Colorado

I have been in Colorado for the past week and a half, first spending time with a friend from college, and then second, doing a week of training with EMI in Colorado. I climbed my first “fourteener”, as Coloradoans affectionately call any mountain that is over fourteen thousand feet, here in Colorado. My friend, his brother, and I climbed Mount Sherman. A few pictures from the excursion can be seen below. The conditions were a bit less than desirable on the way up and down (rain, sleet, and snow), but the weather remained clear while we were at the peak of the mountain.

Part of the old mining operation at the base of Mount Sherman.

Brad by part of the old mining operation while it is snowing/sleeting on us.

The view from the mountain.

On the way up Mount Sherman.

On top of Mount Sherman!

My time here has gone by quickly, but the Lord has been using it to daily remind me of His glory, holiness, power, and sovereignty. Through all the many teaching/training sessions, activities, worship, and rest/reflection times, I am able to begin to see how much God deserves (and really demands) my ENTIRE life. He has made us to glorify Him and worship Him with our whole lives each and every day.

Almost everything I have read these past few weeks in my Bible have lead to me think upon what it looks like to truly TRUST God with my circumstances, my relationships, my finances, my safety, and my “every little thing”. My biggest battle right now is living out daily a life that actually trusts in Him and a life that pursues righteousness and holiness. The easy route is to just remain complacent and do what I have always done, but that is not what we, as followers of Jesus Christ, are called to do and be.

While here training we have gone through a series of tests to evaluate our personality types, our spiritual gifts, and our strengths. If anyone is really interested, I can fill them in on what I discovered about myself throughout it all. The knowledge I gained from those tests really will be helpful with me as a pursue friendships and relationships both personally and professionally.

As we depart tomorrow for Costa Rica, please be praying for the following things:

• That we as a team continue to grow closer together.
• Our 2 weeks in language school are effective.
• We utilize our time with our Tico families, and encourage/minister to them.
• We are able to accurately communicate/be able to communicate with our Tico families.
• Pray that God gives us boldness to communicate the gospel of Christ to everyone we meet regardless of language barriers.

I always have so many thoughts that I am thinking about, so I hope that this blog entry is not too jumbled and confusing. Thank you all for your support and prayers! I am so close to being fully supported for the mission trip, so thank you all very much!!!

Below are pictures from our time of EMI training:

The Hideaway! Where we did a week of EMI training!

The view from the back of the Hideaway.

Just one of the views we had on our outdoor excursions.

Part of the group just having a little fun on one of our hikes.

The stone formation on the left is where we did our rock climbing.

Two of my friends that I met during our week of training. The guy on the left will be in Costa Rica.

Doing a little rock climbing

The Costa Rica Interns!

The Costa Rica team doing a little inside joke! =)

Lo Que Estoy Aprendiendo...

It has now been two weeks since flying back from Costa Rica, and in all honesty that seems so long ago. The month down there flew by and right now my time here feels as though it is moving at a snails pace. Don't get me wrong, I thoroughly enjoy the time with my family and close friends, however, I was given just a glimpse of what the fall is going to look like, and I cannot wait until I am able to return once more!

It is the sad but real truth, that more times than not it takes something big in your life for you to listen to God and make necessary changes in your life. Desafortunadamente, I was no exception and it took the two months leading up to the month trip and my time there to really wake me from my time of "slumber" with regards to my relationship with our Heavenly Father. Being in Costa Rica really showed me that I must fight for my time with the Lord, and how desperately I needed that time with Him each day! When you are immersed in a foreign culture and language it can be all consuming if you are not careful, and even when you are careful, there are days that seem to take control of you. I found that days where I did not make reading my Bible and praying a priority were days that I let Spanish and the culture get to me and be my all consuming focus. Those were also often the days that I did not do well with Spanish and found myself getting frustrated. Oh silly, silly me! =) It took a good week and a half to two weeks for me to realize this fact! And you know what? That truth hasn't changed for me here in the States! When we do not daily spend time with our Lord and Savior, we get caught up in all the activities, appointments, work, to-do lists, and even sins that fill our days. Each morning, you and I must give our day and our lives over to God, because as my pastor told me...God is the initiator and I am simply to learn and to cooperate with what He initiates, or another way to put it, God is the owner of my life and I am called to be the wise manager or steward of His property.

Also, God has been showing me how seriously He takes us living holy, righteous, and OBEDIENT lives for Him! I am learning that if I love Him as I say I do, then I am to obey Him as He asks me to. This is no easy task. I have had several things come up to where I want to go one direction and do something, but I know that God has clearly shown me that I am to go another, more difficult, direction. I know that God leads me as He does, because He desires to form us more into His image. I just don't like the fact that it hurts so much right now, but it is what is needed to turn me into a godly man of God.

Please pray for:

• The Costa Rican interns' spiritual and emotional preparation for the fall, our support raising, and our health.
• Safety and effectiveness as we travel to Haiti for our project trips.
• For continual language learning down there for all interns!
• That I daily CHOOSE to obey the Lord and seek a life of righteousness NO MATTER the costs or pain!

Finally, here are some pictures of my Tico family and my language school and classmates. I will make a point to posting pictures from this first trip on a Facebook album, just in case you would like to see more photos. Thank you again for your prayers, your support, and your love!

My Tico Family! Marcos & Maria...I really miss them!

Marcos never really would smile. I am not sure why! =) "Marcos, sonrisa!"

My Spanish conversation class!

Back Row (L to R): Profesor Arturo, Carla, and Sara

Front Row (L to R): Myself and Camden

School mates! Camden and Alanna

Our graduation performance.

Asi Es La Cosa!

It is difficult to believe that three and a half weeks have already passed and I am down to my last few days here at the language school. The time has been flying by and I feel like I have so much more that I want to learn! Everything takes time, and I know that in the coming months after I return, there will be more opportunities to learn and practice. I have a test today over the subjunctive verb tense, and that is a whole new realm for me! Just the next step in communicating in Spanish.

This past week we had a field-trip to a wood factory and got to see how they make wood furniture, jewelry, trinkets, etc. The trip was fun, but I definitely felt like the tourist that I am. Also, this past weekend I was fortunate enough to do a little white-water rafting. They were only class two or three, but it was quite a bit of fun! Pictures of both the wood factory and the rapids are below.

Here are pictures from the wood factory:

Here are pictures from white-water rafting:

On Sunday, I went with my host family to spend time with some of their family. We watched Costa Rica play Guadalupe and ate so much food! I know that I have gained a few pounds on this trip. =) The time with their family was fun, but I was definitely tired after the day. There was so much Spanish, and my mind could not take a break. However, my stamina for Spanish is getting longer which is a great thing!

It seems that everything in life is quickly whirling around me, and I feel stationary. However, I know that everything that has been going on is for my advancement with my relationship with the Lord. Please be praying that I remain attentive and receptive to what the Lord is doing in my life right now. There is so much that is out of my control, and I cannot and should not try to control any of it!

Probably the best thing that has been happening is that most evenings, after my family and I watch the news, I sit down and talk about things of the Bible and topics of the Lord with Marcos. It has been amazing at how the Lord has blessed my speech in the evenings to enable me to talk with him more about the Lord. I think that he is a believer, and from our conversations it sounds like he is, but it is a great opportunity for me to practice my Spanish and for both of us to think on things of the Lord.

Thank you all for your support, and as of now I am only $2,000 shy of being fully supported! Oh what a blessing you all are in my life!

Atenas!

This weekend I drove with another EMI couple that is studying at the language school to the city of Atenas. The city is appoximately an hour to an hour and a half northwest of the San Jose. On Saturday was a party to celebrate the leaving of all the interns that had been in the office during the spring and summer. It was fun, because we all met at a retreat center to each lunch, swim, play frisbee and soccer, and go traverse a nearby stream to see a couple waterfalls. At one of the waterfalls we were able to climb up on the wall and jump off into the pool, which was a first and a really fun experience. At the goodbye celebration, I was able to meet all the full-time staff and their familes.

This morning I attended one of the local churches in Atenas, and probably the church that I will be a part of here in Atenas. The people were very nice and the message was really good! The blessing was that I understood most everything that the pastor said. The Lord has been good to help me with my comprehension the entire time I have been down here. This afternoon, I was able to run by the office to see what it is like and to leave my big luggage here at the office so that I can travel light between now and when I return to Costa Rica. Below are a few pictures of the office. Hopefully they will give you an idea of where I will be working and participating in the engineering aspect of the ministry for the next four months.

Here is the outside of our office! We are on the corner of a shopping center and right across from the Atenas' central park.

These are the stairs I go down after entering the office to enter into the general meeting area.

Here is the general meeting area where we will have morning meetings and prayer times.

The next room over from the meeting area is where all the desks and offices are located. This is one side of the open area.

This is another view of the same side of the office. The office has a large open area that is divided into three sections where most everyone sits and works.

Here is one of the two actual offices found at the EMI Costa Rican office.

I am now halfway through the language school and I ask that you pray for me in several ways:

• That I can continue to learn Spanish, but not let it be all consuming. It is very easy right now to let learning Spanish take up your entire day, and that is definitely something that I do not want.
• That I can continue to effectively communicate with my host family.
• It is strange hearing my Tico family calling me a missionary. That is not something that I would ever have called myself. So please pray that I understand what it means to be a messanger and follower of Christ. In reality, you and I have always been and always are missionaries for the Lord. I feel like we very often forget that fact. Pray that I daily remember that I am a messanger of the Lord.
• The day seems to go by quickly. Pray that I set aside more time to spend reading and journalling. I get tired a lot here because I am constently studying and learning, so at times I find myself falling asleep when I sit down to read in the evenings. I am getting more adjusted, but it is still difficult.

Thank you all for your prayers and support! It is my hope to post some pictures of the language school and some of the area where I live.

¡Un Fin De Semana de Primeros!

I am just now starting my second week here in San Fransico, which is a small suburb outside of San José. I am pretty sure I have already said this, but it is amazing how quickly time is passing. Before I know it, my time here at the language school will be finished, and I will be back in the States for four weeks before I return for the mission trip. I still am having good days and bad days with understanding Spanish and conversing with people, but it is beginning to get better.

Let me give you an insight into what a standard day looks like for me. I wake up between 6am and 7am. I eat breakfast with my family. A standard breakfast consists of bread with butter and jelly, beans, rice, fruit, maybe an egg, and café con leche. I then go workout for a little bit at a park by my house. After my workout, I get a shower and get ready for the day. From there, I talk with my family for an hour or so, before I head to The Spanish Institute (ILE) to study and do my homework for the day. After my studies I might hope on a computer, like I am doing now, to catch up on emails, and to Skype family and friends. At noon, I head back to the house for lunch. After lunch, I go back to ILE for classes, which are from 1:30pm to 4:05pm. I have an hour of grammer and two hours of conversation. In my grammer class we are going over the different verb tenses, and in my conversation class we are just working on expanding our vocabulary and speaking more clearly and proficiently. After my classes I head back to my family´s house for coffee and a snack. Then we all talk and watch the news together. At 7pm(ish) we each dinner and converse and watch T.V. more. Around 9pm or 9:30pm we shut down for the night, and from 9:30pm to 10pm I try to take time to read and journal. I definitely have not journaled as much as I want to, but hopefully I can write more. The following pictures, are of my room and the house I am staying at.

Here is the front of the house where I am staying.

This is my bedroom.

My bedroom from another angle.

This is the kitchen.

Here is the dining room.

The living room where I watch the News with my family.

This past weekend had many firsts for me. It was my first time to visit a volcano! I visited Volcán Barva, which is a dormat volcano outside of a town called Sacrimento. The trip was quite the adventure! There were five of us, and I only knew one person before the trip. None of us knew exactly where and how we were supposed to go. Fortunately, the only girl on the trip knows how to speak Spanish well, and she also had a travel book. So after many questions, several bus rides, a ¨pirate¨ taxi ride, and a nice long, steep trek we finally made it to the park. I am posting pictures, but they definitely do not give the volcano justice. The trek inside the park was very pretty! After our trip to the valcano, we had a really good late lunch at this small restuarant in Sacramento. Before I got back to my house, I got to explore downtown San José. The downtown has lots of little shops and is kind of dirty, but I like it. There is the national Art Museum, Cathedral, and theatere. The following pictures show some of the trip to the volcano as well as some of downtown San José.

My companions for the trip.

This is the crater of the volcano.

The restaurant we ate lunch at.

The restuarant from the inside.

Downtown San José

The Costa Rican National Cathedral.

The National Art Museum.

This weekend was also the first time I have gone to a Cathlic church. The service was very intersting. I understood the general idea of the message, but definitely did not understand most of it. I felt a little out of place, but it was not too bad. Last night I went to a Bible study with my host mom, and it was really neat, becuase I got to listen to many more people speak in Spanish. At first, I was trying really hard to understand what everyone was saying, and I couldn´t understand anything. However, it wasn´t until I quite trying that I finally could understand their words. The Lord was showing me last night that I cannot do things better just because I try harder. Rather, I have to let go and give things over to Him, and trust that He is in control. I met thirteen new and amazing people, and I met a guy who is just a few years older than me, that wants to hang out some these next few weeks!

It is nice because I am finally starting to feel at home here. It is sad that I will only be here for a couple more weeks.

¡Muchas Cosas Nuevas!

I arrived here safely this past Sunday! My flights were on-time without any problems. The only glitch in any thing was that I did not call anyone to let them know that I was okay and had arrived safely to Costa Rica! I did not have access to a phone that worked or internet access. Sorry everyone! =/ I really did want to talk with you all!

My family here is very nice. They are a brother and sister in their late fifties maybe early sixties. The sister, Maria, knows some English, so when I have questions and I don´t know how to ask it in Spanish, she will let me ask in English. However, it is awesome talking with her brother, Marcos, because he does not know any English, so I have to struggle through communicating with him. I really enjoy it, because it forces me to think in Spanish more. Each night, Marcos and I talk about a topic in the Bible. It is really neat getting to relay my beliefs in the Lord to him in Spanish! The language barrier is tough, especially in the morning when I am first waking up, but all in all we can communicate well and I seem to understand them and they understand me. I could not ask for a better living situation. The food is really good, and I will not be suprised if I gain weight while I am here. =)

Classes have been good so far. I am in intermediate classes and surprisingly understand pretty much everything that my teachers are saying. I must admit that they speak slowly and clearly for us. There is much for me to study, but fortunately I can practice and apply everything that I am learning. The only problem is that there is so much to know! Without a good vocabulary it is difficult to understand people and to have a good conversation with those around me. However, in time my vocabulary will grow.

At some point I will try to post some pictures of the school, the neighborhood, and my Tico family´s house. For now, just imagine an urban area with beautiful mountains in the background!