When God sent me on this journey, I knew it would be a learning experience. I just did not know what all I would learn. Lately God has been teaching me to depend on Him, to trust in Him and to turn to Him for my every need. Well this was displayed in quite the dramatic manner last Saturday, March 3, 2007. I was in Tamarindo Beach, Costa Rica eating breakfast with some of my team when my purse was stolen. I had it right at my feet and it was still taken from me. Everything was in it, my Bible, credit and debit cards, a big chunk of cash, camera, mp3 player and most importantly my passport. In that moment all I had to turn to was Christ and that is what I tried to do. My team immediately stopped and prayed for me which did wonders to my attitude. Prayer helped put a better perspective on the whole situation. I am definitely learning to turn to God when nothing else makes sense and there is no where else to turn. God is also showing me that I am strong enough to get through this situation. I had to go to the embassy earlier this week to get a new passport and thankfully they got us in and out quickly and smoothly. The only glitch in the system is that my passport won’t be ready till March 16th. My team is supposed to leave for Nicaragua on Monday and we are all supposed to fly to Peru on the 15th. Well Jake and I will be staying the extra few days in Costa Rica to wait for my new passport. It just means that there is still more for me to do here in Costa Rica, God is not finished with me yet. Please pray that God would guide our steps while we stay the extra days. Please pray that lodging and ministry opportunities would be easily provided. Please also pray that my passport is ready to be picked up on the morning of the 16th and that everything goes smoothly with rearranging plane tickets. Here are a few practical things I am learning from this whole experience.
- If you have a fanny pack, wear it, do not use it like a purse
- When at restaurants have your purse on the table, in your lap or literally between your feet
- Do not withdraw large sums of money at one time at the ATM
Please keep in mind that these are not hard, fast rules, just things I have learned from this experience. Thank you for your prayers.
