Where to begin????? So much has happened since my last post about the Fund Raiser. I guess I will start by letting everyone know how the Fund Raiser went. It turned out to be such an awesome event!!!! I think the most humbling thing for Joel and I was that when we looked around the room, we didn't even know half of the people who were there!!! It was so amazing to see and get to meet people who didn't know us or our family, but had heard about what we were going to do in Costa Rica and wanted to come out and show their support.
I remember sitting on my couch after everything had been cleaned up, waiting for a phone call from Amy Hunt with the total raised, and just tearing up thinking about how awesome God is and how He works in ways, and through people, that we'd never expect....or in our case, never even knew!!! We had such a blast that night and got a chance to share our mission and what God has put on our hearts with so many. When Amy called that night and told us that she was holding $1,000.00 I almost fell over!!!!! We had no idea what to expect from the Fund Raiser and really didn't want to mull over numbers....that way, we wouldn't be disappointed....right? Well, the truth is that we had mulled it over (even though we never talked about it to each other :) and we both were hoping for about $400-$500. So, when Amy told us the total, we were just blown away! I don't know why I am, but I am always to amazed when God works in this way. I say I believe He can do anything, and in my heart I truly feel that I do believe that...then why am I always so shocked??? I hear echos of Mark 9:24 "I do believe, help me overcome my unbelief" in my heart. By all accounts, the Fund Raiser was a huge success and we were so grateful to all that came out to show their support.
Sooooooo, then things began getting very complicated...or so it seemed. We had begun meeting with our Missions Pastor at church weekly and he was working with us and training Joel and I in many different areas of ministry. We had Theology books we were studying, culture books we were reading, Language studies, plus regular life with our 4 kids. In the mean time, our main contact in Jaco left Costa Rica with his wife and came back to the States to take care of some personal business. That news turned our wold upside down. "What are you doing God? What do we do now? What if the new guy doesn't want our family there?" All of these questions were running through our minds and plaguing our hearts. It was a very trying time filled with much prayer and uncertainty as to what we were supposed to be doing. In the meantime, we were still meeting with our Missions Pastor weekly and praying about where God was leading us.
In November (of 2009) we finally heard from someone at Christian Surfers who was able to provide some answers....and left us with a lot more questions. We found ourselves at the beginning again, having to start all over with applying for the position in Jaco. As frustrated as we were, if there is one thing that God has taught us over and over (apparently we are not fast learners :) it is that His timing is perfect!!!!! So, we began the process again and Joel was asked to accompany the Area Director for Central and South America from Christian Surfers to a week long conference in Costa Rica at the end of January. This seemed like an awesome opportunity for us to meet the new director there....but as soon as I heard that it was a week long camp out, I opted to let Joel go :) Believe me, I know my limits :)
All seemed to be going well and we were praying that God would let us know, through this series of meetings in Costa Rica, if this is still where He was calling us to move to. So Joel drove down to Florida and met the Area Director at his home and they flew out to Costa Rica together. Right before they got on the plane, Joel called me (cause we wouldn't be able to talk the whole time they were gone...they were going to be camping in a remote region) and told me that he was told that there was another couple meeting them in San Jose who was also very interested in the position in Jaco.
Well, I would love to write that I accepted the news with grace and said something "Christian" like, "I will pray for you"....but alas, I still have so much to learn...I started crying, told Joel that I was done with this whole process and asked him to come home. A picture of the strong, supportive wife, I was not!! Joel let me rant, then told me he felt good about going...plus he was going to get to surf Witches Rock (if you are a surfer, you are smiling right now!). He was so calm and peaceful about the whole thing, I decided to rest in that. So he left for the week and I stayed with the kids. That week was very hard for me. I wrestled with many emotions. Anger, frustration, exhaustion, fear....more anger.....but through it all, I just kept praying that God would speak so clearly to Joel and if this other couple was a better fit for the position in Jaco, then they should be there and not us.
By the time Joel came home, I was at total peace about it. I wish I could say that it was because of something I had done, like I had been mature about it, but that would be a total lie!!! God had worked on me through out that week (and He also used my mom who had come to stay with us for a few days....love you mom!!!!!) and I was confident that God would lead my husband in the way that was right for us to go. Joel called me when he landed and told me that instead of staying the night in Orlando (like we had planned) he was going to drive through the night and get home. He called me a few minutes into the trip and started to tell me all about Costa Rica when his cell phone died....again, I wish I could say that I took that news graciously....apparently God still had work to do with me on patience and resting in His peace. I spent the next few hours between sleeping and praying for Joel's safety. At 5am, Joel woke me up and I was so thankful to have him home!
We spent the next few hours talking. He had had an awesome trip! He had the chance to meet the whole Central and South American team and some of the volunteers. They had spent many hours just talking, sharing their vision for the ministry in Jaco as well as other places in Costa Rica. Plus, he had surfed Witches Rock :) In the end, the team decided that our family would be the better fit for the position on Jaco. Whew!!!! Talk about letting out a sigh of relief!!! For the first time in months, we felt like we had clear direction from God.
Looking back at those months of waiting and not knowing what direction to go in, I can see so many things that God was doing in our lives. It is so easy to get excited about something that God has put on your heart and rush headlong into it and not realize that He may not be ready for you to "go" yet. There may still be work that He needs to do in us. I think that has been the hardest lesson of all to learn over the past year and a half. One thing was clear to us. God had told us that our family was going to serve Him...we just didn't know how our where. We are such a society of "go-getters" and Joel and I had to learn to just sit and wait and let God prepare us. We were so convinced that we were ready to go in June of 2009 but we had no idea of all that God still needed to do (and is still continuing to do) in our lives!!! I am so glad that He is in charge and not me!!!!!
Well, here we are in August of 2010. We are still in Wilmington, North Carolina. We have spent the last year working with our Missions Pastor and completing our studies. Through the many ups and downs and uncertainties we had basically stopped trying to raise support because we didn't know what God was going to do, or even if we were still going to be going to Jaco. Maybe God was going to choose to keep us here. Over the past few months, we have been praying and seeking God's Will (and we know that many of you have been praying with us and are so grateful for you!!!) and are moving forward with our plans to move our family to Costa Rica. I can not tell you how exciting it is to be back on this ride!!! That is the only way I can describe the past year...a wild ride!!!
One thing that has been very important to Joel and I is that we take the kids down for a short trip prior to moving to Costa Rica permanently. Not for a "test run", because we already have committed to going, but more so that they can have a familiarity with the area when we do move. They already feel like they are familiar with Jaco because they are constantly pouring over our pictures and we talk about it like it is home, but we feel that it is important to take them there. So, we have booked a trip for our whole family from Januray 19th - February 16th. That's right....a whole month!!! We are so excited to be getting back to Jaco and to see what the ministry has been doing since we were there last. The kids are thrilled to finally get to see where we will be calling "home". We will spend our time soaking in the Costa Rican culture, do a little sight seeing with the kids, and spending a lot of time on the Christian Surfer's property getting to know the locals. We will also be looking for houses that we can rent when we move down.
As of right now, we are planning on taking our family trip at the beginning of the year and then moving down for good the middle of June. Even as I write this I am smiling....only God knows when we will actually move, but this is what we are planning at this point. We still have over 50% of our support to raise, but we are confident that God will provide the funds....after all, He has called us to this area and He knows what it will take to sustain us!!!
I have just started the 2010/2011 school year with the kids and am busy preparing lesson plans as well as planning out the next few years. It has recently dawned on me that when we leave, I will need to make sure to have a few years of material on hand (it is a nightmare to ship goods to Central American countries!!) As crazy as the next few months will be, preparing for your month long trip, schooling the kids here, trying to raise the rest of our support, and preparing for the "big move", we can not help but be so excited!!! It blows my mind to think that when we are there in January and February, it would have been two years since this whole journey began. Two years!!!!! It seems like yesterday and yet it seems like an eternity ago.
Jeremiah 29:11 says " 'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord. 'Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future' " This is what we have clung to over this past year and a half. His plans and His timing are not always ours, but we have learned that they are much better!!! We are walking forward, in faith, knowing that God goes before us and prepares the way for us. He will lead us where He wants us when He is ready for us!!!!!
Please keep checking in and I promise to be much better about updating the site (so I NEVER have another post this long again!) The next few months are going to go by so quickly and I will do my best to take each of you along with us as we walk with God to take His Word and message of Salvation to the people of Costa Rica!!!!
A Dios sea la gloria!!!!!
Kelley (& Joel :)
