Hola! from COSTA RICA

Hello my wonderful blog readers

and my great EMI support team!!!!

I am here in Costa Rica.

This is Bethany and Jess two the wonderful people I am in CR with! I live with Jess with our Familia Tica! This is us at a market last Friday buying fruits for the office.

So I arrived in Texas and met up with the other interns! We got to Costa Rica late that night and stayed with an EMI family. This past week was orientation here at the office and around town. We spent the mornings in group prayer and then did a devo going through Romans 12. That was my favorite part of each day last week. Living with my Tico family is such a blessing. Tico by the way is the name Costa Ricans have for themselves. In my family I have 2 sisters and one brother. Also we have a dog named Suki!

This week has been the start of Spanish class. It is my teacher Maria and I from 8-12. What a blessing it is to be able to learn more Spanish. We use it SO much here. After these 2 weeks of class and Spanish I am off with intern David for our project trip. So, from September 11-19 I will be working with EMI at the hospital in Guatemala I told you about in the other post. It really is coming up so fast. That is a short update of my life here! All of the EMI families here are warm and welcoming to us interns and the heart of the Lord is seen in them and my host family!!!

a new fruit! Mamonchino! very new, it is like a eyeball on the inside and tastes like a grape, kinda.. :) Oh also my Tico Mom is a great cook and gives me great coffee. I am one blessed girl!

 

Having a great time at the feria.

Ok beloved ones! I will post again soon. I am in the middle of learning a lesson about faith and trust and I also need to share from Romans 12! So next post we are "diving in" the Word! Have your Bible ready! Much Love,

Erika

Costa Rica Time!

 HELLO my lovely blog readers and EMI support system!

Busy busy! I came home from Israel, dove into wedding things with beautiful Emily and Jon this week and then a WONDERFUL wedding Friday. Here are some pictures:

and now COSTA RICA TIME has come!

This past week all the other interns were in Colorado having orientation. So I am looking forward to learning things and getting an update. I am trying not to worry about being behind. The Lord will catch me up with the help of the other 3 Costa Rica interns. I still do not have an update on who my host family will be exactly. I do know my project! So that is exciting. I will be working on a hospital project in Guatemala. I could use prayer over this whole new adventure!

This is the information I know about the project taken from a group post. I thought many of you may want to know more information 

 "Good Samaritan Hospital was started around 50 years ago when a Methodist church began offering medical services from what had been a rent-by-the-hour hotel. There was no other hospital available to serve the people in this area. Mostly native peoples, even today most are unable to pay for medical services.

In addition to providing medical care, Good Samaritan Hospital's purpose is to reach people with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. All patients and their families are visited by local pastors while they are at the hospital.

Since 1998 investors and supporters have helped the hospital upgrade existing systems and add a second floor but the need continues to grow and Good Samaritan Hospital is making plans for future expansion. This project will review the existing hospital facility and create a strategic plan for their continued growth. Phase one of their expansion will be construction of an infill building to accommodate an eye clinic. This project will also provide Construction Documents for this building."

 

So my flight leaves tomorrow morning. These first few weeks will be language school for us interns. This is a big prayer request for me. If you could please pray I will keep my eyes on the Lord and not worry but really step out and get more of this language in my head!  God knows Spanish perfectly so that is helpful! :)

 

Once again I want to say thank you for following my posts and for the support you have given to me! I will keep these updates coming! And post a little about Israel too!

 

May the blessings of the Lord chase you down. My his hand be heavy on you. May he guide you with Love and Encouragement tonight!

 
 

Looking at Summer and James

Summer Summer sweet sweet Summer

Hello Lovely Readers! I'm thankful for you!

Ok so crazy, but last fall I signed up for a trip to Israel. I though wow this will be the first country I go to! But the Lord surprised me and planned 2 times in Belize before that! He is good and has good plans :) So now the trip I have known about the longest is here. I am so blessed to be able to travel with great friends from Stout and see them non stop right before I fly to Costa Rica for my EMI internship.  The Lord knows best!

This past weekend I was up north MN for Dad and Daughter Donut Day.  My dad, sister and I have been doing this yearly with our family friends for many years. It is just a way to get the daughters and the dads off on an adventure! This year was ROCK CLIMBING! yep that is right. Here are some pictures to enjoy:

Kate and I, when by beautiful water one must jump!

The home(camp)made donuts! YUM! a must have for this event!

Me and the DADIO

and then the climb

Tonight the verse I want to bring up is from James. I saw it in my friends house this past weekend, at it was a great reminder! Lets take a look, shall we?

17But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. 18Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness.

What is wisdom from heaven look like? Look at the descriptive words, how wonderful is that? There is so much "wisdom" in this world, even in our own heads. But where is it coming from, yourself, myself, or heaven!? Are we talking out of our own heads, or are we being powered by the Lord, who has the real wisdom? Then 18 talks about sowing in peace. I just picture this garden. When you see it start to grow, righteousness is found, growing all over! Covering everything. I pray we all get a good picture of that garden. May the Lord teach us to be peacemakers, with his wisdom from heaven. Have a wonderful next week!

Close look in Colossians

Hello again sweet readers! And welcome to any new ones and my EMI support team

LOVE LOVE!  

So it seems that I love being in Isaiah and I love being in Colossians. These are like themes in most of the posts on this blog but I can't seem to get away from it. Today look at Colosians 2:13-15! This was talked about at church this past Sunday and is something we all need to learn deep deep down. We need this to get into the depths.

When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive in Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.

Do you know when he did all of those epic powerful things for us?

                     It was when we were dead in our sins!

We were not made alive in this world or in ourselves and what we can do, rather God made us ALIVE IN CHRIST! He is what is real life, He is true living. His life is more real then any life you can think of. God and his son is more real then any man. I hate when I forget that. God wants us to acknowledge that. That even if we need faith, even if we need hope and trust, he is real and the life he gives the the only real thing! And he gives it at such a time. In our most desperate hour, he is there holding it all up for us.

When I read all of the things that he took away, the sins, the code, the regulations, and then how he disarmed the powers behind it all. This is a picture more amazing then any battle scene. The darkness no longer has armor. And the light brings life! Gods love isn't a "go home fix your self up and get back to me when you made yourself better" kind of love. It is a "lets get you out of this darkness before it kills you, for my love is STRONG and the life I give you is REAL!" kind of love. While we were still sinners!

He is bigger and more amazing and more real then I remember some times. I needed this lesson tonight! May the Love of the father get deeper roots in us all.  

Reminder: you were made by him and made for him! We didn't make ourselves and we are not here for ourselves. Below is a great Belize view for you all <3 down south! Love the mountains!

Back in the USA

Hello My Wonderful Readers!

Welcome to you new ones and my faithful EMI partners.

What a week this as been back in the USA! Many wonderful times have been had. First an update on my support raising.

Thank the Lord I am very close to half way to the total needed $7,600.  I would be very thankful  for prayers and help pushing to the end! I need around $4,000 more. I leave Aug 23rd! I am thankful to the Lord who is our provider! He likes to finish the plans he starts! Amen :)

If you would like to give to my funds for EMI Costa Rica you can do so here at this link: http://emiworld.org/donate_staff.php 

and if you are new and have no idea what EMI is and what I am needing support for look back in the blog history here and you can learn all about it!

SO SO this past weekend I was able to spend some much needed time with great friends over in WI! What a blessing and encouragement. The most encouraging thing is how the LORD works in friendships and speaks. May we catch what he says! This weekend the Lord showed me 2 Samuel 22.  I encourage you to take out the Bible or look it up online as we take a look.

David is singing praise to the Father in such an epic way during this chapter. The Lord fights for David, and He fights for us! The first 16 verses God is coming coming violently and with anger to scatter David's Enemy. How dare some one come against the Lord's Beloved.

Then he is taken from deep waters. Verse 20 "He brought me out into a spacious place; he rescued me because he delighted in me." HE DELIGHTS IN YOU.  The delight he has in you and the love he has for you brings him to fight for you.

Then David explains he was dealt with according to his righteousness. David was righteous before the Lord. How do we do that. How can we be blameless and clean? Only by the blood. With the death of Jesus we are clean and accounted righteousness.  Thank you Jesus. Because of him we are saved! Because of the Lord we can be saved from our enemies! They may not be an army like David, it might be something else.  But God wants you free because he DELIGHTS in you.

After he saves him he prepairs him! How great is that? "It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect" "He enables me to stand on heights" "Trains my hands for battle" I hope you feel the love of God today. May you know your self as a beloved child of the King.  He is the best one to save you, the one who can pull you out of deep water and set you in a spacious place. : ) 

Here are pictures from the weekend in WI! Home away from home how I missed you!

Big Belize City please! Parkview Church from Iowa

Hello blog readers,

My last week my team was in the heart of the city! This was much different then the other places I had been so far! Here is a group pic of the team on the Island before heading home!

We had a packed VBS from day one 150+ very excited children! They waited for us every morning and watched the bus pull up. I met some very great children that week! We also when to two children homes and a nursing home as well.

Belize upclose

Love the tiles, little beauty marks

Our team and leaders enjoyed a great refreshing coffee place!

A hand full of the men where busy all week fixing up the siding and windows and odds and ends at the church!!!! What a way to bless the church. Here are some more pictures from this week! Be ready to see some crabs!

Great painting in the church!

The cute little ones I worked with each day! LOVE LOVE! We had a very packed VBS. Over 100 children joined our team for learning about Jesus and having fun!  

and the VERY crazy and wonderful staff I was with all week!

What a great 4th week of my time in Belize. Next Ill be posting from USA. MN here I come!

A very needed update! My week 3!

Hello again my beautiful blog readers!

So week 3 and 4 were busy! I am sorry I did not have time to update you all. Welcome new readers and my amazing EMI supporters!

WEEK 3 DOWN SOUTH IN PUNTA GORDA- the wonderful X-Stream students

Here is a few of them worshiping with some of the Belize teens! We had such great youth nights! This youth group was busy everyday. We started the day with teaching baseball! The team gathered SO much equipment before they came down and were able to bless the community with it all when they left! We picked up students from school each day to go up to the field with us and have baseball class. What a great way to connect with the children!

We were at a wonderful church right on the water! This team had amazing times of sharing and lifting each other up with kind words this week. I really saw the Lord moving in amazing ways in this team!

The youth pastor gave a wonderful talk about being a life savor, like the candy! We are called to lead, last and love! He said a great quote that he heard growing up, "Our life is too important to waist it on ourselves." Youths lives we impacted. We had some weather challenges, it was the rainy season. But after many flight delays for this team they arrived safely home. This was a packed week and God showed up in it all! Here are some more pictures from that week.

 This is the church we worked at all week.

                             The view the church looks at all day every day!!! amazing!!!! God is good!

View from the drive down south

Hannah! Trip leader for the week :)

Jen, other ATL, took this pic of me as we had a afternoon beach time for swimming after HOT painting and fence work.

Beautiful