Weeks like this...

This was the first week back working with the kids in Los Guido at the Tutoring Center.  They aren't in school yet ("summer vacation" ends and school begins the 6th of February) so we have been doing fun workshop type activities with them.  I've appreciated this time to be able to be more relational with the kids, just enjoying them as individuals and allowing them to express some of their creativity through art.  My week has been filled with more than just doing art with the kids at the Centro, and I feel like I've been reminded numerous times recently that I am here for a reason and that our presence in the community is making a difference.

There's the 15 girls that came to girls' club today to read God's Word and pray together, to catch up on life, and to make yummy popcorn balls.  There's the 8 teenage boys that came to the meeting about English class and are looking forward to getting started in a few weeks.  (That's double the number of boys I had in my class in the fall!)  There's the 6th grade girl who sometimes acts like she likes me, sometimes the opposite, who came to our workshops this week and told me that she wants to come and study with us this school year.  There's my sixteen year old friend who dropped out of school after having to repeat 5th grade several times and has been pretty discouraged with what she was going to do in life who now has a plan to enroll in beauty school and is excited about it.  And there's the group of 14 college students from Fresno Pacific University who were in my living room on Wednesday night for "family night" and are eager to dive into Spanish and joining us at our ministry sites.  

My job duties are more diverse than I had forseen myself being a part of when I signed on with SI-Costa Rica, but I think that every single part of what I'm doing stems from a different passion that I have and God wants to use me in.  Teaching English is something I've been trained to do, albeit, with 1st graders.  Youth ministry and working with a girls' small group is a big part of my heart.  Working with children on reading, writing, math, science, etc, is where my vocational experience lies.  And student life and interacting with college students is something I want to learn more about and am excited about being a part of.  Please pray for me as there are a lot of different areas I'm involved in and want to serve each group well.