Andrea Burgess Newsletter July-August 2009

Hi Friends,

Enjoy the latest News update from  Andrea G Burgess, serving in Nicaragua.

Summer’s Over…

July was a great month, ushering in the rainy season again, so the landscape has changed from the brown and golden hues to many incredible shades of lush, rich green.

The mountains and valleys are now flourishing, and look breathtakingly beautiful. As I look around I am filled with the wonder of Creation all over again.

As most of you know, the Lord lead me to a new ministry, New Life Re-nutrition Center in Managua, Nicaragua.  I have been presented with many different kinds of ministry opportunities, covering a wide range of ages and needs. New Life is similar to the previous home, in that it is an orphanage for children from birth to six years old.

This is a snapshot of what my new ministry involves: One afternoon I took one of our babies, 4 month old Diana Gabriela, to the hospital for an appointment and she ended up being admitted, so I stayed there with her overnight. She was released after a few days but still needed 24 hour care and isolation from the other children, so I was honored to be able to take her back to my home and care for her there. She is doing much better now with her new family and in a private home setting but she still needs our prayers for a complete recovery which may take a while.

On another occasion, I was asked to care for a newborn called Danny, for a few days while his mother recovered in the hospital after having a C-section. He was so cute, with a birth weight of 15 lbs! Ouch!! He was bigger at 3 weeks than Gabriela who was already 4 months! Chunky Monkey, beautiful little (big) boy!! J God makes us all so unique!

I enjoy taking the children out whenever possible to introduce them to new environments, and have had fun especially taking them to church with me, then out for lunch as a treat afterwards. Check out the photos for our July birthday party too!!! Too cute

Another highlight of the summer:
My dear friend and sister in Christ, Kathy Bolton, returned to Nicaragua for her second visit. She served with a medical team for a week, and then she spent an entire week with me. God’s timing is perfect! It was a blessing to have a friend to walk with me through a difficult period of transition. We started our days with praise & worship and prayer & meditation. As we surrendered each day to The LORD, we felt totally at ease enjoying the peace of His presence. During the afternoons, we traveled around seeing some of the country as we went around spending time with the Nicaraguan people in their homes. Our mornings were at the children’s home getting to know 25 new faces.

Rosalinda, my friend from the beach

Also, we made it to the beach and visited with Rosalinda! We gave her the birthday presents: a blue dress, new shoes and other sundry gifts, and celebrated her 8th birthday with her. Rosalinda’s Father was there, it was the 1st time I had met him. He sat at a table close by. He did not want to join us. Rosalinda seemed reserved and shy and chose to take her gifts home with her to open.

A visit to Los Cedros

We went to visit with the children at the home in Los Cedros a couple of times. My heart hurts to be away from them. I have known many of them since birth, but I know through Faith that our Sovereign God has them in His hands. I plan to go and visit with them regularly so they don’t forget how special they are to me and to let them know I still love them very much!!

World travels in August

It had been my dream to go to England and visit family there, some who I had not seen for many years. As I prayed for a miracle, the ticket prices rose rapidly. But “Is anything too hard for The LORD?” Genesis 18 v 14a
God made it happen, Praise God! He provided the finances for the ticket and all the expenses along the way for the entire 10 days! I was with my daughter in time for my granddaughter Faith’s 5th Birthday party!! Being with my Grandchildren again, laughing, crying, playing, and praying together was a dream come true. Thank you to all of you who gave so generously to make it a reality.

I visited my birth Mother, 20 minutes away from my daughter Maria (unbeknown to either of them before my visit!)  My older sister was there visiting from Singapore, so we all went out one day for a big picnic in the park.
Lastly, I got to be with my two younger sisters and their families.

Tears come to my eyes as I write this. I am amazed by God’s love, goodness and provision. I still can’t believe I was able to go!

Back to Florida. Gainesville was fun! I caught up with many good friends and my church family, with the added bonus of seeing Ron & Cynthia McVicar tooJ   Blessings and thanks to my friends who provided a place to rest my head and transportation while I was there. The rummage sale was a huge success, thanks again to all of you who helped.
My trip ended in South Florida with my son and his wife, which included a boat trip one afternoon though for some R & R., my favorite pastime in South Florida.
Good times, great memories, blessings galore! This was a very special time for me and my family for building and restoring relationships. Now I am relaxed and refreshed and ready to start again!!

Back in the saddle:

After a month of reconnecting with friends, family, and supporters, I headed back to Nicaragua August 31st.
I’ll share about New Life’s vision next time I write so you can fit my piece in the larger puzzle of what God is doing with these precious children.

Finally, my friends, God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, thank you all for your compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, generosity, patience, mercy and love. Thank you for bearing with me through it allJ (Col 3 v 12 paraphrased)

Until next time, much love in Christ, andrea xxx