Opened doors for the Gospel - June Praise Reports from Costa Rica !!!

Dear friends in Jesus Christ !

“To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven” (v1)

He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end. I know that nothing is better for them than to rejoice, and to do good in their lives, – Ecclesiastes 3:11-12

Reading this chapter the Lord had me reflect on time, change, purpose and His will. As I read through the list of things that Salomon says there is time for (V2 through V8), (by the way I personally love this list of opposites, I love the contrast = )), I find that some have a positive connotation to me and some don’t but still it says there’s time for all of these circumstances in life. We often times know that Christian life is not supposed to be a “perfect life” or a life without difficulties, however, we often loose sight of the fact that trials will come, and it has been promised to us that those difficult things are to happen too. The encouraging thing is found in V1! It’s just a season, which means it won’t last forever and a change will come eventually! That gives us hope in Jesus in the trial. And the second thing found in V1 is that there’s a purpose for that to happen! Since we’ve given our lives to Jesus, we know and need to be reminded of the fact that He now owns our life and all the events in it are planned and purposeful according to His wil! This gives us faith in Jesus in the trial! So hope and faith in the trial !!! But, what about those seasons in which we don’t find ourselves in a trial? What about those seasons of apparent calmness, peace and stability? Do I also think of them as just for a season and as meant for a purpose by the Lord? I also need to focus on the hope and faith in Jesus in those seasons, because I can also loose focus during those and get too comfortable or inactive spiritually! Well, whether in trial, or calmness, in storms or peace, in the desert or the mountain tops, let’s acknowledge His hand in it and His perfect timing, and that makes it beautiful (v11). Let’s accept His will for this season of our lives, let’s choose to rejoice over what He’s doing, for it’s His timing and not ours. 

V11 tells me of a contrast: God has placed eternity in our hearts, for we know there’s much more than this we see, for we long to transcend and go to heaven and spend eternity with God, nevertheless, we are still humans and we can not view, understand or figure out the work of God from beginning to end. Remember: “How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out. For who has known the mind of the Lord?
Or who has become His counselor?” (Rom11.33-34). His work in history, and in our individual lives is way greater and more complex than we think!!! Paula, don’t try to figure it all out based on your current season, or in the trend found in the last 3 seasons He allowed in your life! THERE’S NO WAY to figured it out and understand it all but THERE IS A WAY to embrace and rejoice in the season He’s allowing in my life now, to acknowledge it comes from Him and to be hopeful for He’s making a beautiful puzzle with my life! I encourage you to rejoice and give Him the glory for what Jesus is doing in your life so far this year, and be expecting and hopeful for what He will bring next, knowing the He makes everything beautiful in its time! = )

Let me share with you a bit of what’s going on down here during the past month:

WOMEN’S MINISTRY “En Sus Manos”

Thanks so so much for your prayers for this ministry. The kick off meeting on Saturday, June 8 was a total blessing not only to us serving but also to the women that came and expressed their grateful hearts for this ministry! We prepared special worship music, Annie shared the vision and intent of this ministry based on being clay in His hands, Shaviane shared her testimony, and we also prepared a special gift for each woman as we start the study of Philippians, a journal with fabric cover. We had a sweet time of fellowship and encouragement and most women we invited came! Praise Jesus!. Please continue to pray for the women that came and for God to inspire them to keep coming, growing and even inviting other friends that need Jesus! Specifically, I ask you to pray for Wendy, a new girl, single mom, that came invited by her sister Susana (the girl that works at the Cake Place I wrote about last month). It was her first time in a long long time to hear the Word and to have fellowship with women that love God. She was truly impacted and encouraged to come back but did not come to our last meeting or bible study!!! Let’s pray the Holy Spirit places in her a desire to accept and know Jesus as her Lord and Savior! We also had a second meeting this month, and Annie started with Philippians 1, and it was so good !!!. Please pray also for me as I start to study and prepare to teach the group in August. I continue to be amazed at God’s word and it’s power to touch us and transform us! Praise Jesus for His Word! May it accomplish His work in me first and grow me in joy and grace!!!

I want to share with you about Gabby! She’s been faithfully coming to the study for approximately a year and a half, practically since the start. God has placed a special love and connection with Gabby. We are good friends in the Lord. As part of discipleship and friendship, I meet up with her once a week for lunch, share about the Bible and what God is doing in our lives, pray and talk! She works on Saturdays so cannot join us for the women’s meeting. Please pray for her, for strength in the Lord in her daily battles, for consistency in her walk and for deeper growth in her that translates in convictions and decisions for Jesus! She’s such a treasure to me here! And I’m pretty sure, she’s one of those special divines appointments that tells me clearly why I’m here now!

ORPHANAGE “HOGAR AMA”

As part of the outreach to the community, we, as staff, go to “Hogar Ama”, a local all-boys orphanage at a walking distance from the Bible College house. We usually visit every other week and get to hang out with the kids, play soccer, or other group games with them, and just talk to them and hear what’s going on in their lives in the orphanage! There’s a total of 18 boys from age 5 to age 13. Many kids are there due to family violence, abuse, abandonment or any type of sexual misconduct. It’s a Catholic orphanage, ran by a friar however, we have built a pretty good relationship with them, so they allow us to share with the kids about Jesus, and about the Word without restrictions, Praise Jesus for that !!! Please pray that the door continues to be open for us to go, love on them and have fun and share about the Gospel of Jesus with them! For the Lord to show us a series of topics or stories to go thru with them, that will nourish their faith in Jesus and Jesus alone and that will fill them with faith and hope for their future with Jesus in their lives! Here is a recent picture! Keep them all in prayer please!!!

FERNANDO OBANDO

I still have not had any contact with Fernando!!! I have called the PANI (Government Institution) several times trying to get information on where he’s been placed but no specific information has been given to me. It seems like he’s been assigned to an orphanage already! I am determined to going there this week and for God to give me grace with one of the social workers that will help me and approve me to visit Fernando! Please keep this in prayer, for the Lord to open a door for me to be able to visit him even though I’m not his relative !!! I will update on this on my next newsletter in the meantime just pray pray pray for Fernando Obando !!!

CHILDREN’S MINISTRY

This ministry is truly growing as more families come to the study and bring their kids. It’s such a joy to see them come so excited to sing, play and learn about Jesus!!! We are going thru the book of Luke and it has been an adventure to teach it to them and to learn so much from them, from their questions! Their faith is simple and it’s growing indeed, and I feel so blessed to see that!!! Last Sunday we studied that “We have to be prepared and ready for Jesus is coming back for us” (Luke 17: 20-35) and we looked into the rapture, what it means and what the Bible describes about Jesus coming to pick us up in the clouds to fly to heaven with Him. Andres, a boy that’s been coming like 4 consecutive Sundays said: “Paula, can I fly with Jesus bringing my 2 dogs? They can’t stay behind for they will be sad”. The truth of the word is so real in his heart and in the others too! Please pray for them and for God to raise other teachers for this ministry in His time. Pray for kids and babies: Andres, Matias, Eithan, Esteban, Mariel, Dayana, Charlotte, Vielka, Angie, Mery, Kassia, and Aaron! 

THE PASTOR’S CONFERENCE WAS AMAZING!!!

Thanks for all your prayers!!!! We felt them all here on that Saturday June 15, seeing the great response from pastors in this valley!!! We had about 40 pastors in attendance, including some assistant and youth pastors. I got to be there helping with the registration, translation and giving information at the resource table for those interested in the ministry of Instituto Biblico Calvary Chapel that officially starts in August (Bible College in Spanish). I was blessed to hear the great encouraging messages that God brought through the guess speakers that came: Fausto Pflucker and Dave Eason who came from California, and Johnatan Domingo from Ensenada, Mexico. The greatest blessing for us was to be able to house and have 9 Guaymi Pastors who came (from an indigenous group in the south of Costa Rica) and see them interact with all the other pastors in the conference. They truly enjoyed their time here and had never attended a pastor’s conference so it was a joy and new adventure for them for sure!!! In short, the conference was a full success not only creating great fellowship among pastors and bringing the Word to them but also awakening them to study, get prepared in the word, and letting them know the Instituto Biblico is available and convenient for them here! Please continue to pray for those interested in studying more the word and attending our classes that start in August!. Here are some pictures! You can watch a video this Ryan, the Director, put together talking about the conference! Enjoy it !!!!

3min Update-Pastors Conference from Ryan Slabach on Vimeo.

Thanks so much for reading this update and keep in touch with me and the ministry here, and thanks so much for your prayers and support to my service here. It’s a joy to serve Jesus here and to have you partnering with me in the work of His kingdom here ! May His Word continue to run swiftly in San Isidro and the surrounding towns as it does there, where you are serving Him too!

In Jesus’ Grace and Love,