Nice Weekend

This past weekend we didn't do a whole lot. We got our shopping done (at the Costa Rican version of Wal-Mart), went to the farmers market, did some homework, and just plain relaxed. We did go to a great restuarant Saturday night. It is up on a mountain and overlooks most of San Jose and at night it is really pretty. We enjoyed dinner with 2 couples, one from Fort Collins, CO. and the other from Tyler, Texas. Church on Sunday was great. A Costa Rican missionary spoke. He serves in Califoria somewhere and was back home in San Jose for a time. It was neat to hear his perspective and the things God is doing through him here and in my homecountry. God is really showing Rebecca and I some powerfull things about ourselves and our calling. One of which is this: He does NOT need us. He doesn't need me to fly an airplane, or Rebecca to help at a hospital. What he desires from us is not a task, but a relationship...daily. Of course we know this, but we are learning a whole new aspect of it. We are learing to be like the Apostle Paul and be able to serve and KNOW Jesus no matter where you are, who you are with, or what the circumstances are in your life. It is very freeing to begin to understand this as we try to tackle Spanish (a huge task), in Costa Rica (a very different place), among the Latin culture ( a very different people). Being able to pursue Jesus here and learn how He still speaks to us - most often in the same ways - is very comforting. It transcends all homesickness, physical sickness, boredom, extreme business, exhaustion, and flat out frustration. "Jesus es mi Pastor" as the Ticos (Costa Ricans) say. He is our everything, and without Him, even serving Him is fruitless. Only when we are tapped into the vine do we bear fruit, not produce fruit, but bear it. Bearing something is a natural reaction to something natural. If I were to produce fruit, it is my strength, my ambitions and my desires that come to pass . . . pretty pathetic. Now as we allow God to work in us, we bear fruit, a natural responce to being grafted in to the vine. Only then do we know that our fruit is eternal, and our work is with purpose. All this to say God is AWESOME, and He is so patient with us. We are so thankfull that He never gives up nor leaves us, because I would have a long time ago. Praise His name! This week we look forward to class and nothing out of the ordinary. We have about 5 weeks left of this first of three trimesters and we are trying to solidify some Spanish concepts all the while putting them to use in the street.