General Assembly

Hi Folks,

 

     Carolyn and I will be meeting in San Antonio on the 2nd of August, to attend the General Assembly of the Church of God.  We are very much looking forward to seeing some good friends while we are there.  Anyone that plans to attend this Biannual event, please give us a call when you get there.  We'll try to get together for a chat, or a meal.

 

     Please keep the men and women of the Church of God in your prayers as they attend this important session, and vote on the future of our assembled saints.

 

God Bless!

 

Richard and Carolyn

 

Dios le bendiga grandemente a su familia y ministerio.
 
Casa de Servicio, International
Missionary Aviation, Medical Evacuation
Church of God, World Missions Project #: 065-0497
http://www.casadeservicio.org
 
Richard & Carolyn Becton
1135 Ponderosa Dr
Cleveland, TN 37312
210 392-9574 (for dialing from the US, and for messages)
011 505 613-5824 (Our number in Nicaragua)

 

flight@flash.net
http://www.myspace.com/rbecton
http://www.casadeservicio.org/blog/

 

ADDRESS IN NICA:

 

Iglesia de Dios, Central
Missionero Richard Becton
Barrio: 19 de Julio
Puerto Cabezas, R.A.A.N.
Nicaragua, Central America

Blessing of our birthright

Hi Folks,

It has been awhile since I felt such a feeling of humble pride.

We are so blessed to live in the United States of America.

Every time my National Pride rears its head, as an American, I am culturally conditioned to apologize for those feelings. Many people will almost immediately stand up and declare that there is A LOT wrong with this country, and of course those people are right...this is not a perfect country. But I will NOT apologize for KNOWING how blessed I am to live in The United States of America.

I guess I am just not THAT MUCH of a perfectionist. The US isn't perfect, far from it, but it IS the best place in the world to live. I am satisfied to belong to this great land, until such time as I am promoted to a "better place". I may live and serve God in Nicaragua, but I am exceedingly blessed to call this land my home.

I revel in the sights...and sounds...and wealth, that is apparent on every street in this country. Having spent the majority of the last ten months in a country that can't imagine the average American citizens lifestyle and opulence...I revel.

God has blessed this country in every conceivable way. We are safe, and cared for, and can eat, and play, and pursue happiness. What a country...we live in.

God blessed me personally by allowing me the grace to be born in the greatest country in the world, The United States of America.

One of America's election debating points is how our new president will handle the TRILLIONS of dollars that will be at the disposal of his administration. What a blessing.

Another presidential talking point is what we can do to HELP the people that chose to risk their lives in coming to our country, because of the opportunity that is here for them...men, women and children. What a blessing to be able to debate such a thing.

Another point of debate is the moral and philosophical course our country will take in the upcoming years? As we debate, no one man or committee will decide...WE will decide...each of us, as we align ourselves together in a majority voting bloc. What a blessing to have our viewpoint considered, and acted upon.

Another debating point is should we continue to promote our form of government in foreign lands, and spend our hard-earned money to do so? Consider why we are spending our money and the blood of our nation's heroes on a pursuit as noble as this. What a blessing to love FREEDOM that much.

We aren't debating whether we should build a road, or a clinic...some countries have only enough money for one or the other.

We aren't debating whether we should expend this countries resources in the acquisition of rice or beans for the people that will starve to death this year...some countries are debating this, in seriousness.

We are a blessed people in the United States of America. We are a strong country that will survive and prosper no matter which of the candidates we chose to elect in November. What an amazing country we not only live in, but are a part of.

Are we too far gone? Has cynicism invaded the national attitude so that we can no longer see the nobility of our nation?

If this small patriotic note offended anyone, let me know. I can arrange for you to come down to Nicaragua, and see for yourself after a brief visit there WHAT A WONDERFUL COUNTRY YOU LIVE IN.


Dios le bendiga grandemente a su familia y ministerio.

Casa de Servicio, International
Missionary Aviation, Medical Evacuation

http://www.casadeservicio.org

Richard & Carolyn Becton
1135 Ponderosa Dr
Cleveland, TN 37312
210 392-9574 (for dialing from the US, and for messages)
011 505 613-5824 (Our number in Nicaragua)

flight@flash.net
http://www.myspace.com/rbecton
http://www.casadeservicio.org/blog/

rolling, rolling, rolling.

AS ALWAYS, ANYONE THAT RECEIVES OUR MISSIONARY BLOG THAT WISHES TO BE REMOVED FROM OUR LIST PLEASE LET US KNOW, AND YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS WILL BE PROMPTLY REMOVED.

Hi Folks,

Well, thanks to some very generous people in South Carolina the Avion travel trailer will soon be on its way to Nicaragua!

We have already relocated the trailer to a friends house in San Antonio, in preparation for the move, ... a "staging" process.

Carolyn and I are going to attend the General Assembly this year in San Antonio. We were kindly invited by Brother Aldana from Guatemala, and since I grew up in San Antonio the temptation to revisit my "home city" was irresistible. Carolyn and I have some very good friends that live in San Antonio and in the surrounding areas as well. We are excited about being able to spend some time in one of our favorite cities, and the chance to renew some good friendships.

The journey to Central America (Nicaragua) while pulling a 32' Avion trailer will be a new experience for both Carolyn and I. I have had occasion to make this trip before, but only in a pickup truck, and never pulling a trailer. I wish I could describe for you how I foresee the trip taking place. The roads between Brownsville, TX and Managua, Nicaragua are really not terrible...with a few notable exceptions in the southern part of Mexico and Honduras. We will be traveling slowly,and carefully. We expect this part of the trip to take about 3-5 days.

It is the road from Managua out to Puerto Cabezas that we expect to take the longest. It is only a distance of 301 miles, from Managua to Puerto Cabezas...but we fully expect it to take up to four days to make this segment of the trip. The road is more like a riverbed than a road really. The buses take 20 hours to make the trip. I have made the trip on numerous occasions and typically will take between 10 and 11 hours in my Tundra. It is a punishing trip. I have NEVER made the trip without SOMETHING breaking down on the truck, or a flat. So my knowledge of the road, leads me to expect the trip to take three days, but we are NOT going to be rushing it...so we think it may take as long as four days to cover that 301 miles of bad road ("bad road" doesn't really describe it though...it is more like a teeth jarring, noisy, barrage upon your vehicle).

Keep us in your prayers as we begin this journey folks, we can use the Divine Help. We are expecting to leave following the Church of God General Assembly.

Anyone wishing to come with us, let us know and we'll see if we can work it out.

Dios le bendiga grandemente a su familia y ministerio.

Casa de Servicio, International
Missionary Aviation, Medical Evacuation
Church of God, World Missions Project #: 065-0497
http://www.casadeservicio.org/

Richard & Carolyn Becton
1135 Ponderosa Dr
Cleveland, TN 37312
210 392-9574 (for dialing from the US, and for messages)
011 505 613-5824 (Our number in Nicaragua)

flight@flash.net
http://www.myspace.com/rbecton
http://www.casadeservicio.org/blog/

ADDRESS IN NICA:

Iglesia de Dios, Central
Missionero Richard Becton
Barrio: 19 de Julio
Puerto Cabezas, R.A.A.N.
Nicaragua, Central America

actions

 

Hi Folks,

 

     I have spent some time reflecting on a basic principle of life.

 

     The principle that ACTIONS speak louder than WORDS.  This is a self-evident and simplistic statement, but it is a principle which we can use to help us to model our lives after Christ's teachings, and to uplift our lives and our ministries and our families futures.  This simple, effective principle can be used as a mirror to examine what is of most value to ourselves.  When we examine the actions which we took today, and yesterday and last week...do they reflect our Christian values?

 

     Actions speak louder than words.  That means that what we act upon contains the value of our lives, and not what we profess to believe.  Actions speak louder than words...a simple statement that our modern society seems to value very little.

 

     The wisdom of our forefathers, wherever they may come from...be it Europe, or Africa, or Asia, or wherever else...is something that seems to have lost its value in our modern society.  Has humanity really become a symbol of the lowest common denominator, as it often seems these days?  Have we humans, as a whole, forgotten the hard-learned lessons of our predecessors?  Have we substituted "common knowledge" for wisdom, or commonly accepted moral precepts for biblical principles?

 

     I pray not. 

 

     Let us each strive to be discerning as the days creep forward, and let us pray that our lives are modeled after the actions of Jesus Christ.  Christ's ministry while He was on this earth was one of action, He healed, and He taught and He LOVED.  He packed a lot of action into the three and a half years of His earthly ministry...what have WE done with the last three and half years of our lives, and what are we going to do with the next three and a half?  Have our actions concurred with our words, our professed beliefs.  For many of us, that IS the case, and for some of us...there may be doubt.  I pray that all doubt be removed and that others around us may see our actions follow our beliefs, and not merely the mouthing's of platitudes, or a semblance of belief. 

 

lights... camera...

 

Dios le bendiga grandemente a su familia y ministerio.
 
Casa de Servicio, International
Missionary Aviation, Medical Evacuation
Church of God, World Missions Project #: 065-0497
http://www.casadeservicio.org
 
Richard & Carolyn Becton
1135 Ponderosa Dr
Cleveland, TN 37312
210 392-9574 (for dialing from the US, and for messages)
011 505 613-5824 (Our number in Nicaragua)

 

flight@flash.net
http://www.myspace.com/rbecton
http://www.casadeservicio.org/blog/

 

ADDRESS IN NICA:

 

Iglesia de Dios, Central
Missionero Richard Becton
Barrio: 19 de Julio
Puerto Cabezas, R.A.A.N.
Nicaragua, Central America

 

 

ChristWalk recap

www.casadeservico.org/blog


Hi Folks,

I am taking a second of your time to express our gratitude for the hard work that the ChristWalk Church Team displayed during their very successful "Vision Team" clinic, during the week of June 25th.


Puertano's (residents of Puerto Cabezas) were treated to a standard of care and service that is NEVER seen here on the Atlantic Coast. Dr (and Pastor) Jim's team were thoroughly professional, and caring beyond belief in the manner in which they interacted with my precious Miskito people. The smiles on peoples faces were the only payment received by Pastor Jim's wonderful team!

Despite the hard work which the team endured, they STILL found time to minister to the Spiritual needs of our little community as well.

On Thursday night, the entire team was able to attend services and speak to the host church, The Iglesia de Dios Central, with Pastor Adrian Lacaya. One by one, the team stood up and explained why they felt called to serve our Miskito brethren. As each of the six took their turn, we received a different insight into the call of the missionary heart.

On Saturday, Pastor Javardo Jones preached a sermon at the San Judas Iglesia de Dios which was right on target. I had several people come up to me the next day to remark upon how needed that message was. Pastor Jim Chamberlain was able to get a few words in at the end of the night and impressed everyone with his testimony of how a "little Kentucky boy from nowhere" was blessed by God to become not only a Doctor, but a Pastor too. His testimony clearly hit the mark with our brothers at the church.

On Sunday the entire team was able to make it to the Iglesia de Dios, Nuevo Jerusalen for a morning of prayer and preaching. Pastor Javardo Jones once again filled our minds and hearts with Spiritual food. The altar call brought EVERY SINGLE PERSON in attendance forward to be ministered to. What an astounding service. I wish each of you could have been there. The Sunday evening service was conducted by both Pastor Jones, and Pastor Chamberlain at the Iglesia de Dios Central. They really work well together, their friendship is evident in their partnership in ministry.

During the clinic, as each person passed from the last phase of the site they passed into the more than capable hands of Pastor Javardo Jones...who prayed, loudly and faithfully, and with the expectation of answers...for each and every person the clinic saw on Saturday. What an awesome experience that was! We were busy taking care of patients, but the occasional shout of JOY, could be heard throughout the day. What a powerful tool of ministry that was!

Even though the team was working long hours, they found time to conduct an interview with the Nuevo Diario newspaper (the link: http://impreso.elnuevodiario.com.ni/2008/07/02/departamentales/79875 ), be interviewed on Channel 5 television and conduct an entire 40 minutes of radio sermon...all of THIS, on top of the clinic, and the preaching in various churches.

The team left Puerto, tired, and happy on Monday morning. Praise God that they came, and our prayers will see them safely return to Puerto Cabezas in October.


Dios le bendiga grandemente a su familia y ministerio.

Casa de Servicio, International
Missionary Aviation, Medical Evacuation
Church of God, World Missions Project #: 065-0497
http://www.casadeservicio.org

Richard & Carolyn Becton
1135 Ponderosa Dr
Cleveland, TN 37312
210 392-9574 (for dialing from the US, and for messages)
011 505 613-5824 (Our number in Nicaragua)

flight@flash.net
http://www.myspace.com/rbecton
http://www.casadeservicio.org/blog/

ADDRESS IN NICA:

Iglesia de Dios, Central
Missionero Richard Becton
Barrio: 19 de Julio
Puerto Cabezas, R.A.A.N.
Nicaragua, Central America

Puerto Cabezas

www.casadeservicio.org/blog

 

Hi Folks,

 

     There has always been a certain "flavor" to this town...Puerto Cabezas, Nicaragua.

 

     It is a flavor of the Caribbean, crossed with a touch of desperation, and lightly influenced by tinges of violence, and aggressiveness.  Throughout the whole "stew" that IS Puerto Cabezas, the overriding "flavor" that is most evident throughout every action of the day is: Prayer.

 

     The people here love to pray.  We pray with expectation, we pray with true faith, and we pray knowing that the most important thing is God's Holy Will. 

 

We pray FOR things here in Puerto Cabezas: food, shelter, the rain to stop...natural things.  It would be a rare occurrence for someone here to pray for a new car, or a better house, or a raise in income.  Sometimes, God sends an angel to answer our prayers.

 

We pray ABOUT things here in Puerto Cabezas too: sickness, and addictions, and infirmities of the body and of the mind.  We pray about our neighbors, and our families, and our loved ones and about life's aches and pains, as well as the more dire circumstances which life sometimes sends our way.  Sometimes, God sends an angel to answer our prayers.

 

We pray BECAUSE of things here in Puerto Cabezas also: deaths, accidents, wayward children and tremendous grievances that hurt us to the depths of our being. Time heals these wounds, but our lives are changed forever because of them, and through it all, our faith persists.  Sometimes, God sends an angel to answer our prayers.

 

The flavor of Puerto Cabezas changes with the seasons.  In the Eden-like climate of December and January and February we are light-hearted, and full of joy, and life.  Then March, April, May and June are tinged with regret and a sense of anticipation of impending gloom.  The rains come. 

 

Oh how we pray.  The rainy period is an intense period of time here.  People's natural aggressiveness seems to be at a peak, and it is not uncommon to see fights on every other corner as the dusk approaches.  The rain is cold, and in a way, maddening.  Trickling creeks are swollen beyond their natural borders, overflowing into the pock-marked streets, creating ruts a foot or more deep, in the streets, and in the fabric of our lives.  We come to respect the power of water, as it invades our lives and flows and seeps into every corner of our existence.  Water is in everything! 

 

     Together, in whole...we realize that water is simply a natural thing, and that although it seems to flow and surge into every corner of our lives, it really has its barriers.  There are things which can stop water, sandbags, and walls, and curbs.  There are things which can direct water, levees, dams, and hills.  There are things which can stop water, bridges and wells, and concrete barriers.  It is tempting to think of prayer as water, powerful, and able to penetrate into deep places...yet we realize that although prayer is LIKE water, it is really SO MUCH MORE than mere water.  It is really LIVING WATER.

 

     We understand to the depths of our souls, here in Puerto Cabezas, what the New Testament speaks of in John Chapter 4:

 

John 4:9
Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans.
 
John 4:10
Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.
 
John 4:11
The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water?
 
John 4:12
Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle?
 
John 4:13
Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again:
 
John 4:14
But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.

 

Dios le bendiga grandemente a su familia y ministerio.
 
Casa de Servicio, International
Missionary Aviation, Medical Evacuation
Church of God, World Missions Project #: 065-0497
http://www.casadeservicio.org
 
Richard & Carolyn Becton
1135 Ponderosa Dr
Cleveland, TN 37312
210 392-9574 (for dialing from the US, and for messages)
011 505 613-5824 (Our number in Nicaragua)

 

flight@flash.net
http://www.myspace.com/rbecton
http://www.casadeservicio.org/blog/

 

ADDRESS IN NICA:

 

Iglesia de Dios, Central
Missionero Richard Becton
Barrio: 19 de Julio
Puerto Cabezas, R.A.A.N.
Nicaragua, Central America