This morning we started the day as we normally do with prayer, devotions and an awesome breakfast of homemade Pupusas...if you haven't ever had one, you should.  We then headed out to our different areas in camp where we again painted, sanded, stained, put up a ceiling, welded, tiled and most importantly, grew closer to our new found Costa Rican friends who we are working alongside. 

We stopped for lunch which was homemade chicken tenders, red beans rice and a crispy fried potato and more fellowship.  We continued working after lunch and cleaned up at 4:00.  Then our daily rain started coming down but it didn't bring our spirits down with it.  When we say rain, we mean rain.  It is so loud that it's almost impossible to hear the person sitting next to you.  Thankfully it's only for short periods during the day.  The walkways here between all of the buildings are covered, so we always stay dry. 

Our dinner tonight was beef, rice and beans, a salad and fresh mango.  The fruit here is so good.  After dinner, we had our evening devotional and then had one of the best parts of our trip.  We handed out the letters that all of the Prayer Partners mailed to us.  It was a great surprise for the team and they all sat around and opened every letter.  It's such a high for the week.  Thanks to all who sent them.  We look forward to another awesome day tomorrow.

Today we woke early and had a delicious breakfast before we got ready to paint, stain, tile and many other tasks.  This week we're working to help finish a Speech Therapy Classroom, a new Daycare Office and a Storage Room. We're excited to hear about the impact the classroom makes in the community. We also stained boards that will be used for beds that will be given away to local kids in need. They looked comfy which made some of us want a siesta.

After an awesome day of work we showered, then ate dinner that the amazing kitchen staff made for us.  Before bed we also did our nightly devotional and then continued our nightly ritual of playing Uno Flip.  All in all it was a great day and we look forward to another one tomorrow. Here are some pictures of what we got up to!

Today we started by heading into the community. We worshipped, sang and prayed.  It was different from what we are used to.  After worship we met with Wil and discussed the 5 Pillars of missions and church:  Worship, Prayer, Fellowship, Service and Witness and how we would be doing each of these on our trip here.  When we leave Costa Rica the best description for what we did wasn't installing tile or doing stucco, but rather that we were the Church.  We finished the service by singing Happy Birthday to the Pastor and partaking in Communion.

Our bus driver Daniel picked us up after lunch and took us to the beach which was about 45 minutes away.  The beach was very pretty and the street vendors were fun to look at.  We took a break and went to a local restaurant and had fruit slushies.  One of the vendors climbed up a coconut tree, cut them off at the top and after they dropped to the ground, he sold them to people who were nearby.  We bought a couple of them and they were delicious.  Wil brought us pizza for dinner once we got back to camp.  It was a great way to end the day.

We left our hotel early Saturday morning and started our 4 hour drive from San Jose to San Isidro De General. We started out at 2,000 feet above sea level and up to 13,000 feet in the mountains before coming back to 2,000 feet. We had a meeting with Wil to hear his story and discuss the upcoming week. We all went to bed early and are ready for the upcoming week. 

This fun loving bunch is fully trained and ready to head to Costa Rica next week to be the hands and feet of Jesus. All are super excited to make new friends, try some new food, learn a new culture and to reap the blessings of serving.

Please join me in praying for these friends as they head out for a fun filled week of service!