Metanoia Children's Home

The kids and I spent some time at the Metanoia Children's Home in Tipitapa this past weekend. The home has a similar vision and mission to that of the Villa de Esperanza that I shared of previously. They take in children from the local dump (another region of Managua - different dump), feed and clothe them and give them an education and a relationship with the Lord and a hope and a future. The children have at least one living relative so they are not "orphans" per say, but their living conditions left them in dire need of attention. Some from lifestyles of abuse, others neglect and still some are simply the victims of poverty. Their families are without the resources to feed and clothe them or make sure they are educated and cared for. These are the same children that were with us at the church in Rosario. They were the ones who so willingly participated in prophesy and prayer and saw 5 or more people healed when they prayed.

Some kids from a neighbouring community came to the home on Saturday for a friendly soccer match against the children in the home. Our kids joined in some of the fun, but not so much in the soccer. Ben would have played, but we were there barely 10 minutes and Ben fell and scraped his knee pretty bad, left him limping around the rest of the morning. They enjoyed playing in the playground, picking up the baby chicks, having lunch and just hanging around. The home is making a great effort toward raising revenue for the operations of the home. They are growing several types of fruit and beans, raising some chickens and just getting into Tilapia farming. The kids who live there are so full of life and joy. Such beautiful kids. There were some older boys who wanted Caleb's phone number so they could practise English with him and Ben has made friends wherever he goes. It was a full morning.

After our time in the heat of Tipitapa we revelled in the air conditioning of a movie theatre. It is one of the cheaper forms of entertainment here in Managua. We can watch a movie for about $3 a piece. Unfortunately, most of the more family oriented movies that are animated are quite easy to voice over with spanish so the English options for families are not many. We went to see "Old Dogs" with John Travolta and Robin Williams. It was alright, I don't think it would get too many thumbs up from our family, but it was safe and a brief reprieve from the heat. I'm sure we'll go again in the coming months.

Presently our days are filled mainly with homeschooling. I pray each day for an opportunity for the kids to do something so that they don't go crazy with boredom. The preaching opportunities are many, but the touring opportunities are few. There are several people who have offered our family time to spend a weekend at the beach or to visit in a Northern community, but we are waiting for the right timing. In the meantime we take short walks and read and watch DVD's or go to the grocery store once or twice a week and usually have at least one outing a week. We were taken out for pizza after church on Sunday, that was a treat. We are praying for some time at the beach soon. We may ask some friends for a ride.

Graeme is starting a teaching streak of 6 days in a row tonight. Please pray for him for strength and wisdom. He may be away from us for a couple of nights so pray for fun for the kids and I so I don't go crazy preoccupying them :) Caleb and Bailey are looking forward to youth group at the American school on Friday night and we told the kids we would take them to an English service this week. We live a block away from the American school where they hold English services on Sunday. I'm hoping they have Sunday school too.

I have posted a few pics in this update, but click on the "latest pics" link on the right hand side of the blog to see the rest of the album.

Blessings.