This will just be a fun little post about a new delicacy that we found in the Feria around here lately. In our Feria (fruit market) that we attend every Saturday, there are tons of fruits and veggies that you can buy, many that are familiar to Americans, but some are totally foreign. It's a fun place, especially if you're willing to try new things.
Our weekly Feria here in San Francisco de Dos Rios
An example of what you can find at the Feria each week.
This week, we got a bag of the newest, weirdest fruit to be in-season here in Costa Rica. The official name is a rambutan, but here they call them Mamón Chinos (literally means 'Chinese Suckers'.) These are some weird little fruits mainly because of how they look: they have the color and size of large ripe strawberries, but are covered in these weird looking hair like things with the texture of something offered by Nerf. On a scale of 1 to Weird, these are a 12!
Remember these toys? That's kinda what a Mamón Chino feels like.
Some of our selection from the Feria this week.
So, we decided to get half a kilo (about a pound), and show everyone how to eat them! The girls helped me with this experament. Zoe and I loved the Mamóns, while Sara and Caitlynn didn't really care for them (and Gabe was too young to try).
The girls with their Mamóns all ready to try.
The first thing you have to do is use your fingernail to crack open the Mamón, so that you can get to the fruit inside. (Thankfully, you don't have to eat the 'hairy' part, I'm not sure I could do that!)
The Mamóns all broken open with the fruit showing.
Once you have it cracked open, you can take the top off to see the fruit inside, which you can squeeze into your mouth. It has the texture of a peeled grape, with a very large seed inside. You suck on the fruit until you eat all the fruit off, then can spit the seed out. The fruit is somewhat sweet, kind of like a grape, though not as juicy. Overall, they're a lot of work to eat, but very good!
The seed with all of the fruit off of it... you wouldn't want to swallow that thing!
If you want to see more, you can watch the video below and see my assistant Zoe show you how to eat a Mamón. If you ever stumble across them in the markets back home, give them a try!
A few weeks ago, we had 'Spiritual Emphasis Week' here at the Spanish Language Institute. Every semester, they bring in a guest preacher, who shares at chapel during the week. However, instead of just having chapel on Tuesday and Thursday mornings like normal, chapel is every morning and afternoon during the week! Also, teachers are not allowed to give out homework during Spiritual Emphasis week, so it's supposed to be a time to step back from the Spanish (a little), and focus instead on the Lord (a LOT!). In theory, it's a time of rest... in practice, not always :) But, it's always blessing! This semester, I'm the worship leader for the institute's chapel time, so that meant there was a lot of preparation to do to get all the worship ready for each chapel time. However, it was a great blessing to gather every day and worship with the students at ILE.
We were blessed this trimester to have David Sitton come and be our speaker for Spiritual Emphasis week. David has been a missionary to Papau New Guinea, focusing on completely unreached tribes, many of them comprised of head-hunters and cannibals. Now, in addition to continuing trips to PNG, he founded and runs To Ever Tribe Missions, (www.toeverytribe.com) which focuses on sending missionaries to the unreached people-groups all around the world. He spent the week sharing about his experiences in missions, and encouraging us in the theme that 'Jesus is Worth It.' It's good to be reminded that, when we struggle with the language, when we miss home, when we are unsure about our finances coming in on time, and have countless other struggles, that Jesus is worth it! It's also challenging to be reminded that, when there are times of personal loss, when people reject our message, when we share Christ for a long time without seeing clear fruit, that Jesus is still worth it!
David Sitton (right) with our friend Scott from the Institute
We were also blessed to get to have David in our home on Friday night for dinner. We got to just talk to him about our mission to Mexico, and hear more from him about missions. To Every Tribe supports missionaries in Oaxaca, Mexico, sharing with unreached people groups just a 2 days' drive from the US border! We were also blessed to hear David's heart for Mexico, and to find out about ways that David might be able to help us as we prepare to get started in Mexico. It's so amazing how God brings the right people into our paths at the right time!
Gabe checking out someone else's yard
Patriotic girls at our school's 4th of July party
We also had a great surprise during our week of rest, because Sara's friend from the States, Michele, came for a surprise visit! I (Nick) had known for a few months that she was coming, and helped work out a lot of the details, but the entire idea for the trip was Michele's! I had to lie a little, and tell Sara that I had a men's meeting at the church to go to, then I went across town by bus to pick up Michele in a cab and bring her back home. I had told Sara that someone was going to be staying with us on Monday night, so she was expecting a guest, but she definitely wasn't expecting Michele! It was so great to see her reaction, and to get to spend time with Michele for a few days. Michele stayed with us, went to classes with Sara a few times, and we took her downtown one day to see a few sights and do a little shopping, but mainly we just enjoyed our time with her here. What an encouragement it was to Sara to have Michele here!
Walking through downtown San José with our friend Michele.
It was a very BUSY week (of rest), but we couldn't have been more blessed by it all. Now, as I'm writing this, we're down to only 40 days in Costa Rica before we come back to the States for a few months! Be in prayer for:
The end of our schooling here, that we'll learn as much as possible.
For Nick as he'll be taking a massive exam at the end of July called the ECHO exam. It consists of a 30 min oral examination (that must be passed at an 'advanced' level), followed by a 3 hour written exam (that must be passed at a 70 or higher). Nick really wants to pass this test, so keep that in your prayers.
Pray for us as we get ready to say goodbye to some amazing friends here in Costa Rica. The difficult truth is that, for many of these great friends that we've made, we may never see them again this side of heaven as we spread out around the globe to share Christ. Our goodbyes will be very hard (some of them already have been), but we rejoice in the time that we've had with everyone here.
Pray for us as we are still seeking more churches to share at when we're back in the USA from August to November. We are hoping to share about our mission at many new churches, and raise a little more support, but the doors haven't been opening well so far. Keep this in your prayers, please!
Thank you for your love and prayers, and for remembering us!
Zoe having one last play date with one of her best friends here, Bethany, before their family leaves for Mexico City this weekend.
One last time being silly before having to say goodbye.
Scott and Tim are missionaries here at ILE that are in their final trimester of study before heading to serve in Peru. A few weeks ago, they were blessed to get to attend and share at a missions conference in Montana (State motto: Well, we're not quite Wyoming, but at least we're not Colorado!). While they were there, they heard an analogy that really stuck with me when Tim shared it with me upon his return, that I'd like to share with all of you this week as well. (I've expanded the analogy some for the sake of this blog):
"When a missionary goes out to share the Gospel, it's like a rescue mission in a well. The rescuer grabs onto the rope, and holds on tightly as he lowers himself into the well. Up above, however, they must be a team of workers that are also holding the rope as he begins his work. The rescuer is bearing his own weight; however, the team up above is bearing his whole weight as well! So, as the rescuer goes out, both the worker and the supporter bear the same weight, and both bear the scars on their hands from the endeavor. In the same way, both the missionary (or missionary family) and the support team back home bear the weight of the ministry. The missionary leaves behind home, comforts, friends, family, and puts themselves into situations that aren't comfortable, that aren't always safe, and that are incredibly trying. Meanwhile, those at home also bear the weight: they miss their loved ones who have gone out to serve, they bear the weight of praying for the missionaries, of supporting the ministry financially and in other ways, and of not forgetting those who have gone out from them, even those who have gone out years before. And, both sides bear the scars from the endeavor, but both bear them gladly, because they know that the mission, the need to share the Gospel around the world, is more important than any other."
I love this analogy! Too often, some missionaries and some churches look at missionaries as lone rangers, living the solitary life, separating themselves from everyone to take on themselves a mission that has been given by God to them and them alone. But nothing could be further from the truth! As Sara and I have left Casper and come here to Costa Rica, we have felt even more deeply the need that we have for the church back home than ever before. We can't tell you how much every little message on facebook means, or the occasional letter or package, or when the phone rings. We can't explain how it feels to be prayed for, and to know that people are remembering us before God from 3400 miles away. We can't explain how humbling it is to see people support us financially every month. We can't describe how it pierces our hearts to hear people talk about missing us, about wishing we were still at the church, about wanting us back in the States. We see first hand that we need YOU! We need those back home, the family, the friends, the other believers, the churches, who are helping to make what we are doing possible. Thank you, all of you who are pouring yourselves into our ministry just as we are, in different ways, so that we might go forth!
And we bear the scars at times, too. It can be hard to be away from home. We miss our family and friends. We miss being in a culture where we can understand everything and make ourselves understood easily. We miss the feeling that we're able to more easily reach people and share the Gospel because we can communicate in the right language. We struggle with battles of the mind as we try to learn Spanish; we struggle with battles of the heart as we miss our homes and families and friends; we struggle with battles of the spirit as we fight against spiritual warfare that feels more prevalent here than it was back home. But, as the Bible assures us, these are 'light and momentary troubles,' compared to Christ! We do this, and you send and support us, because we know that it's worth it, and in light of the need for the Gospel of Christ around the world, what else could we possibly do??
Finally, we do this because we know it's not about us. As Paul Washer says, "Missions is not about sending missionaries. Missions is about sending the truth of God through missionaries." We go because of this truth, and we trust that you send us and support us because of this truth as well. If this rescue mission that we're on is about us, then please, let go of the rope! But, if you believe in this because of the power of the Gospel, and the need for God to be heard about and glorified around the world, then continue with us in this mission. Thank you for being WITH us in this endeavor, striving with us, working with us, praying for us, bear our weight in your own way, as we seek to see the King of Glory (Ps 24) pour out His Spirit in Mexico and across this world. We love you all, and God bless!
One of the biggest blessings about attending language school at ILE (Instituto de lengua española) is that we have been blessed to meet some AMAZING missionaries. God has given us amazing friends here at ILE, and when we leave in August, we will leave knowing missionaries in almost every Spanish speaking country on earth! What an incredibly blessing to not only have the ministry in Mexico that God has given us, but to also be a part (in prayer and encouragement) of God's missions across the Spanish-speaking world to see His name glorified!
Because of this, I was thinking: we are so blessed to have you all praying for us and supporting us! But, if we're the only missionaries that you know and pray for, then you are really missing out! So, about once a month, I'm going to try to very briefly introduce you to some of our friends, so that you can be praying for them, as well! Praying for each other is one of the greatest blessings that we have in our walk with Christ, and praying for missionaries? Well, that's even better! (at least, in THIS missionary's opinion ;) )
That being said, we'd like you to introduce you to Tony and Beverly Steele. Tony and Beverly were 3rd trimester students at ILE when we started back in January, but, we already knew them (a little). You see, Tony and Beverly are the only other missionaries to Mexico from Global Outreach (our mission's organization). We knew they were working towards getting to Mexico, too, and we have been praying for them. So, we were incredibly excited to get to meet them and start to talk about ministry in Mexico with them. When you take into account the size of the language school and the size of Mexico, there really aren't that many missionaries at ILE going to Mexico, and it was such a blessing to get to share what God has put on our hearts for that amazing nation.
We got to spend some time with Tony and Beverly last semester while we were at ILE, especially one night before the end of the Trimester when they came over to our house for dinner. In one of those 'small world' moments, we found out that, even though they are being sent out of the Kentucky/Tennessee area, they lived in Casper, Wyoming for a few years, and even attended College Heights (our home church) for a while. While this was a while ago (before Sara or I were born!), it's still crazy to see how paths can cross in this world!
Beverly holding Gabe when we went to visit Courtenay and Jacob Folk in Cartago.
Tony and Beverly finished up their time at language school at the end of April, then spent a few weeks in the States before driving down into Mexico over Memorial Day Weekend. They are ministering in the state of Zacatecas in Mexico, about 4 1/2 hours north of Ciudad Guzman, where we'll be living and ministering. They have a great heart to partner with pastors in southern Zacatecas to see more churches planted across the area, and see the Gospel go forth into one of the more spiritually dark areas of Mexico. Would you pray for them this week as they begin their ministry there? There are so many things to do when moving to a new country, and many things to figure out. Plus, now that they've left language school, this is the first time that they've been in a Spanish speaking country without the benefit of other missionaries around to lean on for support; would you ask that God would be their strength and support during this time? Pray that God will be glorified through them in Zacatecas, that they would have numerous opportunities to share the Gospel, and that many would be saved through their ministry. You can also keep up with them and their ministry on their blog: http://www.gozacmission.blogspot.com/
Go ye therefore, into all the world, but start with Mexico! ;)
We are so blessed to know the Steeles, and we can't wait to be a few hours from them in Mexico, sharing the Gospel with that great and needy country!
Well, it has definitely taken WAY to long for us to get around to this latest blog post! For all of you that have faithfully been praying for us, thank you! Hopefully this latest update will let you know more about what we've been up to, and how you can continue to pray for us as we seek to finish our time here in Costa Rica strong.
Playing at the park and blowing, um.... bubbles?
Anything is a toy when you're a missionary kid!
We finished up our first semester of language school here in Costa Rica at the end of April. It was an incredibly challenging 4 months, partially because of the challenges of learning the language, and largely because of the stress of a new culture, spiritual stresses, and being 3,400 miles away from our family, friends, and loved ones. There were times we couldn't have been more excited to be here, and times when it was a struggle to just trust the Lord and make it through the day. Through it all, we have been completely dependent on your love and prayers and support, and we can't thank you enough for it all. We ended the semester with straight A's (both of us!), and were very excited to have a two week break to recuperate some before the next semester began!
Playing at the park while Nana and Papa were here to visit.
Big Zoe loves the park!
During that break, Sara's parents came to visit us for about 9 days. What a blessing it was to get to see Sam and Sandy here! We spent the first few days with them here in San José, showing them around and letting them get a taste of what life is like for us here in Costa Rica. We showed them our favorite pizza place (they couldn't believe the first real meal they ate in Central America was pizza), let them see where we shop, and gave them the tour of the home, our neighborhood, and the Institute we've been working so hard at. Zoe, Caitlynn, and Gabriel were SO excited to see Nana and Papa, and spent all their time hanging off of them, having them play with them and asking them to read to them. And I (Nick) drug Sam all over San José as we visited the airport together to take our friends Tony and Beverly to their flight out of San José, and as we went to all of the stores and other places that we needed to get to. Sam used every opportunity to try out his Spanish, and he did a great job trying to communicate with the people around us.
Beautiful kids playing at the beach.
Learning to love splashing in the water.
Some of the beautiful shore-line north of Playa Hermosa in Costa Rica
After a few days, we got out of the big city and went to Playa Bejuco for a few days. Bejuco is a beautiful beach on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica, between the city of Jaco and Manuel Antonio National Park.
Kind of a grey day at the beach, but it was a wonderful day to play!
Mud is fun!
This might be the LEAST messy picture we have of Caitlynn from that day at the beach.
Our time at the beach was great! Bejuco isn't the most popular beach in Costa Rica, partially because it doesn't have the typical white-sand, but it was gorgeous, with palm trees right up to the sand, and almost NO people! On Friday, we practically had the beach to ourselves all morning. Zoe loves playing in the water, and Gabe grew to love splashing and playing in the water. Only Caitlynn still isn't that sure about the waves and the water, but she makes up for it with her love of playing in the sand!
More shore-line north of Hermosa
While at Bejuco, we also made a trip down the coast to visit Manuel Antonio National Park. It's a beautiful pristine jungle area along the coast, with great walks through the jungle to discover sloths, monkeys, and TONS of iguanas. We saw several monkeys (two different types), 3 sloths, iguanas everywhere, and even some red parrots. It was a tiring day, but we really enjoyed our time at the park.
One of the most exciting things that happened while Nana and Papa were here is that Gabe decided to try to start walking! At first, he would just take a few steps between chairs, but now, he's tottering all over the house, and is gonna be pretty hard to keep up with pretty soon. What a blessing it is to see our children growing up and learning (though I'm NOT ready for our baby to be walking!)
We love Nana's story times!
Once Nana and Papa left, it was time to get back into school! Our second semester is INCREDIBLY challenging! Sara now is doing one-on-one tutoring here at the Institute instead of large group classes. She was blessed to get Ana as her tutor, the exact tutor we were praying that she'd get. Sara is already learning a lot in her tutoring, and we think it's been a great decision to have her switch to the one-on-one learning instead this semester. I'm doing a special schooling at the Institute called FARO. I take 2 intense hours of grammar study every morning, then spend the rest of my day in conversation. I have to talk to 8-10 people PER week, TWICE a week each. We talk about different topics that I pick (so far we've done family, work, and sports; in the upcoming weeks we'll also hit weddings, the church, my testimony, and how to find a house in Central America). I then write papers (in Spanish, of course) about every conversation that I have. It's a lot of self-study, and a LOT of conversation, but by the end of the trimester I should be much much stronger at conversation. It's a lot of work (for both of us) this semester, so please remember to pray for us as we try to keep up with what feels like drinking from a fire hose sometimes!
Sweet boy resting on the couch.
Visiting Central Mercado for the first time in San José (it was pretty crazy inside...)
Finally, pray for us this next week. I (Nick) am in the US right now for some weddings that I needed to attend, and Sara and the kids are in Costa Rica. I'm sure you can image that this causes some stress. Pray that God will lift us up while we're separated, and that God will help Sara and the kids while they're in Costa Rica without me. Pray that my time here in Wyoming will be effective, and that God will bless my time here as well. We love you all, and thank you for your prayers!
