Losing My Heart to Balgüe

Wow, is it possible a week has already passed since we first arrived in Balgüe? And what a week it has been. Last Saturday, we packed up all our stuff and left Cicrin and all our sweet kiddos for a week. Leaving their precious faces was not easy, but knowing we'd be back before too long made the parting somewhat easier. I've grown quite attached to my life there.
 After our goodbyes and hugs, we started down the road for a brand new adventure of ministering in Balgüe. Balgüe is a little town at the base of one of the volcanoes here on Ometepe. It is a beautiful place that immediately captured my heart. The church we are working with here is full of amazing people with the kindest hearts you will ever know. It's a smaller church that feels like one tight happy family. 
 The town itself is full of hippies, tourists, beautiful smiling locals, pigs, chickens, and dogs galore! Walking the streets here you will see dirt roads with feces so firmly packed into it you can no longer differentiate between the two, lush tropical trees and flowers, and generally a breathtaking view of the volcano shrouded in clouds. It has a charm that can only be experienced rather than described.
 My first impression was a good one. I could feel the atmosphere pulsing with potential for the ministry we were preparing to do. Day after day, I am further convinced that God is head over heels in love with Balgüe and its people. 
 To tell you everything that has happened and all that He has done in our short but sweet time here would take far more than one blog post. However, I will try to do the introduction to my next few posts justice. 
 One of the things we have done here is house to house visits, inviting people to church and sharing words of encouragement and testimonies that God has laid on our hearts. We were doing this this morning, and as we walked in the neighborhoods, among some of the poorest houses I have ever seen, it suddenly hit me… God wants every single one of these locals. He wants to set them free, to draw them near. 
 It sounds so simple, but I felt as if He had whispered the most delightful secret to me as I felt His heart meet mine. He wants them. He LOVES them. He loves them enough to send people from America who barely know any Spanish with a pastor whose heart beats for his community and God's plan for them door to door bringing the good news that He is here! And He is inviting them to Himself!
 Every face became more beautiful, every yard with flowers, a work of art, because I knew He is passionately calling out to this area. And I get to be a voice in that call. What a privilege! What qualifies me to be capable of carrying this message? Absolutely nothing! And yet, He speaks through me, through my whispered prayers in English as everyone around me converses rapidly in a language I don't understand. He honors that.
 Wow. There are so many stories of His goodness to share, I hardly know where to begin. But I promise to do my best to convey to you what He has done here with me and my team in the next few posts.
 God is moving on Balgüe. And I get to move with Him. This place has captured my heart unlike any other with all it's beauty and lost sheep. But amongst those wandering far from where He is are those who sing, clap, and praise night after night, contending for their people. A pinprick of light in the tropical darkness. What an honor to share in their vision and support the church here.
 So, if you happen to someday be in Balgüe, I encourage you, while you're sipping that amazing cup of local organic coffee, to look around with new eyes at the beauty that God has created here. Know that God wants these people! And it's through the prayers of people like you and me, and the church members here that we will see Ometepe transformed for the glory of its Creator.
 God lost His heart to Balgüe. And now, so have I.