What We Do

Enruta’s work has two parts, both of which work in tandem and interwoven, toward one common goal.

Part one is our “Communities for Christ” strategy, which is carried out on a regional basis in close partnership with the local churches, through the pastors and other church leaders. It is aimed at resourcing and empowering communities and individuals who are seeking truth, so they can encounter God through the Gospel and be reconciled with Him, first and foremost, and then proceed in Him to mend their broken relationships with themselves, each other, and all of creation... all the broken relationships that are at the root of poverty (based on "Walking with the Poor" by Bryant Myers).

Part two is helping Nicaraguan entrepreneurs develop Businesses-as-Missions to provide jobs, goods and services, and economic growth to their communities in a way that makes Christ and the Gospel the focus, not only conducting business in a way that reflects their faith, but also deliberately making their work an active, dynamic conduit for Christ and His Gospel of grace.

The goal in both parts is to grow God’s Kingdom by developing godly local leaders who will lead effective, long-term, sustainable improvement--spiritually, economically, and socially--in their communities and beyond. Our approach is relationship-based, local-church-led, and designed to avoid creating dependency, working to empower and equip the people to accomplish their God-given goals and glorify God.


Since Enruta’s formation five years ago, Communities for Christ has grown to encompass five different regions of the country, with 200 local churches participating in total.

Some critical features of the “Community for Christ” program

  •  Led by the Holy Spirit. God is at work long before we get there, and we join Him in His work.
  • Initiated by the local church leaders. We go when and where we are invited.
  • Context is relationships.
  • With respect and equality
  • We start by listening, observing, getting to know each region.
  • Phase I begins with “Let’s talk about what we all believe and make sure we’re all on the same page.” From there the training naturally grows out of the local leaders’ desires to learn more and grow in their faith.
  • Deepening relationships with God, each other, and our neighbors
  • Equipping and empowering the local churches to work together and be God’s agents of change, not doing the work for them
  • Care is taken to not “get in the way” between God and the local workers, nor between the local workers and the community they’ve been called to serve.

Enruta’s local-church-based "Communities for Christ” strategy consists of eight overlapping phases, customized for each region:

Phase I – Gospel Essentials Training

Phase II – Recruitment and Reorganization (incorporating more area churches who want to join to join)
Phase III – Review of Gospel Essentials
Phase IV – Evangelism Training
Phase V – Bible Distribution Days (1st step in building relationship between families and church)
Phase V, Part 2 – Youth Ministry Development (in some regions)
Phase VI – Project Philip Small Group Discipleship Program, training and implementation
Phase VII – Economic Development and continuing Leadership Development
Phase VIII – Continued support as community builds on the new foundation, spiritually, economically, and socially

Phases I through IV compose a one-year basic Bible training for the pastors and other church leaders of the region. This is the first priority in every region, because access to Bible-based teaching and discipleship is rare across Nicaragua, and many kinds of spiritual oppression--hatred, fear, pride, etc--have taken hold as a result. We are convinced there can be no lasting change if Christ is not in the driver’s seat.

Door-to-door Bible distribution (Phase V) also begins in partnership with the local churches during that first year, allowing everyone to begin to read God’s word for themselves in an easy-to-understand Spanish translation, and giving participants opportunities to practice sharing what they are learning as they build new relationships with their neighbors.

Discipleship leader training (Phase VI) begins once the group has completed the basic Bible training, further equipping participants to pass on what they have learned to others in their communities.

Leadership development is taking place all through the first six phases, but becomes more in-depth in Phase VII, and economic development, where appropriate, follows after at least a year of relationship building through the previous phases.

We all need a little support and encouragement in the Christian journey, so after the local church leadership has found its footing on the firm foundation of Christ, in the spiritual, economic, and social aspects, Enruta continues to walk alongside the group as long as needed (Phase VIII) to support and encourage them as they continue to grow.