Wow!!! I can't believe I'm blogging....

Well, this is the very first blog post I have ever done...I guess some would say that puts me waaayyy behind the times...they're probably right :) I am creating this blog so that we will be able to keep in touch with our family and friends while we will be living in Costa Rica. Some of you may be saying "You're moving to Costa Rica? Why are you moving to Costa Rica?" So, I will attempt to tell the story here for you all.
The past few years we have been living in North Carolina. From June 2005-June 2007 we were living in Cary. In June of 2007 we moved to Wilmington, where we live now. God has been working in our lives over the past years in many different ways. One of them is that He has turned our hearts towards World Missions. We have been praying for some time about how God could use our family and our specific talents for Him outside of our comfort zone of the United States. A few months ago, we came across a post on the Christian Surfers Costa Rica (CSCR) website that basically said that they needed a Property Manager for their property there. Those of you who know Joel know what a good fit this would be for him....fixing stuff, surfing, sharing God's word. It seemed to be too easy. Why do we do that? Why do we ask God for something specific and then doubt when He actually gives us what we have asked for? This will forever remain a mystery to me....
Anyway, we contacted CSCR and after a few months of emailing and praying, Joel and I decided it was time to make a trip down there to check it out. We asked God to make His will clear to us and had lots of people here praying the same thing (Thank you all!!!) God is good and He did give us clear direction. We came home knowing that Jaco, Costa Rica is where God wants our family right now. So what is in Jaco? Oh, and for those who are saying the "J" in Jaco with a hard "J" sound, you have failed Spanish 101. A "J" in Spanish is pronounced like an "H" in English. Whew, sorry, had to clear that up.
So, what is in Jaco? CSCR has been in Jaco since 2003. Their heart and mission is to reach out to the surf community of this growing beach town and introduce them to the gospel and get them plugged into the local church. CSCR has a property that they allow the local children to come on to and have a safe, protected place to play. They have built an awesome half-pipe (for skateboarding, just in case anyone didn't know what that is) and some of the local kids have become quite good. They have a bible study every Wednesday night and have seen tremendous growth in the lives of those who have come to a saving knowledge of God through this awesome ministry. You can check out their website www.christiansurferscostarica.com for more information on what they do and how they do it. When we move there, our family will be living on the CSCR property. This will allow the property to stay open more often so the children can come and intentionally be introduced to the gospel. Joel will be working to upkeep the property as well as coordinating work projects for when Missions Teams from around the world come in to work (so get your teams ready!) I will still be home schooling our kids. Once we get settled in, I will be starting up the Saturday morning story & craft time for the kids. They haven't been able to do this is quite some time so I am eager to get it going again. The most awesome thing is that our whole family will be able to minister in Jaco. We asked God for a place where our gifts and talents could be used and He led us straight to Jaco!
We are so excited for what lies ahead for our family and the ministry of CSCR. We hope that you will continue to check this blog out and come along on this journey with us. As soon as I figure out how to do it, I will post pictures from our trip there in February. Please pray with us that all the details will fall into place, that our support will come in, and that we will be able to stick with our end-of-June timeline to move to Jaco.
A Dios sea la gloria!