cOsTa RiCa!!!!!

Can I just say... 

I AM PUMPED ABOUT COSTA RICA!!!! 

We leave in one month and 2 days! That's nuts! I haven't talked about it much... because... honestly... I've been a little afraid of the trip. I have been fearful that we wouldn't raise the money, that I had no purpose in the trip, and that it wouldn't work out.  Gosh... I should learn the things I teach. In my head I knew God had it all under control... no problem for Him... but my heart had issues. 

BUT (isn't that a great word when you are talking about God working)... we had a meeting last night with the team... and OH WOW... God is so good. 

First... the money is coming in! We only have about $1,000 left to raise! That's it! That's huge considering at the beginning of January we were short about... $20,000! 

Second, my purpose issue... God totally slapped me in the face. We were talking about the schedule for the days we would be in the village (I'll explain in a bit), and guess what we get to do each morning! BIBLE STUDY WITH THE WOMEN!!! Yep! That is my heart and God is allowing us to do that first thing each morning! God knows me and He loves me and He knows exactly how to confirm that we are in the right place in personal ways.

Now... let me tell you where we are going and what we are doing.

We are going to a village on a mountain... Here's some info to give you some perspective:

*We have to hike 2 hours up a mountain in the rainforest after a 2 hour drive to the trail to even reach the village. We'll get to see toucans and monkeys on the path!!!! ...And we 'get to' carry backpacks up the mountain with all our junk in it... hmmm...
*The first time this tribe of people was reached with the Gospel was 2 years ago by a Swiss missionary.
*They do not truly know the concept of marriage - many of them just 'pair up' when they are 13-14 years old. 
*Many of the families have one man and many wives. The woman in the village feel very unloved and insignificant because of this.  Get this - God is going to use us to tell them and hopefully show them HOW MUCH they are loved by the King and Romancer of the universe!!! Yahoo! 
*The men work in the fields all day everyday and return back to the village each night.
*We have the privilege of leading youth Bible studies in the afternoons! This is exciting! We have the opportunity to talk with them about families - here on earth and the family of God! We get to speak truth into the next generation of leaders in the village!!! 
*There is a school in the village... aka a big enough building to fit all the children. 
*There is a church in the village.
*They have electricity and WIFI - I know we are just as surprised as you!
*We'll be sleeping in hammocks! We will wake up with chickens and horses staring at us.
*We get to play with beautiful kids in the afternoon!!!!!
*We MIGHT or might NOT get a shower. I'll be fine with my Baby Wipes! 

Now that you kind of know what we are going to be experiencing... HOW AWESOME IS THAT!?!? 

It's pretty hilarious because none of us really knew what we were signing up for... we just wanted to be used... so we said YES! 
We got to see some pictures of the village yesterday (our team leader went down last week to set up our trip and sent us some pics). It's beautiful and heart breaking. We are all so excited about going... and nervous because we have know idea what we are doing! 

PLEASE be in prayer for us.  There's so much to pray. Just pray for God to take over in every way. That lives are changed. That we are humble servants. That we love each other and the villagers well. I know our parents and family would want us to pray for safety... and please do... but pray most of all that God is gloried... whatever that means.  

I love our team... absolutely love them! God is so smart when He puts mission teams together! Check us out (I know they'll appreciate the great pics): 

Our Amazing Team: 

my hubs and leader man... Jacob

Matt

Haley & Hunter

Kirsten

Stephanie & Presley

Will

Me & Caitlin 

Andrew

Austin

If it seems we are crazy, it is to bring glory to God..
2 Corinthians 5:13