Wow. Where did the days go? It is Friday and we must start our journey home. Although tired from a very busy week; it was such a blessing to reflect on how the Lord had made all the activities possible (daily rains did not interfere with the competition of the church addition, children’s ministry nor any of the planned nightly outreach revivals). It was truly amazing what the Lord accomplished through us in one short week.
We had an early start with breakfast, bid our goodbyes to the staff and loaded in the van in route to San Jose. Tanya led devotion on Friday. We enjoyed each others company and beautiful countryside as we journeyed along a very bumpy (mostly unpaved) road, leading to Jaco. The travel scrabble was a popular game along the way. In Jaco we stopped at one of the many canopy tours in Costa Rica.
In general the team enjoyed zip-lining through the rain forest. After the tour, we stopped for lunch and then continued on the journey to San Jose. Paved road was a welcome change. Along the way we encountered delays as traffic at times came to a total stop. Earlier mudslides had blocked sections of the road and travel was reduced in places to one lane (for both directions).
Realizing that we were going to be delayed in getting the city, our driver was able to call ahead and make arrangements for one of the stores to stay open later (allowing us to pick up souvenirs for our supporters). After shopping, we checked into our hotel, had dinner at the local Denny’s and retired for the night.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Thursday
Today was a great day. Alice led our morning devotion. She encouraged the team to trust in God. We then left for the church. The construction work was complete. The children’s ministry was complete. We only had one small wall to paint on the church exterior. We were hoping to travel to one of the areas where the 2007 team had ministered. We soon were faced with a change in plans, which required our team to be flexible. When we arrived at the church, we were told that they had reconsidered and wanted to paint the inside of the church also. We all go busy. It was awesome to see everyone work together painting with rollers, brushes, taping and cleaning to get the job done.
After painting, we left to visit our friends from last year’s trip. This school was one of our favorites. The school was closed. We drove down to where Shirley lived. She is the lady who received a wheelchair earlier this year when the first team came down. Shirley and her family were not home. We did see that a wheelchair ramp had been completed. We also wanted to visit a young girl who had won over our hearts last year. We found her house, which does not have a front. It looks more like a garage than a house. The young girl ran out to meet us. She and Drew were so excited to see each other again. After giving the young girl some gifts, we headed back to the hotel to prepare for the men’ dinner. Prior to leaving for the men’s dinner, we all had dinner at the hotel. Avery led our evening devotion and shared how each person has a different function in the body of Christ and we should all do our work wholeheartedly for the Lord. When we had completed dinner, the cook came over and told us that he was a minister of the gospel. Later Drew spoke with our waiter. He was not sure about his salvation. Please pray for him. His name is Alberto.
At around 5:30, we headed to the men’s dinner. The team had been informed on Sunday by the missionary, Pat, that these dinners were very important. She told us that they had no idea what to expect with the men’s dinner on Thursday night. This was because there were not many men who were actively involved in the church. Pat told us that it was critical that the men become interested and involved in the church. Then we had rain for about two hours prior to the dinner. We prayed that the men would still come to the dinner. When we arrived, several of the men were there. By 6:30, when we began, there were twenty to twenty five men, which was a good turnout. Our speaker for the dinner was Pastor Carlos. Prior to his message, Kelly and Avery shared testimonies. Most of what Pastor Carlos shared was in Spanish. He did interpret into English at one point. He had a glass of water and spoke of how a person does not satisfy his or her thirst unless they drink the water. This was given as an example of our lives not being satisfied without receiving Christ Jesus into our lives. The women of our team were there to serve the food and they also prayed during the testimonies and the message. When the invitation was given, four men made decisions and came forward. We praise God for all that He has done in lives this week. Our prayer is that the conversions will be genuine and that the seed planted will grow in good soil. We thank the Lord for using us to share His word and to share our lives with the people in Costa Rica.
After painting, we left to visit our friends from last year’s trip. This school was one of our favorites. The school was closed. We drove down to where Shirley lived. She is the lady who received a wheelchair earlier this year when the first team came down. Shirley and her family were not home. We did see that a wheelchair ramp had been completed. We also wanted to visit a young girl who had won over our hearts last year. We found her house, which does not have a front. It looks more like a garage than a house. The young girl ran out to meet us. She and Drew were so excited to see each other again. After giving the young girl some gifts, we headed back to the hotel to prepare for the men’ dinner. Prior to leaving for the men’s dinner, we all had dinner at the hotel. Avery led our evening devotion and shared how each person has a different function in the body of Christ and we should all do our work wholeheartedly for the Lord. When we had completed dinner, the cook came over and told us that he was a minister of the gospel. Later Drew spoke with our waiter. He was not sure about his salvation. Please pray for him. His name is Alberto.
At around 5:30, we headed to the men’s dinner. The team had been informed on Sunday by the missionary, Pat, that these dinners were very important. She told us that they had no idea what to expect with the men’s dinner on Thursday night. This was because there were not many men who were actively involved in the church. Pat told us that it was critical that the men become interested and involved in the church. Then we had rain for about two hours prior to the dinner. We prayed that the men would still come to the dinner. When we arrived, several of the men were there. By 6:30, when we began, there were twenty to twenty five men, which was a good turnout. Our speaker for the dinner was Pastor Carlos. Prior to his message, Kelly and Avery shared testimonies. Most of what Pastor Carlos shared was in Spanish. He did interpret into English at one point. He had a glass of water and spoke of how a person does not satisfy his or her thirst unless they drink the water. This was given as an example of our lives not being satisfied without receiving Christ Jesus into our lives. The women of our team were there to serve the food and they also prayed during the testimonies and the message. When the invitation was given, four men made decisions and came forward. We praise God for all that He has done in lives this week. Our prayer is that the conversions will be genuine and that the seed planted will grow in good soil. We thank the Lord for using us to share His word and to share our lives with the people in Costa Rica.
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Wednesday
Children’s Ministry:
Today was our last day with the ninos and so we made it a fun day, which included making animal balloons, face painting, jump rope, frizzbie throwing and games using water balloons and soccer balls. The children loved it; Luis was a master at making different creations with balloons, and Alice assisted providing blown balloons, making it a good manufacturing line. Drew, Denise and Tanya were the Picaso’s of face painting. Each child had their face painted some more than once.
Prior to the games we had to go to the households of the communities to invite the children as they did not have school until next Monday. Since this was some of our first time doing a mission trip, seeing where these families live in reality verses on TV, really brings into perspective how much one takes for granted. The irony is that these families are more content than those who have more like us in the US. Paul stated that we should be content in every situation. This experience is truly humbling and a blessing we will never forget. This was the least stressful day we had with the children, and we had all ages at one time verses separate age groups at different times. God is so awesome. If I was to sum up the children it would be, bright eyed, intelligent, sneaky, beautiful and joyful children. By Gods grace they will all be saved and we will see these children again.
Construction:
We started out the morning thinking the only task we had left on the building extension was to add the roof. We were reminded very quickly that we needed to be flexible on this trip. We were instructed early that we would be adding significantly to the concrete pad which would include the overhang area at the perimeter. Once again we were hauling wheel-barrels full of sand and gravel and mixing with cement on the ground. The day was hot, the work was hard and we were all working in a very confined space. We stayed with it till the job was complete and we had no left over concrete. Meanwhile, the roof was being built. It was a blessing having Ronnie on the trip. His experience welding came in handy since the framework for the roof was comprised of metal box beams and “C” channels (each joint required welding). Additionally, the local welder said Ronnie was an excellent welder and he was excited to learn from him. Painting continued with the exterior of the church being virtually complete. By the time we left for the evening the roof structure and panels were complete the concrete pad in place and the exterior concrete sink was in place and functional.
Women’s Dinner:
What a blessing we had to night. The girls, Kevin, Carlos, Drew, Kelly and Ronnie came to help celebrate being women of God. We had set pretty table for them and had wonderful samples of makeup and nail polish thanks to Melanie Wilson, her associates and Carla all Mary Kay ladies.
About 25 women came and were pampered for the evening. The evening started off with some wonderful music from Luis and some another musician, then Tanya and Alice gave their testimonies, then Cecilia, Mario’s wife gave a talk about being beautiful and God loving them and transforming them. She tied this in with the lotions we had brought from Mary Kay. To see the look of joy on those women was worth all the hard work.
They were served by the men and Pastor David insisted that we ladies be served as well so we were blessed by being served by the men. While Cecilia was giving her talk, the men were outside and around praying for the women! What an awesome thing that was.
We gave each woman a booklet that had our testimonies, the 4 Steps to God and we took their picture and put it on the back. We handed out the bags of makeup that we had prepared after dinner and we painted all the ladies nails. Then we had dessert – Tres Leche’s and what a special treat that was.
After dinner our extra special blessing was to have a blessing by all the ladies of the church to us and oh the hugs, we were so overwhelmed.
Pat one of the missionaries here has been praying for 2 years for this dinner, some real meat for ladies not fluff and they got that tonight! What a blessing to be the beginning of something.
Thank you God for showing up and blessing this night.
PRAYER REQUEST: Pray that God works in the hearts of Jorge and his wife to mend their marriage. Carlos and Drew helped re-assure Jorge of his salvation.
Today was our last day with the ninos and so we made it a fun day, which included making animal balloons, face painting, jump rope, frizzbie throwing and games using water balloons and soccer balls. The children loved it; Luis was a master at making different creations with balloons, and Alice assisted providing blown balloons, making it a good manufacturing line. Drew, Denise and Tanya were the Picaso’s of face painting. Each child had their face painted some more than once.
Prior to the games we had to go to the households of the communities to invite the children as they did not have school until next Monday. Since this was some of our first time doing a mission trip, seeing where these families live in reality verses on TV, really brings into perspective how much one takes for granted. The irony is that these families are more content than those who have more like us in the US. Paul stated that we should be content in every situation. This experience is truly humbling and a blessing we will never forget. This was the least stressful day we had with the children, and we had all ages at one time verses separate age groups at different times. God is so awesome. If I was to sum up the children it would be, bright eyed, intelligent, sneaky, beautiful and joyful children. By Gods grace they will all be saved and we will see these children again.
Construction:
We started out the morning thinking the only task we had left on the building extension was to add the roof. We were reminded very quickly that we needed to be flexible on this trip. We were instructed early that we would be adding significantly to the concrete pad which would include the overhang area at the perimeter. Once again we were hauling wheel-barrels full of sand and gravel and mixing with cement on the ground. The day was hot, the work was hard and we were all working in a very confined space. We stayed with it till the job was complete and we had no left over concrete. Meanwhile, the roof was being built. It was a blessing having Ronnie on the trip. His experience welding came in handy since the framework for the roof was comprised of metal box beams and “C” channels (each joint required welding). Additionally, the local welder said Ronnie was an excellent welder and he was excited to learn from him. Painting continued with the exterior of the church being virtually complete. By the time we left for the evening the roof structure and panels were complete the concrete pad in place and the exterior concrete sink was in place and functional.
Women’s Dinner:
What a blessing we had to night. The girls, Kevin, Carlos, Drew, Kelly and Ronnie came to help celebrate being women of God. We had set pretty table for them and had wonderful samples of makeup and nail polish thanks to Melanie Wilson, her associates and Carla all Mary Kay ladies.
About 25 women came and were pampered for the evening. The evening started off with some wonderful music from Luis and some another musician, then Tanya and Alice gave their testimonies, then Cecilia, Mario’s wife gave a talk about being beautiful and God loving them and transforming them. She tied this in with the lotions we had brought from Mary Kay. To see the look of joy on those women was worth all the hard work.
They were served by the men and Pastor David insisted that we ladies be served as well so we were blessed by being served by the men. While Cecilia was giving her talk, the men were outside and around praying for the women! What an awesome thing that was.
We gave each woman a booklet that had our testimonies, the 4 Steps to God and we took their picture and put it on the back. We handed out the bags of makeup that we had prepared after dinner and we painted all the ladies nails. Then we had dessert – Tres Leche’s and what a special treat that was.
After dinner our extra special blessing was to have a blessing by all the ladies of the church to us and oh the hugs, we were so overwhelmed.
Pat one of the missionaries here has been praying for 2 years for this dinner, some real meat for ladies not fluff and they got that tonight! What a blessing to be the beginning of something.
Thank you God for showing up and blessing this night.
PRAYER REQUEST: Pray that God works in the hearts of Jorge and his wife to mend their marriage. Carlos and Drew helped re-assure Jorge of his salvation.
Tuesday
Today was a very good day! Prior to heading to class with the children, Ugo, Denise and Drew helped with the construction and painting at the church along with David, Ronnie, Kevin, Kelly, Avery and Ian; while Alice, Cindy and Tanya put together the gift bags for the youth and women ministry nights. As a team, Kevin, our team leader, says we are doing a great job. He motivates us by making deals! He’s pretty cool!
Children’s Ministry:
The classes today were better; the communication about the same; and God, remained in control. We interacted at the school with the children, the teachers, and the director. It was an honor for us to embrace this group of people; and we were allowed to teach for an hour and a half each day.
The excitement of the children when we arrived at their school just gave us a glimpse on the impact that had been made with them from previous days. I pray more than anything that our impact was one in which Jesus Christ was the center of our presence. My Spanish vocabulary amongst the other team members expanded. The newest word is “Pelucha” which is Spanish for toys. This was the biggest request at the end of the day from the “ninos” children who left class with a huge smile on their face.
Today there were some kids in the older class that really had my attention, Douglas, Heydi, Laurina, Luis and Nathanael (youngest, most sneaky but very loving). Douglas spoke some English and helped a bit when I got stuck on a Spanish word. Luis is a very bright lad who knew all the answers to the bible questions and was not afraid to challenge anyone who thought he was wrong. Heydi appeared to like order and would always shout “silencio” when the children got too loud during our teaching session. Laurina made sure Nathanael behaved and let me know if I needed to correct him.
The good news concerning today, there were 7 children who prayed the prayer of salvation today. It was such a transformation from one day to the next. We knew this would be a missed opportunity if we did not introduce the children to Jesus Christ and give them a choice to make the decision to accept Jesus Christ. These names were left with Pastor David so that they could be followed up with for discipleship.
It was only God who could have planned this opportunity so perfectly in terms of timing. These children were obviously ready and our prayers were and are for the Lord to reveal himself to them, protect them, grant them understanding in their hearts of their newly found salvation and finally that God will help them to grow in their relationship with Christ. A seed was planted amongst the older children and we are hopeful that it will take root and spread amongst the younger children and community.
Construction:
As we came onto the work field at the church, our hearts were encouraged by the grace God had given us to get off to a great start the day before. This day, one of our main concerns was the rain coming too soon and it affecting our productivity. We prayed to the Lord to hold off the rain and to keep the day sunny and dry until we were done working. Today we knew our goals consisted of getting the 500lb. sink positioned for piping, plumbed, and as much of the concrete poured on the level foundation. We had to move the sink sideways roughly a foot and back against the wall to align it with the existing rough-ins. Scrapes and cuts were experienced by lifting such a heavy sink by some of the team members, but it was nothing too serious. Once the sink was positioned– the cement crew went to work led by Edgar who is about a 6’-4”, man about 53 years old and as strong as an ox. Edgar led us in mixing and pouring 32 bags of concrete in the hot sun that beat down relentlessly on us; so drinking plenty of water to stay hydrated was extremely important. This was no walk in the park and our work consisted of a lot of lifting, pulling, pushing and bending. This is how the people of Dominical, Costa Rica get their work out and stay in shape – from natural labor and eating natural foods. We mixed a batch of 12 bags of concrete and then poured. After the first batch, we mixed another 12 bags of concrete and poured again, 3 quarters of the level ground was filled with concrete. By lunch time we were pretty exhausted, thirsty and hungry. After lunch, the piping crew which consisted of Kevin and Ronnie, had finished piping up the sink. To take advantage of the good weather, Kevin encouraged us to push through and finish the last three quarters of the cement mixing and pouring, so we dug deep and pushed it out. So the cement crew was finished . . . or at least we thought. The main frame of the roof extension was hoisted up and ½ the frame was welded together. The front of the church was bleached, cleaned and also painted. We were all pretty muddied and exhausted at the end of the work day, but excited because of how much God had graced us to finish in one day and for holding off the rain. Our opportunity to minister was not done yet, because the children at youth night were awaiting our arrival.
Children’s Night:
The evening ended with the youth night. This night was dedicated to the youth who do not have choices of activities like we have in the US. So this was an opportunity to offer them something new. The message of Jesus Christ was presented to them by Carlos a member of our team, of which 11 of the youth gave their life to Christ. This was another witness to how God moves through a community that is in need of him. The youth night was ended with a sketch involving some of the team members and one volunteer from the youth to display following and trusting God in the midst of peer pressure. If just one young person was touched by the sketch then the message was not in vain.
Children’s Ministry:
The classes today were better; the communication about the same; and God, remained in control. We interacted at the school with the children, the teachers, and the director. It was an honor for us to embrace this group of people; and we were allowed to teach for an hour and a half each day.
The excitement of the children when we arrived at their school just gave us a glimpse on the impact that had been made with them from previous days. I pray more than anything that our impact was one in which Jesus Christ was the center of our presence. My Spanish vocabulary amongst the other team members expanded. The newest word is “Pelucha” which is Spanish for toys. This was the biggest request at the end of the day from the “ninos” children who left class with a huge smile on their face.
Today there were some kids in the older class that really had my attention, Douglas, Heydi, Laurina, Luis and Nathanael (youngest, most sneaky but very loving). Douglas spoke some English and helped a bit when I got stuck on a Spanish word. Luis is a very bright lad who knew all the answers to the bible questions and was not afraid to challenge anyone who thought he was wrong. Heydi appeared to like order and would always shout “silencio” when the children got too loud during our teaching session. Laurina made sure Nathanael behaved and let me know if I needed to correct him.
The good news concerning today, there were 7 children who prayed the prayer of salvation today. It was such a transformation from one day to the next. We knew this would be a missed opportunity if we did not introduce the children to Jesus Christ and give them a choice to make the decision to accept Jesus Christ. These names were left with Pastor David so that they could be followed up with for discipleship.
It was only God who could have planned this opportunity so perfectly in terms of timing. These children were obviously ready and our prayers were and are for the Lord to reveal himself to them, protect them, grant them understanding in their hearts of their newly found salvation and finally that God will help them to grow in their relationship with Christ. A seed was planted amongst the older children and we are hopeful that it will take root and spread amongst the younger children and community.
Construction:
As we came onto the work field at the church, our hearts were encouraged by the grace God had given us to get off to a great start the day before. This day, one of our main concerns was the rain coming too soon and it affecting our productivity. We prayed to the Lord to hold off the rain and to keep the day sunny and dry until we were done working. Today we knew our goals consisted of getting the 500lb. sink positioned for piping, plumbed, and as much of the concrete poured on the level foundation. We had to move the sink sideways roughly a foot and back against the wall to align it with the existing rough-ins. Scrapes and cuts were experienced by lifting such a heavy sink by some of the team members, but it was nothing too serious. Once the sink was positioned– the cement crew went to work led by Edgar who is about a 6’-4”, man about 53 years old and as strong as an ox. Edgar led us in mixing and pouring 32 bags of concrete in the hot sun that beat down relentlessly on us; so drinking plenty of water to stay hydrated was extremely important. This was no walk in the park and our work consisted of a lot of lifting, pulling, pushing and bending. This is how the people of Dominical, Costa Rica get their work out and stay in shape – from natural labor and eating natural foods. We mixed a batch of 12 bags of concrete and then poured. After the first batch, we mixed another 12 bags of concrete and poured again, 3 quarters of the level ground was filled with concrete. By lunch time we were pretty exhausted, thirsty and hungry. After lunch, the piping crew which consisted of Kevin and Ronnie, had finished piping up the sink. To take advantage of the good weather, Kevin encouraged us to push through and finish the last three quarters of the cement mixing and pouring, so we dug deep and pushed it out. So the cement crew was finished . . . or at least we thought. The main frame of the roof extension was hoisted up and ½ the frame was welded together. The front of the church was bleached, cleaned and also painted. We were all pretty muddied and exhausted at the end of the work day, but excited because of how much God had graced us to finish in one day and for holding off the rain. Our opportunity to minister was not done yet, because the children at youth night were awaiting our arrival.
Children’s Night:
The evening ended with the youth night. This night was dedicated to the youth who do not have choices of activities like we have in the US. So this was an opportunity to offer them something new. The message of Jesus Christ was presented to them by Carlos a member of our team, of which 11 of the youth gave their life to Christ. This was another witness to how God moves through a community that is in need of him. The youth night was ended with a sketch involving some of the team members and one volunteer from the youth to display following and trusting God in the midst of peer pressure. If just one young person was touched by the sketch then the message was not in vain.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Monday
We regret the delay in adding new posts or pictures. The local internet connection has been down lately and it is inconsistent at best when it is working. We will most likely not be able to post any pictures until we return.
Monday morning was beautiful. The sun was shining and it was still too early for the intense Costa Rican heat & humidity. Our day began with breakfast at 7:00 AM. We had a filling breakfast of rice, fried plantains, fresh fruit, along with the standard pancakes, eggs, sausage, and bacon.
Construction:
The morning was spent with site planning, compiling a list of materials, and manual labor. We were reminded of all the tasks on our to do list, which were: to add an extension to the existing church (slab, support beams, and roofing), relocate an outdoor sink, paint the exterior church, and possibly paint the interior of the church). The construction team consisted of five full time FBA members (Drew, Avery, Ronnie, Kelly, and Ian), two part time helpers from FBA (Kevin and Drew who traded time between the children’s ministry and construction) and three locals. The construction work began with site prep (e.g. building the batter boards, grading & leveling). After adding roughly 10 wheel-barrels of dirt, we tried to tamp (compact) the soil with anything that carried some weight (a 4x4 post, a cinder block, even just walking on it). Unfortunately, the dirt was too wet to compact. Meanwhile, a few people discussed where and how to move the outdoor sink. I use the term sink loosely because this “sink” consisted of concrete block walls and a solid top. All together the unit had to weigh at least 500 pounds. Pictures of the sink will be posted along with the other pictures later. We tried to break the concrete blocks away from the slab sidewalk with no success. By lunch time, we had worked hard but had little to show. After lunch supplies had arrived (including the paint and a masonry blade). The majority of the construction team began painting the exterior of the church. A few people continued to work on relocating the sink. They used a masonry blade to disconnect the sink from the slab (unfortunately we found out it was tied to the slab with rebar too). After cutting the rebar, it took five of us to move the sink three feet and turn it 180 degrees. Thirty minutes later we succeeded, but the sink left us with numerous cuts and abrasions. By the way, did we mention that it is the rainy season? We had been working in the rain the majority of the afternoon! We did cut our afternoon of work short due to the heavy rainfall, but we accomplished moving the sink, painted half the exterior of the church, graded the construction site, and began to break apart the concrete sidewalk to get to at the plumbing for the sink.
Children’s Ministry:
Last night we packed our ministry bags in preparation for our first full day with the children. This is the first mission’s trip for Ugo, Denise and Tonya. Alice and Drew have been on missions trips before. Together, the five of them were working with the children on this particular day. Drew is the interpreter and Ugo has been pinned the “go-to-girl” when Drew is not available. During the first day of class, we were working with the younger age group, around 5 and 6 year olds. There were approximately 30 students on this particular morning and we were glad to see them. There was some reservation because of the communication barrier and we could only say “Hola” and “Como esta” throughout the course of the class. As a Sunday school teacher, personal interaction and communication with the students helps to accomplish the goal for the day; and because we had to rely on Drew to speak for the children and the adults, it was a bit of a challenge for us who were not fluent in speaking Spanish. Okay fast forward, we learned to trust God on a different level by the end of that class. To be totally honest, we lost control of the class a few times. The class room structure is a little different from that in the USA. We had to regroup and we were trying everything we had but it seemed as if our ship was sinking. We questioned our effectiveness, though we tried to encourage one another with sporadic “that was good” and making suggestions along the way. We realized, for us, this group of children was a challenge! By the end of the class we were exhausted and left with mixed emotions on how the class went! We regrouped for the second class, still reeling from the morning; we were skeptical but remembered that God has us here in Costa Rica for such a time as this. There is a purpose and a plan that He wants fulfilled…so it’s full steam ahead. To our surprise, we were with older children this go round. We were not sure of what to expect so we followed our lesson plan from the morning. We were a little beat up from the morning but as a team, we forged ahead and were determined to have an impact on the children. This time around was better for various reasons; one, we had to remember to rely on God, two, we were becoming comfortable with one another, three; we came here to fulfill the great commission and did not want to fail. If we had to sum this day in a few words, we would emphasize keeping God in the forefront at all times. Secondly, share the expected goal of the day, to build communication among team members. Finally, invest in a Spanish/English parallel Bible (Thanks Alice) this was a great resource to learn with!
Monday morning was beautiful. The sun was shining and it was still too early for the intense Costa Rican heat & humidity. Our day began with breakfast at 7:00 AM. We had a filling breakfast of rice, fried plantains, fresh fruit, along with the standard pancakes, eggs, sausage, and bacon.
Construction:
The morning was spent with site planning, compiling a list of materials, and manual labor. We were reminded of all the tasks on our to do list, which were: to add an extension to the existing church (slab, support beams, and roofing), relocate an outdoor sink, paint the exterior church, and possibly paint the interior of the church). The construction team consisted of five full time FBA members (Drew, Avery, Ronnie, Kelly, and Ian), two part time helpers from FBA (Kevin and Drew who traded time between the children’s ministry and construction) and three locals. The construction work began with site prep (e.g. building the batter boards, grading & leveling). After adding roughly 10 wheel-barrels of dirt, we tried to tamp (compact) the soil with anything that carried some weight (a 4x4 post, a cinder block, even just walking on it). Unfortunately, the dirt was too wet to compact. Meanwhile, a few people discussed where and how to move the outdoor sink. I use the term sink loosely because this “sink” consisted of concrete block walls and a solid top. All together the unit had to weigh at least 500 pounds. Pictures of the sink will be posted along with the other pictures later. We tried to break the concrete blocks away from the slab sidewalk with no success. By lunch time, we had worked hard but had little to show. After lunch supplies had arrived (including the paint and a masonry blade). The majority of the construction team began painting the exterior of the church. A few people continued to work on relocating the sink. They used a masonry blade to disconnect the sink from the slab (unfortunately we found out it was tied to the slab with rebar too). After cutting the rebar, it took five of us to move the sink three feet and turn it 180 degrees. Thirty minutes later we succeeded, but the sink left us with numerous cuts and abrasions. By the way, did we mention that it is the rainy season? We had been working in the rain the majority of the afternoon! We did cut our afternoon of work short due to the heavy rainfall, but we accomplished moving the sink, painted half the exterior of the church, graded the construction site, and began to break apart the concrete sidewalk to get to at the plumbing for the sink.
Children’s Ministry:
Last night we packed our ministry bags in preparation for our first full day with the children. This is the first mission’s trip for Ugo, Denise and Tonya. Alice and Drew have been on missions trips before. Together, the five of them were working with the children on this particular day. Drew is the interpreter and Ugo has been pinned the “go-to-girl” when Drew is not available. During the first day of class, we were working with the younger age group, around 5 and 6 year olds. There were approximately 30 students on this particular morning and we were glad to see them. There was some reservation because of the communication barrier and we could only say “Hola” and “Como esta” throughout the course of the class. As a Sunday school teacher, personal interaction and communication with the students helps to accomplish the goal for the day; and because we had to rely on Drew to speak for the children and the adults, it was a bit of a challenge for us who were not fluent in speaking Spanish. Okay fast forward, we learned to trust God on a different level by the end of that class. To be totally honest, we lost control of the class a few times. The class room structure is a little different from that in the USA. We had to regroup and we were trying everything we had but it seemed as if our ship was sinking. We questioned our effectiveness, though we tried to encourage one another with sporadic “that was good” and making suggestions along the way. We realized, for us, this group of children was a challenge! By the end of the class we were exhausted and left with mixed emotions on how the class went! We regrouped for the second class, still reeling from the morning; we were skeptical but remembered that God has us here in Costa Rica for such a time as this. There is a purpose and a plan that He wants fulfilled…so it’s full steam ahead. To our surprise, we were with older children this go round. We were not sure of what to expect so we followed our lesson plan from the morning. We were a little beat up from the morning but as a team, we forged ahead and were determined to have an impact on the children. This time around was better for various reasons; one, we had to remember to rely on God, two, we were becoming comfortable with one another, three; we came here to fulfill the great commission and did not want to fail. If we had to sum this day in a few words, we would emphasize keeping God in the forefront at all times. Secondly, share the expected goal of the day, to build communication among team members. Finally, invest in a Spanish/English parallel Bible (Thanks Alice) this was a great resource to learn with!
Monday, October 20, 2008
Sunday - God's Love
Sunday morning saw us up early and leaving shortly after breakfast to go to the church where we will be working and worshipping during this week. We met Pastor David Rojas and although service was scheduled for 9AM it really didn’t begin until about 9:45. That’s how they do it in Costa Rica. No one is in a hurry around here. We all participated in the praise and worship at the beginning and then Pastor David introduced the team to the congregation. We were welcomed with open arms and the church members gave each of us a hand made momento (a sand dollar with the name of the church written on it). There were about 50-60 people attending. The service was amazing!!! The love and passion for God immenated from each and every man, woman, and child.
Midway through the service, some of our team took all of the children across the road for Sunday school. We had 27 children who came to Sunday school ranging in age from 3 years old up to about 12. It was quite a variety. First we shared a story about some of the many gifts God gives us and how to share them with others. Alice read the story in English and then Drew translated it into Spanish. The kids were great listening very attentively and then participating in all the activities. We played games, drew pictures of the special gift that each one has that he/she wants to share with others, and then it was time for the kids to return to the church. Spending time with the beautiful children here and watching how excited they get to share the talents that the Lord has given them is truly a blessing for us all.
After church and Sunday school (approximately 1:00 - Yes! Service lasted over 3 hours) we went to lunch with Pastor David, his wife Angela, and his son Caleb. We enjoyed the fellowshipping and getting to know more about them. We spent Sunday afternoon and evening getting ourselves organized to begin our construction project and children’s ministry Monday morning. Remember about the 28 bags of supplies....well it is quite a task to unpack and organize the materials/supplies in order to get them in the hands of those who will be using it. But God has been blessing us and all is going well.
Prayer Request: On Monday Brother Luis will be doing some special training and we ask everyone to keep him in your prayers. I will close this blog for now but tune in again tomorrow for another update.
Midway through the service, some of our team took all of the children across the road for Sunday school. We had 27 children who came to Sunday school ranging in age from 3 years old up to about 12. It was quite a variety. First we shared a story about some of the many gifts God gives us and how to share them with others. Alice read the story in English and then Drew translated it into Spanish. The kids were great listening very attentively and then participating in all the activities. We played games, drew pictures of the special gift that each one has that he/she wants to share with others, and then it was time for the kids to return to the church. Spending time with the beautiful children here and watching how excited they get to share the talents that the Lord has given them is truly a blessing for us all.
After church and Sunday school (approximately 1:00 - Yes! Service lasted over 3 hours) we went to lunch with Pastor David, his wife Angela, and his son Caleb. We enjoyed the fellowshipping and getting to know more about them. We spent Sunday afternoon and evening getting ourselves organized to begin our construction project and children’s ministry Monday morning. Remember about the 28 bags of supplies....well it is quite a task to unpack and organize the materials/supplies in order to get them in the hands of those who will be using it. But God has been blessing us and all is going well.
Prayer Request: On Monday Brother Luis will be doing some special training and we ask everyone to keep him in your prayers. I will close this blog for now but tune in again tomorrow for another update.
Saturday - Adventure Begins!
It is 10:30 PM Sunday evening. We have had an amazing two days on our mission trip to Costa Rica. We left very early Saturday morning. Our day started in prayer as we all met at the church at 6AM. There are a total of 14 members on our team. We all had our own carry on bags in which we packed our clothes and personal items. In addition we each had two bags that we were checking for the flight. So we checked a total of 28 bags that contained supplies for the children’s ministry, construction, painting, and a night of appreciation for each of three groups - youth, men and women. Praise God that all the bags arrived with us safely. We have all been working for months planning these lessons for the children and the dinners and evenings of appreciation for the groups mentioned above. Some very special supporters were at First Baptist to see us off. Thanks to all of you who got up very early on a Saturday morning to come and pray with us and send us off .
Our day yesterday consisted mainly in traveling. We arrived in Costa Rica at 11:45 AM after a flight that took about 3 ½ hours. We gained two hours coming here as their time is earlier than ours in Atlanta. Immediately after claiming our bags and going through immigration, customs, and security we all gathered outside and waited for our vehicles of transportation to arrive. It is the rainy season here in Costa Rica. So the sky was overcast and the humidity felt like about 120%. But it was not raining. We loaded up into two vans and set off from San Jose to Dominical which is about a four hour drive. However because of the rain some of the roads we would normally take had been closed due to mud slides. So we had to take a longer route that meant an additional two hours of driving. This route also took us up and up into the mountains where we saw some breathtaking scenery whenever we got a decent break in the cloud cover. Our ears were popping and at times we actually seemed to be driving through the clouds. The visibility was at times very poor. One of our team members described this part of our trip by saying he was able to tell that the only thing between us and a unquantifiable drop off the mountain was the narrow two lane road we were traversing. We abruptly stopped in the midst of the clouds and virtually out of thin air an open walled building appeared. The building was perched on the side of the road defying gravity. This was a small roadside restaurant where we stopped for lunch. We can tell you that Costa Rica unlike Atlanta has not been experiencing a drought. This country is beautiful, vibrant and full of flowers and plants that grow to amazing heights. Everywhere you look you see God’s handiwork in their beauty. After lunch we continued on our way to Dominical. We eventually left the low lying clouds and were able to enjoy the beautiful scenery we saw along the way. Costa Rica doesn’t exactly have the highways, interstates, or bridges like we are used to in the states. In fact most of the roads are two lane and pretty narrow. All of the bridges seem to be single lane. That means that traffic can only go one way at a time. Most of the time when you get to a bridge you must wait a few minutes for the traffic coming from the opposite direction to finish crossing before the line you are waiting in gets to cross. Obviously this would never work in the states but it seems to do fine here. On the final leg of our trip the road was no longer paved. The best way to describe it is it was full of bumps and holes. We all got a workout just by riding in the van. The road was very dark as there were no street lights and we met numerous tractor trailers while riding on it. There were people living in very small houses /shacks along the road. During this time we had to make a rest stop and the only place open along this road was a small café. The restroom facilities were separate from the café so we all had to take a walk in the dark to find them. As those of us who took advantage of this break soon found out you had to share the restroom with a spider who was about as big as a soccer ball. But at least he appeared to accept our presence and didn’t make any sudden moves. We all felt a lot better when we loaded back up in the van. Now we could once again handle the bumpy road . This portion of the ride lasted about an hour and a half. Finally around 7PM we arrived at our destination in Dominical. We all gave our driver Jorge a round of applause for his excellent driving and then we thanked God for our safe arrival.
Our day yesterday consisted mainly in traveling. We arrived in Costa Rica at 11:45 AM after a flight that took about 3 ½ hours. We gained two hours coming here as their time is earlier than ours in Atlanta. Immediately after claiming our bags and going through immigration, customs, and security we all gathered outside and waited for our vehicles of transportation to arrive. It is the rainy season here in Costa Rica. So the sky was overcast and the humidity felt like about 120%. But it was not raining. We loaded up into two vans and set off from San Jose to Dominical which is about a four hour drive. However because of the rain some of the roads we would normally take had been closed due to mud slides. So we had to take a longer route that meant an additional two hours of driving. This route also took us up and up into the mountains where we saw some breathtaking scenery whenever we got a decent break in the cloud cover. Our ears were popping and at times we actually seemed to be driving through the clouds. The visibility was at times very poor. One of our team members described this part of our trip by saying he was able to tell that the only thing between us and a unquantifiable drop off the mountain was the narrow two lane road we were traversing. We abruptly stopped in the midst of the clouds and virtually out of thin air an open walled building appeared. The building was perched on the side of the road defying gravity. This was a small roadside restaurant where we stopped for lunch. We can tell you that Costa Rica unlike Atlanta has not been experiencing a drought. This country is beautiful, vibrant and full of flowers and plants that grow to amazing heights. Everywhere you look you see God’s handiwork in their beauty. After lunch we continued on our way to Dominical. We eventually left the low lying clouds and were able to enjoy the beautiful scenery we saw along the way. Costa Rica doesn’t exactly have the highways, interstates, or bridges like we are used to in the states. In fact most of the roads are two lane and pretty narrow. All of the bridges seem to be single lane. That means that traffic can only go one way at a time. Most of the time when you get to a bridge you must wait a few minutes for the traffic coming from the opposite direction to finish crossing before the line you are waiting in gets to cross. Obviously this would never work in the states but it seems to do fine here. On the final leg of our trip the road was no longer paved. The best way to describe it is it was full of bumps and holes. We all got a workout just by riding in the van. The road was very dark as there were no street lights and we met numerous tractor trailers while riding on it. There were people living in very small houses /shacks along the road. During this time we had to make a rest stop and the only place open along this road was a small café. The restroom facilities were separate from the café so we all had to take a walk in the dark to find them. As those of us who took advantage of this break soon found out you had to share the restroom with a spider who was about as big as a soccer ball. But at least he appeared to accept our presence and didn’t make any sudden moves. We all felt a lot better when we loaded back up in the van. Now we could once again handle the bumpy road . This portion of the ride lasted about an hour and a half. Finally around 7PM we arrived at our destination in Dominical. We all gave our driver Jorge a round of applause for his excellent driving and then we thanked God for our safe arrival.
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