Here is a fun video that shows the work that was done by Venture’s Mission team in Nicaragua! It was a really amazing trip and we who went were so blessed by the experience.

We will be returning to Nicaragua for two more trips in 2013.

The First one will be March 10-17, 2013 to Leon, Nicaragua to teach Hygiene and Drill a well while we share the love of Christ and His good news with the people we meet.

The Second trip will head out June 20-27, 2013 and will go to Rivas, Nicaragua. Here we will teach Hygiene and air drill through volcanic rock.

If you are interested in either trip please fill out our STOMP form.

Below is a video that Estuardo’s (who is in charge of the Leon site in Nicaragua) old church from California put together. It gives a great feel of what Living Water, (who Venture partners with on these trips) is all about:

On April 10-12 a handful of us at Venture had the opportunity to go to the Q conference hosted by Gabe Lyons. It was a three day event that consisted of a myriad talks that were either 18, 9 or 3 minutes in length and ranged from topics on Humility, Power, Abortion reduction, Social Networks, Books, Worship, Politics, Discipleship, Identity, our place in the public square and many more.

I have gone to this conference for the past three years now. Each time I have been appreciative (though now, not so overwhelmed) my the magnitude and care of the conference.

I will be writing over the next few weeks about different talks I heard and how they have been influencing my reading and thinking but before I do all that I wanted you all to listen to a song that was sung at the conference.

It is by the group Young Oceans and I have found it to be a very beautiful, worshipful song.

Update— Day 5

Today we are dedicating the well. Yesterday we finished clearing the water with back pressure and then capped it and purified the casing. We then had the chance to play with the children and the we made the cement base of our well. 

The well pumps 100gal per minute so it will never run dry!

We hope to return to the village we worked at last year and say hello to the community. 

Pray for continued safety and for the community that God would use this well to show his great love to this wonderful group of people!

Update— Day 3

Today we went to the school where we began drilling. it took a bit of time to get started because we had to make two four foot long by 1 foot wide trenches to flow our mud pits that had to be dug through concrete.

Once Curt took the opportunity to brake his pinky toe(he will be okay), and we all were exhausted from the physical labor of destroying poured cement, we had our trenches and started drilling. We dug 100 ft into the earth and did indeed find water! Tomorrow we will redriill the well and make it large enough to put the casing down. Pray for continual safety!

The Hygiene team taught 4 different classes and had an hour with each class! Using the parable of the lost they explained how happy God is to continually seek after us. They explained how germs travel and taught people how to wash their hands and explained why it was important to keep their hands clean. They had a great time. We are all exhausted and ready to sleep.

Check back tomorrow for progress! Keep praying for us!

***UPDATE Day 1***

We made it to Leon and have had very safe travels.

We will be working at a place called Santa Maria about a half hour from where we are staying.

We will be near two large villages and will be drilling the well at a school that has 180 kids.

We brought along a lot of sports equipment and school supplies so they will be put to good use!

The team is working together well!

Keep us all in your prayers!

Our Team is leaving for Houston, Texas tonight. They will fly to Managua early tomorrow morning. Please pray for Alex, Stephanie, Rebecca, Monica, Curt, Eric and Stephen as they go to Leon for the week. Check back this week for more updates!

This week we celebrate Passion Week. For Christians, this is a significant week for commemorating the significant events at the end of Jesus’ earthly ministry. It is also an opportunity for us to worship the Lord Jesus. Instead of thinking of ourselves first this week, we can turn our attention to celebrating the ministry of our Risen Lord.

Yesterday we began the week by celebrating Palm Sunday together. We looked at key passages from Jesus’ ministry from the gospel of Luke: 4:14-21 (Jesus’ proclamation that he came to end Israel’s exile and to bring the kingdom of God); 19:28-48 (Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem, and his showdown with the Jewish religious leader about the temple); and 22:7-20 (the last Supper, the Jewish Passover meal where Jesus inaugurated the New Covenant).

I would encourage you to not only review those significant passages in Luke, but to read the entire Gospel of Luke this week. At a good pace, you can read through Luke in about 90 minutes. Reading this book of the Bible will allow you spend some intentional time in worship this week. Then join us in Venture on Sunday as we sing songs of praise and celebrate Jesus’ resurrection (and reflect on how we have the hope of resurrection in Christ). Make this a week of reflection and celebration of our Risen Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.

A team from Venture will be heading to Nicaragua on April 14-21. We will be going to Leon and working with Living Water International, drilling for clean sustainable water for a local village. We are in need of finical support! If you are willing to support us please click here. We still need to raise about 9,000USD. Please be praying for our team as they prepare for this trip!

Meet the Team!

Curt Wunder:

“I feel it is important to do God’s will and put my faith into action; actually doing something as opposed to talking about it. I feel in the United States we have such a sense of entitlement and take many things for granted. Going to a Third World country and serving people and caring for their basic needs will be a humbling experience. I need to be reminded what is important and what is not. Sharing the love of Christ by a selfless act is a good exercise for me; hopefully I will be able to carry that through my daily walk when I return home. A big plus as I get the bond my son-in-law and I’m looking forward to that very much!”

Alex & Stephanie Hairgrove:

“This will be my (Alex) second trip to Nicaragua with Living Water, International. The opportunity to provide a physical representation of Christ’s love to the people of Nicaragua was the driving force behind my first trip. It was such a rewarding experience, that when I returned, I immediately told my wife (Stephanie) that she was coming with me next year. Together we hope to show the community in Nicaragua that just as God sends us to help meet their physical needs, He sent His Son to meet their spiritual needs.”

Rebecca Perez:

“This trip to Nicaragua will be my very first mission. In the past year, God has shown me how blessed we are in this country. We take clean water for granted while others never see it in their lifetime. With a new perspective, I hope to grow closer to the Lord while bringing the native Nicaraguans a new perspective of their own: the Gospel.”

Eric Flug:

“I am returning to Nicaragua four years after my wife and I went for our first time. That trip was extremely rewarding despite not being successful in our attempt to get a working well. I have longed to return and I finally have another chance this spring. I look forward to getting away from my comfortable yet chaotic Northern Virginia life and see God work through us and in us. It gives me great joy to meet the needs of people in a tangible way and to do it in the name of Jesus Christ.”

Stephen Procopio:

“This will be my third trip to Nicaragua with LWI. Each time I have learned more about Christ’s love and about sharing Him and his love with how I daily live. I love going on these trips, working with the people in Leon and growing with others from Venture. I believe that this is very important work and am so grateful to be part of this team!”

Again, We still need to raise quite a bit of money to pay for the drilling equipment, food and airfare. Please consider donating here:

https://www.immanuelbible.net/registrations/giving/missions_giving.html

Blanket Stock-up Christmas-Potluck: Sunday, December 11 from 6-10 p.m.
Come celebrate the season with us at 6338 River Downs Road, Alexandria, 22312. Please bring a new or gently-used and laundered blanket (suitable for the outdoors) to the party. We will give the blankets to the homeless on December 18. Last name A-H: Please bring a side dish. Last Name I-P: Please bring a main dish. Last name Q-Z: Please bring a dessert.