Progress!!

Today we got a ton of work done and we are set up for the rest of the week.

Logan is sharing with us tonight...

Eggs Ranchero!

I rode a motorcycle.

The natives put me to shame.

We awoke this morning in good health and made our way to breakfast. I did my morning leg lifts and jumped on a rock! Once we made our way to the food we began with prayer, like we do before everything. (There’s a reason for that, I’ll get there in a little bit.) I had a piece of toast, although eggs and beans/rice were options. (I’m not particularly a fan of eggs.)

We made the trek up the hill of death, to our work space. Mark Potter suggested we stretch, but I had already stretched! Dilema! So I filled my water bottle instead.

I added an energy/hydration pouch to my water, it tasted horrid.

I was assigned to work on the hole, a ten foot square in the ground where we are building a septic tank. I worked as hard as I could, but the Nica’s outworked me again. Unsurprisingly.

Logan working on the sidewalk

I made my way around to all the stations throughout the day. The sidewalk we’re building is coming along so well! The bathrooms are probably making the most consistent and powerful strides of progress. Even the children’s center has finally been leveled and good to go.

I’m learning so many words, perdòn means ‘excuse me’, which I say a lot, considering how often I’m in other people's way. The people here are incredibly accommodating and kind. Luís took me on the motorcycle, and all the guys have been super helpful regardless of how little I know.

But most importantly, Jesus is at work here, and it’s hard to miss. We talk to him as much as possible, because without him, none of this is possible. We’re just getting out of the way and letting him do his thang.

Now! Go enjoy your warm showers and go to bed! You crazy kids.

Love you.

~Logan

Thanks for sharing Logan!  

Together we work!

Sunday, April 15 2017

It is always awesome to hear from different perspectives. Below Keith shared a bit of what he has experienced and what the team did today.

The team had a restful morning after a rough night. Apparently everyone on the team snores so sleep was at a premium!

We are sleeping in what is called the Doctor's house but it has been converted to a crude bunk house.

We had a hearty breakfast of pancakes, tortillas, rice and beans and local fruit.

At 10 am we attended church with the local Nicas led by Pastor Denis. The service was in Spanish however Missionary Donna translated for us non-Spanish speaking team members.

After service we walked back to the clinic for lunch of hamburgers, home made French fries and cold Coca Cola.

Our work day started at 2pm with members of the congregation helping.  They usually have service in the evening but Pastor Denis decided that it would be cool if we all worked together instead. The local Nica's work ethic puts us to shame. They don’t stop, do twice the work and carry more than any of us!

I personally worked on the children’s area leveling the soil in prep for concrete. Others were in a 7x8 foot hole maybe 12 feet deep placing 100lb blocks for the septic system.

We also had a crew placing 100lb concrete blocks vertically for a wall around a men and women’s bathroom at the rear of the church. Can you imagine going to church and not have a bathroom? With the way some Fox River members drink coffee that would be an issue!

We accomplished so much for a short day!

Everyone is doing well, eating well and getting along well despite working so close for so long. 

We ask that you keep us in your prayers for safety and health. See you soon!

God bless,
Keith Runnells

How cool is that! The Church worked together today.  It doesn’t get much better than coming together to build the Kingdom!!  Thanks for following along!  

Go big or go home

The team finished the trip up to La Esmeralda this morning and hit the ground running!  They unpacked just enough to find their tools and got straight to work!  

One of our Mark’s (there are 5 of them 😱) shares a little bit about the first day... 

“Today was a great day.  We started off the morning with a delicious breakfast in Selva Negra, then we headed up to La Esmeralda where we will stay the rest of the week.  We unpacked the bus and grabbed the tools and equipment we needed, then got to work.

Pastor Denis explained the plan to us and then we started by moving a ton of dirt (Quite literally). Moving dirt to clear out the area the bathrooms will be and putting it in over by the children’s area to level the floor out.

We finished digging the hole for the septic tank to go and then started putting the columns in and setting them with cement.

We also cleared out some plants so that we can put in a sidewalk along the church. Then some more digging to have a foundation on the side.

Lunch was powerful today because I felt a great sense of community amongst all of us.“  -  Mark Potter

We can’t wait to hear all that God does in and through these guys!  Stay tuned because we hear tomorrow will bring something extra special! 

We Are Here!

​Today started early for us at the church at 1:30am.From there we headed to Chicago to make our first flight to Miami and then from Miami to Managua, Nicaragua.

Once we got our visas we headed to collect all of our bags! They all made it! We then headed through customs where 8 of our bags got checked, but God’s hand was all over it! The man who was dealing with us was so nice and patient with us and he tried to make it as quick as possible. He also brought another very nice man who was making sure we understood everything the customs people were telling us. God was in it and we made it through with all our stuff.

We ate a quick lunch and got on the bus to make our 4 hour ride to Selva Negra, where we will have dinner and stay for the night. Everyone is pretty tired after traveling all day, but ready to experience all that God has for us. We are enjoying the beauty of Nicaragua and the team is thankful for a bit of fresh, cool air after landing in Managua at 12.

After dinner we are all looking forward to hitting the beds. Thank you for your prayers and we appreciate your continued prayers for safety and health and Gods working!

Here We Go!

It’s time!!!!!  So many people have prayed and waited and supported us and now the time has come for the team to leave!  We have checked our bags and made it through security.  We are about to board our first flight to Miami and from there we will fly to Managua. Everyone is excited to get there!  

​Pray for safety as we travel, for our bags to all make it, for health, and for God to begin his work even now as we travel! 

We cant wait to see how God works this week! Follow along here to hear and see all that God is doing!  

GETTING THE TEAM READY

It is about time to send our first 2018 Nicaragua team out.  These men will have the opportunity to help construct a children's facility next to the church, giving the children a place to have their Sunday school and also a space to have a nursery. This is really exciting because our partner church in La Esmeralda has never had a space that they could dedicate to the children, they have had to either meet behind the church outside or under the (tiny) porch of the Pastors home.  Now they will be able to start a nursery and have classrooms for the children to learn and play and be loved on.  We are also excited to be putting some bathrooms in that same building. All of these things are giving the church the capacity that the need to grow and reach even more people in this community and those surrounding!  

Each missions team that we send has the honor and privilege to be prayed over by our congregations before they leave which is something we value so much as we prepare to go. This past weekend Fox River prayed for this work and the men going to do it at every service. One of the reasons we value this so much is because we believe that prayer is so powerful as God tells us in His Word. Another reason is because we want those who do not get to go to be involved in what God is doing through our church. Each prayer and outstretched hand that is lifted up is making a difference in the lives of these children and their families that we are going to impact through this building. If you were there this weekend praying over us, thank you!  If you weren't and would like to be part of God's working its not too late!  Pray now that God would do something new and exciting in and through each of these men, and that this facility will bring more people to know Christ and in turn bring God glory!  

After church we met up and had some lunch and fellowship and began packing our bags.  Yes, even though we don't leave til Friday we have 14 bags packed and ready to be loaded up.  These bags are very important because they carry supplies that the men will need to complete the projects they have been tasked with. Will you start praying now for all the bags to arrive and for God's hand to guide us smoothly through customs in Nicaragua? I love packing together with the team because it starts us all off working as one and also  brings some understanding to the new culture we are about to be in for 10 days. This is when it starts getting exciting seeing everything start to come together, all the prayers and fundraising and conversations and meetings all getting us ready for what God has in store for next week.   

Will you pray these next couple weeks?  Pray that God will start today working in the hearts of each man who has sacrificed to go on this trip? Pray for the Nicaraguans we will be working with, that their hearts will be softened to what God has for them as well.  Pray too for safety and health.  

You can follow along with the team as they travel and are on the ground in Nicaragua right here!  Look for our next post on Friday. 

Since my sister was not able to fly with us I decided to pack her as my checked luggage. She has done a lot of the work in getting this team ready and planning all the details for them. Shout out to Abbey for all the work she does for all our Nicaragua teams! 

The Silver Lining

It has been a sad couple of weeks at Fox River's New Life Primary School in Bomani as we had to bid farewell to the young Francis Samuel Jefwa. He was a student in grade 3 and had been ailing for a while. The family and the school gave him the best care possible but he passed on to glory.

Francis - an ever happy boy

Francis’s empty spot in class 

In the midst of all the sadness, the silver lining to young Francis’ life is that he trusted Jesus with his life. On one of the occasions when the teacher presented the gospel message, he was among the students who made a decision to receive the forgiveness of sins and live for Christ.

Francis' classmates and teacher

Teachers leading in song at the service

Class 3 students celebrating their friend in song.

The service was a beautiful celebration of life that was held at the school. There were plenty of songs of praise and worship of God from both the students and the teachers. A lot of good was spoken and the gospel message of hope was shared to encourage the family and community at large.

Francis’ family Members 

It was a difficult day for these little ones to comprehend.

As we continue to pray and trust God for the growth and success of these children, let’s pray for Francis’ family, his classmates and the teachers. For surely in God’s time we shall be with Francis in the presence of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Let’s Connect

The Tech Booth at Crossroads Fellowship Nyali.

The Fox River missions team is excited to introduce you to a new boots on the ground partner in Kenya- O’Neal. Hear from O’Neal today... 

This is going to be an interesting read because this is my first time to blog. In as much as I work at the Media Department at Crossroads Fellowship Nyali. Writing stories is not my cup of tea. My wife Jenna is quite a story teller and is giving pointers- which I am thankful for, together we are a great team. I say this because I am a thinker and a tech guy not a writer.

The Nyanjes 

I have decided to take up the challenge, because then I get to share with everyone stories of God’s goodness through the different hands and feet he has used to bring hope to children and communities here in Kenya.

Community outreach day at vipingo

I have had numerous opportunities of seeing smiles and hearing of dreams of little boys and girls at both New Life in Bomani and Crossroads Academy in Vipingo. I want to share these moments with you as I get to interact and do life with the rest of my people out in Bomani and Vipingo.

Pizza Day with Graduating class

As you read this please keep praying for Jenna and I as we serve and love our people. Being a tool in God’s hands is the best part of our lives and we couldn’t ask for anything more than being where we are. Looking forward to sharing more stories of life in Kenya and Gods goodness. Stay Tuned. 

Medical camp at Vipingo

Constructing a Future

God is at work in the community of La Esmeralda, Nicaragua, and it is time to follow as he provides for the future. 

This April Fox River Missions is sending a men's team down to partner with the church in constructing a building for their children's ministry and plans to get a bathroom built too.

Pastor Denis, his team, and a team from the Managua church have been hard at work getting the structure of this building up.  They have done all the the foundation work and just this week the team for Managua have been up there putting up the structure and roof.    Our guys will go in and finish the project up.  How exciting it is to watch the progress of this project! 

Let me share with you the importance and excitement for these facilities..

As of right now the children meet on the porch of Pastor Denis' home or in a home close to the church.  They currently do not have an inside place to hold Sunday school or any other children's activities during church services. 

This building will bring them inside so that in the rainy season it will not effect how they do children's ministry.  This building will give them a space that they can grow and have no problem having space for all the children who come.  It will also give them the capacity to have a nursery which has never been a possibility before.  A space that Pastor Denis and Karen's children and the children from the community can grow up and hear what Christ has done for them.  And so much more!  We are so excited to see how God uses this building!  

And for the bathrooms... currently the church has no bathroom.  This might seem silly, but having a bathroom on church grounds will be so beneficial.  I believe that this very simple thing will be used to grow this church.  This will be a huge blessing!

There are more projects on the list to continue to build up this church and just not enough time for our guys to get it all done.  But, we know Pastor Denis and his teams will continue to work towards the future, so that this church will continue to see lives changed.

We have called this project 'Constructing a Future' because this is all about the future of this church, the future of these children, the future of the Kingdom!  

Pray for this future with us!  

VIP's at Fox River

We have some very exciting news to share!!! 

Some of our mission partners from Kenya will be coming to the states for 6 months to experience life and ministry in a new way at Fox River!  

Pastor Gideon, his wife Joy, and three boys: Jotham, Joshua, and Jayson.   

This will be quite the exciting and a completely different life experience for each of them.  This will be the first time they travel to the United States...the first time these boys have been out of their home country.   

Pastor Gideon is the Executive Pastor at Crossroads Fellowship Church in the Mombasa area.  Our missionary, Jim Horne, is the pastor of the church.  This church holds a special place in our hearts as they have welcomed us in each and every time we have a group in Kenya!  Joy is involved in their women's ministries and she is the administrator at our children's rescue center in Vipingo.  These are big shoes that will need to be filled while they are here with us.  Will you join us in praying for their ministries that they have said 'see ya later' to for the next few months?  It's never easy to leave your people, ministries, and life.

This is a long trip for well traveled adults.  Which means for a family who hasn't done much traveling, none the less across the world with three little boys, it will be a long couple days!  This is something we ask you to pray with us about.  Smooth, safe, and a quick travel.  

They will also be experiencing the cold for the first time ever!  We want just one more snowfall so that they can see exactly just how magical a snowfall can be.   We know, we know...but, they have never seen snow before!

There are so many things we can show them and share with them while they are here, but the most important will be to share how God is working in and through Fox River.   They are excited to be here and to do life with us!  They will be around at Fox River in various ways, make sure you introduce yourselves! 

Will you join us in praying as they have started their journey here?  They will have traveled by train today and then will board their first flight just after midnight on Wednesday (3pm Tuesday here).   They will arrive in Wisconsin on Wednesday late afternoon.  In all, they will be traveling for almost 4 days.  

Pastor Jim at Crossroads, Commissioning Sevice.

We are so anxious for them to get here!!!