A team of 10 missionaries from Winn’s went to Nicaragua on a very special mission trip, from June 20 - 26. The team consisted of Wayne Pase, Dan Osborne, Steve Martz, Jeff Chadwick, Nick Jennings, Stephen Woodlief, and Earl, Rachel, Robert and Jake Ingersoll. As many of you are already aware, we had been working with Beaverdam Baptist Church for months in preparation for a 3 day evangelistic baseball crusade in the capital city of Managua. We jointly we put together a team of 14 college and professional baseball players who also went on the trip, along with a large group of volunteers from Beaverdam. Each player on the team, named “The Messengers”, has a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and it showed during the crusade. The Messengers played various professional Nicaraguan baseball teams during the three day crusade in front of a crowd of thousands each night. Several members of our team were actively in the games also. Jake and Robert Ingersoll served as bat boys and Steve Martz umpired. Before each game the gospel was presented and many people came to know Jesus as their Savior and Lord. There was a great time of praise and worship each night as the #1 praise band in Nicaragua, Hosanna, led the worship. God did an incredible work not only in the hearts of the Nicaraguans, but also in the hearts of the baseball players. During the days the ball players were able to interact with local villages as they held baseball clinics and shared their testimonies. We saw children and adults led to the Lord by the ball players during the clinics. It was incredible and it left an indelible mark on the hearts of those who participated. Many of the ball players are already planning on going back! Many of you have supported this effort through sacrificial giving and prayer. We want to thank you and let you know that your prayers were answered.
The baseball crusade was not the only reason that our team went to Nicaragua. We also spent the week with Pastor Leon, who is the pastor of Iglesia Bautista de Siloe, a local church in San Benito that we have been supporting since April. Since then our financial support has enabled them to build two new rooms onto the church. Building rooms at the church is important for two reasons. First, it will provide a shelter for more children for Sunday School and Bible study, and second it will qualify the church to receive more support from Compassion International. Compassion is a Christian ministry that provides a weekly program of education and meals for children in impoverished villages. They will only provide support for the children that can be under roof. Pastor Leon wants to feed and educate as many children as possible, so building additional rooms to house them is imperative in receiving Compassion’s support. It is incredible to see how God is using Winn’s to help accomplish this. Already 135 children are in the program.
One other thing we did while we were there, and that was to set up an AWANA program for the church. In Nicaragua, AWANA is known as “OANSA”. which means “Obreros Aprobados No Son Avergonzados”. Translated from Spanish it means the same thing as AWANA – Approved Workmen Are Not Ashamed. We met with the AWANA missionaries who represent Central America and Pastor Leon to work out all the details. Their training will begin in August and they will start the program in September. Hopefully the next time a team from Winn’s goes to San Benito we will see OANSA in action! The initial expenses to fund the OANSA program in the church were provided by the children in the Winn’s AWANA program. They raised $900 last year as part of their “Adopt-A-Club” program, and that will be enough to purchase the games, equipment and uniforms for 150 children. Praise God from whom all blessings flow!
Our mission trip week ended on Sunday, and it ended with a bang! We attended Pastor Leon’s church in the morning and Dan Osborne preached. Steve Martz, who also umpired the games during the crusade, gave a testimony. Several other ball players gave testimonies and Nick Jennings presented Pastor Leon with $310 that all of the ball players chipped in to contribute. The money is going to be used to allow Pastor Leon to fund an adult-aged community baseball team through the church for a year. The ball players placed one condition for accepting the contribution though – that whoever would be on the team had to agree to come to a weekly devotion led by Pastor Leon. Isn’t God incredible? After visiting people throughout the village in the afternoon, we ended our day with a three hour church service. It was awesome. The Holy Spirit moved in a major way that night as we saw 12 people come forward to accept Christ. We spent over an hour in prayer. We not only prayed for the people there, but they laid hands on and prayed for each one of us. At the conclusion of the service we each received a hug from every person in the church. We left full of God’s love and full of the Holy Spirit. It will be a night that will never be forgotten.
In closing, we just want to express our gratitude to you for allowing us to represent Winn’s Baptist Church in Nicaragua. All of us who were involved – the Nicaraguans, the ball players and the mission team – have been touched in a special way. We will never be the same. God bless you!
Pastor Jeff Chadwick
On behalf of the June 2006 Nicaragua Mission Team