Costa Rica Week 3: Pioneers of Puerto Viejo

After our first two weeks of service in Heredia we made our way to the YWAM base in San Jose. Our contact there was a Colombian man affectionately known as Rasta, which translates to dreadlocks in Spanish. And yes, he has big 'ol dreadlocks. Rasta has worked at the San Jose base for several years and is currently leading the construction of a brand new base in Puerto Viejo.

The Dream to Reach a Nation:

Puerto Viejo is a beach town on the Caribbean side of Costa Rica. It is a major tourist town with a heavy spiritual atmosphere. There is a very prevalent partying culture, drugs and alcohol, and even some witchcraft. But the town is also very beautifully diverse. People from all over the world have come to settle there, from the far reaches of Latin America to Western Europe. Years ago, God spoke to Rasta and told him that Puerto Viejo is a gateway to reaching all of Costa Rica, and since then he has been praying and dreaming about building a base there. Finally, God provided the land for a miraculous price and Rasta and his wife have been working tirelessly ever since. Our team was only the third DTS team to come and work on the base.

   
                            (Humble beginnings - a sign hangs for the forthcoming base, YWAM Puerto Viejo)


The Landscape: 

Though only a stones throw off of a main road, the property can easily be described as straight up jungle. There was heat and humidity in plenty, and lots and lots of interesting wildlife. The girls had the pleasure of discovering several new species of spiders (often times in their room), while we all enjoyed the spotting of a sloth, Congo monkeys, and a momma caiman with several small babies living in the pond in front of the main building. It was such a new experience and such an adventure.

(YWAM San Jose head of communications, Pablo, helps shovel mud from the river)

The Labor of Faith: 

Our time here consisted of some of the toughest physical labor I've ever experienced. It was a difficult adjustment for me at first, but after a couple days, God really blessed me with the heart behind the work. I remembered how coming to do my DTS at YWAM Los Angeles was an experience that completely changed the course of my life and lifted me up out of immense depression. What makes YWAM beautiful is the radical encounters with God that it facilitates. With that memory and knowledge in mind, it became easy to work with all of my strength, because I knew what I was working towards. I can only imagine the countless number of students (and staff alike) who are going to have life-changing experiences with God while they are at YWAM Puerto Viejo.

(Our team and a crew from YWAM San Jose work on landscaping)

Worshiping While Shoveling: 

The work we did during this week was very practical and very needed. Our service was just another step towards the completion of a dream. When we arrived there was no power or water for the first three days, so we began our week by forming an assembly line to carry water from the river to the base. No, we couldn't drink it, but it did come in handy to be able to flush the toilets. Myself and the two other guys on our team did a lot of work shoveling mud out of the river to create even ground where a concrete porch will be built. We also laid some foundations for the expansion of the second floor in the main building. The girls did an amazing job on landscaping and creating a path around the base. We also had the opportunity to work with a small church in town and help them put on their children's Christmas program. The congregation was small, but the depths of wisdom and faithfulness in the hearts of its members was truly a blessing for our team to behold.

(Anne works on painting rocks to accentuate the path)

Looking Forward: 

We may have only contributed a weeks worth of work, but we were so blessed to lend our support towards history in the making. I hope that YWAM LA continues to send teams here to help pioneer this base, and I know that many people on our team are hoping to return and see the finished project. With God, all things are possible. When He places dreams in our hearts, He will be faithful to work for their realization.

                                        (Team Panarica - blessed to live a week alongside the pioneers of Puerto Viejo)
 

Costa Rica Week 1 & 2: Talking to strangers, feeding the homeless, and milking the goats

Hola from Costa Rica!

Our team arrived safely on the morning of Decenber 6th and settled into the YWAM base in Heredia. The base is tucked away up in the hills above town on several beautiful acres. It's definitely very peaceful here.  

                                                                  (A view of the main building at YWAM Heredia)

Church Ministry:

Our ministry started right away on Sunday, Two teammates and I got to lead worship for a church service and another one of our students shared a testimony. They were very welcoming and appreciative, It was great to be a part of their community for the morning. I also met a Costa Rican woman there who lived in San Francisco for several years as well as Walnut Creek - the city near and dear to my heart and a place I called home for almost a year. That was an amusing highlight for me. What a small world eh!

Prayer & Evangelism:

On Monday we went out for what was called "The Amazing Prayer Race". We went throughout the city meeting people and learning about life in Costa Rica and Heredia. After getting to know people a little we asked if we could pray for them, and most of them said yes! People seem to be generally more open here than back in the States, We even got to meet the police chief and pray for him after he told us about the issues that face the public and the police department in Heredia, I was really surprised by his openness to talk and how much he welcomed prayer. He said we were welcomed back anytime.

Homeless Ministry: 

On Tuesday we got to work with a homeless feeding ministry, which seemed to to be the highlight of the week for most of our team. Most of the men living on the streets suffer with addiction, and many of them have been shamed away from their families and don't receive love or support from them. I met a man who had been in an alcoholic treatment facility that his family was paying for, but because of extremely poor treatment there, he had recently taken to the streets, He asked if I would pray for him, and after a couple of minutes of prayer through a translator, he said that he felt totally at peace. He had been very anxious and unsettled lately, but in that moment, he felt peace. God is so good! All of the men were incredibly thankful for our service, and we enjoyed a time of getting to know them and praying for them. It was a very special time and a blessing to our team.

Serving The Base: 

Our last type of ministry while staying at YWAM Heredia was serving the base directly. The base sits on about seven acres of rural land and has gardens, an aquaponics system, and several types of farm animals. Our team really enjoyed working at the base, which included everything from landscaping to milking the goats. Their base takes a lot of work to maintain and they were very thankful that we were able to help out for a couple days.

(The right path leads back to a garden and the horse/goat pens. In the middle are two aquaponics systems.) 

One Last Highlight: 

During our second week in Heredia we continued to evangelize in one of the cities central parks, I met a man who was handing out fliers for his business, which was selling plots of land for burial. I began to ask him about his life and it turned out that he was a Christian. He immigrated to Costa Rica from Columbia ten years ago and now has a wife and two small children. He admitted that he hadn't been going to church as much as he would like to because he was so busy with work. I was able to pray for him for a few minutes and afterwards he said that he felt on fire and very refreshed. He was so thankful. I could tell that he was truly blessed by our encounter. He said it was just what he had needed. It can be really scary and awkward to walk up to strangers and try to spark a spiritual conversation (especially in a non-native language), but sometimes you can end up totally blessing someone. And even if somebody doesn't receive you well, you can still plant seeds of truth and encouragement that may grow later on. God is good and faithful. If we love Him, we are commanded to love others, not by our own strength, but by His strength. His grace is sufficient for us.


Stay tuned. I can't wait to share about the following week of our trip!


Much love,


- Trevor

Costa Rica and Panama!

I`m leading a missionary outreach team to Costa Rica and Panama for the next three months. We arrived in Costa Rica today! Check out the video to hear about what we`re gonna be up to.

God is generous!

Here at YWAM Los Angeles we currently have three Discipleship Training Schools (DTS) running and 8 outreach teams that are leaving this week to serve for the next three months in other nations. Today is the deadline for all of the students to pay off their balance for outreach. Outreach trips range from 3-4 thousand dollars. This morning during our time of base-wide community worship we took an offering for the students who still needed more funds. There were about ten students who still needed money, four of them from the team that I am leading to Costa Rica and Panama. The total need between all students was about $8,000.

As a community of around 150 people, about half of which are students and the other half full-time volunteers at the base, we raised $7,300 through giving. And all four of the students on my team got paid off in full, plus some extra. Incredible.

This is all a reflection of who God is. God is so generous and He can meet every single need we have in our lives, from the spiritual to the practical. Every bit of the tuition and outreach cost I had in my DTS was paid off through the amazing generosity of others. We were never created to be fully independent. We need God's grace and we need each other. Community is beautiful, and it's God's idea. To those of you have supported me in my journey over the past couple years, through your thoughts, prayers and finances, thank you so much. I wouldn't be doing what I'm doing without you. I hope you're encouraged and filled with hope today. God is so good. He is so generous to us. He lavishes us with more grace, mercy, love and kindness than we could ever deserve.

God is good. God is beautiful, and you are made in His image. You are beautiful.

(ps - we'd appreciate your prayers today for our last student who still needs about $700!)

I'm leading a team on a three month missions trip to Costa Rica and Panama. We leave this Friday. If you had told me two years ago that I would go to the Philippines, Thailand, Costa Rica and Panama just to serve people share the love of Jesus, I would have been speechless. And God has provided all the money and support at every step of the journey through the generosity of others. I am blown away. God is so good to me, far more than I could ever deserve. It is an honor to be swept up into His story and to be a carrier of His Spirit. More glory to Him.

Thanks for listening. Thanks for being a part of my journey.

Mexio Outreach

Our lovely and talented Communications department did an awesome job on a little write up about our schools time in Mexico a few weeks, so I'm pleased to share it with y'all! I will add that this was the first time that we worked together on everything within our outreach teams, so it was awesome to have the opportunity for us all to work alongside one another enjoy each others company some more. Thanks for reading! God bless ~ 

- Trevor


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Fall DTS went on a week long mini-outreach to Door of Faith Orphanage in La Misión, Mexico. It was a life changing time for many of the students, two of which got baptized while there. Below are a couple testimonies from students who were greatly impacted by their time at the orphanage.

“This trip changed a lot in my heart. One morning we got up at 4am to feed people in a poverty stricken area in Mexico. It was dark so we couldn’t really see what was around us. Alot of people came, children and adults, everyone was really happy and nice. After giving them food someone drove us around the neighborhood, I was shocked, they had barely enough to build their houses and lived on dirt as far as I could see. But the people were happy, and it was hard to believe how this could be possible. I realized how thankful I am for how I grew up and what I have, I was also ashamed because I have so much and they have so little. In this time God also set me free from my past. He spoke righteousness into my heart. I cannot thank God enough for these days full of compassion, joy and service to others.”

-Esther Weiss

“The Mexico trip was an amazing journey of serving others alongside friends. The orphanage was definitely a lot different from what we all were expecting to see. From the very beginning we were shown so much love from the staff and children. Throughout the week we got to serve in different ways like painting, helping with the babies, playing with the kids, or helping the poverty sections. Our eyes were opened to such gratefulness and love and we as missionaries in training had to remind ourselves of how much we really take for granted. As our trip came to an end we decided to top it off with baptisms that two people in our group decided to do. Definitely a very eye opening trip!!”

-Shaya Martin

Because, I Am In Love

This morning during base worship God was really speaking to my heart, and I felt compelled to share what He was impressing upon me...(no fancy intros here)...

We were singing the words, "Not my will, but Yours be done, cause I'm in love...I'm in love...I am in love", and I had the revelation of Jesus expressing that very same thing to the Father. As He was fasting in the wilderness and looking out upon the land before He started His ministry, knowing all the trial and opposition He would face, He must have taken strength in the will of the Father. He was compelled by love, both to obey the Father and to minister to the poor and broken of this world. As He was praying in the garden of Gethsemane, faced with the reality that He was about to endure the brutality and shame of the cross, He said not My will, but Yours be done (Mathew 26:39). How deeply in love must Jesus be, that He would obey the Father unto torturous death all that we might be saved! If we as Christians could muster up but a fraction of that furious love, in response to the love and sacrifice of Christ, how the world might be changed! A song of response came to my heart;

I'm alive and I am free
Because You are in love
With the Father
And with me

I then pictured myself standing in the wilderness with Jesus, overlooking the world His life so radically changed, and we were worshiping together. We had one arm around each other, and the other raised in worship to the Father; "Not my will, but Yours be done, cause I'm in love...I'm in love...I am in love!". Then I pictured the same thing as we were high up, looking out over my hometown, united in worship to the Father; "Not my will, but Yours be done, cause I'm in love...I'm in love...I am in love!".

And just last night the message I heard at church was out of Isaiah 6. "Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, 'whom shall I send? And who will go for Us?'. And I said, 'here am I. Send me!'" (Isaiah 6:8).

I may not know where my future will take me, but I know that the love that has changed my life calls for a lifelong response. There are no casual, unimportant days in the Kingdom of God. Every day, Christ walks with me. Oh how I desire to have an increased sensitivity to His presence, and an expanded capacity to receive His love. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled (Matthew 5:6).

There could be no greater calling, no greater adventure, than to live my life in the center of His will and purposes for me. Not my will, but His be done. Why?...

Because, I am in Love.