Forgiveness

It all started last summer when a mission team came to Alajuelita to serve. Toward the end of the trip one of the young ladies on the mission team had her camera stolen. She had laid it down for a few minutes in the church they where they were working and it was gone! She was frustrated and I was incredibly disappointed and embarrassed.

I did some investigating and figured it was one of two people. I spoke with each of these people and asked them to come clean, return the camera, and ask the young lady for forgiveness. My petitions fell on deaf ears and nothing was resolved.

A year later this same young woman returned to serve. Toward the end of the trip she was approached by a young man, one of the two I had suspected. He was upset and asked if he could speak with her. He went on to confess that he was the one who had stolen her camera. He explained that a year ago he didn't know Jesus. He didn't feel bad and didn't think he needed to ask for forgiveness. However, in the past year he had grown to love Jesus and now he understands why he needs to ask for forgiveness. The young lady forgave the young man and it was a healing experience for both. Then the young man asked if he could some how pay restitution for the lost camera. The young woman simply replied "You are forgiven." While she had lost a camera, she had gained a brother.

The whole experience was a beautiful picture, and excellent reminder of the love and forgiveness found in the body of Christ.

Ramblings - Gloria

A member of our church family has passed away. Her name is Gloria. She was disabled and lived in some of the most impoverished conditions you can imagine. She had been coming to church for a while, but had recently found her place in the body of Christ.

It was always a source of conviction and encouragement to see Gloria hobble into church on her crutches each Sunday. Breathing heavy and sweating profusely, she would smile and greet me with a kiss on the cheek. Her chronic asthma and physical disability made it extremely difficult to go anywhere...but the one place she desperately wanted to go was church. She wanted to be near her church family.

God used Gloria to impact many of the lives around her. She had a tremendous impact on the men of the church. They were convicted and rallied together to reach out in love to help. Most of these men struggle to make ends meet for their own families; however together they committed to raise enough money to pay the rent for decent home close to the church. God also used Gloria to impact the mission teams visiting the church. One team conducted a BBQ fundraiser while another cleaned and painted her new home. It was beautiful to watch the body of Christ in action. Selfless acts of love and service for their sister in need.

The day of Gloria's death the mission team visited Gloria. During the visit the mission team prayed that God would heal Gloria and ease her physical suffering. They also prayed that she would like the home they were preparing for her. I doubt any of them thought that God would answer their prayer in such a powerful way.

Later that same day Gloria was taken to hospital because she was having difficulty breathing. Later that night she died...at least physically. The prayers of the mission team had been answered. Gloria left her weak and broken body here on earth, but immediately she was with the God the Father and has no physical pain or suffering. Not only that...but I know she likes the new home Jesus prepared for her...It's perfect!

The next day I had the privilege of attending Gloria's funeral. It was like no funeral I have ever attended. There was upbeat music, balloons, and tons of people from the church. I didn't see anyone weeping, though I did see some tears of joy. Together we worshiped God.Pastor Jorge preached an encouraging message. And then, there was dancing! It was more like a party than a funeral. It was a beautiful celebration! We all knew that our sister Gloria was now in a much better place. I will miss seeing Gloria for now, but it felt selfish to mourn her death.

At one point during the service I leaned over and told Dave "I want my funeral to be like this!", he smiled and agreed. Through it all I've been reminded that because of Christ, death has lost it's sting. He really has turned our mourning into dancing and overcome death with life!

Loving life and death here in Costa Rica,

Love you guys,

Spence

Jullian and the Prize

His name is Jullian, he lives in a small home in one of the worst areas of Alajuelita, and he is a winner! It all started a couple weeks ago when a mission team brought down a brand new skateboard to give away. This is a huge gift and I knew it would cause all kinds of problems if I just chose someone to give the skateboard to, so I decided to use it as a prize at youth group.

During youth group I held up the skateboard and showed it to the excited crowd. Eyes got big and applause broke out as I explained that the skateboard was a prize to be given away at youth group next week. It was to be a simple contest. Whoever brought the most friends and could recite the most scriptures from memory would win the prize. Plus, to make it easy to invite friends, we were going to have a pizza party as well.

Friday night rolled around and it was time to give away the prize. I walked out onto the stage and asked "how many of you brought a friend tonight". To my surprise I saw one small hand rise into the air out of crowd of about eighty people. It was Jullian, and he was standing next to the friend he brought. That's it?, I thought to myself, Only one person brought a friend? I was amazed especially since we normally have a few visitors each week with no incentive of winning a prize. I asked Jullian to come forward and we presented him with the new skateboard. He was so proud and grinning ear to ear as he received the prize.

After youth group I asked many of the kids why they didn't try to win the skateboard. They said things like "I knew I wouldn't win, so why try", or "I didn't know it would be so easy". Most were disappointed, shocked, and embarrassed for not trying. It seemed like I was inside a living parable, and Jesus was teaching us all.

Life here in Alajuelita is hard. The poverty stretches beyond the lack of physical wealth. It makes it difficult for people to believe that things will ever get any better. It creates an attitude that causes many to just stop trying. This event has caused me to better understand the culture we are up against.

Please pray for us as we hold out the prize of Jesus Christ. He is the hope of the world, and the only one who can really make things better. He is the greatest prize we could ever win, and it's easy...it only requires faith and surrender.

Love in Christ,

Spencer

New 6:8 Feeding Center

God has allowed us to start a new feeding center in Alajuelita.

The feeding center is designed to meet the physical and spiritual needs of the homeless population in Alajuelita.

The feeding center is sponsored by Mason Community Church of Mason, Michigan.

The feeding center will serve 150 meals per week, and there will be a devotional before each meal. There will also be ongoing counseling for those in need.

Ramblings - He That Is In Me

IMG_0668, originally uploaded by goodgollycr.

I would like to preface this "Rambling" with a couple disclaimers.
First, I want you to know that I'm hesitant to share this experience. I suspect that many of you are as skeptical as I am when it comes to stories of the supernatural. However, I hope my skepticism only adds validity of my account. I don't feel that I have exaggerated or embellished the experience in any form or fashion. Plus, most of you think I'm a little crazy anyway...so no harm done.

Secondly, please know that I'm only sharing this experience to bring glory to God. It's for His glory and His fame that I feel compelled to share what He has done. I hope that it challenges and convicts you as it has me.

That being said...

An incredible thing happened after church last Sunday. It all started when I heard a woman screaming "Shut-up! I don't want to hear this...Shut-up!" (She was speaking in Spanish, as expected as I live in Costa Rica). I quickly moved to the back of the church to discover the cause of the commotion. I was thinking that it might be a married couple arguing or physically fighting. When I entered the room I was surprised by what I found.

There were only two women in the room. One of the women was Melba, a sweet, and somewhat timid lady, who is a leader in the church. The other woman was a short 5' woman in a tight, low-cut top, and short skirt. She looked like she might live on the streets and work as a prostitute. (This is not uncommon for the church as we live in the poorest county in Costa Rica. The church is full of drug addicts, prostitutes, and homeless people...and I love it!) She was the one that was upset, screaming and flailing her arms in an effort to strike the other woman. I got between them and asked Melba what happened.  She said that she was praying for Christ to reveal Himself to this woman and she freaked out. 

While I was trying to understand the situation Pastor Jorge, the Pastor of the church, entered the room. He immediately tried to subdue the woman and started praying for her in a very loud voice. In my broken Spanish I soon realized that he was trying to cast out a demon! Yes, I said a demon! In my skeptical mind I was thinking, "oh please lady, stop faking it." However, I noticed he was struggling to restrain her as she was becoming increasingly enraged! (Note Pastor Jorge is 6', 185 pounds)

I decided to help control the woman, after all she was only 5' and maybe 105 pounds. I figured "I can take her". After all,  I'm 5'7", 180 pounds, not to mention I have some training in hand-to-hand combat from my military experience. I moved in and grabbed her arms by the wrist. I immediately realized two things.  She was stronger than the both of us combined, and something evil was radiating from her. Suddenly a thought rushed into my mind "she isn't faking it...which means...uh oh". As she continued to push both of us away I realized that I needed to find a better way to subdue her. I quickly slipped behind her and placed her into an arm bar, and then was able to get her in a full-nelson shoulder hold. She was so strong it was scary! I was able to hold back her arms and Pastor Jorge continued to pray over her. He was praying very loudly, and soon Melba joined in. Together they prayed, to no avail. I was becoming fatigued and felt like she might break free. Plus, I was getting tired of her slamming me into the wall.

This needed to end, so I decided to try something I've never done before. I leaned forward and in calmly said in English,  "In the name of Jesus Christ, I command you to leave this woman". Immediately, like flipping switch, she went completely limp.  Actually, I thought I might have caused her to pass out from the force I was exerting on her neck and shoulders. Then I realized, it wasn't me, it was Him! The Holy Spirit had given me the power to do what I couldn't do in my flesh. I had tapped into the power of God in a super natural way. The rage and anger disappeared and she lay there peacefully for what seemed ten minutes.  When she came to, she hugged me deeply and I kissed her on the forehead. She held me crying for a long time. It was a good cry, a cry like she was free for the first time in a long time. Soon, Pastor Jorge stepped in and started to minister to her. I left the room to find my wife and share the story with her. Crazy stuff!

An interesting thing is this....I had just finished reading Francis Chan's new book Forgotten God the morning of this event. While I was reading the book I prayed for God to help me embrace the presence of His Spirit in my life. I asked for His leading in my life in a more powerful way. I committed to stop looking for ways to excuse Him or "quench" His presence in my life. So far it seems to be working and I'm excited to see how He is going to continue to lead me.

In closing, thank you all for all of your prayers and support. Please be praying that God will continue to use us in powerful way. Pray that He will continue to build His ministry though us, and please pray for our family's personal support.

Love and miss you all,
Spencer

Ramblings - Praise Him!

We've made it through another busy summer, and as I reflect upon it one word comes to mind...praise! I find myself unable to fully declare the praise God deserves. He has done so many great things in and through 6:8 Ministries, that it would be impossible to list them all. However, that being said here, is my feeble attempt to boast upon my God and the great things He has done so far this year! Please celebrate and praise Him with me....

Mission Teams -
Since May, God has allowed us to host 224 team members from 22 mission teams, representing 18 different churches, from 9 different states. That is 224 believers challenged and inspired to live for Christ with reckless abandon.

This summer alone God used the mission teams to...
medically treat and prescribe free medicines to over 3,500 people;
construct 6 new homes, and 4 new chicken coops;
paint or remodel 8 houses, 2 schools, 1 park, 2 community centers, and 1 church;
teach English to hundreds of children in 3 different elementary schools;
conduct 4 Vacation Bible Schools and 2 soccer camps;
deliver clothing, food, wheelchairs, and diapers to dozens of needy families;
plant a garden for an orphanage, feed five orphans, serve hundreds of meals to the homeless; and pray with countless local people in Costa Rica and Guatemala.

New Staff -
God has brought new staff members to 6:8 Ministries. Omar and Bonnie Bravo have committed to serve with 6:8 Ministries. They will be serving alongside Dave and Leisa DeVaney in Costa Rica. Omar will oversee operations while Dave oversees teams. Amy Mikul has committed to serve with 6:8 Ministries in Guatemala. God has also brought four other families that are prayerfully considering about serving with 6:8 Ministries.

New Ministry Opportunities -
Thanks be to God that the Guatemala expansion is up and running. This expansion has already provided many new ministry opportunities. God has allowed us to build working relationships with a thriving local ministry, a local orphanage, a children's art school, a Downs Syndrome school, a clean water project, a house building ministry, and much more.

New Team House -
God has provided a new team house in Guatemala. It's going to be a great tool for His use and glory for years to come.

Purchase of the staff house -
God has provided the funding for us to purchase the Staff house in Costa Rica! We are currently renting the staff house. However this purchase will not only save the ministry money, but will also secure the use of the facility.

New Church Plant -
God has used this ministry to help start a new church plant in Costa Rica. Celebration Church of Costa Rica is reaching a segment of people that no other church is reaching. Each week drunks, drug addicts, prostitutes, and homeless, stumble in to hear a message of love and grace. God is radically changing lives through His new church plant.

New Feeding Center -
God has provided the funding to start a new soup kitchen / feeding center this fall!

As I said before, I could go on and on about the great things God has done...and is doing. We are humbled and honored that He allows us to be part of it. We completely recognize that He is working and He alone deserves all the glory and credit. I echo the psalmist as he writes...

Praise the Lord
Give thanks to the Lord,
for His love endures forever.
Who can proclaim the mighty acts of the Lord or
fully declare His praise?
Psalm 106:1-2

Amazed and full of praise,

Spencer

Come As You Are

The following was copied from bloggingmolly...

While we did not come down to plant a church, God has provided a church. After sending several short-term mission teams down, Celebration Church felt called to plant a church in Alajuelita. Or rather BE the church for the homeless, rejected, alcoholics, and brokenhearted.

Here is a glimpse of what a Sunday morning might look like:

Promising faces...

A broken face the needs minor medical attention...


Rejected men crying out to Jesus...

Praying for healing of a sick baby...


A man taking a moment to read his new Bible...

One of the most beautiful moments was when Jorge asked if anyone wanted to pray. Among others, a shirtless man made his way down to pray. The heartbeat of this church is to be a place where even he feels welcomed and loved. It is going to be messy. But I firmly believe that Jesus loves the messy.

Alajuelita Church Plant

It's finally happened! God has called one of the mission team churches to plant a new church in Alajuelita. Evidence that God can use short-term mission experiences to make a long-term impact.

This past week, one of the mission teams spent time working on various remodeling projects at the church. The week ended with God bringing over 100 people to the Sunday service. After the service, the team hosted a cookout and served some of "the least of these". Some of those attending included the homeless, prostitutes, crippled, drug addicts, and gang members. Many attending left with new bibles, new clothing, and a new hope. To God be the glory for the great things He has done!