Fund by Numbers

As you know, I am a missionary who raises support in order to live and serve in Nicaragua. Resonate configures budgets on a fiscal year from July to June, so we have recently begun a new budget year. Praise be to God, all funds came in for my ministry by June so the budget for last fiscal year was fulfilled 100%! If you would like to see details about the budget, please email me. Here are some highlights that help give a concrete idea of where money goes:

• Transportation to and from field for Home Service: $170 a month or $2,040 yearly 

(Raúl and I are planning to visit churches and individuals in summer 2019 in order to introduce him and share about the ministry in Nicaragua)

• Transportation for ministry: $70/month for car and $40 for public transportation

(did you know gas is at 34 córdobas/Liter, which converts to $4.25/gallon? Good thing our new car gets us to and from Chinandega in about 22 Liters, or 5.5 gallons!)

• Amount needed to complete car payment: $300/month or $3,600 total

• Regional Spiritual Retreat for 2 people in April (because Raúl and I will be newlyweds by then!): $20/month or $240 total
• Office supplies: $10/month
• Communications (phone bills, internet, stamps): $50/month
• Conference fees: $30/month or $360 yearly
• Personal retreats for prayer and direction, possibly training or counseling: $50/month for $600 total
• Gifts for pastors and coworkers: $30/month
• Immigration costs for visas, paperwork, etc: $15/ month
• Continuing Education: $200/month
• Housing and utilities: $350/month
• Food: $100/month
• Travel (vacation or to visit family): $90/month or $1,080 for the year
• Medical insurance: $140/month
• Dentist, Chiropractor, etc: $45/ month or $540 yearly
• Retirement fund: $300/monthly
• Emergency fund: $100/monthly

I believe strongly that God calls us to good stewardship, and so I strive to use this money wisely and well. After talking with financial advisors they say that I have a balanced budget which accounts for long-term needs and goals with different savings funds. As a partner missionary with Resonate, I need to account for paying taxes, insurance, retirement, etc. Thus some of the numbers that you see.

Hopefully this gives you an idea of where your support goes, and if you have any questions or advice, please email me! All of us are involved in the ministry and work that God is doing in different ways. Thanks to those that financially support the ministry in Nicaragua with church friendships and facilitation at the Nehemiah Center.

God's faithfulness in change

Over the past several months, many changes have taken place.

First, there's the overall situation of the country, Nicaragua. Incited by a law to reform social security, political unrest erupted on April 19, and has continued even after said law was repealed. People, especially university students, are protesting the government and asking for the president to step down or accept early elections. There have been armed conflicts and increased delinquency. Though most skirmishes have ceased, there has been no formal resolution. We are living in uncertain circumstances. The reality today may be completely different tomorrow as people call for protests, strikes, etc. Most people go about life during daylight hours, trying to get home by 8 pm at the latest, causing churches and business to adjust their schedules. There has also been an exodus from the country as both foreigners and nationals to go other countries where they believe life can offer them more. The economy in Nicaragua is declining rapidly and will continue to fall according to predictions. This is not the same place I have come to know in the last 4.5 years.

There have also been changes at the Nehemiah Center. Due to the crisis many teams did not come.What seemed to be a balanced budget quickly became unbalanced and cuts have been made. We expect to finish the year in the black by reducing all administrative staff to 80% time and salary and eliminating at least 4 full-time positions, effective August 30. Another major change is that Luz, the director for the past three years, announced her intention to step down for personal reasons, and Hultner, the coordinator for the training team, has taken the position of director now. Now we are currently in discussions about how to re-create the Nehemiah Center, renewing ourselves in the midst of a new reality on a national level as well as an institutional one.

For me personally there have been a lot of transitions over the last six weeks. I had been house-sitting for a family who returned near the end of August. Since we had arranged in the spring that I would be living at their house temporarily after my roommate got married, I had also arranged to take possession of a house just up the hill from where I was living before. I was handed the keys to the house at the beginning of August, and Raúl and I bought the former renter's car as well! So now for the first time since moving to Nicaragua, I'm living alone in a small two-bedroom home in Managua. Raúl and I anticipate living in this house together after we are married in December. The car is also a first, and it has been very nice to enjoy the freedom and stability that it offers in the midst of this socio-economic situation in Nicaragua.

Even so, there are some things that haven't changed. Churches continue to meet for worship. The Nehemiah Center continues to celebrate those who have worked there at their final Monday morning devotions. The Nehemiah Center staff continues to meet for prayer at 12 pm on most days. Raúl and I continue to plan a wedding knowing that all the plans we have made could change. The churches in the Church Friendship Program continue to pray for each other. Friends continue to send videos or write texts.

The sun continues to shine. The rain continues to fall. The dogs continue to bark, and the birds continue to chirp. The breeze brings welcome coolness on a hot day.

It's comforting to know and to reflect on how even when the world seems upside down, God doesn't change. There are things that can be counted upon.

God's mercies are new every morning. Great is His faithfulness.