pat loughery

Our team of 3 arrived in Managua safely last night. Uneventful flight down, except for my sitting next to a french Canadian on the leg from Houston to Managua who told me all about his wife who had left him for another man, his preference for deferential women who want a ´real man´, not like what those canadian and american women want, his plans to run an import-export business in Managua, and who was reading a book entitled ¨How to make anyone like you¨, for which his bookmark was a yellow sticky pad full of intentions like ´Look into her eyes´, ´be positive about your life´, ´listen attentively´, ´let your eyes consider her entire figure´, etc.

It was nice to arrive in Managua. We breezed through customs. It costs $5US to enter the country and $32 to leave it.

We went immediately to the office space of La Viña, the church that we’re helping plant here. They had a home group for elementary school aged children, about 20 of them in attendance. The main worship team (almost all 20-somethings) was involved with leading it.

Then back to our rooms at the girls´home here at Arms of Love Nicaragua, which shows us phenomenal hospitality. We spent much time catching up with Emilio who runs the home with his wife Gladys (now out of the country in Guatemala visiting family), talking politics and social issues, and eating a wonderful dinner of rice, chicken in tomato sauce, fried plantains, salad and fresh squeezed orange juice. Sure beat airline food.

Up early today and we have our fullest agenda today. Roy teaches at a men’s breakfast this am, then a break for lunch to meet with the leaders here at La Viña, then this afternoon I teach on power evangelism and something else happens. I´m not sure if this is accurate, but I heard somebody say last night that today’s training goes till 9 tonight.

The major problem with that is that we couldn’t get to sleep last night, heard people throwing things at the house all night and woke up way too early this morning. 4AM Seattle time, if I really wanted to think about it. Which I don´t. We’ll be sleepy tonight.