As I sit here in Granada, Nicaragua during debrief, I am struggling to find the words to describe my month in Costa Rica. My month was spent alongside a ministry called the Christian Light Foundation. This organization works with the community in some of the most dangerous areas of Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and Honduras. The location I was at this month in Los Guido, Costa Rica has a feeding center for the kids in the area as well as a church to reach more of the community. Although the ministry’s main focus is the feeding center, ministry for me this month was teaching English classes in Los Guido’s public school. I was blessed to be paired with a teacher by the name of Mrs. Maureen who teaches first and sixth grade. It became obvious during my time there that my teacher truly cares for her students and their situations and is passionate about what she does! Many times she was brave enough to hand over the classroom to me and my teammate Marisa. Although neither of us are certified, it was fun to watch the kids learn the vocabulary thanks to endless games of hangman and copying words and pictures down in their notebooks.
There were many fulfilling moments this month but along with all of the highs came lows. The biggest struggle for me has been my feet. I’ve had foot problems on and off since I was younger but since signing up for the race my foot pain has been persistent and I am afraid it will get in the way of ministry. During the first week of ministry my teammates and I decided to go on a prayer walk and it took five minutes before I stepped on an ant hill and got multiple bites on both of my feet. This happened to me three times. Also, my tennis shoes were left on a bus. These are very important to me because I have custom inserts that help take some of the foot pain away and cost around $500. Praise God I took my inserts out beforehand so I saved a lot of money but I am out of a pair of shoes. As well as that, my flip flops are hanging on by a thread so I am now down to one pair of shoes. Although the enemy is trying to bring me down through all of these situations, I refuse to have a victim mentality. My teammate Sarah brought to my attention Isaiah 52:7-“How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who bring good news.” This verse encouraged me because I was able to recognize that I am in the Lord’s will; the enemy uses our known imperfections and tries to take us out with every opportunity he has. Especially when he sees we are an asset to ministry and the Lord’s kingdom.
What I need this month is continued prayers as I start ministry in Nicaragua. Specifically pray that I feel energized and at peace in my new location especially as the holidays approach! Also, please pray that the devil’s schemes no longer bring me down spiritually through physical pain. Another huge thing I am asking for is to prayerfully consider donating money to buy a pair of good tennis shoes. As pictured below my feet are only getting more worn than ever due to my situations this month. Thank you again for following my journey! I look forward to writing more as the next couple of weeks unfold.
