On Mission: Masatepe, Nicaragua
The following is an article collaboration by Kyle Bedwell and Allison Smith which was first published in the Fall 2020 issue of KNOWN magazine. To see more from this issue, head over to pomh.org/known.
“We started this journey in Portland, and ended up with a farm in Nicaragua.”
When mentioning the journey Mars Hill took that led us to purchase a farm in a small town called Masatepe, Nicaragua, Mark Rudd would give a sly smile. For all intents and purposes, owning land in another country (a farm and rehabilitation center, for that matter) was not on Mars Hill’s radar when Mark started praying for new missions initiatives for Mars when he took over as Missions Pastor in 2015.
“In my first week on the job, Joe Langley handed me a folder with a few documents in it, and when I asked him what it was, he said “That’s the missions folder.” Mars Hill had always been involved with missions and supporting missionaries, but the scope had deliberately been small. “Now that the church has stability, what should we do next?” Mark sat down with Jack to discuss a few questions to help define the vision. Mark recalls some of that conversation, “What do we, as a church, consider to be mission work? What should our support for missions look like? And as a church, we landed on a few things. Mars wanted to do missions in a holistic way, no matter what, and the church wanted to respond to the actual needs of the missionaries on the ground.”
That led Mark to the McCracken’s (relatives of Mark and Dana Powell) and OneCollective operating in Portland. Mars sent two interns to Portland to live and work with the McCrackens and provide physical support to their ministry, but also to continue a ministry that Mars Hill has always been involved in, developing college students to be leaders in the church of the future. As Mark recalls, little did he know what new roads this new connection would lead us down.
OneCollective invited Mars Hill to attend its yearly gathering in West Palm Beach, Florida, to help Mars discern whether this was an organization the church wanted to partner with long term. While Mark was there he met Brandon Weedman, a missionary with a specific ministry in Masatepe, Nicaragua that would be familiar to all of us at Mars Hill... a cafe. That providential encounter would be the catalyst for everything that followed.
Mars Hill undertook a vision trip to Masatepe in February of 2016 to visit Brandon, to discern what our involvement might be with his ministry, and to get a feel for this small Latin American town. Masatepe is a quiet little town with a quiet little street lined with brightly colored houses. Banana trees and tropical flowers. Steamy, humid afternoons. Kind-hearted, hardworking people who know how to show Southern hospitality.
To hear Missions Pastor Brad Hill talk about it, Masatepe is the Latin American equivalent of Mayberry. It looks compact and tiny, but the banana fronds and lush green hills conceal many of the homes scattered throughout the jungle. There, in the hills and dales of a place not unlike our town of Mobile, the transforming power of Jesus is evident.
The laid-back vibe belies incredible suffering of one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere. Extreme poverty has only increased over the past few years because of political turmoil. Unemployment runs at almost 50%. Alcoholism has its terrible grip on the town. Life is in constant flux. This is the backdrop for the Lord’s amazing work.
In that initial trip, Mark Rudd and the vision team started reading through “When Helping Hurts” within the team and with the local Nicaraguan pastors. Whatever ministry, whatever support Mars Hill offered in Nicaragua, the church wanted it to be a healthy and organic relationship with the local body of believers. The two teams, one composed of local church leaders reading in Spanish, and another composed of the Mars Hill team reading in English, sat around a whiteboard to try and get all the ideas on the table. Brandon Weedman’s cafe was obviously on the table. That’s what originally drew Mars to this place; it was a ministry we knew and understood. Seminary training was another seemingly obvious way that Mars could help the local church, as we have been blessed to have seminary professors and highly educated teachers on staff. And yet, one of the things that the local Nicaraguan believers and pastors kept bringing up was the need for help in dealing with addiction and addiction rehabilitation. Mark recalls that time, “I can tell you, running an addiction rehabilitation center was truly the last thing on my radar for Mars Hill Cafe? Pastoral training? Yes. Addiction center? No. And the fact that it happened will tell you it had to be God, because I did everything I could to pump the brakes on that idea. God had other plans!”
Mark and the team brought back the different ideas that had been discussed while in Nicaragua and presented them to the Elders of Mars Hill. Partnering with the local church to fund and run an addiction rehabilitation center (which would require the purchase of land) seemed so far out of the realm of possibility, but after discussion with the initial Vision team, it was decided that a few of the Elders should go to Nicaragua themselves to see what that ministry might look like. “I kept trying to pump the brakes, but it seemed like God was pushing us forward.” When the elders returned, they returned with joy and refined purpose. It was determined that Mars Hill would not only partner in this new ministry, but would fund the purchase of the small farm needed for the ministry.
Today, the farm that Mars Hill purchased is functioning wonderfully as both an addiction rehabilitation center and separately as a cafe. Soon, the next group of guys will start their journey to freedom from addiction at the farm. While there, they will not only be treated for addiction, but will be taught trades to help them find stable jobs again once they graduate the program. Doctors are now on site at the farm to be able to attend to the students in a much more immediate way.
Aside from the daily benefits of the ministry to the local church, there have been countless growth benefits for our Mars Hill church body. Two of our members that went to Masatepe on previous trips have now become full-time missionaries. Many of you will know their names and their stories. As well, our ministry in Nicaragua has opened doors to bring some Nicaraguan students here to Mobile in the process. Mark recalls, “Many of us in the church met Sarita (or Sarah) from Masatepe, who Mars brought to Mobile for a time. We knew that we all couldn’t go to Masatepe, but maybe we could bring some of Masatepe to us, to put a face to our involvement and ministry in Nicaragua.”
As many of you know, Nicaragua has had its share of political unrest in the last few years, coming to a head in 2018. It was a scary time, when almost every single mission and church organization had pulled its people and ministries out of the country for safety reasons. Our Mars Hill missionaries Brandon and Hannah Weidman, along with their two little ones, left their Nicaraguan home of 8 years in 2018 when the US Embassy evacuated all citizens due to political unrest. Jacob and Sarah Magers left as well and have moved on from missions. In one fell swoop, a team of twenty Americans left Masatepe. In spite of this, local projects continue to grow and improve.
Mark recalls those days differently than most, “We knew from the beginning that we wanted our partnership to be organic, and to be directed by the needs of those working on the field day to day. We wanted the ministry to be able to thrive, even if Mars Hill could no longer send workers or logistical support. One of the ways we know God has had his providential hand on this ministry is that, during the upheaval, that is exactly what happened. The local workers and pastors took over the entire operation. They made sure the farm and cafe still functioned exactly as designed the entire time our missions and relief teams were gone.” The work of the local church body, in partnership with Mars Hill, continues today. An eclectic group of pastors is providing encouragement and direction. Brandon still makes trips from the US to support local efforts. Mars Hill continues to be invested in the growth and discipleship of believers through short term mission trips and financial support.
As a church, Mars Hill sends two teams a year to Masatepe; one of returning team members, and one of entirely new team members and volunteers. Brad Hill says this of the elders: We want to be consistent. We are invested in long term relationships. We have precious relationships with Leonel, the project manager and with Geovanny, the farm manager. Brad has enjoyed traveling to many countries, but Masatepe has a special place in his heart. “The Nicaraguan people want to work. They hunger for it. There is a pride of community and place. They have a beautiful spirit,” he says. With each trip to Masatepe, he finds new improvements to community projects, growth and a consistent desire for the Lord's redemptive work.
Are you interested in experiencing ministry for yourself? Do you wonder what happens on a short-term mission trip? Brad shares this glimpse into traveling to serve in Masatepe, “You will receive a crash course on the philosophy of missions and the One Collective empowerment-based model for community transformation. You will visit the homes of our brothers and sisters in Christ, share a cup of amazing coffee and a plate of gallo pinto with fried plantains. You will come away with a full belly and a full heart. You will get your hands dirty working together on a community project such as building chicken coops or construction. You will watch Geovanny, farm supervisor, pack up eggs to deliver to preschools. Simple things with a powerful impact. The world shrinks and the Lord is magnified. “
How can we pray for this beautiful community? Brad Hill states the number one priority is for the health and safety of the people. Our brothers and sisters in Christ have been through trial after trial. The rioting and political instability this past year have been economically crushing and life is insecure. As of now, Covid-19 has not reached the pandemic proportions in Nicaragua that we are experiencing in the USA. If it should get worse, there are not many available ventilators and the Nicaraguan response has been haphazard at best.
Pray that the Lord would raise up people from within our congregations to go. Currently there is a need for a business-minded person who are willing to live locally and help launch sustainable initiatives. Don Beto (the namesake of Beto’s Bistro) handcrafts beautiful leather goods. Locally grown coffee could be exported. Another need is for an onsite short term teams coordinator. Wouldn’t it be a wonderful thing to show our commitment to this work by sending one of our own?
Pray that the pastors would stay committed and faithful to the work. Pray for Leonel, the project manager. Currently Beto’s Bistro is closed, and the workers are furloughed because of the virus. The first cohort of men have started the difficult path to addiction recovery at Luke’s Inn. Pray for the rehab and farm’s financial needs. They are close to becoming self-sustaining.
3 Pillar Resources
Gospel Community: Talk to our staff, elders, and members who have gone to Masatepe to serve. Hear their stories and engage personally in how God is working there. Stay connected with the ongoing work of OneCollective by subscribing to their newsletter. Go to their website (onecollective.org) and scroll to the bottom to sign-up on their email list.
Intentional Discipleship: Families can partner with Mars Hill in the ongoing ministry in Masatepe in several ways. Most importantly, through prayer. Children at any age can pray for the people in Nicaragua. Together, learn more about Nicaragua as a country and as a culture. Enjoy a classic Latin American meal together and talk about ways your family can serve those around the world, even if at home.
Biblical Teaching: Missions Pastor Brad Hill recommends these following Christian resources when prayerfully considering your role in mission work.
When Helping Hurts, Steve Corbett and Brian Fikkert (book)
In Light of Eternity, Frances Chan (video, RightNow Media)
Helping Without Hurting in Short Term Missions, Brian Fikkert (video, RightNow Media)
The Biblical Basis for Missions (video, RightNow Media
Marks of a Healthy Church, Mark Dever (video, RightNow Media)
Work is a Mission Field (video, RightNow Media)
Let the Nations be Glad, John Piper (book)