6 years and 15 days have passed since He called us back to Nicaragua to entrust more than 40 kids to our care and protection with the support of many Christian friends who made all these experiences possible. Now the Lord through unexpected ways is calling us to rest for a while alongside our sons and grandchildren.
A lot of water has passed under the bridge! Oren Paris, our for so many years spiritual director, used to tell us that a river of circumstances separate us from the other shore where the Lord is waiting for us, and that only the bravest dared to accept to become bridges to be walked on by those called by Him to cross to the other shore of real living and happiness.
We dared to be walked on for all these years, and as the army Bayley bridges we are being dismantled to be erected again over some other river, until now unknown for, us so more people cross over to His arms. What a blessing! What a joy for a servant to still be considered for new challenges!
Just a few days ago a wrongly routed but finally arrived email came. A relative of my oldest son wife who resides in the USA is asking us for information for her church to open a children´s home in Guatemala. Could this be the next opportunity to serve? Or with other ministries we know about? Or with our church in Guatemala or our son´s church in El Salvador?
Only He knows! For the time being the task is to rest and enjoy our flesh and blood family after loving and caring for our adopted one in Nicaragua!
I was checking the information I have to leave behind, and I found this email I had only shared with my family, but I feel now it belongs to all of us as it is a recognition of God´s plans for every child. The email said…
Today, April 30th. we officially stop being Arms of Love Nicaragua directors. Gladys and I are in peace, checking what of our personal things are we going to take with us and what we will leave behind, giving them to family and friends. The material things are not important. Spiritual ones, memories, emotions, are the most difficult to pack or leave behind. But God who knows our hearts sends encouragement when we need it most showing us we are in His hands and that He cares for us.
Catherine Carolina Romero Pérez, one of the girls who escaped after the December and January incidents, seeking her family warmth and not the Finca (Jinotepe) environment, first went to Corinto to her grandfather home, but his conditions were not adequate. She had called us several times asking us to understand why it was more important to her the family warmth than the material things and the way it was being planned for her to live. We asked her to persevere in everything we have counseled her to do and to respect herself so everyone else could do the same.
A Godmother suddenly appear and she did put her in contact with her grandmother on her mother´s side. Today, in the afternoon, at the end of our official journey, 5 p.m. April 30th. they both unexpectedly visited us, the grandmother and the grandchild Catherine Carolina, to give us thanks for all we had done for her all these years. and these were the blessings of the Lord on our last regular missions day in Nicaragua!
A girl who had been taken to Costa Rica, abused by her relatives, repatriated by the Costa Rican Government, placed under our care and protection, now has a grandmother who will take care of her and will provide her with a material inheritance!
The lady, in a very deep emotional way, kept on telling us that for many years she has not known her daughter (Catherine´s mother) whereabouts, as she has not also known what had happened to her granddaughter. Very recently, her father, Catherine great grandfather came from the United States and bought and inherited to his daughter, Catherine grandmother. She presently owns 2 regular size farms, automobiles, pickup trucks, and has 2 businesses, but she still did not have her granddaughter as she still does not know about her daughter.
But she is happy knowing that she will be able to provide for Catherine as she is doing placing a house and a farm on her name, and taking care she continues to study so one day she can take care of her little brothers.
She came today to express her gratefulness for us having preserved her granddaughter and assures us she will see that she keeps in her heart all the counseling and advise we gave her all these years. Catherine felt sad knowing we are leaving for Guatemala, but the lady asked us not to forget Nicaragua knowing that what we sowed someday will be a plentiful harvest, and to be sure we have their hearts and homes at our disposal.
What a Blessing! What a beautiful and moving last day for Gladys and me as directors!
A lot of water has passed under the bridge! Oren Paris, our for so many years spiritual director, used to tell us that a river of circumstances separate us from the other shore where the Lord is waiting for us, and that only the bravest dared to accept to become bridges to be walked on by those called by Him to cross to the other shore of real living and happiness.
We dared to be walked on for all these years, and as the army Bayley bridges we are being dismantled to be erected again over some other river, until now unknown for, us so more people cross over to His arms. What a blessing! What a joy for a servant to still be considered for new challenges!
Just a few days ago a wrongly routed but finally arrived email came. A relative of my oldest son wife who resides in the USA is asking us for information for her church to open a children´s home in Guatemala. Could this be the next opportunity to serve? Or with other ministries we know about? Or with our church in Guatemala or our son´s church in El Salvador?
Only He knows! For the time being the task is to rest and enjoy our flesh and blood family after loving and caring for our adopted one in Nicaragua!
I was checking the information I have to leave behind, and I found this email I had only shared with my family, but I feel now it belongs to all of us as it is a recognition of God´s plans for every child. The email said…
Today, April 30th. we officially stop being Arms of Love Nicaragua directors. Gladys and I are in peace, checking what of our personal things are we going to take with us and what we will leave behind, giving them to family and friends. The material things are not important. Spiritual ones, memories, emotions, are the most difficult to pack or leave behind. But God who knows our hearts sends encouragement when we need it most showing us we are in His hands and that He cares for us.
Catherine Carolina Romero Pérez, one of the girls who escaped after the December and January incidents, seeking her family warmth and not the Finca (Jinotepe) environment, first went to Corinto to her grandfather home, but his conditions were not adequate. She had called us several times asking us to understand why it was more important to her the family warmth than the material things and the way it was being planned for her to live. We asked her to persevere in everything we have counseled her to do and to respect herself so everyone else could do the same.
A Godmother suddenly appear and she did put her in contact with her grandmother on her mother´s side. Today, in the afternoon, at the end of our official journey, 5 p.m. April 30th. they both unexpectedly visited us, the grandmother and the grandchild Catherine Carolina, to give us thanks for all we had done for her all these years. and these were the blessings of the Lord on our last regular missions day in Nicaragua!
A girl who had been taken to Costa Rica, abused by her relatives, repatriated by the Costa Rican Government, placed under our care and protection, now has a grandmother who will take care of her and will provide her with a material inheritance!
The lady, in a very deep emotional way, kept on telling us that for many years she has not known her daughter (Catherine´s mother) whereabouts, as she has not also known what had happened to her granddaughter. Very recently, her father, Catherine great grandfather came from the United States and bought and inherited to his daughter, Catherine grandmother. She presently owns 2 regular size farms, automobiles, pickup trucks, and has 2 businesses, but she still did not have her granddaughter as she still does not know about her daughter.
But she is happy knowing that she will be able to provide for Catherine as she is doing placing a house and a farm on her name, and taking care she continues to study so one day she can take care of her little brothers.
She came today to express her gratefulness for us having preserved her granddaughter and assures us she will see that she keeps in her heart all the counseling and advise we gave her all these years. Catherine felt sad knowing we are leaving for Guatemala, but the lady asked us not to forget Nicaragua knowing that what we sowed someday will be a plentiful harvest, and to be sure we have their hearts and homes at our disposal.
What a Blessing! What a beautiful and moving last day for Gladys and me as directors!
1 comment:
Emilio Padilla Morales wrote: For all of you to know and to keep praying for and supporting our
dearest children in Nicaragua. Keep on checking our blog! More
wonderful things are on the making! The Lord knows your and our hearts and will keep on pouring blessings and routing challenges in our lives!
The essential thing is to keep our hearts pure and humble
and surrendered to Him.
He wants us to give always the best of ourselves as the photo sent to me by one of my retired in California classmates so eloquently say it. Keep on doing that for the sake of the Kingdom and for the inner joy of serving Him, and serving well and
unreservedly
And the comments started to come:
Dear Emilio and Gladys, I was so sad to hear that you would no longer be the directors in
Nicaragua. What a wonderful and blessed work you have done there. May God reward you richly for your obedience both in going there and in leaving there. Seeing the difference in the girls and boys from one year to the next was amazing. You have touched and affected more lives
than you will ever know.
I want you to know what an inspiration you were to me. Knowing that you came out of retirement to oversee the children's homes made me realize
that God can use us at any age. I have regretted all the years I did not follow Christ. I felt that coming back to Him so late in life I would not be of use to Him. You proved me wrong by the wonderful example of what He was doing with your lives. And will continue to do. I hope you enjoy your family and your time with them.
I keep in regular touch with Scott and Becky Joellenbeck. We are their mail location here and I forward to them what they need to have. They had told me of the time you got to spend together at the conference in California and how much they enjoyed seeing you.
Please send me your email address if it changes. Also, how do I get to your blog?
Love in Christ,Ramona Booth.
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