Serving Him in Nicaragua: Eagle volleyball on a mission, Day 1
DIRIAMBA, NICARAGUA – The following is a series of first-hand accounts of Carson-Newman volleyball players and coaches on their missions trip to Nicaragua. We left Knoxville, Tenn. at 6:30 a.m. and arrived in Mangua, Nicaragua at 6:30 p.m. (Nicaraguan Time).
DIRIAMBA, NICARAGUA – The following is a series of first-hand accounts of Carson-Newman volleyball players and coaches on their missions trip to Nicaragua.
Head Volleyball Coach Shannon Mincey
The thrill of finally being in Nicaragua overrode how incredibly tired we were from the long day. Judy Fox, our leader, shared with us that tomorrow morning (Friday) we would be visiting an orphanage. I was most excited about this opportunity because just before I left, my own children Cami (10) and Cy (8), gave me many of their own toys out of their room. My son Cy pretty much dumped his entire room into one suitcase. It was sweet to see how easy it was for him to say, "Here, take all these toys. I don't need them."
When we arrived at the orphanage both volleyball teams played with the children. My husband (C-N Head Women's Basketball Coach Mincey) quickly gravitated toward the boys since he was the only male in our group. My son had placed a glove and baseball in the suitcase along with some other small sports balls. These were a huge hit. Some of my players brought nail polish and stickers. I brought lots of small jewelry beads which seemed to be what the girls liked. Another player brought bubbles. She pulled them out and blew some. The children opened their mouths to eat the bubbles. We all screamed "No!" as we laughed at the sight of bubbles actually going into their mouths.
It was overwhelming to take it all in. I stood in the middle of all the activities - and the heat - just absorbing what we were doing. I got teary eyed thinking how much is in my home for my own children to play with and how little these children have. Their shoes were so worn, some too small, some way to big – it was obvious all some kids had to wear were hand me downs. I looked down at the cement and a 5 year old boy was playing with a large bag of Lego blocks my son used to play with. I had those in my house for years sitting in the garage. This small boy seemed to gravitate toward one of our freshmen, Kianna Sedlacek. He clung to her pretty much the entire time we were there. At one point he gathered all the Legos and took off running toward the place he resides. He wanted to make sure those were his Legos. These kids were so excited to have all these small toys and to play.
The language barrier was tough. We only have 2 players who can speak Spanish. The rest of us managed to ask questions like, "How old are you?" and "What is your name?" The kids didn't seem to mind though. Lindsey Wells (freshman setter) attends First Baptist Church in Morristown. The children in her church had colored pictures; some had even put a picture of themselves in an envelope. When Lindsey started handing these out, the children swarmed her wanting them. The children loved the colored pictures and even continued to decorate them with sticker and markers. They especially loved the photographs of the American children. The Nicaraguan girls clung to the pictures. I held out my hand trying to say, "May I see who is in the picture." They wouldn't give it to me they loved it so much. We are excited for today! Today we hold a kids clinic and feed the hungry! I almost feel like we (The C-N volleyball team) are the hungry and thus far we are being fed full of God's Love.
Coach Mincey
Kirby Ellis had the opportunity to share her testimony to the children and orphanage leaders. These are her words.
Junior Middle Kirby Ellis
When Judy mentioned that she needed a volunteer to share their story, I immediately felt a tug on my heart to volunteer. Each of us has a story. One of the most powerful things about us is the way our lives have been transformed by Jesus Christ. At first, I was nervous
because I didn't know how I could relate my story to young kids. But one verse I have been clinging to lately is Exodus 4:11-12, which says, "Who has made man's mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth, and I will teach you what you shall speak."
I shared a very simplified version of my story. From as far back as I can remember, I grew up in church. But for me, church was a way to please God, or look good in the eyes of my peers. I've played sports since I was 4 years old, so a lot of what I do is characterized by performance or competition. I thought the same of God; I thought I had to perform to earn His love.
When I got to high school, though, I was too busy with sports to go to church. To make up for it, I tried to continue to please God, my parents, coaches, teachers, by doing the right things so I wouldn't be punished. When I got hurt and had to have knee surgery, I was angry with God for punishing me even though I never did anything wrong. I turned away from the Lord and sought approval from worldly things: body appearance, boys, etc. I figured that if performing for God wasn't working and performing on the court was out of the option, I would use other things.
When I came to college, I went to an FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) camp where someone told me that there was nothing I could do to earn God's love. Romans 5:8 is a powerful verse that talks about how although we do bad things, God loved us enough to send His son to die for us to overcome the penalty of sin and reconcile us back to right standing before God, despite ANYTHING I can ever to do to try and please Him. The speaker talked about being a fan of Jesus versus becoming a follower: I knew I wanted to become a follower. God continues to teach me what it means to be a follower of Jesus.
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