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Today was our first day of serving, having never done this before, it was all a new experience for me. We left the hostel at 9 a.m. to go to our site, once we got there, it was amazing how much attention we grabbed. The people loved us, and the children were happier than I’ve ever seen anyone before. Even though I had NO idea what they were saying, we made due with a lot of pointing, and repeatedly saying “como se dice” and we would point at an object. The children really spoke to me the most, being in such poverty, yet they were all so happy. It really puts into perspective how truly blessed us Americans are, we just need to be reminded sometimes.
-Bryce for team WSM
Whether it’s the Costa Rican coffee cycling through my body or just the thrill waking up to the unknown, I have been amped-up since arriving on Sunday night. Today was my first day at the micro-finance site. I have a great team of four with two guys and our SI intern Courtney. We are three studly young men doing arts and crafts with with a group of women who have dealt with a high percentage of female missionaries all summer. Why God has placed us here I do not yet know, but after a successful first day with these amazing Costa Rican women, I look forward to seeing what is yet to come in this unlikely situation. What really energized me was our devotional time this morning. As a group we discussed an interesting scenario. Let’s face it, we live in a spiritually wrecked country, and unfortunately we are not alone in this. As we recognize this inother countries we leave on mission around the globe. In fact, since being in Costa Rica I have come across a number of missionary groups from the United States--one being from Sacramento. I know God has placed these people here for a reason, but it feels strange to me all the same. I wonder what it would be like for us to experience this at home. What if all of the countries we serve suddenly came to us? Missionaries from Costa Rica, Africa, and the Ukraine were now in our city. Just as we see a spiritual crisis in their country, they see one in ours. They would come to our doors to share the Gospel with us, but we would assure them that we are already Christians sadly saying, “It’s my neighbor you should worry about”. They wouldn’t leave at that, however, because of some general observations they have made about American Christianity. Are we really denying ourselves daily and taking up our cross for the Gospels sake? Statistics can point to a high number of Christians in this country, say 70%, but how many of us are actually living this out? That’s a different statistic: I’m thinking a little lower. Someone once said that out of 100 non-believers one may read The Bible, but 99 of them are reading you. I look forward to seeing what God will do in me with this “holy discontent”. I write this not to put down our country, or to be negative, but to share with you guys just one of many things God has placed on our hearts here in the beautiful country of Costa Rica.
--Dusty for team WSM