Home Sweet Home

Hi! It is late and I really need to get to bed...however I wanted to share the joy of home sweet home we all felt today.

We enjoyed our visit to the states immensly and I loved every minute of time I had with my mom and my aunt, the unforgettable sweet way Samantha's arms felt around my neck every time she hugged me, the comfortableness of the Jenkin's home, Mike's smile, Katrina just being herself, my sweet friends, the church families we partner with and the fun of a Halloween night spent walking around Frankfort with Pappy, mimi and Ging-ging. The day at Camp Cullom with our entire family from both sides plus some extras. The smell of freshly plowed dirt still lingers in my nostrils and the happiness of working the farm with his dad is still fresh with Matt. Celebrating the engagement of a dear friend is a memory I'll cherish for some time and sweet fellowship with Alex and his family and even Kelly, not to mention fantastic pizza was a great way to end our time back. The beautiful colors of fall are etched in my mind and I am grateful to have been able to experience them again.

This trip back was a gift from God and one we do not take for granted. We understand all too well how scarce these precious times with family and friends will be for our family. Therefore, we feel blessed. In all that, though, there is an unmistakeable feeling of not quite fitting in when I am there. After living here over a year now, I feel a little between worlds when I am in the states. It is as if everything is vaguely familiar, but not enough to put a name to any one thing. Being with family will never grow tiresome or burdensome again. Fellowship with our brothers and sisters in Christ, in our heart language, is something to value as a privelege, not a right. However, at times, for me it is becoming more and more apparent that I am from a different world. Being in Wal-mart for instance is completely overwhelming to me, the woman who does her grocery shopping in a little shop where I ask for my purchases from behind a wall of bars and the owner hands them (my purchases) to me through a little door in the bars. She then tallys my purchases with a hand-held calculator and writes them on a large piece of paper on the counter as she tallies them. If I am short a few colones she circles my total and sends me on my way, knowing full well I'll be back after while with the rest. I stood in the cereal aisle in WalMart a good 20 minutes one night pondering the necessity of what had to be over 100 choices. (I did however find one I thouroughly enjoyed and brought back two boxes!) But seriously- do Americans really need a hundred cereals to choose from? Then, I turn around and there are about as many options if you prefer oats, cream of wheat or grits. It is evident the simplicity my life has now as compared to even a year and a half ago. When we are here in our daily routine, the laid back Costa Rican style is easy to adapt. We love it and love the way the ladies at the bread store knows all three of our kids names, the pulperia guy sleeps at the counter every day, but wakes up as we enter and greets us as if sleeping in your store when no one is in it is completely normal. The people in the neighborhood will stop and talk with the kids as they play in the front patio. When I need to purchase items that I can't get in the two stores here in our neighborhood I walk about 7 blocks to the nearest large grocery store (think IGA) and get what I need, rain or shine. My church is made up of ex-drug addicts, gang members and people who live in shacks made of tin and held together with bottle caps. What apicture of grace God has given me to look at and experience each day.

And so, the realization I have is that my life is different, and I pray it will forever remain different, from all that I loved about my old life. I will rejoice in any opportunity to return to the life of old to reconnect with family and friends, however, I pray that uncomfortableness once there will remian as a forever reminder of the privelege God has given me to take the gospel to the nations, specifically here in Costa Rica.

Admittedly, it was hard to say good-bye, as it always will be. This time might have been a little tougher than last time, even. However, it is good to be back home. The comfort of your own bed, the familiarity of your neighbors, and the smell of the and the sound of the rain are all things that remind me that my life is here. We spent the day today with our friend Lucia and my God reminded me of just how special my life is here. Could you pray for my friend Lucia as her life is not an easy one, yet she remains one of the most faithful people I have ever met and I am constantly encouraged by her faith and trust in God Almighty. Would you pray for her five children: Carlos, David (Da-veed), Pamela, Michelle and Daniel. Please pray for her husband Carlos, who is living a life of bondage in alcoholism and rage resulting separation from his Heavenly Father. Please pray for the basic necessities of life even down to adequate clothes and food for each day for her and her family. Please pray for their safety and protection as they live day-to-day in a city where violence rages around them.

My life here is purposeful, meaningful and of value because of the privelege of living it with people like Lucia who exhibit the love of Christ to all. Christ died for me and for her and it is in his death that we became sisters. While my heart aches for those I love in the states, what a privelege God has given my family to be part of what he is doing right here.

Moms, I love you both, but know my heart beats to be here. My soul breathes for the purposes He has for me and for Matt. I long to see His purposes lived out for Ethan, for Isabelle and for Audrey that are being established right here, even in these early years of their lives.

My God, My Jesus, My Counselor, Thank you, for what you are doing here. May I always trust in you to complete your promises, that you will always bring good in the midst of sorrow and difficulty, and that you have a vision greater than my mind can ever understand and that reaches farther than my eyes can ever see and is more vivid than my mind can ever imagine. I love you.