Feliz Navidad!

Newsletter for the Holidays

     It is hard to believe that 2 months have already passed by! We are learning a lot of Spanish, and we are finding as many opportunities as we can to practice what we have learned with the locals also known as Ticos. All our teachers have been so kind and patient, and the entire missionary family has been like our extended family.  Not only are we learning the language, we are also learning how to live in community with different people from different backgrounds. This is a great training ground for what we can expect to encounter on the mission field. 

     In addition to being in school, we are always finding ways to immerse ourselves in the culture. We attended a class trip to Museo de Cultura Popular. This is a museum that shows a traditional Costa Rican home in the old days; a garden that  shows how we can have plants in small patio areas using recyclable items such as juice bottles and tires; a gallery of paper mache masks used for certain Costa Rican traditional holidays; and a tutorial on how to make bread using an old brick oven. 

    We also had a chance to serve with our missionary friends, the Adams family, who works at a local elementary school called Los Cuadros. This school is located in an area that is very close to where there is high occurrence of drug and gang-related activity. We had a chance to help the Adams family teach English to students who are in need to see the love of Jesus and to experience His goodness. 

Photo with all of our teachers

A class presentation about El Salvador

At the Museo de Cultura Popular

With the Adams family

Helping at Los Cuadros

PRAISE REPORTS

1. First, we would like to thank all our new and existing partners for helping us raise our monthly budget this month. We are still looking for monthly partners who would like to join our team!

2. A few weeks ago, we learned that I had two polyps in my endometrium. We suspect that these polyps were causing several symptoms in the past that caused pain and discomfort for several months. We were worried about having the surgery, but all the doctors were very skilled and attentive. The surgery was performed on November 10, and everything went well. I did not feel any pain after the surgery, and the biopsy results came back normal. God is good!

Hospital Clinica Biblica where I had my surgery

3. We had an opportunity to pray for a Christian Tica who owns a restaurant close to our apartment. She had expressed that her business was not doing so good, and was asking God if she should close down her business. After a week, we heard reports that her business is doing so good that the restaurant is always filled with customers all day, and  that they even had to hire a driver to provide delivery services. We give God all the glory for this answered prayer!

Our photo with Glenda, the restaurant owner

    As the weeks go by quickly, we are realizing that this will be our first Thanksgiving and Christmas away from family. Thankfully, we will have  Phil's parents and sister coming to visit us on Christmas day. However, we are sad that we will be far from my mom who is still in California undergoing 16 sessions of radiation. We are believing that God is with her, and that she will be covered in prayer and surrounded with other family members to encourage and support her through this difficult season.

     This coming Thanksgiving, we are remembering all the things that God has given us. What a privilege it is to be here in Costa Rica to learn Spanish. Instead of complaining about the things that we do not have, we want to set our minds on being thankful on the things God has given us. We are thankful that we are here together as one healthy family; we are thankful that we live in a safe and comfortable environment; and we are thankful that we can spend some good quality time with each other. These are things that are blessings from God that cannot be fulfilled by our own strength.

 Happy Thanksgiving and Feliz Navidad to everybody!