¿¿Quién vive?? ¡¡Cristo!!
Y a su nombre… ¡¡Gloria!!
Y a sus hijos… ¡¡Gloria!!
Who lives?? Jesus Christ!!
To his name… Glory!!
To his children… Glory!!
The above phrases are commonly shouted throughout services and sermons in Evangelical (Protestant) churches throughout Nicaragua. The worship leader in my church often uses these phrases to transition between songs, or as he is waiting for someone to approach the front of the church to give a testimony. He joyfully shouts the first part of the phrase and the congregation responds.
My church here is called Hermanos en Cristo (literally Brethren in Christ) and is about three blocks from my house. The service starts at 10:30 (I think?) but I usually arrive around 10:45. The service starts with a few songs led by our enthusiastic worship leader.
El hermano that leads us in worship
Then el hermano (that’s what you call your fellow brothers in Christ, or hermana for a sister in Christ. This custom comes in handy when you forget someone’s name!) opens up the altar for any brothers or sisters who want to sing or give a testimony. At this time of the service, anyone can go forward and share.
What I love about being here is that no one is afraid to sing, even if they have a terrible voice, and they can forget the words and stop and start over again and it doesn’t matter (this applies to all of Nicaragua in general). In my church, there is a little old man who accompanies with an electric guitar, which is really sweet, except that he plays the same chords to the same rhythm for every song, including the ones he doesn’t know. It’s kind of like listening to techno and classical, full blast, at the same time. It’s been an adjustment for me, since most churches in the states put a lot of emphasis on having good, coordinated music. I have grown to appreciate the fact that no one is made to feel inferior or superior according to their musical talents, which I think is a good thing to have in church, since it’s not about us, it’s about worship, thanking God, and giving him what we have.
I enjoy listening to testimonies (when I understand them) because the personal stories are always bent in a positive way as people talk about what God is doing in their lives.
After the especiales, we take an offering. A strict little old lady directs this part of the service, asking everyone to stand and raise their hand, with or without offering, to bless both the offering and the hearts of the people present. While she leads a song, everyone comes forward to offer their gift to God. Then… it’s my turn!
The pastor begins her sermon (yes, a female pastor!) and I take the children into a connecting room to lead Sunday school. It’s a noisy twenty to forty minutes!! The pastor raises her voice in the sanctuary and I raise mine trying to control the children. We usually sing a few songs, read a (Bible) story, and color a picture. I have the great job of telling every kid that their drawing is BEAUTIFUL even if it’s the worst thing I’ve ever seen. I love boosting other people’s self-esteem. After coloring it’s snack time!
After finishing our snack, we rejoin the adults in the sanctuary to recite our closing verses:
Jehová guardará mi salida y mi entrada desde ahora y para siempre, ¡AMEN!
Jehová guardará mi salida y mi entrada desde ahora y para siempre, ¡AMEN!
¡Todo lo puedo en Cristo que me fortalece!
(Psalm 121:8, Philippians 4:13)
Before leaving the room, everyone shakes everyone else’s hand and says ‘Dios le bendiga.’(Our church is fairly small, making this easy.) It’s a very cultural thing to greet everyone before leaving, which makes for a great way to connect with everyone in the church. I think if we did that at my home church in Maryland, we would probably all know each other a lot better by the end of one month. Maybe we can try it.
