December 08 assembly and ministry

Last month we finally had our Assigned District Convention.

The family here to the left have been studying for about 4 months. They've already made tremendous changes in their lifestyles and have recently begun to attend all of the meetings. To the right you see their youngest son Luis getting a better view of the drama with Andrews help.

The sister playing the 'spoiled girl' in the drama studied with Vanessa Listol and I about 5 years ago. She's now a regular pioneer. Her older sister Antonieta was baptized at this convention. I remember being so



frustrated with what seemed to be slow progress with them. It just shows that studying with young teenagers pays off when they're old enough to make their own decisions and really make the truth their own.



Another couple in our congregation are studying with Vladimir and Jamileth. They were just married two weeks ago. It was obviously an important step in their progress. They've been attending the meetings regularly for 5 months. There was a small fiesta for them after the wedding ceremony. You can see them below cutting their wedding cake with the help of  their 5 year old daughter.

Andrew takes the group out on Fridays in a neighborhood called Villa Valencia. When I first got here there were a few squatter homes on the mountainside but now weekly we see more trees cut to build small structures covered in plastic or sheet metal. There is no running water and few latrines for these homes. Many of them are hoping that donations from other countries will be used to build a new neighborhood with more secure housing.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

There's a nice group of young people in our congregation that really put a lot into their ministry. Massiel is the young sister you see below She also supports our sign language groups as one of the interpreters.

The brother you see next to Andrew is Sebastian. They were good friends in Spain and after he and his wife Manuela came for a "visit" to Nicaragua they've decided to stay on long term.

That was our December. Hope everyone back home is well. Miss you all.

Andrew and Jenny