Scars...

Today while seeing clinic in Santa Emilia, I met Manuel Garcia, a polite quiet man who looks older but is my age. He came asking for something to treat the chronic pain he has in his right arm. Pedro, my translator noticed that his right hand seemed not to function normally. Initially he didn't explain the reason for his pain, but on further questioning Manuel showed us his scarred right arm which had been shattered by a rifle bullet during Nicaragua's bloody 10 year civil war in the 1980s. Most of the battles of that long war were fought in the mountainous region north of Matagalpa up to the border with Honduras. I remember the news stories of the time, and more recently I've learned more of the details of that dark time in Nicaraguan history. In the United States our Civil War happened 150 years ago and seems more like "history." But in Nicaragua the the scars from their civil war are not "history." They are still fresh, present in bullet holes still visible in some buildings in Matagalpa, and borne by living people like Manuel, and in family members who still mourn the loss of family members and friends who died fighting their own countrymen. In addition to the human costs, the country still suffers from the economic devastation resulting from the war and the subsequent political corruption so common in this part of the world. Yet, God is at work in Nicaragua! Even the worst of man's evil, even "the gates of Hades" cannot prevent God from redeeming His creation. (Matthew 16:18) Manuel belongs to the Congregacion Ebenezer, a mission congregation started on a coffee plantation by members from FBC Matagalpa where 130 members worship each week under a simple structure (a roof over a dirt floor with no walls). Today they hosted our medical team where we saw 175 patients and had Bible school for over 120 kids.
Gloria a Dios!
Rhett