Christmas Parties!

We had lots to celebrate this Christmas season! At the prison God has brought us about 11 women from all over the world who are going to face Christmas alone in a country that speaks a different language with women that are not always nice to foreigners. Our Christmas Party was a wonderful time to celebrate the blessings of God's love even in the toughest of times! We had our usual group of musicians including a guitar, clarinet and Bob on the conga drum.  After we finished singing Christmas carols as a group the women each sang a song in their native language. We even had the women from South Africa do a traditional dance for us! What fun they had! It was nice to see them have a chance to reconnect with a bit of home. The teaching was done by another missionary and it brought a lot of encouragement to the group.  It was a teaching reminding  us of God's faithful love towards us.  We made a chicken dish with mashed potatoes, a request from the women.  The ladies were thrilled to have something to eat other than rice and beans!

The next celebration took place in La Cuenca, the slum where I teach The Woman's Bible Study. We had been preparing this Christmas outreach for 3 weeks. Each woman was to choose a friend or neighbor that God had put in their hearts to invite to join us in our celebration. We made home made cards to give to the invites and every week we prayed that God would open their hearts to receive the message of hope that He has for each of them.

We had a wonderful time of worship and teaching and each one was asked to invite Jesus into their hearts to bring hope and healing to them. We ended our time with a very traditional meal of Costa Rican tamales.  Bob and I made North American Christmas cookies to share for dessert. We had about 7-9 new women who joined us and it was a great time of fellowship. The invitation was given for them to join us in January for our next Bible Study on prayer.

 At  ESEPA we had a graduation exercise followed by a nice catered buffet.  There were some 75-80 graduating with various degrees.  A great testimony was shared by a young man who during a stint in prison for dealing drugs and other not so nice activities got connected to Jesus.  His life direction changed 180 degrees and now 6-7 years later he is pastoring a church, reaching out to people in hard to touch communities and just completed his B.A. in theology.

 

A couple of days after the La Cuenca Ladies party, we helped Christ for the City treat 50 of the teens from La Cuenca to an all day party in the mountains at large picnic facility.  They were thrilled as it is infrequent that they can go on a trip and get out to some green grass and fresh air.  The theme was "Change, understanding and embracing it".  After working in small groups and sharing the message, they were treated to a picnic, did group activities, invaded a stream, made a water slide "a la Chop Point".

A couple of days later ESEPA had its Christmas party.  It was a family affair with an enjoyable meal that followed a bit of travel to some sites outside the valley.  It was a prosperous time for me to get to know more of the staff that I don't normally come into contact with on a regular basis.
  We would like to express our joy and delight to you that you as well would have a rich, full Christmas.  May the love of Jesus fill you now and forever. Blessings,  Bob n B

The Wait

 This has been too exciting an adventure to not share! I usually sit on our patio in the mornings with my reading and a good cup of Costa Rica coffee, From my spot I can see the hummingbirds eating at our feeder and watch the butterflies go by. It is very relaxing and inspiring, as we live in the middle of the city, it is like a refuge for me.

 A couple of weeks or so ago I noticed that we had some type of cocoon in our dying lime tree. It had attached itself to a branch that only had a couple of leaves left. So, I have taken it on as my job to keep it well fed! I did not realize that a butterfly/moth would keep eating once it has formed its cocoon but as evidenced by the leaves that he has consumed it is so.

 In this picture you can see him out having breakfast! He does not like having his picture taken, neither does my grandson,so I have to take him by surprise.

Today he has changed his location and position. I am thinking that he is now closed up and done eating as he has not eaten the last couple of leaves that I attached for him.I have not found anything to use as a house for him to bring him inside so I hope I am around when he gives birth to his new self! Isn't God amazing!!

Thank God for Toilet Paper

OK, so when was the last time you thanked God for toilet paper? That was the thought that crossed my mind as Belkis, one of the women  I work with in the prison, beamed with joy telling me that someone had given her toilet paper and toothpaste ! To be totally honest with you I can't think of one occasion that I have thought to thank God for toilet paper. I guess you don't think in that direction until you have to go without it!

Prison life here is a bit different that the states. You MAY be given toilet paper once a month and after that you are on your own. Belkis is from Canada and therefore does not have any family to help her with the basic needs she has. So when someone gave her these things she was overjoyed! She has been in the prison for several months and still awaits her sentencing.

Another young woman I work with in the prison has been in only about 3 months. Her name is LeAnna. She is from Africa and was arrested for drug trafficking, which may mean up to 8 years for her. One of the saddest facts about her is that she is about 5 months pregnant and has not been very well! She is having a very hard time with the food and vomits it up a lot. The prison guards are worried about her health.

It is very hard to get vitamin's here in country and I was wondering if anyone would like to send me a care package for her? She will also need baby clothes when the baby comes in January.
Our mail box number and  address is: APDO # 782-2350 SAN JOSE, COSTA RICA

YOU CAN ALSO SEND US CARDS! We love to hear from you all!!! Makes us a little less home sick.

Bob and I are working in the slum area called La Cuenca. It is located on the other side of town from us and can be quite a ride in traffic. Last week was our first week since we came back to work there because of the Holiday here in Costa Rica. I had a coffee to introduce the new Bible Study and we invited some new women. 12 women showed up! It was so exciting to see them all!

Wednesday is our day to go there and we had a very strong 'aguacera', a big, ugly rain storm! We received such a large volume of rain so quickly that the streets were almost impassable. Because of the rain the attendance was a bit down, but I still had 5 women show up, on foot, a bit damp.

The most exciting thing about the class for me is the interest they have and the questions they ask. Today I reviewed what it really means to be a Christian. One of the passages we read was from Galatians where it speaks of the sinful flesh nature and the fruit of the Spirit in one 's life. They started asking me questions about the definitions of some of the sins listed under the flesh which brought on a conversation of 'union libre', which is the term for living together without being married. One of them told the group that she knew that God did not approve of the way she was living her life and was hoping to find the courage to change. Please pray that God gives her that courage.

I am thinking and praying about a retreat for them sometime this spring. God will have to pull all the details together from speakers to finances, but I trust that if this is from Him, He is capable to supply all our needs according to His riches in glory!

Last Sunday  another section of the slum where we are working  had a fire.  It spread quickly and the firemen had a hard time as the fire hydrants where not located close by.  What was left was an area covered with burnt metal roofing laying on the ground as everything below the roofs burnt up.   Thankfully there were no deaths, but sadly some 23 homes were lost and about 90 people were put up in shelters.  Bob and one of the missionaries hauled a truckload of goods, mostly for the children, over to the site.  The people were making headway in reconstruction using scrap wood and tin. We are in a time of heavy rain and the place is a sea of mud.  We bought a bunch of basic food today and I met up with one of my bible study friends who helped me with the delivery.  We became aware of a single mom who lost everything and has no one to help her get a shelter reestablished.  Tomorrow Bob will go over to see what might be done to help her and others.  We heard that today some building materials had been given to the effort.  Good news.

 After about 4 months now as the CFO at ESEPA Seminary, I, Bob am coming to a point of offering ideas for some needed changes.   Please pray for wisdom in making the decisions and that these changes will go smoothly.  Few of us like to see change and fewer still care to experience it. But isn’t this a lot like our journey in Christ?  Transitions and change in our lives as we yield to His leading!

Thanks so much for your prayers and support.   We would like to mention that we have been stretched lately in the financial department with all the help and supplies for the woman in the prison and in the slum.

 If you feel moved to support us either with a onetime gift or something monthly, we would greatly appreciate it.  Our support both personal and for ministry helps can be forwarded through CTEN:  (Commission to Every Nation) PO Box 291307 Kerrville, Texas 78029 or call 830-896-8326 or visit the website at www.cten.org.

Dios es Bueno todo el Tiempo y !aún mas!

                                          God is good all the time and more!

We often start our church services with this saying!(it sounds better in Spanish). Just when you think you are in a pickle that has no out, God comes to the rescue, in so many ways!

This week started out by calendar to be real busy. We have our regular duties, administrator at ESEPA Seminary, Bible Study leader, and prison worker and on top of that we are hosting our pastoral couple form CTEN (Commission to Every Nation) for the weekend. It is their tri-annual visit. They are a new overseeing couple for Latin America and we can't wait to get to know them. So the plate was getting a bit fuller than normal when a dear friend emailed to ask if one of her interns in Nicaragua could spend the weekend with us. We were happy to help out but were not sure how we could show her around with so much else going on. Thinking that we could find friends who had a college student home we were sure something would work out, but the friends were hosting a short term team and so that was out!

At this point we were starting to feel a bit anxious over how we could host her and our mission pastoral couple?? Yesterday I spoke to my friend in Nicaragua and expressed my concern and lack of avenues. Any other weekend would not have caused such a problem. Together we came up with another friend who lives across town from us, is also in her twenties and serves with a similar mission. I got a call from her this morning and she is able to help out with the intern.

Thank  you Father for being faithful in those small details of life!

The story gets a bit more complicated and it is the real reason for this update. Bob went to visit the seminary on Sunday morning as several churches are using the facility and he wanted to see how things went during that time. He left saying I'll be back in an hour. Twenty minutes later I got a call telling me that his guard at the seminary went to the emergency room with his wife who had just given birth to her 6th child, he is 3 months old.

His wife had been to the doctors with severe stomach pain twice that week and she had been sent home with a diagnoses of gastritis. Saturday night when she went to the emergency room they found gall bladder stones and one had ruptured something inside and she now had an infection. She could not have surgery because of the infection, the plan now is to wait until tomorrow. The dad is home tending his 5 children, including the 3 month old, who was breast feeding and never had taken a bottle. Needless to say he has his hands more than full. Bob ended up spending the day helping out, with trips to and from the hospital and tending the children in between. In the evening we came back with dinner and some food for the house.

Please keep Pauline and the family in PRAYER. She is supposed to be operated on tomorrow. They are from Nicaragua and have only one brother each here, so there is not much for help. We are starting to adopt them and have really enjoyed getting to know the children who are especially sweet. I was able to get the baby to sleep this afternoon after a little fight getting him to take a bottle!

We are so excited to be coming home soon.We have started our rainy season here and it is cloudy most of the time.  Our last couple of weeks are so full of final things to get done.We hope to hear from you in the next couple of weeks so we can get together over our home stay. Our plan is to stay in our garage to-be-apartment and rough it. So, we are not opposed to dinner or shower invitations!!!

Transitions

     You can see from the photo how happy Carlos and I are at the completion of renovations to his home.  He and his family live among 45,000 others that have moved into Los Guido, what was an old coffee plantation southeast of San Jose.  It is a noted crime area, most are from Nicaragua, most are here illegally and finding work is difficult.  Carlos and his family fit the profile, however he has work.  He is self employed collecting metal and possible recyclables.  He loads them on his bicycle that he has outfitted with a basket above dual front wheels.  A reverse tricycle I suppose.  He pedals miles daily checking out places to pick up material.  He may be netting about $50 a week.  His children, 3 girls and a boy are all under 7. They  are sweet, helpful and always with bright smiles. The two in school are working hard at their studies under mom’s watchful and caring eye.  

 

 At the dedication ceremony we sang, prayed and celebrated the blessings of the Lord for His provision.  A few folk from a local church across town made some funds available and a couple of us provided the labor to make the transformation. 

A few of the notable changes were a bathroom and a hot shower for the first time, some extra elbow space, electricity through out almost to code, and a roof that shouldn’t leak for the next 10 years.  It is a mix of some new materials and plenty of recycled materials from the original dwelling. 

Carlos is full of energy, a caring husband and father and fun to work with.  He is forging ahead here in Costa Rica after arriving some 15 years ago.  He left Nicaragua where there was little to do to make money, and less opportunity for him as he never went to school and doesn’t read and barely writes.  He has been working steadily since childhood.  One beautiful example that he is to his neighbors is that though he has little, he always gives some food to the drug addicts that knock on his door.  The family is a great witness for Christ in their community.

       So that is Carlos and his family in transition.  I, Bob, am also in transition.  There are endless places to lend a hand here and I will keep a hand involved for sure.  (I’m helping build a home church in one of the roughest areas south of the city currently).  But on a more permanent note I am starting to transition into being the administrator at a local seminary, ESEPA.  They have a need of a CFO type person who also knows maintenance.  ESEPA was launched about 30 years ago to train pastors and send them out. They offer an excellent education through the Master’s level, with a mix of North American and local professors.   About ¾ of the students are from Costa Rica and the rest are from other Latin countries.   

     B and I will celebrate 38 years of marriage this month!!  We hope to take in a few Pacific sunsets to celebrate the date and reminisce of the great blessings we have in each other, our family, our friends and supporters like YOU!

 If you have friends or a church community that you think would like to hear us share about our time here or missions in general, let us know and we’ll work up a plan to visit and share while we are in Maine during this August..

     Blessings to all,  Bob n B

      

Graduation

 Wow! What a day! After starting with about a dozen girls in our Celebrate Recovery program we graduated 2 of them last week. The program lasts about 1 1/2 years in prison and so we lost some of our girls because they were released and others dropped out. Overall the two who did finish shared how the program had changed their hearts. Living in the prison, according to the girls, brings out the very worst in one. One of the two told us how she now prayers for the girls who hurt her and steal from her when before she plotted how to fight with them. The other woman went from hardly speaking in the class to becoming very bold with the truth! How exciting to see lives changed! One of the girls, Monique, who got released to finish her term outside in the prison's bakery is wanting to continue on with the study until she finishes it. We will start up again next week.               

Going to the prison each week has it's own little challenges! Never a week goes by when the rules have been changed and we need to do something differently. But, even in the middle of these God's grace has been with us and we have progressed forward in His love.

As our group is an English speaking group we are unique. I do not believe there is any other group that meets on a weekly basis to support the women who speak English. Because of this we get a wide variety of women who come, just to get out of their cell. That is not a problem for us, God can use any excuse and when they sit under God's love and grace we see their hearts changing.   God has proven Himself to be bigger than any obstacle we have had to face and He has shown Himself to be faithful, and for this we are so thankful for His new mercies every day!

 The blue building in the background is where I started a new Bible Study this week. You may recognize it from when we had the two teams there. We have come to know and admire the local Costa Rician missionaries who work there day in and day out. When we were there they asked we might serve with them for a day a week. I told them that my work was not with children but with women in studying the Bible. They were enthusiastic  because none of the volunteers who have come along side them to  teach Bible Study. There are several classes in crafts and English but as yet no formal Bible Studies.

Last week were were in the community visiting women to see if there was any interest in having a Bible Study. Several women responded yes, but one never knows if they were just being polite and not wanting to offend, as is customary here.I spent all weekend pondering and praying over what I should use as an introductory lesson. I knew that I wanted to speak about God's true love for us but how? It was not until late Sunday night that I finally got what I felt was God's direction! I chose to teach the story of the Prodigal Son and the father's love for his son. They could all relate to a son gone astray, as they live this reality every day in their lives and  their children's lives.
They shared how a parent would feel very angry if a son asked for his inheritance while the father was still living. Then when we talked about the love the father had for his son, it was easy for them to see that this was a different kind of love then they had experienced ever before. I was excited to not only have 5 women to share with but women who were interested and asking lots of questions! The woman and baby on the right under the title Costa Rician Children in our blog(bobandbsbriefs.blogspot.com) is one of the women who joined us in the class. Her name is Yerling.
We will be memorizing Isaiah 49:16 this week. Their assignment was to not only memorize the passage but to look to see how God would use this truth in their lives this week.
I invite you to join us in this challenge and see what God does in your own heart as well. Love to hear from you!
Speaking of hearing from you! I jsut wanted to remind everyone that we have a new mailing address. It is: Bob and Barbara Nesbitt  APDO#782-2350 San Jose, Costa Rica.
We would love to have a few of you try it out and see of it works!!!!!

Easter in Costa Rica

The city of San Jose is deserted, the streets are empty. The people have either gone to visit family in the country or they are at the beach. This is Semana Santa, Holy Week. Holy Week is not celebrated by the Evangelical Church like it is by the Catholic Church here in Costa Rica. The Evangelical church believes that they celebrate the Resurrection of their Savior each and every Sunday. The tradition of the Catholic Church is filled with symbolism, observed by holy days and parades.

Botanical  Orchard Garden

A friend and I went to visit a beautiful botanical garden on Good Friday. It was a time for us to walk and talk as we observed the beauty of God’s creation. We also took time to spend individually in prayer and meditation over the meaning of Easter for us.

 One of the passages that I spent time thinking of was Jesus’ words in John 8:12, “I am the light of the world, whoever follows me will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life.”

I believe in this passage Jesus shows us the reason for His coming, to be the light in our lives that will open up the darkness of our minds and hearts to His truth and that this truth will  set us free from the power of sin in our life.

More and more I am growing in the knowledge of my need for a Savior, that I need to rely on His power to set me free every single day. What a great gift we have in a savior who came to liberate the world from sin and bring us to a place of freedom and light.

 May our hearts glory in this truth this Easter season as we celebrate his victory over sin and death!

We hosted our second team with Christ for the City this past week. They were from Shannon Christian High School, South Carolina. This team had 23 students and was a delight to work with.

Each brought their own special talents but all brought lots of love to share with the children of La Cuenca. Some of the students had never flown a plane before nor left the United States. It was quite eye awaking to see the poverty in La Cuenca for them. Their hearts were broken and they went home changed. Here are some comments the students made:


I rely way too much on material things instead of God.
I learned prayer can do amazing things.
I learned God is present through suffering. I saw that in the children of La Cuenca.
It's the little things that matter.
I learned that I am really self-centered.
As Christians in America we get blessed with things but here I see the blessing  is relationships.
Now I see everything God does for a reason.
They know their need for God.
I learned I am really stubborn and self-centered.
We all grew in patience.
It wasn't as much about what we got done but the relationships we developed.
I learned that what we have often distracts us.
I realize I always look for joy in the wrong places.
I got such joy from watching my host mother smile.
We spent the last 4 years with more of a relationship with our school books than with each other.


What wonderful observations. Please join us in praying that God will continue to grow them in a desire to serve Him where ever God chooses.

 

 It is always interesting to stop the regular course of events and reflect for a time about what has transpired recently and to write about those events and the reflections.  

We have begun working with Christ for the City International here in San Jose.  (Actually the main office is almost behind our house!)  We are helping host short term teams at this point.  We love their model of home stays in the communities for the entire team, us included. So for 11 days we were in a tough neighborhood northwest of the city.  

The team we hosted was from Canada, all girls in 11^th or 12^th grade.  Never have we experienced such a mature, loving and caring bunch of high scholars’.  They interacted well with the children and the women of the area as well as the host church from the barrio.  We also were stretched by the conditions in the slum (so thankful for our camping histories).  The girls shared their testimonies and by the end of the week, they were really connecting and touching the ladies hearts. B had a chance to chat with one woman who was noticeable touched by the testimonies of the girls. She had a chance to listen to her story and pray with her. This has lead to the start of a new relationship for B.  

 During times of debriefing with the team it was evident that God was working deeply with each one of them in terms of love, relationships and culture/world views.  It was a privilege to see such changes in them in such a short time.

 For me, Bob, I was delighted to go on a men’s retreat with our church in the mountains.  It was really the first time that I’ve had verbal skills and opportunity to get to know some of the men here in our area.  My “equipo” were a diverse bunch but we melded really well.  I’m hoping to press on with some of them as male fellowship has been thin for me for many years now.   One of our team tasks was to dunk ourselves into a cold, yes COLD, mountain stream during a group challenge. Thanks to good modeling from leadership at NWMC during our time in Maine, I was able to lead the charge for my group.

 Reflections of a more somber tone.  Life is fragile, short and in need of hearing the Gospel before it ends here on earth.  This was imparted to me during a trip to the beach for a debrief with the team.  The scene is 8 girls in the water playing on “boogie boards” and I am out a bit deeper.  Moments later they are passing me by as a rip tide has captured them. Scene three, all but one are able to help each other to shore.  So one young lady is heading offshore and I’m heading after her. The next ten to fifteen minutes were probably some of the most challenging I’ve ever experienced.  The short of the story is that we did get back in, a bit traumatized but so thankful to God for his mercy on both of us.

The following few nights were times of reflecting on the brevity of life, the need of a savior to continue life beyond this world, the thankfulness of a good outcome, the sobriety and the gut pains when I wasn’t sure of the outcome, and for God’s protection over the mind of this sweet young gal about her experience.

Thank you for your prayers as we take another team into the same area next week.  They are a larger group, 26 people, so the logistics are quite a bit bigger.  We are with them 24/7, so prayers for our energy are appreciated and for safety in all aspects.