Love, Love, Love, Love, Love

These past couple of weeks have been crazy, for lack of a better term: back to back teams, hard news from home, and just pure Alajuelita craziness. Through all of that, though, GOD is showing me more than ever that I need to depend solely on him to be my rock and solid foundation when everything else around me is… crazy. Last week included a knife fight between two men at the Refugio, a man possessed by a demon, and the death of a fifteen year old friend of my sister’s back home. Each of those situations rocked me and I want to explain how GOD was in each of those events, but please forgive me in my omission of details about those incidents right now. Right now I want to explain what happened today.
We are building a house for a man in the Celebración Church family with the team this week. The site is up on the mountain with minimal accessibility requiring the team members to either be shuttled there in the ministry cars or to make a substantial walk from the nearest bus stop. Today I ended up being left at the site with a small group of guys as they finished putting up the walls of the house. With very little to contribute I was feeling pretty useless and really wishing I had somehow found a way back down earlier in the day instead of standing in mud and rain with no purpose. Dan, a group of team members, and I started the walk to head back down via bus when we stumbled across a woman lying face down in the dirt on the side of the road. After initially passing her by, Dan suggested we turn back to make sure she was ok. With a crack pipe in one hand and a lighter in the other it wasn’t surprising that it took quite an effort to wake her up. After struggling to understand her slurred Spanish slang, we managed to invite her to have lunch with us and then pay for her taxi home.
Last week, Dan and I had a conversation about his passion for beginning a ministry similar to Freedom 424 (check out their website if you want more info: www.freedom424.org) to reach out to prostitutes and women on the street of Alajuelita. When we were talking I was incredibly excited about the idea and very interested in helping out. Interestingly enough, however, when GOD placed a street prostitute right in my path I was having so much trouble loving like Christ. I don’t know why but when I imagined the kind of women and girls we would encounter I imagined them to have a sense of robbed innocence about them, eager to receive love. In my fairy tale idea of a prostitute (if there is such a thing) I did not imagine her smelling like she lives on the streets, I did not anticipate her to be high on crack, and I did not think she would be carrying a knife. So when we met this woman and began walking down the mountain I had a legitimate fear that she was going to pull a knife on us, and the fact that I couldn’t understand most of what she was saying did not help assuage my fear that she was out of her mind. In my head I was thinking, “GOD, this is not really what I meant when I said I wanted to reach out to the community of prostitutes in Alajuelita.” And if I am truly honest with myself what I really meant by that was “GOD, I want someone who is easy to love.”
My heart began to thaw towards her as I saw the way that people treated her; men called out rude things from store fronts, she got nasty looks from elderly women sitting on their front porches, everyone acted as if she had the word PROSTITUTE tattooed across her forehead. Once we sat down at the little soda to eat she turned to Dan and said plainly “Thank you for your respect.” My heart completely broke. She is a human being, a child of GOD, just like me, and she is used and abused like a piece of property. Most likely, her only human interactions include prostituting herself and buying drugs and no one takes the time to just sit with her and ask her name. This is the kind of person who needs the love of GOD more than anything else. Yes she is a prostitute, she is a crack head, she smells, and she is impossible to understand but GOD loves her and calls us, as the body of Christ, to love her as well. I am humbled by my reluctance to love when it is hard and so grateful for the experience I had to learn how to do just that. Thank you all for all of your prayers, I apologize for the sporadic nature of this blog. I hope this finds you all well. GOD BLESS.
Becca

Comfort from the Father

This past week was an especially fun one for me because the group here was from my own church at home, River City Church. I got to spend the whole week worshiping, praying, and communing with some of my best friends that I have missed so much while being here. Needless to say it was really difficult to say goodbye when the end of the week approached and they headed back home as a group united in Christ and on fire for GOD. I am so excited for everything that GOD did and is doing in that group of people. It was so apparent that GOD handpicked the team and carefully knit them together as a single body to serve here in Alajuelita. I pray that they will continue to be unified in purpose even in the midst of the daily craziness at home and encourage one another in the transition from weeklong mission experience to perpetual Christ centered life in their schools, at work, and within their communities.
I also had to say goodbye to my fellow intern and one of my best friends, Rachel, as she finished her month and a half internship with 6:8. To say that her friendship has been a blessing would only begin to describe the impact she has made on my life. Although we were only together a month and a half, GOD supernaturally brought us together and allowed us to share things openly like we had known each other for years. We were able to encourage and challenge one another in so many aspects of our faith. Although she is going back home, I know that we will continue to pray for one another constantly, keep up with what is going on in our respective lives, and remain best friends.
To say that these past few days have been sad for me would be an understatement. However, I have been amazed with the comfort that GOD has provided me. I sometimes feel so guilty crying over missing my family and friends when the people around me are worried about making their next house payment or finding enough food to sustain themselves on a daily basis. When GOD has all that comforting to do my small problems seem so insignificant and unworthy. But our GOD doesn’t work that way. “Blessed be the Father of mercies, the GOD of all comfort, who comforts us in our afflictions so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort that we ourselves are comforted by GOD” (2 Corinthians 1:3-4). Even though on the affliction scale mine fall way to the bottom GOD desires to bring me comfort so that I may proclaim his faithfulness and his mercy in the midst of my struggles. So I want to thank you, Lord, for the encouragement of RCC’s prayers. I want to thank you for the fact that your “power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9) and that I am allowed to need comforting and help. I want to thank you for the simple things through which you bring me joy: the little girls that hold my hand all through church, the feeling of your presence during a worship song, the impact of a simple smile from a former drug addict. Thank you, Lord, for choosing me, for allowing me to further your kingdom here in Alajuelita for this season. And thank you for comforting me all the way through it. Thank you to everyone reading this for keeping up with me and supporting me. I pray that you would feel GOD’s comforting presence in a tangible way today and that you would in turn proclaim his name so that others could likewise know his comforting touch.

Becca

La Montana

Even as I am writing this I am struggling to convey everything that is going through my mind after today, but I will try to explain how blessed I feel to have experienced what I did. Rachel and I and some other interns hiked up the mountain this morning/afternoon with three men from El Refugio. The Refugio is 6:8's homeless shelter which houses men intentionally dedicated to transforming their lives by turning their hearts to Christ and away from their addictions. Most of these men have lived grisly lives on the streets consuming and selling marijuana, crack, and alcohol. As a mark of the trade they have scars from stab wounds and gun shots. On appearance and preconceived judgments alone, Rachel and I were pretty unsure about taking the five plus hour long hike with them. After the hike, I cannot believe I almost missed it.
The hike started out on a humorous note as one of the guys from the center took us on an alternate route which he promised me would be "mas facil." Clearly when he said easier he only meant faster as we literally ascended the mountain at a ninety degree incline. We were laughing together and making jokes the whole way up. On the way back down, one of the guys suggested we stop to spend some time in fellowship and prayer. How cool is that! Jairo began by asking each of us what we think GOD wants from us, and alternately what we ask from GOD. Listening to the ticos and gringos sharing together was such a powerful experience for me. Jairo reminded us that everything is for a reason: their struggles on the streets, their home en El Refugio, and every person on the mountain have a purpose in GOD's plan. Afterward we joined hands and prayed together, tico and gringo, men from El Refugio and me from my comfortable neighborhood in Jacksonville, Florida, united in purpose before our GOD. I couldn't help but weep as I heard the conviction of the prayers of these men thanking GOD for the opportunity to hike the mountain and spend time in his creation, asking GOD to guide their paths, and praying for the slums of Alajuelita. GOD can use the most unlikely of people to do the most extraordinary things in his kingdom. I truly believe, just as Jairo said, that they are the future church of Alajuelita, and that they can radically transform their city with their testimonies and faith. I know my feeble words cannot describe this encounter with our most holy GOD but I wanted to share that with everyone. GOD BLESS
Becca

Cuan Grande es Dios

Recently GOD has been amazing me with how BIG he truly is. I have been so blessed here to have multiple opportunities to spend time in GOD's marvelous creation. If I walk about two hours from my house up the mountain I am surrounded by a verdant tropical forest, breathtaking views of the valley below, and crystal clear waterfalls. A two hour drive from where I live takes me to the Pacific Ocean where GOD's majesty is displayed in the black beaches, mountainous coast, and crashing waves of turquoise. The five interns spent a day at the beach this week (I know, it is tough being a missionary at times), exploring the less touristy side of the coast and taking in the untouched beauty of GOD's masterpiece. We all took the opportunity to sit by ourselves and spend some time with the LORD. As I watched the waves crashing down upon the rocks, sending ocean spray ten feet up into the air I could not help but be totally in awe with GOD's power. What really hit me though was the that the GOD that I come to in prayer is the very same GOD that is likewise the commander of this unending stretch of ocean. My GOD is the GOD of the universe! He is so personal, yet so infinite; So intimate while being all powerful. He cares about the most finite details of our lives while holding the whole world in his hands. Hallelujah do we serve an incredible GOD!
That experience is so encouraging to me when I begin to think about Alajuelita, and our Christian mission as a whole. I just finished reading the book "Radical" by David Platt where he repeatedly references the 4.5 billion people in the world who are currently living apart from Christ. In face of such a huge task it is easy for me to become discouraged at times. However, I am realizing that I am called to love like Christ and love indiscriminately until it hurts. GOD uses what we as feeble men are doing here on earth and magnifying it to fulfill his great purpose. Job comes to this very same conclusion: "I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted...My ears have heard of you but now my eyes have seen you therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes" (Job 42:2, 5-6). How foolish it is of me to think that I alone can bring to fruition any of GOD's perfect plans. As I see the greatness of GOD daily I am humbled into an awareness of my position as a servant of the most high GOD.
GOD BLESS,
Becca

Still I will praise You...

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:8-9). I want to start with this verse because yesterday was a difficult day for me. In my world, in my thoughts and my ways, I am crying out why? But, I cling to this verse in the midst of it, knowing that thankfully GOD accomplishes his divine purpose in ways that do not always make sense to the feeble minds of man. Two days ago the team here this week began to fix up a house for an elderly crippled woman in the Celebración Church family. Not only did the team itself raise funds in order to complete the project, but the entire Celebración congregation generously donated to the cause as well. The team spent the day cleaning out the house (which was quite the job seeing as it has been inhabited by the sheep that live on that particular hill) painting it, and making it ready for Gloria and her family to live there. They prayed over Gloria for healing and spread the love of Jesus through their selfless acts. Later that very night Gloria was admitted into the hospital and passed away early the next morning. The suddenness of her death shocked her family, the church congregation, the team, and everyone on 6:8 staff. I cannot say for sure on behalf of anyone else, but I was definitely asking GOD Why? Why now? However, despite the ideas or plans that I had in my head for Gloria, she is in heaven now, free of pain and completely restored. Gloria is healed and I thank GOD for that.
There is the sweetest kid named Jorge who volunteers at Celebración Church: he is so full of joy and has a huge servant’s heart. So when we visited his home yesterday and heard a little bit about his story I was asking the very same question I had earlier. Why GOD? Why such an incredible family? Jorge lives with his grandmother, Esperanza, and his alcoholic father in a house that was condemned by the city after the most recent earthquake. The condition of this house would rock your world: there is no wall in the kitchen and the kitchen floor consists of occasional two-by-fours and giant holes revealing the 8-10 foot drop to the ground. Two of their bedrooms are have holes so large that the beds fell through during the earthquake. When it rains water leaks in from the sides of the house and pours down from the pieced together tin roof. His eighty plus year old grandmother has to navigate around the missing floor boards and is forced to sleep sitting up because the bedrooms are unsafe. The amazing thing is that Jorge and Esperanza (which very fittingly means Hope in Spanish) have incredible faith and they pray wholeheartedly for GOD to miraculously provide another house. When confronted with such genuine trust in GOD I am so humbled. As we sang a song later that night in worship that says “So I can see a light that is coming for the heart that holds on/ There will be an end to these troubles but until that day comes/ Still I will praise you/ Still I will praise you” I thought of the struggles of those two families. One who is grieving the loss of a loved one and the other who is trusting in you to provide a way for a new home. In the midst of these struggles, we will praise you LORD. We don’t understand your timing and we cannot comprehend your ways but we do know that you are good. Thank you, LORD, that your thoughts and ways are higher than mine.
Please continue to pray for Rigo as well as for the families of Gloria and Jorge. Thank you so much. GOD Bless.

Becca

GOD has been revealing so many things to me during this trip so far. Without fail, every day I learn something new about His character, His word, His truth. What astounds me, still, however, are the ways in which He chooses to teach me. Spencer gives a message that has become known as the ‘take up your cross’ talk to every group upon their arrival in Costa Rica. He follows Jesus’s example in Luke 9 to explain that in order to completely devote your life to living for Christ, one must be willing to be uncomfortable, inconvenienced, and unpopular. Ultimately, Christ commands: “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world but forfeits his self?” (Luke 9:23-25) Everyone is encouraged to take a literal wooden cross necklace as a constant reminder of our own crosses that we must bear each and every day that we live for Christ. Because Spencer shares this incredibly powerful message with every group, last night was the sixth time I had heard it, and the third time in the past two and a half weeks. What was so amazing, though, was how entirely new GOD made it for me. All of yesterday Rachel and I had been discussing something that was on our hearts and Spencer’s message spoke directly into that. Even though I had already heard those very words a week ago it was so pertinent to what was going on inside of me at that very moment that it just clicked. Rachel and I both turned to each other in the middle of the sermon just grinning—giving each other the ‘wow GOD is awesome’ look.
I had the opportunity earlier today to spend some time talking with a “huffer” named Rigo who frequents the streets of Alajuelita. Rigo soaks rags, gloves, anything with absorbent properties, in paint thinner to inhale the toxic fumes and live virtually on a perpetual high. While most of his conversations are quite humorous sadly due to his addiction, today I saw a glimmer of his true heart and the tragedy of his situation. It began, after I gave up convincing him that I do not have black eyes or blue hair, when he asked me if I believed in GOD; I couldn’t have asked for a more direct opening. When I responded he asked me to specify which god I believed in. When I began explaining that there is only one true GOD and only one true way through GOD’s son Jesus Christ because he already died to save our sinful world Rigo began to shake his head. “No,” he said, “You don’t understand. I am an addict.” He pulls out his old identification cards that he still carries in his wallet to show me the physical changes that have occurred since his addiction. “This is my life,” he opens his hand to show me the soaked cloth, “This is my passion.” This time I shake my head. “No. GOD is so powerful that he can save anyone. It isn’t too late.” As I prayed for him I just cried out for GOD to give him supernatural measures of strength to turn his life around, to throw away the rag and never go back to it. I prayed that he would know how much Jesus loved him and that he could truly accept the Jesus already died in order to forgive. Although he left with the rag in his hand, he also left with tears in his eyes. Even though he returned joking and insisting that he has green eyes and all of the gringos (Americans) have black eyes I pray that the Holy Spirit would continue to work in his heart. I would love it if you would like to join me in praying for Rigo. I will let you know how he is doing the next time I see him. GOD BLESS.
Becca

Miracles

I have a couple of really quick amazing stories that I would like to share. The first is the miracle of a little boy named Jose Antonio. Due to an infection that spread to his brain as an infant, Jose Antonio spent the first five years of his life in bed unable to walk, speak, or respond to stimuli of any kind. This was the condition in which 6:8 met Jose Antonio. They began bringing teams to pray over Jose and his family and saw Jose Antonio’s condition miraculously improving to the bewilderment of his doctors. Over the past two years I have seen him begin to respond, walk, and now even talk. We spent over an hour at his house blowing bubbles and watching his reaction to these crazy floating spheres he had never seen before. What was the most exciting was to hear him exclaim “POP” when a bubble exploded by the end of the day. Yay GOD!
The team was also constructing a house for a family of seven in an area called Juan Pablo. After spending the whole week with them as they mixed and poured concrete, put up the frame, and finally the roof, it was quite an emotional time when they were able to present the family with the keys to their brand new house. The gratitude that radiated from the faces of each of the family members was incredible. You could definitely see GOD in the entire situation. More stories to come… Thank you for your support!