On our way to our second church, which was called “Rey de los of reyes” (King of kings). Since I know one song in Spanish contaning these words, I used it as an ice breaker with some of the people from that church. People really enjoy when an outsider tries to speak their native tongue. In my eyes that church seemed to be well organized especially for the medical team; the Children’s ministry seemed to have a very small room, but it had the advantage of avoiding distractions that a large room would create. One good point that the church had, was a PowerPoint presentation containing the Gospel message on the front screen in the main sanctuary. That was very clever on their behalf. That day there was a young man who was gay that came for some medical help; I was a bit uncomfortable because of his lifestyle, yet I realized that he also needed the Gospel. Ah, that language barrier, what an handicap. I felt bad of doing nothing to reach him; until Suzy stepped in to evangelize him. Well I certainly kept them in intense prayer for his conversion. Previously someone told me about one person who probably didn’t understand the Gospel. That day God gave me an opportunity to share with him the Wordless Book; when I invited him to respond to God’s invitation he responded positively and received Lord Jesus Christ as his personal Saviour. That person shared that he was surprised how easy it was to be saved. There is a book called “Jesus + Nothing = Everything”, it’s all grace, all we can do is accept God’s offer of Forgiveness through Jesus’s sacrifice on the cross on our behalf. We read in Rom 5:1 “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

That day I heard that one of the doctor’s name was Longworth; I knew a missionary named Longworth in Bénin, could they be related? The young Tico involved with the sound system did his best to connect with me, I wish I remembered his name. The first day went well. As a team we went back to El Jardin Sagrado tired but happy of the great privilege of serving our Lord Jesus in Costa Rica. So far during our time there, every day had been sunny but not too warm. Costa Rica is a great place to be! At Supper time we shared each team our report of the day. The Children Ministry team did adapt to the little room they had amazingly good. Great Team of experienced children’s workers, youth workers, and translators! It is a very demanding job to translate all day long; thank you Javier, Magali, Issac, Bairon, Marco, Jazmine and I know I am missing someone. The team spirit was very positive and joyful.

We didn’t visit any church that day. It is a time to catch up our breath and re-organize the different ministries for the next church. So most of the people work during the morning, then walk to the village the afternoon. The young people also went back to the village after supper for some ice cream. I work on the sermon I would deliver this coming Sunday at Tapanti church. Walking to the village, crossing the suspended brige,  was a very interesting experience. On my way I meet a man that was a cabinet maker. I told him that one of my sons share the same trade he does. I wish that I could communicate more with him, but the language barrier can on some occasion be frustrating. I personally enjoyed having the day off in the mid of the week. During the evening we went shopping at the Orosi general store.

The devotion I shared that day was “You got to believe that God does everything well.” It was based on a message I heard a few months previously. It is easy to believe when it goes well, but when time are difficult, it is a greater challenge.

Thursday
January 17, 2013
We left Cochrane to drive down to Ste. Catherine, ON where the Global Outreach Mission Office (GOM) is located. The weather was so bad, with wind factor it was -49C. I must add that my (23 year old car) heater rad was not functioning the best, it didn’t help. Only after two and half hours of driving did my windshield get cleared up completely. On my way, I became a bit discouraged with the difficult driving, almost to the point of turning back considering flying down instead. But the GOM office people needed our help to pack the medical stuff to be used down in Costa Rica. Finally when the sun showed up, the windshield defrosted quickly and completely, and the driving got way better.

Friday
January 18, 2013
After a good night’s sleep, we went to the GOM office to help pack all the supplies. There was a lot of work waiting for us! We packed in the morning, stopped for a pizza lunch, then continued packing for the rest of the afternoon. Many of the team members arrived near supper time and things really began to move! Finally we were all done and headed back to the dear couple’s home for a short night before the big day.

Saturday
January 19, 2013
Early we drove to Pearson Airport to catch our flight that would bring us to Costa Rica. What an exciting moment! We flew with TACA– Transportes Aéreos Centroamericanos (Central American Air Transport) now known as Avianca. It was a five and half hour flight with a stop to San Salvador, El Salvador. As the plane land down, God’s little voice seems to tell me that Gd cares deeply for those countries. El Savador, what a name for a country? That land was baptized by Spanish conquistadors as “Provincia De Nuestro Señor Jesucristo El Salvador Del Mundo” (“Province of Our Lord Jesus Christ, The Savior Of The World”), now abbreviated as “República de El Salvador”. After a brief stay we took our last flight that would bring us to our final destiny. There we packed all our belonging into a 28 seat minibus. Because the bagage were piled up on the roof, it reminded me so much of Africa. Unfortunately, Len lost one of his own bag with his personal belongings. On our way to the mission station, since it was getting very late, we stopped and invaded a small restaurant. The name of that establishment was “Pollo Del Monte”. A great little diner! There with the waiters I tried to express myself with the little Spanish I had; it was a fun experience. In some way Spanish is similar o French, but the pronunciation makes it so different. After a good meal with a lot of crazy times, we hit the raod again toward El Jardin Sagrado in the Orosi Valley. By night we didn’t see the beauty of that place; but in a few hours we would be out of breath. A beautiful valley surrounded by amazing mountains! Coffee plantations are all over the place.
I like how someone describes the place with its purpose: “Those who use the camp to enjoy the beautiful creation of God in this sanctuary of tropical flowers, fruit trees, mountains and rivers. Praise and worship with others or spend time alone with God in one of the ranches along the river. Located in the Valley of Orosi, the garden is a few miles from Cartago – and is a spiritual refuge from daily life in the city. The setting is perfect for retreats and Christian Camps!”

Sunday
January 20, 2013
My first Sunday in Costa Rica at El Jardin Sagrado. We did not go to a local church, but instead had a worship service on the campground. I had the privilege and joy of sharing the message and a devotion. A couple months earlier the Lord brought to my attention a couple messages that made a deep impact on my heart. I felt that it was the appropriate message to share with the Team. The main idea as that “God do not ask us to do Great things for Him, but IMPOSSIBLE things, so all the Glory would go back to Him alone.” Not long after a young translator came to ask me to teach him how to preach that way. This is so much the desire of my heart to reach young people who have a desire to serve God. There is also a brother from the Construction team who told me a few time how that teaching about “doing the impossible” stuck with him all along the time there in El Jarin Sagrado. To be used by God to bless other people is an amazing experience and privilege; yet at the same time I realized how unworthy I am. One of the leaders told me that I was sent by the Lord, because I was an encouragement to him.