In Christ Alone

There in the ground, His body lay
Light of the world by darkness slain
Then bursting forth in glorious day
Up from the grave He rose again

This hymn is so powerful and every time moves me to tears.  I think it's the truth of the statement and the reality that this event actually happened.  Jesus DID die for us, and on the third day, He rose again.  We did nothing to deserve it, nothing we could do would ever be good enough to earn it.  As good of a Christian and Jesus follower I may think I am being, I still will fall short every time.

Every Easter Sunday of my life, with the exception of my first year in Costa Rica, I have celebrated Jesus' death and resurrection with my family in Shafter.  This year it turned out that I needed to travel on this special day in order to be back for work in time, and it feels strange to be among strangers in an airport.  But it's amazing how God can speak to you whenever and wherever if you are available to listen.  So while I'd prefer to either be in Desamparados or Shafter rather than Phoenix this Easter morning, I am thankful that the truth of this song and of His redeeming love is unchanging.

Loving people is risky

March is a month that traditionally is quite full for SI-Costa Rica.  It is when we have spring break short term teams come and spend 9 days with us.  We had the SI Board members come for meetings and spend time encouraging and getting to know us as staff members.  We have semester students working as interns in our ministry sites.  And we have all the regular, everyday life and job stuff and needing to fit in a little "me" time on top of that.  Needless to say, March is exciting and fun and full of blessings, but also quite exhausting. 

In addition to all that, my heart feels burdened for needs in my community and needs in students that I have come to know.  There have been attempted suicides and awful parenting choices and children going hungry.  School is cancelled quite regularly for some of my students and that is a type of educational poverty that they are living with.  Short term students come with bagage of their own, whether that be choices that they have made in the past or difficult home situations.  It makes me wonder, "can I really make a difference?  Is what I'm trying to do worth it?"  And then I have to step back and think that it's NOT about me.  I wish I could feed all the children of Los Guido, but I can't.  And even if I could, that would only solve one part of the problem.  We talk a lot about poverty with our teams and as a staff, and have come to the conclusion that it is very complex.  There IS no easy solution. 

So what is one supposed to do?  That question in itself seems to be a very "northamerican" kind of mentality, thinking that if I just "do" more, a solution can be found.  And there are actions that the Lord requires of us and would like to see us do.  But I also want to continue to learn more about "being" who Jesus wants me to be.  To allow the Holy Spirit to live and work and shine in me.  We were talking in our staff meeting on Monday that we are to be the light of the world, but I can only shine that light that the Source of the light has allowed me to shine. 

That's where I'm at right now.  Probably have more questions than answers.  And the longer I work in Los Guido at the Tutoring Center and work with hurting Costa Rican kiddos and hurting North American teens and adults, the more questions come.  Loving people is hard and can be risky.  But I'm thankful for the Holy Spirit within me.  I'm thankful for Jesus and his grace.  And I'm thankful for the Mighty God that I serve.  Those things I am sure of. 

First day of school in February?!

All my life, January and February have been some of the coldest months of the year.  And this 2013-2014 winter season has heard the words "winter vortex" and similar phrases thrown around by those who live in the U.S.  But, on the contrary, these months are the summer months here in Costa Rica, and the months when the children are on vacation from school.  They end their school year at the beginning of December, and come back to school today, the 10th of February.  So what have we been doing in the Tutoring Center, you might ask, while the children have been on vacation?  

Jose and I have taken advantage of the time that the students have been off to have different educational workshops with them as well as spend some time on basic skills that many of them lack or need to improve upon.  We have spent time cooking together, doing science experiments, had a fun water day, held "elections" for a Tutoring Center president, and many other things.  One of my favorite days was this past week when we did a literary circle with our 4th-6th grade students.  It brings such joy to my heart to see the kids enjoy reading together, and being able to have comprehension discussions about what they have read.  We even had the students do an oral presentation with visual aids that they made about what we had read together.  I was so proud.  

This coming week will maybe be a bit slow at the Tutoring Center, as the kids are getting back into their school schedule and waking up early again.  But it has been fun to have 6 or so new students coming that weren't a part of our group last year, including one adorable little girl named Tara.  I am thankful for the time that we've had to invest in the kids before they went back to school.  It's important to us that they know we are here for them to help support them in their education, and we also want to continue to dig deeper into the Bible with them and their understanding of the God who loves them.  I look forward to this new school year together!

Here are some pics to highlight some of the fun that we have been having in January/February during the students' vacations:

Making helicopters from cardboard and pencils

Pan-flutes out of PVC pipes

Home made pretzels = yummy!

Two new first graders that are oh so cute

Water day with co-worker Diego in charge of games

They talked me into playing a game that involved shaving cream...

Playing Pictureka with our current semester students

Trying to convince the rest of the 4th-6th graders to vote for her for Tutoring Center president.  She won in the end. :)

The 5th and 6th graders that came to my house for a slumber party.  Lots of popcorn, marshmallows, giggles and screams, and little sleep.  But memories made.

  

Simple thanks

Pretty regularly, thought not as often as I would like, I sit down and reflect on simple things that I am thankful for.  I think that sometimes it is easy to pray to God for the things that we need or the areas that we are struggling in, and forget to have an attitude of thanksgiving throughout the year.  My heart and spirit are

always encouraged when I am able to take a step back and say thanks to the Lord for what He has done in and around me.  Here is my most recent prayer of thanks for some of those things:

Thank you for iced hazelnut coffee, for whispy white clouds, and for a living room full of laughter and friends.  Thanks for being able to bake with kids who don't always get to be "kids" at home, for heart to heart talks with co-workers at lunch, and for a bedroom with a beautiful view out the window.  Thank you for the way you created each and every one of us unique and gifted in so many different ways.  Thanks for books and music and nature that can all point us to you.  Thanks for the access to the Internet that allows me to have sweet time with my precious niece and to send silly pictures to my brothers and parents.  Thanks for my reliable car that gets me where I need to be, and for safety as I zip around this country of crazy roads and driving.  Thanks for the freedom to vote and to voice your opinion about politics and all that stuff that goes with it.  Thanks for friends who will call you out when you're being mean and who will encourage you when you're feeling down.  Thanks for hugs from little ones and for smiles and laughs.  Thank you for each and every day you give us on this Earth.  It is a gift and I pray that I will live it to the fullest.

I'm thankful for friends like Rose

Angry Bird pizza success with some of the older students

Science experiment with the younger students

My Costa Rica

 As I was riding the bus into San Jose this past week to go and pay our monthly rent, I was feeling a bit nostalgic about living in Costa Rica.  I had just spent an action packed 17 days in California, celebrating Christmas and spending time with dear friends and family, which was a wonderful time overall.  But I was ready to get back to my "normal" and my life here.  There are things I miss about California, one important one being Target.  Seriously, if Target made an appearance here, I think I might be able to stay forever.  ;)  But there are things that I have come to love about Costa Rica, specifically, my experience here in Desamparados, and I wanted to share a few of those here.

• Paying approximately fifty cents to ride the bus into San Jose from my home, which saves me the headache of one-way street driving and searching and paying for parking.
• Getting my oil changed by a nice gentleman who calls me "mi amor" and "mi reina."  He's not hitting on me and it's really only because he doesn't know my name- but if an oil change worker in CA called me "my queen" I think I might give him a dirty look.  It is just more acceptable and nice in Spanish.
• Greeting people and wishing them a happy new year days after the new year began.  I think the idea of greeting and saying goodbye to everyone who is in the room is a wonderful thing.
• My friendship with my "watchy-man" Oscar who guards the cars at the gym I attend.  I brought him some almonds and Dewar's candy and he told me that he had been wondering when I was coming back from my trip to California.  It's nice to be missed.  
• Costa Rican coffee just can't be beat.
• The beauty of the countryside...I am totally fine with the rainy season because of the gorgeous green that can be seen everywhere as a result.
• And my friends and SI family that is here.  I am so blessed by them.  

Beach time with these great friends and fellow SI staffers

Another beautiful sunset seen out my bedroom window

 

 

Study abroad/semester students

The mission of Students International is to minister to both the students who come down to work with us from North America, as well as the community members that we work with in our ministry sites.  This 2013 calendar we have had two groups of semester students that have worked alongside us as interns, and I have loved being able to be a part of their lives and experience here!  Now that our group that has been here over this fall semester is getting ready to go back home in a week and a half, I thought I'd talk a little bit about what that program looks like and how they fit into our work.  :)

The semester students live with Costa Rican families during the duration of their time with us.  They also take 7 weeks of Spanish language school at the beginning of the semester, so a big goal of their semester with us is to learn A TON of Spanish!  It has been so fun to see one of our semester students who came with next to no Spanish and is now able to have conversations with the kids that we work with and with her host family.  I'm a firm believer in taking advantage of the host families that you live with to soak up all the language that you can, as well as not be nervous about "looking stupid" and just speak as much as you can.  Anyone who has learned a second language (or third of fourth...) knows that it is not easy, and there are so many moments when you feel ridiculous.  But those are the best learning moments.

The second half of the semester, the students are interns with us in our ministry sites.  We have two fantastic young women that have made really great connections with the kids from Los Guido and it is going to be really hard to see them go.  They have practiced math facts, read books, quizzed students on their Social Studies and Science study guides, taught art lessons, helped with baking and crafts, killed cockroaches, and many other things.  They have been open to be learners as well, soaking up all that they can from the kids that come to the Centro and also during discussions that they have had with myself and Jose.  And they have been perceptive to lend a helping hand when it looked like I was overwhelmed with the kids being crazy kids.

Another part of the semester program that I thoroughly enjoy being a part of is our Wednesday night "family nights" that we have with them.  My roommate Cailah and I take turns with our friends hosting the semester students in our home, and there is a team of us as staff that lead a Bible study time with them.  We talk about themes such as poverty, justice, the Kingdom of God and reconciliation.  It is so encouraging to see how they are able to apply their past experiences and experiences they are currently having in their ministry sites and host stays to the biblical principles that we talk about.  And of course, there are yummy snacks and time to just "be" without having to worry about language or culture.

Thanks, Brita and Sara, for being such awesome semester students this fall!  You will be missed.

Brita, Sara, Jose, and 4th-6th graders showing off their newspaper crowns they made.

Brita and Sara making cookies to be sold at our student store (and organizing the giant pile of construction paper that we have!)

Beach day trip with friend Rose and semester students Sara and Anaica

 

Ministering in their own communities

A program that SI-Costa Rica has started this year that I have not talked about much is an internship program that we have with two young men of the Los Guido community where I work.  William and Justin are the two guys who have been interning with us in our ministry sites about three days a week since the first part of 2013.  William works with my friend Cailah with the children in a community called Las Fuentes.  He is involved in outdoor recreation activities, indoor games, helping coach a high school aged boys' soccer team, and being a positive role model for the kids of that community.  Justin was working with Diego in our sports' ministry, playing a lot of soccer with kids in different communities as well as helping being a mentor to them.  He is currently working with our Microfinance ministry with coworkers Cindy and Diana.  The agreement we have with them is that they work with us as interns, they attend night school three evenings a week to finish their high school education, and in turn, we financially support them in their training for future jobs.  For William, that has meant helping him to attend an institute to learn basic electrician skills, and for Justin, that's helping provide healthy food and bus fare for him to continue training with his minor league soccer team that he is a part of.

One of our goals with these young men is that they would learn more about what it means to be a man of God and a role model in their communities when men are so often absent in the lives of the families.  They both have lived in Los Guido their entire lives and have experienced difficult and challenging life situations themselves.  It has been so encouraging to see how they have grown to be more responsible and to really love the work that we are doing in their own and nearby communities.  By choosing to stay off drugs, to be respectful in how they talk to women and authorities, to study God's Word, to be accountable to us as their site leaders, they are challenging what the world around them tells them they should grow up to be.  

I have been able to interact regularly with these two young men in the setting of my English class.  We have gone through several transitions in what the format and time of my class looks like, but it is encouraging to me to know that they both value studying English.  Part of their jobs as interns is working with the teams that come from the States to work in our ministry sites, and it is to their benefit if they are able to communicate with these team members in English.  Little by little, I have seen them grow in their skills, but I would still love to see them learn so much more. :)  When I moved to Costa Rica to join SI, I never thought that I would be working with teenage boys, but it has really been a joy to get to know these guys and walk part of life's journey with them.  Please pray for William and Justin as they work with us, as God is working in their hearts and in the lives of their family members.  I have such high hopes and prayers for them and their futures and know that God can use them greatly if they are willing and available!

Justin eating a lunch staple: Cup of Noodles

William helping to prepare empanadas for a Culture Night activity

Both of the boys play on our SI-Los Guido soccer team and did very well this season.

Playing ping pong at a banquet for one of our short term teams