Day 4 in Costa Rica
Today we woke early to the sounds of the jungle - actually a rooster, but there were also some jungle sounds as well. There were two sleeping areas: the new church building and the existing church building. The women all slept in the existing church building and the men slept in the new church building. The women's quarters was an area about 25' by 30' with benches around the perimeter. All rough cut wooden boards for walls and floors. The floor was their bed, plus a couple old yellowish foam pads. The men's quarter was a concrete slab surrounded by a 2.5 feet high cinder block wall and a new metal roof. The sides were all open, like a big pavilion. For beds we pulled out the wood boards that would later become the church walls.
Sleeping was...interesting. The ladies must have been having a good time; they were talking well into the night. As for the guys we were pretty quiet pretty fast, everyone (men and women) were exhausted from a long day of travel and work.
So what's it like to sleep in the jungle? Not as bad as I had imagined. It was humid, hot and sticky and the air was absolutely still. But the bugs were fine, nobody got eaten, there weren't any tigers and most people got a couple hours of sleep... until the rooster of course.
We started our day by getting organized and selecting the tasks to do. I'm not sure the exact order, but we were treated to a huge breakfast of eggs/ham, beans and rice, fried plantains and coffee. Most folks couldn't come close to finishing their plates, others, particularly Aaron Smith and Mike Bair had little trouble cleaning off two plates.
Today we worked hard. There was lot to cut, measure, square, frame, re-cut, adjust, hammer nail, screw and build. There were children from the village running around, Bri-Bri women with their children. Our Journey team worked with our interpreters to build the church, play with the children and share the gospel through plays (David and Goliath), parachutes, beads, bracelets and candy. We all labored hard with our tasks and pushed to get things completed.
Many things about the day stand out, but what I wish to share the most in how I saw God working. Picture 5 groups needing to use 2 squares, 3 saws (only one good one), 2 hammers and one drill. The minute one person put the tool down another was grabbing it. The team was working in small groups sharing experience, teaching, learning, trading and sharing. It was hot...stinking hot. Definitely stinking hot, because no one showered and it was so hot that you sweat standing still. If you were in the sun, like all that were playing/working with the village children were, it was extremely hot and sunny! I saw old working with young, men/women working together, kids working, everyone together. I saw a team growing and learning, strengthening bonds among family, new friends, old friends, I saw language barriers lower and knocked down. All this was done without complaint and with a smile and with excitement.
I saw and I experienced a people working, sharing, tolerating, laughing and loving all because of their faith in God.
Many months before, Scott Jackson guaranteed that we would not come home unchanged and that this trip would change lives. I'm not an overly sentimental or dramatic person, I knew this trip would be good, but I had no idea how intense and amazing this experience would be. God is with this team and He is working amazing things in our lives. This experience will change all of our lives and I pray that our presence and our work inspires and changes lives here. I pray that our actions and our work create a change because others know that our actions are motivated/led by our faith in Jesus as our Savior. We came to a village and helped with many things, many tasks were left unfinished, but I pray that our example serves as a light that points to God. Our actions will not provide lasting help, that must come from God, but I pray that our actions bring others to God.
I see how our team has grown and I pray that we continue to grow and that we take our experience with us and that it fuels us and our church body to grow, just as I pray that our time and effort helps the places and people we visit to grow as well.