"Why?"

Are you wondering “Why Costa Rica?”

We have so many people who have lovingly suggested we “stay here in Raleigh and just work on our language-learning skills via Rosetta Stone.”  We agreed.  We would love to stay in Raleigh and learn to speak Spanish fluently.  Actually, over the past 4 years, we made a valiant effort tried (a little).  We tried a computer program.  We tried a tutor.  Eddie even bought a Spanish textbook with a CD and Spanish-English Bible.  We thought that would be easier, and we wish it were that simple.  Unfortunately, it didn’t stick. God is calling us to more than just “fitting it in” to our current life-style.  He has called us to immersion.  Or, as a friend suggested: Spanish “baptism.”

You may or may not know who we are; either way, you may not know how this decision to pack up and move to Costa Rica came about.  We want to share a little more about ourselves, and how we came to this decision. 

My husband, Eddie, is Puerto Rican and grew up with bi-lingual parents.  Although he heard Spanish spoken throughout his life, he is not fluent in Spanish.  For many years now, he has had a strong desire to learn the language.  Because of his “Hispanic look,” many people assume that he can speak Spanish.  He has been discouraged from time to time when his lack of Spanish-fluency gets in the way of ministry opportunities.  He knows that being fluent in Spanish would increase his connection with the Hispanic community and help him to communicate the gospel to the lost.

I am just a little Dutch girl who is “as white as they come” (in the words of Casto last Sunday).  I know almost no Spanish.  Oh, I know numbers and colors and a few other elementary-level words here and there.  Hey, one of my first words as a child was “zapatos.” That means “shoes” in Spanish, and I learned that thanks to my big sisters.  I even took 2 years of Spanish in high school.  Unfortunately, I struggled in those classes and I came away not retaining much of the language.  I want to learn Spanish along with my husband and my son, and I have a feeling I will be the “slow” one of the three of us. (Prayers for me to stay frustration-free would be much appreciated).

Eddie and I met in Florida and were married in June of 2007.  In July of 2007, we moved to Raleigh, North Carolina where my husband attended Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and God blessed me with a job at Gorman Christian Academy where I taught Kindergarten.

Shortly after we got married, Eddie was interested in doing overseas missions.  I was hesitant because I wanted him to finish school so we could have a baby and I could fulfill my dream of being a stay-at-home-mom.  3 ½ years later, Eddie graduated and I was pregnant with our first son.  Currently, he leads worship at Lifepointe Church, which is a multi-site, non-denominational church.  Our church has three locations, and Eddie spent the last year and a half working full-time as a worship leader and youth pastor for the West site.  After the birth of our son, I became a stay-at-home-mom. Our one-year-old fills my days with smiles and laughter, and I of course consider him to be the cutest kid on the face of this earth!

True to my sister’s endearing nickname for me, the “Princess” got exactly what she wanted.  A few months ago, I felt God tugging on my heart.  He reminded me that I had “achieved my dream” of having a child and staying home with him.  I couldn’t be happier.  He is the happiest, healthiest, and easiest baby a mom could ever hope for.  I have been through 3 different women’s Bible studies at my church over the last year, and all of them have reminded me of God’s will for us to share his love with others.  Soon, I felt my heart opening to a willingness to step out in obedience to wherever God called, although I did not know what that would look like.  I just knew our child adjusts well to our ever-changing schedule and frequent traveling life-style.   If you have to take a baby on the mission field, what more could you ask for?  As soon as I shared this newfound change of heart with my husband, he hopped to it.  He was already ready and had been for years.  He began seeking counsel from our pastor and other staff members of our church.  We were praying about God opening the door for us to go overseas sometime in the next few years. 

One morning, we were searching for a new apartment to move into because the deadline to give our 60-day notice was almost upon us.  We were planning on moving, but our radar was set on somewhere in West Raleigh.  Later that day, Eddie met with Donnie, the lead pastor of our church.  In that meeting, it was discussed that so many things were lining up to make this a prime time to go. He encouraged us to “seize the day.” It seemed like now or never.  With our pastor’s support, our church’s support, and a peace from God, we decided to take the steps needed to GO.  We just needed to see where God would lead us.

Two days later, Eddie got a phone call from his sister who felt led by God to (and I quote) “go wherever you go” to do ministry.  Her recent visit to NC had reminded her how much she missed doing ministry with her big brother, and she felt called to join us in our adventure.  

She will be joining us in this 6-month immersion program.  She was even the one to find and to tell us about CISA, the school we will be attending in Costa Rica.  Things were falling into place faster than we ever imagined, and we knew God’s hand was upon it.   He even used our moving date as a motivation for us to make decisions quickly.  We have been at peace every step of the way knowing that if this was not God’s will, He would be closing the door. 

Well, that door has remained open.  And many more doors opened along the way.  We shared our news with our families, our church family, and our friends.  We dug out our passports and applied for one for Jaden.  We started raising money to cover the cost laid out in the budget provided by the school for the 6 months we planned to be there.  We purchased our plane tickets.  We got our vaccinations.  We started getting rid of things we don’t need and started packing the things we do.  We still have a lot more packing to do, and we are trying to squeeze in and savor every last moment with our friends before we go. 

We are moving all of our belonging to Coral Springs (near Miami) where Eddie’s parents live.  10 days later we hop on a plane, and: Costa Rica, here we come!  When we return from Costa Rica, our plan is to move to a Spanish-speaking community where we can continue practicing our new skill.  Eddie hopes to get a job at a church where we can minister to the Hispanic community that surrounds it.  Now, where that may be?  Only God knows, and we trust Him to tell us.  Miami is on our radar, but we are not in the driver’s seat.