Hey there.
Yep, it’s been a while… Update: My squad and I are in Guatemala!! (route change). In this blog I am going to talk about where we went in Costa Rica, what we did, and what I learned. So in early November we headed over to Jaco, Costa Rica. In Jaco we painted light posts to brighten the place up and just talked to anybody who walked by. We also painted in a skate park (with good ol’ oil based paint) and did homeless ministry and surf club with kids. In Jaco, God taught me how to rest. Sooo one night I was running in the rain with some friends as one does and I trip on a root. I slid across some cement and got a nice road rash on my leg. I didn’t realize how bad it was until I woke up the next morning. It hurt to walk and it stung everywhere. I was a little annoyed and frustrated because I couldn’t do ministry. So for a couple days I stayed at the base and spent time with the Lord. It was so good and so restful. I started to really feel a deeper and more intimate relationship with our Heavenly Father. I ended up being glad it happened because I learned so much in those moments.
We stayed in Jaco for about a month and our next stop was Nicoya. So before leaving for Nicoya we had to say a sad goodbye to our amazing team leaders. They were all such a big part of our lives… definitely a lot of tears. Our squad split up into our teams to go to different areas in Costa Rica for a little under two weeks. My team and another team (team Eden) went to Nicoya together. Our ministry host was Basilio. He was the pastor at the small church we stayed at. He was actually the most loving and kind man I have ever met. My friend Emily on team Eden wrote a beautiful blog about him and you should totally check it out! https://emilypomphrett.theworldrace.org/post/pastor-basilio
In Nicoya, we did some manual labor, picked up trash on the side of the road, raked leaves, and evangelized. Nicoya was such a sweet, sweet, sweet place of peace and quiet for me and wherever I went, I felt so loved. I learned in Nicoya to go to God first with everything and it has been such an amazing thing for me.
Alrighty, now we are in our final place: Puerto Viejo. We arrived in Puerto about mid December. Our whole squad was back together again (yayyy!). Oh and guess what!? I SAW 2 SLOTHS AHH!!! If you know me, I love sloths like a lot, haha. In Puerto Viejo, my team moved huge logs (they were actually trees, I’m not even kidding) and raked in a jungle. As a squad we did evangelism in the town and went to a village and played with all the kids there. We also danced in the streets on New Year’s Eve singing as loud as we could. The joy of Jesus was truly shining so bright that night and it is a night I will remember for the rest of my life. I will be posting another blog about Puerto Viejo soon… some crazy stuff happened there, haha.
Thank you for reading!! 🙂
Ally
Ally, thanks for taking the time to share! So great to see how the Lord is working in your life and through your team and how He is drawing you into a deeper union with Himself. I enjoyed the blog by Emily on Pastor Basilio. What a godly man whom God has rescued from the dominion of darkness and has raised up to serve the flock in Nicoya! May the Lord continue to bless your life individually and as part of the team in Puerto Viejo. Did you bring one of the sloths home as a pet??
my ally jean! i love this life with you!!
Oh, Ally, so great to hear from you. How God is growing you, huh?! I loved the post about Pastor Basilio. Such an example to each of us! It’s so exciting to see you being used by God to glorify Him. Can’t wait to hear more. Our prayers continue for you, as you go onward following Him. We sure do love you! Grandma
Ally, we miss you but are so excited to read about the lessons God is teaching you. It’s obvious your faith has grown and matured since we saw you. Thanks so much for the update. We can’t wait to see you in May. Love, Grandpa and Grandma
Thank you Ally for sharing your mission trip with us. So glad to hear that you are letting God direct your life and you are growing in your faith. Will continue praying for you and your team mates.
So neat to hear of all your adventures. I talk to your sisters often and can’t believe how much they are growing up. May God continue to bless you and keep you safe.
Those are two of the best things a child of The Living God can learn. Putting them together – to rest and go to God first – will keep you in perfect peace and bring joy, even when life is confusing and just plain old hard.
Miss you, daughter off the King
I chucked when you wrote “raked in a jungle”, haha! The Lord has been so, so good to you the last many months and the last many years (your whole life). May you continue to see the hand of Jesus in all things. I’ll be waiting for your second blog about Puerto Viejo 🙂
Whoops… ***chuckled 🙂
Thank you so much! Haha, I did not bring one home… I wish!