Yesterday, I was walking back to my room and I realized that I went the entire day without wearing shoes. That is a sign of a good day! I think if I had to choose between shoes or barefeet, I would always go with barefeet. This reminds me of the guy, Tony I believe is his name, whom I never once saw with a pair or shoes at UNCW. I see where he is coming from.
It is nearing the end of three weeks here in Costa, and I am still falling in love with this beautiful land. There are daily treasures I am discovering about this place, and I feel like i'm a little kid learning the ways of life all over again. Sarah and Jason are two missionaries here in Costa Rica, and they have a little baby named Luka. It is so entertaining to watch Luka explore, question, and investigate the world around him. I connect with Luka in this way, because everything about life here fascinates me and I just want to absorb it all. The serenity on the mountain is incredible. I am continuously overwhelmed by the peace, and joy I experience just looking out at the beauty before me. The clouds make Refugio Solte feel like monestary, with their mystical essence. The trees are lush with thousands of varieties of leaves and designs. Vines hang from the trees, and the forest is so lush that even if it is raining you won't feel it because of the ceiling of branches that cover you.Thank you Jesus for the blessing of waking up everyday in a rain forest. Haha it's pretty funny, that is how I wake up. Typically, I am awakened by the sound of howling monkeys. This begins around 5:30...then the toucans will join in the chorus and together they are an alarm clock for me. Do not be fooled though, the monkeys do not have a cute monkey call; they carry a sound similar to what I would imagine a dinosaur to sound like.
This past week has been chocked full of adventures. The girls and I have been going to waterfalls, ziplining through the forest, swimming in rivers, swinging of ropes like Tarzan, making record timing in our rental car on the mountain, and treasure hunting. All of my girls are hardcore, and their heart for adventure and embracing life is wonderful. We had one of the happiest days the other day when we went and spent the afternoon at a waterfall. It cost 50 colones to enter the property, which equates to roughly one American dollar. I would have to say, this is the best dollar I have ever spent in my entire life. I am so proud of Hannah and Rachel who braved to jump the cliffs next to the waterfall with me. The other girls though were all very brave, and decided to go down the waterfall like a waterslide. It is amazing how perfectly smooth this waterfall is for a waterslide. This was the first time I have ever gone off of a waterfall, and I sit here proud to now cross be able to cross this off of my bucket list.
I am blessed to have spent the past three weeks with incredible girls. There are seven girls attending GOP, and they all have such a heart to know and love God. We've talked a ton about identity, the Kingdom of Heaven, spiritual warfare, and abiding in the Presence of the Lord. It's been beautiful to see the chains of religion breaking, and a greater understanding of truth awakened in the hearts of these precious daughters. I feel honored to know these girls, and am sad to see them leave in two days. The other staff and I prophesied over all of them last week, and I love how the Lord really touched their hearts and encouraged them through our time. Please keep the GOP girls in prayer as they head back to their familiar environments this weekend. Pray that they will be propelled even further into a life of freedom and deeper intimacy with the Father. Now, there are a group of guys here for GOP and I can see the Lord beginning to stir some things in the hearts of these young men. While I won't be closely connected to them the way that I was with the girls, pray that the Lord would accomplish everything He desires to fullfill in the lives of these guys.
A super random incident happened this week with my debit card. Apparently someone in California got a hold of my debit card number and began withdrawing a lot of money from my account. Praise the Lord I was able to get everything sorted, but believe me, trying to deal with bank issues is complicated enough in the States...but it is even more difficult trying to sort these issues out of the country. I think the whole situation is ironic and funny because of all accounts to try to steal from, mine would definitely not be a top choice.
I have been brainstorming and planning a lot for the school in the fall, and the Lord has been downloading some really great ideas. Planning, creating, and dreaming the ideas for this school is one of the most incredible ventures I have ever taken on. Please keep Laurie and I in your prayers as we continue to plan and prepare for the fall. Our school will be an incredible opportunity to raise up a generation of students who walk intimately with the Lord, and have a solid foundation of their value and worth in Him. The resources are all falling into place and it is quite amazing to see how the building, supplies, staff are all coming together. Prayer is definitely need though!
I pray that the Lord is overwhelming you with the goodness of His heart. You are so loved.
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