Wednesday, December 19, 2007

Deployment Notification

Prayer & Financial Partner Communication

To: You
From: Partnership Ministries
Subject: Deployment Notification – Rick Myers
Date: 12/18/2007 19:50 PM
cc: The planet

Beginning 05:30 Wednesday December 26, 2007 deployment of Richard (aka Rick) Myers will commence at Main Street Baptist Church’s Big House (aka MSBCBH). Rick will rendezvous with fully trained and equipped squadron of 17 for departure to LGA airport enroute to Managua Nicaragua. ETD from LGA will be approximately 1:00 PM EST via American Airlines flight 637. No pending snowstorms in forecasts to date… repeat… no pending snowstorms in forecasts. Team is taking precautions however due to prior harrowing experiences by leaving said MSBCBG slightly earlier than necessary, but according to regional team leader KZ (aka kzyouthguy), “better to wait in Miami than to repeat Operation Interstate Monster Storm” of February 2007. Anticipated layover in MIA airport is approximately 95 minutes – maybe enough time to call home, freshen up and grab the last American fast food for 12 days. Departure flight from MIA to MGA is American Airlines flight 985 which is scheduled for 5:55 PM EST.

Squadron will arrive in MGA at approximately 7:30 CST and meet up with Nicaraguan National Church Planting Commander Rigoberto Reyes (aka NNCPCRR) and Partnership Ministries Team Leader Mike Najjar (aka PMTLMN) to embark on short expedition via rented fifteen passenger vans (aka RFPV’s) to barracks for one night’s stay in town of Masaya, Nicaragua, approximately 17 miles, or 27.24 kilometers or if we had to go by boat, 14.82 nautical miles. Some secrecy is present about the location of said barracks for the evening. We have been informed by NNCPCRR and PMTLMN that the housing known now as unknown sleeping quarters in Masaya (aka USQM) will be suitable for one night’s stay and that there may even be electricity and running water. The Center of Disease Control and local officials have warned that the squadron will want to rely on your personal fresh bottled water supply (aka PFBWS) and please be advised…DO NOT… repeat DO NOT drink or brush your teeth with local water out of faucets!

Day 2 – Thursday December 27, at 07:00 local time, the squadron will assemble for morning devotions led by PMTLMN, followed by breakfast mess that will be cleaned up by 08:00. Departure from USQM will be approximately 08:15 via said RFPV’s to El Pochote, location of a strategic church planting location just northwest of Masaya. Squadron will arrive and immediately greet all hermanos and hermanas with the traditional Bendecidos and await further instructions form either NNCPCRR or PMTLMN. Once the lay of the land is established and initial greeting formalities are completed, squadron will disperse and begin work as required. Rome was not built in a day, but a local church in El Pochote can be built in a week with teamwork! At approximately 12:00 full team of all on site will assemble for our first community meal which will be followed by a testimony of either local Nicaraguan or one of the squadron from Oneonta. Said testimony presentations will be determined by either NNCPCRR or PMTLMN or as we will be instructed with a change of command, said determination may be under the command of Rick… for more details, read on.

Daily Routines – Day 2 – 9. Squadron will be under the direction of NNCPCRR or PMTLMN until Day 6 when the change of command will be transferred from PMTLMN to Rick. As described in previous communiqués, PMTLMN and his wife Lesly are expecting their baby boy, Jeremy while we are on assignment in Nicaragua. Big Mahoff Team Leader and Founder of Partnership Ministries Steve Reed (aka BMTLFPMSR) from his command post in Sacramento California, USA had determined the best time to transfer duties from PMTLMN to the greenhorn Rick. This will be Rick’s first assignment since being appointed East Coast Team Leader with Partnership Ministries. Prayers directed towards Rick and the squadron at this time of transition is greatly appreciated. So, on Day 5 the squadron will dismiss PMTLMN for his home base in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. Our best wishes to he and Lesly and God’s blessings for their special day! Welcome baby Jeremy! During the week, the squadron will work onsite and share breakfast and lunch mess with local brothers and sisters gathered. Evenings will mostly be spent back at undisclosed USQM with time for small team discussions and reflections as well as R&R (aka rest and relaxation).

Special Note about new duties for Rick – aside from tracking finances for the remainder of the trip, Rick with the aid of kzyouthguy and NNCPCRR will act as site leader for the squadron. Rick will lead daily devotions as well as recruit others to share at breakfast devotions as well as to encourage individuals within the squadron to prepare and share their testimonies. Plans are in place to recruit Rick’s daughter, Lauren to act as his translator when his personal language skills are lacking, which, from scouting reports indicate, will most likely include the remainder of this phase of his deployment!

Day 10 and 11 – Free Days. Although still in planning stages, there is discussion about canopy tours near Vulcan Mombacho just outside of Masaya. The members of this squadron that served in the April 2007 tour are aware of the joys that await them. Time is also allowed for some inner reflection and group sessions to review the impact of the present deployment and how said tour might influence future behaviors.

Day 12 – January 6, 2007 - Departure for Home Base. NNCPCRR and Rick will commandeer the RFPV’s and depart for airport MGA to drop the squadron in time for their departure at approximately 13:30 CST upon American Airlines flight 970. Squadron will arrive on US soil at airport MIA at approximately 17:00 EST and will layover approximately 2 hours… enough time to call home, freshen up and grab the first American fast food in 12 days. American Airlines flight 1876 departs at 19:00 from MIA enroute to LGA which arrives at 22:00 EST. The squadron once through customs and immigration will board Main Street Baptist Church Deployed Mini Vans (aka MSBCMV’s) for a moonlit ride out of the metropolitan NYC region and northbound through the western fringes of the Catskill Mountain Forest Preserve via the Roscoe – Downsville – Walton – Franklin route to their final destination – Oneonta NY… approximately 02:30 AM EST. Cellular devices will be used to communicate ETA for rendezvous with Personal Family Mini Vans (aka PFMV’s) to finals home destinations.

Deployment Phases 2 & 3 – Rick Myers. After squadron is safely released into the hands of kzyouthguy at MGA, Rick will depart with MSBCBH to be released into the tutelage of the School Xpress Language School in Granada (their website is http://nicaspanishschool.com/), where he will spend the next 5 weeks in one to one instruction – 5 hours per day, 5 days per week. At his initial appointment, comments made by BMTLFPMSR included praises for Rick’s abilities to recruit and lead church building teams in Central America but his one fault (OK, he has others, but stay with me!) was that he was unable to communicate effectively with the locals in the native language. This initial tour of duty with School Xpress will begin the process of language acquisition which will be fortified by his continued exposure to the Spanish speaking population. Prayers for this phase of Rick’s deployment are requested – not only for Rick but for Lee Ann his wife who will be stateside for the reminder of his tour. It is said that Rick will have internet access and will be able to update a blog site dedicated to publishing updates of these upcoming tours of duty… stay tuned at http://missionink.blogspot.com/.

February 14, 2008. After 5 weeks of intensive language training, Rick will depart Granada to rendezvous with NNCPCRR to meet up with the second squadron from MSBC – this time 25 fully trained and equipped individuals will report for duty – their departure from MSBCBH slated for February 14, 2007 is still in the planning stages, but be sure of this – it will be early as the desire to avoid another Operation Interstate Monster Storm remains in effect. All communiqués will come from kzyouthguy. Destination this time is back to Bluefields to begin construction on an education wing onto the existing church building that was built by the February and April tours last year.

With PMTLMN, Lesly and Jeremy basking in their first days and weeks of family life together, Rick will again assume a leadership role for this tour as well. By Day 6 or 7, PMTLMN will join our squadron and finish out the week long construction project in Bluefields and to stay with us on our free days and help us get back to the airport to depart for home on February 25th.
So, how can you help the ongoing efforts? Your prayers for the many facets and phases of these operations are well deserved targets! From planning to execution, there will be a lot of opportunities for God’s wisdom and grace to intervene!

Thanks! For those of you that have already expressed the desire to support our ministry financially, we thank you and want to let you know we cannot do this alone… your interest and involvement in our day to day ministry is humbling to us… and for that we will be forever grateful! We still hover just over the 20% level of total financial support, so we welcome any new partners to the family! If you wish to begin supporting us financially, there are a couple ways to designate funds… if you wish to give a one time gift, can we direct to you donate towards Rick’s language school account which is Rick & Lee Ann Myers # 558U.
If you wish to make an ongoing pledge to our ministry, our names are our account number – you can do so by going online to www.missionsdoor.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=section&id=8&itemid=30 or by sending your contribution directly to the address below:
Please remember in order to get credit on your 2007 taxes that you must have these contributions postmarked by December 31, 2007.
Missions Door
Attention: Barbara Harrison
2530 Washington Street
Denver, CO 80205-3142

We thank you and ask for God’s blessings on your lives. We serve an awesome God!
Peace,
Rick & Lee Ann

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