times is intentionally designed to give the team the time they need to  think through every lesson God is teaching them.  Starting the morning focused on God not only provided more time to process but it also showed the importance of starting every day before God.  Following the small group time, everyone was encouraged to spend some time alone with God before lunch.

At lunch, Craig recognized all of the seniors who had been to Nicaragua every time they had the opportunity over the past few years.  These seniors were lifted up as an example for everyone to remember that the only way to truly help the people of Nicaragua is through continuos and long-term support.  Following lunch and the senior recognition, everyone had a few hours of free time to relax, swim in the lagoon, or continue to spend some time alone with God.  It was beautiful to watch the team enjoy a time of fellowship together.  It was a great picture of what God's kingdom on earth should look like as people let their common bond in Christ be the center of their relationships with each other.

After free time, the entire group ate dinner as they admired God's creation in the lagoon.  Following dinner and small group pictures, the team headed down to our final porch time location which overlooks the lagoon.  Underneath the stars with a gentle breeze the team began by singing worship songs to God.  Then Luke spoke to the team about the challenges they will face as they return to Williamsburg.  He finished the story of Peter in Acts 10-11 that the team began in their pre-trip meetings.  Luke looked at the critics that Peter faced and how Peter silenced the criticism he received after returning from his mission trip to the Gentiles.  He challenged the team to think about how they will explain their story, support each other, and live out the changes God is asking them to make in their lives.  In Acts 11 Peter lifts up the act of baptism as an important symbol of how God wants each of us to continually  take on the properties of the Holy Spirit in our lives.  The team finished by singing praises to God and then headed up to their cabins for their final small group time.  Their have been so many encouraging stories of transformation that the team is excited to return home and share them.  God has done exceedingly more than we could ask or imagine and so we finish this blog by giving God all of the glory for the great things God did.

We will send texts and update the blog throughout the day with travel updates.  To receive text message updates on our travel text the word NICAPARENT to 41411.

Nicaragua Team Update - Tuesday, June 25th

Today was our final day of service/travel as we said "adios" to our incredible Nicaraguan friends to head to our debrief location. The Junior group and Lex's Senior group (Andrew & Steven's small group; Christine & Jessie's small group) each traveled back to the Casa Bernabe team center from their respective locations (Somoto and Leon). The Sophomore group packed their bags and returned to Ciudad Sandino and El Canyon to give some final hugs to the ninos and pray for God's blessing upon those places. Craig's Senior group (Dante & Tim's small group; Christa's small group) spent the morning returning to La Esperanza to pray for that community and the dedicated staff and volunteers who serve the children there year-round.  Each team has been extremely grateful to be a small part of what God is doing in Nicaragua, and the prayer time today inspired us all as we focused on thanking Him together.

After all groups gathered for lunch at the team center, the entire team made a quick trip to the market before continuing on to the debrief site. Upon arrival, we all ate dinner at the top of the resort. After eating, each small group split into their housing locations to get settled for the night and have the first of three debrief small group times. Our main goal at the debrief site is to process our time down in Nicaragua as we get away from the distractions of the world and focus on God's Word. We find that spending two nights in this "middle ground" before retuning to Williamsburg truly allows God to seal these lessons into our hearts.

We want to thank you all for your prayers and send a special thank you to anyone who was able to come to the prayer night this evening. God has already shown up in big ways and we can't wait to see all that He is going to teach us over the next 24 hours.

We will post one more short update tomorrow night and will then use the blog to post updated travel information regarding our trips home on Thursday. We can't wait to see you all in just a few days!

Nicaragua Team Update - Monday, June 24th

Hola de Nicaragua! (Hi from Nicaragua)

Senior Group 1

Senior Group 1 (Craig, Dante & Tim’s small group, Christa’s small group)

            Senior group 1 was thankful to return to Esperanza to continue to pour into so many of the niños that they had previously met throughout the week. The team engaged in fun activities and played with many of the niños. Today was an interesting and new day because the team was given the opportunity to interact with one of the Pre-K programs and its’ caretaker, Norman. Throughout the feeding centers that ORPHANetwork supports, around 300 centers, there are only three Pre-K programs. At these Pre-K programs, the caretakers teach the niños letters and colors, in order to prepare them for Kindergarten. One of these three Pre-K programs is located in Esperanza and senior group 1 was thankful to spend time engaging in the program and learning more about the caretaker, Norman’s, life. In addition to learning more about Norman and his Pre-K program, the team also was joined by another American team that was in Nicaragua to serve the Esperanza community. The team saw Jesus as both teams united to do God’s work and it reminded them that God has a plan for Nicaragua and has placed this country in many people’s hearts. The team ended the evening playing a lacrosse tournament with the niños from Esperanza. It has been amazing to see the ways that God can use sports and competition to bring people past language barriers and into deeper relationships with each other. As the day came to a close, the team recognized all of the wonderful ways that Jesus had worked in and through them during the week and they look forward to traveling to different places in the morning to pray for the communities that they have been serving in.

Senior Group 2

Senior Group 2 (Alexis, Steven & Andrew’s small group, Christine’s small group)

            Senior Group 2 had the privilege of spending one last full day in Leon. They were thankful to have the opportunity to serve through the local church initiative that is supported by the Chapel family. Throughout the day, the team shared 2 VBS lessons and 2 health lessons with the niños. It was wonderful to see the niños engage in learning about the Lord and learning about their health at the same time. In addition to sharing more about Jesus to the niños and teaching them good hygiene habits, senior group 1 had the opportunity to serve them lunch. It was special for the senior team to serve the caretakers by giving them a break from their daily work responsibilities and to serve the niños as they lined up, ready for their share of rice and beans. As the team spent time in this community, Pastor José had a chance to share his story. He shared his testimony about how he began serving two churches in the Leon and Posoltega communities. After he shared his story, he used the opportunity to pray for the senior group, to thank God for bringing them to serve his country and asked God to bless them. The team also prayed for the Pastor and for his community, but they were humbled and astounded that the Pastor had prayed to God to bless them, even though they felt as if they were already blessed with so much. At the end of the day, the seniors realized that God’s presence is not dependent financial prosperity or poverty.

Junior Group

            The junior group was excited to have a full day in Somoto helping meet the needs of the people in the community.  After breakfast, the team went to the local high school that provides education for about 1,800 kids and painted one of the classrooms.  Pastor Oscar, who is the pastor of the church in Somoto, recently became friends with the director of the high school, so he was excited that the director allowed the junior group to work there.  Oscar thinks that his relationship with the director will be key for the growth of God’s work in Somoto, so the junior’s work at the school was vital for Oscar’s plan of evangelism.  In addition to painting, the junior group split up to visit classrooms at the high school and pick up trash around the building.  It was clear that the team participated in Pastor Oscar’s vision of evangelism to the school and they were overjoyed to be a part of that vision.  After lunch, the junior group went to the feeding center that the church runs in Somoto and fed lunch to the niños. After lunch was served, the team took a tour of the surrounding community and prayed for all of the people.  They were moved by the poverty in the village as most people only had sheets of tin and plastic to build their houses.  As they were praying, the team began to recognize some of the niños that they had fed earlier in the day.  It broke their hearts to now know the conditions these niños lived in, but challenged their view of joy as many of the niños ran to them with smiles on their faces.  God was clearly at work in Somoto and the junior team ended the day thankful that they were able to meet the wonderful people in Somoto and share in the spreading of God’s love.

Sophomore Group

            With joyful hearts, the sophomore team shared their last full day with the niños. Their day began with a trip to the El Faro business initiative, where a few of the other groups have had the opportunity to visit thus far. Jesus was present in this place as the team learned more about the sewing business and the hope it is bringing to so many lives. Before leaving, a few of the team members contributed to the business by purchasing shirts, post cards, and jewelry. The sophomore team was thankful to spend the rest of their day at Ciudad Sandino so they could see their friends that they had made throughout the week. During their time at Ciudad Sandino, the sophomores helped the caretakers with serving the niños their lunch. It was wonderful to see the sophomore team use their servant hearts in this way. After feeding the niños their lunch, the team spent their lunch in a special way. While they ate, a large cake was prepared with candles and a card was signed for the Pastor of the church that supports the feeding center. Today was Pastor Freddy’s birthday and the sophomore team wanted to take this opportunity to celebrate him and to celebrate all of the wonderful things he is doing in the Ciudad Sandino community and most importantly, for the Lord. After we surprised him with cake, he thanked God for blessing him and bringing him to this moment of celebration. The rest of the day was spent playing spontaneous games with the niños, such as red rover, red light, green light, and soccer. When the time came for the sophomores to return to the bus, it was obvious to see the strong bonds that were created between them and the niños. The team was very grateful to have spent an amazing week with such beautiful kids. They are looking forward to returning to Ciudad Sandino one last time tomorrow morning to pray over the Pastor, the church, and the niños.  

Porch Time

            As we finish the week of serving, we have begun to transition our thoughts back towards Williamsburg and the lessons that we can bring home from Nicaragua. At each porch time location, a message was given about “What now?” and it served to equip each team on ways that they can make the things that they have seen and heard in Nicaragua more applicable and salient in their lives back at home. All of the teams will be heading to our Debrief site tomorrow, where we will use this time to intentionally focus on the lessons we have learned and the things we have experienced.

Reminder: There will be a Prayer Night for the Nicaragua team in Moog hall, Tuesday, June 25^th at 7:30 p.m.

Nicaragua Team Update - Sunday, June 23rd

Hola de Nicaragua! (Hi from Nicaragua)

Senior Group 1 & 2

Senior Group 1 (Craig, Dante & Tim’s small group, Christa’s small group)

Senior Group 2 (Alexis, Steven & Andrew’s small group, Christine’s small group)

           The senior groups had the opportunity to come together this Sunday morning and worship in Leon. They attended the church that is connected to the feeding center that our Chapel family sponsors. It was a beautiful experience to see the ways in which God transcends language barriers and how all people, of all nations, praise Him. Pastor Jose gave the morning message with a strong focus in Ephesians 3. As Pastor Jose described the necessity for unity in one body and in one mind, it reminded the team of the importance of spelling JESUS in all capital letters and remembering that all people are united under Him. The seniors also had the privilege to go to another one of the churches that Pastor Jose leads in the Posoltega community. After experiencing a second church service, the team was excited to tour the community of Posoltega and view a little bit of what the people of the community do on a daily basis. As they took a walk around the Posoltega community, they visited a baseball game and were able to witness a community engaging in a fun activity that brought them all together. Before porch time, senior group 1 left Leon and traveled back to Casa Bernabe, where they would be serving for the remainder of their stay in Managua. Senior group 2 stayed in Leon and one of the ORPHANetwork translators was thankful to give the porch-time talk as she shared more about her testimony and her life as a citizen of Nicaragua. Both senior groups enjoyed extended small group time in the evening. Today was a marvelous example of God’s omnipresence in this world and how people of all cultures and different languages can worship the same God.

Junior Group

            The junior group departed for a morning at the same church in Leon that the seniors had been serving at. The juniors were thankful to worship together with both senior groups and alongside the Leon community. They also felt connected through the message that was spoken about being united in Christ and how all truth is in God’s word. After spending lunch and a few hours playing with niños, the junior team continued their travels to a community called Somoto. Somoto is in the Northernmost part of Nicaragua and this is the first time that a group from the Chapel has visited this community. The juniors will be engaging with the local church initiative that feeds hungry niños and shared the love of God. The team was thankful for the opportunity to continue to serve in a variety of communities throughout Nicaragua. The junior group ate dinner and had porch-time, where their ORPHANetwork leader shared their testimony and told the group about different ways that they can stay involved in the lives of the niños when they return to Williamsburg. It was exciting for the junior group to see God work among the multiple communities that they were blessed to visit. 

Sophomore Group

The sophomore group spent their Sunday getting one final day with the niños at the El Canyon orphanage.  The team joined the niños for their Sunday morning service at the church right across the street from the orphanage.  Students from the orphanage led the entire congregation in worship songs, which was such a beautiful picture of the holistic goals of the orphanage to not only provide for the niños physical needs but their spiritual needs as well.  The church provided a translator for the team so that they could learn from the morning message of the pastor, which was a huge gift.  The pastor gave a wonderful message that spoke to the responsibilities of both the Nicaraguans and Americans for the world.  After church the team ate lunch with the niños and then everyone gathered for a fun and competitive volleyball tournament.  The sophomore team had brought a volleyball net from Williamsburg because the El Canyon net had ripped and so it was exciting to see the immediate fruit of the gift.  One of the most powerful moments for the team was when the niños came out to play volleyball dressed in Jamestown High School jerseys that had been brought down the previous year.  The jerseys not only provided matching uniforms, but also provided a clear sense of self-worth that would have been absent without them.  This was the final time that the sophomore team was going to see the El Canyon orphanage and so leaving was a mix of sadness from the separation and hope as the team knew that God was in control.

Porch Time

            Every group had an ORPHANetwork leader give their testimony and share about the mission of ORPHANetwork. Following their testimony, each team split into their small groups for an extended period of time to process their experiences so far. One of the Chapel’s beliefs is “A short-term mission trip not examined is a short-term mission trip not worth taking.” The extended small group time is vital to help soften our hearts and open our minds to the work that the Lord is doing.

Reminder: There will be a Prayer Night for the Nicaragua team in Moog hall, next Tuesday, June 25^th at 7:30 p.m. 

Nicaragua Team Update - Saturday, June 22nd

Hola de Nicaragua! (Hi from Nicaragua)

Senior Group 1 & 2

Senior Group 1 (Craig, Dante & Tim’s small group, Christa’s small group)

Senior Group 2 (Alexis, Steven & Andrew’s small group, Christine’s small group)

            The seniors came together today in Leon as they served the women who are the caretakers at the feeding center that they had been visiting. The team had the opportunity to serve the caretakers by bringing them to the beach to relax and to enjoy God’s beautiful creation. It was a neat experience for the team to switch their focus from the niños that they had been playing with all week to the women who have been looking after them. After lunch, the team was thankful to engage in friendly competition through playing games with the caretakers, which allowed them to rejuvenate. Later that evening, the seniors were given the privilege to speak up and to share about the ways that God has been working in their lives through the past few years that they have been serving Nicaragua. There are 19 seniors that have returned to Nicaragua three times in a row, which is an amazing example of the way that Jesus is consistently working in our lives to make a difference in the hearts of others. These 19 seniors have not only been blessed by their experiences here in Nicaragua, but also by the love, care, and generosity of their family and friends, for without them, a lot of them would not have been able to come to Nicaragua in the first place. The seniors shared about all the wonderful things that the Lord has been doing in their lives. It was amazing to see how God has used Nicaragua to show them true joy and teach them the importance of giving.

           

Junior Group

            The junior team had the privilege of visiting the Managua Zoo with some of the niños from the Nueva Vida community that they have been serving throughout the week. The Zoo was an interesting and unforgettable experience because the junior team saw many animals that they had never seen before and many of the niños were able to experience their first time at a zoo. The niños showed incredible excitement throughout the day as they were energized from both the zoo experience and their relationships with the junior group. After the zoo, the team was able to treat the niños to a lunch at a pizzeria. While the team and the niños shared delicious pizza, they were given the opportunity to recognize the ways that they had bonded throughout the week and thank God for bringing them together. Before the niños left the pizzeria, many of them saved left over pieces and scraps of pizza to bring home for their parents, siblings, and cousins. It was wonderful to see how the niños constantly are caring for others and loving their family in every way possible. As the team spent time with the niños, they learned how to give generously and love unconditionally. After saying goodbye to the niños from Nueva Vida, the junior team returned to Casa Bernabe for the evening, which is both an orphanage and the location of our main team center. The junior team had the opportunity to eat dinner with the girls at Casa Bernabe. It was a special experience for the junior team to spend quality time with them. After dinner, the night was still young as the junior team put on a birthday party for all the niños at Casa Bernabe that may not be able to have a regular celebration throughout the year. The party included loud music, a piñata, delicious cake, and a lot of dancing. The niños from Casa Bernabe and the junior team thoroughly enjoyed the birthday party and the good times that were shared. Not only was the day filled with many fun opportunities, but it was also evident that Jesus was present in every situation.

Sophomore Group

            The sophomore group was thankful for another day with the niños from the El Canyon orphanage. This morning, they picked up the niños, who had smiles of excitement, as they anticipated a day at the beach. Upon arrival, the niños ran quickly to the oceanfront to start the long day of fun. Throughout the day, the team experienced an indescribable joy from the niños as they enjoyed the pool, discovered all different types of shells on the beach, and jumped over waves. One of the team goals for the day was to serve the caretakers so that they could have a day off to relax and enjoy themselves. As the team did a wonderful job of watching and playing with the niños, they also had a few opportunities to converse with the caretakers that came with us to the beach and to hear about their stories. In Nicaragua, the caretakers of the niños that we visit shine Jesus’ light as they labor over the niños well being and show compassion and humility as they care for them for their entire childhood. As the sophomore team spends more time with the niños and more time with the caretakers, they are seeing more of Jesus and learning more about the ways that he works through people. It has been beautiful to watch the sophomore team build relationships with the niños, but in addition, God has been deepening their relationships with each other.

Porch Time

            While the seniors had a special evening filled with sharing about their past experiences in Nicaragua, the sophomore and junior groups came together at Casa Bernabe for porch time. Hawley gave the message this evening and shared about “the secret of the poor.”

            Focusing in Luke 6 and Luke 12, Hawley shared about the difficulties of being rich in material possessions and how easily our possessions can bring us away from God. Hawley told us that the “secret of the poor” was founded in the fact that the people of Nicaragua don’t store up their possessions and they freely give. As we spend time in Nicaragua, we can re-focus on being primarily rich in our relationship with the Lord.

Reminder: There will be a Prayer Night for the Nicaragua team in Moog hall, next Tuesday, June 25^th at 7:30 p.m.

Nicaragua Team Update - Friday, June 21st

Hola de Nicaragua! (Hi from Nicaragua)

Senior Group 1

Senior Group 1 (Craig, Dante & Tim’s small group, Christa’s small group)

Senior group 1 had the opportunity today to visit a church and feeding center in Posoltega. The team began the day by seeing God show up through a big soccer tournament that included separate teams of boys and girls, referees, and a lot of friendly competition. In addition to the fun soccer tournament, the senior group had the privilege to meet one of the caretakers that has been an influential part of this church community since 1998. She shared a short story revolving around the founding of the church and feeding center. Her story described the devastation of Hurricane Mitch in 1998 and the ways that God had worked wonders through such a terrible disaster. She said, “My community is blessed to have God working through this tragedy and so many amazing people, like you.” It was inspiring and challenging to hear how this woman’s faith could be strengthened through such a life-altering disaster. The team ended the day with fond memories of the Posoltega community and the way that God’s power and providence were on display.

             

Senior Group 2

Senior Group 2 (Alexis, Steven & Andrew’s small group, Christine’s small group)

            Senior group 2 returned to Esperanza today to continue to pour their love into the niños and to teach them more about the ways that God is pursuing a relationship with them. The day began with a short tour around the Esperanza community and more information about the history of the neighborhood. The team had the privilege to meet one of the woman caretakers that had started a free clinic for the community a couple years ago. The woman described the clinic as a service that provides for many of the needs of the people in the neighborhood who are unable to afford healthcare otherwise. The clinic is in need of more fundraising efforts, but the woman freely gives all that she has to help provide for those around her. After lunch, the team was able to deliver a VBS lesson about prayer and being thankful for the things that God has blessed us with. After the lesson, each niño wrote down five things that they were thankful for and were encouraged to share them with the group. The team was moved by witnessing people who had so little, be thankful for so much. The team left Esperanza with the challenge to think of all the things that they were thankful for as well as inspired to see the ways God is pursuing people, even in the poverty of Nicaragua. 

Junior Group

            The junior group was blessed to visit the Esperanza community this morning. They were given a tour of the community and learned more about the school that the kids in the community attended and the ways that the church and feeding center supports them. The team was stirred as they encountered children who once lived in the Managua Dump. After lunch, the kids returned to Nueva Vida to continue building relationships that they had begun throughout the week. The team gave a VBS lesson and was pleasantly surprised to see the niños engaging with the bible story. The niños were memorizing and absorbing the information that had been given to them in previous encounters and it was evident that each VBS lesson has been making a lasting impact. In addition to the VBS lesson, the team brought a piñata that the niños could enjoy. With a lot of energy and smiles from ear to ear, the niños were excited to quickly bust open the piñata and get to the candy that hid inside. The junior group was encouraged to have the niños remember them and genuinely be excited to see them return. As the niños loved the junior group with all their hearts, the team was reminded that Jesus’ presence is clearly seen in the least of these and that He has an everlasting love for all people of all nations.

Sophomore Group

The sophomore group had the privilege to return to the El Canyon orphanage for the entire day.  They were introduced to more of the staff at El Canyon and learned how the orphanage has been a bright light for God in the surrounding community.  The orphanage houses 25 niños who do not have parents, but opens their doors to another 35-50 niños from the community through the El Canyon school and church.  After learning about the history of El Canyon, the sophomore group gave a VBS lesson on God’s strength and followed the lesson with a couple fun crafts for the niños.  Following a delicious lunch, the group split up so that some of them could spend time with the niños and some of them could clean up the orphanage grounds by picking up trash, raking, and leveling some dirt.  To finish the day at El Canyon, the sophomore group joined the orphans and community niños for a movie, popcorn, and cotton candy.  It was a special treat for everyone and it warmed the group’s heart to see the excited faces of the niños as they were essentially brought a movie theater experience.  Throughout the entire day God used the sophomore group in mighty ways to spread God’s love through physical acts of service and relational acts of love.

Porch Time

Porch time occurred in two locations since senior group 1 was in Leon. During the porch time with senior group 1, a few of the leaders shared encouraging thoughts about faith as the seniors are preparing their hearts and minds for a new journey in their life post high school. Senior group 2, the juniors, and sophomores all gathered at Casa for porch time where it quickly became evident that God had been active as the teams shared places where they had seen Jesus throughout the day.  Luke used Luke 8:4-15, to help the team process why their faith seems to make so much more sense down in Nicaragua.  He used the passage to take a look at the “science of soil” in order to express how the environment on the Nicaragua trip is perfect for the word of God to find good soil to land in. 

Following both porch times, the team split into small groups in order to take some intentional time to talk through their experience so far down in Nicaragua.  God has begun to soften the hearts of each member on the team and it was great to have some time to talk through what God has been doing.

Reminder: There will be a Prayer Night for the Nicaragua team in Moog hall, next Tuesday, June 25^th at 7:30 p.m.

Nicaragua Team Update - Thursday, June 20th

Hola de Nicaragua! (Hi from Nicaragua)

            We are so thankful to end this day with unforgettable memories and endless moments where we encountered Jesus. Each team experienced Nicaragua in a unique way and we are blessed to be able to have the technology to share each experience with friends and family on a daily basis.

Senior Group 1

Senior Group 1 (Craig, Dante & Tim’s small group, Christa’s small group)

            Today, senior group 1 had the opportunity to make a day trip to Leon to visit the church that our Student Ministries kids and partners financially support. The kids were introduced to Pastor Ramone, who gratefully shared his story and thanked the group for all the ways that we have blessed him and his community in Leon. During their time in Leon, the group prepared and delivered a VBS lesson based on the passage found in Philippians 4:13, which describes the strength that we can find in Jesus. In addition to the VBS lesson, a lesson about personal hygiene was given. Then, the niños colored pictures that our team had previously printed out, so that they could take something home with them to help them remember the things that they learned. Overall, senior group 1 showed incredible strength and endless energy as they passionately pursued relationships with the niños. It has been inspirational to see the ways that our team is growing in their relationships with each other, with the niños, and ultimately, in their relationship with Christ.

Senior Group 2

Senior Group 2 (Alexis, Steven & Andrew’s small group, Christine’s small group)

            Senior Group 2 was very excited to return to Esperanza today to continue to build relationships with the niños that they had met yesterday. Our team was given the opportunity to present two VBS and health lessons to two different age groups of children in the Esperanza community. It has been amazing to see high school students delivering lessons about Jesus and the love and the strength that He gives us to many kids who don’t even speak the same language as us. With the assistance of translators and with the simple understanding that actions can speak louder than words, it is evident that language is not a barrier in Nicaragua and that the love of Christ can be shared to anyone. Senior group 2 was also given the opportunity to speak with the woman who started the school that they have been visiting in the Esperanza community. As the woman shared her story, the seniors learned that she ran the school while it was still located in the Managua Dump. Recently, the school has moved with the people who have found homes and jobs outside of the Dump. This woman has been a constant conduit of the love of Jesus in this community through all transitions and has a huge heart for all of the children in this community. Through this story and through all of the kids that our team is building relationships with, it is obvious that Jesus is present in the Esperanza community and our team is witnessing Him working through people in miraculous ways.

Junior Group

             The group of juniors visited the El Faro business initiative that the seniors had the opportunity to visit yesterday. The juniors witnessed the transformation of women who had previously worked in the Dump scavenging through trash, into women who work extremely hard with sewing machines. These women sew material similar to Under Armour, which many people in Nicaragua have not had experience sewing before.  After visiting El Faro, the juniors returned to Nueva Vida to visit the same kids that they had met the previous day. One of the team’s favorite memories of the day was when they spontaneously busted out in a loud song of “Jesus loves me”. The translators did not miss a beat as they quickly translated the song into Spanish and the niños sang the song back to our Chapel team. It has been remarkable to see the lessons that our team and the niños are learning about Christ. A special moment for our kids each day is when the niños ask a million times when we are returning to spend time with them. This not only shows us that the niños enjoy spending time with us and want to see us again, but it also is a great example that reminds us of all the ways that Jesus wants to encounter each of us on a daily basis.

Sophomore Group

              The sophomore group was thankful to return to the same church that we visited yesterday in Ciudad Sandino to kick off our Thursday morning in Nicaragua. Our team was able to give a VBS lesson and a health lesson to some of the younger niños. The health lesson was about washing your hands and was followed by the creation of macaroni necklaces which the Nicaraguan kids had an incredible time making and wearing for the rest of the day. The sophomore team also had the opportunity to assist the caretakers in serving food to the children at their designated lunch times. After a fun morning of a VBS lesson, macaroni necklaces, jump ropes, and soccer, the caretakers gathered the niños to prepare them for an afternoon with our team at the pool. Our team experienced Jesus in this moment as the niños and their caretakers formed a circle before stepping on the bus to pray to God to thank him for His blessing of allowing them to go to the pool. The pool was an exciting time for the niños and our team as we continued to strengthen our relationships with each other. The sophomore team experienced Jesus today as they saw niños smile with a joyful recognition from the day before.

Porch Time

            Each night our team has the opportunity to come together to worship God and to reflect an all that He is doing during our time here in Nicaragua. Last night, Hawley gave a message that focused in on the question of why we come to Nicaragua. He introduced the idea of incarnational ministry, which occurs when we place ourselves in-between God’s love, and the needs of the world. Tonight, Alexis used the story in Numbers 13 of the Israelite spies going into Canaan to introduce the idea that God calls us to do His works and has sent us here to Nicaragua for a purpose. She encouraged us that God has called each of us to love Him and to love others and that we are fulfilling that call this week as we serve here in Nicaragua.

Nicaragua Team Update - Wednesday, June 19th

Hello Family and Friends!

            We are excited to be able to share about our amazing and life-changing experiences here in Nicaragua through this blog! We hope that these daily updates will not only inform you of all the incredible opportunities we have been given to spend time with the people of Nicaragua, but that it will also encourage you to continue to pray for our team.  

            We will be updating the blog once each night, and will be sending two texts out each day. One text will be sent in the morning that will remind you that the blog has been updated and the other will be a general text of what the team is participating in on that day. Most likely, you will not be able to read the blog post until the morning because Nicaragua time is two hours behind Virginia time.

Senior Group 1 and 2

Senior Group 1 (Craig, Dante & Tim’s small group, Christa’s small group)

Senior Group 2 (Alexis, Steven & Andrew’s small group, Christine’s small group)

This beautiful day in Nicaragua was full of new experiences and new faces. Both senior groups 1 & 2 had the opportunity to visit a local business initiative in El Faro. This business initiative works with a church to promote self-sustainability in order to break the cycle of poverty that so many experience in Nicaragua. Another interesting fact about this business initiative is that most of the workers have come out of the Dump in Nicaragua, to work in this place, to create more hope in their future and in their family. The Dump is the Managua trash dump that used to house a community of Nicaraguans who scavenged through the trash to make a living. The business initiative gives women the opportunity to sew clothes, such as shirts and shorts, and they sell the items they sew to create a profit.  This profit goes directly from the business to the church to help feed kids at its feeding center and to help bring more children to school. After visiting El Faro and encouraging the workers who work so hard to be self-sustained, a few of the students made purchases to assist in providing money for the feeding center and school. In addition to serving at El Faro, the seniors visited a local church in Esperanza. In Esperanza, the seniors were introduced to the children, the caretakers, and the pastor. After introductions, the students jumped right into giving a Vacation Bible School lesson and a lesson about personal hygiene. It is so evident to see the ways that Jesus is already showing up through our team and through the children in Nicaragua. It doesn’t matter if it is watching a student tutor a child, watching students serve lunch to 80 niños (Spanish for children), or watching students carrying niños on their shoulders, we are seeing Jesus move in life-changing ways and it is only the first day.

Junior Group

The group of juniors led by Hawley Smith, had a wonderful day serving in Nicaragua. They had the opportunity to visit Nueva Vida, which is a hurricane refugee camp that formed after the disaster of Hurricane Mitch. The particular church that the juniors visited had a really amazing testimony. The church began as a house of prostitutes and over time, more and more people started coming to this house and eventually it was transformed into a church that serves many people in the community of Nueva Vida. At Nueva Vida, the juniors served the children by providing them with a Vacation Bible School lesson and a lesson about hygiene. The junior group was able to experience the love of Christ through spending time playing, loving, and teaching the niños. They were able to see the Nicaraguans show true joy, regardless of the poverty they found themselves in. As quoted by a member of the junior trip, “The kids don’t see us as rich Americans, they see us as gringos who can give them piggy back rides.” We are humbly experiencing what it means to be fully satisfied in the love of Christ, and that is a beautiful thing.

Sophomore Group

The sophomore group, led by Luke Kincaid, had the opportunity to visit two places today. The first stop was at a local church in the community of Ciudad Sandino. Ciudad Sandino is a small village and the church that we visit reaches out to the community to provide food, love, and care for those who are in need, all rooted in the love of Christ. The team gave a Vacation Bible School lesson about Jesus and the strength that He gives us. The lesson was followed by a fun activity that included making crosses out of pipe cleaners and decorating them with heart stickers. The sophomores were able to follow up the successful VBS lesson by playing a few games and serving them lunch. The second location that the sophomore group had the opportunity to visit was El Canyon. El Canyon is an orphanage that serves and provides a home for about 60 children. The sophomores were able to help young Nicaraguan kids learn how to speak English and were also able to play soccer, volleyball, and have fun times on the playground. The team quickly recognized the needs in Nicaragua and was willing to put aside any initial hesitations to be conduits of God’s love. It was inspiring to watch God work in and through the sophomore team as they engaged in their first ever experience in Nicaragua.

It has been a memorable first day and we look forward to giving you more updates and details about the rest of our trip experiences. Our next update will be tomorrow night.

Reminder: There will be a Prayer Night for the Nicaragua team in Moog hall, next Tuesday, June 25^th at 7:30 p.m.

All Groups Accounted For in Nicaragua

All teams (Delta and United included) have now landed safely in Managua. The teams are headed to their housing sites for the evening. Please check the blog tomorrow evening for the first full update on the days activity. You will get an update text tomorrow afternoon as well. Thank you for your prayers!! Goodnight!

Lex's group has landed safely in Nicaragua

Lex's group (all senior girls and Watts/Mills senior SG) has landed safely in Nicaragua. The team has boarded the bus and is headed for the team center. We will continue to update the blog as the two other groups arrival later Tuesday evening. We appreciate your continued prayers. 

Luke and Hawleys group (sophomores and juniors)

We have just boarded the plane in Houston to head to Nicaragua.  We will update the blog again when we arrive in Nicaragua.

Craig's Group (Dante's Guys) have made it to Atlanta

We have safely made it to Atlanta. Our next leg has been delayed 50 minutes, we will update next when we are beginning to board.

*UPDATE* - 7:54pm - The plane has landed and we have begun to board. Off to Nicaragua!

Lex's group in Miami

Lex's group had landed safely in Miami for a short layover before continuing on to Managua. We will update you all again when we land in Nicaragua! Thanks for your continued prayers.

Lex's group en route to Miami

Lex's group (all senior girls and watts/mills' senior boys) has boarded the plane and are ready to depart for Miami. We will update again when we land for our lay over.

Senior Groups are in DC

Senior Group 2 (Senior Girls & Watts/Mills Guys) has just been dropped off at Dulles. Senior Group 1 (Dante's Guys) are on the bus on the way to Reagan. Next update will be when Senior group 2 is leaving for Miami.

Luke and Hawley (sophomores and juniors) in Houston

All the sophomores and juniors have landed in Houston.  We will update the blog again right before we board our next flight to Nicaragua.

Seniors en route to airports

All seniors are on the bus headed to the airports. We will update again after Lex's group has checked in for their flight.
Lex's group = all senior girls and watts/mills' senior boys
Craig's group = Dante and Tim's senior guys.

Luke and Hawley's group (sophomore and juniors)

We have boarded our plane in Dulles and will be departing on time.  We will update the blog again when we reach Houston.

Luke and Hawley's Group (sophomores and juniors)

We have arrived at Dulles and are sitting at our gate.  Our flight is still on time and planning to depart at 8:15.

Nicaragua Final Reminders

It is almost time to depart for the High School Nicaragua Mission Trip.

All sophomores and juniors should meet at the Chapel in the SM Worship Room at 2:30am (Tuesday, June 18th). All seniors should meet in the same place at 8:30am. Make sure you remember your passport!

The packing list and final checklist are below. If you have any questions, call or text Alexis at 919-260-0719.

Packing List

Final Checklist

Final Philly Team Meeting

Wednesday we had our final meeting for the Philadelphia Mission Team. We covered all final logistical details for the trip as well as finished our pre-trip teaching on Peter, our Biblical character for the year.

Our final teaching was from Acts 10:34-48. We examined how Peter was able to get out of his own way in his conversation with Cornelius the centurion.  He let the Holy Spirit work while he was sharing the Good News of Jesus to a group of gentiles for the first time in history. If you missed the meeting please look at the small group disscussion questions below:

Small group questions from teaching #3

On Sunday the 7th we will all meet in the SM Worship room at 10AM. We will pack all of the vans at that time before we all go to the SM service that morning. Immediately after the service we will load up in the vans and drive up to Philadelphia.

Our partner organization in Philly, CSM, has just sent a parental consent form for a site that we will be serving at during our time there. If all families could print the form and bring to the church by Sunday the 7th it would be greatly appreciated. The form, along with the checklist for the meeting and the packing list are all below:

MANNA Parental consent and release form

Checklist for 6.12.13

Packing List

Finally, we are going to have a prayer night for the parents while your children are away on the trip. We will post the date and time once it is finalized as well as send out a text to the parent list. 

If you have any questions please email (cblocher@wcchapel.org) or call (941.1225) Craig.

Final North Carolina Team Meeting - 6.12.13

At our final team meeting we finished our pre-trip study of Peter's encounter with God in Acts 10-11.  We looked at how God tells us to get some of our assumptions out of the way.  We often try and put God in a box, but God often wants to break our assumptions and expand our view of God.  We studied this by looking at Acts 10:34-48.  If you missed the meeting and want to look at the small group questions we discussed then click on the link below.

Small Group Questions

Please make sure you have turned in all forms and money as soon as you can if you have not already.  If you are missing any of the forms then here are links for them.  The first link is the checklist of everything you should have turned in.

Meeting Checklist

Recreation Experience Forms

WCC Parental Consent Form


Here is the packing list for the trip.

Packing List

Our trip dates are July 7-13.  We will leave around 1pm after church on Sunday the 7th and so please come to our 11am student service if you are able so that we can pray for the team and leave promptly.  Make sure to have a packed lunch for your kid as well as money for one fast food meal on the way down and one fast food meal on the way back.

Finally, we are going to have a prayer night for the parents while your kids are away on the trip.  We will post the date and time once it is finalized as well as send out a text.  Please feel free to ask Luke if you have any further questions by emailing him at lkincaid@wcchapel.org or calling him at 941-1572.

Norfolk Team Meeting - 6.11.13

The first hour of hour meeting was dedicated to parents.  We discussed the goals behind Chapel mission trips and the specifics of our trip.  If you were unable to attend then take a look at the PowerPoint slides below and let Luke know if you have any further questions.

Parent Meeting Slides

During the second hour we continued our study of Peter in Acts 10-11 with your kids.  Luke talked about objections that we may hold to how God might work in the world.  He discussed how we all hold different doubts towards the plan of God that can cause us to miss out on God's plan.  Peter was willing to remove objections from his life and we need to take a look at our own objections in order to see where God might be trying to teach us something.  If you missed the meeting then go ahead and read Acts 10:23-33 and then take a look at the small group questions we discussed that are below.

Small Group Questions

We also played a fun game to learn a little bit more about Nicaragua, so feel free to read through the questions to learn a little bit about the area we are serving.

Norfolk Game

We handed out folders with the updated checklist, packing list, and parental consent forms.  If you need any of these forms then find them in the links below.

Meeting Checklist

Packing List

Parental Consent Form

Our final meeting is on July 16th from 6:30-8:30pm.  Please let Luke know if you are going to be unable to make it and email or call Luke with further questions at lkincaid@wcchapel.org or 941-1572.

Nicaragua Team Meeting Recap - 6/11/13

We had a great final team meeting tonight! In under one week, we will be IN Nicaragua.

Below is the information discussed at the final meeting (Checklist #4, Packing List, Discussion Questions). Here are a few highlights:

If you still have donations, please bring them on Wednesday, June 12th!

When to meet at the Chapel on Tuesday, June 18th:

• ALL Sophomores and ALL Juniors should meet at the Chapel at 2:30am. It would be a good idea to pack snacks for this flight, as the layover in Houston is pretty long.
• ALL Seniors should meet at the Chapel at 8:30am. We will fly out of two different airports, but we will ride up to DC together.

Please pay close attention to the instructions on the PACKING LIST provided below. Make sure you remember your PASSPORT!

If you still have a balance left to pay, please turn your money in by Sunday, 6/16. If you need more time, talk to Lex. Please try NOT to bring money with you when you come on Tuesday, as we do not want it to get misplaced while we try to depart.

Finally, parents, please plan to join Mike and Claire Jacobs for a Prayer Meeting on Tuesday, June 25th at 7:30pm in Moog Hall (Room 216) to pray for the team while we are away.

If you have any questions, please contact Alexis at akincaid@wcchapel.org or 941-1241 (office) or 919-260-0719 (cell).

We are so excited to see all that God is going to do in and through our team this year. Please continue to pray for our final preparations. We are so grateful for all the support!

Checklist #4

Packing List

Discussion Questions

Norfolk Team Missions Overnight Recap

We had a great first meeting at the Missions Overnight.  We had a wonderful evening on Friday of teaching, worship music, and small group discussions.  This year we are studying Peter's encounter with God in Acts 10-11 as our model for how we might encounter God down in Norfolk this summer.  Luke introduced our theme of "Get Out of the Way" as we looked at how God challenged Peter to remove hesitations from his life in order for God to work in and through him.  Luke then translated that into how on the Norfolk trip there are going to be things that push out of our comfort zone and may cause us to hesitate, but we need to be willing to get the hesitations out of the way and step into what God wants us to do.  We woke up on Saturday morning and had a great morning of team-building games and competitions.  It was beautiful to watch your kids grow and work together as a team to complete fun tasks.

If you happened to miss the meeting or are missing anything we handed out.  Below are links to the forms handed out and the small group questions discussed after Luke's talk.

Here is the Checklist of items from the first meeting that each kid needs to make sure they have turned in before the trip.
Checklist #1

Here is the WCC parental consent form that needs to be filled out and notarized before the trip.  If your son or daughter came on our ski trip this past February then we already have one on file for you.
Parental Consent Form

Our next team meeting is on Tuesday, June 11th from 6:30-8:30pm in the Main Foyer.  The first hour is for parents and students and then the final hour is just for students.  We will have coffee available in our cafe area for any parents that want to just stick around to wait during the final hour.

Please feel free to call or email Luke at 941-1572 or lkincaid@wcchapel.org with any furth questions.

North Carolina Missions Overnight Recap

We had a great evening of teaching, worship music, and discussion on Friday evening.  We continued our study of Peter's encounter with God in Acts 10-11 and split into small groups to discuss the areas we struggle to understand the plan of God and what we are looking forward to on our trip to North Carolina.  On Saturday morning, we awoke to participate in a fun team-building competition where small groups teamed up to complete challenges.  It was a great overnight of bonding as a team and preparation for our encounter with God down in North Carolina.

Here is the updated checklist with the list of things that each kid needs for the trip.
Checklist #2

Here are the questions we discussed in our small groups after Luke gave a talk on Acts 10:23-33
Small Group Questions

Here is the packing list for the trip:
Packing List

Our next and final meeting is on June 12th from 6:30-8:30pm in the SM Worship Room.

Feel free to call or email Luke Kincaid with any further questions at 757-941-1572 or lkincaid@wcchapel.org

Philadelphia Team Overnight Recap

We had a great overnight full of preparation for the upcoming mission trip. From the continued teaching of Peter, our character for this summer of mission trips, to some great worship and discussion of the realities of urban missions we had a great time together. Attached below are the things that we went over during the overnight including admin and teaching/training resources.

• Checklist #2
• Teaching Discussion Questions

Our next (final) meeting is on Wednesday June 12th from 6:30-8:30. The remaining balance for the trip is due at this meeting.

Again if you have any questions at all please contact Craig via email (cblocher@wcchapel.org) or his cell phone (6144255142).

We are very excited to embark on this adventure together and see all the exciting ways God will show up on this trip!

Nicaragua Team Overnight Recap

We had a great experience this weekend at the Missions Overnight. Attached are the important documents that were covered during our teaching time and our admin. time.

Checklist #3 - covers important trip details, reminders, and travel information

Discussion Questions - based on the teaching

Also, each student should have already turned in the following forms:
-WCC Parental Consent Form
-ORPHANetwork Release Form
-Copy of your passport

If you are missing any of these forms, please turn them in immediately! Payment of your final balance is due at the last team meeting.

Our next and final team meeting is Tuesday, June 11th from 6:30-8:30pm in the Student Ministries Worship Room. If you have not done so already, please bring your two packages of new underwear to this meeting (see the checklist for details). If you have additional donations, please bring them to this final meeting, too. We will be packing all the donations at the end of the meeting, so if you are able to stay afterwards to help, that would be great.

If you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact Lex at akincaid@wcchapel.org or 941-1241 (office) or 919-260-0719 (cell).