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Reagan enjoyed playing soccer at her school last month! |
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I love a good storm. It is a powerful thing. The thunder, lightning, intense rain....and then in a moment it is over and the sun bursts through! We have just ended an amazing storm of ministry activity in Costa Rica with 464 missionaries ministering throughout Costa Rica from May -August. This was a powerful storm of Holy Spirit power moving in and through the local church as missionaries stepped out of their comfort zones to serve the Lord.
Our storm of intense ministry occupied much of our time even when I, Nathan, was not leading trips. Our storm involved millions of little details, pastor calls and texts, airport runs, money transfers, paying cooks, booking hotels, working through administrative details, caring for our staff, and much much more!
W
hen you are in the storm you cannot see much, but after it clears you can step back, access the damage, see what worked, what did not, what improvements need to be made, what needs to be pruned, and you make a plan to move forward.
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Malachi is always working on his soccer skills! |
This is the season we are in now. It is a time to breathe for a moment, reflect on what God has done all over Costa Rica, and make plans for the next wave of ministry. After our first complete summer season of ministry, we now have finished an entire year of beginning to end mission trips. From finding new partnering churches, to seeing their church blessed beyond belief as a team of people from the U.S.A. have poured their hearts out serving in the community of the local church. I love seeing the look of "it worked!" on the new pastor's face.
This season reminds me of my favorite Christmas movie "Elf" (I know it's not spiritual at all). In the beginning of the movie the elves and Santa are all celebrating a successful delivery of toys to all the children, and Santa announces "We've had another very successful year. With all of that hard work, it's time to start preparations for next Christmas!" That is what we are feeling at this time!
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Isaiah turned 4! |
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We are recognizing what worked, what did not, and how we can improve for an even more impactful season next summer. Currently, I am investing most of my time to finding new local staff and preparing for our first ever PPM Pastor's Conference in Costa Rica, and our second Staff Retreat. We look forward to celebrating with our Staff and Pastor's all that the Lord did, and encouraging and instructing as we move forward.
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