516NOW began in 2010 when John Barrett, David Rhodes and another gentleman took an exploratory trip to Nicaragua. The group met Jaime Blandon – an old contact David had worked with in prior years while serving at another church. In previous years David’s church had worked with Jaime to build 10 buildings for churches in communities around Condega, Nicaragua. As they toured those buildings, they noticed that several other churches were closed or had dwindled dramatically in numbers. God was clearly telling us we needed to do something beyond simply building church buildings, yet in neighboring Palacagüina a local church was meeting in a rented home. The church was out of space and facing an uncertain future with their landlord who were attempting to sell the building. It was also clear that they needed help.

The following summer, John and David led a Milestones Church group to Palacagüina. During that trip major progress was made on the construction of a new church building, a dental clinic was conducted, local pastors were trained, and a children’s program was conducted. This multi-pronged effort was the first indication of the broad-based ministry that was to become the foundation for 516NOW.

In early 2011 John, David and Scott Votey met with community leaders (see our MISSION and VISION for details on this). They spoke with the mayor, superintendent of schools, chief of police, and director of the medical clinic. In those meetings, the group stated that they believed in Jesus Christ and, while they wanted to help the community, the core intent was to share the gospel message. All welcomed the offer of service. The mayor, for example, showed a list of 100 goals she had for the community and invited help with any or all of them. The trip opened the eyes of the Spartanburg church team to the huge needs and the incredible opportunities for ministry in this new place.

In a layover in the Atlanta airport, David, John and Scott were discussing the opportunity that God was laying out. Each noted that core ideas expressed in the book When Helping Hurts were confirmed by the recent trips to Nicaragua. They agreed that Matthew 5:16 (Let your light so shine before men that they see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.) perfectly described what they wanted to do. A sense of urgency was also evident, so the new organization was named 516NOW.

Up to this point, this sounds like another non-profit working in a third-world country. The amazing thing that God has shown us is that there is synergy in operating under a single banner. As we have continued our work in Palacaguina we have seen the community – not us – gravitate to the 516NOW name and concept.
• A box of 516NOW t-shirts was stolen in 2012 and the shirts started showing up all over Palacagüina (Genesis 50:20 You intended to harm, but God intended it for good).
• The clinic painted the 516NOW logo on the side of the building and the local baseball team (former national champions) had the 516NOW logo put on their jerseys and it will soon be painted on the baseball stadium. (Psalm 64:9 All people will fear; they will proclaim to works of God and ponder what He has done)
• Outside organizations visiting Palacagüina (World Race Teams, churches from Nebraska & Canada, and college student groups) all operate under the 516NOW name. (Psalm 20:5 … we lift up our banners in the name of our God)
• In the summer of 2013 a 516NOW mission team was welcomed to the city by a parade through the center of town. (Psalm 84:11 … the Lord bestows favor and honor…)

The mission of 516NOW continues to develop based on those core ideas birthed in the Atlanta airport in 2011. We believe that the pattern of development that is being implemented in Palacaguina is vital, sustainable, and transferable to other communities within Nicaragua and around the globe. While 516NOW is still in its infancy, we believe future possibilities are as wide as the needs of the world and as unlimited as the grace and faithfulness of God.

Operating Philosophy

Our Operating Philosophy has four primary aspects:

Holy:

The word, “holy” signifies something that is set apart –especially something set aside for God. 516NOW has done, and will continue to do, many humanitarian activities but our aim is more holistic than simply giving aid or helping provide for temporal needs. We seek to so lift up the name and work of Jesus so that the entire community is touched by the redemptive power of Christ. We will work towards the goal of more and more people identifying as followers of Christ and the community progressively resembling the character of Christ even among people who have not yet chosen to follow Him.

Prosperous:

A prosperous community is one where basic needs are routinely met. Those needs include but may not be limited to: adequate housing, competent health care, adequate nutrition, appropriate clothing, competent education, basic freedoms, reasonable opportunity, adequate emplment, self-sustaining income and reasonable security. While it is our desire that every person enjoy a relationship with Christ we maintain that all persons, whatever their religious beliefs, have been created by God in His image and providing adequately for their needs is the will of our Father in heaven. 516NOW will invest in projects promoting this kind of prosperity without demanding any specific religious response, believing such work in and of itself glorifies our Father in Heaven.

Sustainable:

A community must develop internal capabilities and competencies to support itself. Any person or community dependent upon outsiders for financial or other support will always operate under a yoke of poverty. 516 NOW actively seeks to identify, engage, and support sustainable initiatives so that communities can operate independently and successfully on their own. Our city missionaries understand that they are in a temporary position, and are continually identifying community resources to develop so that their ultimate departure from the community will not disrupt or slow the community’s progress in becoming more holy and prosperous.

Communities:

While 516NOW is a religious organization that always seeks to partner with Christ-centered churches, our focus is broader than any church. Although we will always seek to partner with a church or churches, it is not our intent to confine ourselves to work with or for churches. Our goal in whatever context we minister is to bring blessing to the entire community. We seek to do good works in the name of Jesus so that everyone will be drawn towards giving glory to God.

Guiding Principles

We have nine Guiding Principles:

Partners, not Recipients

We view nationals in each area as partners in our endeavors, not merely recipients. While we reserve the right to direct our energies and resources as we believe God directs, we enter each ministry field as servants – not dictators. We seek, and highly value, the perspectives and direction of the people in each community where we minister.

Community Ownership

Once a project is completed, we seek to quickly relinquish control and ownership to responsible persons or organizations in the community.

Orchestration

We make the work of others matter more. We identify others who have already developed valuable skills, knowledge and competencies and introduce them to communities with great need. Often, these individuals and organizations are like individual musicians that are glorifying God, but when brought together with others playing different instruments, the result is a symphony that could not otherwise be played.

Self-sustaining

We give priority to projects that are self-sustaining. While we are certainly willing to offer temporary assistance in areas of dire need, we always seek to minister to people in ways that empower them to meet their own future needs rather than cultivate an environment of perpetual dependency.

No Strings Attached

While we desire everyone to have a relationship with Christ, we guard against offering help in ways that would encourage superficial or constrained faith commitments.

Unapologetic Faith

While we purposely refrain from offering temporal inducements for faith commitments, our personal commitment to Christ is public and unapologetic. We will not participate in projects that demand or constrain us to deny or hide our faith.

Stewardship

We seek to be good stewards of any assets entrusted to us and generally give precedence to those activities that will bring the most significant return on investment for the communities we serve.

Credit to God

We acknowledge that every good and perfect gift comes from God and seek to give Him the glory for anything we accomplish. This does not mean we refuse to give credit to whom credit is due, but our mindset in each endeavor will be to deflect praise and honor towards our Heavenly Father.

Responsibility

We accept the responsibility that being a faith-based organization implies. We expect persons associated with our ministry to conduct themselves within biblical parameters of integrity, ethical conduct, moral responsibility, and spiritual faithfulness. While we always seek to function in an atmosphere of grace and restoration, personnel accept that certain behaviors or attitudes may disqualify them from service.