Christmas in October!

Today was just one of those days. We had to miss classes to go to the Office of Immigration for what we had hoped would be a relatively painless process to apply for temporary residency. It's been months of headache going through all the red tape and acquiring all the correct documentation and we were finally going to be done! Well, to make a long story short...God had other plans in mind. So after a frantic afternoon, thinking we might have to make a 72 hour trip to Panama to be legal again, then talking with a lawyer, and our school we finally figured it all out. By then we were worn out through and through.
I (Jamie) went back to the school mail room to get my backpack and as I picked it up I looked across the room and saw a package in the "H" box. "It's probably for someone else." I told myself like Eeyore, but then I noticed the name started with "H-Y-" I stepped closer "N-U-M" It was for us! Our first care package! The kids were so excited to open it...it seriously felt like Christmas for all of us! Everything we were stressed or bummed about this week went out the door.

Thank you Curtis and Anna (Caleb and Taylor too) we love you guys!

Battle Wounds and Blessings

Every Tuesday night the guys play soccer at the school gym. Good fun, good exercise, and especially good for cultural adaptation since "futbol" is the sport of Costa Rica. Everyone here is into it, little kids to grandmas, and everyone in between.
Unfortunately Nathan will be watching from the sidelines for a little while. Last Tuesday a guy missed the ball and kicked Nathan right in the Achilles tendon. We were afraid it might be seriously injured so after an afternoon going to the school doctor, hospital, ultrasound, and Orthopedist we found it wasn't torn but damaged and seriously inflamed and would likely tear if he walked on it. So crutches were the order, along with ibuprofen, ice, and massage. Fine, except that we walk everywhere, to school, the bank, the grocery store, the farmers market, and of course they are not all near each other. On top of that we usually have two strollers to push. We were in a bit of a bind.
That's where the blessing comes in. There is a wonderful Costa Rican family that runs the food tienda at school and they happen to live down the street from us. We had chatted a few times and wanted to get to know them better. They have a car and generously offered to give us all a ride everyday. What a huge blessing! On top of that, we have been able to really build a friendship with them. We hope it is one that we can keep for years to come.

Dia de Las Culturas

Last friday was Dia de Las Culturas, a holiday here that celebrates all the diversity of all the cultures of the world. Over the weekend there were events in parks and churches all over the city where everyone dressed up and brought food and music representing all different countries. Our kids school also had their celebration and each grade was assigned a country. Then there was an assembly with all the nations flags and a cool dance by the 6th grade class. Afterwards everyone went from class to class to see their presentations and taste food from each place. It was a lot of fun! Kendyl's kindergarten class was assigned Israel so they all dressed as Bible characters. She chose to be Miriam because, "She gets to save her baby brother Moses". It so happened that Kendyl's teacher had dead batteries in her camera so we left ours with her for the day so there are a lot of pictures of her class. PS Kendyl's costume is a pillow case with a curtain tie back for a belt...ya gotta be creative here!

A New Look

You may have noticed the new look of our blog. We just liked this layout and we added a couple new things too.

• Notice the new "email subscription" sign up box at the top right. Once you are signed up you will automatically be emailed our latest post the day we post it. It is in a plain text format so be sure to still check in to the actual blog now and again.

Please let us know if this works well and if you like the formating. Otherwise we'll try something else to keep you up to date.

• And my personal favorite, the new "recent comments" box where your comments are showcased! We love getting your feedback and hearing what you have to say! Just click "comment" at the bottom of the post you want to comment on, fill out the form, and voila!

We hope you enjoy!

Be careful what you say...

Spanish translation sometimes gives us gringos a freebie... like the word for car is carro, the word for computer is computadora, student is estudiante, and doctor is simply doctor. Sometimes this truly works in your favor....other times....not so much!





For example,
your "arma" isn't your arm, it's a weapon.
if you have an "injuria" you don't have an injury, you were insulted.
if you are "embarazada" you are not embarrassed, you are pregnant.
if you are "constipado" you don't need the bathroom, you need a decongestant.

Case in point...the other day our friend went to the bakery and wanted a dough nut. He proceeded to say, "Yo quiero una doña blanco y una doña negro." The "ñ" makes the sound "n-ye" as in "piñata". Close...but the word for dough nut is "dona", without the tilde. So, after the entire bakery erupted in laughter, our poor friend realized he had just said, "I want one white woman and one black woman."

It just goes to show how important language school is, otherwise, who knows what we might be telling people! Yikes!

A Call to Prayer

"He has delivered us from peril, and he will deliver us again. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us, as you help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many." 2 Corinthians 1:10-11


Here are some specifics we are praying about...will you please join us in prayer?

• Praise God that our home in Oregon is now in escrow! We will end up with much less than we had hoped due to the current market and will not have the financial "cushion" we had hoped to have for this coming year. We know God is in control and He doesn't need escrow money in order to provide.

• Thank the Lord for providing us with fellowship here! We met several families in language school who share our heart for the people and are facing many of the same challenges. It's nice to have comrades and know we are not alone.
• Ask for strength to persevere physically, mentally, and spiritually. After 6 weeks, real life has settled in and the challenges of everyday life in a third-world country wear us out. Throw in the mental strain of language learning and spiritual attacks and, well...we need prayer.
• Ask for funding to continue our ministry. Pray that He will call additional people to support our ministry financially, and that those who have promised support will remain faithful to their commitment. We are still looking for 4 churches or businesses @ 200/month, 10 individuals @ 100/month, and 10 @ 50/month.
  
• Ask for guidance in ministry decisions. We now have connections at 2 seminaries here. Both have a need for teachers. We also have the opportunity to become involved in a Christian dance company that is changing lives through gospel centered performances, and at a local Christian school where our kids may attend in the future. Pray that we will hear clearly to proceed in obedience.
  
• Worship Him for being our Almighty Savior! What a God we serve! With all the power to control the universe, He cares enough to listen to our hearts. Even though we don't deserve anything, He gives us grace and provides all we need. We feel incredibly blessed to be serving Him here in Costa Rica and look forward to where he leads us.