work hard, play hard

Our family of five (with Mariana) piled into our borrowed Honda and headed to Atenas, famous for having one of the best climates in the world!

It was our day with Cherie...

she is giving her life to loving children, creating a home for siblings without a home - not just a house, but a home filled with love. Cherie has spent the last months preparing her house for the filling of children. One room for boys, bunk beds built, bedding ready, and toys waiting. A room for the girls neatly prepared with each bed made perfectly, clothes hanging...ready. She is waiting for all of the legal paperwork (and there is a lot) to finish processing. THEN this house will be filled with the sounds of laughter, foot steps running, sweet voices, and brothers & sisters teasing one another. Cherie's home will be one where siblings stay together! 

We arrived with a bag of goodies (supplies donated) and a much needed microwave (gift given by a friend here) to Cherie's big smile!

There were little odds and ends that needed to be done, so we got to work right away. The boys unloaded & assembled the new, large microwave. There was some painting on the outside, painting trim on the inside, scraping the front porch clean, hanging laundry, and shelling the dried beans...lots and lots of beans!

After a full morning and into the early afternoon of working hard around the house, we headed out to a mountaintop 

cafe for lunch. 

It was deliciouso!

With our "work hard" behind us and our bodies refueled, it was time to "play hard." We rode with Cherie to pick up four children who, God willing, will be in her home very soon. The children climbed into the van and warmed up to us quickly. As soon as we were back to Cherie's house the play hard was on. From chase, to vrooming little plastic cars and mooing farm animals, playing dress up, to jumping on the trampoline - "otra vez, otra vez" was heard many times! 

Tired and worn out, but with our cups overflowing this family of five climbed back into the much appreciated little Honda, waving good-bye to these sweet faces, 

another family of five...

steeped in tradition

Traditions run deep in every family, every culture, every nation.       It was a pleasant surprise as we rode through the downtown area of San Jose to see Nativity scenes displayed with colored lights flashing Feliz Navidad. Small homes behind their barred gates had their nativity scenes out (some nearly life-size). At the center of the big mall, inside there was another giant nativity scene. Santa Claus wasn’t the focus, hardly there at all. A Costa Rican friend said that Santa arrived about a decade ago via a Coca~Cola billboard!

     Christmas day was one of worship from beginning to end. From baptisms, purchasing a large food order, delivering needed gifts to families in the barrios, a Christmas service to serving a dinner to each of those who showed up at the worship service.

     After incredible worship led by the band, poetry being read, and mime acting to a song, Pastor Alejandro shared insight (for me) and a challenge to each of us. “Christmas is not about setting out a nativity in your home, it is not about baby Jesus in a manger, it is not about baby Jesus bringing you gifts, it IS about the Gospel, Jesus coming, dying and being resurrected – bringing salvation.” As Mariana whispered his message in my ear (interpreting it for us) my back stiffened a bit; thinking how hard the pastor was being on baby Jesus and the nativity scenes…

then I got it.

The United States has their Santa Claus, and Costa Rica has el niño Jesus bringing gifts. Catholicism is the primary religion, with extra traditions added on of course -like Christmas Eve, if you have been good el niño Jesus will bring you gifts.

     As we made our way through the barrios on Christmas day, my heart ached a little more. It’s ok if Santa’s sleigh never makes it here, but what if they have been pretty good kids all year and they desperately want baby Jesus to bring them a gift on Christmas Eve and he never shows up? A hard reminder of how some tradition and religion can kill faith. Will it make it more difficult for them to believe that Jesus came as a baby, not bringing our wants on Christmas Eve, but bringing salvation to all who will trust him?

Vivid in my mind are the faces that we saw, spoke with, touched on Christmas day, may the Gospel that they heard change everything for them!

Making a list and checking it twice!

This Christmas our family will be celebrating the birth of our Savior with our good friend Mariana, in some of the poorest barrios of Costa Rica.  We will work alongside Mariana to share the love of Jesus with teen moms and their babies, encourage those that mentor the teens, celebrate Christmas with the boys of Glorious Day Orphanage, and provide a Christmas morning meal while sharing the truth of hope born on Christmas morning with those in the barrio pictured above.
If you would like to help out, here's a list that we would love to provide for those we get to share the joy of Christmas with...

Mariana's Pura Vida Costa Rica Christmas Shopping List

These items will be for gift bags for the teen moms and for the boys at the Glorious Day Orphanage:

48 Christmas 12” x 8” Gift bags with handles -  

big bag full of candy 

big bag of chocolates 

17 scripture bookmarks

12 scripture bookmarks

12 scripture bookmarks

17 - 3 oz lotion     

12 - 3 oz lotion     

12 - 3 oz lotion 

17 pack of footie socks – grey or black

12 pack of footie socks – grey or black

12 pack of footie socks – grey or black ~ thank you!

17 - 4”x 6” sized journals for boys ~ thank you!

12 - 4”x 6” sized journals for girls ~ thank you!

12 - 4”x 6” sized journals for girls ~ thank you!

17 packs of colored pencils ~ thank you!

12 packs of colored pencils ~ thank you!

12 packs of colored pencils ~ thank you!

17 large sized toothpaste       17 toothbrushes ~ thank you!

12 large-sized toothpaste      12 toothbrushes ~ thank you!

12 large-sized toothpaste  ~ thank you!

17 bars of soap ~ thank you!

12 bars of soap ~ thank you!

12 bars of soap ~ thank you!

17 - chapstick ~ thank you!

12 toothbrushes ~ thank you!

12  chapstick ~ thank you!

12  chapstick ~ thank you!

Pura Vida Costa Rica Sponsor List

These items will be purchased locally:

Sponsor a Christmas meal & party for 17 boys $200.00

Sponsor a Christmas meal & party for 12 girls $120.00

Sponsor a Christmas meal &  party for 12 girls $120.00

Sponsor a Christmas morning breakfast for children in the barrio

$50.00 ~ thank you!

$50.00 ~ thank you!

$50.00

$50.00

Sponsor a buggy full of diapers $150.00

Sponsor a buggy full of diapers $150.00

Sponsor a bag full of baby formula $100.00 ~ thank you!

Sponsor a bag full of baby formula $100.00

Sponsor a $30 pair of shoes for the Glorious Day boys

                    X  X  X X  o  o  o  o  o  o  o  o  

Sponsor checks can be made out and mailed to:

CMC                                   or        HopePoint Church

P.O. Box 219228                          P.O. Box 170151

Houston, TX 219228                   Spartanburg, SC 29301

(memo: Mariana Melo)              (memo: Mariana Christmas)

Thanks for checking the list, and helping others hear the truth of a Savior born on Christmas Day and experience the joy of receiving a gift this Christmas!

You can email me or message me on facebook if you would like to give!

Merissa

family missions together

we love missions, near us or abroad. My husband gets to travel all over, loving on orphans and encouraging those called to serve in hard places - he loves it. I have opportunities to travel abroad speak to women, teens and teach children God's truths - I love it. Nothing tops getting to do this as a family. We know this is a tremendous blessing!

Taking our children with us is huge for us. We have been asked, "But what can you REALLY do when you have your children with you?" My answer: be a family.
Many that we have the opportunity to serve are not surrounded by healthy families. The children we get to love on do not see many outside dad's and mom's just getting to be dad and mom. The women I share with are often wives and moms - in need of encouragement.

Our children get to serve by playing - tough job, but somebody's got to do it!
When in India our son played cricket, soccer, and just got to be himself. He couldn't communicate because he doesn't speak Tamil and the children didn't speak English. In Costa Rica the boys speak Spanish. Thankfully for boys grunts are universal and sports are an automatic connection.

Man Time with boys - playing soccer, devo time & ice cream!

Our daughter loves to hold the little one's. In India, most of the time there was a child on her hip. In Haiti, she smiled, held them and played. In Costa Rica she smiled, held them and played.

playing & loving on the little ones

If you have been thinking of going on a family mission trip - stop thinking and start planning. It's not as easy as going solo...but the worthwhile things in life are rarely the easy ones!

my heart restored

Sharing with teen moms in Costa Rica ~ some who come from broken homes, live with abusive boyfriends, taking care of their babies at age fifteen and sixteen. Being a teenager is hard, being a mom is hard, living in poverty makes it ALL the more difficult. Most of them have their identity tied to what has happened to them (they didn't all become moms by their own will), what they have done, who shows them "love," and the lies others have spoken to them again and again.
My Heart Restored was prayed over and planned to hold up a new mirror, show them a new identity, restore bruised and broken hearts - but how?
The Gospel. In the new mirror given there is a reflection of a Savior.
My favorite storybook This is No Fairy Tale, ended session one as Hazel (pictured next to me on the right) told the story orally in the girls native tongue. They heard the gospel. A Savior who loves, died, rose again so that we could be complete, forgiven, made whole.
A Savior who loves completely and never leaves us.
The young girls didn't need to be reminded of their sin. It is what they see in the mirror every day, reminded of when others shun them, by the way they seek to feel loved...
Small Group time with their mentors gave them time to address these. The girls were asked tough questions and given big TRUTHS.

As we gathered again, I shared "This is how God showed his love for us. He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins." 1 John 4:9&10

A Savior who loves you - He calls you by name, he has engraved your name on the palm of his hand. You are not just one in a million or a face in the crowd. You are unique, loved and accepted fully because of what Jesus has already done. When we believe this for ourselves and trust Him, he gives us the right to be called children of God. This is no fairy tale, Jesus' love is real.

Trust him, begin to believe His truth. Then I prayed for them new eyes and courage to see themselves as they really are in Christ (or really can be) and faith to believe that He is restoring their hearts.

Small group time, a chance to go deeper....and they did!

God is at work in the hearts of these young ladies, pray for them and pray for their mentors!