This year marked the planting of the first Baptist Church (and first evangelical church) among the Ethnolinguistic Mayangna people of Nicaragua. The church as been planted in the central Mayangna village of Musuwas. Musuwas is surrounded by 15 smaller villages. The villages can only be reached by a seven-hour hike from Bonanza (small mining town) through the rain forest. The Palmers have led four mission trips into the Mayangna area over the last two years; a survey team, a medical/dental team, an evangelism team, and a discipleship team. Thirty-five baptized believers are meeting regularly. A young Mayangna schoolteacher is leading the group as a lay pastor. A national missionary couple Joton and Josafina Lopez, living in Rosita are help target the Mayangna people. Dan and Amanda Titus, long-term volunteers are providing logistical support for this regional and have been instrumental in starting this new work. The Mayangna people are a traditional Amerindian people (about 15,000) who live as subsistence farmers in small villages of the upper rain forest of Nicaragua and Honduras. Most villages are inaccessible by vehicle. The Mayangna people live in close family units in small autonomous villages. Each village has a leader who serves to settle differences. There is little sense of personal property and land is not owned or sold. Families plant common field crops of rice, beans, and yucca and gather native grown bananas and plantains. There are government schools in larger villages and Spanish is taught after the third grade. Because of economic hardships, many children do not attend school. Health care is limited or non-existent in most villages. Infant mortality is one of the highest in Central America and life expectancy one of the lowest. The Mayangna were originally animistic in their religious practices. In spite of several centuries of exposure to Christianity, many people have retained their animistic practices. Village shamans serve as healers, diviners, and exorcists. The Moravian church has influenced the Miskito culture for the last 100 years, but their religious practices have resulted in a syncretistic Cristo-animism with emphasis on work salvation. There are no other evangelical churches in this area. Pray for this small group of Mayangna believers that their faith will remain strong and they will be a witness Christ among there people. Pray for Joton ad Josafina Lopez, national missionaries as they disciple and led these new believers and other new congregations in the area of the Mines. Pray for Dan and Amanda Titus, long term volunteers as they provide logistical support for the work in the areas of the Mines.  Pray for Jim and Viola as the direct the church planting efforts among the ethnolinguistic people of Nicaragua and Honduras.  

In Nicaragua, Miskito families earn less than $200 a year, growing beans and rice. Trading beans and rice for shoes, clothes and tools is the only way people are able to get supplies.  A family health problem during the year can cause a severe financial crisis. Traditionally, Miskito people have sold their animals to meet these sudden needs. Owning a cow or pig is like having a small bank account for family emergencies. Unfortunately, many Miskito pastors do not have animals to sell, leaving them helpless to respond in critical situations.  

Thanks to Texas Baptist boys, Miskito pastors have received an improved breeding pig. In 2004, Royal Ambassadors all across Texas earned money by cutting grass, raking leaves and washing cars. Monies collected helped fund the Pigs for Pastors project in Nicaragua. Good quality pigs were purchase by the Seeds of Hope Project. The piglets bred and raised on the experimental farm in Puerto Cabezas will improve the quality of all pigs in the communities. Now pastors have can have their own personal “piggy bank” Thanks to Royal Ambassador Boys and Christ’s love the Miskito people can have eternal hope. 

Give thanks for the boys who sacrificed so Miskito pastors might receive a blessing. Pray for the pastors as they face difficult time. Pray that the Lord will protect and provide for their families.Pray for the pigs, that they will multiply and provide security and income for many families. 

Studies of church growth movements has recorded that entire villages or communities have experienced group conversion. While we have experienced tremendous evangelistic growth among the Miskito people we had not seen any village conversions until this year. We have just experienced three village conversions.  Earlier in the year a group of our pastors visited the village of Shiram and baptized 30 people one day. Returning to the village, several months later we found several new believers and baptized four whole families, including the village chief and his family. The believers are meeting in a school.  They hope to build a church building soon. The entire village is coming to know Christ in Santa Rosa, a village of about 12 families, 23 people were baptized. In the tiny village of El Black, near Rosita, we have 18 new believers waiting for baptism.  The Spirit of the Lord is doing an incredible work among the Miskito people.

Pray for these three villages, Shiram, Santa Rosa, and El Black. Pray for the new believers and the impact that the Lord will have on the families in these villages.

Next week a team will be coming and will use the lumber cut to help the local congregation build a church in the village of Shi.  This village had a total conversion experience where all members of the village got saved.

Thank you,

Jeremy Palmer