Cooking Costa Rican Style!

As part of the curriculum of the spanish school we are attending, the school offered to us a few extra outside activities to acclimate ourselves with the ways of the Costan Rican culture. This evening The Brook Team went for a cooking class at the home of a local Tica woman. I think her name sounded like Letrysa. When we arrived she welcomed us in her beautiful home and gestured for us to sit down. What we didn't know and found out quickly was that she had no idea why we were there! Yet, she was so kind as we just waltz in her home and sat down. One by one and step by step she had each of us share in making a typical costa rican meal. We first made a salad. We then squeezed the lemons to make some fresh lemonade, & then the corn empanadas. Delicioso! She topped it off with a wonderful unique dessert of iced milk with nuts and jello. She talked slowly and pleasant. Such kindness to share with us her love of cooking, her heart for sharing, and the pride of her country.
Costa Ricans are people who live for enjoying the present moments of their lives one day at a time and don't seem to be worried about tomorrow, but make the most of today. I love that and have longed for that simplicity. I am learning what it really means to slow down to stop and smell the roses.
I'm grateful too for the moments of today. It is all we really have by the way, at the moment.

Rain & Lunch

The last few days have been raining ALOT. Heard that some neighbors in town had to evacuate their homes last night due to the intense rain that wants to possibly slide their home away! The rivers are running rapid around here and are as black as coffee! We have still gone up to town each day to work out and then again this morning to pay our bills. I found it really hard to sleep last night because of the thunder and intense raining. I pray for the folks who don't have a place right now to rest their head and I praise God at the same time for what the rain provides. Right now the wind is picking up and it is getting rather chilly. It's time to enjoy lunch and to praise God for being alive, for providing for our needs, for a roof over our heads, for my husband to share my life with over a yummy meal! This is a typical lunch for us: The Costa Rican Gallo Pinto(rice & black beans)( I use brown rice)a salad with fresh vegetables and fruits,(today my salad is tomatoes, spinach, avocado, green leaf, & mango) fresh cabbage salad with carrot & red pepper, and pear nectar to drink. I'm praying it stops raining very soon!

An Ant's Life

Can you imagine how heavy that leaf is to the ant? That ant is called a "leafcutter" here in Costa Rica. I see them everywhere. I've been on a quest to see an army of them all in single file. I thought it would make an interesting photo. It just amazes me how even the little ant is burdened with a heavy load. He manages to carry it to his destination. Only difference between what the ant was carrying and what we carry is neccesity. There is so much we carry that is not neccesity. So, as a reminder to me and to you, let go of what is not neccesary for you to carry. Give it to God. Only carry what is necessary. You will have a much lighter load and a free hand for someone else!
On further reflection, it just might be that the load you carry is a sacrifice that is costing your faith to stretch. The Lord sacrificed His life for us and carried all our sins to the cross. What sacrifice is the Lord asking you to carry no matter what the cost or how heavy it is ? To be a christian it is in sharing in the sufferings of Christ we become like him and in dying to ourselves we truly live.

TheRIGHT Place

Steve and I took off early this morning for a tour of Turu Ba Ri Parque. We are looking for TheRight places for our excursions. Something that grips me everytime we drive on the roads here in Costa Rica....Everytime you take a turn...which is very often....you never know what's coming or what lies ahead. Another thing about the roads here in Costa Rica are the deep gulleys on both sides of the road. That means you gotta have a narrow focus!

Boy, that sure speaks to me right now! Keep your focus straight ahead. In this way, you can see clearly where your going...for what lies ahead is just around the next bend!

After we left Turu Ba Ri Parque I set the GPS for HOME. It took us another route than the one we came on. The road kept getting narrower and narrower until we finally got to a one lane dirt road. It seemed we were on it for at least 3 or 4 miles. We were wondering if the GPS was to be trusted. We came and crossed over a bridge that extended over a rip roaring river and a breath taking waterfall. I fumbled with trying to reach for my camera and didn't make it in time as we approached the end of the bridge. The minute the back tires reached the end, the road IMMEDIATELY took a right turn STRAIGHT UP! We went right up as if a unseen force had scooted us up. I was wondering how in the world we made it. Finally, we came out on the access road of the Autopista. Thank God we trusted the GPS and thank God for providing a short cut no matter what we had to go through! Isn't that the way alot a times in life....keep trusting....no matter what things appear to be...The Lord will provide a way out.

The Mission

Today has been a full day! Tuesday morning is the day I spend time on skype with my accountability partner. It's also the day we have our Brook Team meeting followed by the English speaking Bible study up at Iglesia Biblica in Atenas.
Having an accountability partner keeps my life on track. She gives me encouragement and counsel and prayer. I look forward to our talks together.
I get all fired up and full of purposeful passion after a Brook Team meeting. Today we had so much to be thankful for and had praises for what God is doing in the ministry and in our lives. As I write this, the Lord is putting everything into place. The Lord has picked a professor from the theological seminary in Guatemala to be our guest speaker.He is bilingual. We also have a worship leader as well! We now have 17 each Latin American couples attending our 2 mini conferences on Oct 18th through the 23rd! Praise the Lord! We are now asking those to step forward and sponsor each couple with a donation to cover the cost. We are asking for a one time gift of $500 per couple. Also underway, is our silent auction up at Nate's Seafood Restaurant in Allen. Hope that you will not only buy a ticket to attend, but you will bid on a treasure. Just remember your purchase or your one time gift for a Latin couple to attend the October conferences, will be a purchase with eternal value.
In between the Brook Team meeting and the bible study today, we met with Pastor Oldemar & his wife Maritza. He's been the pastor at the church for the past 11 years. We are so blessed that the Lord would lead us to such a bible believing church and a wonderful Pastor and his wife to lead it. Each Sunday the message is strictly out of the word of God, verse by verse. The first Sunday of the month is translated into English. Tonight we got aquainted with one another and it might be that my husband may lead a small group of men on the subject of finances and I may try singing worship with the keyboard player in a service done in English. There was also talk of us joining Pastor Oldemar and a few of the members of the church on a medical mission trip in December to visit a remote spanish speaking Indian community south of here. Maybe, or shall I say, I WILL BE MUCH BETTER AT SPEAKING SPANISH BY THEN!

Costa Rica Independence Day

Tonight we went into town for the evening festivities. We decided that we would first eat dinner at one of our favorite places real close to the City Park. There was a woman sitting there and she was selling these lanterns that were red and some were blue. I liked them so I bought one for 200 colones. As it turned out, as people began to show up, all the children and even some of the adults all were holding lanterns. In fact, they were all highly decorated and very creative. Their was a loud voice of a woman speaking that was leading on the mike. Then all the people sang the national anthem for Costa Rica. Everyone was standing. We quickly finished our dinner and headed over to where all the people were at.
I was standing there and I looked around at all the families and how many small children were there. Father's and mothers interlocking hands, putting children on their shoulders, & holding them in their arms so they could see all that was happening. I think I have fallen in love with this community.
Looking forward to seeing the parade in the morning!

Going to School

This morning The Brook Team enrolled in language classes. The place is just a few minutes down the street. We drove up to a green gate and entered into the most beautiful place. You would have never thought what lie just beyond the gates. The only way to know is to go inside. I can describe it to you, but until you enter in yourself, you really can't experience it like we all did. Oh yea sure, I know you will feel the passion in my words and I hope to cast a vision that will work in your heart so you can feel the passion too of what this is all about. The Pastor of Willow Creek Community Church said it when he said "The church is the hope of the world." Anyways, I'm getting a little off subject you say....what is this all leading too? It's about the church. It's about those he came to save. Going to language school to learn how to speak spanish will open doors we didn't know we could open. Getting to know the language is a step inside from just staying on the surface. God never intended for us to skim the surface...but to go deep...deep enough to where he does all the leading and mostly to love one another deeply from the heart. I am so excited and so very challenged and expectant of what God has in store. Lead on Lord! Thank you for our new teacher Isabel. Bless her and my your face shine upon her and her family.

All Is Well with My Soul

Today is the day the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it. That's it. That's what I needed today. It's my first thoughts as I start again to write in this blog. We just got internet a few days ago here in Atenas, Costa Rica and this is my first time in a long while to write in my blog.
We are going on our 3rd week here. We've come along pretty good & we are cultivating a new way of living. We are liking our new life and enjoying the benefits of living simple lives. We decided to not get a TV. We didn't watch it much back in the states anyhow. We did get a membership in town at the local video store to watch an occasional movie from our laptop as a treat. We still have an empty house and we will get all the essential needs in due time.
We really enjoyed the Pastor's message at our new church yesterday. It was translated in English. He talked about the faithfullness of the Thessalonians. The gospel came to them not simply with words, but with deep conviction in the power of the Holy Spirit. Even though they were suffering severe persecution they had JOY given to them by the holy spirit. They became a model for Jesus Christ and their faith became known everywhere by the Joy the holy spirit had given them.
When we share the gospel with someone it must not be done in our power or some clever words that sound good. It must come from the spirit of God within us. Because of their strong conviction that God was at work within them it produced faith. Because of their love for God, they labored for it, & because of their hope in God, it boosted their endurance. Faith, Hope, & Love equals serving God!
That's all I need today