For everything there is a season, and a
time for every matter under heaven
Ecclesiastes 3:1
I have completed my very blessed and full year in the Ignite
program with Potter's Field Ministries and beginning a new phase, a new season.
Before getting into all the details of the new season, I would
like to share about what has been happening since I got back to Rochester.
The time has truly been a blessing and full.
I have been leading worship for the kids in Sunday School on
alternate weeks and every Tuesday morning for the Ladies Bible Study. It
has been such a blessing and yet a bit strange to lead worship in English!
It was really fun to teach the kids here the Armor of God in English and
lately, I did it in Spanish too!!! I have also been learning to play all
the songs I learned in English with Potter's Field during this past year to
play with the Ladies.
In returning back to Rochester and not yet knowing what I would do
next, I have returned to staying with Ray and Margie (my Pastor and his
wife). I have also been staying with
other friends at different points in time until I was able to determine what the
Lord has next.
On alternate Fridays, I have been joining a prayer group with
adults around my age from various churches that has become my most favorite and
blessed time of seeking the Lord since I have been back.
I was very blessed to work at the Vacation Bible Camp at church. It is the first time that I have been here
and not working during the day, so I was able to participate! I
taught a small class of 8-10 kids and we would rotate through the various
events and activities along with the other 7 classes. We had fun worship, Bible lessons, snacks,
games, crafts and on the picnic day we even had a trooper and two fire trucks
come out to have fun with the kids.
There is nothing like sirens, lights and loud speakers for kids! Even with all this, my favorite part was
reaching out and praying for a girl in my class that initially seemed
uninterested and bored, began asking deep theological and life questions and
finally accepted the Lord!!! By the last
day, she was excited about finding the verse they had memorized in the Bible
and about the prospect of getting baptized!!
VBC was Tuesday June 25 – 29, which I did not know at the time
would be my last week out of a job.
During the time of praying, wondering and seeking, I was also looking
for jobs. It has also been an
emotionally draining time. My heart’s
desire is still to serve and be in missions.
I have spent a whole year in the field having left most of my life
possessions and having some in storage.
I have also been living off my savings and trusting the Lord for the
next stage. I looked for alternate means
of sustainable income while in the field, including but not limited to
searching for jobs within Xerox and outside of Xerox that I could do
remotely. Pretty much every avenue I
explored (and they were many) seemed to be promising in the beginning but ended
at a closed door. As time went on and I
prayerfully analyzed the situation I found myself in, I lifted the restriction
of the job being remote and trusted the Lord that if He was purposing me to
remain in Rochester for a while longer, that I would not strive to leave, though
it was my desire to do so. Within days
of lifting the restriction on a remote position, I had two offers for returning
to Xerox and I accepted one of them, starting just 3 business days and a couple
of holidays before my leave of absence expired and I would have lost the job
entirely without being able to return to Xerox for a year.
Once it was settled that I would be working for a while here, I
have prayerfully searched for an apartment where to live for this season and I
have found one where I will be moving to in two weeks!! I have been without a place of my own for
over a year and a half and I am actually excited about moving in and getting
organized!
For those that are around here and would love to help with the
move, feel free to call me … I move Saturday August 3!!!
For those that would like my new address, I will gladly provide it
privately outside of my blog, so call or email.
Now …. My new phase is to work and serve the Lord where He has me
now. I continue seeking what He has and
seeing Him move daily in the many opportunities I am having to share about the
work of the Lord this past year with colleagues that are excited to hear!!!
I will always have my heart knit to Potter’s Field Ministries and Capilla
del Calvario de Villarreal where I served and was transformed this past
year. I look forward to the time when I
can travel to be with my brothers and sisters in Christ either for short term
or long term opportunities. I will
definitely be involved in prayers, donations and hopefully visits. If any of you have a heart to support
missions and would like to receive the same reward that God offers to those
that hear the call and obey by going, please support Potter’s Field Ministries and CCVR.
Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that abounds to
your account.
Philippians 4:17
You will be blessed beyond measure that God could use your
offering of material and temporary things to transform lives forever!
This is my story for the past 10 months of Potter's Field Ignite training and service in Costa Rica. I pray that you are blessed and can love each of these kids, as in a sense, through me.
OK, so it isn't quite a circle, maybe more like an odd figure 8 and some, but I have ended up where I have begun, though nothing is quite the same, particularly me. The past ten months have been a whirlwind. They have gone so fast and a lot has changed in addition to my physical location. After the travels in the US and then going to Costa Rica, on April 1 I flew back to Montana for a month of re-entry with Potter's Field Ministries.
On Day Trip to Canada
It was a very edifying time of "unpacking" and "repacking" lessons and emotions. After the time in Montana, I drove cross country stopping in diverse locations visiting dear friends and being able to share with them to catch up on each other's lives and fellowship.
My General Route!
First stop was in Bozeman, MT to see John and Michelle Merkovsky. It was a short overnight visit, but I was thankful to see them again! Last time I saw them was when I drove cross country from Rochester to Montana! Crazy how fast the 10 months had passed and how much their kids had grown.
I then went to Carthage and Joplin, MO to spend time with my dear friends, the Stearns and with Hector and Chelsea Romero. It was soooo good to spend time with them after all the time since we had seen each other last. They have all been instrumental in this journey that the Lord has brought me on and it was wonderful to share with them after it has pretty much come full circle. I was privileged to share the lessons and experiences that the Lord granted me at a ladies Bible study and with the church on Sunday morning.
Paul and Beth at Braum's Ice Cream! Yumm
Chelsea and I together again!
I then visited Jesse, LeeAnne and Tori Tomkins in Charlotte, NC. It was so good to see faces from home, even though my road trip was barely over half way done. Seeing Tori almost 3 years old was a bit surprising. Amazing how much a two year old grows in 7 months!!! I also got to see the beauty of the city of Charlotte and meet sisters in Christ. It was also nice to go the Billy Graham Library and see the documentation of a lifetime of service to God. It is challenging to be reminded that all that is needed from us is obedience and faithfulness, even through the sacrifices.
Tori and Aunt T
Billy Graham's Library
I then drove to Philly and stayed with Ashley, a fellow Ignite intern that I have grown to love! On Saturday, we met with Annie and Danielle, several fellow Ignite interns, and Pastor Steve and Pastor Craig Linquist to go to a baseball game! I even got all decked up in Phillies gear! The fellowship was sweet, but the score abysmal, but it was soo fun.
At Phillies Game with Pastor Steve and Pastor Craig
On Sunday morning, I got to go to Calvary Chapel of Philly and then I drove to Ontario to see Margie, her mom and friend that were visiting, Leah, Aurora, Sarah and her 4 kids.
The Merkovsky 4!
Finally, I am now back in the Rochester/Webster area. For a week, I was house sitting for my dear friends Sherri and Joel and I then returned to my Pastor Ray and Margie's house. I have been catching up with some friends and it has been a blessing to see my local family in Christ.
I still have many that haven't been able to see yet and that I hope to see soon, but I am thankful to be here for this season.
I don't know what is next, but I am open to all possibilities and doors that the Lord may open. Please keep me in prayer as my heart just longs to return to my brothers and sisters in Costa Rica, but I am waiting for the Lord to provide for such an adventure, when He pleases.
A man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.
- Proverbs 16:9
During re-entry in Montana and now after all the travels within the US, I have contemplated a lot upon what the Lord has done in my these past months. I have in many ways and over time defined a lot of my identity based on what I do. I have also used that self-identity to see what I do as a measure of my relationship to the Lord or the assumption of how the Lord sees me. The Lord has used my experience in the Ignite Program and my involvement with the leaders and fellow servants in Potter’s Field Ministries to stress the nature and magnitude of His unconditional love for me. I have more deeply realized how vast the Father’s love for me regardless of what I may do or not do for Him. My identity has become wrapped up in His love for me rather than in what I can do for Him. I have learned to recognize the reality that has been there, revealed in His Word, all along. He loves me whether I am serving Him or in the flesh. I am so secure in His love, that as I lean upon Him, my natural response to His love is to love Him back with all my being and actions.
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.
- Romans 12:1
But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.
- Philippians 3:7-11
The world advises and advertises finding oneself through much searching and experimentation, yet after all that searching, one is left empty and lacking meaning. I have learned to find myself in Christ, to know who I am in Him. To have a heart full of gratefulness for the amazing gift of salvation through Jesus Christ, to count all things that were gain to me, as loss. My identity is no longer as a software engineer, though I have not lost my degree. Neither is my identity defined in serving as a missionary. My identity is found in Christ. I am His child and His servant. What I do is love Him and worship Him with all my being in all that I do, to use the talents He has fashioned me with to reach the world for His glory, and be transformed daily more and more, to be like Him. I am His.
So much has happened in a bit over a week! I am now back in Montana at the Potter's Field Ranch. I arrived last Monday night April 1.
I have exchanged sitting on my bed in shorts and tank-top in front of the fan for sitting with slippers, fleece jacket in the dining room in front of the fireplace! I miss the kids and new friends in Costa Rica. I am thankful that the Lord is allowing me to continue in communication with new friends in addition to those friends that I have known for much longer.
Throughout the week, the teams were coming in little by little from each one of the field locations until we all are together again, except for some that we knew were not going to be joining us. It has been great to see faces of so many other interns that have now completed their field times too.
Things have been more laid back here compared to the training months. We have been sharing experiences and learning how to process emotions and culture changes. For some of us, the culture shock is not as great, yet as in my case, what is ahead is quite dim and fuzzy, so different prayer requests are raised up for direction for the immediate future.
This week, we have started the classes officially and we have been having some great Bible Studies with Don McClure and worship with Terry and Nancy Clark.
Some of us have been struggling with health issues, so prayer is welcome for that. I am doing well healthwise, other than some lingering dizziness from either the travel or the altitude changes.
Thank you all for your prayers. Please keep them up!
It has been way too long
since I sent out an update. I am doing well and blessed.A lot is going on and every day just seems
full and busy.I am seeing the Lord work
on behalf of people one by one.I am
blessed to see how He is allowing me to be a vessel of blessing to others,
primarily one on one.
It has been terribly dry
here. It hasn’t rained since the beginning of November. The heat has gotten pretty intense and even though
right now, we have a “cold front” and it is only windy, but it hasn’t
rained. I am thankful for the wind
because it cools down the air (I felt almost chilly for the first time in
Guanacaste last night at church). The sanctuary is outside and it has a roof and
back wall to the platform but no other walls, so it is like being out in the
open. The wind was so strong that it was
knocking over the empty chairs at church yesterday morning! Tonight, as I write and sit on my bed with
the window open and the fan on me, wearing a tank-top and shorts, I am
comfortable, almost chilly … sorry to all of you in the snow!!! J
I so appreciate your
prayers! I can't begin to tell you how much it means to me to hear from any
one of you and that you all are praying for me. Things have been
spiritually intense as of late and I can definitely hear the Lord speaking to
my heart. Although clarity isn't full yet, I am starting to have an inclination
and potential opened doors.
During the end of December,
the month of January and most of February, we were not having formal PFK
(Potter’s Field Kids) program (Manos del Alfarero). The school year in Costa Rica coincides with
the calendar year, so most of this time was school break for the kids. In December, we had graduations for the kids
that passed from 6th grade to Jr. High (Colegio as it is called
here). They leave the kids program and
are able to attend the youth group instead.
During this time, we worked on special events and activities to invite
and encourage new kids to join the program.
We went around the various communities with invitations, loud speaker
and announcement and talked with kids wherever we would see them. We
would setup game days and meet with the kids to play soccer or plan activities
where we would have Bible classes, worship and snacks. With the graduations and a couple of kids
that had stopped coming, we had smaller numbers toward the end of the year and
we were a bit far from our max of 40 kids for the program (I believe we were
closer to 25 or so). I created a video
in Spanish to share with the church and parents of kids so they would know what
the program is about. I am including it
here, but I don’t have an English version, so sorry to those that can’t
understand it.
Once we completed our
registration, we have been blessed to have 43 kids (in two groups) signed up
and one on a waiting list (since this one and all 3 extras are in the same
group)!!!! It is amazing to see the new
kids blend in with those we know and love, get to know them all and have new
expectations of what the Lord will do in their lives!!! I was blessed and privileged to pray with the
mom of one of the kids to accept the Lord during one of our registration
days!!!! That was so exciting!!!!!
It seems like I haven’t
had as many opportunities to get together with Brandon and Gustavo now that
school started and part of their day is occupied with school and my afternoons
are occupied with PFK again. In any
case, I was so blessed to see Gustavo coming home from school in his school
uniform and a huge smile on his face! I asked
him how he liked school and if he was finding that our time together has helped
him. He said that it has helped him a
lot because now he’s able to understand and finish his papers to hand them in
quickly!! It just warmed my heart!!! Please keep praying for him and his family,
as I see improvements, but I also see some of his old attitudes and difficulty.
In January, Sydnie and
Emily’s visas were expiring, so we went with Corey to Nicaragua for a short
day-trip to renew our visas. With 90
days on our new visas, we are all legal in Costa Rica until April 7, which is
safe since we leave April 1stJ. The trip was nice and I
got to see a new country and get a new stamp in my passport for a country I had
never seen. We went to the town of Rivas
and took a stroll in “bike-pushed-taxis”.
Two of us sat in front and a guy sat in back on the bike that was
attached to our carriage and pushed us through town. It was a fun little trip!
During my time here, I
have gone to San Jose/Heredia/Alajuela (the capital and surrounding cities, about
5 hrs away) on three occasions (two by bus), all of which have been a huge
blessing for different reasons. On two
of them, I have been able to spend some time with a wonderful couple that has
known my mom and I since I was a young child.
Miguel Gonzalez (a puertorrican pastor in Costa Rica) and Sarita (his
wife, who is from Costa Rica) have lived lives of faith for many years and they
are missionaries for life. He has been
an evangelist and founded many churches in Latin America. They were
instrumental during my initial calling to missions many years ago on a previous
trip to Costa Rica and also during these couple of encounters lately they have
blessed me more than they could ever know.
The first time I went, I
was also blessed to receive an offering from the Lord to use as He would direct,
with no stipulations on what that would be.
It was challenging and convicting, and I saw it as a huge responsibility
to seek the Lord for what He had in mind for that offering. After I returned, I prayed and sought the
Lord for what He would have me use it for.
As I prayed, one person kept coming to mind, but I didn't know what need
she had. After a couple of weeks of
praying, I consulted with Pastor Phil and he mentioned the same person and that
he had observed that she had a need for new eye glasses! I had no idea, but was blessed that the Lord
had directed my heart toward the same person, so I saw it as confirmation from
the Lord. I later agreed with her to
take her out for a surprise. It wasn't until
we were on our way that she learned where we were going and she was blown away
by how the Lord had worked on her behalf.
She had already gone to get an eye exam, although she didn't have the
money for the glasses. She had been
praying and the Lord had told her to not speak of her need to anyone, but
rather to commit it to prayer. The store
is located on her way to work, so she always carried her prescription with her
and would often (if not every day) stop and ask about more information
regarding the glasses and tell them that she would return with someone to cover
for her glasses, as she felt the confidence from the Lord as she prayed!!! This day was the day that I would take her
and be blessed by hearing of her faith and how the Lord answered her prayer
because He chose to allow me to be a channel of blessing!!!! This whole experience has challenged and
grown my faith!!! It also served as a
testimony to her daughter, who does not yet know the Lord, that God answers
prayers and loves her very much!
The second trip, Sydnie,
Emily and I joined Erika (my new closest friend here) to go to San Jose and
Heredia and we had a refreshing time of going to the mall, eating at Wendy’s,
shopping a little bit and walking around in weather that required a light
jacket!!! I was also immensely blessed
to meet up with someone that the Lord had also put on my heart to use some of
the offering money to bless. I later
learned that she needed to buy school supplies for her kids and it couldn't have been more timely!!
Last week, I went to San
Jose/Heredia Thursday through Saturday with Rebecca (Pastor Phil’s wife) and
Erika. I have been very blessed with the
friendships that the Lord is establishing for me here in that they have been a
comfort, too. The Lord truly filled our
time with amazing blessings. I had a huge desire that I couldn't explain that
Erika would meet Miguel and Sarita. The
Lord opened the doors for Erika, her daughter (Natalia) and I to join Miguel
and Sarita for a day and it was AMAZING!!! This couple is one of the most inspirational
missionaries I have ever met in my life!!!
They walk by faith and share what it’s like to walk by faith in ways
that draw anyone and everyone to desire to do the same. Erika was so blessed and now she can’t wait
for her husband to meet them! It’s crazy
how amazing it was to sit and walk around just fellowshipping in the Lord
hearing of their experiences!!
Potter’s Field just
recently decided to send one of the interns that went through the program in
Montana with us to Costa Rica. She
remained at the ranch when we came down and has been with them for this time. Mariah arrived on Thursday afternoon (the same
day I left for San Jose) and came to an empty apartment. I got back and now we are adjusting to living
together and sharing all the things that have been routine for us here as new
to her, although I feel bad that we can only fit her bed in the living room as
it is such a small apartment. The bed
she is on is a provision from the Lord after the most unbelievable long story,
that I will have to leave for another time, but suffice it to say that the Lord
has been showing Himself faithful provider.
She will be staying here until we leave (April 1) and has already been fully assimilated into Team Costa Rica!!!
On Monday night, after PFK
was over, I was walking home immersed in my own thoughts and almost ran into a
lady from the church that greeted me with “Can you pray for me?”. I was a bit surprised and asked her if right
now, so before praying I started asking her why and seeing if I could minister
to her beyond prayer, as she obviously wanted to talk. I was blessed that she opened up, sometimes
with tears and shared her burden. I didn't immediately have an answer for her, but rather listened. After a while, I shared a few things and the
Lord touched her heart that she needed to see the Lord as her defense and not
try to guard herself and protect her heart, that her defense mechanisms were
actually hurting her. She was very
touched and cried some more, so I prayed for her and we were both super
blessed. I can’t explain it, but lately
it seems that the Lord is bringing to pass Isaiah 50:4 as He reminded me of
this promise a couple of weeks ago.
Tuesday,
Erika and I began partnering in counseling a lady, which she will take over
once I leave. It is amazing that I can’t
even resort to my old habits of saying that I have nothing to offer, because
the Spirit is evidently filling my lips although I don’t feel ready. The Lord has been using the verse in 2
Corinthians 10 to remind me that those thoughts or “imaginations” as it says in
KJV are thoughts that exalt themselves against God’s goodness and character and
that they need to be cast down and my thoughts taken captive to the obedience of
Christ.
I can’t say that I
understand all that the Lord is doing and where we are going, but I am seeing
an amazing pattern that fills me with faith in two ways:
The Lord is faithfully
directing my steps and words to bless people that are hurting and need it
deeply, particularly one on one and one by one.
I may not know where I’m
going next or who I will talk to next, but the Lord already has it planned out
and I will see it unfold as I am faithful to listen and obey.
I would love to hear
from you via email, facebook, skype, text me, or Viber.If you want the numbers or contact, please
send me a private message as I do not want to list the numbers on the blog for
privacy reasons. Unfortunately, both
texts and Viber require internet connection, which has not been very good in
the apartment.My US number that most of
you have will become active April 1st which is when I return to
Montana.
It has been a little while since I have published a full update. Things have gotten a bit hectic and amazingly, the new year is now here and moving fast! We are just catching up with a couple of team videos and I am including three in this entry.
This scripture is very traditional of Christmas, but have we really thought about what it means to us? It isn't all about a child. It is about the Child that would be so much more and it describes it in detail. This passage has been taught about in service on Sunday and it was read again in the Christmas eve service that I went to at another local church. We sang about it in service and it is definitely sinking in.
This Christmas, I am celebrating it in Costa Rica among new friends. The Lord has been faithful to grant great people to hang out with and celebrate this blessed day. At a distance, I would like to wish my friends and family a blessed Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!
I love you all very much and I thank you all for your support and encouragement. May the Prince of Peace be your Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God and Everlasting Father!
