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1 Corinthians 3:4-9

"For when one says, "I follow Paul," and another, "I follow Apollos," are you not mere men?

What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor. For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, God's building."

1 Corinthians 3:4-9


Tuesday, May 31, 2011

June 2011 Prayer Letter



Potter’s Field Kids (Las Manos del Alfarero)

Please pray this month for the children of Potter’s Field Kids Costa Rica. Please pray for their basic needs to be met. Please pray for those living in homes where abuse, both verbal and physical, is an everyday reality. Please pray for those who go hungry. Please pray for those who struggle to read and write well. Please pray for those who are struggling with worldly temptations. Please pray for each one to find their identity in Christ. Please pray for those who are left alone most of the time. Please pray for those whose families live in fear of legends, myths and stories that have been passed down for generations. Please pray that these precious children be set free from the bondage of these lies. Please pray for each one to make the decision to live each day for Christ. Please pray for each one to receive love, grace and mercy at Potter’s Field Kids. Praise God for Potter’s Field Ministries, who make it possible for the team here to minister every day to the children of Villarreal. Praise God for PFK interns, Michaela (back again!), Justine, and Natalie who are serving with us until August. Praise God for children eager to learn, study and apply God’s Word to their lives. Pray against the false teaching that many have received, mainly in the public school system. Pray for God’s Word to infiltrate each heart and that it alone guide and direct each child’s world view. Pray for a firm foundation of faith to be a reality in each child’s life.

For more information about Potter’s Field Ministries see www.pottersfield.org. If you’d like to pray for a specific child in the PFK after school ministry, please contact us for more information.



Praise God with us this month for the unending ways God continues to bless us. His love and mercy and grace never cease to wash over us, even in the tough times. We are so thankful for the invitation we received to be part of the Calvary Chapel Costa Rica missionaries marriage retreat at the beginning of May. Not only did we have the privilege of sitting under the teaching of Pastor Don McClure and his wife Jean, but also were able to hear testimony of God’s great work across Costa Rica. We were greatly encouraged as were our kids. One of the biggest blessings of the retreat was the team that came to specifically minister to the children of the couples at the retreat. There were four adults and a handful of teenagers and young adults to minister to over thirty kids!!! What a huge blessing!!! We also have been spending significant time planning our short furlough this year in the States. We will be back for the month of July and we are so thankful that for the first time in four years we’ll have the opportunity to take a couple mini-vacations with all of our parents! They have patiently waited for this time and we are all very thankful and excited! We also will be staying with good friends and even before we asked, the Lord answered the need of a vehicle for the entire month-long stay! We will be visiting with our home church as well as two other supporting churches. Please pray with us as we look forward to sharing God’s great work in Costa Rica with you all there! We are so thankful for those of you who prayerfully support our family and the ministry and local church here in Villarreal. We are also so thankful for our financial partners, including Potter’s Field Ministries, who make it possible for us to live and serve here. Please continue to pray for our marriage, our children, our neighbors and disciples, and our local church, Calvary Chapel Villarreal,  Pastor Phil and his family, and our team mate, Victor Vargas, and his family.

 
But now, O Lord, You are our 
Father, we are the clay, You are the potter;

all of us are the work of Your hand. “  Isaiah 64:8



Monday, May 30, 2011

Multitudes on Monday

For Your name's sake, O LORD, Pardon my iniquity, for it [is] great. Psalm 25:11

This week the Lord taught me a gerat lesson in the relationship He and I have. His love for me is not dependant on my perfection. I am saved, not by my works, not by the great things I have done, not by just being me; I am saved by GRACE, grace poured out on me daily, heaping, cleansing grace. In my great iniquity, I come before Him, seeking that very grace. When I come with a repentant heart, He cleanses with me, forgives me, and forgets my very iniquity for forever. The Lord showers me with His great love, because of His love. It is a broken, repentant, humble spirit that the Lord loves.

Today, I continue in my endless list of gratitudes...marking down the great gifts the Lord has given in rememberance of Him.

#'s 748-764
- nachos for supper
-kiddos cuddled in bed, watching old movies
-planning mini-vacations with our parents
-planning for a visit to the states
-finances to go to the states
-planned times of rest this visit
-planned, set aside time with family
-Your infinite goodness
-Your literal Word- a great gift to us
-Your very breath changing me daily
-6 magnificent days of Creation
-proof- in recent years- of man and dinosaur co-existing
-seeing a passion growing in Ethan to share TRUTH- Your Word- and to expel myth and lies
-the convicting power of Your word
-birthday parties
meeting people from all over the world- Israel, Italy, Mexico, Canada, Great Britain- al in one place- all desperately needing you
-That You came to rescue me...and You did...

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Sunday, May 29, 2011

Life in photos

brightly colored visitor

"My what a beautiful home you have!"

On the move

S-T-R-E-T-C-H!!!!

Color-coordinated

pica-caballo

ummm...yeah...one word...just...EEEwwwwww!
wild horsey girl

OUCH!!!

long hair hazard

Izzy and Daddy

Pirate's Bay

rainbow

God's Promise

flip flops
Mother's Day

Learning to stand

una colita....

Friday, May 27, 2011

Acceptable?

I've started studying the women of the Bible again in my personal devotions. About two years ago, I did this same study, but felt it was time to pick it up again. I'm being so blessed by the faithful women of the Bible and seeing God's hand in the lives of them all. It amazes me the way God takes the good and the bad and makes both into something beautiful (the ugly-beautiful, as Ann calls it). I can so completely mess things up, completely blow it- make a huge mess of things...and He makes it all so beautiful in just a breath.

I studied Bathsheba and her relationship with both her husband Uriah and her husband David. You can read her story here .

There is so much to be gleaned and to learn from this story.

You might wonder, as I did, after reading this excerpt from David's life, how could God have called him "a man after his own heart?" (Acts 13:22)

One thing that stopped me in my tracks was this question:
"What makes us acceptable in God's eyes?"

The author poses the folowing options:

is it being sinless

or

 is it being repentant and forgiven before the Lord?

I realized for so long, I've wandered this journey trying to be perfect- sinless- in order to be acceptable not  only in the eyes of my God but also in the eyes of my peers, and even to the world...Of course, in my complete and utter INperfection, I've found myself at the foot of the throne, repentant, only to find myself washed in His grace, cleaned of every sin.

yet, that desire to meet perfection has remained...and enslaved me for far too long. I've seen it for what it is and it's gone...Every day, as I wake and ask the Holy Spirit to fill me and ask that today, may I be more like Him and less like me (John 3:30), my heart will also sing the new song of thankfulness for God's word and the way it brings new wisdom, promise and truth to my life each day!

May you be as blessed as I have been by these ancient words, ever true...

Exodus 34:6-7 (New King James Version)

6 And the LORD passed before him and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, 7 keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children to the third and the fourth generation.”

2 Chronicles 7:14 (New King James Version)

14 if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

Psalm 25:11 (New King James Version)


11 For Your name’s sake, O LORD,
Pardon my iniquity, for it is great.

and finally...this wonderful, blessed promise:

Hebrews 8:12 (New Living Translation)


12 And I will forgive their wickedness,
and I will never again remember their sins.”[a]

Please continue praying for the people of Costa Rica, especially of Villarreal. The Lord seems to be showing us more and more and with greater intensity the spiritual darkness here. There are many, many rituals, legends, folklore, myths and just outright blatent lies that are deeply rooted in the families in this community and have been passed down from generation to generation.

This week, I've had conversations with friends about the curriculum we are using for PFK and Bible Club. One friend and I discussed today for over an hour the validity of 6 day Creation, a young earth (about 6000 years old), the age of dinosaur fossils, the Ark and if dinosaurs could have been on it, if dinosaurs were included in the 6th day animals God created and ultimately, if we, as Christians, can take the Bible for it's literal meaning. I belive we can and should literally believe in all the Bible, especially Genesis, 6 day Creation, the existence of dinosaurs and their presence with Adam and Eve, and on the ark and after the flood and that their age and the age of their fossils correlates exactly with the age of the earth of about 6000 years. I believe that because scripture - specifically the first chapter and 6th chapter of Genesis,  as well as Job chapters 40 and 41, in reference to the existence of dinosaurs after the flood.

What the Lord has made clear is that it is increasingly more important that our beginning (as the word Genesis implies) is the same and it is that very beginning that we need to build our faith on. We cannot rationalize or place our own thoughts and limited understanding into something that we cannot fathom about God.

All of this to say the Lord is also making very clear to me what has become a passion in my heart over the past year and a half- that of helping believers learn to study the Word for themselves, and form their view of the world and every other thing based on the truth of scripture. (it really is the same passion to make disciples, it is just becoming clearer and more specific as the Lord matures my faith and grows and molds me).

However, that stronghold that has held these people for generations in different cultic ways is still very strong. Please pray for God's Word to break through and that the people can find their faith strong enough to believe God's Word as the Truth above science and its so called evidence that lies in direct conflict with what the Bible teaches.

The strongholds became evident in a different way tonight, as our neighbor came over asking to borrow the ladder so he could get on the roof of his mothers's house to check for the "Mica" who the mother was convinced was there laughing and stomping around. The "Mica" is apparently a half-woman, half-monkey who visits houses in this area. She has both a "good" counterpart and a "bad" counterpart and has apparently visited our neighbor's mother's house before. Our neighbor does not believe in this legend, however his mother and sister were terrified and obvviously quite shaken up by all this. The son did however, climb up on the roof, to confirm that there was not, in fact, any woman or monkey there, in hopes that his mother would be able to go to bed and sleep.

Please pray for God's Word to free the captives here of these strongholds and that He would creaty beauty from ashes in this midst of these spiritually poor, darkness enslaved people.

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

It all begins with Genesis...

For the past three months, we've been teaching the PFK kids about the importance of building a strong foundation for their lives. We've been teaching about the importance of a Biblical foundation and discovering together what that means. We've learned what a biblical worldview is; looked at the big picture of life; and talked about what an eyewitness is- and learned who our witness is and what He (Jesus) has given us that gives us testimony of the Truth (his word, the Bible).

We are basing everything we are teaching this year off of Answers in Genesis' "It all begins with Genesis" curriculum.  It really is a top-notch teaching tool that takes you through Genesis Chapters 1-11 and most importantly, teaches how to study the Bible inductively.

We are learning about the 7 C's in the Bible- Creation, Corruption, Catastrofe, Confusion, Christ, Cross, and Consummation. The kids are really getting it and we already are seeing the fruit of their learning. We go slow and who knows how long it will take us to get through, but we are focusing more on what the math curriculum we use for our family homeschool calls "mastery' of a subject. I'm more concerned that these children the Lord has entrusted to us go out into the world having a full understanding of what we are teaching rather than us getting through a whole range of topics or several studies never having fully grasped one entirely. So, we go slow and that's fine.

This week we began looking at the verb 'observe' and what it means and how it applies to our study of the Bible. We learned about how observation helps us understand what is going on in a certain passage and gives us the big picture of scripture before we begin really digging into it. We also looked at some different options we have when we want to learn more about something. How usually we can look at a book, or watch a video or ask someone really knowledgeable on a subject. But what is most often the very best option is to go directly to the source and spend time with the source (whether it be a person, an animal or God himself). I could actually see the kids thinking through this process and begin to apply it for themselves as we went through other examples.

So, last night, we began the homework portion of this week's lesson. (I assign the homework and then usually they do it during their tutoring time.) So, they were drawing Creation for the board we are creating in the church. I began to go over again the days of Creation we had already learned and then began to read from the Bible about days 4-6. When we got to day 6 where God creates the animals that roam and crawl upon the earth the Holy Spirit totally took over and spole for me, asking the kids what, then, about dinosaurs?

(I had NOT at all planned to talk about dinosaurs...that is why I am sure the whole thing was Spirit lead and Spirit planned).

The kids scuffled and laughed a little under their breath as if I was crazy. Of course that didn't include dinosaurs! Was I crazy? Well, what does Genesis 1:24-25 say?


Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind: cattle and creeping thing and beast of the earth, each according to its kind”; and it was so. 25 And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.   

So...(my next question), if the Bible says God made every creature of the earth (the Spanish Bible version we use specifically uses the word 'todo' which means 'all.'), does that mean God made the dinosaurs on Day 6 of creation?

NO!

He didn't? What does "todo" mean- only a little or some? or ALL?

ALL!

ok...so did God make dinosaurs on the 6th day?

YES...

OK...now we are getting somewhere...

So then, did the dinosaurs live in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve?

NOOOO! more snickering and laughing under their breath...

Really? Where then did they live?

Wayyyy before Adam and Eve....

Well, when did God create Adam and Eve? Let's read some more...

Genesis 1:27

So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

So, when did God create man?

On the 6th day!

Ok...and remind me when God created the animals that roam the earth?

Oh yeah...that's right, the 6th day.

So, on the 6th day God created the beasts of the earth and man?

And dinosaurs were part of those beasts God created that day?

So, did Adam and Eve live together with the dinosaurs?

Uhhhh...ummmmm? Well, what about their bones? Dinosaurs bones are millions of years old...right?

The conversation went on and I wish I could tell you everything ended in total agreement. It was a really great discussion and I am so thankful to have the opportunity to teach God's Word to these kids, because they so need Truth in their lives. Absoulte Truth. Their lives are full of half-truths mixed with legend and wives-tales mixed with blatent lies. For the days when we have them with us, we have the priviliege of speaking absolute Truth into their lives. I loved their questions and the whole time was proof of several things to me.

1. The spiritual battle is real and evident. A situation occurred last night that we've chosen to keep to ourselves right now, that reminded us of just how fierce the battle is here. The darkness we are fighting against is ingrained through multiple generations. We see the evidence in father and son, mother and child, grandfather and grandson. We are bringing Truth to an area whose very idea of what Truth is is tainted and perverted.

2. I'm (we're) not fighting this battle against the darkness alone. The Holy Spirit has my (our) back and He steps in and I (we) just fall into the background- and that is just plain AWESOME!

3. The Lord's leading and guidance in selecting this exact curriculum to teach this year was painfully clear last night, especially near the end of the discussion time. This was in no way our choice - this was the Lord's plan from the get-go.

4. God's Word is strong enough - is more than enough- is just plain ENOUGH- to win this battle. I believe it!

While discouragedb y some things that happened and that I learned last night, I am greatly encouraged by the depth of the questions and the eagerness to discuss these important issues. For once, I wasn't having to ask kids to be quiet or find something to hold their attention- the Holy Spirt was present and there wasn't any room for ancyness in those kids. He had their attention! It was just about the coolest thing!

We still have so much ground to cover, but God is so good!

Please keep praying for the Lord's work here in Costa Rica. Please pray that this be true:

 89 Your word, LORD, is eternal;
it stands firm in the heavens.
90 Your faithfulness continues through all generations;
you established the earth, and it endures.
91 Your laws endure to this day,
for all things serve you.
92 If your law had not been my delight,
I would have perished in my affliction.
93 I will never forget your precepts,
for by them you have preserved my life.
94 Save me, for I am yours;
I have sought out your precepts.
95 The wicked are waiting to destroy me,
but I will ponder your statutes.
96 To all perfection I see a limit,
but your commands are boundless.

Psalm 119:89-96

as well as:

105 Your word is a lamp for my feet,
a light on my path
. Psalm 119:105

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Snack time

Following this post, Am I Crazy to homeschool?, I thought, for moment today, the answer might be YES!!! as Isabelle came to me complaining that Audrey would not stop eating the bookmark!

These are the moments to remember and laugh at, right? :)

Have a blessed day today!

Multitudes on Monday (on Tuesday)

Hear, O Lord, have mercy and be gracious to me! O Lord, be my helper!
     You have turned my mourning into dancing for me; You have put off my sackcloth and girded me with gladness,
     To the end that my tongue and my heart and everything glorious within me may sing praise to You and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever.  Psalm 30:10-12 (Amplified Bible)

Every day, thanks here and thanks there...thanks everywhere. My heart sings a new song a little bit more all the time. May I always and forever, O LOrd, give thanks...

#703-722
-walking arm-in-arm under the umbrella with my man
-walking to and from church
-black beans,rice,beef tips, peppers and onions
-popcorn Sundays
-laughing the evening away
-Phase 10 on a Sunday morning
-lazy Sunday monrings
-evening church services
-greeting every member of the church each week (love that about Latin America)
-unexpected gifts from a friend
-morning exercises - both for the body and the soul
-that no, none knoweth the day or the hour
-new interns
-softly falling rain in the morning
-deep restful sleep
-learning to love anew each day
-grace that covers all of me
-That You've given us the Source- Your Word- for all we need, for all we encounter, for all the questions...thank you...
-finding windows washed, shelves and ledges dusted, bathrooms cleaned, all by the man who has my heart
-Genesis-beginning- all new, all grace

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a journey never-ending...counting Your gifts, Your grace, forever thankful.

Sunday, May 22, 2011

McClain Family Pictures

Not too long ago, Potter's field Ministries sent their photographer down to snap some pictures of PFK Costa Rica kids and activities. While here, Dawn Marie took the time to take pictures of Pastor Phil and his family as well as the other leaders of the church and their families. This was a huge blessing to us as we have not had prfessional photos taken in, well, a long time...So, we took off to one of our favorite beaches for our photo session. Enjoy!!!













Matt and Ethan's "Man-date"

For some time now, the obvious has been looming over me...my precious baby boy is growing up. He is no longer in that sweet Toy Story stage (although his Buzz and Woody are never really very far from his bed even still...which brings a great sense of delight and joy to this momma's heart) and has entered what I must only assume is the pre-adolescent years. He is changing, sometimes as quickly as his moods change...He takes the care in his appearance- fixing his hair into a certain style, picking out the right clothes, the right shoes...and along the way, it seems his eyes are opening to the desperate condition of the world. At this point, what he sees is the sheer cruelty that exists at seemingly every corner. He recognizes the evil in people, sees the difference amongst those who follow Jesus and those who follow their own way. This has brought a series of hurts for him, as he sees how it affects him and his choice of friends. My heart breaks for him as he goes through this difficult season. I wish I could take it all away, yet I know how important it is that he learns to trust His heavenly Father through this.

All of this to say, Ethan's one wish for his birthday (other than to be with his best buddy Rob) was to have a guy day (my words "Man-date) with a buddy he has met here and a few friends he met at the marriage retreat we went to thsi month. One of the blessings the Lord has given us here is a community of believers. We may not see most of them often, but there is a significant community of North America believers in our surrounding area and the Lord has directed us to a few families that, Praise Jesus, have boys Ethan's age, that he clicked with. Finding North Americans to be friends with, is, as you might imagine, sometimes dificult, in a country not your own...

So, Ethan asked Matt if he could plan a day where Matt could take Ethan and his friends to this little ghetto-theme park we have here called Fantastic World. I say it like that because it is all these inflatables stuck together in this lot. There are a few water ones, and those are the main attractions. (I also say ghetto because they blow them up on the days they are open and deflate them the rest of the days (makes sense) but I just have this thing about germs and bacteria growing in the crease of plastic...uhh....yeah...I digress) Soooo....anyways...Matt organized the day with the dads and their boys and off they went. He took things to make sandwiches, water, cookies, and goodies like that for lunch. Ethan was so excited.

He invited five boys (from two families). So there 9 of them all together and they had a blast. It rained off and on throughout the day, but they didn't care. They spent most of their time on this huge water slide. After they got home Ethan began telling me some of the tricks they were doing on the slide...and I just had to stop him and remind him "Some things a momma doesn't need to hear!"  :)
*I'm sure you other mommas can relate to this*

So, here's a few pictures of the day. It was one of the happiest days for him in a long time. I'm thankful for our little ghetto-theme park, even if it is slighty unsanitary...   *smile*







Am I Crazy to homeschool?

Check out this post from Ann, whom I've grown to love and respect for her honest and transparent writing here as well as her daily blog posts.

I might very well be crazy, but Ann's post puts my craziness into much needed perspective today.

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Makeup posts...

I've got so much to share that has happened over the past several weeks so, if I can use my time wisely here, I'll be posting several picture posts today, because I love to share pics of our life happenings...

The next few pictures are of the wide array of creatures we see often around our home; some strange, some lovely, and some just, well, interesting.

Turquoise-browned Motmot

Two of them come to visit almost every morning. I had never seen them and I called Audrey out and she said, "Mom, they come everymorning. One sits on the wire and one sits on our fence!"

Little froggy peeking out of the drain hole of the pila sink (work sink)

I came closer and he backed down into the drain and I never saw him come out again.
Boat-billed flycatcher. We saw a large group of them in the trees near the estuary on Tamarindo Beach and then flying around the beach.

Little baby gecko checking out the time.
Boat-billed flycatcher on Playa Tamarindo
Collared Aracari- he's a member of the toucan family and said to be Guanacaste's toucan. He settled right down on the papaya tree just outside our back door.

Monday, May 16, 2011

Multitudes on Monday

My heart is full this morning. Full of the joy that only comes from my Savior. Knowing that His mercies are new every morning. Knowing his love is not dependant upon mine for Him. Knowing that no matter how much I love, His is so much more. Knowing He has a plan and it is perfect and mine is not. Knowing all this, trusting it, believing it, and becoming free of all the worry, guilt, stress...brings joy that fills me today.

On this journey of counting blessings, gifts in each day, the small stuff and the big stuff; my heart becomes less and less full of the yuck and the muck, and fuller- joyful, hopefully more like His.

#'s 668 - 686
-for the gift of 30+ kids to teach Your Word, O Lord, each week
-to be able to help children who otherwise have no help
-the ministry of Mike and Pam Rozell
-Potter's Field Ministries
-PFK interns
-reconciled relationships
-Daisy dog kisses
-early morning Isabelle smiles
-Izzy's sweet, loving character
-Ethan dancing
-Audrey- so sleepy at supper
-meatloaf and fried potatoes
-new waffle maker = YUMMY waffles!
-Master mix (More-with-less cookbook)
-beautiful birds of Costa Rica
-feeding hungry kids
-cuddling with Audrey
-reading a good book...or 2...or 3 :)
-Abigail's story of wisdom and peace



and the greatest gift...the One that never stops giving...the One with whom all giving began...
#687  Jesus Christ

Monday, May 9, 2011

Ethan's birthday pics

We started the day with our family tradition of singing "This is day!" to the birthday boy...then we presented him with a few gifts...I had ordered him the next discs of Jonathan Park and our church brought them down in March. They also brought down a super cool Star Wars Lego book that he loved! Then we had picked up a few special treats that we don't get here very often...like Dr. Pepper, a Hershey's chocolate bar and a large can of Pringles chips :)

We're heading off to breakfast at our favorite restaurant, because that is Ethan's wish for the day!