The Diagnosis

Remember the lady that we took to have a test run? Her name is Arlene. She was not feeling well and had been to her doctor who referred her to a specialist who had done an xray. This is were they found a growth in her brain. She needed another test that was very costly. Because God is so good he provided that money for her and we were able to be part of that. We took her for the test and she was very nervous. She was very excited though to be able to share her testimony about God providing the money she needed for this test. The test did not take long and we were back on our way to the precario. She picked her results up and made her appointment with her doctor. I am so happy to report that it was NOT cancer! It's a cyst that is in the middle of her brain and it is treatable with medication. She has already started the treatments and is beginning to feel much better. The feelings of severe depression are lifting and she has more energy. Needless to say she is praising God! I am just so thankful that I got to be part of this whole thing. Pretty cool!

A trip to the dentist

I went to the dentist today. I know that sounds a little scary considering I'm in Costa Rica. The dentists here only go to school for 4 years. Actually it was a very good trip. My dentist speaks English which is very helpful when someone is working on your mouth and you can't think of the Spanish word for-- ow that hurts! Just kidding! There was no pain involved, either during the process or when I was paying. I had my teeth cleaned, a tooth repaired and a cavity filled. All of this only took 30 minutes! That in itself was pretty amazing. Also I didn't get a shot of any kind. No need for one. She uses a water drill that doesn't hurt one bit. When it was time to go and pay it only cost me $50 for everything! Isn't that the craziest thing you've ever heard of?! Even with dental insurance in the states I had to pay at least $100 just to have my teeth cleaned not to mention the other procedures I had done. So if you need any dental work done you would save money even with the plane ticket to have it done down here in beautiful Costa Rica. Just thought you might like to know.

God's Gift

Just wanted to share a God story with you. On Thursday I received my support check from the church. It was for a lot more than I was expecting. So much so that I was able to pay off all of my credit card debt! I felt sick to my stomach though. I couldn't decide if it was because I thought it was a mistake or I felt unworthy or what it was. I couldn't sleep so I decided to read my bible. I opened to the verse that says: "It is better to give than to receive". So now the good part....
There is a woman in our ladies bible study at the precario who has been having some health issues. The doctors have recently found a tumor in her brain. She needed another test. The amount of money needed for that test is the exact amount of my tithe for my church check and my last check from work! I was able to tell her at bible study on Friday to make the appointment for the test. I made sure that she knew that the money was a gift from God and not from me. She made the appointment and called last night to tell us. I couldn't sleep at all last night. I was worried about her and about what we would do next once the results came in. I finally fell asleep and when I woke up I heard from the Lord not to worry about it; I wouldn't do anything, HE would do it all! We went to the hospital today for the test. The results should be in and she should be able to meet with her doctor in the next day or two. Another awesome part of this story is that she has been able to share her faith. When they told her how much the test would cost they figured they would never see her again. She told them she would be back. She said the Lord had told her everything was going to be fine. She had faith that God would provide a way. When she went to make her appointment yesterday they were VERY surprised to see her. She was able to tell them about her gift from GOD!

The Door of Hope

I wrote briefly about our new ministry in my last newsletter but I wanted to add to that. It is called the Door of Hope because that is what we want to provide for these girls, hope. Our first girl in this program is Juliana. Phil Jones, one of the founders of Blood N Fire Costa Rica, has known Juliana for 10 years. When he met her she was living in a precario. She is now 17 and lives in a better situation. They were able to buy a VERY small house that has running water. She lives with her Mom, three of her sisters and one brother. It is only a 2 bedroom house. She has other sisters that don't even live with them. They live in extreme poverty and she has seen many men come and go out of her house. Most of her siblings all have different fathers.

She recently has become involved with a married man that is 40. He was taking her out to dinner buying her alcohol and paying attention to her. Of course he said he cared about her, then he said he didn't want anything to do with her. Which is just a head game these men play so they can get the girls to do whatever he wants to get him back. He has been back in contact with her but she hasn't really had the time to spend with him since she has been coming to stay with us on the week ends. That was part of our plan all along. We are also hoping to teach her that she is better than that.

We read the bible with her daily while she is here and encourage her to read at home as well. We talk to her as best as our Spanish will allow. We want to show her God's love is enough. HE is all she needs.

She really looks forward to coming. She is teaching us new games. She cooked dinner for us last night. It was very good. She also has started acting like a teenage girl again. She really enjoyed our trip to the precario. She talked to the kids and handed out suckers. It was really a nice day.

The picture at the top is Juliana with LCI team member Caroline before she came to stay with us.

Feria

Jennifer, Juliana, and I went to the feria today. The feria is an open air market. It's very Costa Rican. People go every Saturday morning to buy all of their fruits and vegetables for the week. I drank from a coconut while I was there. I wouldn't say it's my favorite but it was ok and it was definitely an experience to watch them chop the top off with a machete! I also ate a fruit I've never seen before. Juli said it was a manzana agua. Water apple is how it translates. It was very good. It was sour which is something I like. We also bought a few other things I have never tried before and Juliana is preparing dinner with them. I'll have to let you know how that goes. So far it smells wonderful!

Pictures

While the team from Life Connections International were here there were lots of pictures taken. I have put a few in an album and would like to share them.
http://joyncostarica.shutterfly.com/action/?a=8AYtnLly1buGIn

LCI Team

The team from LA came to visit. They were with Life Connections International. We have a very excited time with them. They were here for a little over a week. They helped us of course with our "Beca" program. We worked in the precario, had a cook out and all that fun stuff. They also helped us move our things from our storage into our new place. While we were there the van got filled with bees! It was a little crazy. We drove with the back door open for a little ways but they refused to leave. Phil had to get out and use a branch to swat them away. Then on Friday that week we had a flood in the house! We had gone to ladies bible study in the precario and when we got home there was at least 3 inches of water everywhere! Shoes were floating, everything was wet and had to be washed. Luckily we have ceramic floors throughout the house so everything got really clean by the time we were done. To finish up the time the team had here we went to the beach. It was beautiful of course. I actually got to see monkeys in the wild. It was pretty amazing.