On the way to Nicaragua

So this was my first time leaving Canada. Needless to say it was a little bit intimidating. One of my biggest fears was getting lost in the Airport, but after getting through it a few times I really love flying now, even just being in an airport is fun.

From the time we left Fort Macleod to the time we landed in Managua, Nicaragua was about 24 hours. We had three connecting flights. First was Calgary to Toronto, then Toronto to Miami, and then Miami to Managua. About 3-4 hours in between each flight. When we got to Miami I could feel the difference in humidity immediately after leaving the plane. I've heard Ontario can be humid, but I've never felt humidity like this anywhere in Canada, at any time of year. It was really an amazing experience, I guess the little things impress you when you've never traveled before.

It was dark by the time we got to Managua. The sun sets quite early in the tropics. As we were getting off the plane, I was still wearing a leather Jacket. The pilot looked at me and said "You're going to want to take that off". I didn't have a free hand so I kept it on. Halfway down the tunnel from the door of the plane I took it off. Another new experience, I had never ever felt heat like that except in a sauna back in Canada. It was DARK! and its was still HOT. Getting off the plane was like walking into a sauna. So hot, so humid. We stopped to fill out the immigration papers which only took a minute or two then carried on to collect our baggage. We entered the baggage area and got hit with yet another heat wave. It was even hotter in this part of the airport, somehow. After we had our bags we went to customs. Guess what, another heat wave. Hotter still. Finally we had everything, none of our bags had gone missing and security determined we were not a threat to national security. A local brother, who was a relative of the sister we spoke to in Canada was outside waiting for us and we could see him through the doors. The moment the doors opened to the outside... Somebody opened the oven. I hadn't realized this, but the ENTIRE airport is Air conditioned. We were in a "cold place" the whole time.

Javier (the local brother) met us outside and took us to his truck. He told us the back seat was full, so we would have to ride in the back. Being a city boy, I did not understand this sentence. We rode with our bags in the bed his pickup truck. It was a lot of fun, I've never gotten tired of doing this. I was really nervous though, assuming that riding in such a way MUST be illegal, at least in the capital city. I got more nervous when I saw the police coming up behind us as we were driving out of Managua. My fears subsided when they passed us and I saw three officers riding in the back of the police truck who didn't even seem to notice us.

Javier took us to the food court at a mall in Managua for our first taste of Nicaraguan food, and then to La Concepccion (Known as La Concha to locals), in the mountains to the south of Managua where we would be staying for the next month and a half. Thankfully it was a bit cooler there.

Step over into Macedonia

Sometime in the fall of 2011 A friend and I decided we would go to Nicaragua in order to serve where the need is greater. There had been a lot of encouragement for ones to consider moving some place that had need for more publishers, in particular I remember one kingdom ministry article titled "Can you step over into Macedonia?".  Here is a clipping of that article, I strongly recommend reading the entire article.

About the year 49 C.E., the apostle Paul left Syrian Antioch for his second missionary trip. His intention was to visit Ephesus and other cities in Asia Minor. However, he received a spirit-directed invitation to “step over into Macedonia” instead. He and his companions gladly accepted, and they were privileged to establish the first congregation in that region. (Acts 16:9, 10; 17:1, 2, 4) Today, some parts of the worldwide field have a real need for more harvest workers. (Matt. 9:37, 38) Are you in a position to help?

In my mind I was already serving where the need was greater, I was in a Blackfoot language group, and at the time that article was studied at the meeting I was with a group on their way to northern Saskatchewan to witness to the isolated reservations up there. The trip was quite a success, but upon returning to my home congregation in Fort Macleod, the two weeks we spent up north seemed way too short.

Sandy Beach, SK, Canada

My idea was to move to somewhere in the northern regions of Canada, where congregations are few and territories are massive. Unfortunately this did not pan out, the door was not open so to speak. Later on however, A sister who had joined the Blackfoot group was telling us in service about her home country, Nicaragua. How the territory is extremely receptive to the preaching work, and how affordable it is to live there. I was shocked to learn that even at minimum wage in Canada, one can easily save up enough to live in Nicaragua for long periods of time without working.

At the time I didn't have a job, nothing was available in our small town that would allow me to move out of my parents house and continue pioneering. However, I was able to get a job at a restaurant that paid enough to save up for a trip to Nicaragua, which I did. A brother in our hall was visiting from Japan, and his visa was about to run out, so he had planned on moving back to Latin America where he had first learned the truth. (His life story is quite interesting, I wouldn't be surprised if it showed up in the Watchtower one of these days).

This time the door was open. After much prayer and a little planning everything fell into place smoothly. At the end of February, we were on our way to the Calgary Airport.

Hello

Hello, my name is Matthew Swindells and some family and friends have suggested that I make a blog to keep a record of my experiences serving where the need is greater, and to keep in touch with people back in Canada. Early in 2012, from February to July I was in Nicaragua which is in Central America. I'll start by posting past experiences from that trip in chronological order. Right now I'm in Fort Macleod, Alberta, Canada. On April 23 I will be moving to Mexico to serve in the English field.