Stories from an ordinary couple following an extraordinary God

Our blog has moved!

2010-07-22T10:07:00.003-06:00

Our blog has moved to our main website. If you follow, please go to the new blog and subscribe there so you won't miss out on any of the exciting things going on here in El Salvador! All previous posts have been moved over and now we're including even more photos than before.

Tomato Basil Garlic Sourdough Bread - Photos

2009-11-12T22:47:00.007-06:00

So, lately I've gotten into making my own bread and soft pretzels. It's surprisingly easy, definitely delicious, and about the cheapest way to enjoy great bread! Anyhow, last night I made some amazing bread and thought I'd share the recipe with all of you. I started with this recipe, and added a little to it.

You'll need:

1 packet of active dry yeast

1 1/2 cups of sourdough starter (you can buy this at the grocery store, get it from a friend, or start your own)

1 cup warm tomato juice (under 110 degrees)

2 teaspoons white sugar

1 teaspoon salt

7 cups white flour (approximately)

Vegetable oil

First, dissolve the yeast in a cup of warm water, under 11o degrees because that will kill the yeast and the bread won't rise. Set aside for a few minutes.

Your starter should be able to rise on it's own and bubbly.

In a large bowl, mix starter and tomato juice. V8 is great, it's just too expensive here, so I go for the cheap stuff. Then add salt, sugar, and yeast mixture and stir well making sure to get out the lumps.

Now is the point when you can add whatever into the batter that you would like to. I added garlic powder and LOTS of basil. The basil really makes it so don't skimp! I would have added some chopped up sundried tomatos, but I didn't have any. Next time.

Start adding 1 cup of flour at a time slowly stirring it into the mixture. Mix well to develop the gluten. When the dough is firm enough, turn out onto a floured surface to knead the dough into a smooth and elastic dough, being sure to knead out all the lumps and adding in the last bits of flour as you go. This is half way there, at about 3.5 cups.

When you're done kneading the dough, put it into a lightly oiled, large bowl and set it in a draft free place to rise for at least an hour. I usually set mine in the microwave. Remember it will double in size.

Push the dough back down and make sure to unstick the dough from the edges. Separate the dough into little loaves depending on the size you are wanting them for. Sometimes we make bread bowls for soup and of course these are smaller than the regular loaves. We typically make two larger loaves and three small loaves to share with neighbors and friends. Place on greased baking sheets with some room between them. Let them sit for an additional 30 minutes to rise again.

If you'd like to put anything on top, now is the time to do it. I found these great garlic flavored sesame seeds here. So, I add plenty of sesame seeds and some sea salt on top for some added flavor. You can also slit the top if your afraid of the crust breaking.

No need to preheat the oven, just put them in and turn your oven on at 350 for 30-45 minutes until they are golden brown on the bottom. It takes right at 35 minutes for mine to bake and I always make sure to take them out and check the bottoms just to make sure. If they bake into each other, it's no problem, just tear them apart.

For a softer crust, let cool under a clean dish towel and for a crispier crust, let them cool without. Here's how mine looked done!

As you can see, Josh was busy updating his blog while I was baking. :)

I hope you try this and enjoy it. It's really rewarding and just plain delicious! You'll never have to buy bread again! :)

Sometimes my life is like a scene out of a movie

2009-11-11T20:42:00.002-06:00

So, tragically, I had ALMOST forgot about this story until class yesterday. You see, we've been reading a book in my conversation class (figure that one out) and talking about the sayings we find along the way. Well a phrase came up that was like "to wish the earth would open and swallow you hole," with the meaning being that you're so embarrassed or ashamed that you wish you could just disappear. Then, my professor asked me to come up with a time that I had felt this way and like a God send from heaven, this story reappeared in my mind after being at the gates of complete erasure from my mind.

So, I looked up at Roxanna and said, in Spanish of course, "Well, I can't think of one that happened to me, but you just made me remember a story from Sunday." You see, Sunday afternoon Josh and I went to the movies and saw "Cloudy with the Chance of Meatballs." Being that it's so cheap here, we each got a soda as well. Well, by the last 30 minutes of the movie I had to go to the bathroom so bad that I shot up like a lightning bold and ran for the bathroom. By the time I made it to the bathroom there was already a line...my luck. It moved pretty quickly until there was just one girl in front of me that was maybe 20 years old. Well, an older lady that was probably in her late 60's or early 70's came out of a stall and had washed her hands when she asked to be let by to get some paper towels. As she did so, the lady in front of me noticed that she had some toilet paper sticking out of her pants that had a zipper closure in the back. She tried to do it discreetly, but because of the other lady's age, she had a hard time hearing so the lady had to continually repeat it. The worst part of the whole scenario is that the toilet paper had been used.

Number two.

With streaks of poo all down it, the elderly lady was embarrassed and tried to pull it out. Somehow she couldn't get it in just one pull. It was one of those things like the clown cloth that just kept coming and coming. I tried really hard not to watch, but how could I not! I made sure to keep my head down and hold back all snickers because as sure as I would let one slip, I would have burst out in laughter and I truly did feel back for the lady. Luckily, two stalls opened up within the next 30 seconds and I was out of the danger zone. I was in such shock over what had just happened, that I didn't even check for toilet paper before entering and locking the stall door. Luckily, there was plenty. I was in such a hurry to get out of there, that I actually pretty much forgot about it before I even got out of the bathroom to see Josh, patiently waiting outside for me.

So, I was so thrilled when the story was brought back to memory because I was never able to fully appreciate the joy of the Seinfeldesque scene that had been played out in front of me! I would definitely say that she probably wanted the earth to open up and swallow her whole at that moment. Roxanna says weird things happen around me all the time and I have to agree, I get to see some strange stuff but I really appreciate it and it makes me giggle.

I don't know about you, but I am so thankful when stories or dreams get pulled back to memory right before they are completely erased. It really annoys me when I wake up in the morning and think to myself, "Man, that was a terrific dream! It felt so real!" Then, 20 minutes later when I go to tell Josh about it, it's only left the annoyance of the feeling of being on the tip of my tongue, when in all actuality, I know it will never come back to me. However, when someone says something that brings a dream or story back, I instantly get transported back to the moment and enjoy it.

So, have you ever had a situation where you were SURE someone was about to pop out and say, "Surprise! You're on Candid Camera!"?

Ugh, it's official...

2009-11-10T21:41:00.002-06:00

So, Josh tried and tried to recover the images from my CF card, but in the end our pictures from Sarchi and from Halloween are lost forever. I've gotten over being mad, now I'm just sad. The worse part of it all, is that now my CF card won't work and we can't reformat it either. So now I'm stuck here without a CF card which means no camera use until we return to the states in December. I am SO bummed out. I don't think bummed is even the word for it.

So, needless to say, there will be no pictures uploaded here anytime soon. Sorry!

On the bright side, Josh's mom sent us a package with some of our favorite candies inside. I am anxiously awaiting that! I'm going to go read and try to forget about my camera woes.

A funny story is coming tomorrow. I forgot about it until conversation class this morning. I'm not in the mood to tell it yet, but it's coming. Fear not...

Slight heart attack

2009-11-09T22:08:00.002-06:00

I just came in to download some pictures and for whatever reason, Lightroom wouldn't import them. I check to make sure they were showing up on the card and they were. So, I tried again. Nothing. No problem. There's probably a glitch somewhere. I'll just restart the computer.

Wait, where'd the card reader go? Why can't I see the card reader?

Don't panic! Just take the card reader out, put the CF card in the camera and try to hook the camera up by USB cord.

WHAT!?! Why are my pictures not showing up on the camera either! What the heck!!!

Put the card BACK into the card reader. Maybe it'll work this time. No luck. Panic setting in...

Quick google check and can't find anything exactly like my issue. What is going ON!

Josh comes in at the angry sounds coming out of the office. "What's wrong?" I explain the situation to him and he takes the card and card reader to the PC to check if it will come up there. The PC recognizes the card. He downloads a photo restoration program and it is currently running.

Not that this would be the end of the world, but I have pictures from the last month on there and I'd be really bummed to lose them. Plus, the thought of losing the use of my camera for the next month before our next visit to the states is a total bummer.

List of upcoming events:

My 26th birthday
Panama trip
Thanksgiving
Graduation for some students

Here's to hoping that everything will be restored and the card can be reformatted and usable...

Thoughts and such

2009-11-09T19:58:00.002-06:00

Thanks for all the ideas and comments on Christmas traditions. I enjoyed hearing them and will probably be incorporating some of them! I found out today that apparently there is a 3 ft tree on sale for $10 at pequeño mundo. I haven't seen it yet, but we're hoping to get a few things to decorate the place and do some baking to share with other missionaries and the professors.

Today in class we started talking about our best and worst Christmases. I'm going to spare the drama of my worse Christmas, but after sharing it made me really miss my mom. We don't have cell phones, nor a phone that we can call the states here and she doesn't have very good internet, so I've only talked to her once since I've been here. We've been here for 2 and a half months. It's flown by but at the same time, it feels like I haven't talked to my mom or my family forever!

We sometimes have a strained relationship, but I love them, pray for them, and truly want them to be happy. I guess I don't really expect them to be thrilled for me to be here, but I wish they were more supportive. It's hard to see Josh talk to his parents on Skype all the time and receive packages from his parents and know that that isn't the case with my mom. It's hard imagining how the relationship will be once we have kids. His parents are happy to travel and come visit whereas my mom refuses to board a plane. This is something that I want to take from Josh's side of the family. They always support him and are there to advise him if he asks for it, but they don't tell him what to do and cut him off if he doesn't follow it.

UGH, I can't believe I just wrote such a depressing post so far. I've just been thinking and reflecting on this a lot lately. Moving on... Josh created his own blog with ramblings and thoughts that are drifting through his mind. You can check it out here.

I'm working really hard at blogging just about everyday and getting our blog out there. I'd really like to gain more readers and I'd love to hear from you. I love reading comments, so comment away and let me know what you are thinking!

I'm going to go edit some pictures. I keep saying I'm going to and haven't. Hopefully, I'll have some pictures for you all tomorrow!

Diary Entry

2009-11-08T21:08:00.002-06:00

Recently in my conversation class, we started reading a popular children's book called "Pantalones Cortos," or "Shorts." It's all about a little boy who gets a diary for his birthday and starts to write diary entries of the days events. It's cute and it helps us to learn some sayings and phrases in Spanish and of course helps our reading comprehension.

Well, Roxana asked us to write a diary entry for homework and I thought I would share it here. For those that don't understand Spanish, it's just about my day today, nothing super important, but thought some might want to read it.

08/11/09

Hoy me levanté a las 9 con un dolor de cabeza tan grande. Comí cereal, como todas las mañanas, y revisé mi correo. Empecé a pensar en las tradiciones de la Navidad. Siempre teníamos un arbol de la Navidad. Comprábamos todos los regalos la mañana del "Día Negro." Decorábamos toda la casa. Aunque todavía no es la temporada navideña en los estados, ya es aquí. Y me di cuenta de que ya me hacen falta aun las cosas tontas como los vasos rojos de Starbucks, los sueteres, y lattes de pumpkin.

Así que decidí que quiero empezar una tradición nueva. No sé que todavía. Escribí un blog para pedir ideas de familia y amigos. Estoy esperando sus respuestas.

Durante todo este tiempo, Josh cocinaba el almuerzo. Cocinó pollo, arroz, y vainicas. Después de comer, chateé con mi suegra y ella me dijo que me mandó un paquete con mi dulce favorito del otoño, se llama candy corn.

Estabamos tan aburridos y todavía yo tenía el dolor de cabeza, así que decidimos a ir al cine y ver la película "Lluvia de Hamburguesas" en 3D. Esta fue la primera película que Josh vio totalmente en español. ¡Yo estaba tan orgullosa de él! Después, caminábamos por el mall antes de salir.

Regresamos para nuestra rutina de todos los domingos. Siempre miramos los programas de "Amazing Race" e "Iron Chef."

Creo que voy a leer algunos capítulos de "Almanecer" antes de dormirme porque no tuve ganas de leer anoche.

Hasta la vista...

Christmas Traditions

2009-11-08T13:22:00.003-06:00

I know, you're probably thinking, "Christmas? It's not even Thanksgiving yet!" But being in Costa Rica, we don't celebrate all the holidays that we do back in the states. Halloween came and went and no one seemed to notice. Thanksgiving is a holiday for us in the states and not celebrated down here. Now don't get me wrong, we'll have the day off from school but we have to meet up with the other missionaries for a lunch or dinner thing.

I love the holiday season and it's kind of sad that we don't get to experience most of the fun holiday stuff that we think of when we think Christmas. No pumpkin lattes, no red cups from starbucks, no snow, no sweaters, no real christmas trees. It's a little sad. Most of the stores are already decorated for Christmas and have been since August. By decorated, I mean have a little wreath runner and maybe some red bows. Lights, as of yet, haven't really been seen and artificial Christmas trees and decorations are triple the price they are back in the states. Needless to say, we won't have a Christmas tree this holiday season. We won't have any decorations, or lights, and we won't be wrapping presents.

I'm hoping to start some new holiday traditions this year to help us start feeling in the Christmas mood and spirit of the season. Maybe bake some treats. I'm not sure, but I'm hoping that it cools down a little here so we can enjoy some hot chocolate and holiday movies!

Do you have any Christmas or holiday traditions that you've always done? How long have they been part of your family? Any ideas for some new traditions we can incorporate into our holidays?

Feeling Lonely

2009-11-07T17:02:00.002-06:00

Today, after going to the feria like we always do, I realized how bored I've been come with the exact routine we do every week here in Costa Rica. Monday through Friday we go to school all morning and work on homework and errands in the afternoons. Friday we always meet up with our Tico friend, Eduardo. Saturday morning we always go to the feria, then pricemart, then automercado and are so worn out by the end of it we just clean up the fresh fruits and veggies and relax. Sunday morning is church, then we have lunch, then usually a movie or something and possibly some homework. Sunday night we watch Amazing Race and Iron Chef then go to bed. It's become so routine and so common that it is downright boring. I had a minor meltdown and got really upset until finally Aminadab called and invited us over for lunch.

Amina is a friend of ours that also lives here along with his wife and daughter. He's mexican but is from Texas. They're here because of his wife's job. They're great people and make some killer food! :) We had a good time over there and talked about some of the things we miss from the states, how hard it is living away from friends and family, and a constant feeling of not belonging. It was a well needed break from the boredom and monotonous life we sometimes lead here in Costa.

Last night were were trying to find ABC's new show "V" on but I guess we missed the premiere. Sad. Hopefully they'll reshow it sometime soon!

A Vat of Wine

2009-11-05T15:01:00.000-06:00

We start the day with chapel almost every school day and today was no different. However, Don Cartledge had not been expecting to have to speak because we were supposed to have a speaker scheduled. I guess she had called and rescheduled for tomorrow, but he started looking through his Bible and you could tell he wasn't as prepared as he normally liked.

He got up and explained the situation then began to talk about a new book he's reading. I forgot the title but it's something about servitude and sounded like an interesting read. He shared some quotes, then started talking about how the semester is coming to an end and how soon we won't be the newbees anymore. There will be new students in January and we will be considered the veterns, to which I quickly turned to another couple that's been here since January of this year and will be here until April and asked, "What's that make you?" Tia Maria, as Katie affectionately coined her, replied, "Ancient." She makes me laugh.

Anyhow, Don continued and said that one time while he was in Italy, I believe, he saw these huge vats of wine. The guy he was with said that if you drop even one drop of vinegar in the entire vat of wine it would change the entire composition of the entire vat into vinegar. One drop would make the entire difference. Then he said that we make the atmosphere. If there is even one person who starts the negativity then the whole group follows suite and it ruins the whole experience. It was interesting because I have noticed that we have had such a great group and have all pretty much had good attitudes. This may be because we're such a small group of only 16, but still it's great. He said that we're probably going to double in size. I'm really excited about that, but at the same time, the shoe is going to be stretched. Right now it's really comfortable. I can't wait to see who God is bringing into our group though. It'll be awesome!

Pretzels

2009-11-02T18:56:00.000-06:00

So, I made some soft pretzels for us to enjoy tonight and they turned out great. This is now the second time I have made them and you just can't go wrong! I thought I would post the link for the recipe here. If you make them, let me know how you like them!

Michael Jackson

2009-11-01T19:47:00.000-06:00

"This is it" came out last Tuesday for the two week showing at all the theaters here in San Jose. Although I wasn't a super fan, I really wanted to see this just to see what he was like when he was just doing his thing. Plus, he was a terrific entertainer and I loved his songs. I was looking forward to seeing him dance and all.

Well, since our friends are here, we thought we would spend this afternoon out at the theater. We saw it and, being children of the 80's, all just LOVED it! I could watch it a few more times. The songs have been stuck in my head all evening and it just left me wishing for more.

Oh, MJ, you were very messed up mentally, but look at your past. You revolutionized the music industry and I will always love Thriller.

If you even remotely enjoyed his songs, you will enjoy this movie. I suggest you go see it on the big screen while you can!

Halloween Schmaloween

2009-10-31T21:35:00.000-06:00

So, Hiedi, Preston, and their little dog, Cusco, all arrived safely just BEFORE midnight last night. Praise the Lord! We got them settled and then passed out. Today I woke up and got onto facebook and saw about 1,000,000,001 status updates about Halloween and realized, "Oh, yeah. Today's Halloween!" Haha. Although you can buy pumpkins, costumes, and huge bags of candy here. Halloween isn't their custom or tradition, so it's just not celebrated (with the exception of some bars and night clubs). We took Heidi and Preston to the feria with us, then to Pricemart (which is like a Sam's Club), and then drug them to Automercado to finish out the morning of shopping. We did stop in the middle for some sushi at one of our favorite sushi places. It was delish!

Needless to say, after a morning of shopping, we took a couple hours to clean up the fruits and veggies and relax a little before heading downtown. We wanted to show them how to get down there so they can go explore Monday morning if they want. We took them to our favorite coffee shop and they bought a total of 4 pounds of some of the best coffee and some chocolate covered coffee beans for just under $20. You can't beat that!

Anyhow, it was a good day and they seem to be happy just wandering around doing errands with us! :)

Visitors

2009-10-30T22:13:00.000-06:00

So, we just found out a couple days ago that Heidi and Preston, two friends from a supporting church, will coming to stay with us tonight. They have been down in Pavones in southern Costa Rica almost to the border of Panama working as missionaries. They've been working up in the mountains with the indigenous tribes and also along the beach. They wrote me an email earlier today and told me the bus they were planning to take at noon was cancelled for whatever reason and they wouldn't be leaving until about 4:30 which means they won't be getting in until at least midnight if not before. I'm excited to see them again and hear all about what's been going on down south. I'm also excited to show them around and enjoy some time with people from home. It's weird to say from home when I don't really feel like that is home anymore. I mean, it's where I grew up, but it doesn't feel the same anymore.

Anyways, I digress. I'm super tired from this week of missiology classes but I can't let Josh stay up by himself. He's pretty tired too. I'm going to go lay down and read some more of "Breaking Dawn," the last book of the Twilight series. I'm sucked in and finally found the last book here in English for $20. I couldn't not get it!

Lord, help Heidi and Preston arrive earlier than later!

October 2009 Update

2009-10-30T20:51:00.000-06:00

October 2009 Update

Katie Carter

2009-10-28T16:25:00.001-06:00

I love blogs. I love reading them and vicariously living through others. I like to update my own, but I'm not the greatest writer. I love, Love, LOVE photo blogs. So, through this love of blogs, I started sharing some of the things I had read with a fellow missionary and friend, Katie Carter. She was interested in blogs and hadn't had much experience so she started reading one with me and decided that maybe she would create one. She came in yesterday to school and told me she created her own blog and I am excited to have helped get her excited about blogging. She'll be working with Josh and I in El Salvador. She's planning on working with Master's Commission. She's also really funny so I can't wait to see what kind of things she puts up on her blog! Please hop over and read about her experiences here in CINCEL at Katie's Call.

Missiology

2009-10-26T17:21:00.002-06:00

We started our week of missiology classes from AGTS today. We sit in class all morning long and have two hours of spanish in the afternoons. DeLonn Rance is teaching our class. It's been pretty interesting. The most interesting aspect today was when we talked about the new phenomenon occuring in the states right now of Christian vs. Christ Follower. If you're interested in it, look up the Mac vs. PC parody videos on youtube of Christian vs. Christ Follower. They are pretty funny and show what the new wave of change is all about.

Although I lean more toward the Christ Follower way of life, I still call myself a Christian. In all honesty, isn't that what Christian means anyhow...follower of Christ? I could care less if a person dresses up for service or if they have service Saturday evening or Sunday night. I could care less if they have bumper stickers on their car nor if they only listen to Christian music. What really matters to me is if they are following what the Holy Spirit is speaking to them, if they have a relationship with Christ and if they are trying to develop relationships and share the love and word of God. THAT is what is important in my eyes. Non of us are perfect and we need to live our lives the best we can, however it's important for people to see us as real people and not perfect robots that live by a book of rules.

Anyhow, not to get on a soapbox but I laughed because with my background and my age, I am more liberal than possibly some of the other missionaries around and I could tell that this movement bothered some other people. It's just the way I feel and think and have never had any convictions about these issues.

I'm hoping to learn a lot more. Josh is absolutely LOVING this class and is now bugging me about getting his doctorate. He is an education nut and really loves learning, especially about apologetics, culture, missions, and theology. However, at this time we just simply cannot afford it and we're still trying to pay off some of our debt. I told him once that was gone, we'd think about it. He's pretty excited though! :)

Anyhow, I'm going to enjoy having a few days without homework. Hopefully I'll be updating some more throughout the week.

Youtube, my old friend

2009-10-15T21:03:00.000-06:00

Back in the early years of college I spent several hours searching funny youtube videos and would randomly send them to friends. It was like a mini contest of who could find the funniest videos and of course we found the classics of "Chocolate Rain," "Britney Spears Stoned," "Charlie bit me," and "Blooduh." However, for several years now I just have not had the time nor the need to spend time on youtube. Yes, I enjoy the occasional funny video posted on facebook but just haven't gone to search anything.

Well, after seeing several hysterical videos on Facebook, I decided I had to find some of them on Youtube and post'em! They're THAT good!

For all you mothers, fathers, and anyone THINKING of having kids:

Then there is the baby with ice cream:

Hope you enjoyed them as much as I did!

Columbus Day

2009-10-12T18:22:00.002-06:00

Today was Columbus Day which is known as "El Dia de la Raza," Day of races, or "El Dia de las culturas," the Day of cultures. This is because it's known as the day that the Spanish arrived in the Americas and started to dominate the indigenous people. It's not necessarily viewed in the most positive light. They came over and conquered by the sword and dominated with fear. So, to try to put it in a positive light, they call it either the day of races or the day of cultures because black and european races were introduced during this time.

It's not celebrated here with any dances, festivals, or parades, but it is a national holiday that most all people have off of work and out of school. So, after 25 years of life, I'm getting a day off for Columbus Day. Interesting...

Anyhow, Saturday Josh and I ran our usual errands. We went to the feria, or farmer's market, and Dave and Terri Lee, some Missionary Associates here, told us they were going to take a day trip to Sarchi today and invited us along. Sarchi is a local craft and furniture hotspot that is known for the oxen carts that they used to use to transport rice and coffee before cars where around. So we, along with the Lees, Debbie, a professor from our school and her husband all went off to Sarchi to check out the local crafts and visit the factory where they still make the carts. I took several pictures but just haven't uploaded and edited them yet. They will come...eventually.

I had a headache almost all day so I am going to go lay down and patiently await my appointment with the chiropractor tomorrow which will hopefully help my neck and make me feel a little better!

A little bit of stress...

2009-10-07T20:09:00.003-06:00

So we get to have a three day weekend this weekend! The only one we get all semester and we were thinking about going to the beach or even to a local hotel and just spend some time away together. However, we just got our statement and disbursement for this next month and we're over $600 short. We've been told that this happens from time to time from other missionaries. We aren't freaking out but we are having to pull a little out of savings to cover this month and hoping it gets made up for next month. This is the whole "living by faith" thing getting lived out I guess! :)

So, this weekend we'll be staying around here. Most of the other missionaries are going to the beach so we'll have a nice quiet weekend around here which should be nice as well. I'm not planning on doing a whole lot of anything except for reading. The rain has finally started picking up some. Everyone has been warning us for MONTHS about the rainy season here in Costa Rica and that it's unending. However, since we've been here there hasn't been much rain. This week it's started picking up though and it gets really chilly when it rains around here and the rain itself is cold. This makes for PERFECT weather for curling up with a good book though!

Looking forward to this weekend and an extra day of relaxation. What are you doing this weekend?

Universidad Para La Paz - Photos

2009-10-05T16:10:00.011-06:00

Yesterday after church we went with our Tico friend, Eduardo, to the park at Universidad Para La Paz, or the University for Peace, which is an international university that studies peace. It's sponsored by the United Nations and students from all over the world come to study about peace, history, and methods. Classes are given in English and Spanish and it's appropriately placed up in some of the most beautiful country of the mountains of Costa Rica.

Costa Rica is known for its peace. It has a long history of peace loving people. Back when all of Central America was part of Spain's ruling, those that didn't want to fight and just wanted to farm and live in peace migrated down to the land that is now Costa Rica. You see there were no natives that lived in this area and the Spaniards weren't interested in it because it didn't have any richest that were of interest to them. So, the people that came to live here basically had no government to rule over them and had no interest in fighting. After the independence, they took 2 years to finally set up a constitution! No one wanted to take control. How interesting...

Anyhow, they have now been without an army for around 50 years. I think it was in the late 40's or early 50's when they decided not to have an army and have been living in peace for several decades now. Most people around here don't even really understand the concept of war. I actually think it's only a matter of time before the Nicaraguans try to take them over as almost have the population is already Nicaraguan, but for now it's a beautiful idea.

Anyhow, we went up to the park and ended up taking one of the longest hikes I've ever taken. They have great trails with beautiful views and tons of natural beauty.

Centipede

Monument

Nothing says peace like a dove in your hands!

Beautiful butterfly

I love the underside of this one's wings.

Josh with Eduardo

Tree tops

Creek

There were a TON of butterflies

And spiders...

You can actually see the web coming out of this one...gross.

The view of Santa Ana

Moss

Hey mister...you gotta sister?

Beautiful bokeh

Coolest ant hill ever...period.

Eduardo holding the turtle

From the top

Apparently this is some sort of plant fungus thing?

Ah, yes. Best find of the day goes to Josh. 'Nuff said.

It was really dark in the middle of the trail. Sorry for the flash.

Such cool ants!

Vines

Daddy longlegs

Light at the end of the tunnel

Dormilona, or Sleeping Beauty, because when you touch it, it closes up

September 2009 Update

2009-09-30T20:48:00.000-06:00

September 2009 Update

Tortuguero - Photos

2009-09-28T14:07:00.013-06:00

This last weekend we went to Tortuguero on the Northeast coast of Costa Rica to see sea turtle nesting season. That didn't happen. Instead, we walked for 4 hours up and down the coast in the pitch black of night and got a work out, but we still had a great trip. We learned and laughed a LOT! Here's a photo story of our weekend:

First, we went to the DelMonte banana factory.

The lady in the blue shirt isn't really a lady...

These are going to the local markets to get sold. Most of the rest go to the U.S.

Getting cut off the branch and into bunches and thrown into water to rinse them off.

We stopped on the side of the road to take a picture of the beautiful tree canopy over the road to Tortuguero.

Some of the most gorgeous flowers Costa Rica has to offer are found near the coast. I think we stayed at the Garden of Eden it was so pretty!

They even had a frog house. And yes, these frogs are very poisonous!

Cocoa pods where cocoa and chocolate come from. However, you can also crack one of these babies open and eat the white fuzzy fruit that covers the seeds and it's pretty sweet and delicious.

The table setting...

Oh yes, and the food was pretty amazing!

Birds ate next to us

It's ginger, just like most every other kind of plant is related to ginger here in Costa Rica.

Humming bird next with some of the cutest little eggs ever...

And an angry momma

Giant dragonfly...not that you can tell, but take my word for it.

Awesome plants next to the pond

Dawn on the boat ride

Jose Antonio, Roxana's husband and tour guide extraordinaire

My conversation professor, Roxana, and her son, Jose Andres

Pretty flowers on the island

And the rastifari man

Roxana's the first one into the water

Dawn buries Gabriel

Up to his neck

Everyone wants a water buffalo, mine his fast and yours is slow...

3 foot long iguana, I'm not kidding

Snow crane

Pink spoonbill

They call them horsetails, I'll go with it...

The trees where gorgeous

Seriously...

The foot long killer

Howler monkey...male obviously

Caiman

Living alongside the banks

I just like this one

Water droplets

Look at that reflection

Flowers on the river

And then it poured...

I was sad I didn't see a sloth, but luckily Jose Antonio spotted this guy in the tree about 40 feet up on the way back home. So we got out and took pictures of him.

I think he liked it

A lot, because he modeled!

Thank goodness for a good telephoto lens!

Independence Day! - Photos

2009-09-15T23:49:00.002-06:00

Today is Independence Day here in Costa Rica and throughout Central America. All of Central America celebrates the same day because they were considered one territory all together for Spain. In 1821, Central America gained it's independence from Spain but Costa Rica didn't actually get the news until late October of that same year. You see, the news was spread from the North to the South by a guy that ran with a torch proclaiming their liberty from Spain.

So every September 15th, the schools are in charge of putting on festivals and teaching the next generation the history of their independence. The communities gather at the local schools to go celebrate. Luckily, we live right behind a large church that also has a pretty good sized school with it.

Beautiful flowers on the walk over to the school around 5:30.

The students where all dressed up and really excited about the celebration.

Our friend who works at CINCEL, Rudy, with his niece.

The hostess of the evening passing out programs. Festivities started at 6 p.m. with the national anthem as it is always played at 6 on September 15th.

Dawn, my classmate and our neighbor, holding up a "farol," or lantern.

All the students performed dances according to their age groups.

Even some of the youngest ones danced. They were too cute!

As tradition holds, the torch was run in as it had been back in 1821. Now it's run from Cartago at 6 p.m. to all the different cities and is taken from one school to the next throughout the evening.

The older students have more complex dances.

It was so interesting to see the dances that are so deeply rooted in culture.

Then there is the tradition of the faroles, or lanterns. The little kids have a parade of lanterns and they are judged and winners are given prizes. The lanterns are traditionally made with the families, however nowadays you can buy them in the stores or on the street.

The parents walked with some of the smaller ones as there are lit candles inside each of the lanterns.

A local band made it's way over towards the end of the celebration and they were terrific!

Talented young men...

As the band played, the "masqueradas," or masks, came out. They are actually about 12 feet high and have large heads on the top of them. They spin and twirl and the arms fly about. The older kids LOVE this, but the younger ones are afraid of them because of their size and because traditionally they carry small twigs which they swat the kids legs with. There are also some children running around with masks on. The masks and masqueradas vary from presidents and policemen to devils.

We finally went home around 9 and they were still playing music and dancing around but we were STARVING. Hope you enjoyed some of the photos of what we experienced tonight!

Out And About Downtown - Photos

2009-09-14T17:30:00.001-06:00

Today we were given the afternoon off after a morning of Independence Day celebrations. Dick and Cynthia Nicholson came in today to celebrate with us and see our presentations. Dawn and I had to talk about faroles which are lanterns. We decided to do a skit of a teacher (me) and a helpful student (Dawncita) telling the history of faroles. It was really funny and everyone seemed to really enjoy it!

So, this afternoon several of us decided to go downtown. Luckily, Dawn likes photography too so we went to the main plaza in downtown San Jose where there are a TON of pigeons. The first week here, Rudy (a tico friend from the school) took us downtown and showed us around. He told us that just about EVERY Tico has at least one picture of themselves as a child coming to this plaza and feeding the pigeons. So, we wanted some pictures of this somewhat cultural event. :)

Clowns make balloon animals for the children

Josh went with some of the guys for a cup of coffee.

Then we all went to a "tostador," a coffee roaster. They will roast and grind the coffee right there and it's SO cheap and super delicious!

David Turner, a fellow missionary to Honduras

Josh loves the coffee

Labor Day? Not in Costa Rica!

2009-09-08T21:50:00.002-06:00

So on facebook I kept seeing messages about three day weekends starting on Friday and I thought maybe just a few people had asked for the day off or something. Then I realized that it was Labor Day yesterday (after several more facebook status updates from friends)! Seriously, is this what my memory has come to? Facebook?

That reminds me of when Michael Jackson died this summer. In El Salvador, we didn't have constant access to internet and we didn't have an access to television. So, after several days of not being online, I checked my email and then facebook and I had seen that Michael Jackson died and there were a million status updates about it. When, out of shock, I commented on one of them to find out what happened, I got the reply, "He died 3 days ago. What rock are you living under? It's been all over the news." I realized that I was seriously disconnected from the US culture and from society.

That's not always a bad thing. Sometimes we need to get away from the hustle and bustle of life to give God the chance to really speak to us, to show us things about His character as well as things about ourselves.

However, back to the story. That was the moment that I realized the importance of the role facebook would be playing in my life for the next few years. It's kinda funny.

So, yesterday and today I have been jealously reading about everyone's Labor Day and how great it is to have a 4 day week...blah, blah, blah. When my in-laws asked how our Labor Day was, I just laughed and gently reminded that Labor Day is only a holiday celebrated in the states.

However, we do have a holiday coming up next week. It's Independence Day for all of Central America. September 15th is the day that they won their independence from Spain. So, in celebration, we won't have any classes (as the professors have the day off) and Dick and Cynthia Nicholson will be here to share with us for a few hours in the morning and the whole student body (there's about 13 of us plus children) will be going with them to lunch.

Overall, schools been awesome! It's interesting being out of school for a while and then trying to get back into the routine of going to classes and having homework again. But, it's definitely a welcome change and we're really enjoying it.

Josh has classes in Grammar 1, Phonetics, and Conversation 1. I have classes in Conversation 3 and Grammar 3. Then, we both have an interaction class which really isn't a class at all. It's more of a weekly assignment to go out and speak to several Costa Ricans (here they call themselves Ticos) and have conversations with them. It's purpose is two-fold, to use the Spanish we've learned and also to learn about the culture. We just started yesterday and I'm really excited to go out and meet some new people and hopefully make a few friends. Josh is a little nervous but he'll do great. Say a quick prayer for courage if you think about it.

I've already had two presentations in my conversation class and got an A on both of them. I took a quiz last week and got an A and I took another one today which I'm pretty sure went well. Josh has had two quizzes and received an A on both of them. So, God is with us, helping us, and we're doing great!

We took video of the feria, or farmer's market, on Saturday and will hopefully have it up soon. Until then, God bless!

Costa Rica....B-E-A-U-tiful

2009-09-07T10:10:00.002-06:00

Well, we've officially been in Costa Rica 2 weeks on Wednesday. This is an absolutely beautiful country. The city of San Jose is in the middle of numerous mountains and is a wonderful city. The people here are friendly and willing to talk to just about anyone, which makes it a lot of fun living in this culture. We had a great trip here and it feels good to finally unpack all the bags and put things into dressers, especially after living out of a suitcase for 3 months!

We are getting ourselves settled still and learning about the area and the people. The climate is awesome right now, as it is the rainy season. It can get a little cool in the evenings (down to the 60s) and during the days I think the hottest it has been is 85 or so, but it hasn't really been hot, which is quite a nice change from El Salvador. This is a very different culture from El Salvador even though we are only 2 countries away from there. For one, it is completely safe for gringos (that would be anyone white) to walk around on the streets without fear. Yes there is still crime and people get mugged, but the danger is so much less than that of El Salvador. In El Salvador we can't walk on the streets in the city safely, can't go to the markets, can't ride the bus or any public transportation. Here, we can walk or ride and can go to the downtown area or open markets without much fear. I must admit that I love that about this culture.

We have had the opportunity to experience the open market or feria, which is essentially like a farmer's market. We loved going in Orlando and it is even better here. The prices are mostly pretty cheap in comparison, with the exception of some of the foods we typically get in the states. You make trade-offs in prices, but overall it's not too bad. We love going downtown and walking around or just exploring in general. We have gotten lost a couple times and had some unique experiences, but overall we love being here.

Things we miss the most:

1. Cell phones - Can't get them without residency and it makes it hard at times

2. Car - while it is nice exercise to walk everywhere, sometimes you just don't want to

3. ESPN - this is more for me than for Lisa...it is football season after all

I'm sure there are other things, but for right now everything seems pretty good. I'm going to try and make this a regular habit just to give everyone insight in the life of a language school student in Costa Rica. I'll talk more about CINCEL and classes later. Blessings!

Feria - Video

2009-09-05T18:00:00.001-06:00

Here's us at the Feria, an open-air market...kinda like the farmer's markets we have in the States. We come here just about every Saturday morning for all our fruits, vegetables, cheese, and meats. Nothing beats fresh from the farm!

Our House - San Jose, Costa Rica - Video

2009-09-05T16:57:00.001-06:00

Here's a quick tour of our house here in Costa Rica.

July Update

2009-07-31T19:02:00.003-06:00

July 2009 Update

Faces thus far.... - Photos

2009-07-18T14:41:00.008-06:00

I just thought I'd take a moment to upload some pictures of some of the faces we've seen so far. Please pray for the lives and families of these children.

Southbridge, MN Training Day - Video

2009-06-27T16:17:00.000-06:00

So much for a free day... - Photo

2009-06-13T22:44:00.004-06:00

Well, let's just say that if this is how free days will be...I don't want any more! Lisa and I were supposed to have a day of freedom, time to ourselves before things get incredibly busy, but so much for that idea. We had a youth event this morning with Jacob and the youth at the Central Church. We had to get some stuff from the camp and take it to the city for the event. Afterwards, we had the night and the next day free. We borrowed Kristal's truck so that we could not only carry the stuff to the youth event, but also so that we would have a car in order to stay in San Salvador. We were going to get a hotel room to get away from the camp for a night, planned on going out to eat somewhere nice and maybe catch a movie. Well, you see what happened was...

We loaded the stuff for the event by backing into the area by the sewing room. I didn't realize that a lot of the area of the camp is set on terraced landings because the camp is built on the slope of the volcano crater. So, I backed in by the door and started to pull out and turn so that we could leave. Lisa thought I knew about said landings and I pulled out and suddenly we came to a halt. Not so much a screeching halt, but more a sudden "THUMP" of a halt, as the front end of the truck left the landing and rested on the cement wall ON THE FRONT AXLE! Neither front tire was touching and the back tires were spinning without getting grip. Meanwhile, everyone else had already left the camp for the event (and my pride was thankful no one saw my blunder) and so we had to get the guard. God managed to look on us with favor, probably as He laughed at my idiocy, and John Strean happened to be on site. John is the resident mechanic MA for Castle. He came down and after an hour's worth of sweating, moving wood to make a ramp, and raising the front of the car with a jack we finally got the car off the landing without any damage and Lisa and I were off to start our day.

The youth event went off without a hitch and at lunch we took off into the city for our time away. Well, neither of us had driven much in El Salvador and all we had was a map to guide us through the confusing streets of San Salvador. After an hour of roaming through the side streets of San Salvador we managed to find the hotel, grabbed some food, and checked into our air conditioned haven away from the madness. Lisa laid down to rest and I worked some on the computer. At about 5 pm I started getting antsy because I wanted to go out and do something so I woke her up. We planned on going to eat at Benihana's, which is far cheaper here than in the States, and so she started to wake up as I went in the bathroom to get ready.

As I entered the bathroom I noticed that the air was hotter in there than in the room and that was because there was a window open over the bathtub. So, not wanting to air condition all of the city I decided to close the window. Life lesson #3784: When staying in a hotel and something doesn't work, get a staff person to fix it...NOT YOU! As you can guess, the window wouldn't close so I pulled on it with both hands and it slammed down...trapping my middle finger between the window and the window sill. The window bounced off my finger and back open (all of my grunting in vain). I shook my hand and looked thinking that I had merely smashed it. In horror I saw my finger cut from side to side at the top knuckle and because it was bent my first thought was, "I just cut the tip of my finger off!"

Meanwhile, Lisa only heard "THUD" and "Dang it" from the bathroom, which is a common sound in our house. I often hit my head on things so a "THUD" and a "Dang it" isn't a new thing. I said I had cut myself and she asked if I needed to get stitches. Face drained of color I exited the bathroom and Lisa came over to see my mangled finger. As I opened my left hand, which to this point was holding my finger, she saw the blood everywhere and being squimish immediately went for the keys to drive. I grabbed the nearest thing I could find to stop the bleeding, a dirty sock. We call Faith and Bro. Don to get directions and they leave to meet us at the hospital. Lisa got her first driving lesson in El Salvador with me holding my bleeding finger in a dirty sock with ice and talking on the phone to get directions. Oh yeah, did I mention that Kristal's brakes are more sensitive than a bi-polar teenager during puberty? Look at the brakes and they freeze up! So, we take off to the hospital, driving and halting through the streets. Thankfully, our hour long trip through the city showed us many of the side streets and the hospital was easy to find. Faith and Bro. Don meet us at the hospital and we go inside.

Lisa waits outside the treatment area and Bro. Don came in to translate for me. As Lisa is filling out the paperwork she hears the nurse ask, "Dirty or clean?" Well, thinking she's asking about the wound she says it's dirty. Then the nurse asks if we want to keep it and she's like YES we want to keep his finger. Well, the nurse asked about my sock, which was dirty, and when she asked if I wanted to keep it I had a very logical reply. "Of course I do, you know how hard it is to find socks in my size here?" Well, Don translated that for me after he stopped laughing hysterically. Meanwhile, I took the bloody sock and stuffed it into my pocket. They stitched up my finger with 4 stitches, gave me antibiotic, a tetanus shot, and pain killers. They wrapped my finger up and sent us on our merry way. All this work in the ER cost us a whopping $179, about $9,821 less than it would in the US. They don't seem to have splints anywhere so I ate a popsicle and used the stick for a splint (how creative of me!) and we proceeded to go out to eat. We still had Benihana's, although it was quite fun eating with chopsticks with my middle finger sticking straight up.

Wow...what a free day! I think I'll pass on the next one.

First contact

2009-06-11T11:01:00.002-06:00

When I first watched the documentaries of the Salvadoran gangs I was moved with compassion and brokenness, desiring to change a culture. Recently, Lisa and I had our first encounter with the gangs of El Salvador. After a few days of intensive training and prayer with the 23 summer interns, we left for San Salvador for a week of ministry. On Monday, June 8, we were working David Gamez, pastor of Zone 1 in San Salvador, and we entered into MS-13 turf. We walked back into the heart of a neighborhood, walls marred by gang ensignia, and made our way to a small concrete court, occupied by some rough looking teenagers. Who knows what exactly their names are or what they have done, but the tatooed leader clearly stands out, cell phone hanging from a strap on his arm, cigarette smoking from his lips. Naun, the national assigned to work with the interns this summer, walks up to the leader and in a conversation too distant to understand obtains permission for us to use the court for our program. Let me say first that I'm amazed at how God works. Here we have hardened criminals who could just as easily shoot us as let us stay and somehow we have the respect and permission to share the Gospel. Not only could we stay, but they found power for us and allowed us to use one of the barrels they were using for chairs for our dramas. No power of darkness can withstand the piercing light of the Gospel!

As the lively music begins to pound from our speakers, children come out to see what this group of gringos is doing in their dangerous barrio. 35 gang members sit around the court, smoking, laughing, gambling, shades covering bloodshot eyes. Children come and play, and as the program begins they watch intently as we dance and sing, playing games and acting silly to draw their attention and make a connection with their young, innocent hearts. The program transitions from funny to serious, as Naun takes the mic and begins to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The group beings the ministry drama, "The Hammer", telling the story of a Roman soldier who nailed Christ to the cross, ending with the proclamation that we are responsible for His death, that our sins and transgressions are the nails that fastened the dying Messiah to the cross of atonement. Naun takes the mic and pours out his heart, admonishing the people that there are only two roads in life, the Way of Life and the Way of Death. As he speaks, anointed by the Holy Spirit of God, the gang members stop and watch intently. The Gospel was being planted in the cold, stony hearts of criminals, thieves, murderers, pimps, and addicts, as were many of us, and though they may not have responded by running to accept salvation like many of the children did, we know that the seed has been planted and as Isaiah 55 states, "As the rain and snow don't fall without saturating the earth, germinating seed and causing it to sprout, providing seed for the sower and food for the farmer, so the Word of God doesn't go out in vain, but ALWAYS accomplished the purpose and plan for which it was sent."

That same day we were able to minister in another area, on a similar concrete court that served as the dividing line between 18th St. and MS-13, the line of blood in the sand between life and death. This was a neighborhood so bad the cops patrolled regularly, especially with the appearance of North Americans; however, once again the Power of the Gospel prevailed. As we began playing music and games, a teenager approached Pastor David, apparently the leader of the gang in this area, and informed him that the gang wanted to come watch, but couldn't because of the presence of the cops. Even though they weren't present, they watched from windows and listened from their doors. Once again, the Gospel doesn't go out in vain, because it is "the POWER of God for the salvation of all who believe, first for the Jew and then for the Gentile (or gang member, murderer, addict, pimp, thief, accountant, student, teacher, banker, mechanic, etc.)"

The battle has begun...a battle that will end in victory, no matter what the enemy may throw our way!

Changing seasons...

2009-06-11T10:42:00.002-06:00

It's amazing how life changes without you really knowing it or understanding exactly what is happening at the moment. I've been involved in various kinds of ministries, at times being in leadership but mostly serving underneath someone else. Recently, I've noticed a change in life, as I've moved from stage of ministry leadership to another.

The last time I was in El Salvador was as an intern, serving under Gary and Karen Crump. That was a very influential time in my life, a summer of being mentored, trained, and taught the different avenues and means of ministry. When I lived in Glenwood Springs, serving as an associate pastor, I was able to try new things in ministry, but still was under Pastor Travis' leadership, continuing to be trained and mentored in ministry. When Lisa and I arrived here in El Salvador, I quite honestly did not know what to expect from the ministry we would be involved in. I've never really thought of myself as a great leader, or as a leader period for that matter. I've always served under or with someone else and taken directions. Well, this summer has signified a key change in the seasons of my life. While we are still under the direction of Don and Terri Triplett, we are at the same time in charge of an area of ministry directly, with a group of interns looking to us for spiritual leadership, mentoring, and teaching.

Jacob, Faith, Kristal, Lisa and I serve as the leadership team, overseeing the interns and AIM teams that are ministering throughout the country this summer. We just finished Intern boot camp and somewhere along the way in the past couple weeks, I've noticed that what I once was in ministry I am no longer. I suddenly realized one night in prayer that I view these interns as people I am helping mould, shape, and mentor. We have transitioned from mentoree to mentor. I told Lisa that I feel as though this is my own personal flock. Through times of prayer God has used me to speak into and over their lives, more than He has spoken into my life through someone else. I find myself sharing experiences and teaching them in the ways of ministry rather than being taught. All this happened without me knowing it! It's like I woke up one morning and suddenly I was someone different in ministry than I was just a few weeks ago. They look up to us for leadership and guidance, they come to us with their problems and concerns, when they are throwing up all night they knock on our door.

I count it a great privilege and honor to be awarded such a grand opportunity. It's even as thought the AIM teams that arrive look to us as the experts in Salvadoran culture and ministry. It's funny and humbling at the same time. We are missionaries...this is our life....my how time changes all things without you even noticing. I reminds me of the coming of fall. We don't notice the first changes of color in the leaves or the subtle cooling of the air, until one day we wake up and the world has gone from green to reds, yellows, oranges, and browns. We wake up one morning with a chill in the air instead of comforting warmth, and wonder how it changed so quickly, when all along the changes were happening under our noses without us noticing. So too God has subtly changed the colors of our life and the temperature of our climate as He moved us from stage to another, growing us and shaping us. I'm not saying that we aren't in need of continuing training and mentoring, but we have gone from continual learning to being the teacher and student at the same time. How amazing is our God!

Gangs, drunks, and witches

2009-06-08T23:07:00.000-06:00

Today we were working in Zone 1 with Pastor David. Today was a bit different as we worked in heavily ganged areas. In fact, the first place we went was a basketball court in the middle of a MS 13 controlled neighborhood. Naun, the national working with us, took extra precautions with the girls walking in the center and the guys surrounding us on the outside. When we arrived at the basketball court, gang members were all hanging out around the court, huddled in groups laughing and talking with the leader himself. Naun went up and asked the tattooed leader for permission to use the court to do a Castle program there. He said yes and even found us electricity to use.

Luckily, Castle has the respect of the gangs. They even let us use the barrel they had been using as a table in one of our skits. They played basketball and soccer with us and some brought their kids out to watch the program.

As the music started to blare through the neighborhood, children slowly started to come out and see what was happening. An obviously retarded teenager came out and I asked if he would like to play with us. He was so excited and said yes as he came running up. I asked his name. “Walter,” he replied. So I played with Walter until the start of the program. The gang members watched intently as we sang children songs and danced around all silly to carefully chosen songs that spoke about the love of God. We ended with a drama called “The Hammer” that said that each of us nailed Jesus to the cross through our sins and transgressions and we are all responsible for the death of God’s only son.

We asked all of those who wanted to accept Jesus as their only savior to come up and several kids rushed up, including Walter. My heart was overjoyed. Then I looked around because I always like to go up to the ones left behind to ask if I can pray for them for anything else. As I looked around, I saw over 30 gang members still sitting in their same spots. They didn’t budge. “Satan, I’m tired of the stronghold you have on them!” I thought to myself. Luckily, just as I was thinking that, I heard Naun start to preach and speak directly to those guys that were still sitting there. He spoke to them about how Jesus could heal their hurts, how they only had to ask and He would wash them clean. He spoke about how God was the Father to the fatherless. He decided to pray over the microphone for all those still sitting there and he said that anyone who wanted to accept Christ didn’t have to come forward if they were afraid of persecution. He also said they didn’t have to close their eyes. They only thing they needed to do was bow their heads, which several did. Only God knows how sincere they were, but I know that the Lord’s word does not come back in vain. I know seeds were planted and I pray that no matter how hard it may be, that those that were serious, would stand for God and that He would give them the strength change their lives and their family.

Later Naun told me that he told them they didn’t have to close their eyes because many times they don’t want to for fear of the opposite gang coming up while they are off their guard. He said they are always looking around and always on watch for police and gang members from the other side. What a sad life to live in fear when there is so much more to live for! Also, the woman that allowed us to use her electricity said she was a Christian, but she was also an alcoholic when Kristal, one of the other leaders, went to talk to her. Alcoholism is a huge problem because it’s the temporary solution to make people forget about their problems for a short while. What they don’t realize is that it creates so many more long lasting problems in the lives of their children and other family members. Also, many get addicted and are held in this stronghold for a lifetime as they know no other way to handle their problems.

We continued onto the second program where it was the dividing line for 18th Street Gang and MS 13. However, not many came out because the police were obviously present and stayed and watched the program. They said they wanted to come, but they couldn’t risk being seen by the police. Again, living in constant fear.

At the end of this program we had an intern start to vomit and she got seriously dehydrated so we went to get her some Gatorade and anti-nausea medicine. We did our last program after that and again were encountered with some strange happenings.

I took several girls to the bathroom and when I returned to the program to get caught up on what was going on, an older guy approached me and started to rub my arm while just saying “Cristo,” or Christ over and over again. As I looked at him, he had several earrings up his ears and a 4 inch long feather poking through the bottom of his ear. He was dressed in a half buttoned shirt and had a ton of necklaces on with skulls and other cultic stuff on them. He had a black cheap top hat on it with glitter and other decorations that looked like it was straight out of a Mardi Gras parade. I quickly moved away from him as I didn’t know what he was on or what he was capable of.

As a woman, you must always be on your guard, but even more so when you are on the streets of a foreign country. As I watched him, he started going around and touching people who walked by, including the heads of the babies that were being carried in their mother’s arms. I started to pray against the works of the enemy. No witch is going to send curses on little children while I’m watching.

While we started the program, our drunk witch danced and made all of the adults laugh at him. He included himself in our drama of “Querido Senor Jesus” or Dear Mr. Jesus. At the alter call, he came up and Josh and several other guys took him off to the side and he said he wanted to accept Jesus and he wanted to be prayed for about his alcoholism. He didn’t want to be a drunk anymore. They prayed for him and by the time he walked away, he looked much more sober and was more sound in mind. Praise God!

Continue to pray for the Walters that are unaccepted and surrounded by bad situations, the gang members who are hardened and feel there is no other way, and the alcoholics that find solace in liquor instead of Christ. He is the only one that can heal hearts, lead and guide, and comfort those that are in need.

Who said God can't use children

2009-06-07T20:00:00.000-06:00

Today we went to church and Brother Don introduced Josh and I and all the interns to the church. He spoke to them a little about my background and had me come up and greet the church while Josh was getting the music ready because we did Super Heroe in front of the church. It was lots of fun and several nationals came up to be and told me it was “Bien pelado,” or really cool.

Afterwards, we went back to the casona to eat lunch and wait for the bus to arrive. We only got to do one program but we picked up one of the Guardians of the Vision (the children that have gone through the discipleship program and are awesome children of God) to do a program right in front of his home. You see, the church is trying to promote Grupos Alphas (cell groups) and he was trying to start his for the other children of the neighborhood. It was really cool to do a program and be able to bring children to the Lord knowing that they will have a cell group and be discipled right in their own neighborhood.

The fact that an eleven year old child would be so willing and yearning to start his own cell group and want to pour into the lives of his peers around him is awesome to me. Children reaching children. Now that’s an idea!

I just thought that was really neat and I’m amazed by how God uses the willing whether they are 25, 50, or 11.

Relaxation...kind of

2009-06-06T22:59:00.000-06:00

Ah finally, a day to relax…kind of. Ha, we were able to catch up on some of our computer work today. We went up to the Strean’s house as they are the only ones at the camp that have electricity to do our laundry and upload some stuff on the internet. We had to get all of our laundry done because we are going to be staying at the casona for the next several days as we’ll be ministering in the zones of San Salvador.

After lunch we went to the young adult service that Jacob is pasturing right now. He had Dan speak since this will be his last Saturday here. Dan has been serving as an intern for the last four months and is an incredible servant. God has really used him as he has been working with our first year master’s commission group up in Potrerillos, just up the side of the mountain. He has formed great relationships with several of the families and children up there and has even formed a coffee group (bible study and devotion group) up there. He has also been a great addition to our intern team as we’ve been out ministering. He has done the ministry portion of many of our programs and he just has a great spirit about him that attracts children and adults alike.

Anyhow, he spoke about accountability partners and how important they are to the Christian walk. I think that we as human beings have a hard time keeping the promises that we make to God, so in order to not break more promises, we just don’t make them. In reality though, if we just asked for the help of an accountability partner, we would be able to form the good habits that we should be making. However, many times because of our own pride and arrogance, we don’t want to admit to anyone that we have weaknesses and we need help with certain areas of our lives. We all do though. We’re humans. We’re weak and we’re frail. The Bible says though that through our weaknesses, He is made strong. We need to remember that. Dan spoke an amazing message and I think it really touched a lot of hearts.

The amazing thing is that come to find out, that was Dan’s first time EVER preaching and it was in Spanish! Wow! God has a call on that young man’s life! I can’t wait to see what he does.

Well, we have a long day tomorrow with church and programs, so I’m getting to bed!

Last day of Intern Boot Camp

2009-06-05T22:35:00.000-06:00

Today was the last day of boot camp. Although I’m so excited to see the interns doing so well and jumping in and taking leadership of the ministry, it’s sad to see the boot camp week go. We worked in some of the same places as Wednesday as the schools are split. Some children go in the morning and others go in the afternoon. So we figured if the ones that came in the morning before, the afternoon crowd would be different and we could reach out to those children. We ministered in Los Planes and Santa Rosa.

Also, this afternoon we got to speak to the feeding program children again. I think there are some great relationships building there.

We ended up only doing 3 programs today because we had to take the interns to the mall in Santa Ana to get some cell phones to call back to their parents. However, in those programs, we ministered to 131 and saw 31 salvations. We also prayed for 19 for either healing or problems.
I’m so exhausted that I'm falling asleep! Goodnight!

Going two different ways today - Video

2009-06-05T22:32:00.002-06:00

Today there is much work to do so Josh and I are splitting up to make sure that all of our responsibilities are filled.

Intern Interview - Video

2009-06-04T18:21:00.006-06:00

I did a quick interview with one of our interns, Jason, who has been an intern here in El Salvador for 3 different summers. Check out what he has to say:

Go Colonels!

2009-06-04T18:21:00.001-06:00

Today we had our first team of the summer come in from Houma, Louisiana. As 5 of our interns and two of our leaders are from Louisiana, this was a big day! So, we lost a couple interns as they got there first team, but we still got to go out and minister again today.

We ended up going to the opposite side of the lake to Santa Monica and into the hillside of the mountain. We did 4 programs again today, with many of them being on a slant so, it was interesting. I got some great shots of kids today. It was a long drive for just being on the other side of the lake, but Lago de Coatepeque is HUGE!

We got to minister to 151 people and saw 48 salvations. We also prayed for healing or problems in the home for 14 people! What an awesome day!

Oh, then I get off the bus just to see Ruth Montes sitting in front of the kitchen. How I love that girl and always look forward to seeing her! She is a spectacular Christian woman and hysterical friend! After catching up, I came down for a cold shower. Now it’s off to dinner!

Hey City Kidz! - Video

2009-06-03T21:24:00.003-06:00

Hey Pastor Dan and City Kidz,

We just wanted to give you a quick update from the field about what's been going on here in El Salvador.

Feeding Program Ministry - Video

2009-06-03T18:25:00.002-06:00

Josh explains a little about how the interns were able to minister to the kids of the feeding program a little today.

Back on the streets of El Salvador again... - Video

2009-06-03T15:56:00.005-06:00

I can’t tell you how good it felt to be back out on the streets of El Salvador doing programs again today. This time I have Josh by my side which is even more awesome! He is so good with the kids and you can tell he gives his all every program, every song. He is the biggest (and I mean that quite literally) kid out there by far!

We went out with all the interns and two of the Missionary Kids (MKs) here and did programs around the lake with Pastor Julio. Somehow we managed to squeeze close to 30 full grown people into a tiny little bus. It was tight quarters, but let’s just chalk it up to some good team bonding!

We did 4 programs today in Los Planes, Aguas Calientes (next to the hot springs and the island) and in Santa Rosa. The first program had a ton of kids and several moms there. The program that we did in Aguas Calientes was in a new spot were castle doesn’t do many programs. We had to play and wait forever to get any kids to come. I think we had about 10 there by the end of the program. They are more wealthy on that side and it’s harder to get them to come to programs.
In all, we ministered to over 150 people today and at least 50 people got saved. We also prayed for healing or problems for at least 15 people. That’s not even including the ministry that we did at lunch. We came back for the feeding program and did the Bible classes that they give after the kids eat. We broke up into four groups and four different interns gave testimonies to God’s faithfulness and then played games and loved on them. It was really neat. Oh, and in case you’re wondering, Duck, Duck, Goose is a universal game! :)

Programs! - Video

2009-06-03T15:04:00.004-06:00

Josh explains how we gather children for a program and shows some of the games we play with them before the program begins.

Prayer is powerful

2009-06-02T21:01:00.000-06:00

Man, we just finished up with an awesome time at the prayer fortress. However, we started the day with devos and finishing up training the rest of the skits, then we finished talking about how to be an intern in the afternoon after lunch. I must admit though, Josh and I missed most of that because we had to go to Santa Ana to purchase a few things and Naun needed some jeans. However, we did get to help train the rest of the ministry dramas and wrap things up before prayer time tonight.

You see, every time we have a team come in, we make sure to take them up to the prayer fortress to anoint them and send them out before they go to minister. There is a building (that looks an awful lot like a castle surprisingly enough) that there is 24 hour intercession for the nations and has been for over 10 years now. We decided that since the interns will be going out to minister tomorrow we should take them up and pray for them.

Well, let me just say that I love how God works and uses us. We had a time of personal prayer and preparation, then we, as the leadership team, started to anoint and pray for the interns individually. Even after 4 days together, I don’t really know the interns well enough nor their background well enough to know what exactly to pray for them. So, I just started to pray in the spirit and all of a sudden, it’s like the Holy Spirit gave me the words to pray over them. I spoke some very specific words over people and I usually don’t do that. However, I felt like I should and even when I resisted at some times, the Holy Spirit continued to nudge me that I had to go and say that to that person.

Well, Jacob and Josh had been running around doing the same thing. Jacob took me with him to pray for any of the female interns as to be appropriate. As I heard him pray, he was saying some of the same things that I had been to them just moments earlier. I thought it was so cool how God had used two different people to speak the same thing into their lives. Soon, we had realized it was almost 10 and we had been up there since 7:30 so we wrapped things up. I don’t think any of us left the tower unfilled and unchanged.

It’s late now, but I’m still reflecting on the goodness and faithfulness of God.

Training the Interns - Video

2009-06-02T12:49:00.005-06:00

The interns are busy learning all the songs and dramas for the programs this week. This is a new one we just learned called, "Super Heroe" or "Super Hero" and it talks about how Jesus is our superhero. He's better than Spiderman, Superman or Batman!

Team building is a blast...

2009-06-01T15:58:00.000-06:00

Well, today was our first real day of boot camp. We started the day with devotions, like always. I spoke about the power of our words and encouraged the interns to keep a guard and a filter over their tongue. The Bible speaks very clearly about the power of life and death in one of the smallest organs in our body, yet the most powerful – the tongue. Then we did some training of some basic songs and went over how to be an intern in the morning.

After lunch, Oscar, Sulma, and Jairo came out to the camp to do some team building with us and we got to do some of the ropes course as well. That took all afternoon, but it was a great time!

I really feel like God’s been moulding and uniting this team of interns. They’ve been getting along great and they are so on fire for God. They’re so thirsty for the things of God. I can’t wait to see how God is going to use this group. I guess I don’t have long. We only have one more day of training and then we’ll be out ministering for the rest of the week with Pastor Julio in all the areas around the lake.

Mega Dia - Photos

2009-05-31T20:45:00.002-06:00

Today was Mega Dia, or Mega Day. This was something that was started by Castle in Nicaragua and it went so well that Brother Don decided to bring it to El Salvador. Today was also the first day of Intern Boot Camp. So, in the morning we had devotions and got to know each other a little then went outside to play ultimate Frisbee and baseball. It was great team building and we even got a funny story out of it as Ben, one of the interns, was so dedicated to his team during ultimate Frisbee that he ran straight into a barb wire fence that cut him up from head to toe. He even needed stitches. It wasn’t so funny at the time, but as with many of those things, with time they are.

We then helped with Mega Dia and used the drama we made up last night in the youth service as Jacob preached as he’s the pastor now. We got to pray for some of them and minister to them. Then we went and set up the gym for a basketball tournament and I got to meet Scott and Melissa. They, along with their two children, are Canadian missionaries here and will be hosting AIMs teams from Canada. Their children are adorable too!

Mega Dia was jam packed with tournaments, food, swimming, bounce houses for the kids, hundreds of kids from the church, an eating contest with pupusas and hotdogs, and even a water baptism at the lake! It was a HUGE day! After that, we followed it up with devotions. Big day, even bigger need for rest!

And the summer begins...

2009-05-30T21:43:00.000-06:00

Wow! We spent all morning and part of the afternoon at the airport picking up interns. The majority of them arrived today. 11 came in the morning and 9 came in this evening. Of all of them, only one lost his baggage and he’s been a total trooper about it. We have two more coming in tomorrow and one more will come when she gets her passport issues fixed.

Josh, Jolie, and I all rode back in the van with 11 of the interns. It was a blast learning everyone’s name and getting to know their personalities. Everyone seems to get along really well and I can only hope the rest will bond as quickly.

The 11 that came in on the earlier flights today helped us work out a drama for the farewells this summer. We had a basic idea of what we wanted and told Kristal and she immediately thought of the song, “Legacy” by Rob Sperti. It fit perfectly and within about an hour and a half, we had a great powerful drama that we’ll even be able to use for Mega Día tomorrow. That’s a whole other thing though.

I’m off to bed to catch up on a little rest before training week officially begins! Interns have arrived which signals the official start to the summer. It won’t be long before we are running like crazy!

Last chance for rest

2009-05-29T19:42:00.000-06:00

This morning we woke up and started going over all of the songs, skits, and dramas for this summer. We have to make sure we know them before all the interns and teams come so that we can easily show them how to do them.

The afternoon was slow and uneventful. I took pictures around camp. We walked to a local store to try to buy pupusas but they don’t sell them anymore. We got to meet Jeremy and Kelly, another MA comple that has been teaching English and Kelly is now pregnant with twins. It’s her first pregnancy too!

Then, we decided to rest up with a little nap and spent the evening playing card games with Jolie. Jacob and Faith returned late from a meeting with a cake for Jolie’s birthday. It was a slower day, but sometimes those are so necessary!

No electricity, no internet - Video

2009-05-29T14:40:00.005-06:00

Sometimes you do what you have to do...

Josh drove through El Salvador and we lived to tell about it

2009-05-28T18:40:00.000-06:00

Today we went into town to get Jolie a phone and to pick up the intern shirts as well as a few other things today. Jacob decided this would be a great time for Josh to learn how to drive in El Salvador. I was happy to let him use the steering wheel while I was the backseat driver telling him that he was about to hit another car! :)

Actually, in all honesty, he was a great driver and did much better than I would have in such stressful circumstances. It was an…interesting experience.

We got to check email again. Whoo hoo!

It was pretty much an afternoon of running errands. Over the last few days we did come up with ideas for a new drama for the team farewells at the end of their time here in El Salvador. I think we’re going to let the interns help us come up with the rest of it. Also, something that Jacob started last year with the interns that I really like is edifying and building each other up with the 2 for 1 rule. Every time you say something negative about someone or say a joke at someone’s expense, you must say two things that edify or build that person up by complimenting them in a way that speaks of their character, personality, or actions.

I would really like to start using that in my day to day life. It just seems like an incredibly smart way to live. How can people get upset or hold a grudge against someone that is constantly complimenting them. It will help me to filter what I say as well. I’m excited about it, even if I have been joking with Jacob about it.

Another one joins the team...

2009-05-27T20:36:00.000-06:00

Today we got up and had another meeting about our upcoming schedule (which it looks to be pretty crazy and every minute is planned out with something for the next few weeks). Then we went to the airport to pick up Jolie. She’s an intern that has been coming back year after year for a long time. She has also applied to be a Missionary Associate and was accepted. She’ll be itinerating starting this Fall.

We got to go to a coffee shop today to check email for an hour or two today. It was good to see the comments that were left on facebook even though we haven’t had the opportunity to respond to anything yet.

It’s very cool to have the old group of friends back together again. I knew Faith, Jacob, and Jolie before and Josh knew Jacob and Jolie before, but it’s very different to be here as a married couple and see how some things have changed. It’s been awesome catching up on everyone’s lives though.

Finally home...

2009-05-27T16:24:00.002-06:00

Finally, after months of raising funds, traveling, speaking, stressing, doubting, fighting, planning, packing, storing, sorting, moving, and every other possible action associated with preparing for and getting to the mission field, Lisa and I are finally here.

We woke up at 3:30 am in Oklahoma City yesterday, May 26th, and arrived at the airport at 5 am. Somehow God apparently caused our luggage to get lighter and all of our bags were under the weight limit, well one was exactly 50 lbs, but the others cleared the limit by about 2 pounds. After a tearful goodbye with my parents, Lisa and I walked through security to begin our first major adventure as a married couple. After a brief layover in Houston, we arrived in El Salvador at 11:10 am, tired and weary from weeks of living like nomads, long days, and short nights. Once again it appears that God was making His hand evident because from the time we got off the plane, it took a total of about 15 minutes to get our bags (all of which arrived!!), get our tourist visas, and go through Immigration/Customs. Now, how in the world 2 gringos with a cart full of luggage cleared Customs without getting searched I'm not sure, but God has his way, even in foreign customs.

We were met by some good friends who are also MA's here, Jacob Noel and Faith Bates, and enjoyed the day getting back in touch and getting settled in our home for the next 2 months. We are staying at the Castle Camp on the beautiful Lago de Coatepeque, a lake that is in the crater of an active volcano. It is quite the beautiful sight, particularly as the sun comes up over the mountains and fog rests on the waters. It is amazing how a country so full of such beautiful vistas can at the same time be home to some of the greatest acts of violence and unthinkable attrocities.

We have hit the ground running and will be going steady until August 3rd when we board the plane to head back to Orlando for General Council. Can't wait to get started and see all that God has in store for us.

We're here!

2009-05-26T20:35:00.000-06:00

Last night I forced myself to go to sleep at about 12 midnight only to be awoken by the rattling fan at 2:30 a.m. I laid in bed for an hour and eventually got up and just started eating breakfast and getting ready to leave. We had to be at the airport 5 a.m. where we met some missionaries on their way back to Mexico. After a few tears, 5 hours or so of traveling, and a showing of “Marley and Me,” I looked out the window to see the beautiful mountains of El Salvador. Josh was feeling a little nervous and had some anxiety about leaving family so leaving arriving seemed exciting yet bittersweet in the other.

We decided to do our first podcast video to post on our blog. I don’t know how well you can actually hear us though as we were starting to descend on the airplane. After waiting for the last round of baggage, we finally got our luggage and headed out to see Faith and Jacob waiting for us in the crowd of Salvadoran faces.

Oh, one thing about our luggage is that all 4 bags ended up being exactly 50 pounds or just under. Praise God!

Well, in true Castle fashion, we jumped straight into work for a lunch meeting about the summer with Jacob, Faith, and Kristal. We ate at a place called Go Green which I’m just about positive will be Josh’s favorite go-to restaurant here in El Salvador as all the serve are wraps and salads. Oh, and they’re delicious!

Jacob did take us to his favorite spot to have coffee which I must say was also delish! Then we went shopping for phones and came back to the camp late enough to hang out for just a few minutes in Faith’s apartment then make it down to our room to unpack and crash. It was an exhausting day but we are super excited to see what God’s going to do this summer!

Cursed and Crucified: The Snake and the Savior

2009-04-10T13:01:00.001-06:00

"An as Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him will have eternal life." ~ John 3:14-15

I've never actually considered this verse to mean more than what the notes say in my Bible. The Israelites angered God and He sent snakes to bite and kill them, but He told Moses to make a bronze snake, put it on a pole, and everyone who looked at it would be saved from death. What a clear-cut foreshadowing of the Cross. Pure and simple, look to Jesus and be saved from death by sin. Period. But wait, that's not all...

As is often the case with Scripture, there is more behind the apparent meaning if we only understood the nature of Christ's words and world. I'm not talking crazy Da Vinci Code or Bible Code crap, but the truth and power of the Word of God. Flashback to the Wilderness. The Israelites are complaining about everything, including Manna, God's Heavenly food supply, and so God sends snakes, which bite and kill. Moses prays and God relents, saying to make a bronze image of the snake, put it on a pole, and then everyone who looks on the snake won't die from venom; however, there is something behind this that I have always missed until listening to John Piper's recent sermon. The snake was a cursed, unclean, reviled animal. God cursed the serpent in the Garden and it is the embodiment of sin, death, corruption, deception, etc. Even in our society today it is the embodiment of evil and deception. So, when God said make a bronze serpent and that would be source of salvation from death, there is some crazy meaning behind that. The embodiment of sin would become the source of salvation from death.

Now, fast forward to the night meeting between Jesus and Nicodemus. The talk turns to eternal life, new birth, etc. Then Jesus, choosing a symbol to convey the meaning of His death as He always did, chose an odd example to describe the nature of His dying. Instead of using the lamb metaphor, as would later be used, He chose the snake in the desert. Just like Moses posted the embodiment of sin and death on a pole so it could serve as the source of salvation, so the Son of Man would be lifted up. He compared Himself to the serpent, the very symbol of evil. Do you see the power behind that? God lifted the snake up to save the Israelites, and in the same way He would raise up Sin to bring salvation. Jesus would become the embodiment of sin, corruption, death, etc. so that mankind could be saved the death that comes by sin. He became unclean, cursed, and reviled so that I could be saved. "He became sin who knew no sin." He didn't just die in our place, but became the embodiment of all mankind's sin, the symbol of the curse and the fall, and was lifted up so that all who look to Him in faith could be saved from death. The Savior became our Snake so that we could be saved.

I'm not comparing Jesus to Satan or saying that Jesus is in anyway evil, but He became the embodiment and the symbol of sin, death, and the curse so that we could look upon His defiled, broken body and find salvation. Every time the Israelites looked at the snake I wonder if they remembered not only their sin in angering God but also the curse, as this unclean animal became the image of salvation. We are the snake, not Jesus, and yet He became snake-like to remove the poison of sin and the destiny of Hell, so we could stand redeemed. Now we, as Christians, how do we view the Cross? A nice charm to wear? A great story? A reason to hide eggs and eat chocolate? No, the cross is not a beautiful piece of gold jewelry, not a nice decorative item, but it is as the old hymn says, "the emblem of suffering and shame"

So I'll cherish the old rugged cross, where my trophies at last I'll lay down. I will cling to the old rugged cross, and exchange it some day for a crown. Thank you for the Cross, Lord Jesus the Christ!

Pride: The Assassin of Purpose

2009-04-08T10:03:00.000-06:00

"But the LORD said to me, 'Go, for I will send you far away to the Gentiles!' The crowd listened until Paul said that word. Then they all began to shout, 'Away with such a fellow! He isn't fit to live!' They yelled, threw off their coats, and tossed handfuls of dust into the air." ~ Acts 22:21-22

Now, I have to admit that I find this quite comical. Here is Paul in chains in Jerusalem after being carried off and beaten by the Jewish leaders because they ASSUMED he had taken a Gentile into the Temple grounds since they had seen him in the company of a Gentile, Trophimus of Ephesus. They beat him and then the Romans come rushing in because of the uproar and now Paul is addressing the Jews, giving testimony of what had happened in his life to turn him from Jewish enforcer to Christian evangelist. Things are going well until it gets to the word Gentile. At this word the Jews go bananas. I get the image in my head of an Animal Planet show about monkeys. Something happens and the group of apes goes berserk, pounding their chests, howling, and kicking up dust, creating quite a ruckus. Now back to our DIGNIFIED Jewish leaders, dressed in robes, tassles, turbans, etc. Calm, quite, and civilized one moment and then Paul says the magic word, Gentile! Suddenly they are screaming, throwing their clothes off, and tossing up dust. What a sight! I wish I could get a clip of that on the Soup. I could make money with a video like that. Prettified rabbis and leaders one moment, rampaging apes the next. And what's the cause of this? Pride, pure and simple.

The Jews were selected by God centuries ago to be His chosen people, a nation that He chose from among the rest of the earth through whom He could display His power, love, grace, mercy, justice, and sovereignty over all creation. Not only did He choose them, but he protected them, gave them a homeland, blessed them among the nations, miraculously displayed His power in and through them, all as a witness to the earth that the God of Israel is the One and Only God. He placed them in Israel, positioned perfectly along the major trade route for all the nations. Any nation traveling North or South or to the sea had to go through Israel. They were set up to be a light to the Gentiles, displaying the glory of the Immortal God. Instead of seizing the opportunity afforded them and humbly allowing God to do His work through them, they became prideful in their position. They saw themselves as superior to the Gentiles, the very people they were supposed to be providing light to. They became so prideful that they adopted an air of separatism and exclusivism, arrogantly detesting all non-Jews, so much so that the very word Gentile would send them into an uproar. Their pride in their position, one that was not based on their merit or worth or importance but on God's choice, in effect killed their effectiveness in achieving God's purpose in election, to display His power and sovereignty to all nations. The coming of Messiah was the climax of His interaction with them and yet they missed the point because of their pride.

Now, before you start amening all this talk of Jews, point the finger back at the Christian church. Have we become the same? Have we allowed our pride in being "saved" to kill our effectiveness? Have we forgotten that we are only ingrafted branches, not superior to any other person, especially the Jews? We have been given grace and they have rejected it. Jesus is the Jewish Messiah and our Savior because He died for all men, not just one nation. Often I believe that our pride in our rituals, rites, ceremonies, agendas, doctrines, and traditions assassinates our purpose, we exchange the purpose of God for the way it has always been. We're afraid to even discuss the lost because they might dirty our sanctuaries, curse in our pews, smoke in our foyers, and come strolling into our services wearing leather, short skirts, ratty clothes, covered in tatooes and piercings. At the very sight of someone not like us we have the tendency to cause a ruckues. Instead of realizing our purpose in election, to share and display the love and mercy of an Immortal God, we get riled up because someone wants to invite the bikers into service or go out to minister to prostitutes. We have been saved by grace, not because of anything we have done or because we deserve it. God chose to save us, God chose to forgive us, God chose to display us in the world to display His glory, not so we can build our traditions and churches. We are God's trophies on display for the world, contingent upon His grace and not a necessity. He doesn't need us but He wants us. Paul says it best, "We are paraded in front of the world, as slaves in a procession. To some we are the smell of life and to others the scent of death."

Dear God, forgive me for my pride in my position of election. I'm not worthy of your grace, but thank you for it. Use me as a light to the lost and keep me from being a road block for them to enter.

Reckless...the way I wanna be!

2009-04-06T18:20:00.001-06:00

"But he said, 'Why all this weeping? You are breaking my heart! I am ready not only to be jailed at Jerusalem but even to die for the sake of the LORD Jesus.' When is was clear that we couldn't persuade him, we gave up and said, 'The LORD's will be done.'" ~ Acts 21:13-14

Paul, a man who was passionate about everything he did. One who, as a Jew and Pharisee, zealously persecuted Christians and then after an encounter with Jesus he became even more zealous about sharing the light of the Gospel with everyone, no matter the cost. Here is Paul, at Caesarea by the Sea, on his way to Jerusalem. Several of the believers there sensed in the Spirit that danger awaited Paulin Jerusalem and tried to persuade him not to go. Then a prophet, Agabus, arrives and prophesies that Paul would be bound and mistreated by the Romans and once again everyone pleads with him to stay. What does Paul do? He says, "Stop it! You're breaking my heart! But there is nothing that will keep me from fulfilling my purpose, not even death. I embrace suffering and death if it means that I can build God's kingdom!"

WOW! What a man of passion! Nothing in this world could stop Paul once his course was set. Just look at his list of experiences: received 39 lashes with a whip 5 times, beaten with rods 3 times, stoned once, shipwrecked 3 times, spent a day drifting in the open Sea, etc. etc. The words unstoppable come to mind, as well as reckless. Whatever the cost, whatever the distance, whatever it takes, Paul was willing to lay it all on the line and considered joy. How I wish and pray that my life would be the same! I pray that I too would have a reckless faith, a sense of calling and purpose, a burning passion and burden to share the love of Christ no matter what it takes. No one enjoys pains, but a faithful disciple of Jesus wants above all else to please God. Our desire to please God should overshadow our desire to avoid hardship and suffering. When we really want to do God's will, we must accept all that comes with it, even pain and death. Lord may it be so, not only in my life, but in the life of every true disciple!

Catalyst Week 2

2009-02-24T20:02:00.000-06:00

This week's games were interesting, but it was SO hot outside! Spring has definitely come to Florida. The pictures are from New Breed vs. Armaggedon, Flash vs. Stealth, and Run DMC vs. Ground N Pound.

After a sack, getting hyped up for the next play

Wide Receiver, David Attaway
Dave and Justin, team mates on the field, officers in daily life

Franklin is fast!

MJ - He's the STAT MAN!

Ladies and Gentleman, I give you my photo of the week!

Big, beautiful sky

Jerrod, he's a quick little man!

From the stat man's viewpoint

Sasha

Brian Banks is the league's quickest player

He leaves people in his wake

Roby is Banks' number one fan!

John Krall, Youth Pastor and Quarterback extrodinaire

I couldn't resist this sky!

The kids play on the sidelines

Oh, almost!

Catalyst Week 1

2009-02-18T19:54:00.000-06:00

This week was the first week of Catalyst Flag Football but it was SO much fun! I was there to photograph Meerkats vs. Rabid Lemurs and New Breed vs. Ground N Pound.

Nice hair Edmar!

Uh oh! MJ got a touchdown!

Now that is one handsome man!

Franklin is awesome!

Ground N Pound got a touchdown!

Happy Valentine's Day!

2009-02-15T19:42:00.000-06:00

Today Josh and I took advantage of the fact that Valentine's Day was on Saturday this year. We spent the whole day together and then had the opportunity to also share it with our friends at Trinity Assembly of God where we ate, played games, competed in the Newly-or-not-so-newlywed game, and took pictures of some of the families that came.

I hope you had a special Valentine's day this year and were reminded of just how much Christ loves each one of you!

LeNita did a great job decorating

Lisa won the jellybean count. She actually guessed the exact amount!

Pastor Wiese and his family

The Draft

2009-02-09T19:31:00.000-06:00

Sunday marked the beginning of the Catalyst Flag Football season as they held a combine and a draft. There are 10 teams of 10 which should make for a great season! They will have 7 weeks of games and then playoffs. Here are a few pictures from this week's combine.

Johnson Family Photos

2009-02-07T09:18:00.001-06:00

I had the priveledge of photographing Mike and Leah Johnson and their two sons, Elijah and Zion. They are such a beautiful family and they were so much fun to shoot while at the park playing. Hopefully we'll be able to do this again some day!

Tampa

2009-01-27T08:22:00.000-06:00

Sometimes you just gotta get away. It doesn't have to be a big trip, just a change of scenary. This weekend we knew that's what we had to do. We stayed with our friend, Carlos, in Wesley Chapel, visited with Sam and Kelly (and played guitar hero and wii until late at night), and spent a day with Nate and Jen over in St. Pete. It was a great weekend and very relaxing! The sunsets on the west coast are absolutely gorgeous so I had to snap a few pictures. The dolphins even came out to play!

Statue of a victorian lady near the beach I thought was cool

Seriously? I want this on the East Coast so I don't have to drive 2 hours to see it!

Nate and Jen were my models :)

Lovahs!

How perfect is this with the dolphin out to play!

Don't let it fool you, this horseshoe crap was D-E-A-D.

I'm really excited! I get to shoot Leah and her family this weekend. Look for those photos soon!

All-Star Acoustic Jam

2009-01-20T08:00:00.000-06:00

I grew up on country music. Sometimes, I turn it on just to remember my childhood and that downhome country feel to life. The rest of my family listens to country music constantly and would be able to spout off the names of the hottest artist in 2 seconds flat. I can't. I wouldn't even be able to tell you the names of most actors. I might recognize a face, but past that, they are just like every other average Joe I see in a day. Anyhow, my cousin, Tarah, invited me to go with her again this year to the All Star Acoustic Jam which a local country station puts on each year and the proceeds from all the tickets goes to the Ronald McDonald House. Well, I figured this was a prime opportunity to work on some photography skills and here are just a few of the pictures. There are many more on facebook.

Pictures in the Park

2009-01-04T07:47:00.000-06:00

I think that photography has been the most creative, relaxing hobby I have ever picked up! I love being able to go down to our local park and enjoy God's creation and all the beauty. I love the innocence of children while they play. I love capturing images like these.

SeaWorld! - Photos

2008-12-28T19:33:00.001-06:00

We had annual passes to SeaWorld this year and since we are coming to the end of the year, I decided it'd be a great idea to spend the Saturday visiting the animals one more time and to try out my new photography skills. We had a very enjoyable evening as the weather was PERFECT! Here are some of the pictures I came up with:

Discovering Orlando Again - Photos

2008-12-15T19:13:00.007-06:00

Well, Josh's parents came to town this last week and I just dropped them off at the airport this morning. We had a great time and since his mom hadn't been here in a LONG time and I don't think his dad had ever been here, it was fun to rediscover Orlando again. We actually didn't hit any of the BIG touristy places while they were here. No Disney, Universal, SeaWorld, or Busch Gardens. However, we did get to spend lots of time together and while we were at work, they visited with old friends and visited the Orlando Science Center, which was cool because that's where Josh and I had our first official date!

Then, Saturday we all went to Ripley's Believe it or not and spent several hours there before heading to the Florida mall for a quick trip. It was too crowded so we left and headed over to Old Town for the Saturday night tour of the classic cars. That was fun to get to share that with them. Josh LOVES old cars, so we had been before with John and Carolyn and thought that his parents would enjoy reliving some of their childhood memories. Our last stop was A&W Root Beer for some root brewskies then off to the house.

Sunday we visited Calvary Assembly for the first time to make some more friends our own age. Then, we went to Mellow Mushroom so his parents could discover the amazingness of the pizza there!

That was our weekend in a nutshell. Here are a couple of pictures from Believe it or Not:

A horse made of horseshoes!

Greg read all the weird captions under the news articles.

Ha, fun house mirrors take the most flattering pictures of people!

BIG TIRE TIME!

Oldest City in the US - Photos

2008-11-30T15:47:00.003-06:00

We decided to take advantage of the long weekend this weekend and went to St. Augustine. Josh loves historical sites and I hadn't been there since high school when I went on a boat trip with my grandparents. I hadn't been to the fort there since 4th grade! So, it was a lot of fun to go back and share some of the things I had learned with Josh and just get away for the weekend. I took my new camera and got some fun, good shots. These are just a few of those. The rest can be found on facebook.

Thanksgiving 2008 - Photos

2008-11-27T22:16:00.001-06:00

This Thanksgiving was a little different from all the rest. My mom decided she wanted to stay home alone this year as the rest of the family got together at my grandparent's condo as usual. My aunt, uncle, and cousins came this year too. Usually they are already up in the mountains of North Carolina over Thanksgiving but this year they decided to wait until afterwards. Also, it was our first Thanksgiving as a married couple and Josh's first Thanksgiving away from his family and in Florida. It was a warm sunny day today and I took my new camera so I could take some pictures of the wildlife that is always around my grandparent's condo.

This year my grandfather was talking about his typical hobbies - boating, flying, and fixing cars. However, he started saying that he was getting tired of fixing cars and keeping up with the planes. This astounded me. My grandaddy has always been the kind to stay active and even after he retired he's stayed busy with his hobbies. Now he says he's slowing down and even considering selling his plane and car. He still goes out on the boat, but I haven't heard of them taking a weekend boat trip in a long time. They used to go on weekend trips all the time and even went on week long trips at time. I guess I really am growing up. I guess things really are changing. I guess it's true that they won't be around forever. As he was talking about all this I felt the need to record his love for old cars and preserve the memory of his hobbies. His plane was at a hanger at the airport and his boat was out at his warehouse at my aunt's house, but his car - that was in the garage just outside. I hadn't seen it in several years and I knew Josh loves old cars, so we talked him into getting the car out this afternoon so I could take some pictures of it. You can tell he is SO proud of it! It's his piece of yesteryear. Although not the best pictures in the whole world, I am still glad that I could record this passion of his and I hope he can still cherish the photo if he does eventually sell the car.

Happy Thanksgiving all! I hope that you all had a wonderful dinner and that some of those memories of friends and family have imprinted themselves in your brain. Many more blessings as this Christmas season comes!

A Quarter of a Century... - Photos

2008-11-23T21:37:00.010-06:00

Well, there it is...a quarter of a century that I have lived. My 25th birthday was on Friday. I hope to remember all of the next 25 years! Isn't it strange that typically your healthiest, most energetic years are a time in life when you don't even remember a good portion of them? Strange. I once saw a program I believe showed on Discovery channel that went through the changes in the body from conception in the womb to 80 years of age and they basically said that you are done growing and in your prime in your mid-twenties. Then, after that point you are beginning the decaying process and health starts to dwindle. That's depressing. I'm glad that I don't base my life in what science says about my life but about what Christ says about my life. I plan on being MORE effective for Christ and enjoy life even MORE over the next 25 years (should Jesus tarry). I'm excited about what the next 25 years will bring! I'm praying for miracles, anointing, and God's glory and gospel being proclaimed!

Anyhow, I got to work on Friday at Onsite Safety and they had decorated my desk with all kinds of birthday goodies, they got me a silly hat to wear, and got me a ton of my favorite candies! Then, as if I wasn't already on sugar overload, they sang to me and had me blow out candles from a tray of brownies and cookies! DELICIOUS!!! Who needs cake? Stacey makes some great brownies fyi. :)

Friday night we went to Kobe Japanese Steakhouse with a bunch of our friends. It was a good time and great food. I think the best thing about Kobe is that they give you lo mien with your food as well as rice. Hello carb overload! I think this was probably one of the best birthdays I have EVER had!

Then, yesterday Josh and I went to Magic Kingdom at Disney with Steve, Hollie, Nate, and Jen. Steve works at Disney and got us all into the park for the day. It was a blast! Thanks Steve for the day of fun and Jack Sparrow spotting! It was a great birthday weekend and now for the best part...

My friends and family all chipped in and got me a Digital SLR camera, the Canon Rebel XTI! Courtney and Bradd then gave me a telephoto lens to go with my camera! They were the best gifts ever! I feel set up now. I have wanted a dslr for a while now. I have been interested in photography and I'm super excited to have the opportunity and equipment to be able to pursue it. I want to be able to take pictures for ministry purposes. Pictures that stir people to action. My prayer is that my photography will capture even a glimpse of what God sees in His children and that the viewers can relate to those in the images.

Anyhow, I just wanted to gush over how special my friends, family, and co-workers made me feel this weekend. Thank you all!

Medical Issues

2008-10-17T08:29:00.000-06:00

Hey all,

As some of you know, I have been having some medical issues and the doctors don't even know what exactly is wrong. They've done a ton of tests and haven't come to any definite conclusions. Josh and I feel as though it may be a spiritual attack. Please pray for me if I'm brought to your mind. I appreciate it greatly!

The Wedding and Honeymoon - Photos

2008-09-16T07:05:00.015-06:00

Sorry it's been so long since we've updated. We were so busy with the wedding madness! The wedding was perfect and we're ready to get back to ministry and real life. :)

We got married on the beach, however Hurricane Fay was obviously excited we were getting married too, because she decided to join us. The rain held off for the ceremony and just sprinkled off and on throughout the reception which we were under a tent for. It was really nice though because it made the August summer heat bearable.

We then honeymooned in Jamaica where we climbed Dunn's River Falls and rode horseback down a mountain and in the ocean waist deep! It was incredible. It was seriously some of the most beautiful water and sunsets you have ever seen. Then, Hurricane Gustav came and we were "stuck" there for an extra 2 days because the airlines closed down. Who would have thought, two hurricanes in a matter of a week and a half? CRAZY! However, we absolutely loved Jamaica and find ourselves dreaming about it and wanting to go back, as you do with all great vacations!

As for ministry, we have a missions convention at Markham Woods this month, a service at Bushnell Assembly in October, and a service at New Covenant Assembly in November. Please pray that God opens even more doors for us to share in the coming months.

Here are some pictures from the wedding and honeymoon:

Updated Wedding Info

2008-07-05T14:39:00.001-06:00

So, it's official! We're getting married at The Sandbar Restaurant on Anna Maria Island in Florida on August 22, 2008! We'll be getting married on the beach and Brother Gary Crump will be officiating. He was a mentor to both Josh and I as we served in El Salvador under him in differing years. He and Mrs. Karen left El Salvador and now serve on staff at Palm Valley Church in Mission, Texas.

People have been so kind and have offered to throw bridal showers for us. Our shower from work will be July 8th. Our shower from Trinity Assembly of God will be on July 13th and the one for family and friends will be on the 26th. Also, Josh's parents are putting a wedding shower together for September after we come back from our honeymoon. Oh, and speaking of the honeymoon, Josh did a ton of research and we will be going to Jamaica to the Sans Souci Couples Resort. We are super excited!

Anyhow, that's all for now!

¡Que viaje! - Photos

2008-06-13T12:58:00.015-06:00

What a trip! We're back now and feel like we have learned SO much! We met so many neat people and have made some lasting friendships. We worked with Dale and Nancy Johnson and Trent and Tina Morrow. With the Johnsons, we did construction on a new building for the Bible School and Josh worked mostly on the plumbing. With the Morrows, we did Kid's Quest and children's ministry with the kids out at Colón. Each night the children brought more and more of their friends. I'm not sure how many children accepted Jesus as there savior, but there were a lot! Each of them got brand new Bibles and many started reading them right away.

I got to run the video and record all of the programs. The Morrows have just been offered a spot on a local television station to do children's programming so they are filming all of their programs and editing them so they can air them. How exciting is that? On the last evening, we got to make balloon swords and hats for them as they "put on the full armor of God." It was an awesome experience!

I experienced a little bit of culture shock as I am more used to El Salvador. I'm used to tan people with dark hair and dark eyes and there they are light-skinned and have differing hair colors. Also, the Spanish is very different and took me a little bit to get used to it. Oh, and instead of squelching heat, we had the bitter cold of winter because their seasons are opposite of ours. Instead of the housing you see in El Salvador, they had little brick homes that were almost dollhouse-like in appearance and in the city they lived in high rise apartments. Both Josh and I are used to food being dirt cheap in Latin American countries, yet this country hardly seemed Latin American at all. The food was not only expensive, but similar to what you would eat in the U.S. or Europe. There was a cover to eat at just about any restaurant to use their glasses, silverware, and linens. There were eggs and ham on everything it seemed. Their national dishes where things like a Chivito, a sandwich with ham, eggs, cheese, mayonnaise and whatever else you wanted on it, or a milanesa, which was chicken fried chicken and usually came with an egg, ham and cheese on top. Their salads where lettuceless and you had to ask for tomatoes on sandwiches or salads. It was different, but good. I was itching for some good ol' rice and beans and I'm convinced there are none in the entire country. :) However, the best dish I had came from Pecos Bill's and they had a flatbread pizza with just pesto and fresh tomatoes on it that was to die for! I think I ate it three times while I was there and it still left me wanting for more. The best part was that for that pizza and a bottle of water, it was only $5; the cheapest meal we ate there. Mmm...it makes my mouth water.

We went to Colonia one day which was like our St. Augustine. It was an old fort city with the cobblestone roads and little cottagelike houses. I love places like that. It was fun for me to visit and had great photo ops! It was just beautiful there!

Anyhow, the building was just about completed and the Bible School students were happy to see it! A pastor prophesied that Josh would be back as a missionary to that country one day when we went to church on Sunday. This is after the Morrows had been telling us to stay and work with them. So, who knows...maybe one day we'll go back. Primero Dios! We got to go sight seeing and buy souvenirs like mate (a tea drink that EVERYONE has in their hands at all times) cups on our last day. It was a great trip and we loved learning yet another new culture!

Uruguay...The Missionary's Graveyard

2008-05-22T12:08:00.000-06:00

Since Josh and I are headed to Uruguay in a few days and I really didn't know too much about the country other than it was located in South America and they spoke Spanish, I decided to do some research so I could know what to expect and what the local dialect was. I was told that since Josh and I are the only ones that can really speak any Spanish, we will be the translators. THAT should be interesting. :) So I wanted to find local words for specific items and see what was culturally appropriate to do or say (you'd be surprised at how widely this varies...words you might say in one country to mean something perfectly innocent, would be highly offensive and rude in others). So, google time!

After trying a few websites in Spanish and not finding much, I found this website which featured an article from an North American that went to Uruguay for 6 months and learned some local phrases that he thought might be helpful to others. Some of the information about the culture was somewhat common knowledge to me having been to another Latin American country, but other information was very informative and the phrases were extremely helpful (because I would have NEVER known what was being said to me if they say some of these things). The article was well-written and pretty funny. This glimpse into the culture just made me want to read more. So....another google search!

After clicking on several websites including this one, I was astounded to see Uruguay referred to as a missionary graveyard time and time again. Apparently, Uruguay is mostly athiest or agnostic. Most people don't attend any church and don't see a need for "religion" in their lives. It may take years to win a single convert to Christ! That means sometimes one or two full missions terms (4 years each) with little to no growth in your church. It's easy to see why missionaries would get discouraged and give up or feel like they must be out of God's will. This is a nation that is in GREAT spiritual need! They are european-influenced, mostly mid-class people and have enough food to eat and clothes to wear, but are spiritually starving. Does this remind you of another country? It does me! Reading all of this just makes me more spiritually aware to the culture we are about to go into and gives me a hunger to pray for the people! Please join with me in prayer for the missionaries in Uruguay that they would be greatly encouraged and strengthened by God and most of all for the people of Uruguay, that their hearts would be softened to the Gospel of Christ. Pray that we have the opportunity to witness to the people of Uruguay and God-given words come to our lips.

Also, I want to challenge you. If you've never had a burden for a certain country to pray for it's people and the missionaries and pastors serving there, start researching the country, culture, and beliefs. I guarantee you that your heart will be ignited with passion! Start reading about U.S. culture and what our youth believe. It will cause you to pray like you never have before!

Livin' life, lovin' God - Photos

2008-05-15T11:30:00.003-06:00

I love how God works! He's always bringing people into your life at certain times for certain reasons. I'm so excited to be engaged and to be marrying this man that God has placed in my life! Josh has moved down from Oklahoma, after 23.5 hours of driving and is now staying at the missionary apartment at our church. We're looking at getting married in August and hopefully getting to the field in January. After attending a friend's wedding, we checked out a venue, The Sandbar Restaurant, in Anna Maria Island, FL for the wedding. We took one look at it and fell in love with it. It's right on the beach and we'd be able to have the beach wedding we've been dreaming of. We'll hopefully be booking it soon and getting a definite date down!

On my trip to Oklahoma, Josh and I went to the zoo with Aaron, his brother, and Stacey, his sister-in-law, the day after we got engaged. It was great getting to spend time with them again. We drove down to Dallas and Josh graduated from Southwestern and everything went well. Then, I came back to Orlando and the service at Life Assembly went great! Pastor Duke Matlock said they would give me a love offering of $500 and pledge $100 in monthly support which is wonderful news!

I'm obviously not leaving at the end of May, but after Josh and I get married, we will finish raising our budgets and then head to El Salvador for a few years to learn from Brother Don and Mrs. Terri. We know we need to learn about missions and gain the experience from the organization they already have and we both have an incredible heart for El Salvador and the children and youth there. Josh is already an ordained minister and we know we want to be missionaries and spend all of our days sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ and sharing the love of our Lord with all the world. We don't know exactly where we'll go after El Salvador, but we already have some opportunities in Brazil and the Ukraine and there are several other places that God has laid on our hearts to go one day.

We'll both be leaving at the end of this month to go to Uruguay on a two week mission trip with his home church Capital Hill Assembly of God in Oklahoma City. We're both thrilled for the opportunity to work in a new country we've never been to before and it will be our first experience doing missions together. I've never been to South America and I'm excited to experience it! If you would like to donate towards this trip, please send checks to:

Patti Sears

909 SW 12th

Moore, OK 73160

Going to the chapel... - Photo

2008-04-28T11:23:00.003-06:00

And we're gonna get married! Josh and I are engaged! Here's the story as posted on Facebook:

As of Saturday night, I am the soon to be Mrs. Sears! Josh is graduating with his Masters but for his last paper, he wrote about creationism which I read. He then sent me a package with a card for me to open everyday until we saw eachother again, knowing I was coming back on Saturday. Each card was centered around this creation theme, starting with Genesis 1:1 and continued with the theme each day until Saturday when I stepped off the plane he gave me a card that had the creation of Adam and Eve.We went out for dinner and went for a walk afterwards at the Oklahoma City Botanical Gardens. We walked around for a while, then he suddenly stopped and said, "You know God placed Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden." "Yeah?" I replied. "And here we are in the garden," he said. Then he gets down on one knee and I yelled, "SHUT UP!" (thinking it was a joke). He pulled out a ring in a box and asked if I would marry him to which I quickly replied yes!

Anyhow, it's been a whirlwind romance which we believe to be God ordained and are just super excited to share our lives and our ministry together! We're not positive as to all the details yet, but he will soon be moving to Florida. We're going to Uruguay for two weeks on a short term trip at the end of May. We haven't set dates for the wedding quite yet. Just wanted to share the good news! :)

Oh, how time flies! - Photo

2008-04-22T10:59:00.003-06:00

It seems like life has been SO busy lately! Since the last time I posted, I went to visit Josh in Oklahoma. I met his parents and his brother and sister-in-law (who crack me up, by the way). It was awesome and I miss him SO much! This is definitely a God-ordained relationship and it feels like we've known eachother forever. We've prayed and fasted about it and we think we're going to get married. Now the question is when. Right now, he's a missionary associate to the Ukraine and I'm headed to El Salvador. Please be in prayer with us about this. We are seeking God's will over our lives and His timing over our relationship.

This past weekend I had two services at two different churches over in Tampa thanks to a friend of mine from El Salvador, Carlos Valle. They were both Spanish services and I was super nervous because I hadn't used my Spanish since last summer really. After a few bumps along the way, I got to share about the need in El Salvador and share a passion for missions. In the second service, they also let me go in and share with the youth. I talked about Speed the Light and how they can help support missionaries and the missions programs right now by giving to Speed the Light (see my earlier post about STL and what they do). Carlos also gave me some airtime on two local Christian radio stations to share about the need in El Salvador, King's Castle Ministries, and what I'll be doing there. Two programs were in Spanish and one was in English. It was really neat to be given that opportunity to speak to a ton of people that I've never met! Anyhow, over $200 was raised and I pray that hundreds of people have caught the vision of missions "right here and right now."

I leave Saturday for Oklahoma. Josh is graduating from Southwestern Assemblies of God University with his masters degree in Theology. So I'm headed first to Oklahoma to spend time with him and his family and then we're driving down to Dallas for his graduation. I'll fly back on the 3rd because I have a service at Life Assembly of God in Kissimmee on May 4th.

Please be in prayer for Josh as he is in Colorado and Utah this week speaking at churches and raising funds as well as going to District Council. Please pray that God will annoint his lips as he preaches and give him favor in the eyes of others. Also, pray for me for safe travels and for the service on the 4th. I appreciate all of your prayers!

Josh came to town! - Photos

2008-03-28T10:45:00.001-06:00

This last week Josh, my boyfriend, was in town. It was a little strange at first, being that I haven't seen him since October. We have talked on the phone every night for hours for a while now, but this was the first time to see him in person since we started to date.

He came in on Saturday and left on Wednesday. While he was here, we celebrated Easter, went to the Orlando Science Center, and got to see "Horton Hears a Who," which was hysterical! We also got to share some good quality time together and everyone here, including friends and family met Josh and got to see how wonderful he is! :)

We had a wonderful time! So much so, that he didn't want to leave but neither of us could afford the extra cost for him to stay until this weekend. So, we got online and Allegiant Air has some amazing deals if you are flying in and out of smaller airports. We found a deal where I can fly up next week for only $100 roundtrip. It will be the first time that I will meet most of his family. I met his mom and his aunt back in October when they came for our commissioning. I'm really excited to go back up and spend some more time with Josh and get to know his family!

One man's junk is another man's treasure - Photo

2008-03-18T10:28:00.001-06:00

I just held a garage sale/outreach at my church this Saturday. We had free water, a bounce house and face painting for the kids (although many BIG kids used it too), sold hotdogs and sodas, and a ton of families brought all their unneeded items to sell. 10% of all proceeds went towards meeting my goal and 100% of proceeds from the food and drinks sale as well. The youth raised over $250 doing a car wash for their puppet/drama ministry. It was a great day and we raised a ton of money! We raised approximately $330 towards getting me to El Salvador. I sold a ton of clothes, games, dishes, and other items I had collected through the past couple years that I just can't afford to take with me. It would be cheaper to buy them in El Salvador than to try to ship what I already have in suitcases.

We also gave salvation bookmarks to all the people that came out and thought it would be a good way to promote ourselves within our own community. People don't typically just walk into a church because they are afraid to. If you make friends with them first and they can see Christ through the way you live and serve, then they are more likely to feel comfortable enough to come to a church service. We can't expect people to come to the church, the church needs to go to the people. After all, isn't that what Jesus did? Did he wait in the temple and expect people to come to him? No. In fact, he went out and sought people to help and to teach, but he did this first by befriending them.

Anyhow, it was a great time had by all and we are looking forward to doing another yard sale soon and probably even a Fall Festival in early October. I'm really excited for my church and the things the Lord has in store for us all!

Let's go play in the SNOW! - Photos

2008-03-10T09:52:00.001-06:00

So, I just got back from a ski trip to Blowing Rock, NC with my family. It was a great to share some time with my Uncle Bill, Aunt Mary, and cousin Tarah! This was my first time skiing and only second time ever seeing snow. Yes, I know...I'm 24 and going skiing for the first time. However, Tarah was sweet enough to stay on the bunny slope with me the whole time. My first time on skis was....interesting. I got into them great, then as soon as I started to move, BOOM! Yeah, I landed on my booty and couldn't get up until a ski instructor came by and put one ski over the top of my two skis and helped me up, a trick that came in handy that day! :) Of course, the first day everytime I got off the ski lift, I fell on my face. It was fun though. AND the first time I started down the slope, I almost Sonny Bono'ed it! I was yelling "PIZZA!" which if you try to slow down and point toward eachother (like a pizza slice) you're supposed to slow down. I didn't. :) I came inches from a tree to the face. When I finally caught my breath, I looked back to see my aunt and my cousin cackling at me! It was a good time.

I finally got the hang of skiing and could make it down the bunny slope without falling and the next day could even make it off the lift without falling. I felt accomplished! Tarah and I decided to give tubing a try one morning. It was so warm that we had to take off many of our layers and I went tubing in just some pants and a tank top. It was a ton of fun though! We had races and even bulldozed through a few people. Ooops.

Also, I officially started to date a guy I met in October at Pre-field Orientation. His name is Josh Sears and he's worked with King's Castle before. I met him through a mutual friend, Jacob. They had worked together as interns in 2002 and of course Jacob and I have worked together the past couple of years. The three of us hung out all the time while in Springfield and Josh and I have kept in contact since then. Anyhow, we just made it official right before this trip! He's a man of God and you can check out his website and ministry here.

Here are some of the pictures from that trip:

When God repeats things...Listen up! It must be important.

2008-02-24T16:42:00.003-06:00

So, God's been stirring a lot of things in me the past 6 months or so. I have noticed a repetition of certain ideas and sayings that God's been whispering into my heart.

The power of children and youth to the ministry.
The ripple effect of ministry.
The need for outreaches to the children and youth here in the US.
The importance of speaking kind, encouraging, and loving words to others around us everyday.
The importance of showing God's love through our actions moreso than just words.
The fact that we may be someone's only connection to Jesus.
That we are such a blessed people here because we are free to worship Jesus and share Him with everyone else around us.

God's been bringing these themes to mind time and time again and I've been noticing it just about everytime I start to share about God, go to church, or speak with friends. I'm willing, ready, and eager to do what God has set out for me. Not only overseas, but here where I am right now. I want to be the shining light in the darkness when I am at work, at the grocery store, in line at the bank, etc. If I feel the leading of the Holy Spirit to say something to someone, I want to follow that because if I don't, who will? There may not be anyone else there to speak those words to that person. So, if I look silly or feel silly, it's probably a good thing, as long as I approach it with boldness and confidence that the Lord has given me!

These are just some of the things that the Lord has put in my heart. The list could probably go on and on. I know I haven't really talked about all of the things, but I'm sure I will as they come up again. What are some of the things that have been recurring themes in your life?

Please pray for the upcoming outreach we have at my church. It's really just a community event, but I want to get a chance to form relationships with those that are right around our church so that we can be the living hands and feet of Jesus as we love on them. Only then, once they see the difference in us, will they be willing to listen to what we have to say. Church is for the lost. It's not just a place of fellowship and growth. Of course that's an important function of the church once people do come to know Christ because they must be discipled. However, the MISSION of the church should be outreach and reaching the lost for Christ. That's the only way to change the world.

Again I say, MISSIONS is the heartcry of God. It's about reaching them right where they are at and long ago God the Father set up a system to use US to do that. What an amazing God that uses the broken and imperfect to reach others for Him!

Can't sleep but I like it!

2008-02-23T04:56:00.010-06:00

So, many of you are probably wondering why I am writing this at 6 a.m. in the morning. No, I didn't go to bed and wake up ridiculously early because I felt the need to share, but instead I have been engulfed and absolutely consumed in reading Enrichment Journal magazine.

As a Missionary Associate, we receive electronic versions of several publications that the Assemblies of God produce. I'll be the first to admit that I rarely read them. In fact, due to pure lack of time, I'm lucky if I even glance through it and browse an article or two. However, after the amazing month I have had speaking at churches and just being in awe of how God can and IS using me, then having the Holy Spirit move in a mighty way through our bible study tonight, when I came across the email that said the publication was up and ready to be downloaded, I decided to take the time to log in and see just what was in there that God wanted to speak to me tonight.

Since about 1 a.m. this morning, I have been pouring over just the first few pages of this ezine, one that I had never yet taken the time to read, and getting SO excited about the outreach opportunities that God wants to do right here in my own community, through my own little church in the upcoming weeks and months.

Now, let me take you back to December. I had sat down with my best friend, Courtney, and her husband, Bradd, and asked if they had ever thought about getting together and just sharing about God and what He's speaking to us. As I just threw that tidbit into conversation, both Bradd and Courtney were eager to tell me that God had really laid a burden on their hearts to start a Bible study with all of our friends; a place where we could come and share about what God's speaking to us, and pray, support and encourage eachother in our walks with Christ. They also have hearts for missions and outreach and wanted to incorporate that into the Bible study as well. You see, we have a great group of Christian friends, yet most of the time we never took advantage of that fact. Rarely did we ask someone to pray for us, ask to be accountable to one another, nor take the time to encourage another good friend.

Although it took some time to get started, we now come together every Friday night to talk about what God has done that week, our failings and achievements, and to focus on how to be an effective Christian, that is, an effective tool in God's hand right now, where we are in life. The twenties are such a transitional stage in life and many times we find ourselves waiting to get to "the next level" or to be on a foreign mission field before we decide to evangelize and be fully what we are called to be. I know I have found myself a few times feeling like a lackluster shell of the person that I am in El Salvador while here in the states. I have at times felt like I didn't have an outlet to minister to people on the same level as I do during the summers and it left me feeling empty and just longing to return to my full purpose and call.

Anyhow, this Bible study has been not only an encouragement and a springboard for sharing about spiritual things amongst good (and some newer) friends of mine, but it has also been a place that God is ministering mightly to us and through us. God has been using my friends to minister to me and me to minister to my friends. He has put the words in our mouths and the thoughts in our minds, even when we don't know what it is we are saying. I think I am just reveling at how God wants to use us, even with all of our faults and brokeness. He's an awesome God!

On top of that, I just found out that I will be putting together a community outreach/fundraiser for my church on March 15th. We were planning on doing a yard sale to help raise funds for missions and children's programs. Then, after talking to several people, I had the idea of making it a community event and it looks like we might bring in local businesses, have games and food available, and possibly even a blood bank bus come out! I'm really excited to help organize this event, but I don't have much time. I really want the main focus to be the community and forming relationships with them. They are our mission field right here outside our front door!

This is the reason for my excitement. I started reading in this magazine about how much our communities need us and how all we really need to do is reach out to them! We can't expect them to come banging down our doors. We have to go OUT to them, reach them where they are at, fulfill their real and physical needs, form relationships, and only then can we expect them to want to step into a church building. The articles shared shocking statistic after shocking statistic about how America is now the third most unreached nations. THIRD! At first I was astonished and thought, "How can that be?" Then, I started to think about who I was growing up and what I knew about Jesus: VERY little. I would even say embarrassingly little. How much less is it with the children and youth nowadays?

It has encouraged me to pray hard for the lost here. I know I am called to El Salvador, but while I am here in the states, you can bet I will do everything I can to reach as many lost in the states and as I speak at churches, continue to spread the fire and passion for missions HERE and abroad! As those of you that have heard me speak and know my heart, you know that I absolutely believe that missions begins at home. However, I have to say that a new fire was lit under me tonight and I am EXCITED and ANSY with anticipation to see what God will be doing over the next several months through my Bible study group, through the community outreach, and through me!

Please continue to pray for me, but I'm begging you to pray for the lost here in the US and then go out and minister to them. Befriend them. Make an eternal difference in their lives! I've caught the vision of the ripple effect that God is creating, starting with just one person, one church, one community!

Now, even though my spirit is eager and couldn't feel more alive right now, my body is tired. I hope to hear spectacular reports back from you about what God is doing in your life, your church, and your community. Good night...or maybe I should say Good morning. :)

He is showing His glory! - Photo

2008-02-03T22:56:00.006-06:00

So, today was a GREAT day! Actually, let me go back. Last week, someone unexpectedly walked up to me and gave me a check for $2,200. When I saw the check, I started to cry because of the faithfulness of God. He knows that my target date is coming up in May. He knows His plans for me. He knows I have been working hard and taking every open door He has placed in front of me and now He is opening even more opportunities. He is speaking into the hearts of those around me and they are obeying!

So, Friday I spoke to Kristen, the girl at headquarters that takes care of my account and gives me updates and she sent me an update so I would know where I stood as I prepared to share with City Church today. I talked to Pastor Eugene and he told me about how last month they had a missionary come through and the church was able to bless them with $1,5o0 and he just thought it would be so cool if they could try to get 10% of my remaining cash budget, to which I quickly agreed. I was in need of $12,ooo still in my cash budget and $1,200 would be SUCH an incredible blessing!

I got to share a little in the first adult service, where they prayed for me then quickly rushed over to share with the kids (some pictured to the left) while doing a fun little game. They loved having the opportunity to hear from a real person on the field and showed such genuine interest in helping out the kids of El Salvador.

The second service was in a very similar fashion as we showed my video and the pastor had some interview questions for me. Then, after the service was over and all was said and done, Pastor Eugene called me into his office to meet with the leadership team. There he revealed that between the two services, God was faithful, touched the hearts of his congregation, and had given $3000! That's over double what we were praying and hoping for! It was 25% of what was left of my general cash budget. PRAISE GOD!

You see, when God is in control, faithful, and grips the hearts of those around you, the returns are going to be much higher than we would ever expect or dream for. He is so faithful and worthy of our praise! Won't you join with me to sing praises of His glory today?

In about a week and a half, He has brought in over $5,ooo. I only have about $8,000 to raise for my cash budget and about $1,750 in monthly support. God is so good!

This is just the start to an incredibly busy month for me. I have an adult small group I'm speaking to Saturday, my church dedication on Sunday. Then, the 13th I have the entire Wednesday night service at a church for missions emphasis week. The 17th, I'll be speaking to the middle school group about giving to Speed the Light (STL) and helping missionaries even now. Then, the last weekend I'm hoping to be up in Bonifay, FL in the panhandle to visit a fellow intern and hopefully be sharing with a church there as well. Please be in prayer for the anointing to flow from my lips and from my hands and that lives are changed. I want others here in Central Florida to catch the fire for missions; the heartbeat of God!

Now it's time for rest. Until soon!

Sometimes He amazes me!

2008-01-31T20:53:00.001-06:00

The last two weeks have been something else. Last Thursday, I went to the Speed the Light (STL) lunch for our section and got to catch up with old friends, youth pastors, and got to meet Tom Greene, as he was the guest speaker.

I got to hear not only about how our own youth and children are getting involved in missions by fundraising and tithing to STL, but also about what our missionaries are able to do through their compassionate giving! It made me think back to previous summers at King's Castle and all that we do with STL equipment.

All of the fender sound systems, at least 6 evangelism trucks, most of the communications equipment, Brother Don's vehicle, the Kenyon's vehicle, and a mule used in Nicaragua were all bought with STL giving. That's just what I know about. I'm sure there's more. Through the North American's youth giving, people are able to hear the gospel in schools, street corners, churches, and anywhere and everywhere we set up a sound system. Through their giving, they can come down on missions trips and help SHARE the gospel. Through their giving, we are able to capture on tape, edit a video, and send these youth back to the United States filled with a passion for missions and a video to share about their week in El Salvador. Through their giving, we are able to go into the roughest terrained areas, where cars can't make it, but mules can to share the gospel of Jesus Christ. Because of their giving, missionaries are able to get to one side of the country for one event, and still make it to the other side of the country for another event the same day! Through their giving, we are able to spread the gospel on every street we drive through with the evangelism trucks that are required to be playing evangelism material everywhere they are taken. Tracts are given out at stop lights, to people on buses as they pass by, and the everlasting Word is being shared by loud speakers as they pass through the streets! PRAISE GOD FOR STL! If it weren't for our youth hearing the voice of God, giving faithfully and generously to missions, where would we, as missionaries, be?

Needless to say, God has really been speaking to me about the power and faith of the youth and children the last few months. It's just so awesome to see the faith of youth and the power that that faith has!

Praise God, I have continually been picking up support from one place or another and booking churches here and there to share my passion about missions with those around me and to hopefully get me to El Salvador in May. Just about my entire February is booked up and super busy, but I wouldn't have it any other way! I'm just thrilled to have the chance to share with others what has been so deeply penetrated in me.

Please continue to pray with me as I speak to churches, kids, youth groups, etc. to share my heart. Pray for annointing to flow from my mouth. Pray that my words are a blessing and just what someone needs to hear that day. Pray that my funds come in quickly, as time is growing short. Please pray that I get even more opportunities to speak and that my schedule quickly fills up before I leave. Pray for the World Warriors, that God is raising up the specific people he wants on the team and opening the doors for them to come, that they will be filled with the Holy Spirit and filled with annointing, that they will be changing the lives of those around them, and that they themselves be changed into what God is pleased with! Please let me know what I can be praying for you, so that I can stand in agreement with you.

There is more that I would like to share about World Warriors, but time is short and I need to be going. I will write soon with my thoughts, hopes, desires, and asperations for World Warriors this summer, 2008! Until then...

Be Blessed!

In His service until He returns,
Lisa Casady

Thank God for Open Doors!

2008-01-14T08:49:00.002-06:00

So, Thursday I went to Life Assembly in Kissimmee for a pastor's section meeting. Due to prior commitments, my own pastors were unable to go, so as I arrived, I started to chat with the other pastors right away. I went upstairs and was scoping out a table to sit at for lunch when all of a sudden I hear, "Lisa!"

I turned around to find Robert Martin, a good friend from high school and now traveling evangelist, sitting with a pastor that happens to be the husband of one of our old teachers. I joined his table and started to catch up with him. It was a definite unexpected surprise and it was good to see him again. If anyone would be interested in having him come speak, I'll be happy to give you his info!

Anyhow, I had sent out letters about a week before to all of the churches in my section, so when I got in line for food, I happen to be right behind Pastor Eugene Smith from City Church, who recognized me right away. He invited me to come speak at both services on February 3rd and the Children's Pastor, Pastor Dan, told me that the children's church would pick me up monthly and I could come speak at both of their services as well! Praise GOD! I also got the opportunity to speak at the Pastor's meeting and will be speaking at Life Assembly on May 4th!

Several other churches said they would be picking me up or be in contact with me. After the meeting I spoke with Pastor Matt Engle from Faith Assembly about the upcoming Speed the Light luncheon and will be attending that as well! I'm just SO excited to have so many opportunities to share my calling, spread the passions of missions, and be around other missions-minded people!

A good friend of mine, Pastor Eric Pio from Madison First in Indiana, will be here at the end of this month and I look forward to seeing him and some of his youth that are coming to College Days at Southeastern University. The 13th of February I have an entire Wednesday night that I will be speaking at during missions week at Calvary Assembly. Also, my home church, Trinity Assembly will be celebrating the dedication of our new sanctuary on February 10th!

Please be in prayer with me that God just continues to open the doors and that there is anointing over me in the services that I share in. Thanks for all of your prayer support and standing beside me!

It has begun... - Photos

2008-01-11T09:36:00.003-06:00

Hello all,

I created this blog so that supporters and friends could keep up to date with what God's doing in my life and the lives of others as I begin my missionary adventure through fundraising, ministering, and following the call of God on my life. Please feel free to comment and let me know what you are doing as well! God bless!