Baptisms- Praise the Lord!

I have such a praise to share with you all!

This past Sunday, December 2, 2007, both churches- Tejarcillos and Los Guido- held a combined baptismal service at a pool very near Los Guido in Patarra.

There were some 60 people baptized that day- Praise the Lord!

And we are so excited to share with you that Ethan was also baptized that day as well! We have been talking with him about baptism for many months, but we had left the decision up to him. A few weeks ago he said he was ready to be baptized and not long after that discussion we realized the church was planning to hold a service- Ethan said he was ready!

So, this past Sunday, Pastor Rogelio baptized Ethan right here in Costa Rica!

Isn't God so good?

Here is a picture of right before. Ethan is in the pool with Rogelio and Marvin and Matt walked him out.


This picture was taken right after.


Daddy and Ethan sharing a moment after Ethan's baptism!



I also wanted to share pictures of Pastor Marvin's wife, Zoila's parnets. We have asked for prayer for them before. They recently accepted the Lord and were both baptized this past Sunday as well.
This is Zoila's mom Panchita after being baptized. Meg led her to the Lord and walked her out


This is Zoila's dad- Rogelio led him to the Lord.



We serve such an awesome and amazing God! We can never imagine the ways he will bless us! He loves us so much!

La Feria

I have been wanting to blog about my weekly trip to the feria for some time now. La feria means "farmer's market" in spanish.

Every Saturday morning I wake up about 6 am (it seems early, I know, for a Saturday, but it is an hour later than I normally wake up during the week). Some days, Meg and I walk "the hills" (which are actually more like small mountains than any hill I've ever seen)and then sometimes we also walk around the walking track that is next to the lot that the feria is in. After walking, I head to the feria. I have a smile on my face the moment I walk through those gates! I am amazed at the beautiful rainbow of colors that fill my eyes and the scents that fill my nose. There are booths and booths of fruits and vegetables- some very familiar like red and golden delicious, granny smith (Ethan's favorite- and what he takes in his lunch every day!) and even fugi apples (manzanas), blackberries (moras), strawberries (fresas), pineapple (pina), lettuce- several different varieties (lechuga), cabbage- red and green (repollo), cucumbers (pepinos), cilantro (culantro)and potatoes (papas). Then there are some things very unfamiar and very fun to try like marmachinos ("snot balls"- sounds yummy, huh?)- they look so cool- they are round and a brilliant red and have little spikey things all over them and you peel the outside and inside is something similar to the consistency of a peeled green grape and tastes somewhat similar as well, but different at the same time...some say they go down as smooth as snot...eeewwww...Ticos love 'em! A few weeks ago, I bought a papaya for about $0.60! It was pretty good- I'm not sure I'd buy one again - but worth trying for that price! There are so many interesting things I have yet to try...Probably the best thing we have tried is these amazingly tiny bananas- banana datilos. They are about as long as any one of my fingers and about as thick as a Pizza Hut breadstick. They look just like miniature bananas, but the taste is much sweeter. Audrey LOVES them!!!! She takes one in her lunch every day for school! I can buy about 12 for about $0.75!

It took me almost a month and a half to get the nerve up to actually go to the feria. After we learned numbers and practiced money in our conversation class (and actually practiced buying things from the feria thanks to the girls plastic food that I brought in as visual aids!!!) I felt fairly confident- so I headed out! I have been almost every weekend since!

After I get home, I take all my goodies into the laundry room sink and wash everything in bleach water to sanitize and kill any bugs or parisites. There are some pretty dangerous ones- so I don't take any risks...That whole praocess takes an hour or two depending on how much I've bought. I wash everything for at least 15 minutes- some things longer than that though. Then I dry everything out and store it in its appropriate place.

So, today, I took a picture of my haul and kept track of exactly what I spent and exactly how much I came back with. You all know how much I love a great deal - and one of the reasons I love going so much is because everything is so good and it is such a great deal! You decide:



Here's the pic of my haul- beautiful, huh???

Now, here's a list of my fares:
3 fugi apples, 6 granny smith apples, 3 golden delicious apples, 6 tangerines, 1 large head caesar lettuce, 1 head "American" lettuce, 9 potatoes, 1 cucmber, 4 ears of corn, 1 bag of guanabana pulp (the best juice in the world!!!!), 1 large pineapple, 1 head of cabbage, 1 bunch of radishes and one bunch of banano datils (those little bananas)...38 items for a for a grand totla of just under $10.00!!!!

Pretty cool, huh?

East White Oak mission team

Hi! Just a quick note to let you know that we have a team here this week. Two teams actually...first time for Mark and Meg. A team from East White Oak church in Carlock, Illinois arrived Friday and will be here through Saturday morning. It is only Tuesday, but WOW! is all I can say for the ways God is using this team and the ways he is working through them! I will blog more but I have a million things to do today and not near enough time to do them...Matt and I spent the day away from school yesterday to go into Tejarcillos with the team for a workl project. It was a day of hard work and difficult things to see. But oh the things the Lord is teaching Matt and I and the ways he is directing us. It seems that the Lord is revealing to both Matt and I at least a small part of his plan for our family at the same time. (More will come about that as well later...)

So, please pray for the EWO team as well as the New Hope Fellowship and West Valley Bible Church team. The second team is made of of Mark's parents, another couple and a the son-in-law of the second couple. How fun to get to know Mark's parents. They have been so encouraging already. They are here to assist with the organizing and wrapping of the over 200 presents for the members of the discipleships groups. The next few weks begin a time of celebration, as each group will have their own Christmas party. Each memeber will receive a gift- for most the only gift they will receive and some - maybe the first ever received.

Pray for stamina for the days remaining- the days have been long and tiring but it is the kind of tired you want to be after a day of serving the Lord.

Anyway, you can also pray tonight for Matt- he will be giving the evening devotion for the teams. Pray that God gives him the words to say and that in all things God receives the glory.

PS: Check out the website www.clfcostarica.com for the team blogs and pictures :)

Happy Thanksgiving

I woke up this morning and thought, "Hmmm, Happy Thanksgiving?" It just doesn't feel like it...Walking home from school in the warmth of the summer (it is casi casi [almost] summer here) sun and thought, "This is just strange- it does not feel like Thanksgiving!" then we got home and I started preparing the food I had volunteered to bring for dinner with our team and started getting homesick. I was trying to make corn casserole (We found some Jiffy cornbread mix stowed away in Meg's cabinet- Praise the Lord!- because you cannot buy it anywhere here!) and it was not getting done and I was also trying to make Oreo pudding without cool whip- because that, too is not available anywhere here- except the can kind...and we all know that is just not the same...So, anyway, I am getting worried about the casserole being very jiggly in the middle after over 1 hour of cooking and also about how the Oreo dessert will turn out with my substitution of whipping cream instead of cool whip...and then we are running a little late...But, God is so good and full of grace. After we walked across the courtyard to Mark and Meg's where we were having dinner, I walked in the door and the smell of Thanksgiving filled my nostrils and I felt so at peace. Our friend Carol had made homemade noodles, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, we had rolls, somewhat like green bean casserole (without the fried onions- can't find those here...) sweet potatoes...pretty much the basic Thanksgiving meal- even turkey (Carol bought one for the tune of about $30- let me tell you it was worth it)! I loved it! It felt so good to have all the good eats!

Meg is in the states visiting her mom, so it was Mark and the girls, Melinda and her roommate Noemy, Alex, Stan and Carol, Matt and I and the kids and a teacher friend of mine, Alejandra. It was really a great day. After lunch, we called back home to talk with our family- which was so good!

We cannot really put into words what it is like to be away from everyone we love and care about- those of you who have been our support for so long...it is tough.

Today the Lord showed us that no matter where we are in the world, how far away we are from those we love the most, he will always provide brothers and sisters in Christ to demonstrate his love for us. We had such a good time getting to know each other. Matt and the kids enjoyed a good game of Clue (the kids have realized their fascination with this game - just like I have always been ;) It was really neat to have fellowship with Ticas (Costa Ricans) as well.

We miss you and love you all. We thank you for your prayers for us pray you find comfort knowing that God is providing for us family and showing his love to us through so many of his children every day! We are thankful for all of you and for those the Lord has allowed us the opportunity to share this part of our lives with here.

Happy Thanksgiving!

By the way, the corn casserole turned out fabulous and Ethan said the dirt pudding was the best he'd ever tasted! WOHOO!!!

Thank you Lord for this day. I am so thankful for you Lord, my Creator and my Savior. I am so thankful for your Son Jesus and for the way you manifest yourself into our daily lives. I am thankful for the feelings of "home" and "family" today. Father, I praise you for the great things you are doing in Costa Rica, in so many places in Costa Rica, and in so many hearts of those around me and even those I don't know, but have only heard their stories. Thank you for living through my children. Thank you for their friends in school. Thank you for the light in their eyes- you reflected in them. I love you and I trust you in all things. In Christ's name I pray, Amen.

Volcan Arenal

We spent the weekend at the Los Lagos resort, which is located at the base of Volcan Arenal (an active volcano here in Costa Rica). The volcano is active, but we stayed on the INactive side. The scenery was beautiful. Although the clouds hid the volcano until the bus ride home, it was a wonderful weekend. The hotel owns a massive amount of land so there was so much to do and see right there on sight. It was great. There were many, many pools- both cold water and those fed by the hot springs that run from the volcano. (KJ- you would LOVE these pools!!!) So the girls and I spent most of our time in the pools (the hot springs ones ;). There was a large water slide in the large hot springs pool and all of us enjoyed it. The boys enjoyed the cool water pools and the slides for those. And Matt and Ethan both conquered the Canopy- the zip line that runs through the hotel property. I have a ton of pictures that I do not have time to post right now- they will come later. For now, here are a few.
This was taken on the trip there. We stopped at a Catholic church and this was one of many shrub sculptures that were in the gardens surrounding the church.



Here are a few of Ethan on the zip line...

The road you see in the picture runs through the grounds. It is amazing the areas they went through!

Can you believe this? He loved it!





Mateo having fun flying like Superman!


Here is a picture of one of the many animals that freely roam the grounds. There were so many of these howler monkeys. You could hear them making their "howl" during the day and the night. They were pretty cool!


Here is another animal that (not so freely-thankfully!) roamed the grounds. There was a crocodile farm where many crocs hung out. We were actually standing about two feet away from this one (behind a nice and secure chain link fence...)


There was also a frog farm and butterfly garden- sorry no pics yet...BUt the kids loved it!


It was a much needed respite from school and our small cozy apartment. I was reminded of the amazing imagination of our God- the vast expanse of all creation and the beauty and magnificence of this land he has given us to live on.

This was the view from our back patio. Amazing!



On the way home, we stopped at a restaurant that attracts many tourists because there are literally hundreds of iguanas just hanging out around the restaurant and the surrounding area. It was a lot of fun and the kids loved it. You could actually get close enought to touch the iguanas - and some actually did! Ethan and Isabelle were actually brave enough to feed one- I'll post pictures later...here are a few for now!

These kids got close enough to touch this iguana!


This is one of hundreds roaming around.



A weekend away like this has always been few and far between for us- so the ones we get are always memorable! We are so blessed to have this opportunity to live in such a beautiful country! Gracias a Dios!

I took this on the way home. What a beautiful way to end the day!

Pictures

Hi! Once again I thought I'd update with some random pictures of several different events lately: ENJOY!!! :)

GOOD NEWS!!! Audrey has decided she is ready to go to the potty all by herself and has also decided that she does not want to wear diapers anymore...Praise the Lord! So, we recently had a "potty party" to celebrate this momentous occasion in her life :) (And to celebrate the extra money we'll save now that we are officially free of buying diapers!!!) We had cupcakes and Isabelle made a special card for her little sister and Audrey even got new big girl panties!!! The following picture is her with her new undies and the card Isabelle made her.



The next several pictures are from a couple weeks ago. Matt and I took the kids to a park a few blocks from our apartment and spent the morning there. There is a playground, soccer field and a very large area full of beautiful trees, flowers and lots of ducks. It was a relaxing and fun morning.

This is Ethan being adventurous and trying to get as close to the ducks as possible. He is about 2 feet from this one.



What can I say about our little girl other than isn't she beautiful? I LOVE this picture of her :)




Here are some monkeys we saw lurking in this mini tropical forest. :)



I love this picture , too :) Across the pond there were about 6 ducklings. A couple of them would occasionally wonder off and the park guard would go and get the little one and take him back to his mother :) It was very sweet.



This was taken at the edge of the park. You can see the streets of San Francisco (our little community) in the background.



This last picture was taken in Los Guido. I just love the way the clouds are settled around the mountains. This is actually just outside of Los Guido- there is no road like this one in Los Guido. It is amazing that you actually drive for awhile on a road that is barely recognizable as a road due to the enormous potholes amidst the mud, and then you turn a corner and come upon this paved, lined road that actually dead ends. It is crazy...and something that you have to see to believe!



We are so blessed to be able to see bits of such beautiful creation right outside our door. From time to time I long for a view of the turning leaves and golden fields of corn and wheat that make Indiana home, but I love being able to see these beautiful mountains every day! Just today as Audrey and I were walking homefrom school, we had a great view of the mountains from the top of the hill. It looked as if God was smiling right in a small valley- the suns rays were shining right in the middle of two peaks and it was so beautiful. Our God has such an awesome imagination to have created things as beautiful as this :)

Have a great weekend!

Thank you Father for allowing us such beautiful creation to live in every single day!

Sharon Baptist / Christian Light Team

Thought I'd post some about the team that was here this past week.

Here's the team.


It was actually two teams in one. They came from Sharon Batist Church in Savannah, Tennesse and Christian Light Foundation (our sending agency) in Jacksonville, Florida. Some of the team served in the three day medical clinic in Los Guido. Over 200 people came throught the clinic (which also included a pharmacy and everything was absolutely free of charge). Their physical needs were assessd and instructions and prescriptions were given. Each person that came through the clinic heard the gospel message. Many came to know the Lord through the sharing of "The Bridge."



The rest of the team walked the streets of Los Guido sharing the gospel through "The Bridge" illustration and passing out food bags- "regalos de Dios." The "gringos" were paired up with teens from the leadership team. The "gringos" presented the "regalos de Dios" and the teens shared the gospel.

Through the clinic and the street evangelism over 200 came to know the Lord! Praise the Lord!



This picture is of three nine year olds praying with one girl as she recieves Christ after hearing The Bridge (the rest of the family listens on the steps to others teens as they, too share the gospel.)

Matt and I were able to spend part of every day the team was here with them. We were even to spend all day Thursday walking the streets with the evangelism team.

One of the most amazing parts of the week for me was seeing these teens that I've known for a year and a half so boldly professing Christ to people they had never met. They boldly approached each door and began sharing with all who would listen the saving message of the God's purpose for our lives (John 10:10-abundant life and John 3:16-eternal life).

Watching these teens share so boldly really encourages me and inspires me. (To name just a few of those on the leadership team: Valedia, Mariana, Daniela, Jhorie, Isaura, Javier, David, Aracely, Roger, Memo, Ariel, Jessica, Vitza, Evelyn, Ana, Ericka, Michelle, Melissa, and Michelle- these last three being only 9 years old!!)

The day was very encouraging for me in that it helped me remember the reason I am in school right now. I need the Spanish language. I need to learn the words that I need to share the life changing message of Jesus Christ with the many many lost souls in Costa Rica. To be able to go door to door like that was such an amazing feeling. There was so much excitement watching the realization come across the faces of those who in one moment were lost and in the next moment were found! It is such a privelege to bring the gospel to those who have never heard it. The Bridge illustration works so well because it brings each person to the point of a choice.

My prayer in sharing this week with you is that you too will feel the great privelege God has given you to share the gospel with those around you. The lost are everywhere-in the country you live in, in your state, in your city, in your neighborhood, right next door to you, even in your own house.

I encourage and challenge you to become bold in Christ Jesus your Lord and Savior. I encourage you to begin today sharing Jesus Christ with those around you.
Here is a picture of Pastor Marvin teaching the Bridge illustration to the church- yes- to the church! The past four weeks of sermons in both churches - Pastor Marvin and Pastor Rogelio have taught the entire congregations how to share The Bridge with others. The people are on fire and ready to and willing to share the plan God has for each one of us.



I pray that if you are reading this right now and you have not made the choice to confess your sins, repent of them and make the choice to follow Christ and give your life to him- I pray you do so now.

If you have not chosen eternal life with Jesus Christ- will you make that choice today?

Medical Mission Team this week

Hi! I thought I'd post tonight to ask you for prayer for the team that is here this week. They arrive tomorrow afternoon and will be here until Friday. The team includes several nurses and doctors and Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday they will be holding a free medical clinic in Pastor Marvin's house in Los Guido. Please pray for the doctors to be of great physical help to those in need of medical care. Each person that is seen will also hear the gospel and have the opportunity to meet one-on-one with someone who they can pray with and share with. Please join us in prayer for a harvest of souls to be reapt these next few days. The clinic is open to the entire city, which includes over 40,000 people.

The rest of the team will be walking the streets of Los Guido handing out food bags and sharing the gospel. We will be specifically targeting areas of Los Guido that are unreached. Please that as the gospel is shared both during the medical clinic and also as the food bags are handed out, hearts will be broken and veils will be lifted as the life-changing message of Jesus Christ is shared to those who have never heard.

Pray for protection from the enemy specifically as we walk the streets of Los Guido passing out food. Pray for the translators who will be used by God to deliver his message to the people of this city. Pray for the doctors and nurses who will assess hundreds of people in these three short days. Pray for strength and stamina for those delivering food, for the doctors and nurses, for Marvin and Zoila and their family and Rogelio and Neris and their family. RPay for our team as well, as it takes a great amount of energy to keep up with the busy schedule of a team like this. Matt and I will be in Los Guido all three days walking with the streets with the team. Pray for our children this week as well.

I am not sure when the next post will be so I wanted to make sure to post these prayer requests tonight.

Dios te bendiga!

Mommy and Belle- classmates?

I had to share this with you before I forgot about it...

The girls love to have their hair braided and they ask me almost every morning to braid their hair. Unfortunately there is rarely time in the morning rush for me to sit down and braid their hair.

Fortunately, we have found some time to spare on a few occasional mornings and the girls have had braids for school.



Don't they look cute? :)

So, this week, Isabelle worked really hard to get ready quickly so I'd have time to do her braids (she works really well with a time limit and a goal so we are trying to allow her the opportunity to meet goals in this way and see the positive outcome of her hard work and good effort.) Anyway, to the really cute story. I braided Isabelle's hair and thought it looked pretty decent. (Sam (my little brother) never really liked me to mess with his hair, so I never had much practice doing girls hair growing up...so, now I get to practice on my girls- which sometimes ends up being a good thing- when the style looks good and sometimes it isn't so good...kinda like my cooking...but that's another story...)

So, I decided I'd try braids in my hair...I use to wear them all the time and I haven't in well...a long time. My hair is long now- about the length it was when Matt and I met- so it is a good length for braids. So I get done with the braids and walk out and Ethan says "Wow Mom- you look really cute! You like you could be in kindergarten with Isabelle!"

I had to laugh, although I am not sure how to take it really...anyway...it was cute and it will be one of those stories to retell to his future wife one day! He is so sweet and kind. He always has something nice to say to me and never passes up a moment to compliment me or try to encourage me. He is very thoughtful. And SMART! Report cards came out yesterday. Ethan received 4 A+'s, 1 A and 1 B+ ! He also received "Muy Bien" or "Excelente!" for everything in Spanish! He also made the weekly school newsletter for his progress in Spanish! He is really thriving in Costa Rica!

So...here's the picture of my kindergarten debut...(es una broma! it's a joke) Matt took pictures of our hair and Audrey wanted to be with us- she didn't want her hair done that day!






Have a great weekend!

PICTURES!!!

HI! I realize I haven't had very many pictures on here lately...I wish you could understand the time it takes to blog what little I do get done...but- all I can do is what I can do...

So, due to the lack of pictures I've posted up to this point, this post includes many from the past month or so. I tried to caption most of them...

Enjoy... :)

The following are from the Museo de Ninos:



Matt and I are demonstrating our teamwork here. This was in a free play area that was actually supposed to be only for the kids, but we couldn't resist trying it. We actually got asked to let the other kids play with the toys :) OOPS! It was in a friendly way, though :)



The coolest thing about this museum is that everything you see - I mean EVERYTHING!- is hands on. Kids can pick up ANYTHING they see. They can play with it, wear it sit on it...the kids had a blast. Ethan tried on the pirate costume:)



There was a trailer that detailed fire hazards and this fire truck and lots of information to read and look at.


This picture is solely for those of you in our immediate McClain family- this is "the face" that appears in all pictures of our gatherings. Someone (either Rog, Matt or Mark) always makes this face. Matt was having fun taking these pictures with these lifesize cutouts. It is quite funny actually!






This was such a cool area in the museum. Everything in this room was at crazy angles and our equilibrium was way off. It was really cool, but kinda made you feel sick to your stomach at the same time! We are really hanging on to keep from falling over!



There was a real airplane (a very small plane!) but the kids could get in it and pretend to be the captain. The girls had fun with the new friends we made. We went with some friends and the kids had a good time together. Can you find Ethan in this picture?



There was this saddle and you could play with lassos and real toys from the history of Costa Rica. It will be fun to go back and visit multiple times as we grow in our understanding of the language. Of course everything was in Spanish so we do not know all the history of the exhibits yet...regardless it was still a great time!



I don't know if I mentioned it before but the cost was SOOO cheap! We rode the bus there and it cost about $1.00 for the all of us. The museum was about $1.50 each for the kids and it was $2.25 for adults. How cheap!!! We took a taxi home for about $4.00. We ate lunch also- but our friends treated us- it was a great day!

"I waited patiently"

"I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the muck and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord." Psalm 40: 1-3

"Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him." Psalm 62:5

I write today with a new song in my mouth. As I write today my feet are set on the solid rock of Jesus Christ. My soul is at rest and my hope comes only from him.

I thank all of you have written and called to encourage and lift us up this week. While the battle continues to rage, we have felt some of the darkness lift. I was reminded of these two scriptures today from a friend back in Frankfort. These scriptures hung on the mirror in our bathroom for two years. I had forgotten to take them down before we moved and our friend who is living in our home until it sells wrote to encourage me with these scriptures as well as tell me how they have encouraged her. How refreshing to be reminded this morning of just how very stable our God is. We serve an incredibly capable and mighty God. There is nothing- NOTHING that he cannot do. I am filled with joy today to become reacquainted with these favorite scriptures.

Thank you Father for your precious word.

I want to share Psalm 91 with you this morning. Thank you - so many of you - who pray diligently for us. We feel your prayers! We pray for you as well- please know that!

"He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, 'He is my refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust.' Surely he will save you from the fowler's snare and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday. A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. You will only observe with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked. If you make the Most High your dwelling- even the Lord, who is my refuge- then no harm will befall you, no disaster will come near your tent. For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. You will tread upon the lion and the cobra; you will trample the great lion and the serpent. 'Because he loves me,' says the Lord, 'I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him and show him my salvation.'" Psalm 91:1-16

Father, thank you for hiding me under the shelter of your feathers, thank you for the refuge I find under your wings. Thank you for the safe place you provide me when the night is full of terror and the day is full of arrows. Thank you for the promise I find in your word- that you have sent your angels to cover me, that you recognize the darkness around me yet you will never allow me more than what I am able to flee from. Thank you for being with me in trouble and for delivering me! Praise be to you and glory to your name, Father! I love you. Amen.

"I have overcome the world"

"These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world." John 16:33

I wrote yesterday to ask for prayer for those families at school who have been struck with illness or injury.

Today, I come again seeking for prayer...if you are willing, pray without ceasing for the students at ILE (the language school).

This morning, 19 women and myself met to pray, as we do every week. This week it was so evident the spiritual battle we are in and the darkness hanging over the school. Not a single one of us has not been attacked in some way- either personally or through family members this week in difficult, painful even life-threatening ways.

The 20 of us this that met this morning are not the only ones either, to have felt the attacks of the enemy. Many more families have been affected with illness and difficult - very difficult- situations.

I want to be very careful because as I write this blog. I try to share transparently with you. I try to give you an accurate glimpse of our life here. I also try to maintain a positive upbeat blog- you know me :) But I share this today with you only because we need those of you that read this blog to lift us in daily prayer. That has been my main prayer request since this journey began for us almost one year ago. I want no glory to come to the enemy. I want you to look to this and see what the Lord will do and the ways he will be glorified. But I do want you to know that life as a missionary in langauge school carries with it some heavy enemy fire. I have yet to meet one perfect person here, not one. All fall short of the glory of God. Yet we are all here trying to learn a language so that we may take the gospel to all nations and making disciples in countries around the world.

Jesus says of the trials we will face, "I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world!"

Jesus Christ is the victor of all things in this world. We cannot escape the effects of siin in this world and therefore we cannot escape tribulation and trials. This I know. I also know that God has equipped us with the necessary armor to fight this battle (Eph 6).

Paul says in Romans 8:37-39, "In all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

I ask you to fall on your knees tonight for those aflicted, broken hearted and broken down; pray for all those in language school with us. Some we are beginning to know well, others we only know by face. Regardless, we are all in this together and we are all bonded together as a family in Christ.

Father, I come to you now weary and burdened for my brothers and sisters facing terrible trouble and illness; distraught for the evil that exists all around us- for the blatant displays of sin that are thrust into our daily lives and the lives of our children. But Father, it is through you that we can accomplish all things. It is through our weakness that you are made strong. It is through our moments of complete and utter dependance on you that you are glorified and it is to that end that I live my life. It is for that reason I give you my life. It is for that reason that I can rejoice now in you and because of you. It is because you live that I rejoice- even now in the midst of so much trouble and darkness- because you have overcome the world! You have won! Even when for us the battle looks so intimidating and way too much for us to handle- you know the end and the end is victory for you and victory for those that love you and know you! So I lift my brothers and sisters to you now Lord, confident of you, the Ultimate Victor! Thanks you Father for what you will teach us and the way you will be glorified through all the trouble we encounter in this world!

Feliz Cumpleanos to you!

Hi! I had to write today even though I just wrote yesterday...Today is Eli's 14th birthday. Eli is Pastor Marvin's daughter. So, this afternoon on the way to Los Guido from Tejarcillos, our girls wanted to sing to Eli. So, we sang her happy birthday in English first then sang it in Spanish (my kids know the words in Spanish without missing a beat- I however cannot seem to remember them from time to time singing it!)
Anyway, the point is it was so funny when we got to singing it in Spanish. Audrey starts belting it out a few seconds after she hears Isabelle and Ethan singing and she gets the first part of every line: "Feliz Cumpleanos..." but then ends the line with "to you!" Then she switched to "Happy Cumpleanos! Feliz!" It was so funny and sweet and such a true example of what happens to your brain when you try to learn another language!

We are still trying to get in the groove on Sundays. We so deisre to be able to see everyone in both churches but our family just cannot take the long day. We have been going to Tejarcillos in the morning and then straight to Los Guido for lunch. Then we catch a taxi home. I have started to stay in the nursery in Tejarcillos, partly because Audrey isn't comfortable without me and party because I love the connections I have with the kids in there. What an adjustment it is though from the comfortable nurseries we have in the states. Let's just say that God is definetly giving me the opportunity to be humbled and not worry about my comfort or even that of my children. We are so geared in the states to make ourselves comfortable and especially our kids. But it is amzing the things kids can do without and how amazingly healthy they remain amidst such poor living conditions. Praise be to God that our kids do not seem to care or even notice the difference in the way we used to live and the way we live now. They don't seem to care that the places we go where all of our friends are have dirt floors that they have to sit on the floor, that we are always dirty it seems...I watch Ethan in amazement as he goes straight for Elvis each week and they play together as if language isn't an issue. Why do we adults make it so hard? I watch these little kids who have no food share what they have to eat with our kids- just because they want our children to know that they are loved! I watch all these little kids shout out "Audrey!" (something like: or- dray) "Isabelle! (ESS-A-Bel)" and "Ethan!(E-TAN)" I love it! I love seeing my kids in the mix of all these beautiful dark skinned children making mine feel comfortable and part of their lives.



This picture was taken the day the church took God's word to the streets of Los Guido. Every one walked from Marvin's house to La Finca reading scripture and the kids from each Sunday School class held the banner. Look closely and you can see Ethan, Isabelle and Audrey mixed in with the other kids holding the banner. Isn't that beaustiul?

God, how do you do it? How have you given us such humble and loving children? How did you know that you would bring us here and our kids would be so loved and offer such love back...I could never have imagined it to be this way. I cannot imagine what you have planned for my children and what lessons you will teach them through this time in their lives.I love you Lord Jesus!

In the Battle

I write this post today to ask that you prayer specifically for health, safety and protection for the students at ILE (the language school we are attending). This past week a nasty stomach virus has srpead through the school sending several people to the hospital for several days or more. Sometimes it manifests itself differently but mostly it is a massive headache that is not affected by any medication along with high fever and vomitting. It has affected several families, including Audrey in our family (praise the Lord it only lasted for 24 hours in her). Please pray for the Lord to release the students of this virus. The enemey will use everything he can to distract us from learning this language. It is tough- really tough!- to be in school trying to learn this language. The enemy is relentless in his pursuit to derail us from sweet fellowship with the Lord. Praise the Lord that He relentlessly pursues us - that He chooses us - and that intercedes for us on our behalf!

Also this week, many families have injuries and experiences where the evil that exists here was very powerfully felt. Please join us in asking the Lord for protection and safety.

Our family has had a pretty great week! We had an evening out Thursday and went to McDonalds and let the kids play for awhile and then had ice cream! It was DELICIOUS!!!! Alex went with us and we had a great time! The kids are loving having Alex here. I think they've claimed him as a new uncle! :) HE is great with them and the beg for the "Tickle Monster" to come out! He usually leaves tired because they have worn him out!! He seems to enjoy it though ;)

We are looking forward to next month. We have several teams coming and we are looking forward to meeting them and reconnnecting with old friends! Please pray for these teams as they prepare to serve the Lord here next month.

Also please kleep the Price family in your prayeres. Bill and Joanie and their 5 girls will be moving here in early December. Our kids are anxiously awaiting their arrival :) Please pray for Bill and Joanie as they begin final preparations for their move and continue to connect with prayer and financial partners. Please pray for this transition time in their life that is both exciting and difficult at the same time.

Praise the Lord for his mercies that are new every morning!

Museo de Niños

Today was a great day! I usually start my days around 5 am- today I slept in until about 5:45! WOOHOO! I got up and got ready to go walking with Meg. Our weekend routine is to walk together on Saturday and Sunday mornings, then I go to the Feria (today she came with me) and then one of us usually goes to get cinnamon bread for our families. Walking in the mornings make s me feel so refreshed! I wish I had the time every morning to do that...un dia...

But after I got home and we finished up breakfast, we all got ready and headed off to a local park and met up with another family from school. We all road the bus together downtown- which was a fun experience- and surprisingly easy :) We set off walking downtown through the "Walking Mall" which is a long strip mall that you literally walk on the street through. The street has been closed down and it was a neat area. Our desired destination was El Museo de Niños- The Children's Museum. After a longer than expected walk, but one full of interesting sites of San Jose, we found the bright yellow castle like building called the Museum.

We paid our ridiculously cheap admission (less than $10 for the entire family!)and entered the museum. The people were so nice and many spoke English very well. The museum was packed with great things to do and see. Of course it was all in Spanish, but it was entertaining and exciting. It felt so NORMAL!!! to be at a museum with our kids! They got along great with the kids from the family we went with and it was just a very fun morning!

Our friend started up a conversation with a museum worker and we ended up waiting for the workers break and he took us to a great little restaurant with really great food!

By the time lunch was over, it was of course raining, so we took a taxi home, which proved to be fun and a great way to see downtown. I was happy to recognize many sites form my two trips to the Clinica Biblica.

God showed us a glimpse of normality today. For two weeks now, we have taken Saturday mornings and done something fun with the kids. It has proven to be a system that is working. Today was a really big step for us to venture out into the city. It still intimidates both Matt and I to get out someplace with the kids, not knowing very much Spanish. But we are learning and growing more adventurous as the weeks go by. It helps to have friends that feel the same way we do and also want to fight that "trapped feeling" we seem to have.

We praise the Lord for giving us friendships and a day like today!

On a side note, Matt and I had our first date since we've moved here this past Wednesday. It was really the first venture out into the city for us. A friend from school offered to babysit and of course we took her up on it! So we went out for a few hours in the afternoon and into the evening. We took a taxi to a nearby mall and walked around for awhile. On Wednesdays, movie theatres run a two-for-one special- so decided to see a movie that is new here- Evan Almighty. It was really great- you should see it! It only cost us $4.00 for both of us to see the movie and 2 drinks and big bucket of popcorn was about $5.00! What a cheap date! It was good to be together. The evening didn't go exactly as planned and we had to endure a very rude and obnoxious taxi driver on the way there, but all in all it was good! It was exciting for me to see that it CAN be done- finding things, getting to (almost) the place you are desiring to go, and being able to communicate with limited knowledge of the language.

I praise you Father for some normalcy in this week!

Missing tooth :)

HI! Had to make a quick post tonight before beginning my studying...

Ethan's top front left tooth came out tonight (finally!). He had been working it for more than a week and it had been hanging on...but it just wouldn't come out. So tonight I told him it was coming out- I pulled hard twice and out it came! So, here are some pictures. The permanent tooth is already halfway through!

Isn't he the cutest kid in the world?

(Yes, I know his hair is long!!! But he likes it that way ;]

And actually- I do too ;)

Love,
Brooke :)

Quincinera

Last weekend there was a special celebration in the Los Guido church. It was called a Quincinera and it is the celebration of when a girl turns 15. The celebration is HUGE in Latin America- almost like a wedding. The girl wears a beautiful dress (that is sometimes rented or even made by someone in the family) and it usually is a huge party.

Alejandra is on the Los Guido leadership team and is the first girl in the church to celebrate her 15th birthday. The adult ministry team decided to celebrate this special day with her and her family. The families in the church cannot even afford presents on their birthdays (some don't even know when there birthday is) and a celebration like this is totally out of the question because of the cost that is usually involved. So this was very special for her and her family.

The celebration was a little different than the normal quincinera in that it was thrown by the church and held at the church so the very nature of the celebration was to give thanks to the Lord for this young girl's life and for her love for the Lord.

There were many girls from the leadership team that read special scriptures to Alejandra and there was a special time for her mother to pray for her and give thanks to God. Alejandra also had a special time of sharing her thanks and prayers and praises with the Lord.

It was emotional for her and her family and I found myself shedding tears, even though I couldn't understand alot of what was being said. It was emotional for me simply because what I could not understand through words I could feel through the emotion in Alejandra's mother's voice and her own voice. I was looking ahead at the day when my own daughter's will be 10...15...25...and I cried with the mom and gave thanks to God that He has given Matt and I three beautiful children to love and cherish.

Alejandra looked beautiful and I thank the Lord we could be a part of it. Here are a few pictures of the day.

Thank you Father for the chance to invest in the lives of these youth that live broken unfair painful lives. Thank you Father for your Spirit that lives inside of them and that brings smiles to their faces. Thank you for Alejandra and her life and her witness. Thank you for this special day in her life and for allowing us the privilege to be here to witness it. I thank you for the plans you have for her life and so many others in Los Guido and Tejarcillos. I pray God that you deliver these precious youth from the evil and the darkness that surrounds their lives. I praise you for your power and your Spirit and your goodness that shines through even the darkest areas of Costa Rica. Thank you Father for your son Jesus. Amen.

Introducing Cereal

I promised pictures of Cereal and I have finally gotten them on the computer and here they are! They were both taken not long after we got her. You can see how little she was when we first got her- she fit in one side of her food tray!

The other two pictures were taken just before we left. The one of Ethan and my mom I just LOVE! I had to post it so I could also talk about just how smart my son is :) He is learning to read and it is so amazing so I have to tell everyone about it! HE got a 100% on his spelling test last week! He is such a great kid! He started soccer today and it was so much fun watching him help defend the goal! He had a great time but he did ask me not to talk to him from the sidelines! I was just excited for him!! What can I say?

Then, finally the other picture is of the kids last tractor ride with their Pappy! I love this picture, too so I thought I'd put it on here!

Things are well today! God is good and his mercies are new every morning! Praise the Lord!

Love,
Brooke :)

Being Dependant

Hi! Sorry for the delay in posts. It has been busy around here lately. Last week, we were visited by our boss from CLF, Jack and also a youth pastor named Will. Will and another pastor from his church are leading a medical team in November and came to stay for a few days. It was great to see Jack again and fun for him to get to meet our kids. Will was fun to pick on- and we enjoyed getting to know him. They were here from Wednesday to Friday. We look forward to the team in November. On Thursday, the "new guy" on our team arrived. Meg and I picked him up at the airport and it was good to finally meet him. That night, Jack, Will, Mark, Meg, Mariana and Valeria, Alex, Alejandria, and even Melinda and Noami, came to eat supper at our apartment. What a great time of fellowship! How blessed we are that the Lord has blessed us with a small, but cozy, yet also very functional home that we can use to serve those we love. Alex seems to fit into the mix well, with the team and our family. As you can imagine, Ethan is thrilled to have a guy to hang out with and tell stories about his Legos and Bionicles and movies and that sort of thing! But Alex is also able to hang out and relate to our girls as well. He does a great imitaion of Sponge Bob's laugh, too :) And, joining our team for the week, is a kind and compassionate woman named Cindy from New York. She has visited and served in the ministry before and shares our love for the people of Los Guido and Tejarcillos. It is a joy getting to know her.

All this activity, along with - what's that other thing we've got going on right now...oh yeah...SCHOOL!!!!! Yes, that...you know, actually, school is going pretty well at the moment. I was pretty stressed about the exams and quizzes I had last week, but my scores showed that language retention is actually a very real tangible goal that I seem to be reaching!! Praise the Lord! It is only by the Lord's grace and mercy and through His strength that I can say that I am learning this language. I definitely don't have it in me to stick this out, but, thankfully, HE does. Thankfully, I have complete assurance that His purpose is to be glorified through my life and through me and at this moment - that means also through me learning to speak Spanish.

It is such a joy watching God work in Ethan as well. He is learning to read and write and spell AND speak Spanish AND seems totally adjusted to this new life God has given us. He is his same calm and laid back self and he has made some great friends at school. But, he really is getting a grasp on the language as well and he isn't afraid to try to speak- which I love to see! He and Elvis continue to grow in their friendship- what an amazing relationship to watch grow!

Well, it is necessary for me to catch up a little before I get to the point of today's post.

BEING DEPENDANT

Today in chapel, a man named Danny spoke about being dependant. Most of what I say next comes from his sermon today, but some things are my own personal thoughts as well. I'll try to quote him when necessary so as not to plagiarize...(is that how you spell that?)

Danny talked about how we, in America, are taught from a very young age to be independent. Our parents teach us things that allow us to gradually get closer to the day when we will "leave the nest" so to speak. We strive to become successful, therefore, independent. As Danny said, the most obvious way we try to do this as Americans is to become financially independent- therefore not being dependant on any one person or organization.

As Christians, this is somewhat paradoxical for us to grasp. Here we are, trying to do all these things to become independent and yet we are called by Christ to be DEPENDANT on Him. As a wife and mother of three small children, I find myself wobbling between these two sides of the scale often. I desperately desire to become so transparent and dependant on Christ, yet at the same time it seems that I must be strong and independent for my spouse and children. After all, they need me to be strong and keep things going, right? I need to try to be Supermom and independently do-it-all, right? WRONG, sister! Why do I constantly fall into this trap set by the enemy? My husband, no matter what it seems like to me, does NOT expect, nor desire for me to be perfect or do it all, but I continue to listen to this lie and it continues to cause problems for me.

One of my favorite scriptures is in John chapter 15 where we are are given such a beautiful picture of how very DEPENDANT we are on our Creator.

Jesus says, "I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful...Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine and you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit, apart form me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the firs and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love..."

What a picture Jesus gives us of how our relationship with Him should be. A branch is dependant on the vine for the life-giving water the vine carries to it. Much like Jesus Christ is the Living Water that quenches the eternal thirst we have without drinking from His cup. But Jesus lays it out in these passages. We can bear no fruit: NUNCA! NADA! NINGUNA! apart from Him. Actually- the scripture says we can do nothing without Him. So, all my trying to be independent for my family actually results in a whole lot of wasted time and nothingness that, for me, means a period of being "cut-off" from the One I love most...

I am of no good or glory to God when I try to be independent of Him or simply try to "do it on my own." I must remain in Him to be of any good or for my life to glorifying to Him in any way.

The next few verses read as follows:

"I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete...My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends..."

"I have told you this so my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete." WOW, Do I ever desire that kinda joy to resound in my heart...Lately I have not felt much joy at all. It doesn't make sense, really. I am here in the place He has specifically planned for me to be, willing and ready to make disciples of Him, yet I am at a loss to find that sweet, sweet joy.

Back to chapel today...Danny shared a video clip that some of you may be familiar with. It is a clip of a father and son team running a triathlon together. (I apologize for not being able to remember the name) The father runs, bikes and swims the different sections of the race for both he and his son. His son is bound to a wheel chair stricken with a disease that leaves him unable to speak or walk. This video paints a picture of a Father who cares deeply for his son, despite the apparent weaknesses that his son has. The joy that radiates on the faces of both the son and the father throughout the race is unmistakable. This is very much like the way our Father cares for us. Despite, or maybe because of, our weakness, our dependence, His strength is more than enough for the both of us. He desires to radiate joy in our weakest, most dependant moments, just like joy radiates from the father's face in the video we watched today.

The last part of the scripture reads as follows: (and I love this)

"You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit- fruit that will last."

I was pretty emotional after chapel because I know that I have not been remaining in the Lord. I barely find the time for sweet quiet time with Him lately. I have let the world come before my God and I was hit hard in the face with that today. A sweet friend reminded me that His grace is enough and God will give us all that we need- He will be all that we need to be- He will enable us to do all that we need to do- if we only will let Him...

I am comforted that my God chose me- He chose me...He appointed me to go and bear fruit, and not just fruit that looks good on the outside, but is nasty on the inside. Not fruit that starts out sweet and juicy, but by the end leaves a bitter taste in your mouth. The scripture says, fruit that will last.

I have no choice but to trust that the Lord knows what He is doing by bringing me here, with all my weaknesses, all my faults, all my desires to be independent despite my need to be dependant. I trust Him because He created me and He knows the number of hairs on my head. He has all my tears in a bottle. He has my name written in His book of Life.

He chose me.

Thank you Father, for choosing me. Thank you Father for carving out my place in this life. Thank you Father for allowing me to remain in you and for remaining in me. Thank you for your mercy and your grace that is always enough. Thank you for being strong and matching my weakness with your strengths. I pray God that I might never become like the branch that is withered and thrown away. I pray God that I always look to you as my source of Life. I thank you and I praise you Father for the great things you have done. I pray for that sweet joy to resound in my heart Lord. I love you Father. Amen.