The Bridge Partnership

Summer 2012 Trips - Reserve Your Spot Now!!

2012-02-09T15:53:00.000-06:00

Impact a Life This Summer! Teams for our 2012 summer ministry trips to Los Anonos, Costa Rica are being formed. The dates for our summer trips are June 23-July 2 and August 18-27. Each of these trips will cost approximately $1700. Both trips will include work and construction projects, children’s ministry, opportunities for teaching and training, sports outreach, as well as outreach efforts in Los Anonos and San Jose. Other ministries are designed based upon those who go on the trip. Applications are due by no later than Sunday, April 1. These applications are available at the information counter in the lobby. Space is limited, so most will be accepted on a first-come-first serve basis.

10 days...Looking Back Over the Week

2012-02-08T12:41:00.001-06:00

As I type this morning, the team is busy re-packing, and getting into the mindset of traveling home. After 10 days here in Los Anonos, there are many things that God has done, both thru our team's ministry as well as thru the ongoing and vital ministry of the team that is here 24/7. There are also those things that God has done in us as individuals: a divine appointment that will impact us forever, a project that caused us to see God's hands and heart in a new way or even a private moment where God used the environment here to let us hear from Him in a clear way. And so, as has become a tradition, this blog is reserved for the comments of team members (both from C'bus and Anonos as they reflect on the past 10 days:

Josh...Although the differences between Anonos and Columbus are obvious as soon as you get off the bus, the more times I come here, the more similarities I see between the people here and back home. Some of the young guys love playing one of our favorite card games, and are much better than we are! I have especially grown fond of Alejandro and Veronia's children, who love to jump off of things, sing, dance, and pretend to be animals, just like my boys. This time I also had the privilege of taking part in the marriage conference and it was amazing to see that many of the marriage issues we deal with at home are the same as what they deal with here. My favorite part of the trip was getting to serve dinner to the couples and then playing charades with them. There is definitely no language barrier in laughter!!

Alan... As my first time here, I did not know what to expect... Was God going to show me something new about my heart? Was he going to use me to make an impact on one person? Would I be part of changing the way someone sees God or the world? Would it just be nice weather... I really should not be supprised that God did all of these things and more. I saw my heart soften in a much needed way. I saw two people physically healed by our prayers. I saw a family get a more secure home that would be safer for them from the elements. I saw the hearts of the people, both in their joy and in their sorrow. I saw things that I know God will be working in my heart for many months to come. I made new friends but more important I met more family members that will be near to my heart. Dios te Bendiga!

Krista...Yesterday we had church at a pool where we worshipped together and had a baptism with our Los Anonos church family. Those moments yesterday of worship, prayer, baptism, and then the fellowhsip by the pool swimming and playing together are moments that sum up this trip for me. We are all one big family and these past ten days have been a chance to live together in community. It has been a privilege for me to get to know these families and their children. I have come to love them and will miss them so much! God has been teaching me about things I need to work on...pride, patience, and priorities. I know He will continue to use my experiences here to work on my heart and I know He is at work in this community. I am thankful for this opportunity and very motivated to learn spanish before my next trip to Anonos!

Cindy L...Actually, I was called "Grandma Cindy" this week, since there were 3 Cindys on the team!... I want to thank New Life for sharing your awesome family with us. We are always so very blessed by the people who come to Los Anonos from your church, because they are mature and willing to do whatever is needed. Not only do they do so much for the people here, but they bring refreshing to us as the team that is here full time. We always look forward to hosting New Life! And the people of Los Anonos look forward to this team just as much as we do, because wonderful relationships have been made.

Rodney...When we prayed to the Father to bring His Kingdom here on Earth as it is in Heaven, it is interesting how wonderful He uses people. New Life Church is such a blessing to this community of Los Anonos, Costa Rica. Our church here always looks forward to your visit and mostly because of the love that is revealed through the hearts of each one that comes.Seeds have been sown over the past years and we who live here are able to see the fruit that is coming forth. We look forward to the future with confidence, first in the Lord and also in your support, which has helped us grow. Transformation is truly happening! Thank You, Lord!

MamaCindy...reread Kristas comment and I agree with everything she said. PSthis is a spanish keyboard and I seem to be the only one who is finding it impossible to type on... Anonos is a special place, God is at work here. Seriously, it is very much a piece of Franklinton here in San Jose. Poor families, generational sin, broken families, lack of education, drug and alcohol abuse- and the CHURCH, the hope of the world, is steeped in legalism or tradition, but not the life giving power of the GOSPEL. I need to go pack and my sunburn is flaming so I will stop preaching but we are thankful that we have had the privelege of spending 10 days in this amazing community.

Patrick...This was my first missions trip. What an experience! I arrived with no expectations, in hope that I would be able to help impact the lives of the people here. Although I am sure that in some way I did impact their lives, I feel like I have been challenged by my team and God in some areas that make me uncomfortable. Pride and humility being at the center of that focus. I thank God for this and I am excited to go home and continue the daily process of breaking my pride and becoming more humble. As Pastor Brian said in one of our meetings here, "It is not what you say but how you say it that earns you respect." That is something I will be diligently working on once I am home. Ohio here we come! Uugghhh cold weather, haha.

David... thank u guys for be a very good bless for our comiunity,u are a good example for us... God bless everyone in the team, love u guys, and i hope u will doing good in ur life...

PB...Each time I come to Los Anonos, the highlight of my trip is personal interaction wiht individuals, both those on the team and those in the community here. I also love seeing relationships develope between the Ticos and our team members...these are ongoing and impactful long term. My time with friends here, encouraging them, praying together, being reminded just how amazing the Body of Christ is stays with me.

See everyone soon. We are anxious to be back with our families both physical and spiritual. Praise God for His marvelous work in Costa Rica over these past 10 days.

Day 9 -- Baptism & Fiesta!!

2012-01-22T15:49:00.001-06:00

We always love the final Sunday we are here in Los Anonos. Worshipping together, Gringos and Ticos side-by-side is always great. Today, instead of worshipping at the church, we took the entire congregation to a local club house and pool. We filled 1 bus and 2 cars!!

So right there in middle of families gathering for a pleasant day at the pool we had a worship service. Musical worship, a message from I Thessalonians on "How to Live in Community" and then the highlight of the day...
BAPTISM!! 9 adults, teens and children (from a grandmother to an 8 year old)followed Christ's example of proclaiming their faith publically as they were baptized in the pool. It was still early in the day and the water was VERY cold!! Amazingly cold for this part of the world!! So this was a challenge. Each was asked 2 Questions:
1. Have you received Christ as your Lord & Savior?
2. Why do you want to be baptized?

Following their verbal answers, they were baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. As they came up out of the water, the congregation applauded their step of faith. This is ultimately what our partnership with Los Anonos is all about -- people coming to know Christ and taking steps to obey Him in all things.
Then came the FIESTA!!! For the next 3 1/2 hours, everyone swam, played soccer, ate lots of food! This was a great time of fun and relationship building -- very much an important goal of our trips here.

The rest of the day is spent on one last shopping run for CR coffee, relaxing and thinking about how to pack for the trip home in the most efficient way...

Day 8 -- No Slowing Down

2012-01-21T20:40:00.002-06:00

On day 8 things typically wind down, but this trip is an exception! It has been a busy, busy day. This morning, the men were up early attending a men's breakfast at the church building. Pastor B spoke on I Timothy 4:12 admonishing young men to live lives that are examples to other believers in 5 areas:
1. Watch what you say and how you say it.
2. Watch what you do and how you do it.
3. Love others like Jesus loves them.
4. Live a life of faith even in hard times.
5. Keep yourself sexually pure.

At 10, the team travelled into downtown San Jose to go to the Artisans Market. Local atrisans sell their Costa Rican creations there. This is always a fun time since the goal is to find THE best deal by bartering with the vendors.

After a quick lunch, we divided into teams for the 2nd half of the Marriage Conference. Josh and Cindy did the teaching. Tim, Krista, Cindy S., Patrick and Alan did child care (lots of tired people...but just wait for what happened tonight). Steve worked with Rodney to repair the stand for the church projector. Pastor Brian was able to find some music stands that the worship team needed and used some of the money saved from our day off to bless the church. The guitar player currently places his music on the ground while playing!

A special treat today was two pediatric nurses (Carman and Julia)from Germany we met on our day off came by to visit. They spent the afternoon playing with the children, touring the community and listening to us as we shared why we "do this thing we do". It was a God-ordained thing for us to come in contact with them and we are anxious to continue communicating with them.

A short rest break this afternoon and then into action mode for the evening:
A special candlelight dinner for the couples at the Conference at the house -- very, very nice and a real treat for the couples who never get to spend an evening together. Some of the team works with the children -- now they are even more tired than earlier. Another crew works the kitchen preparing the meal. Josh and Cindy act as servers in matching uniforms. The ladies especially giggle as Josh serves them -- this is not a typical thing here in CR.

It is 8:30 and the last of the couples is just leaving the house. The team members working with the children will collapse when they return in a few minutes!

Tomorrow is a big fiesta at the pool where we'll worship together, have a baptism and then a day of fun for the whole church! Pray for Pastor Brian as he preaches tomorrow morning.

Day 7 - Lots of Little Jobs

2012-01-21T14:49:00.003-06:00

As the team met at the start of day 7, we discussed that this day on a trip often seems like the longest -- that sense that we have been away from home for a long time paired with the tiredness that comes after intense work. Once day 7 is past, the next 3 days fly by. So, as in all good day 7s, today was filled with lots of little projects:
1. We painted the wall and front of the home next door to the church. The family that lives there cannot afford to paint it and the team had a great time ministering in this simple way.

2. Some of us began a door to door effort that the ministry has planned for this year -- to visit every home in the community and ask what we can pray for. In addition we give each family tooth paste, bryshes and floss for each person living in the home. In at least 2 of these homes we prayed for specific physical needs and saw the Spirit bring complete healing!! Two of the ladies asked alot about the Vina Anonos, so we hope that they will come to Christ and become part of the community here.
3. Tim and Steve worked on the front patio of the church building by cementing in bricks so that the walk way is stablized and weeds do not grow through as much.
4. Clean-up work was done in the children's area so curriculum, toys, and teaching aids were all organized.
5. Patrick completed the mural and it looks great. The verse painted on the wall is Colossians 3:23.

6. Several of us that have been here in the past went up to see our dear friend Rosa and her family, enjoying fresca (fruit drink) together.

It is always a blessing to reconnect. Our hope is that these periodic visits encourage deeper involvment in the church here.
7. The Marriage Conference, led by Josh and Cindy Boggs began with 4 couples and 2 ladies whose husbands could not attend. We are excited to see what God accomplishes in lives through this much needed ministry. We have discovered that if we can give people the tools they need in practical areas like marriage, they are changed forever -- just like int he US.
8. While the Conference is going on, some of the team take care of all the children!!! Pray for nerves of steel!! The team found out the hard way that the Tico work for Banya (toilet) is hard to understand from children and may even be a different word -- they found this out 4 times!!!
9. Other visiting to families we know took place in the evening too. These connections keep our partnership strong and vibrant since it is not just ministry to minsitry but people to people.

Busy day!! AND another busy day tomorrow as the Conference continues.

Day 6 -- Trip to the Rain Forest

2012-01-19T20:48:00.007-06:00

Each trip takes one day and travels somewhere in Costa Rica to see the beauty of this amazing country. This team went about 2 hours, by tight, bumpy van to a...wait for it...VEGATARIAN Retreat where there were choices

of what to do. Canyoning (repelling down waterfalls)

, Zip lines (in the rain forest), adventure lines (ghigh and faster outside of the rain forest), nature tours and horseback riding.

The final zip line was 1/2 mile long and very high so the wind caught you as you flew down.

Everyone had a great time! Lunch was soy burgers, potatoes and CR slaw -- all amazingly good. This is a place we will most likely return on a future trip. We met two very sweet nurses from Germany on the van ride and they are coming over to see the community and the work the church does here this Saturday...cool!!!

We hear it's cold and snowy back home, so a few more days in the sun is more than welcome. We are very excited about the upcoming ministry in the days ahead -- the Marriage Conference begins tomorrow night, so please pray for that. Projects start to wind down, youth group meets tomorrow night and several personal visits with friends in the community will take place too! We are also going to do throughout the community passing out tooth brushes and showing children how to brush their teeth well. These will be intense days, so seek the Lord for His grace and mercies for us!!

Day 5 - Half Way There

2012-01-18T21:51:00.002-06:00

This is the mid-point in our trip and it is hard to believe that we have already been here five days.

Work continues on Carmen's house, the roof of the church building and the mural and the children's program:

The Children's program concluded today. Each child received a book bag filled with school supplies and other goodies. We realized this was very popular because kids kept coming by today asking for book bags! Krista chared the Gospel clearly with the children and we are praying for good fruit from this.

Carmen's house now has a new supporting wall and some new shleves in the kitchen area. Continue to pray for her foot and her diabetes -- we are very concerned since the doctor has not given her any medication for the infection. Cleaning is done each day, but this does not seem like enough to make a permanent difference.

The mural is almost complete and it seems to be the talk of the community. We have seen more and more visitors just coming by to see it. We also

bagan work on a new garbage drop area beside the mural. This is one of several cement block enclosures where trach can be taken for pickup. The ministry has built these throughout the community to try and keep trash and garbage out of the streets where it can cause health and sanitation problems.

The roof the church is complete and both guys came down safely -- covered in grey paint and very sun burned, but safe. I think we'll be using lots of aloe vera in the next few days.

Our ladies participated in the "Princess Club". This is a multi-week class for young girls that helps them understand who they are in Christ. The

culture here gives many girls the impression that they are not important and unworthy of being treated well. This causes them to often make decisions to allow men to use them for their own purposes. Knowing that they are valuable women in God's eyes helps to overcome these pressures. The first Princess Club was for younger girls (elementary age up to 11). The group going on now is more (age 12-19 or so). Some of these girls already have children or are expecting...but the idea is to stop this ongoing and often generational cycle.

Tonight several of the men went to a small group and Allan led the study time -- we are pretty sure he is inventing his own special version of Spanish to communicate...but it actually kind of works! HAHA!

Throughout the day, there have been "divine appointments" with people and we are thrilled with what we see God doing. At the same time we are reminded constantly of the battle that is going on for souls and the heart of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We have an enemy who will do whatever it takes to keep the truth from being revealed...and so the battle continues.

Tomorrow is our day off to see some of this beautiful contry. We are traveling to a rain forest area a couple of hours away but still get back in time for an evening of teaching on spiritual gifts tomorrow night.

Day 4 - Murals & Morals

2012-01-17T22:22:00.001-06:00

Let's start with the moral -- "Man (or woman) who sits in chair too close to steps, goes over the side in a heap." No injuries have been reported other than aching stomachs from laughter -- from the victim AND those who watched the event take place. Those on the scene decribed an unnamed Missions Director settling in for dinner only to see her chair catch the side of a nearby step followed by a slow motion movement to the floor with the chair on top of her! Witnesses said that half way down the victim shouted "IIIIIIImmmmmm OOOOOO KKKKKK!!!!" After the incident, the Director's only response was "I am soooo glad I did not have a skirt on."
Enough of this! Today's activities included:

1. Mural painting in the Rotunda area of the community. Patrick is doing a great job create a colorful mural that the residents love. Several of the teen guys have faithfully been helping.

2. Children's ministry day 2. The ladies were able to share more on the Armor of God and the kids got to make sun catchers!! They also created a song in Spanish about the pieces of the Armor -- to the tune of "Head and Shoulders, Knees and Toes."
3. Repairs at the church building. These included working on a leak in the roof, fixing the front gate and painting the entire roof of the building -- this meant lots of time in the hot sun on a tin roof by Tim and Josh who are now "redder" than they were yesterday, but the roof is almost finished! This will help with rusting that happens when tin is left too long to the elements.

4. Work on Carmen's house. The house sits on the edge of a steep cliff and is very unsafe. The men are evaluating what can be done to increase the safety to some extent. They are also constructing 2 new walls that will help with the living situation to some extent. This house cannot be replaced with a "Yellow House" due to the location and new locations are scarce at this time.
5. Brand new small group. Tim & Patrick attended the very first meeting of a new group led by Randall, one of the young leaders here. They were able to pray for one young man who was struggling with terrifying dreams at night.
6. Dona Francisca invited the guys who brought her wood yesterday for coffee and empanadas! The food received rave reviews and the rest of us decided we should have helped deliver wood!!
7. Marriage Small Group. Josh & Cindy Boggs went to a small group in a nearby community where couples gather together each week. They used some of their Marriage Basics material from New Life to share. There were 9 couples (including our engaged couple Tim & Krista). The group shared openly abou issues they were addressing in their marriages (not dissimilar to the US) and then they prayed together in a deep way for one another.
8. Church leadership training also took place in the evening (till nearly 10pm). Pastor Brian and the leaders of La Vina Anonos shared together the challenge of character in leaders, Scriptures stringent requirements and practical ways to deal with church and personal issues that must constantly be addressed by leaders. There was also an opportunity for prophetic words for each leader -- this was an amazing time as God spoke secifially to each person.

Now on to tomorrow!!

Day 3 - A SUNNY Day of Work

2012-01-16T18:00:00.003-06:00

There are some things you can do only on a sunny day!!! (Remember those Mid West?) Today in Costa Rica we could have done anything...because the sun is shining brightly. Don't feel too badly for us since it is 30 degrees warmer here than in C'bus!

It is a perfect day though for several of the projects on our list including clearing a field behind the missions house of grasses and high growth. In the dry season (beginning this month), pieces of broken glass will catch the sun's rays and set the field on fire. With the field cut down to a lower level, the possibility of danger is lessened greatly.

The guys go in full force with Machetes and a weed whacker, being sure to avoid holes and snakes!! This goes very well till the weed whacker looses a part and the process slows dramatically.

Meanwhile, a leak of "unknown origins" is causing water problems in the missions house, so a search begins by digging up an area of plantings near the patio. This proves to be correct and our "plumbers" start their work. As of right now, the fix seems to have worked.

While the men have been in out in the fields (very Gone With the Wind sounding, huh?) the ladies have done a morning AND and afternoon children's program at the church building. Each session has about 12-16 children in it. This is a chance to teach the children (and their parents) to be on time. Once the program begins, no one else is allowed to attend.

These are important lessons to learn so that later in life these kids can know that being on time to work and events is important -it shows great respect for the hosts as well as others who are on time. Guess this is a lesson to be learned world-wide!! Today's lesson was on the Armor of God -- Krista tells the story and Miss Cindy models the latest in Christan Warfare Ware. Having limited numbers has helped the ladies minister far more closely than they have before, so we are very pleased.

The men finish the day carrying wood from the field clearing to several homes in the community so that they will have wood for cooking and heating. Several of the guys do some furniture cleaning while

Tim and Patrick continue work on the wall. The ladies go to a women's afternoon Small Group at Carmen's home(the lady everyone is praying for). This is a brand new Small Group led by Ellie, one of the leaders here in the Vina Anonos. There were four other ladies attending and they all sought to minister to Carmen in this very hard time. The local ladies shared openly about their own life situations and times of struggle and hurt. I am sure that few US citizens can comprehend anything close to her situation. But here we see terrible conditions, hungry people, children undernourished -- yet God at work using Christ's Church to bring the ONLY Good News!!

SPEICAL NOTE: Follow this link to the video welcome shown at New Life this past weekend.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaY2EtqgVk8&feature=g-upl&context=G2968f11AUAAAAAAAAAA

Day 2 - Celebration & Ultimate Frisbee

2012-01-15T19:58:00.001-06:00

I think we are all back to our normal selves after catching up on our sleep! Most of us actually woke up an hour earlier than we had planned since our bodies are still on Eastern Standard time! It's one hour earlier her just in case you are wondering. Josh and Tim join Julie and walk to the other side of the community as she cleans and rebandages the foot wound of Carmen (the lady who's son committed suicide in October). She has diabetes and has a large HOLE, yes hole, in her foot. If the would does not heal in the next couple of months, the foot will be amputated!! Please pray for Carmen everyone. Healing is needed desperately needed and the Great Physician has the needed resources.

We walked to the church building and installed the new sign that New Life made for the church here. It looks great on the fence in front of the building and for the first time, visually tells the community of the pressence of the congregation -- though the ministry here over the past 5 years is certainly well known in the community. Now the name and a cool logo greet the village.

The Celebration begins with about 45 minutes of worship and music. Like last night, this is a wonderful time as believers worship the One True God in tow different languages, thought I must admit, that some on our team are getting pretty fluent at singing in Spanish!!! David, the pastor in training here, brings the message "Two Ways". He shares about the fact that each of us have a choice of directions to take and we can only choose 1 -- Follow Christ or follow the flesh! Check out 1 Corinthians 6:12-17, 1 Corinthians 10:31, Matthew 7:13-14, and Hebrews 11:25-26 to study this subject. At the conclusion of the message several people come forward for prayer and the Holy Spirit sets in in a wonderful and powerful way! Only God can minister to people this deeply. We are only conduits for His grace.

After church, most everyone heads out for a trip (by foot) to a nearby park --nearby, meaning about 3 miles...uphill...anyway...We spend the afternoon together, Gringos and Ticos, having a picnic lunch, playing pickup basketball, soccer and teaching the Ticos ULTIMATE FRISBEE!!!

4 games, many falls, lots of unbelievable catches, lots of laughter, 2 fights between Alan and Patrick (all for show by the way), 1 forehead hit with a frisbee later -- a great day was had!!! Back to the Casa -- this time DOWNHILL.

As I type tonight, the ladies are organizing for the children's program that will begin tomorrow and the guys are carting in luggage containing all the supplies needed. At this point, they are waiting on female leadership before they do anything!!! Just like in real life, huh guys?

Great day and lots of projects tomorrow!!! Keep praying for us church!

Day 1 - Off and Running!

2012-01-14T21:22:00.001-06:00

Our team was up early...as in at the airport at 5:15AM! Ok, so before any rumors start floating as to what REALLY happened, we had 18 check on bags...9+ of which were filled with clothes, student supplies, VBS materials, etc to use and leave here. We looked like pack mules and I am sure sent panic into the US Air counter staff when they saw us! the bags would have cost us several hundred dollars to get here, but then a minor miracle occured...for some unknown reson, 4 of us were upgraded to 1st Class on both legs and were given free luggage!!! So right off the bat we saved $190!!! Praise God!! The rumor begins when the 4 who received this blessing were on the wrong end of bitterness!!! HaHa!! Realy... It was a great blessing and everyone had great attitudes. We were late out of Columbus for de-icing and then on to Philly. The team ran frantically to our next gate just in time to board! 5+ hours later we landed in CR...beautiful as always!!

We looked like the Beverly Hillbillys with our 2 vans, 36 pieces of luggage, 9 Grimgos and 5 Ticos! Got everything organized and immediately started filling our video for New Life...hope you get to see it this weekend.

After a briefing with Rodney LaFrance, the lead missionary here, we ate a great dinner and then went to the church building for an evening of prayer and worship...God set in as 2 languages sang together lifting praises. The Holy Spirit truly ministered in several people, so we are off to a great start!! Pray hard this week!! We are dependent on it!!

Leavin' On A Jet Plane

2012-01-13T08:55:00.000-06:00

I know, this title's not too creative, but thanks John Denver!

The team departs tomorrow morning at 7AM!! We head to Philly and then on to San Jose. I looked at a draft of our schedule yesterday and let me just say that the 10 days will go by very quickly -- lots to do and much ministry to be part of! I sense in my spirit that this team will be in the midst of some extreme God encounters! The Holy Spirit seems to be working very strongly at New Life and at Vina Anonos, so we are right in the midst of His work!

Pray for us each day, please! Follow us on the blog! Comments...we love em!

January 2012 Team

2012-01-06T14:16:00.000-06:00

We are excited as another team heads out to partner with Vina Anonos in Los Anonos, Costa Rica. Please pray for us and follow over our 10-day journey. We will be blogging each day giving updates on all that God is doing.

Read Julie's Blog!

2011-12-08T23:15:00.000-06:00

Julie is the totally adorable very tall very beautiful very special and annointed loud fun adventuresome intern in Los Anonos who just wrote a wonderful blog post, including 600,000 awesome photos, about our trip. Rather than doing that very same thing, push this button right here and go read Julie's blog and you will know all about our trip to Nicaragua! I am so thankful Jason & I got to share in this international team and meet the sweet folks in Tipitapa! We were blessed!

Click or paste or do what you need to do: http://mylifeintupperware.blogspot.com/

Casa Sweet Casa!

2011-12-07T23:18:00.000-06:00

My amigo Jason and I finally arrived home about 11 pm Weds night, tired but content! I have lost my picture cord so I will load pics as soon as I find it! I am totally leaving my suitcase on the front porch tonight, praying the freezing cold will kill any lice, scabies, bed bugs or other vermin that hitched a ride home! Last night we ran to Walmart (yes, even in CR there is a Walmart around the corner!) and got some coffee and other goodies to bring home. Today on the taxi ride to the airport one of the girls from our team met us on the street to give Jason a book. So sweet - we positively LOVE these people.

This is one of the main things we learned on this trip - here we are, at least 3 nationalities, 4 if you count Gloria as our token Mayan from Guatemala :) united under the banner of Christ - reaching out to the poor, the poor in spirit, the brothers & sisters in Tipitapa who need encouragement in a very tough community. A watching world saw Gringos working side by side with Ticos and Nicos - really a dream come true. Socio-economic barriers, color, gender, age barriers were broken down at the foot of the cross. Very cool. A rare opportunity to share God's love as ONE body. We are headed back to CR in January and another team is forming for the summer - if you want to experience community against all odds, join us as we minister to those in Los Anonos, and allow them to minister to YOU as well! Step waaaaay outside your comfort zone! If I can sleep in a hostel in Nicaragua, surely you can venture outside the US and see what God has for you! You will be blessed!

Back in CR- coffee packed, ready to come home!

2011-12-06T23:08:00.000-06:00

Wow. So much to say! Seeing poverty up close is very humbling, esp at Christmas-time. Life is just soooo hard for most of the people in the world.I will post pics as I can, but to get anywhere, most of the people in Nic take a bus. A bus is usually an old US school bus, which seats 55. They pack AT LEAST 2 or 3 times that number on a bus which means sardines have more room to breathe than these people. And it is already 90 degrees before you jam the people on.

You wash clothes by hand and hang them on the line. You walk to the store and buy whatever food you need for that day. You mix up flour for tortillas and bake those by hand on your spacious Jenn-air griddle. Oh wait, I meant pan over an open fire in your back yard. And by back yard, I mean the few steps outside your door in-between the outhouse and the chicken-coop. Often whole families, and extended families live in 2 cinder-block rooms with tin roofs.It sounds bleak, and much of it is, but there is JOY, love, fun, family bonds that are amazing, hospitality - money does not equal happiness in this culture. So much is out of there control that it seems easier to trust in God- He is their hope. Their faith in God's provision is so clear-they see God's hand every single day.

What a blessing to get to know our team plus our new friends in Nic. Dago is one of "our boys" who has been with the church since the early days and has come to Tipitapa 3 years in a row. He was tickled to realize that some of the people remembered him (he has a sweet 'fro so he is easy to spot!) But he was flabber-gasted when they called him by name! Nanis, another sweet boy about 15, was shovelling concrete and these little boys watched his every move and began to pick up shovels and model his actions. He saw what a role model he could be to other young boys who live in rough circumstances and I think it really made an impact on him.

I could talk forever about this trip, but I really REALLY need a shower! Our days have been long and hot and we have a lot of packing and preparation to do on the side so I have been up since 6am and it is now almost 11 pm- argh! I will post pics and write a follow-up when I get home! Pray for safe travels and no delays- we are out of clean clothes and running on empty so pray for favor as we travel home! Cindy and Jason and the HH Team, + Ticos and Nicos and even a Mayan and some Mainers! What a trip! Weds marks the Annunciation which means FIREWORKS so I am glad to be headed home! Feliz Navidad!

Bob Marley slept here?

2011-12-05T22:00:00.000-06:00

We left Managua early this morning and travelled to a gorgeous lake/volcano overlook for lunch. The Tico boys rode horses today and loved it ' very sweet. We then stopped at a very famous market in Masayeh and picked up some souvenirs. I almost bought a basket made from a real chicken or a real stuffed frog playing a marimba but I chose some other treasures. We then Stopped overnight in San Juan ' something, I am pretty sure it is not PR...we are staying in a youth hostel in a surfing beach and literally everyone here has dred-locks- it is quite amusing! There are 8 of us per room, one shower, no towels, no locks, and quite a diverse clientele. As you can see, they Do have intenet but they also have a crazy spanish keyboard!

Besides the dreds and joke and guitars and very amusing environment, what you really see most of all is the love among God´s people - people of every description obeying God´s call to GO and be the Light of the world. Have I talked about the nativity yet? There are huge wonderful extravagant nativity scenes on every corner - THE focus of this season really really IS the baby in the manger. I feel like that is one thing I am taking home from this trip- JESUS is BIG NEWS in Latin america! I have a new perspective on so many things - Christmas, prayer, international relations, culture, family, love, beans, frozen ice cream in a bag, surfers..... Well, much to say but the security guard just pitched us off the internet and sent us to our luxurious suites! One more day with our friends and then back home we come, to the snow, and the excess and the HOLIDAY MACHINE.... >So much to think about! Love to all!

Another day in Tipitapa!

2011-12-04T19:31:00.000-06:00

who's been praying? no traffic stop today! some folks went to worship while others did a CPR training and finished the latrine building. we had an authentic Nic dinner today. david's mom boiled chicken and vegs in a pot over the fire. everthing is done by hand. gather firewood, chop the vegs, make a fire, make and bake fresh tortillas- wow! Life seems like the 1800's or primitive camping- it is really amazing. again, world's slowest internet so no pics and not a lot of stories but soon we'll have an update! thanks for following along and praying for us!

Great Time in Tipitapa!

2011-12-03T22:04:00.000-06:00

FTerrible internt- see what I mean? Please, stop now and give your computr a big hug and maybe even a kiss! Last night I spent 3 hours and used 4 other people to double-load some pics on FB and write 4 words to show you we were still alive! Could not access the blog at all! Now I have extra letters and missing letters! Ack! Anyway! We are staying at a sweet guesthouse, we drive a zillion miles away and get pulled over every single day! The traffic cops see the CR vans and the US folks and attempt to extort money from us! Every day!

Our team is wonderful- the CR folks, Maine folks, + the church from Managua.The people the eye glass clinics are so gateful. the kids eent was geat- good 75 kids, babies to teens. We bought soccer uniforms for the kids in the village- you will LOVE this story and the pics- 8 of the prouders little futbol players you will ever see!

Crazy internet- you would not believe how I have gotten this far! Plus I need to get to bed - we are up at 6, when we aren't up at 4- haha! hope the France team is safely in their place, ready to be used! Love to all- Jason and I are hot, sweaty, happy, tired, excited, and a whole bunch more- lots of great stories to share! Sorry the communication is not easier- we have a lot of good stuff going on! Be oe on- bog s e cn! i left that sentence to show you what I am dealing with!

Walking to Nicaragua!

2011-12-01T20:28:00.000-06:00

4am arrived and despite a van that wouldn't start and 21 people standing in the driveway, we piled in 2 vans and headed north to Nicaragua! We drove up mostly 2-lane highways, brahmin bulls in every field and the occasional volcano to keep us alert. We stopped for breakfast and had the usual beans and rice with an egg and assorted tropical juices - many of us chose "kass" a fruit native only to Costa Rica. Another sleepy few hours and we arrived at the border crossing. Wow. Fortunately the line wasn't too bad, until people started meandering in front of us, wedging themselves in between us, I bet 10 people or more wedged in among our team until we were finally able to get to the desk - and the one worker went to lunch :) Fortunately, he wasn't gone long and we were all through the process. This is when I realized....we had to do it again! That line only got us OUT of Costa Rica - now we had to get INTO Nicaragua! We walked across a park, over a field, through a metal "cattle path" then through a HOLE in the fence (so not kidding!) to get into Nicaragua - and yes, there were armed soldiers in the fields keeping an eye out for interlopers! We then walked through buses and vans and into ANOTHER building where they processed our enttrance - while we were waiting, vendors offered us animals made of shells, leather belts, cigarettes, ice cream, and sun glasses - oh, and fireworks kept randomly shooting off! Exciting!

We were finally IN Nicaragua, had a really "authentic lunch" - grilled meat with rice and beans (!) - Cindy L said this must have been the oldest bull in Nic - he was mighty tough! On the way to the guest house, our driver was pulled over for "disobeying a traffic officer" - let me translate, there is a van full of equipment and 21 gringos who I can extort money from in the name of the law! After some arguing we had to pay him $15 which he would "take to the police station to pay our fine!" Yikes- corruption at its finest! We arrived at our guest house which is very nice but the internet is spotty and we may not have good access all week. Trust that we are safe, hot, sweaty, well-fed, happy, and ready to work! Tomorrow is our first day in Tipitapa and we all have different jobs - eye clinic, contruction, meeting the residents of the community, planning a kid's event, CPR training, and lots more! A great day I am sure! Thanks for the prayer support - we WALTZED through customs - that has taken SIX HOURS in the past, so we know God has prepared the way for us! Love to us - keep us in your prayers and we will communicate as we can! (Jason sends his love... specifically to Laura!)

Thanks for the Love!

2011-11-30T23:15:00.000-06:00

Jason and the guys hung up Christmas lights in the church today while I worked at the store, getting ready for the big opening at 1pm. The mamas saw the Christmas merchandise and they were lined up to buy! Thanks Christy Bradley and everyone for your donations-they were a big hit! The store made $200 today- enough to pay the rent!

Thanks too for those who sent birthday gifts for Tito- he was delighted. Jared- tshirts were great, he loved the jersey Uncle Craig, and Poppi Brian, the sweater was nice. he wore his Adidas jacket today Palmer! Eric- Luis was thrilled with his gfts- we still have a few more friends to track down with more gifts! It is not just book or a jacket- these gifts and cards and notes say "this man I know from Ohio loves me and thinks of me"- it is a visible picture of the Body of Christ in action. It is watching babies grow up, watching addicts get clean, providing a home for a family in need- and it will bless your heart as you watch this church love on their community.

Jason and Julie went to pray for a family who has had some rough times lately. they prayed through the house and really brought encouragment and God's peace to this young family.

In other news, we saw a "cukoo bird" today - I am sure this is spelled wrong but it had long blue tailfeathers. Also, the hen that lives on the sidewalk by the river has 10 chicks! well, again, sorry
For the poor typing and lack of pics- Poking on the blackberry keys from my bed! it is 11pm and we have a 3am alarm!
Tomorrow is a travel day-12 hours in a van, inc 3 hours in line at the border, all in 90 degree heat! suddenly doesn't sound all that glamorous, does it! LOL!

Not sure how much you'll hear from us for the next few days! I'll do the best I can! pray for us as we travel by van- yikes! pray, too, for our France gals as they leave this week as well- au revoir ladies, happy baking, joyeux noel! Cindy, Jason, and the other 19 people headed to Nic with us! God's Blessings on our trip,

Hola from sunny Costa Rica!

2011-11-29T20:06:00.000-06:00

Okay, it might have been worth a 3am wake-up call in rainy Columbus when we arrived in sunny Costa Rica about 1pm today! We went straight to Harvest Hands and saw all our friends, plus a creepy CPR dummy Julie put my room so I wouldn't be lonely! Jason is a great travelling buddy - we shared our snacks and he carried the heavy bags!

Today we went down to the store that the church runs to help the community- we donate STUFF, to provide the
neighbors with inexpensive clothes and HH goods, one of the church ladies gets a job as the store manager, she is able to move near the church and pay her rent with the money she earns, and the profit from the store pays the rent on the church building! wow! super exciting!

Forgive any typos- i am typing on a blackberry on the front patio while being eaten by mosquitos! love to all from one of my favorite spots on earth! More tomorrow- with pics!

Gahanna>Houston>Costa Rica>Nicaragua

2011-11-22T17:42:00.000-06:00

No, despite his picture in his snazzy vest smiling off to the side, this is NOT Pastor Brian - this is Cindy, who is headed BACK to Costa Rica, then to Nicaragua, so I stole..er...uhh.. borrowed his blog. Jason Sheppard (perhaps referred to in days ahead as JShep, J-Dawg, J-Man, or J-Bizzle) and I are headed down to Los Anonos where we will pack ourselves and a duffle bag into a van full of Gringos and Ticos and head down to Nicaragua to help out another village in need. Many of the people from CR have come from Nic so there is a natural connection there. There are a lot of politics, folklore, and other things in the mix but the basic desire is to infuse the church in Anonos with the idea of serving others right from the beginning. Serving others helps us put our own lives in perspective, it helps us see the beauty of the Gospel through new eyes - what a blessing to see the "served" become the "servers."

We are completely excited to work with our brothers & sisters from other partner churches in Maine and Virginia and Michigan and other places, along with our Tico friends. We will be hosting some medical clinics and building a latrine - if this is a euphemism for toilet, I think I will go for the medical team :) But seriously, a NEW toilet has GOT to better than what was there before, so maybe not?? I hear Nic is beautiful, but blazingly hot. We are headed to a very poor area -the people here once lived inside the walls of the city dump! Can you imagine? Better yet, a church was planted INSIDE the dump to minister to these people. The gov't closed the dump and re-located the people but we've yet to see how their situations have "improved."

I also hear the internet is practically non-existent. My Blackberry connected in the jungles of Uganda, so I hope I will get a glimmer of coverage in Nic. If so, I will keep you posted every day so you can pray for us and follow our adventure! If not, I will catch up as I can - but pray for us anyway. Pray for safe and efficient travel, productive work, and lots of team-building on the 12-hour van rides. Pray that the Gospel is clearly proclaimed in every way and that we are a blessing wherever we go. We are going right after the bounty of Thanksgiving and returning in the midst of the Holiday-Hoopla here in the USA - I fear that will make the poverty we will see carry even more weight. More to come - pray for us! Gracias♥ (Practically fluent, already - did you catch that???)

Sunday and the Spirit is Strong...Again!

2011-10-30T17:24:00.000-06:00

Up early in this time zone I guess! I slept in till 6am!! And the church service isn't until 10am!! I have sensed all night that God would break through this morning in some way. As a side note, Elli, a leader in the church here, spoke a prophetic word over me when I got here on Wednesday -- that God would do something powerful through me (I know that sounds general, but it was way deeper and more specific than this. Essentially, it would be done as a old man/father blesses others through what God is doing in them (no comments about the age part).

2 years ago, our team built a yellow house for a couple named Danny & Brenda. From that point on, I have felt very connected to them and their three young children. They were raised in a very legalistic pentecostal church, he was a youth leader for a period of time, and finally were deeply hurt by the church somehow. Since coming in contact with the church here, they have struggled with not feeling good enough to truly allow Jesus to love them. They have struggled with the fact that the church in Casse Nueva is very free and not into rules and regulations found in legalistic churches. Today as part of the service, everyone gathered into smaller groups to take communion together and then pray for each other. (Did I mention there were about 50 adults and 25 children today???)

As we began to thank God for His great sacrifice for us, Danny and Brenda faded into the background, not participating. Jason, my addict friend also refused because he felt dirty and unworthy, but Rodney told him that one of the important aspects of the Lord's Table is to seek repentance, and so we rejoiced as he took the elements and we prayed for continuing freedom from addictions.

After a lengthy ministry prayer time, Brenda came up to me and shared why they had not participated. She turned to I Corinthians 11:27, the passage about examining yourself and not taking of the elements in an unworthy manner. As others in the church participated in an after-church dinner we stood and talked about their feelings and beliefs -- all founded in legalistic lies that they have believed. At one point, I reminded Danny that he had been trying to get back into relationship with God on his own terms (doing better, trying harder) and that he was in exactly the same place spiritually that he was 2 years ago. He agreed and in that moment began to realize that God's love had been drawing him back to the Father and saying "my son, you have made mistakes and tried to fix them yourself before you would come to me. Do it my way and just come to me so I can fix it." Dick and Maida had joined us and shared wonderful words too and God began to break them with His powerful love! As we prayed over them, Danny broke down as we asked the Spirit to flood over him with the love of a dad! WOW! Say it backwards, WOW! Danny has always been extremely affectionate with me -- theabsence of a loving father is all over the world -- and today, as we finished praying, he wept and hugged me tight -- I believe because for the first time in many years, he realized that God was the one hugging him back!!! THEN...we served them communion!!! They took of this wonderful time of remembrance of God's love. He said that peace had swept over them and we all cried together, rejoicing in God's transformational power!! I think the prophetic word was true about that old man's blessing flowing to others -- at least I feel old and very blessed!!!

So much more has been happening today, that it just can't be written in this space...home tomorrow! Ready and not ready at the same time!

Saturday - Spirit Work!

2011-10-30T09:13:00.000-06:00

Yes, I am writing this entry for Saturday on Sunday. It was a late night as the special worship and prayer night at the church went till after 10pm -- when we had to close things up so the neighbors didn't start complaining. Remember that the church building is right in the midst of homes (same walls even)!

So I sit this morning enjoying the fact that having nothing to do to prepare for the service today at 10! It is nice to have this extra time to consider all that God has been doing these past few days.

Most of yesterday was spent in planning for the coming year -- the focus in the church here will be on a "tiered" method of discipleship and leadership training with the goal being to determine how to create a "spiritual sustainability" that can last well past any situation where the American missionaries might not be here. I am excited about lies ahead as we continue research and planning for this to kick off in January -- if you are on the teams this coming year, some changes are ahead!!! Good ones!!!

I walked to the Mangos area of the village yesterday to visit for a bit with Rosa, Danny and Brenda and their families! These are very special people to me and it is good to see what God is doing in their lives. I was able to spend a few minutes (thanks Julie for interpretation) over Frasca and baked goods.

Later in the evening, after more afternoon planning meetings, there is a special time at the Case Nueva on "Listening to God". Dick Ray, the pastor at the Mechanic Falls Vineyard in Maine spoke about how the Spirit in us is given us so that we can hear God clearly speak to us about ourselves and about those who God brings into our lives. There are some really good practical exercises that we do to practice hearing from God in order to speak into someone's life -- There are about 40 of us there and the Holy Spirit truly breaks out in our midst -- doing healing work in lives! Some wonderful prophetic ministry takes place and some new folks that just happened to come are deeply touched in ministry!

Be praying for the church here in this one practical way -- the keyboard that was being used for worship times was borrowed from a person here in the area -- yesterday, it had to go back to them so the church is left without a keyboard (a big part of the ministry here).

Also, consider how you might be able to help support a local guy names David that we believe God is raising up to be the indiginous pastor here! He needs regular, monthly financial support in order to step into the training and work of this role!

Heading to the service and church-wide potluck!!!

God Stuff!

2011-10-28T21:03:00.000-06:00

Yes, we had meetings -- that's kind of the main reason we are here. I am excited about what God has given us to move into this next year -- including some new efforts to build up and train leaders. It is vital that layers of leaders are trained and can then raise up the next level of leadership behind them. This will sustain the church for years and generations to come.

We are also talking about a huge problem here in Los Anonos -- kids from middle school and high school ages dropping out of school! This is happening even with kids here in the church and as leaders we are very concerned. Frankly without even a diploma, these young people are going to be stuck in the same pattern as their parents and their grandparents have been -- poverty, unemployment and little hope for a future. So we are considering having several days a week of a "study hall" at the church building where students can study without distraction and tutors are available to help when needed.

We left very early this morning to prayer walk the community. We divided into two groups and headed to the high points that overlook the community. We are able to pray for several people during this time. The church here has been seeing miraculous things happen as they pray for anyone who will accept it. As we stop at a spot where there was a huge landslide last year, I am struck that a new layer of green growth has now covered the place where tin homes used to stand. I think in the same way it is important that we know that all of man's efforts to build on his own will always crumble and fall, but God will always step in and build over the rubble of man's efforts and bring new life -- real life!!

While at this same spot, I am impressed to ask one of my young friends that has come on the prayer walk with us if he has ever truly given Jesus his life and cried out to him "have mercy on me, a sinner" or if he has just joined into the youth group and other church activities. As Klieber begins to cry and tense up, it is obvious that God has used this question to draw this 15 year old young man to Himself. This young guy was with me at the beach last June as we experienced tragedy together, so we are bonded by that event in a very deep way. He says that there is a fire beginning to burn inside of him and after some struggle to overcome the fear of surrendering his life to Jesus, he prays asking God to save him!! God stuff!!! Right?

In the spots in between events, I got to see my wonderful friend Natti, who was my translator through the events last June and our own Jono Calvo's mom. Goodies are coming home to you Jono!! Youth Group is meeting as I type and the sounds of these young people singing is loud and clear into the streets of this little village. Their voices rise to declare the goodness of our God --- the one who does GOD STUFF!!!

Brain Trust Day! Plus Rain!

2011-10-27T21:43:00.000-06:00

My main mission this trip to Costa Rica is meetings with leaders from a couple of the other churches who minister here in Los Anonos. Today we began early and talked most of the day up till dinner time. We began the day with prayer and worship -- seeking God for His wisdom. We shared what God was doing in each of our churches and as I shared I was reminded of all that God has accomplished at New Life in the past year. As I consider the transforming power of the Holy Spirit in many of those that I work with directly, I can do no less than be in awe of God's grace toward us. As the other leaders shared, I was excited to hear what God is doing in other communities just like ours -- God is BIG enough to work all over the world and never give up on us! Our plan was to go into the community too, but hard rain pounded us all afternoon and shut that idea down. We are going to do that first thing in the morning before the rain begins! No shock since we are at the very end of rainy season here. It did finally stop raining as the water neared one of the roads nearest the river!

Some of you will remember a guy here named Jason who has struggled over and over with drugs. During our last trip, he was on the street and high every time I saw him. Tonight, he was at the group I led and was the first to share what God was teaching him from His Word -- much easier to do when you have been clean for 6 weeks or so -- so he is on the upswing. Pray that he will trust God to keep him on this path.

Our discussions were intense as we tried to discern what God would have for us to accomplish for the Kingdom over the next year. I believe that we are hearing His plan and we will be jumping back in tomorrow to start putting some ideas down in concrete.

Tonight I led a group called La Rocha (The Rock). It is a "deeper" teaching time that meets each Thursday for those wanting to go deeper in their relationship with Jesus. I walked everyone through a "directed Bible study" -- each person had a different passage in Ephesians 2-4 (several verses each). Then we went through a simple Bible study method that they applied to their own passages. I was so pleased that each person really worked hard, listened well and let God speak to them as they studied. My goal was to help them each realize that God can speak to them when they take the time to get in the Bible for themselves (that's true for you to). Several of them shared their insights with everyone and then shared the prayers that they had written based on their passage and what God had challenged them with. I felt it was one great evening! One very productive day!

Interesting Day, But I Got Here... and My Luggage!

2011-10-26T21:40:00.001-06:00

Up at 5AM, yes A -M! Many thanks to my buddy Troy who got up and took me to the airport at 6! Ran into New Lifer Mark Might in Concourse B -- it was nice to connect even for just a few minutes -- God ordained moments! My flight was supposed to depart at 7:20, but mechanical problems were going to delay it till 10 (I heard it ended up being 11). A wonderful gate agent got me rebooked, rerouted, transferred through Atlanta, Miami and on to San Jose!!! I was worried about my luggage, but I had several people praying and when I got to baggage claim, my bag was the 5th piece to arrive!!! Good job "team prayer support".

In the spirit of full confession, I upgraded myself from Miami to San Jose to Business Class (this is really a less-bragadocious way to say 1st Class! Anyway -- I have pretty much decided I NEVER want to fly coach again!! Full lunch with a table cloth, shredded chocolate on my ice cream and the flight attendant calling me Mr. Robertson!!! Really? In all my days of flying, I have never flown 1st Class and have never been called by name! I feel far superior tonight -- I guess much like I would had I stayed at a Holiday Inn!

I have already been able to see lots of my friends here! AND Ellie shared a prophetic word for me. I am excited to see how God brings this word about while I am here! Everyone that will be part of the meetings has arrived and we hit the ground running tomorrow morning. By the way, did I mention that Ellie also made fresh homemade empanadas for dinner!!!! Don't be jealous...just come to CR with me one of these days!

Pastor B...Heading South

2011-10-25T20:50:00.000-06:00

I am traveling to Costa Rica tomorrow (October 26) and will return to the US a short 6 days later on October 31. I am going down for the annual meeting of the churches who are part of a kind of informal board that advises the Harvest Hands ministry. Every other year, the meetings are in CR -- this is my 4th year and I am excited as always to be together with other pastors and leaders who love Los Anonos and the the people who live in this community. I am also so thrilled to be able to spend some time with the people of La Vina Anonos and those men and women who I have grown very close too over the past 4 years. Always a highlight for me to be there in this place I love.

I will trying to update each day while I am away -- a tougher than usual feat, since my lap top gave up on me during the last trip to CR in June.

Day 9 - A Very Long 3 Days

2011-07-03T18:13:00.000-06:00

I have not blogged since Day 5 and am so sorry for any communication issues that this caused. Thursday was a very long day and then Friday (Day 7), our day off for a trip to see Costa Rica ended in tragedy. Since then, I have been busy with hospitals, doctors, The US Embassy, insurance companies, and of course the care of the team as well as the local body of believers here in CR. Today as I blog, we have suffered the death of Dean Stoecklin due to an "aneurysm-like" brain event! Certainly this is something that could never have anticipated nor avoided. The NL Team, the church leadership here in CR as well as Dean's wife Sabrina who is here with us now are very grateful for all the prayers that we feel from NL, Elizabeth Chapel in S. Ohio and in Washington, DC. We are sure that this prayer has even extended to many church bodies connected with us in some way.

The church here in Anonos has been wonderful and has been suffering with us. This is such a real picture of New Life's extended body around the world through our church partnership ministry. When I am praying with someone who lives thousands of miles from Columbus and they are weeping and hurting for us, The body of Christ has all new meaning to me! You must experience this to truly understand! I hope that many of you will begin praying now for God's leading to come!

I will try to go back in the next few days and catch the blog up so that you know what God has been doing on the "missing days". At this point in time, we are in the midst of the work needed to get the ENTIRE TEAM back to Columbus as soon as possible.

Sabrina and the Team will be arriving in Columbus on Monday at about 11:40pm. I will be staying in San Jose until I can travel back with Dean. Here's how you should pray:
1. Pray for Sabrina as she tells the kids what is happening with dad.
2. Pray for the entire family, including Dean's mom and dad as they grieve.
3. Pray for the CR Team as they process all that has gone on and go through the grief process too.
4. Pray for me as I complete work in CR to get Dean home.
5. Pray for the church here in CR as they go through grief too.

Thanks for caring about us and the people of Los Anonos!

Day 5 - We're at the Halfway Point

2011-06-29T19:44:00.004-06:00

Wednesday in Los Anonos arrived rainy and dreary! Hard to get moving without the sun shining (kind of like Ohio for about 6 months out the year). But pancakes for breakfast seemed to be the key to getting us all back on track! That and lots of Costa Rican coffee!

Project work at the church building continued today -- sanding metal beams in the roof over the worship area, painting classrooms, repairing and prepping a classroom floor for new flooring, building the new swing set for the small playground (this thing is so strong it will survive the apocalypse!), BIG SALE at the Casita, prayer times with people struggling and hurting, installing a handicapped restroom, repairing the entrance to the building, constructing an drop off area for trash pickup so that dogs can't get into it, English classes...you know...ministry!!! All this work is to further the work of the Kingdom in this corner of the world and we all gladly make efforts to contribute our part. It is God who does the real work of convicting, drawing and convicting. We simply become His loved-slaves and obey His voice.

On the porch, waiting for dinner.

A bunch of our crew when to 2 Small Groups tonight -- Aaron and Brian W. taught and the others went to build relationships and pray for people. What a great time we have being in homes and being together with brothers and sisters in some ways so different from us, yet so the same in our Christian walks. It's always interesting though as we encounter cultural differences -- Aaron got to experience adventure by visiting an outhouse shared by three families -- let's just say, be grateful this blog does not have "smell-o-vision". In the middle of one group a fight broke out down the street and the police showed up!!! Always exciting!

Checking the strength of the new swing set. It's safe up to 4 million lbs!

A few of us stayed at the ministry house tonight since we went to a Small Group already -- only a few can fit in these small homes! Thought I'd ask if these men had anything to say at the halfway point...

So...we got a little dirty today!

Steve S. "It has been extremely easy to build relationships with the people on this team. There is a maturity and we have worked together well."

Jim. "The Ticos and the Gringos are 'on the same' page with one another. Our social status is just not an issue."

Mike. "What is most astonishing is the speed at which we have been able to build relationships with the people in the church community."

Jason."If you come with an expectation of building a deeper relationship with God while you are here, it will happen!"

And so day three is in the books. Tomorrow holds a few new things for a trip here, so I can't wait to tell you all about it!

Day 4 - One Amazing Team

2011-06-28T22:04:00.004-06:00

Some of the gang at Pops ice cream!

With all due respect to the other 7 New Life teams that have come to Costa Rica, I have to simply say that this is ONE AMAZING TEAM! It is rare to see a group this size (14 of us) work together in complete unity...letting each other step in and lead, step back and follow, pray for one another, cry and hurt together, disappear from the work site to play with kids in the street, leave and go on spontaneous prayer walks, laugh and enjoy one another deeply, sit and talk about the deep things of God...get the idea?

Water flow inspectors Austin and Jared

This team is a mix of older adults, young marrieds, singles and teens! We sensed early on in our training times that God had some very special things in store for us as a team and we are getting glimpses of all that He meant. I am so impressed with the 3 teens who have traveled on this trip -- Austin, Jared and Holly! These are really quality kids who have worked, prayed, engaged and interacted with this community to the very same level of everyone else on the team! I actually have forgotten how young they really are! Good job on some Jesus-centered parenting here!

The street outside the church building (behind light wall).

Today we continued work on the projects in the Casa Nueva, the ladies worked restocking the thrift store in the Casita (BIG SALE tomorrow!), constant games of soccer and basketball go on, and eternity/life-changing conversations took place! What a day! We also had our most rainy day yet -- but I think for most of us it became a reminder of the power of Christ's work on the Cross to wash us clean...We are here for a Gospel-centered purpose and God is blessing that!

Day 3 - Projects at the Case Nueva, Plus

2011-06-27T22:37:00.001-06:00

Today began our efforts at our work projects and we began at the Casa Nueva. This is what they call the building where the church meets -- this is done to help the people know that the building is NOT the church, the people are the church. Casa Nueva simply means "new house" since it is a former house that is new to them! It's all amazingly simple. Really the best way to explain this is to show it, so here are some photos...

The sun was intensely hot today, so we consumed lots of water in order to keep from overheating. An afternoon storm let us test the new gutter system that we're working on! A huge shift in weather from 6am to 3pm! This is Costa Rica!

This team is great at taking care of each other, so everyone is staying healthy. We promised to try and catch Jared and Austin if they fell off the roof! Just kidding moms! There was no way we'd be able to catch them!

So a hard day of work and back for a wonderful dinner. 5 of us went to Rosa's casa ( a yellow house we built a year and a half ago). Jim hared his testimony of God's work in his life and Jason spoke from Ephesians 4 about the "old and new man". We prayed together in a wonderful time of ministry. I was able to renew many friendships from my times here over the years. The last photo is me and Rosa! Please pray that the people in this group will choose to continue to grow in Christ -- most of them have to work so much to make ends meet that coming to the church on Sundays is very hard and they miss out on an important part of community. We have been praying for DIVINE APPOINTMENTS and we would so appreciate you praying that God would bring us into situations and into lives of those to whom he wants minister. These have happened every day including today and we are now expecting God to continue his good work -- one of today's "appointments" was with a girl working a APA (the CR version of Home Depot). She is coming Wednesday night for prayer and sharing! Amazing stuff. God continues to amaze us!

Day 2 - God, planning and MORE God!

2011-06-26T22:50:00.000-06:00

Day two began with the famous baked oatmeal that Cindy LaFrance is famous for! And the fresh pineapple and mango!!! Don't worry parents, the teens are pretty much eating just the Fruit Loops! No worries that they will take up eating healthy fruit!

The church service included wonderful worship music, a testimony of God's supernatural provision, and offering and then a message from one of the leaders here, Fredrico. The children love to give so much that they are the ushers who take up the offering (see the pic that would make anyone want to give). Alejandro is a new believer who's family is part of the church. They are extremely poor immigrants from Nicaragua. He just received his citizenship and his wife is waiting on a renewal of her expired pass. They have been praying that God would provide the funds needed to pay for this. He talked about completely trusting God in all things, of placing full dependence on Him and Him alone. In one week, he said, God had already provided half of the needed funds!

Our VERY excited usher!

Before the children go to there classes, the entire congregation lays hands on them and prays for them! What a wonderful idea! Frederico's message is from I Peter 3:10-11. His opening question was "Do you ever feel like your neighbor who is not a Christian is better off that way? That you might be better off if you were not a Christian? He explains that we often compare what they have to what we don't wondering if God is for us. Are we truly happy in Christ? Is His joy our joy? It was obvious that God was working in lives and at the ministry time, at least a dozen people come forward for prayer. By the time things start to wind down -- an hour later -- there is crying, intense prayer, deliverance and "God Stuff" going on! What a morning.

Frederico and Rodney

The afternoon is spent planning and organizing the projects for the week, measuring rooms that are not square, determining what materials we'll need for all the physical projects and then shopping. Another crew headed down to the community to play street football (that's soccer to you Gringos!) Meanwhile spontaneous ministry in taking place back at the church building. Only God just brings someone off the street to see me and we get to see God minister into his life as he struggles with addictions, self-worth and a loving God who never, never gives up His pursuit of His chosen children.

Tostada night at dinner! No, none of us will lose weight on this trip! After dinner, we spend some time worshiping together with both gringos and Ticos. It is wonderful! All I can say is that God broke out and ministered to us in a HUGE way! There is no explaining how God was at work in multiple lives, speaking spiritual things that will be life-changing! No space here to even tell you the smallest piece of what God is doing -- let me just way that none of us will ever go back to before this night spiritually!

We anxiously await the dawn and God's blessing for a new day.

Day 1 - Back with Our Friends

2011-06-25T21:34:00.000-06:00

The smoothest flights ever on our trips to Costa Rica brought us without incident back to our friends in Los Anonos! We disembarked from our flight from Columbus to Atlanta and our connecting flight was one gate away! We love it when that happens! Other than one bump that I am pretty sure was the plane hitting a large deer, the flight was without incident. We arrived at 11:30am and hit the ground running. We had a quick introduction to the ministry house, a wonderful lunch -- we can't tell you what it was or you will be jealous! Then we started unpacking some 500lbs of things we brought for the ministry here -- most of which was donated by the great people of New Life and our team members -- items for the 2nd hand store run by the church, kids ministry items, books and Bibles for discipleship and lots of fun stuff for the new "Princess Ministry" (for young girls learning that they are made and loved by God and should strive to live as "God's princesses").

There was lots of reconnection with old friends, weeping over those who continue to struggle with addictions and play with the kids of the community. Steve Selegue is quite the "tag playah" and Andrew is now the nearest thing to a King's Island ride found in the country!

As night set in, we headed back to the ministry house for dinner and some more training from Rodney. Then we shared together about a book we have all been reading, "Slave" by John MacArthur, We are committed to listening to our Master this week -- HIS servants, bought for HIS glory and HIS purposes!

Since it's 2 hours later on our body clocks, and it's nearly 9:30, so we're off to bed! The gathering of Christ's Body tomorrow morning!

Our New Team Hits the Home Stretch

2011-06-13T11:38:00.000-06:00

We are just 12 days away from New Life's next trip to Los Anonos, Costa Rica!

Front Row: Brian Robertson, Steve Palmer, Christine Parsons, Holly Washubrn,

Jim Theodorou, Jason Sheppard

Back Row: Andres Piletz, Mike Monjot, Aaron Walker, Brian Washburn,

Austin Washburn, Jared Bradley, Steve Selegue, Dean Stoecklin

Our team will be working in a variety of efforts including construction of an addition and other enhancements to the church building, discipleship with the younger men of the church, children’s ministry and outreach, soccer outreach, relationship building, other community service projects, teaching and preaching in the church, leadership training and more…

More funds are needed for individuals going on this trip, so please pray and consider being a part of our effort through your financial gifts.

Many thanks to those who gave to our Walk4Faith effort.

This Saturday, June 18th is our final fundraiser at Las Margaritas Mexican Restaurant. 10% of what you spend will go our team, so eat lots of food! Remember that you must have your church Worship Folder or the fundraiser flyer handed out this past weekend.

One Month Home

2011-03-03T12:36:00.004-06:00

Our last team returned home to Ohio on Wednesday, February 2 (2 days late due to a snow storm). What a wild month it has been. Weather...ministry...life. God has continued to draw our two communities together in relationship thanks to technology (Latin for Facebook). I belive that God is also drawing us together in prayer as we all move past ourselves and look to the needs of others.

"Let each of you look not only on his won interests, but also to the interests of others."

Philippians 2:4

I think that some of us are experiencing our heart being in two places! Here and our Kingdom work in Columbus and with our "2nd Family" in Los Anonos. I find myself almost jealous of those on other teams when they are in Costa Rica! I want to be there too!

Our next team trip will be June 25-July 4 and already over 20 people have shown interest in being part of this team. There are only 14 spots available, so please pray that we have great wisdom as we narrow this number down to those that God wants ministering this summer.

Pray also for the team on the ground in Anonos. There are staff changes taking place. The church is growing and more and more leadership and organization are needed. The Kingdom of God is advancing and our enemy does not like that, so He is working overtime!

DAYS 10...& 11..and...

2011-02-01T21:08:00.002-06:00

Well, we said goodbye to everyone in CR at about 11:30am on Monday. The plan was that we would arrive in Columbus at 11:30pm on Monday. It is now 10pm on Tuesday and we are still not home. First all flight to Columbus from Atlanta were canceled pretty much indefinitely. So we stayed in Atlanta Monday night, rented 2 vans on Monday and started the trip home. We made it to Cinci when the weather turned icy. So as I type this entry, we are stuck overnight, hoping to get home tomorrow. The vans have to be back by noon, so we are hoping for the best. We have only dirty clothes left and little to no patience!!! God's chiseling away at us!! The longest 10-day trip ever! This WILL NOT happen on the June trip!! By the way, "thanks to global warming for this special gift."

Day 9 - Celebrations

2011-01-30T14:14:00.007-06:00

What a day! Celebrations all day...

CELEBRATION #1 - The Vina Los Anonos gathered together for a day of fun at the Club Cubana -- a place not far from our location that has a pretty nice pool. This is a treat for many of the children AND their parents. It is not often that they get to take a day to relax and have fun together. Lots of laughing, "shoeless" soccer (I have it on good authority that this really should not be happening ANYWHERE, but it did), swimming and of course throwing people in to the pool (yes, this is a world-wide fun thing to do at pools). Lots of pizza was delivered and chaos reigned!!! PIZZA CHAOS!!! It was great fun! What an excellent opportunity to build relationships. Pastor Jay calls it the importance of "wasting time together." We gather the entire church and our team for a group photo. As I am taking the picture I realize that this tells the story of the past 6 months here in CR and the ministry of this new church -- there are over 2 times, possibly 3 times the number of people connected as there were this past July. Praise God for bringing people into relationship with Himself!

CELEBRATION #2 - 5 o'clock brings the yellow house dedication. About 40 people who at some point this week helped with the construction of Dona Carmen's house gathered there. A couple of our guys went to the house where she has been staying during construction and carried her in her wheelchair to the new house. It takes awhile for her to realize what is happening. It is hard for her to understand why this house she is in is now her own -- at one point she asks "where are the papers?" The scene becomes more and more humorous as her hearing is very limited and our interpreter is literally yelling everything that is said in her ear! At the same time, many eyes were welling up with tears as the scene of this frail 99 year old woman receiving a brand new place to live became starkly real to us. After presentations of a Bible and a cross and a prayer over the house by our friend Louis, everyone enjoyed hot dogs with Ketchup and Mayo... yes mayo...a totally Tico thing we are told. Needless to say, some of the North Americans did not partake in this delicacy.

Throughout the evening, and I am sure throughout tomorrow, each of our team members experiences the joy of friendship and the pain of separation as we say goodbye to good friends, those we have become so close with over this and other trips, those we have prayed for, those for whom we have desired blessing and a deeper relationship with Christ. It is always hard to leave -- yes after just 9 days -- God's family is BIG and SMALL at the same time -- and this is family to us!

Day 8 - The Wrap-Up Begins

2011-01-29T22:15:00.002-06:00

Ha! Tonight I (Cindy 2, not to be confused with Ministry Leader and Chief Cook Cindy 1) grabbed the computer to throw in my two cents ...er....dos colones.....on the blog before it is too late. WOW. What a day. Yes, yes, it was sunny and in the 80's, the flowers were abloom, the birds chirping, the dogs barking, the ninos screeching, the car alarms blaring - just another day in Anonos. But THIS day would bring a lot of completion, a lot of joy, a lot of fun, even a little bit of sorrow. We all scattered this morning - the ladies went to the Casa Nuevo to do some more children's ministry training and help with Kid's Club, some of the men folk (and Lisa) went to the Farmer's Market at 6 am (I would have gone at noon....), Cindy 1 and Julie went to the store for muchO foodO for the upcoming large group events, the menfolk moved all the tools back to the house and filled up a giant truck with a MONUMENTAL pile of trash from the worksite, Brian & Rodney went to buy a bed for Dona Carmen's new house - and all that was before lunch - whew!

After lunch we began the 2nd round of chaos - one group went to the HyperMos, which is the CR Walmart, and the logo is a giant whale- apparently there was a store called something like "We are Big & Great" and Walmart came to town and said, "Oh yeah, We are the BIGGEST of all and we have a giant WHALE on our sign." We bought coffee and other necessary souvenirs and also new bedding for Dona Carmen's new bed. Josh & Brett led a discipleship seminar for the teens/20-somethings. Lisa & Tina (Teeny!) & Harry & Tatyana delivered backpacks filled with school uniforms to many of the children from the church - what a blessing! The worker bees over at the house - especially Steve S, the Building King of Yellow Houses- that man is amazing :) - finished the steps, finished the plumbing, including the toilet and shower - and yes, those have been moved OUT of the kitchen - and cleaned out the house and the yard. Tomorrow, for the dedication, this dear little lady will have a new clean, dry house, plus a new clean, dry bed, with new floral sheets and a warm blanket. Halfway through our day and I have left out all the random cooking, washing dishes, running up & down the hill (mountain!) between the 4 locations, more random trips hither and yon, morning devotions, laptop time... are you tired yet??

Dinner time brought more random guests, plus the THREE BOYS are back from their week-long ministry so our number goes back up - Cindy 1 cooks for at least 15-20 people or more, 3 meals a day - and I mean, from scratch, healthy, amazing meals. For example, if I were making a pot pie for 20, I would.....go..to....Sam's Club and buy one from Stouffer's and bake it in my oven. I might add a bag of salad if I were feeling healthy. Cindy 1 bakes a turkey, mixes up fresh pie crust, cuts up fresh vegetables and makes a giant delicious turkey pot pie from scratch. REALLY? Wow. She is amazing. Seriously. So anyway, we had marlin in a butter dill sauce (REALLY???) pasta salad, broccoli salad and cookie bars, yes...warm from the oven. I know, right...... Everyone scattered again, using every minute to pass out more bookbags, get ready for church, music practice (Brett sat in on drums - he is a man of many talents, as he will share with you if you ask!) packing, hanging out with the kids, which is anyone from a random baby on the street to the teens from the church. At 7 we gathered on the "patio" of the Casa Nuevo for the weekly church service. People started to appear: babies, children, more children, mamas, families, young men, older women, more families, more babies - the poodle did NOT come to church this week, which kind of disappointed me. Pray for two guys - no really, stop reading now and pray for God to intervene in the lives of Marecio and Jason- seriously. Big needs.

The service was such a blessing - the crowd was great, probably 40-50 adults and hordes of children. The worship time was great - you realize that God speaks Spanish and that's okay. Pastor Brian spoke on 3 kinds of people - those following God and aiming to please Him, those who are wordly in their walk with God, and those who don't have or even desire to have a relationship with God. Maximo from CCA, which means nothing to most of you but he is an incredible man of God, translated for Brian and he does a great job using inflection and interest in his translation - he was such a pleasure to listen to. The crowd really listened and seemed to "get" the topic and the path to following God. We ended, as always, with a powerful prayer time. Something about being out in the open air, palm trees blowing in the wind, stars glowing overhead amid the bare bulbs and neon lights, made God seem much closer to us. We came home and scattered to bed quickly - none of us goes to bed at 9pm at home, but when that egg man (Huevos!Huevos!Huevos!) drives by at 7 am and the birds chirp and the dogs bark and roosters crow even earlier, the day is much longer for many of us and we are tuckered out by nightfall!

A mission trip is a strange thing. The first few days you are super excited and everything is new. Then you settle into a routine and all is well. Then you start missing your family. And your bed. And your car. And your "normal life." Then as the trip winds down, you kind of want to roll the clock back and do a few things again, and hug a few more people and speak into a few more lives, and sit on the porch with the orchids one more time. And then you realize, the house is done. Our sweet men and their Tico helpers actually built a home in 7 or 8 days. The kid's work is handed over, the cabinets stuffed with supplies and encouragement given. The kids have new school uniforms and their parents can breathe a little easier without the pressure of coming up with so much extra money. The new church is encouraged and strengthened by the power of partnership. Friendships are cemented, begun, strengthened - I have a new Facebook friend, a 13-year-old girl from a little village in CR - how cool is that?? I know God is glorified when we use our skills for His kingdom, to reach into the darkness with the light of the Gospel. Yes, we have seen poverty, abuse, sadness, tears, broken families, oppression, addiction, hopelessness, fear. But we have also seen reconcilliation, forgiveness, love, sharing, unbelievable caring, teamwork, community, new wineskins, trust, and an unwavering reliance on God's power in a very hard place. Amazing.

Day 7 - Invisible Goats

2011-01-28T20:33:00.005-06:00

While Brian and Brett are arm wrestling over who gets to do the next blog; I (Craig) decided to just go ahead and do it. Here we are at Day 7. This is our day off. The house is 90% complete, I am ready to go home (not that I don't love this place, I just miss my family), and we are up and out of the house at least an hour earlier than usual. Our team along with the Harvest Hands interns and several of the Tico teens climbed aboard a bus this morning at 7:00 a.m. Did I mention it is our day off?

I have to admit that the bus was much bigger and more comfortable than the 4 wheel death trap that we rode in back in 2009. Nonetheless, as we wound our way up the mountain road through dairy farms, coffee plantations and strawberry fields en route to the volcano Poas. There were times that I thought we might have to get out and push. After an hour and half of winding, climbing, twisting, turning and bouncing along in first and second gear, we reached our destination. I have to tell you, the Costa Rican countryside is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. We spent about an hour looking at the lake in the top of the dormant volcano, which does still have constant steam coming out of it. This steam is the one identifying feature that tells you it is a volcano and not just an abandoned gravel pit.

Getting several team members to try and find the "mountain goat" across the crater with binoculars did prove to be a very amusing way to pass some time. Shortly after beginning our way down the mountain, we stopped at a roadside restaurant for some traditional Costa Rican food and breathtaking views of the valley below. Shortly down the road from the restaurant we stopped at a cluster of shops that sold traditional Costa Rican stuff like hammocks, frog shaped napkin holders and a whole lot of items made out of wood. After a couple minutes of negotiating with Cindy about how long we were actually going to spend at these fine establishments, we all got out and did some browsing and shopping.

Shortly after returning to town, Steve went off to do some work at the yellow house. I honestly think Steve might just self combust or at least go through some kind of withdrawal if he didn't work for at least a little while each day. Josh and Lisa enjoyed a choco-banana as I consumed a coco-frio to nourish ourselves and prepare to play soccer on a rough concrete street with several of the smaller kids from the neighborhood. I was so amused at the one boy who constantly stopped the game and corrected the other players, reinforcing his set of rules and shaking his finger in a scolding fashion at the opposite team. I am really glad he was on my team. As we kicked the ball around and laughed and played, I was reminded that kids are kids whether in Gahanna or Los Anonos and each are truly a gift from God.

We no more than returned to the house but walked up to the "Mangos" area (or as Cindy would say, up the side of a mountain) to buy some home made tortillas for dinner. The ladies in the tiny little shack hand kneaded and cooked on a wood fire the tortilla's that would become part of our dinner. I was reminded once again of an often more difficult but yet in some ways simpler way of life that the people here live.

After another delicious meal, some of us headed down to the church for the teen gathering. Brett lead in a small group format while Lisa translated on what it means to be a disciple of Jesus. As I have been sitting here back at the house, I can here the laughter down the street as some of our team stayed behind with the teens after the gathering. I cant help but think about how joyful everyone sounds without any televisions, playstations, or gameboys to occupy their time.

As I close for the evening, I must say that today was a day to step back and reflect on the love that is shared by these teens, our team and this ministry. I cant imagine this place and these people not being part of my life. I truly believe that God was truly glorified again today as relationships were strengthened and walls continued to come down.

Day 6 - All You Need...

2011-01-27T19:28:00.005-06:00

Pastor B is blogging again today. Brett has been fired for insubordination due to one to many "Mama" references!!! Now it's my turn!!! Not really...but maybe I'll think of a few funny things by the end of this blog. For now, let me turn from children's ministry and house construction and tell you what else is going on in this Kingdom building effort.

I know that some have been concerned about the team's safety here. Honestly, I doubt that anyone who has every come here on a New Life trip has ever felt in danger. Any violence tends to be between people dealing with drug or theft issues, neither of which we include on our trips!! We have actually decided that if we were to chose to walk at midnight here or in the OSU Campus area, we would chose here. So lay all fears aside. On the spiritual side of this issue though, remember that if we only took the Gospel to safe places, there would be few places to go and many of the neediest in our world would never hear the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Remember that some in our world live in less than safe conditions every day of their lives. Many here scrape for even the simplest one meal per day and that can often be only rice. To watch some of the young men who build with us enjoy a simple meat and cheese sandwich at lunch on the work site is a reminder each day that while others have too little, many like me have way too much.

Today one of the young men didn't show up to the job site. He stopped by toward the end of the day to let us know that he had taken a small day-long job to have money to buy his clothes for the new school year starting next week. How many of our 16 year old guys would need to do this, let alone come up with the idea themselves. Needless to say I told him that I was proud of him...all the while fighting back tears. Rodney gave him a big fist bump and he smiled widely, knowing that those he looks up to were pleased with his efforts.

The ladies braved the San Jose' bus system to ride into the city and purchase school clothes for 19 kids in the church family who would have no funds to purchase them on their own and are too young to earn the money themselves. I hear that this effort to bless some very needy families was spent laughing and enjoying the joy that comes when we think about another's needs before our own needs or desires. Our ladies today are the hand of God as He fulfills His promise to "supply all our needs." I wonder who's life you are to be the hands of God in this week?

Much of the work on the house became more "technical" today, so some of us got some time to "fellowship"! Remember that a the foundation of our partnership here is relationships -- in my and Brett's case today this meant two hours of UNO with some of the guys. One of our hands was 1 1/2 hours long!!! Brett finally won...but I am pretty sure he cheated since I can't imagine that God would bless someone who would be so cruel in his blog entrees!!! By the way, as we have headed to the work site the past couple of days, the air has been filled with the shouts of young voices yelling "Brett! Brett! Brett!". He is suddenly the most popular playmate in games of soccer and foosball in the village!

UPDATE on the wedding dress: The bride came by to try the dress on yesterday and welled up with tears as she look at herself in the mirror. What a beautiful job Tatyana has done -- not just in making a dress but in making a certain young girl feel special beyond words. (We'll get a photo up soon). Seems like this is the way Jesus meant it to be -- reminding each other of the value we have because of Jesus' love for us.

The times of one-on-one pray, sharing together, laughing across our language beariers go on! These are the highlights -- when believers who speak two languages become ONE IN CHRIST -- for in His Kingdom there are no real barriers -- only the ones we make! Maybe the Beatles were right!

Can I say this...I love my team! It's a quirky, crazy, complicated one, but these are people who have accepted the simple call of God to GO and then WENT! It's really that simple!

Day 5 - Heavy Metal

2011-01-27T07:45:00.000-06:00

Well, this post is from Brett today, not Brian. No reason other than Pastor Brian smells bad after a long day washing everyone's clothes....seriously.....and so I jokingly said, "I'll write it" and he said "Okay" and went off to the showers. So here we go.

We woke up in the morning to wonderful sounds of the man yelling, "Huevos, Huevos, Pinas y Pipas", and the wonderful smells of breakfast which happened to be orange whole wheat pancakes and an array of fresh mangoes and pineapple and coffee like you would not imagine which is drank morning, noon and night. After breakfast and a short discussion about the gospel, Pastor Brian tells us that it is laundry day and graciously volunteers to do the laundry for everyone. We all brought him our dirty smelly clothes and I even found some socks that I put outside to dry after they got wet the day before and they were so stiff that I could hold them sideways and they did not droop down. YUCK. So I handed them to Brian :)

As Brian, our mommy for the day, washed our clothes (have I mentioned that?), we got ready for the work of the day which involved children's ministry for some and and for others, putting the inside and outside walls on the house as well as the roofing. We were like ants coming in and out of Yogi Bear's picinic basket as we carried carefully formed yellow sections of wall and loading them on a truck and then unloading them on the work site while Carlos El Guapo Santana led the way. We got them fastened to the floor amidst the differing and almost arguing cries of 4 different men--imagine that ladies--telling each other what to do, "Yes the top is flush.....No! Bring it up a hair......Back some......Aye Aye Aye loco gringos......"

Then came the aforementioned "heavy metal" which is not slang for the type of music Mama Brian was listening to as he carefully added laundry detergent to our clothes. It started with Steve who is one of the workers here, who is a gringo himself and affectionately known to the locals as either "Shaggy" or "estiff". Steve saw me, Brett, standing around not doing much and he told me we were going to get the roofing. I knew it was sheet metal but I did not know we were going to tie 4 sheets of it together and carry it down the crazy, uneven, sometimes wet, half tiled, steps to get to the work site. He also so kindly told me that every time he works with the roofing he usually cuts himself and that he had seen someone nearly cut their hand off with it. So we carefully rolled up about 4 sheets (8'x3') at a time which weighed over a hundred pounds and went down the stairs. We had taken about 3 trips with the same type of bundle, when out of nowhere, there stood Mama Brian who had come out of the laundry room to help carry sheet metal. Could he? Should he? Would he? HE DID!!!!!!

So with sheet metal added to the roof....wait wait wait, there were no injuries from the sheet metal.....until I was done and sat on top of a pile of old ceramic roofing and one of them broke and took a small chunk out of the skin on my right calf. Its fine though.

The work for the day was done around 5 and as we do every day, we take off our shoes and a few of us sit in Harry's favorite leather Costa Rican rocking chairs until it is our turn in the shower.

So as the day winds down, some of us decide to go to a Bible study in a yellow house which had been built for someone in the community by Harvest Hands. The Bible study was led by Luis, who has been helping with the construction all week and considers himself to have been called by God to be an evangelist, which he is. We sat for 2 hours reading scripture and encouraging a few of the local people who were with us. Lisa translated EVERYTHING for 2 hours into English as Luis shared the gospel and other words from God to all of us in Spanish. It was amazing how God orchestrated others in the group to share Scripture as well as just sit and listen to the stories of God working in their lives.

One small highlight of the Bible study is when I sat down next to a little girl on the couch and she pointed at my shirt seemingly trying to see what the design was on it, so I showed her and made probably what looked to her like some crazy gringo motion with my arms as if to say, "I don't know what it is either." and then she laughed and pointed again, and it was A SPIDER on my shirt and I jumped up and wiped it off and then it ended up on the little girl and she wiped it off on to the floor and we didn't see it again. I hate spiders.....ask my wife at church.

Well, I hope that was not too much about me, but I really saw how God can use such a diverse group of people who all love him to get the work of sharing the gospel accomplished AND how he can use so many different people to build a house.

Even though there are times here when we smell the aromas of food being cooked all around the local city and there are times when we cross over a bridge and smell the horrific smells of a trash and sewer filled river flowing through that same town, we can know that the body of Christ which is made up of gringos from Ohio and ticos from Los Anonos is a fragrant aroma to God as we are following him and walking in love, together

Until tomorrow's blog....hasta luego

Day 4 - Steady as She Goes

2011-01-25T21:36:00.002-06:00

Today we continued our work with the house, children and of course the wedding dress. We have a happy family of the widow who will soon move into her new house, a happy bunch of kids who are making sure our ladies all "earn their pay" and a happy bride who is thrilled to have the dress she never imagined she would have.

By the end of the day we had the entire floor finished. Steve headed a team who began clearing the property of all the piles of wood and tin from the old house. They had the hardest job of the day since the only thing you have to show for your work is an empty space!! HA! Every one worked so hard today we looked forward to a free night. The ladies worked with kids in our Kids Kamp and also went shopping for school clothes and book bags that will be given to the children of the church families this weekend. Summer break ends this Sunday and school starts again on Monday.

Remember that "free night" we had planned? It turned out we decided to include a prayer meeting at the church building for the community. There has been a rise in violence since the flooding and land slides -- seems that our enemy knew how to use this and stir things up among the people in the community. One of our guys who always helps with the houses was slashed with a knife and beaten with a brick the night before we arrived. (Don't worry families, there is no danger to we Gringos. This is an inner-community issue and we are in no danger. Plus, we are always very careful). We prayed God's power over the situation here and then especially for two boys that are very concerned about being moved by the government to another community. The government hopes to move out many more families who live in areas susceptible to landslides. These young guys are really concerned about their future. During the prayer time, God really broke through and did way more than we expected. He has a way of doing that when we give Him time and space to work.

We anticipate more God stuff tomorrow!

Day 3 - Foundations

2011-01-24T21:24:00.012-06:00

At this point, there are no super exciting stories to tell -- but often life isn't about the super high happenings from today Los Anonos:

1.The basas (bases) that form the foundation of our yellow house entail digging a deep hole for each of the concrete basas. They are then leveled and cemented in. The cement is made by hand with gravel and sand -- then hauled in buckets on the shoulders of the most tired of our team! This is really a long complicated process that takes patience and a trust in the skills of everyone on the team -- our team did a great job at allowing those who knew what they are doing to really lead the effort and the rest of us followed -- the Body of Christ at its best!

2. The ladies led children's programs here this morning and another in the afternoon. This is in an effort to help in two ways -- train those here to know how to lead ministry to children and show them how to work with children as they work side by side.

3. This evening, several of headed up to the Mangos area of the community to participate in a Bible study that takes place in one of the yellow houses we built. Mama Rosa is one of my favorite people and tonight nearly 30 adults and children jam into this little casa to discuss scripture and pray for one another. It is great to see our yellow house turned into a home. We get to visit with Danny and Brenda, the couple we built a house for this past July. They are building a patio outside the house and have done a wonderful job making their home inviting and beautiful. The foundation of relationships is really what our efforts in and with Los Anonos is all about. Personally, I was able to spend about half an hour with one of my young friends here -- a wonderful blessing when it is 6 months between visits. The family of God is continuing to form and we are continually thrilled by God's work.

An unexpected blessing was getting to meet Jono Calvo's mom and brother. Jono is a Tico we meet here in Costa Rica who is now working with us in Gahanna at New Life to develop at ministry to Latinos. The partnership between Anonos and Gahanna now goes both ways and this is amazing progress from the strong foundations that have been formed here.

Day 2 - Kids, Construction and Weddings

2011-01-23T17:13:00.014-06:00

After a good night's sleep for most everybody, we hit the ground running. Our day begins with our first Costa Rican breakfast of the trip -- that means rice and beans is included on the menu! We spend some time talking about the call of Jesus to "be" rather than "do". It is a challenge to make sure we ARE what God wants us to be in the midst of our DOING this week -- the doing needs to be the outpouring of the Spirit working in us. After prayer, we get our plans for the day together and head out. Part of us are working at the church building on children's ministry -- including training those here to do ministry with children and the others work on tearing down the old house that we are replacing. In this little place is a 99 year old widow named Dona Carmen who has spent many of the past few years in a small bed in a dusty, leaking and otherwise non-healthy place. She turns 100 this coming December and we are all convinced she'll make it longer than some of us younger folk!

In order to build, the first task is to move Dona Carmen to a family member's home and remove the items in her small house. We were amazed at the small amount of "goods" that this lovely lady has after 99 years. It's a secret, so hopefully she won't see this on the blog (ha!) but we hope to purchase a new bed for her and move it in for her when she comes to move into her brand new home.

The day is spent in demolition at the house plus training and planning from the children's team. Now, God always does amazing things on these trips and always has plans that we would have never foreseen. Today was no exception, but even I was taken aback with this one --- Tatyana Hibler is a member of our team who does wedding dress making and alterations for a living. I could not promise her that her skills in that area could be used on this trip, but assured her as I do everyone who comes that God will find a spot for them. Today I arrived back at the mission house to find her working on a....wait for it...wedding dress. A new young couple in the church is getting married in 2 weeks and has no money to have even the simplest of weddings. Cindy Lafrance had "one size fits all" dress (not sure why) and so this young bride will have a lovely dress altered and constructed by an expert seamstress from OHIO! Who knew? Our great God, who cares about our smallest of life situations brought here all the way to CR just to this -- bless someone else with there gifts! Can you say YEAH GOD???

Tomorrow begins foundation work on the house and ministry to lots of children!!! Not sure which will be harder, but we love it!!!

Day 1 - The Longest Day

2011-01-23T16:29:00.010-06:00

The travel days on mission trips are always the longest. Now if we were going to China it would include lots of hours on a plane. When we come to Costa Rica it begins with a 4:30am arrival at the airport. We have some in our group who have been here before and others who are here for the first time. Can you guess from the photos who is who? Now a plane change in Atlanta, arrive in Costa Rica and stand in line for immigration...THEN, load 12 people and 20+ pieces of luggage into one can -- the stack on top of can was taller than the van and we were very close to riding the rims on our tires! But our driver was great and we made it safely to the mission house. Those of us who have been here before were shocked by the devastation caused by the mud slides and the flooding in November. It was interesting to be told that many who were left homeless simply added on to the home of a friend or family member and are still here in the community. Several of us head down to see place where the new house will go and access the situation and others go to see a community gathering area called the Planche'. On our first trip here we painted murals there and were very excited to see the contribution to the community. Now the local municipality is tearing the entire area down for "safety" reasons. It is very sad to see the community being negatively affected this way but we trust in the fact that God is in control even when we do not understand the circumstances.

After dinner, we go to the new church building -- a renovated house down the street (they call it the "new house" so that they carefully differentiate between the people and the building called the church). It helps them remember that the building is a place where "The Church" meets together. We could all learn from this!

The Celebration went well with great worship and preaching. Rodney shared about how The Church is to be reaching the world and that the foundation of that is LOVE. Hey New Life, does that sound familiar to you??? Love in any language!!!! We get to minister to people in prayer as part of the evening together which is always a blessing. The church has grown since July with the ability to have more come in for the gatherings - the "auditorium" is actually outside and allows many to come and be a part. Nearly 70 adults and children gathered tonight.

Bed comes not soon enough for a bunch of tired Gringos who have been up for nearly 20 hours. AND those roosters crow mighty early.

On our way to Anonos!

2011-01-14T13:06:00.008-06:00

Well, we have officially not kept up well with this blog! Confessoin out of the way, we can move on!

We are off to Costa Rica again in just 8 days. A team of 10 New Lifers will be working from January 22-31 in Anonos with the Bridge Church. Since our last trip lots of things have happened, at both New Life and in Los Anonos.

1. Rodney and Cindy Lafrance came and spent a week with us in Ohio. What a blessing! We experienced a unity and oneness that only comes through Christ's Cross. During Celebrations, the two church communities exchanged Communion dishes and cups -- a symbolic way of stating our unity in The Gospel.

2.Within two weeks of their return the rainy season brought devistating flooding and mudslides that took the homes of 300 people in Anonos and nearly 30 people in the village and surrounding area. Several families that are part of the church there had to relocate since it would be impossible to rebuild.

3.The beginning of January brought a Tico to Ohio. Jonathan Calvo will be working at New Life as part of our effort to reach Latinos in our area. He came on a day when we received the heaviest snow of the season!!! God's humor. Pray for our efforts in this area that we are already see God working in and are simply trying to get in on what He is doing.

Please pray for our team as we go this ocming week. Keep up with us on this blog each day so we are covered in prayer.

Trusting God...even though...

2010-09-05T09:53:00.005-06:00

Rodney and Cindy will be coming to New Life in October!!! That is the very good news. The discouraging news is that we worked to get Tito a Visa to come also, and so far that is not happening. Without explanation, his application was denied, so we are now working through Rep. Tiberi's office to try and get this decision reversed.

While this is not the plan we had in mind, we still trust that God knows exactly what is oging on and will provide in His time and for His glory.

The LaFrance's will be arriving on October 12 and staying until the 18th. The 13th and 14th will be filled with meetings for the 5 partner churches (from Ohio, Michigan and Virginia). The rest of the week, we will be scheduling dinners, lunches and gatherings for New Lifers to get a deeper understanding of the Bridge Partnership as well as meetings with those who have been to Costa Rica and those planning to go in January.

Visits & Visas

2010-08-13T06:20:00.004-06:00

This October, New Life is celebrating our 25th Anniversary as a church. As part of this celebration (over the course of 2 weekends), we will be having visits from our primary ministry partnerships -- including Rodney & Cindy LaFrance from Los Anonos. We are working to have Tito visit also! This is complicated because he needs to obtain his Visa from the CD government. His interview is August 17th!!! So this is an answer to prayer already (very quick scheduling). He is taking letters from the US and from his employer, etc. to prove that he will come just for a visit and then return. Please pray that the interviewer will see that this is all on the up and up (ie., he will return to CR) and approve his VISA. Typically they look for people who own property, but God is bigger than all this. I know that Tito would be a blessing to our church as well as God working in his life as he meets people at New Life.

The Partnership Grows

2010-07-29T13:24:00.003-06:00

Here is an explanation of the growing partnership between New Life Church and The Bridge of Los Anonos. Our next team is now forming and applications are being taken. The dates for our winter trip to Costa Rica are Janaury 22-31. If you are interested, please contact Pastor Brian at brobertson@enewlife.com.

New Life Church began a partnership with The Bridge of Los Anonos in 2008. This is a partnership of churches and communities, meaning that it is first and foremost about relationships. We began small as we partnered with a fairly new ministry called Harvest Hands (harvesthands.blogspot.com), a ministry led by Rodney & Cindy LaFrance and based out of the Vineyard Church of Mechanic Falls, Maine. Since that time, a church has been organized in the community of Los Anonos called The Bridge. New Life’s partnership has increase and deepened through our Yellow House Projects, discipleship and leadership training efforts, multiple teams traveling to Costa Rica each year, increasing monthly financial support, as well as a growing prayer and ministry support team throughout the year. The goal of this partnership is to build community between our church communities to increase the effectiveness of both churches in reaching people with the Gospel as well as meeting physical and humanitarian needs.

Day 9 - The Church Gathers

2010-07-04T16:34:00.005-06:00

What a wonderful day! This morning we arose early -- most of us are up by 6am each morning (yes, I know, that is very impressive). We have rented a place not too far from Anonos called Club Cabana so that all the people who are part of the church here can come together for worship, baptism and then a day of fun together. This has happened only once in the past three months. Vans have been hired to take the people over (about 10 minutes away) and we gather around 8am to start the process. By 9am. over 60 people are seated (mostly! the kids seem to be finding other things to do!) and ready to share in a time of teaching. No music today because of work schedules of the worship leaders.

Rodney beings by sharing about the start of the ministry here and how it has progressed to 6 small groups now. This is actually not nearly enough, but a plan is not yet in place to add more. Because there is not a location large enough to gather everyone, the church rarely comes together in the same place. He shares with them that the goal for the near future is to secure a place to be able to do this because of the importance of unity that can come from all these "pieces" meeting together for ministry to one another. He also shares that the goal is to make sure that the people of "The Anonos Bridge" (the planned name) always go out themselves from this place as missionaries to others in greater need.

Next, I (Brian) speak from Galatians 1 about Christ's dying to make us free and that we should not be enslaved by sin but instead live in the truth of the freedom we have received! Next, Frederico, one of the leaders here shares from John 8 about spiritual freedom. He begins with the story of July 4th in the US and then builds on that to help them see that the TRUTH of the GOSPEL sets us free and allows us to live in community with one another, challenging one another to a deeper walk with Jesus. He then shares more about the practical ways that this church can reach out into their community in the future.

This is followed by 2 baptisms -- Juan Pablo (an addict who has recently come to Christ) and Jacolyn (led to Christ by her two sisters). Rodney shares the meaning of baptism and then each of them share their personal testimony of their salvation and desire to walk with Jesus. Here, young men who are leaders in the church share the duties of baptism together as a picture of every believer having a place in the Great Commission.

THEN...the party begins! Pool games, laughing, sharing and real community and unity taking place. Around noon, the grill is fired up with chicken sandwiches and hot dogs. We discover that hot dogs in CR are individually wrapped in little coatings that must be removed before cooking -- fun!!! Again, the unity of people from 2 countries -- all coming together as a CROSS COMMUNITY in Jesus -- is amazing! What fun! What a blessing! What a picture of Heaven! At 2pm -- 6 hours later -- everyone boards the vans and heads back to Anonos! Knowing that we are leaving tomorrow for the US already has many people, both us and the Ticos, starting to get pretty emotional. I know for me, having been here 6 times, I become more and more attached to these wonderful people! Tonight, there will be one last time together at the Casita in the village -- I am sure emotions will be REALLY HIGH by then! Here's a photo of most of the Anonos Bridge Church (about 10 or so missing). Attach prayers to these faces -- your brothers and sisters in the Kingdom! We are one! Together we are victorious!

Our flight leaves tomorrow at about 1pm, so we will be up and packing to be ready to go. Back in Columbus at about midnight!

Day 8 - Back to Work & Dedication

2010-07-03T22:19:00.006-06:00

Today was filled with lots of little things still to do plus some extra projects we took on. We all split up to different locations for our work. Rick & Patrick headed to the house project to finish work on the inside doors and locks and then took time to put some gutter on Rosa's home. Dave and Lyndsay went with Rodney to move cases of tile from one location to another for another ministry called Pura Vida -- from the report, it was up and down some stairways -- always fun! Jeremy, Steve and I headed to three of the other yellow houses to apply the new paint scheme. Rule of thumb around the world by the way -- in NO country should 4 years olds be given paint brushes to help!!! Paint in hair, on bodies, and a variety of other places it should not have been! Jamie, Mark and Morisio went to Mama Dona Carmen's shack and shored up the walls so they would not cave in on her. This little 98 year old lady is so small that I stuck my head in the door and did not think she was in the bed!

After lunch, most of the team traveled downtown...by bus... to the artisans market to purchase Costa Rican made items. On the way there, Mark was pick pocketed on the bus!!! First time anything like that has happened, Second rule of thumb around the world -- in EVERY crowded bus, keep you hand on your wallet!

5pm (on Tico time that is very "ish" as we have learned), the dedication of the house takes place. It had started to rain, so this all happened inside. This means we had 30 people jammed into half of a 20X24 house! What a celebration. Danny and Brenda's mom and dad were both there. His mom shared through tears that she had prayed for such a day for a long time. We gave them a Bible and told them that we had built a house, but it was up to them to build it into a home dedicated to Christ and His Kingdom. As Danny shared, his eyes welled with tears as he thanked everyone -- Gringos and Ticos -- who had made this day possible. The others making it possible are all those who have given to the Yellow House Fund at New Life -- REMEMBER, more houses coming!

The celebration continued with pizza and Coke! Laughing and sharing in "Spanglish" is always great for me! It reminds me just how big God's family and how small this little orb spinning in space is. It is still amazing to me how close a group of people, speaking two languages, living in vastly different places on earth can become so close to one another in just a week. On the way back home, I have another "eternal" discussion with one of the young guys who I am sure God will use greatly in the coming days. I think we all have far more of these opportunities than we let ourselves see. "God moments" are everywhere if we watch for them!
We are excited about tomorrow and the big "church-wide fiesta"...American flags and all!

Day 7 - A Day at the Beach

2010-07-03T06:34:00.004-06:00

Over the years, we have found that the intensity of work and ministry on mission trips is intense. Here in Los Anonos, the building of a yellow house work is something most of us do not experience on a regular basis, so we always try to take one day to see the country and experience some bit of its beauty.

So yesterday, our team traveled two hours to the coast for a day at the beach at Punta Leona and a chance at zip lining (or canopy tour). We had a great time. About 4pm, the rain hit hard and we drove home in this storm -- adding to the adventure on the narrow 2 lane roads of Costa Rica. Steve, one of the ministry staff at Harvest Hands came along with us. We always have a blast with Steve, who is one of the best guys you would ever want to meet, even IF he never shaves!

Everyone had a great time and everyone came back in one piece.Here are a couple of photos...

Day 6 - Almost Finished

2010-07-01T20:53:00.014-06:00

After our early morning routine of breakfast and our Francis Chan book, we head out early again because it looked like rain. Several projects needed to happen today for us to hit the "almost finished" stage -- the roof had to go on and the painting of the outside was ready to be done. We came up with a new two-tone paint scheme for the house that will not show dirt as much - yellow and brown. Our team of Gringos and Ticos worked together all day to finish the roof, put in the windows, build the wall to the bathroom, install the outside door and two doors inside, paint the house -- as well as going back to the house we built in February and repaint. It became obvious that one more upgrade was needed because of the tight location of this house. We installed gutters that would catch the water and send it to locations that would keep this very tight area of homes dry in the rainy season. Which, speaking of the rainy season -- a pretty good storm hit in the middle of the day and got us and everything else very wet!!!

We had a great time working today with so many amazing locals who are passionate about these projects. Some of them live in conditions not that much better than the family in this house, but they give every spare moment they can to help someone else -- I am challenged by the unselfish nature of their Christian walk.

On a side note, many of the young men have begun to go back to school since New Life started coming here nearly 3 years ago. This will open many more doors for them in the future and we are pleased to see this progress.

One bit of excitement this afternoon, when Patrick, our youngest team member (15) was helping dig a drainage ditch in a very tight area and his hand hit the sharp side of a piece of tin.! He was a trooper and let a couple of us get the bleeding stopped and bandaged up. Back at the house, the wounds were all cleaned out and some drugs administered and he is right back into our activities!

This is just in time for our day off tomorrow at a place called Ponta Leona, where we will enjoy the beach and a zip line. Our trips are always planned with one day off since the work and ministry are so intense.

Day 5 - Major Progess On All Fronts

2010-06-30T21:20:00.005-06:00

Up early today, moved quickly through breakfast and a discussion of "Lukewarm". Seems to me that we use the idea of being lukewarm spiritually as an excuse to stay in that state for long periods of time, never coming to the truth that this is not what Christ intends the Christian life to be.

This was probably our hardest work day yet AND the busiest! We moved all 28 walls panels out of the Casita, carried them across a bridge, loaded them in a truck, 8 at a time, then drove them to the bottom of the hill and then one by one carried them up the steep stairway to the work site. This was quiet the adventure! Most of the Gringos used the "two man method" but a couple of the Ticos carried them up on their own.

In the middle of this effort, several of the guys on the team found out that a couple of women from the church were moving from the hill, known as the Mangos, to the Cabrada -- so our guys helped them move their furniture and household items down the steep steps that lead down into this highly concentrated housing area. When you go into this area and see the tight living spaces, extremely dangerous building methods and the intense poverty, you cannot helped but be moved and changed in your outlook on the world -- God used one small, but hot, moving project to changed a few lives today and they are coming to a city in Ohio near you soon! You had better watch out!

Through the day, we completed the walls and the rafters, purchased the paint for the outside walls, ordered the glass for the windows and most importantly had some amazing opportunities to talk about Jesus, how to live out the Christian life, the struggles of ministry, fighting the battle with addiction and the meaning of baptism -- yes, we are multi-taskers! It did not rain at all today, so our work day was from about 8am till about 5pm -- in the sun and the heat. Lots of sore bodies in this crew today -- except the teenagers of course!

Somewhere in this busy day a couple of the guys went to visit with Dona Carmen, a 98 year old lady who lives in a small shack here in Los Anonos. Her living conditions are terrible and parts of her small house are in very bad shape. We will go back tomorrow and make some temporary repairs. This might very well be our next Yellow House project -- we need her to live to over 100 though! Lindsay, Diana and Dago went through the village passing out fliers for an upcoming event sponsored by an organization called Push the Rock.

After a great dinner prepared once again by the talented Cindy, we all attended bible Study groups that meet each week. Each group has 12-15 people and these are mostly held in houses that are no where near the size in which Americans might ever try to have a Bible study. We prayed for people, shared what God is teaching us and encouraged one another in our walks with Jesus.

Among other things tomorrow, we will put the roof on and do the BRAND NEW paint scheme -- brown on the bottom and yellow on top -- it helps with the dirt stains the houses tend to get -- this should look much better in the long run.

Be sure to comment and let us know you are on this journey with us!

Day 4 - Big Steps

2010-06-29T19:39:00.002-06:00

When we woke up this morning, the sun was shining brightly! A good sign for the day you say? Not so during rainy season in Costa Rica! Rodney predicted that the sun was a sign that it would be raining by 2pm...so we hurried through breakfast and went immediately to the work sites earlier than the past couple of days. Guess that's it! No, I will tell the rest of the story...

By 1pm, the thunder had begun and the clouds were rolling in over the mountains and by 2pm it was raining -- Rodney is a missionary AND a prophet! Despite the rain, the entire floor and the under floor pipes for the plumbing are complete, as are the wall panels. We also purchased all the supplies for the small bathroom that we have been able to build because of lower than normal costs on supplies.

This means that tomorrow another bucket brigade must be formed to take all the wall panels up the steep incline and back to the house (check yesterday's photo). By the way, the house we are building is not right at the top of the hill. It is back past a couple of houses and then by way of a narrow path. I know it sounds like a long way...and it is!!!! Everyone just pitches in as needed without complaining and the work of the Kingdom progresses. This is how community is supposed to work -- everyone doing part of the job without a focus on them self -- only on the needs of others.

We spent time in Crazy Love again this afternoon to make up for missing our morning time. We talked about what it really means to love God with all our heart, mind and soul. We discovered that many of us grew up in church backgrounds that gave the impression, if not the direct teaching, that the Christian walk was about how much stuff you could do for God rather than building a relationship with God. May together in our church communities, we train from even the earliest ages that it is all about Jesus and this wonderful relationship He died to purchase for us!.We hope later tonight to tackle the next section, which is about "lukewarmness" -- sounds fun, huh?

After dinner, the team has headed down into the community for some time with the teens playing basketball and ping ping. This often can open doors for deeper spiritual conversations and life change. Some will also spend time in the Cabrada (one of the darkest places in the village) prayer walking. This area is not just spiritually dark, but in many places has no light what so ever, so it can be a real test of faith. It is filled with homes built on hill side, so it is steep, narrow and uneven in many places. But, some of the greatest spiritual victories in people's lives have happened in this area.

Our goal is as much rest as we can tonight because a very physically challenging day is ahead tomorrow.

Day 3 - Mud & Walls

2010-06-28T19:06:00.006-06:00

Got to spend time together begin challenged with the writings of Francis Chan in Crazy Love -- guess what? Life is NOT all about us -- you and me -- neither of us -- none of us! It is about God and His glory! Our lives need to be completely centered on Him! Good sharing and some crying over what we'd like our lives to look like if they were completely given to Him. What would we want our lives to be like if this was our last day?

After this emotional time, we get our plans for the day and head out once again to our two work locations. As the wall panels continue being assembled, the guys at the house site hit a snag -- well actually, they hit some sort of spewing, black, gross, liquid substance that keeps filling up the holes and making the entire work site more of a muddy mess than it started out. But our crew is professional and soon have the situation in hand -- not sure what it is yet though -- at this point, no one really wants to ask.

We get word that the lumber company that was PRE-PAID for all the lumber does not have the length of boards we need to start the floor -- they never called us -- we had to call them. That is fine customer service! Rodney and crew quickly find another source and another bucket brigade gets all the wood up the hill and to the site. Back at the wall construction site, there are visits from more old friends, Marvin (for whom we built our very first house here), a variety of addicts who are high way too early in the day, lots of dogs and even a friendly bird!

By days end -- when the rain hit about 5pm -- we are ready to start the main floor boards and finish the last 8 panels of wall tomorrow. Great progress. Great team. Great God. We are well ahead of schedule, so barring any unforeseen issues -- they come without notice here -- we will have the family in the house in record time. Of course the best parts of the day are working side-by-side, stopping to laugh at AND with each other, hugging kids who seem to gravitate our way -- "Gringos are in town!!!"

Thanks again for your prayers and continued support. We need to refill our YELLOW HOUSE FUND, so be thinking about what God would have you do!!!

Day 2 - What a Day!

2010-06-27T17:59:00.007-06:00

Now this will surprise most of those who know our team members...we all were in bed by 9pm! Talk about DONE! I think the earliest up was a few minutes before 6, so we all got a great nights sleep. Little did we know that we would need it! HA! HA! Our plan was to have breakfast and then gather for our morning worship and devotional time -- we all read through the book Crazy Love by Francis Chan and are taking time each morning to watch an accompanying video and discuss it's challenging topics. BUT...

The delivery of lumber, tin, sand and rock that we expected at 10 came at 8! We scampered quickly and began the famous "bucket bregade" method of getting things up the very steep hill below the house that we are building. By 9am over 20 men and women (our group plus those from Los Anonos) were starting to dig the 56 holes needed to set the foundation for the house. A concrete pillar is places in each hole. Then concrete is mixed by hand and shoveled into the hole surrounding the pillar. All the while, the pillar must be set completely straight using a plumb bob. This is a tedious process and really one of the hardest portions of the building process.

After a break for lunch, the team divides into two groups -- one continuing the digging and foundation work and the other starting work on the panels that will make up the walls of the new

house. Both groups work till the rain begins about 4:30pm. A great deal of progress is made throughout the day. One change that I have seen in my 2 1/2 years of trips to Los Anonos is the change in how these houses are built with the combined team of people from both countries. Everyone is learning from one another and cooperating in a way that I know shows the way the family of God -- no matter where they live -- comes together for a common purpose. Today both Brenda and Danny (the couple for whom the house is being built) are right in the thick of what is going on. They are both working so hard to make a better place for their three children to live that is
dry and safe. Danny led us in a wonderful prayer this morning as we started work.

Tonight we will gather for our "morning" time of discussion, prayer and worship. We are anxious for God to continue to use us and our Tico brothers and Tica sisters for His glory! We are excited about some plans that we have been able to start that will gather the entire church body here at the same time this coming Sunday. Many do not know each other well since they are only able to meet in small group settings. Please pray that these plans come together in the next few days. We are very excited.

Day 1 - Travel and Arrival

2010-06-26T19:35:00.003-06:00

We had an early morning flight --- 6:25, so most of us were up at 4am and to the airport by about 5am. The flight was packed! Both the flight to Houston and the connection to San Jose were smooth -- though apparently some of our team members felt that the landing in Costa Rica was not worthy of the word "smooth" -- guess there were some closed eyes, gasps and a bit of concern! I must be an official jaded traveler!

It is good to meet up with old friends and introduce first timers to some of the wonderful people here in Los Anonos. Several of them were waiting at the mission house for our arrival. Since it is rainy season we were greeted by an afternoon thunder shower that kept us inside until it cleared up. At about 4pm, we walked down into the village (we are 2 hours ahead by the way.) We got to see more friends while making our way to the building site. When we arrive, several Ticos were already hard at work on the site, getting the foundation plan square -- in the midst of mud created by the afternoon storm. We meet Brenda , who, along with her husband and three children will live in the house we are going to build. Two of the kids have allergies that are made far worse by the damp conditions of their current home. It has a dirt floor with a section covered in pallets meant to keep at least part of the floor "dry".

Since we have been up for nearly 16 hours now, we're heading for an early bed time -- up at 6am for a full day of work - don't worry, we'll have an informal worship service before we start. During the rainy season, we have to grab every bit of dry time we can. Please pray for us this week as we seek to serve in the name of Jesus. We are anxious to work along side the people of our partner community once again.

Just 10 Days Away

2010-06-17T07:59:00.005-06:00

Our team is just 10 days away from our departure day -- June 26th! Details are starting to come together and the final pieces of financial support are coming in!

We have received word on the family for whom we will be building the Yellow House -- Brenda & Daniel are a couple struggling to make ends meet, as are many in the village of Los Anonos. They and there three children live in a small, one room, tin house that they built themselves from the scraps that were being disgarded from the Yellow House our team built in February.

Please pray for our efforts as well as those in the village who will join us in this construction. I sense that we will have amazing chances to share the Gospel with this family and see God work in miraculous ways.

Remember to start "following us" regularly, especially after the 26th when we will be giving updates each evening.

The photos here are of our team as well as the house we will be replacing with a dry and safe yellow house.

PHOTO: (front row) Dave Beres, Patrick Brown, Lindsay Brown, Jamie Graham (back row) Brian Robertson, Rick Beres, Mark Danner, Jeremy Powell

Summer 2010 - Heading South Again

2010-04-29T16:09:00.003-06:00

Another team has been formed and is heading back to Costa Rica from June 26-July 5! This summer the team is made up of individuals from 3 different Ohio churches -- Columbus, Cleveland and Gallipolis! As always our efforts there will include:

* Construction of a "Yellow House" for a needy family.

* Work projects in Los Anonos

* Ministry in Drug Rehab Centers

* Relationship building with the Ticos

* Prayer Ministry

* Church & SG gatherings - teaching, sharing, prayer

If you are interested in helping someone on the team pay for their trip, please contact us at brobertson@enelwife.com for details.

Day 10 - Off to the Snowy North

2010-02-10T07:45:00.007-06:00

Our time in Los Anonos is coming to an end once again. God has blessed our efforts and continued His transformation in the people of this small community. He has also continued His transformation in each of us as teamates. There is a transformational power when you expend 24-7 effort for the Kingdom of God, Seems like our lives should be lived this way each and every day of our lives.

I think the best way to give you an idea of this is to let each of our team members share a couple of sentences sharing what God has done in their life this past 10 days...

Craig Arledge - I really enjoyed the quiet time that I have had here. I have gotten up just after daybreak each morning and went out to the deck with my coffee and bible allowing myself 1 to 1.5 hours before breakfast. It made me realize how my quiet time is often too rushed and something I check off of my list at home.
As we have studied the book "Crazy Love" by Francis Chan and spent time with the people of this community, it has caused me to think allot about living a simpler life. It never ceases to amaze me how much community you can build with your team and the people you are serving in such a short time as you do on these trips. It truly is God at work in everyones lives. It also amazes me how much you can miss your wife and kids in the midst of having such an awesome time. As far as something that I believe God has spoken to me while I have been here> After spending time in a small group where a lady named Adrianna who is discovering the things that God has for her since she gave up alcohol in December, and speaking at the men's rehab center where many of the guys expressed how much stronger they felt since we came, I think that working with recovering addicts may be something God wants me to investigate at home.

Phil Arledge -It was very appropriate that we as a group studied the Crazy Love book as we spent time helping others on our mission trip. We came thousand of miles to help others and its a great experience. But, God wants us to seek out those around us no matter where we are. That is my goal when I return home. Meet God no matter where I am. Even if that place is Lancaster Ohio.

Josh Boggs - For me the biggest thing I am taking away is that ministry has to be relationship driven. We could have come in and built a house and that would have been nice. However, being able to work side by side with Ticos and building friendships with fellow workers and the family made the experience much more special. This was even more evident as I had the opportunity with Brian to take Steve, Tito, Lester, Dago, and Christian away for the night to talk about leadership. Getting to share with these sharp young men and getting to know them better was by far the highlight of the trip for me. I truly believe as Rodney and Cindy continue to build into these young men, God is going to use them to do great things in the Los Anonos community!

Laurie Brown - Many people ask themselves, "Why should I go on a mission trip? I have nothing to offer." Wrong! This is my second mission trip and it just reconfirms we all have something just by being born and educated in the United States, and of course, God will use your unique blend of personality and talents. There is nothing that compares with giving yourself each day and watching people respond to your love for them, even if you don't understand a word they say.

Brandon Kravig - Building a house in a week's time, WOW! I've been reminded all week that the body of Christ is the sum of many parts, yet all parts are equally important. This week we've had carpenters, cooks, plumbers, painters, prayers, electricians and laborers. Do without any of these skills and the house is incomplete. We can't be everything to everyone, but find out which part of the body you are and you will find your purpose in life. Once you find your purpose, sharpen those skills and take action!

Ed Minhinnick - On this trip God has revealed many things. Through our time of ministry, prayer, study, and fellowship all of us have grown in our faith and love for Jesus Christ. God has shown us that if we go into all the world he will be there. If anyone has a desire to serve and grow just find out where God is already working and jump in with both feet. God has risen up a vibrant ministry here in Los Anonos and we've had the joy of being part of it . Praise the Lord for his love and grace.

Jeff Spratt - What I learned was very simple............ nothing has a greater impact on people and bears sweeter and more abundant fruit than LOVE.

Matt Thomas -Stop.......................................Be still................................................Listen.........................

Paul Trasin - this was a very community-minded trip for me. i felt i was able to extend the blessings i received by being a servant by including as many of the local teenagers as possible in the hammering and nailing. you could tell they were very proud of what they accomplished. hopefully they will continue to be servants for God in Los Anonos.

Joanna Voorhis - Coming off the last year and a half in Uganda, I found a great familiarity in being back in an unfamiliar culture, like Costa Rica. First, let no one fool you, the mountains and nature here are beautiful...and if you stare at them, you feel peace and awe at such a creation. For me, I enjoyed spending quiet moments with God, meeting the women and men of this community, teaching and lamenting together with the Tica women about life's difficulties, etc. The poverty didn't overwhelm me (as one might consider), but the beautiful of serving, discipling and living in REAL community, and it was an important discovery for me.

So ends our time in Costa Rica. We leave behind a yellow house, a transforming community and close friends. We take with us a renewed desire to live CRAZY lives for Jesus! Se you all again in July! If you are interested in being a part of that team, let us know!

Day 9 - Final Work Day and Dedication

2010-02-09T20:45:00.005-06:00

Today, we rose early, spent some time together discussing what we would like our legacies as individuals to be one day! What do we really want to be known for? God seems to be challenging each of us in some way to downsize, look at our life styles, determine how we can live with eternity in mind that ever before.

The entire crew headed to the building site and set in to finish final work on the house -- this included another coat of paint on the outside walls, final plumbing in the bath and kitchen, some updates to our original electric plan, cleanup of all kinds, and installation of the bath door. This is all pretty much done by 12:30.

After a quick lunch, several of the men who came last February dash over to the community we built a yellow house in then to visit with the children in the village of Jasmin and spend some time with Joslyn, who is the young girl who received the home. They were all thrilled to be remembered and welcomed back with excitement. Several of the guys who do concrete and asphalt work start a plan that may eventually be a new bridge to the village so that it can be reached with vehicles rather than just on foot -- the bridge washed out last year during flood season. Our guys feel that we can build something that will withstand the flooding and can be done for about $5000.

At 3pm, it is time for the house dedication AND it rains buckets -- this is dry season! We are unsure what is happening -- apparently, God is testing the leak proof roof!!! Because we are on what is called "Tico Time", the ceremony begins at just before 4pm!! Rosa has invited all of her co-workers at a local restaurant. They each bring house warming gifts!! I know, get the kleenex! To think that what God has done here in just a week becomes a reason for celebration puts us completely in awe of His power. About 50 family, friends and workers are there. After a very short message from Hebrews 3:3, Rosa shares this: she is glad that the team has come, because if we had not, her house would have fallen in on her. Her daughter shares that "God had a reason for her father's death in October. Because of that tragedy, her mother now has a new house and a much brighter future." She is grateful that this house is built to honor God and be a blessing. Rosa makes sure that each of us know that we are always welcome in her home when we are in Costa Rica -- so we all have a place to stay now! A pizza and pop party follow and I am struck by what to an outsider would make no sense -- a group of Ticos and Gingos working together to better the life of someone in this community! God's economy is very different from ours -- this is how it is supposed to be!
Just before dinner, most of the team makes a quick run for COSTA RICAN COFFEE! This is always fun -- especially for those of you who may receive a bag!!!

After supper, we head down to a short time of worship and communion with the people of the village who we have worked with this week. It is a blessed time as I am reminded that Christ died for ALL! Remember that everyone spending eternity with you will not be just like you!!! The ladies stay for the regularly scheduled women's Bible study and one last time with the ladies they have bonded with this week.

Now we pack and prepare for tomorrow's trip home -- we hope that we get all the way home rather than stuck in airports due to snow. Pray that our travels will take place in just the way that brings the most glory to God! See you soon!

Day 8 - Rest & Play

2010-02-09T06:31:00.005-06:00

We make sure that on every missions trip that there is at least one day when the team takes time to see and experience the country and things that could only take place there. It is also important to take a Sabbath that helps to regenerate you a bit from the heavy load of the past days.

Today, after 7 days of work and ministry, our team headed to the west coast of Costa Rica (that's the Pacific side). As we left San Jose, a light drizzle began to fall. This is highly unusual this time of year -- it's summer here! As we got further and further to the coast, the rain became harder. We thought the day would be a literal washout, but eventually the rain stopped and a bit of sun appeared

The team did the famous zip line and then when a place on the beach for some time in the ocean and a pool as well as a wonderful buffet lunch. It was a great day filled with laughter and adventure together. Guess you'll never know until you GO too!

Day 7 - Mountains and Latin Rythms

2010-02-07T22:19:00.006-06:00

First an update from Josh and I and our mini-retreat with some of the young guys from Los Anonos. A total of 8 of us headed to the mountains just outside the city yesterday afternoon. The idea was to get away and focus on what God wants to do in and through the lives of a few of the young rising leaders here. We spent the evening in a small cabin where we discussed God's intention for leaders in His church. The ministry here has become -- through God's grace -- large enough to move to the stage of being a church plant. Don't get me wrong, the church has always been here in the ministry of Harvest Hands! I believe that where ever God's people are doing God's work, the church is present, whether in a formal and organized way or not. When new churches begin, it is often youth who are "crazy" enough to listen to God's "crazy" call on their life and step out by faith to build something for His Kingdom (seems like this happened 25 years or so as I recall!) Even sitting here typing this, I am literally doing it through tears as I recall God's call on our lives and the awesome power we sensed knowing that He was with us! That's what I believe He has in store for another group of young guys in an entirely different part of the world -- it makes no difference to Him!

So our evening and then today was taken up in trying to show these young guys what it means to really step out and BE what they need to be so that they are completely useable in God's hands. They spent times sharing their struggles, their fears, what they believed the others brought in their spiritual gifts and what they would need to do together to build a team that would please God. We finished the day taking communion together - as a symbol of God's sacrifice of Himself for us. Then we washed their feet to show them what a real leader is -- a servant to others -- meeting people at the dirtiest part of their lives.

While we were gone, the rest of the team experienced a real "Latin" worship time at CCA (Center for Christian Adoration). This is the church that we partner with to build yellow houses, so it has become a special place for us this past year.

With only a few items left to accomplish for the yellow house to be finished, the team gathered after lunch for what I understand was a lively discussion on prayer! These trips really do heighten one's sensitivity and interest in these things!

This was election day in Costa Rica, and it is nothing like in the US! The streets and parks near polling places, become huge parties where those supporting one of the four major parties try one last time to convince others to vote their way. Each party has their own colors, so houses, business and even cars are covered with election propaganda. People ride through the streets waving flags, shouting and honking for their candidates! As we head to bed to night, apparently CR will elect its first female president! And we were here to see it happen!

Tomorrow is our official day off and we will head to the Pacific Coast to a place called Jaco, to take part in the ever popular canopy tour (zip lines) and some time at the beach. It has been a long week, so everyone is ready to take a break before finishing projects on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Off to the beach for now!!

Day 6 - Finishing the House

2010-02-06T11:08:00.003-06:00

Today, after a great discussion during our morning devotional time about what it REALLY means to follow Christ and call ourselves Christians, we went out to once again try to BE Jesus to people. Three of the guys - Phil, Matt and Steve left the house before 6am (and before breakfast) to go and get started on the plumbing. The rest of the team heads over after breakfast to work on final touches. Because we have decided to do some "extras" on this house, it is taking a bit longer and challenging our team's creativity -- the first time for anything is challenging!

This afternoon, Brian & Josh head out with 6 of the informal leaders here. The goal is to do some challenging and training in leadership -- including character development, defining what a leader is, looking at the commitments that leaders have to make, etc. Pray for Jono (on the staff at Harvest Hands), Tito, Lester, Jesus, Dago and Christian -- that they will be touched by the Holy Spirit and surrender completely to the call of God in their lives fully to ministry leadership.

Those who weren't tied up building the house took a jaunt to the artisan's market to see the city and buy gifts.

We all are praying that you are recovering from the recent snowfall...................
psyche. No really, we feel your pain...................
psyche. I'm sorry, that wasn't even a nice thing to say........... On second thought I'm not sorry, I'm laughing hysterically. Now that I've gotten that out of my system, we can get back to business.

Phil 2: 1~3 says. Por tanto, si sienten algun estimulo en su union con Christo, algun consuelo en su amor, algun companerismo en el Espiritu, algun afecto entranable, Ilenenme de alegria teniendo un mismo parecer, un mismo amor, unidos en alma y pensamiento. No hagan nada por egoismo o vanidad; mas bien, con humildad consideren a los demas como superiores a ustedes mismos.

Have you been encouraged about your union with Christ today? Have you felt his love? How was your conversation with him today? Is your joy complete as his is? Just some words for thought, everyday.

with love, Costa Rica

Day 5 - 90+ and No Breeze! But it Beats a Blizzard

2010-02-05T22:05:00.006-06:00

We are trying not to be too upset by the fact that it hotter here now than on any trip New Life has ever taken. 90+ today and little to no breeze. This is made more pronounced when you are building a house and installing a roof made of metal! But the team really hung in there and made good progress. The roof is now complete and inside walls are almost finished. Due to New Life's generosity when we raised money for Yellow Houses, we have been able to not only build a bigger house, but do some extra internal walls to create bedrooms, install simple plumbing for a kitchen sink and bathroom AND a basic counter top in the kitchen area. It still will not compare at all to the ones everyone reading this blog is used to, but Rosa is excited and all her friends are coming by to see her new place!

2 large fires broke out today in fields in Los Anonos...one coming dangerously close to homes. God must have mad sure the wind blew in the right direction and no one and no homes were harmed. At times the flames reached nearly 15 to 20 feet, so it was quite the site. The fire department took 20 minutes to get here! Kept us praying hard for that time and we are pleased that nothing really bad happened.

Our ladies went and spent time at the Women's Rehab. Welcome our guest writer, Joanna everyone! Applause please!

Yes, yes, thank you very much. It's good to be here. (applause rises, and I motion a 'thank you' with my hands). Actually, it was a really great day today, not that any others have been bummers, but the portion that made it 'great' was realizing a real connection was made today. When going into a new culture, you soon realize you must ask God for wisdom in how to "reach" your "audience". The same "tricks" you might use to connect in a USA small group need tweaking before they work properly in another country.

Today, I shared with 15 ladies (aged 15-43), who are in a rehab house for various reasons. I "scratched" most of my notes I had prepared and just went with my gut...it was great! These women are so straight forward, truthful, unashamed and funny...which is the best crowd to be around. We pretended to start a business of selling coconut milk and simulated the successes and fears of such an operation. The best part was our use of stuffed hose balls (pieces from a children's game we brought...I swear, 'stuffed hose balls' are literally what they are!) as the coconuts we were selling. Lamentations 3:22-23 was our key verse. It reminded us that God's mercies are new every morning and that their past struggles and failures will not dictate what happens to the positive things they start in their life post-rehab (including a small business start-up). All the women seemed to really 'connect' with the message God provided, especially, Olga, whose face was overcome with emotion as she said the message today confirmed some important things for her.

After the business portion, Laurie shared about how life with God offers us a "fresh start" and the gift of salvation. She somehow tied it into a story about a fluffy, white cat she lost once, which takes amazing conceptual skillz. Go Laurie!

Afterwards, we stuffed ourselves on the cheap cola and cookies we brought along to share. I used my Spanish skills to compliment a lady's boots ("Me gustan tus zapatos. Estes son muy popular en los Estados Unidos"). Hey, I'm trying to use the Spanish God allowed me to remember from college. All who attended felt really positive and encouraged by the day and we hopped in the car and headed back to home base. It was a good day.

Thank you Joanna.... Now back to our regular writer...
The work crew broke for the day about 3 -- far earlier than usual -- due to the snow...wait...that's in Ohio...due to the heat! Another great dinner from our master chef Cindy AND a carrot birthday cake!!! One of my top 3 favorites!

Friday evening means the weekly gathering time for those connected with Harvest Hands Ministry. While there is not yet an "official" church, certainly "THE CHURCH" is her in this community.Even with several of the young guys gone to a church camp, there were nearly 50 crammed into the tight Casita used form gatherings. Please pray that a local school building the has recently come available will be provided as a base for this soon to be new local church!

After a time of musical worship, I taught about how Satan will use offense and hurt as bait to hook us so that we are caught in unforgiveness and cannot be all that God intends us to be for the Kingdom. At the closing, I shared that Jesus took on the greatest level of offense ever know and yet forgave us. If we have been forgiven be the greatest forgiver ever, then we must, as His followers, forgive those who have hurt and offended us. A time of prayer was offered for those struggling with this issues and several came forward to be prayed for. Extra time was spent to allow the Holy Spirit to so a healing work in them as well as encourage them to act upon the truth they had heard.

Another great day of God working in lives today in snow bound...oops... Ohio again....Costa Rica!

For those who have been praying for Tito's brother...he had surgery late last night and is doing much better now that the pressure on his brain has been relieved. We met Tito's mom tonight and got to pray with her. She is not a believer, so our deepest prayer is that this incident causes her to see God's power in this healing and her need for Him in her life.

Tomorrow, we hope to wrap up most of the house projects still to be completed. I am sure that our excellent team will come through with flying colors.

Day 4 - Dividing and Conquering

2010-02-04T21:06:00.009-06:00

Today, our team was in several locations, so we have some guest writers for today's blog. I (Brian) spent the day working on lessons for the Friday, Saturday and Sunday (pretty sure this will later be defined as "lounging around the house", but I really did work hard! Now for the rest of the team...

Craig - I will pick up at the home bible study that I attended with Luis, Jono, Lori and Paul last night. We were picked to go because we are small group leaders and might have something to offer. It was inspiring to listen to these new believers from Los Anonos talk about their new found faith in Jesus and how they are overcoming addictions, doubt and feelings of worthlessness in their lives. We all shared experiences from our lives and talked about trusting God as He works in us to make us who He wants us to be. It is incredible how many people you can jam into an 8x12 room when you need to. We ended the evening allowing different "Anonians" to sit in a chair as we prayed for their requests. Giving up a restful evening at the house after a long hot days work, proved to be inspiring, energizing and very worthwhile. Come to think of it, that isn't any different than small group on any given week.

As the majority of our group split into two crews again this morning to finish wall panels and put the floor on the house, Brandon, Matt and myself went with Jono and Luis to the Men's Rehab Center. I think we all had the same perspective: the house would get done regardless, but some things were definitely worth our taking time for. Luis spoke briefly from Jeremiah about God being the potter and us the clay. Once again we were all able to share actual life experiences and show the recovering addicts that in God's eyes, we are all the same. As they each shared their testimonies, many talked about how encouraged they were that we were there and how it gave them hope and willpower. We ended the session with them praying for us and we for them. Once again, a very powerful experience in the presence of God and a taste of the more in-depth meaning of why we are here.

Returning to the work site, it was encouraging to see even more playtime and interaction with the kids today. I think when house walls start going up, other walls start coming down and we are able to breathe a sigh of relief and begin to fulfill even a deeper purpose than the construction of a house. It is awesome to think that we can serve an awesome God regardless of whether we are digging a hole, driving a screw, praying with an addict or playing with one of the kids.

Josh - As Craig mentioned, construction continued this morning while the three guys went to visit the rehab center. Down at the casita, Paul and Steve have been teaching some of the local teenage boys how to build the walls for the house. By this morning it looked like they were putting together a NASCAR pit crew. Paul and Steve would lay out the materials and mark them and then three or four teenagers would jump in to screw everything together. It was truly amazing to watch. Paul even mentioned that by the end of the morning, the boys would point something out if the adults forgot to do it!

Back on top of the hill, the flooring went on quickly. Shortly after lunch, all of the floor boards were on, which was a good thing because the walls were done and were hauled up the infamous stairs just as we were finishing. Soon walls were starting to go up. The two teams - adults and kids - gelled very quickly and got moving on the walls. By 5 o'clock, all of the exterior walls and the center dividing wall were in place.

Since such good progress was made today, we are going to have time to do some extra interior walls to divide off some bedrooms and do a simple counter top for Rosa's new kitchen. It was such a blessing to watch her walk around the new structure planning out how to do the rooms with Rodney and Maximo.
...and now for the ladies.

Joanna - Well, it's late, so this will be "to the point". Today, we met again with the single mothers and got "crafty" together. Today, we shared the greeting card making supplies and let them stamp butterfly stamps on beautiful paper till their hearts were content. The goal was to get their minds thinking "I am awesome, creative and might be able to manage a small business of some sort." Business can be a positive, income source in the midst of a drug-laden area like this one. The ladies, especially Mercedes, smiled when the girly, pink stationary came out and they all had their creative juices flowing like...a lot. At the end, they all started to pep up and talk about their dreams of having a soda shop, or making homemade, decorative hair accessories or work with animals. They spoke of fears of starting a business...failure, not having enough money, etc. and we hope to stop by their houses and follow-up with how to get them started towards their own enterprise.

In the afternoon, Joanna, ventured to the top of the Los Anonos hill and met with a young, businessman named Alejandro. There was lots of discussion from Alejandro about the plans he was excited to put into place for his growing, juice business. Such an intelligent guy...wow! Plans and discussions were had and all was lifted up into God's hands through some prayer time at the end of the visit.

Laurie - We got together again with the ladies for an evening Bible study. They had requested teaching on Conflict Resolution and so we had a lesson based on Matthew 18:15 "If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over." After the lesson the ladies broke into pairs and discussed conflict in their lives and how to handle it based on this passage. Then they prayed for each other. We ended the evening with the ladies making gift bags from items donated by generous New Lifers. Each made two bags and they were instructed to give one to a friend and use the other to begin reconciliation with someone with whom they had conflict.

Lots of exciting ministry going on through this great team today. Each one willing to use their gifts and abilities -- or sometimes just availability to build the Kingdom. One final note for prayer -- our friend Tito's brother was seriously injured in an accident today and is in critical condition in the hospital. Lots of injuries, the worst of which are internal bleeding. Tito just arrived home and of course, is very concerned. Real life goes on everywhere.

Day 3 - Watching God Use Everything to Reach Us

2010-02-03T19:28:00.011-06:00

Day 3 on a ministry trip is always a challenge -- it seems to be a "hump day" of sorts, when those who have been doing physical labor start to feel the impact of muscles used and those who are ministering in other ways feel the pressure to see "results" or have some level of impact that they may think they should be having.

Everyone's alarm seemed to ring a bit earlier than expected and bodies rolled out of bed a little slower than expected. Before our 7am breakfast, everyone retreats to different areas of the house and grounds to spend time with God. We are discussing what it really means to listen to God, so several of us are practicing being quiet. Sometimes God speaks and at other times He is silent, but we are content with our time being alone with Him none the less. It is so inspiring to wake up and see 16 people all intent on reading the Word of God, learning His ways more deeply and depending on Him to levels possibly never experienced until now.

After breakfast, the men all head out to the 2 work sites (see yesterday's blog entry). At site one, work continues on the wall panels. Because the house is larger than usual, there are more panels AND more work is needed to build them. Several of the Tico helpers come to help again today. Later in the day, the first coat of yellow paint is applied. Another group of teenagers come to help with this job -- a great blessing to those who have been baking in the sun all day. Yes, the sun is out and hot! Many of us are preparing a salute to Red Lobster upon our return! This again gives our team the chance to get to know those who are helping. This will continue to translate into opportunities to talk on a spiritual level throughout the coming week.

The other group was at the job site continuing work on the 80 holes and posts for the foundation. Our wood delivery came early and a "bucket brigade" of sorts moves the wood up the hill side. Since we learned yesterday from carrying actual buckets up the hill individually, the "pass it to the next person" method is a welcome relief! We aren't crazy enough to make the same bad decision twice in two days! Measuring and cutting of the wood for the beams and floor began today too. By the time the day ends, the cross beams that the floor will sit on completed -- excellent progress.

Here's something that doesn't happen everyday -- especially in the US... Sunday is election day here in Costa Rica, so campaigning is in full swing, including parades, banner and flags for candidates everywhere. Today, while we were on the job site, one of the Presidential candidates passed through Los Anonos in the back of a truck, music blarring. He stopped right below us and spoke to the crowd that has gathered. Interestingly, he promised that he would work for them to get better housing!!! Hey, we're trying right up here! Quite the site.

Some of us were able to meet David and Maria and their children. This is the couple who had a house built for them 3 weeks ago by a team from Vineyard Church of Grand Rapids in Michigan (guess people from the "state up north" aren't too bad after all!!) They are very gracious and invite all the workers to come by for Cafe' (coffee) later in the day. This is a CR tradition no matter the temperature! David was injured a year ago when we was waiting at a bus stop and had both legs crushed between the bus and a truck. He still has some surgeries to go, but is in great spirits and is well on his way to a vibrant relationship with Jesus. God uses even the worst of circumstance to call us to Himself doesn't He? As we leave, they mention to Rodney that they would like to host a weekly home group for Bible study in their new home! Small victories add up to big ones every now and then! One small house may soon be reaching others for the Kingdom!

After a morning filming and "instructing" at the work sites, the ladies did another meeting with local women this afternoon. Laurie taught on the 10 Commandments, seeking to build into them spiritually as well as gain trust as we share the truth.

Josh joined Jono, one of the Harvest Hands workers, to take a local guy to the Rehab Center where we hope he will work and commit to getting clean. He was shot in the knee cap not long ago and lost his leg -- this he was while he was trying to rob a house! Again, God uses bad circumstance to accomplish good in us.

Tonight, we sent Laurie, Paul and Craig to the Wednesday night Home group meeting! This is always a great time to learn what God is doing in lives in a smaller setting. I have seen in the past God break out and do marvelous things in this group, so we are anxious to have them return and hear the report. Guess that will have to wait until tomorrow.

So...lesson of the day -- God uses yellow houses, accidents, tragedy, flower pens...anything and everything to reach us -- His grace has no boundaries and no limits!!!

Day 2 - The HILLS Are Alive

2010-02-02T20:39:00.007-06:00

Have you heard that Costa Rica is a place filled with hills and mountains? If anyone on our team missed that part of the training, they certainly learned this important fact today. Josh was very proud of his exercise prep until today -- realizing that the 20% grade he practiced on had nothing on the real thing!! There ARE indeed hills in Costa Rica -- and we climbed most of them -- several teims today. At least that's what it felt like!

The 12 us split into 3 teams today. Each of these teams was joined by workers from Harvest Hands as well as members of the community who are learning (and teaching us too) how to build the "yellow houses".

Team 1 - our ladies spent time preparing for their coming meetings with the local women, then spent the afternoon visiting in homes and inviting ladies to the gathering tonight. After dinner, the men get the house to themselves while Laurie, Joanna, Taylor and Cindy L. go to a meeting of the women in the school. 7 ladies come (along with children). The evening included a time of training on how to make those pens with flowers on them -- you know the kind -- the ones that that sweet lady at your office gives you to sign papers with that are totally embarrassing! At least to guys! The idea is to help the ladies start thinking about simple products like that this can be used to create income as a small, home business.

Team 2 - Paul, Brandon, Steve and Matt worked with locals to build wall panels that will be used in the house construction later in the week. This will help greatly so that there are walls available when it's time -- most likely Friday. Several of the young men spend the entire day with them learning valuable construction techniques. One of the long-term goals is for our teams to teach skills that can be used to earn a living her in Costa Rica.

Team 3 - The rest of us (Craig, Phil, Jeff, Ed, Josh, Brian) went to the building site to begin laying out the area so that the foundation posts can be set. By the way, don't tell my wife that I drove the truck again!) This includes tedious effort to make sure everything is square -- hey, I really have no ides of what I am talking about -- I just tell it like I think I see it! Once the layout is done, work begins on digging 80 holes that will hold 80 posts that act as the foundation for the floor. By the end of the day, about 50% of the holes are dug and filled. The highlight of the day is that Rosa and her family all helped do this extremely taxing work. It is really amazing having the family who will live in the house help build it. Did I mention that all the concrete posts, rock and sand needed for the foundation work had to be carried up a very steep and high set of stairs? Most of the guys are feeling the affects of this effort as I type this tonight.

New relationships are being started and existing ones are being deepened. This is the best and most important aspect of any mission effort. Seeing God use the meeting of physical needs as a way to start addressing spiritual needs is amazing to see. We are all very excited about the next 8 days -- He did create the entire universe in less time -- so what might He have planned for us this week?

Day 1 - Hitting the Ground

2010-02-01T19:17:00.004-06:00

Most of the team were out of bed by 4am and heading to the airport for a 5:30 meeting time. After getting 12 people and 16 bags checked, we made our way through security. Apparently, you can get batteries for power tools through in your carry on, but not Playdoe! Laurie's carry on was completely unpacked in this process -- always fun! At least they let her keep her "Barrel of Monkeys"!

After boarding at 6:30 for the 7am flight, the plane was de-iced and pulled away from the gate (on time so that Delta can keep their on-time record high!) Then we were told that because low temperatures in Atlanta, flights were slowed down, so we would pull to the side of the runway and wait. Finally, at 8:20, we left Columbus for Atlanta. We hit the ground at the time our connecting flight was supposed to leave. Delta held the plane for us, so after a tram ride, concourse change, and lots of running, we made it on our flight -- gracious people patiently waiting -- and took off just 20 minutes behind schedule.

Now San Jose' - flew through customs and our vans were waiting! Not one problem. So good for the returnees to be back and the "newbies" are getting a sense quickly of the place! After a quick snack -- QUACAMOLE of course, we went into Los Anonos to visit families, reconnect with old friends and inspect the spot for the next "Yellow House". This home will be larger than usual since 9 people will live in it. Still, it is only going to be about 20X30! Hardly a mansion by any standard! The family's matriarch is Rosa, who lost her husband suddenly in October. She has 3 sons, including Lester, the worship leader here at Harvest Hands, a daughter and son-in-law and their 3 children! (That's Rosa and her son Lester in the photo). Our men got immediately to work as usual and Joanna connected with Alejandro, a young guy who is working at his own business. This will be one of the families helped this week by our "micro business" training.

After a great meal of one of Cindy's awesome soups, we meet to get a handle on the week and then head to relax after a very long day. Tomorrow the real FUN begins!!!!! Follow it all here! We value your prayers so much. We are anxious as always to see what God does in our midst!

One Week from Takeoff

2010-01-25T12:08:00.000-06:00

Our team is working hard to prepare for ministry in Los Anonos. Everyone's finances are looking great! God has provided in amazing ways. We are excited to hit the ground and start work, and more importantly, strive to be God's vessels for His use and His glory!

There is another part of our team though... The Harvest Hands Team! It is good too when we are able to do ministry with such great people! Dear friends who fill and touch our lives -- though thousands of miles away. In a sense, we are extensionsof each other, doing God's work -- at the same time, but in different locations.

Pray for their efforts too. These wonderful folks are on the ground in CR 24/7! We love and respect them so much. (lft to rt - Jono, Taylor, Luis, Cindy, Steve and Rodney).

Here We Go Again!

2010-01-15T14:03:00.000-06:00

New Life is once again heading to San Jose' Costa Rica to serve and minister in the community of Los Anonos. This will be our 5th trip there in the past 1 1/2 years. Our latest effort there has been to build "yellow houses" - simple dwellings that allow families (mostly single moms and widows) to have a dry place to live. Our first trip for 2010 will take place February 1-10. A variety of ministry awaits us, including...

1. Building of the 3rd Yellow House in Los Anonos

2. Construction work on new church building

3. Women's meetings in Los Anonos and at the women's rehab. center

4. Micro-enterprise training

5. Young leaders training

6. Jasmine road work cosultations

7. Men's rehab. outreach

8. In-home visiting and Bible Studies

9. Prayer Ministry

Our team consists of 13 people, 9 of whom have been to Los Anonos to minister before. Please pray for us as we GO! Team members are... Front row (l-r) Craig Arldege,Steve Selegue, Joanna Voorhis, Laurie Brown, Cindy Schmidt. Middle row Josh Boggs, Matt Thomas, Phil Arledge, Jeff Spratt, Paul Trasin, Brian Robertson. Back row Brandon Kravig, Ed Minhinnick.