Monday, June 14, 2010
Groups are back!
We had a great time last week hosting a group of college students from Virginia. These were social work students who were in Costa Rica for 3 weeks to take a social work class and Spanish class and then came for a week of service to our temporary foster care, the Bible Home. Most of the students were not believers, but what they saw here was a true witness of God´s love and work. We had good conversations with them and, even more, they fell in love with our children and saw the children´s faith and love just radiate out of them. We appreciated the students good attitude and patience in painting in 2 of the houses. One of the house mothers shared what a difference having freshly painted rooms has on the children´s motivation. We are so grateful to have groups coming throughout the summer. It was a department goal to have 15 groups this year and I am happy to report that we will have reached that goal by the end of the summer. Praise God!
Another goal for our department was to increase the number of sponsors for our children. Right now only about 60% of our children are sponsored so the goal was to get 300 new sponsors. Our biggest source of new sponsors this year has been our volunteers who have come and seen the impact of Roblealto on the kids and want to continue their partnership. In some cases, 50% of the groups have become new sponsors! But we want to continue to seek out new sponsors because of the difference it makes on the children. I translated a letter from a child to her sponsor the other week and she said, ¨It makes me happy that I have a friend in another country that thinks of me.¨ Obviously the monetary support makes a difference on our programs, but the deeper impact is that a child will feel loved and cared for by someone in another country! This is such a blessing on our children. Will you consider becoming a sponsor? Check out the video above and/or take a look at our website for more info and to sign up! The cost is just $30 a month. Click here for website.
Thanks for considering sponsorship and for your continued prayers and support of our year here! Much love!
Another goal for our department was to increase the number of sponsors for our children. Right now only about 60% of our children are sponsored so the goal was to get 300 new sponsors. Our biggest source of new sponsors this year has been our volunteers who have come and seen the impact of Roblealto on the kids and want to continue their partnership. In some cases, 50% of the groups have become new sponsors! But we want to continue to seek out new sponsors because of the difference it makes on the children. I translated a letter from a child to her sponsor the other week and she said, ¨It makes me happy that I have a friend in another country that thinks of me.¨ Obviously the monetary support makes a difference on our programs, but the deeper impact is that a child will feel loved and cared for by someone in another country! This is such a blessing on our children. Will you consider becoming a sponsor? Check out the video above and/or take a look at our website for more info and to sign up! The cost is just $30 a month. Click here for website.
Thanks for considering sponsorship and for your continued prayers and support of our year here! Much love!
Saturday, June 5, 2010
In some ways May was quiet (we didn't have any groups at Roblealto) and in other ways, it was busy! With just 2 months left, Emily posted a list of places in CR we want to see before we leave. One was Guanacaste, which is the northwest part of Costa Rica with a lot of beaches and where a lot of Americans travel. It was VERY hot, but we enjoyed the beach and the time we spent time with our good friends Mike and Kathy who invited us on their wedding anniversary trip. :) We also just had our final visitors - two of Emily's college roommates. We enjoyed taking them to the Caribbean side, which we had yet to visit. It was really hot there too and we decided we are thankful to be living in the cooler central valley. But it was great catching up with Liz and Liz and showing off this beautiful country. They enjoyed the animals, the Spanish, the ocean, the coffee, and the relaxation as they are both exhausted teachers.
This coming week, we will be working with a group of students with a Spanish Academy who are doing some painting at our temporary shelter, the Bible Home. We are happy to be done with our marketing project: researching new church contacts for Roblealto. We have 840 new contacts for them to advertise to and we'll be sending out a mailing to invite the churches to come on a mission trip before we go. It's exciting to think about all the new churches that could get to know Roblealto's mission! Emily continues to enjoy helping with translating letters and reports when she can.
The job search continues and we appreciate your prayers. We're grateful for a couple of interviews Mark has had and for a couple of preaching dates he's set up for when we return. We'll see where God leads! Much love!
This coming week, we will be working with a group of students with a Spanish Academy who are doing some painting at our temporary shelter, the Bible Home. We are happy to be done with our marketing project: researching new church contacts for Roblealto. We have 840 new contacts for them to advertise to and we'll be sending out a mailing to invite the churches to come on a mission trip before we go. It's exciting to think about all the new churches that could get to know Roblealto's mission! Emily continues to enjoy helping with translating letters and reports when she can.
The job search continues and we appreciate your prayers. We're grateful for a couple of interviews Mark has had and for a couple of preaching dates he's set up for when we return. We'll see where God leads! Much love!
Monday, May 17, 2010
Connecting to the ministry
We are in the middle of May with two and a half months left here and with no idea of where God wants us to be next. We are praying for our next step more than I think we've ever prayed for anything. Coming to Costa Rica seemed so much easier than where we are at right now. We knew we were coming about 8 months ahead of time. God provided our position here, our house we are renting, found us renters for our condo, provided financially through dear friends and family, etc. It was literally one thing after the next, everything fell into place. We are so thankful for that because we've never had a doubt we were supposed to be here. Even when things were a little tough this year, we KNEW that God called us to Roblealto.
But now, we really have no idea where God is calling us next. We were hoping we'd know by the time we left Costa Rica at the end of July, but we're beginning to wonder if that will happen. So we keep praying for guidance and wisdom. Thank you for your prayers. There are a few church possibilities right now, but we'll have to see where they lead. What we do know is that as God was faithful to us this year, he will be faithful to us in the next year. And we are grateful for that assurance.
One thing that has recently been a blessing for me (Emily) is helping our department with translating the last couple of weeks. I've been reading and translating letters from the kids here who are writing to their sponsors. They say really cute things such as one little boy who wrote to his sponsor: ¨Today I'm going to play soccer and all the goals I score I will dedicate to you.¨ I've also helped translate progress reports that are sent once a year to sponsors about their kids. These are reports that the instructors and social workers fill out about how the child is doing, what he or she is interested in, and what the family situation is. The reports are sometimes hard to read because the families are in such severe poverty, often are single mothers, maybe the child has been abused or the parent has lost their job. It's one thing to know these things about the population we serve and another to read about specific cases and translate them for the sponsors. We want to be honest about the difficulties the families face so that sponsor will know how much their support is needed.
Although hard, this translating has been a blessing because it's made me feel close to the ministry of Roblealto. We are often in our office working on our computers and it's easy to feel distant from what Roblealto is all about. But with these reports I was reminded that what Roblealto does is so important and necessary. The children have a safe place to stay while their families receive classes and support to heal and be able to provide for their children. God is at work and using Roblealto to minister to the families and children. And that is what this place is all about.
But now, we really have no idea where God is calling us next. We were hoping we'd know by the time we left Costa Rica at the end of July, but we're beginning to wonder if that will happen. So we keep praying for guidance and wisdom. Thank you for your prayers. There are a few church possibilities right now, but we'll have to see where they lead. What we do know is that as God was faithful to us this year, he will be faithful to us in the next year. And we are grateful for that assurance.
One thing that has recently been a blessing for me (Emily) is helping our department with translating the last couple of weeks. I've been reading and translating letters from the kids here who are writing to their sponsors. They say really cute things such as one little boy who wrote to his sponsor: ¨Today I'm going to play soccer and all the goals I score I will dedicate to you.¨ I've also helped translate progress reports that are sent once a year to sponsors about their kids. These are reports that the instructors and social workers fill out about how the child is doing, what he or she is interested in, and what the family situation is. The reports are sometimes hard to read because the families are in such severe poverty, often are single mothers, maybe the child has been abused or the parent has lost their job. It's one thing to know these things about the population we serve and another to read about specific cases and translate them for the sponsors. We want to be honest about the difficulties the families face so that sponsor will know how much their support is needed.
Although hard, this translating has been a blessing because it's made me feel close to the ministry of Roblealto. We are often in our office working on our computers and it's easy to feel distant from what Roblealto is all about. But with these reports I was reminded that what Roblealto does is so important and necessary. The children have a safe place to stay while their families receive classes and support to heal and be able to provide for their children. God is at work and using Roblealto to minister to the families and children. And that is what this place is all about.
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Living in Costa Rica Means...
After living in Costa Rica for 9 months, we've come to take for granted what is normal for us now... We've adjusted, in general, to life here. But as we think about preparing to move back to the US, we don't want to forget day-to-day life here. For us, living in Costa Rica means...
- Looking out our window to gorgeous mountains
- Eating fruits and vegetables we've never heard of before
- Having fresh pineapple and mangoes every week at our house
- Seeing men in rubber boots cutting grass with machetes
- Watching smoke come out of the top of a volcano
- Driving only an hour and half to the nearest beach and the Pacific Ocean
- Sharing a car, a house, a job and being together 24/7
- Working at an organization that is meeting REAL needs
- Seeing Roblealto's mission through fresh eyes when volunteers come
- The sun setting suddenly at 6:00 pm all year long
- The sun directly over head at noon
- Cows living on either side of us
- Eating in open-air restaurants
- Driving by coffee plantations on the way to work
- Walking through rain forests
- Baking blackberry pies with berries from our landlord's garden
- Worshiping in Spanish
- Talking to family on skype
- Seeing the most beautiful rainbows
- Throwing used toilet paper in the trash
- Getting hot water from the shower to wash our dishes
- Planning our day around the afternoon rain
- Shooing chickens and dogs out of our kitchen
- Learning how to cook differently
- Not being able to find ingredients for recipes we're used to
- Learning to kill really big spiders
- A bigger perspective on God's work in the world
- Connecting with people across cultures just because we all love Jesus
- Meeting families struggling in desperate communities
- Falling in love with the children at Roblealto
- Never having to wear a winter jacket or drive in snow
- Learning how to drive defensively, but rarely driving over 45 mph
- Being trusted by the Roblealto staff with real ministry
- Reading a psalm in the morning and praying together more consistently
- Relying on friends and family's prayers
- Seeing God's faithfulness over and over
- Seeking God's direction for the future
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Busy, busy
"Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain." 1 Cor. 15:58
This last week has been busy at work.... but the tedious kind of busy. We've been researching new church contacts for Roblealto. We've been online looking at literally hundreds of websites and looking at their mission involvement. We are writing down contact information for them and sending these churches an email invitation to get involved at Roblealto. We know this initial contact might not get new churches, but it's part of a larger marketing plan we are developing to spread the news about Roblealto and get more churches in a partnership with the organization. Please pray with us for this new venture! In the past, a missionary has traveled to the US to present Roblealto to churches, so this is a new technique - we are inviting new churches here to fall in love with the kids and join in God's work instead of us going there. I've (Emily) been holding tight to the above verse knowing that no matter what the outcome is, we are working for the Lord here and it will not be in vain.
Mark continues to look into several churches and we continue to seek the Lord for guidance. We know He will provide. Some of the churches will be in contact about interviews in the next couple of months so we will see!
I have found a new hobby - baking pies! I've done blackberry, strawberry and tonight, lemon meringue. It's been a lot of fun and Mark, our visitors, and our co-workers have really benefited! Maybe when we are home, you'll get to try a piece! Much love!
This last week has been busy at work.... but the tedious kind of busy. We've been researching new church contacts for Roblealto. We've been online looking at literally hundreds of websites and looking at their mission involvement. We are writing down contact information for them and sending these churches an email invitation to get involved at Roblealto. We know this initial contact might not get new churches, but it's part of a larger marketing plan we are developing to spread the news about Roblealto and get more churches in a partnership with the organization. Please pray with us for this new venture! In the past, a missionary has traveled to the US to present Roblealto to churches, so this is a new technique - we are inviting new churches here to fall in love with the kids and join in God's work instead of us going there. I've (Emily) been holding tight to the above verse knowing that no matter what the outcome is, we are working for the Lord here and it will not be in vain.
Mark continues to look into several churches and we continue to seek the Lord for guidance. We know He will provide. Some of the churches will be in contact about interviews in the next couple of months so we will see!
I have found a new hobby - baking pies! I've done blackberry, strawberry and tonight, lemon meringue. It's been a lot of fun and Mark, our visitors, and our co-workers have really benefited! Maybe when we are home, you'll get to try a piece! Much love!
Monday, April 19, 2010
Fun with visitors
We´ve had 2 weeks of visitors which has been so much fun! First, Emily´s mom and sister came for 10 days. Highlights included Krista getting to meet her sponsored child at one of Roblealto´s child care centers, taking mom and Krista to our Spanish-speaking church for Easter, being on a white-sand beach (the nicest we´ve seen yet in Costa Rica) and doing the canopy where we did 8 zip lines through the rainforest and mom didn´t even scream!
The day after mom and Krista left, Emily´s college friends Becki and Liz came. Emily enjoyed spending time with the girls and taking them to Arenal volcano and the hot springs while Mark stayed home and worked - sorry honey, but I needed some girl time!
We were lucky to be able to take time off to host our visitors and now we are back to work! We are continuing a project to get more churches involved with Roblealto and researching to find possible churches online. Our goal is 500 new church contacts for Roblealto. We also continue to pray for positive responses from the foundations we have looked into and hoping that they will sense God's leading to become involved in the Los Guido Child Care Center.
We actually have a lot of prayer requests right now and would appreciate continued prayers from you. We lost our renters for our condo back home due to some family emergencies they had and although we've been earnestly seeking for new renters, we haven't had any luck yet. This is an unplanned financial strain for us and we pray that we can find new short-term renters so we are not paying our rent and mortgage at the same time. We are also beginning the interview process for a new church for when we return to the states at the end of July. Mark has an interview tomorrow night with a church in Wisconsin. We are praying for God's leading to a new church which will share our vision of ministry and be a great place for us to live for the next 10-15 years. It's a very big deal! We appreciate your prayers for opportunities for Mark to interview and for God's leading to be clear as we make these important decisions.
As always, thank you for your prayers and love. We definitely feel them from here and ask that you don't stop as we continue our time here at Roblealto! Much love!
The day after mom and Krista left, Emily´s college friends Becki and Liz came. Emily enjoyed spending time with the girls and taking them to Arenal volcano and the hot springs while Mark stayed home and worked - sorry honey, but I needed some girl time!
We were lucky to be able to take time off to host our visitors and now we are back to work! We are continuing a project to get more churches involved with Roblealto and researching to find possible churches online. Our goal is 500 new church contacts for Roblealto. We also continue to pray for positive responses from the foundations we have looked into and hoping that they will sense God's leading to become involved in the Los Guido Child Care Center.
We actually have a lot of prayer requests right now and would appreciate continued prayers from you. We lost our renters for our condo back home due to some family emergencies they had and although we've been earnestly seeking for new renters, we haven't had any luck yet. This is an unplanned financial strain for us and we pray that we can find new short-term renters so we are not paying our rent and mortgage at the same time. We are also beginning the interview process for a new church for when we return to the states at the end of July. Mark has an interview tomorrow night with a church in Wisconsin. We are praying for God's leading to a new church which will share our vision of ministry and be a great place for us to live for the next 10-15 years. It's a very big deal! We appreciate your prayers for opportunities for Mark to interview and for God's leading to be clear as we make these important decisions.
As always, thank you for your prayers and love. We definitely feel them from here and ask that you don't stop as we continue our time here at Roblealto! Much love!
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