Garbage In, Garbage Out

Some of the kids practicing their skateboarding tricks in town.
Before Alternative Missions built the skate park, you would never have seen this.

On Friday I led a Bible Study for the youth entitled “Basura Adentro, Basura Afuera,” or, “Garbage In, Garbage Out”. We looked at what the Bible says we should be putting into our minds and how that relates specifically to our choices in music. Our key verse for the week was:

“Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—mediate on these things.” (Philippians 4:8 NKJV)

In the course of the discussion, most of the teenagers admitted that they listen to music which they know is bad. They also agreed that listening to music that promotes a sinful lifestyle will affect the way they think and how they act. Yet none wanted to get rid of any of their bad music. After all, they like it. Isn't that how we all are sometimes? We know something is bad for us, but we choose it anyway. The apostle Paul could relate to this himself: “...I don't understand why I act the way I do. I don't do what I know is right. I do the things I hate.” (Rom. 7:15 ESV)

This week we received a visit from Ryan and Lindy, newlyweds from Orange County, California, who are prayerfully considering joining us in the ministry here. Because they do not yet speak Spanish and Lindy is still in school, it is more of a long-term consideration. We had some fun times getting to know them and sharing what life and ministry is like here in Puerto Viejo. We definitely tried to present things as honestly as possible, so that they would not go home with an unrealistically “rosy” picture in their minds!

On a separate subject, I can definitely use your prayers for my safety, especially while a bicycle is my only mode of transportation, and I often can't be home before dark. There has been a real increase in burglaries, armed robberies, and home invasions in this area just in the past month. Masked gunmen have even robbed all the people eating dinner at a couple of the local restaurants, and an organized group has been pulling cars over and robbing the passengers on a stretch of road that I travel daily on my bike. I am considering buying a motorcycle...ironically, partly for the safety of being able to get home quickly at night! I also now carry pepper spray with me almost all the time as a safety precaution. I try to remember that God loves these people who are committing the crimes very much and is patiently waiting for them to turn from their ways.

I've been doing a little varnishing here and there on some new construction at the skate park. This is where we serve food to the youth during our monthly cook-outs.

An unhappy sight

Broken glass and a trail of blood spots are not things you want to come home to. At 6:30 last night, I returned from working at the skate park to find my apartment had been broken into during the 4 hours I was gone. A window was smashed in and pieces of glass littered the tile floor, my personal effects tossed around, a trail of blood spots and smears through the apartment revealed where the robber had gone (I later found a bloody t-shirt which the robber evidently used to break the window with), and my safe was out of position, but otherwise intact.

The burglar left his bloody t-shirt behind

In all this I have great reason to be thankful. I was not there when it happened, so I am completely unharmed physically. In terms of loss, as far as I can tell, the robber took nothing but a small ziplock bag of loose change (maybe $8 worth at the most). Evidently he was only looking for cash or electronics, of which I have very little to begin with, and keep locked in my safe whenever I leave the house (this is thanks to Barrett's training).

I called the police several times last night, but they never showed up. Barrett and Amy were kind enough to come by and pray with me and help me hammer some temporary boards up over the windows as a deterrent. This gave me the peace of mind to sleep alone in my apartment last night. Being able to speak with my parents and with Kristin also helped calm me. And once I got to bed, I actually slept ok, knowing that God is ultimately my protector and defender.

This morning there is a lot of broken glass to sweep up and some blood to clean off the walls and floor, but I think to myself, how minor this really is. I am praying that this robber would come to know Jesus. No amount of money he might come by in this world can compare with the value of having an eternal home secured in heaven.

A surf star is born :)

A couple weeks ago, 13 year-old Joel asked me if I would take him surfing. I told him I would love to take him surfing.

Well, on Sunday we finally got the perfect conditions for his very first surf lesson. The wind was calm, the water was clear, and thigh-high waves were peeling off a new sandbar that had just been formed by the recent beach erosion. It couldn't have been a better set-up for young Joel's first time on a surfboard.

I knew that if I were to bring two boards to the beach, I would end up catching some of the waves for myself instead of focusing on making it a fun and safe time for Joel. So we biked to the beach with only one board, a 6'5" shortboard which has been with me to California, Nicaragua, Florida, and now Costa Rica. It's far from being the best board I've ever ridden, but what's special to me about this board is that I made it with my own hands in my old garage in Vero Beach.


Once we reached the sandbar, Joel told me he was a little scared. Waves always look bigger when you're up close and personal with them. I assured him in Spanish that he would do great, and I really believed he would.

Because Joel doesn't have strong arms for paddling into waves yet, I had to push him into the waves. When his breathing calmed down, I helped him turn his board around and gave it a carefully timed, gentle push down the face of his first breaking wave. To my surprise and his, he did a push up and got to his feet, riding the board a good 20 yards before wiping out! Immediately, he spun around in the whitewater, flashing me the biggest smile I've seen in a long time. I knew right then that he was hooked!

About an hour later, after many good rides, we made our way back to shore. As we got out of the water, before I had even wrapped the leash around the board, his question came: "When can we go again?" Priceless :)


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This morning I was awakened to some interesting bird sounds, so I grabbed my camera and stepped outside. What a sight to wake up to: a couple beautiful collared aracaris were hopping around near the banana trees. This is one of several types of toucan found here. Isn't God imaginative?

Should we build an ark?

A lot has happened in the past week!

My girlfriend Kristin, whom I know from Calvary Chapel Vero Beach, came down for a visit and we spent 9 soggy days together. It was wonderful time in spite of the crazy weather. During her stay we got to experience some memorable events:

• Two inches of water flooding my apartment (apparently the super-saturated ground was forcing water through the cement foundation and walls!)
• Virtually non-stop rain for Kristin's entire stay (we never saw the sun once in 9 days)
• a 6.2 earthquake last Tuesday (felt surreal as the whole room was moving up and down...I literally thought I was hallucinating at first)
• The bridge into town washed out, essentially cutting off Puerto Viejo from the rest of Costa Rica (had to cross over some planks on foot with Kristin's luggage to get her back home today!)
• Lots of candlight dinners (some by choice, and some not!)
• A tiny baby sloth holding on to its mom in the rain
• Watching Puerto Viejo transform into a "ghost town". By the end, Kristin was the only guest staying at her hotel.
  

Overall, we fared just fine through the events, although the Cruces had a tougher time staying dry in their temporary "tree house." (see their blog, which is linked at the side of this page, for details) The Cruces and I have had to deal with mold and mildew issues, especially on our wet clothes (no dryer). Some mold is even growing on my walls and kitchen surfaces, but Lysol helps fight it. Very minor in the big scheme of things!

Because of the flooding and accessibility problems, we have had to temporarily suspend the skate park and other ministry activities. The facilities are ok, but the ramps are too wet to skate on (they are covered, but a lot of rain blew in). I can't wait to get things going again.

In this area, some 4,000 people have had to leave their homes due to the flooding. From the bus today, I saw some homes that had chocolate-colored water literally flowing through them. These affected families are in my prayers...

Here are some photos from Kristin's camera. Thanks Kristin!

getting ready for the youth night barbecue

Jordan landed this awesome jump over 7 skateboards

The girls chewing on some fresh-cut sugar cane

Makena painting a board with a leaf

The sea was angry all week

One of several memorable dinners with Kristin

When it stopped raining for two hours, we went for a bike ride. The rivers were swollen!

Downtown Puerto Viejo flooded

Dinner with Barrett and Amy Cruce at Chile Rojo

Kristin helped me mop the water from my floor

Skate video

Friday was a very eventful day for me. I started with some personal time of Bible study, then went and helped with a plumbing project we are doing at the AM facility, then helped serve food to residents of Puerto Viejo's "Red Zone" (a great initiative Ronny and Tammy are starting up at the Baptist Church), then headed to the skate park for 5 hours of youth night! As part of that time, we watched a great movie presented by Billy Graham organization called "Something to Sing About."

My days aren't usually that eventful, and often that's a good thing. It's a mistake to go onto the mission field thinking every day is going to be action packed, just one ministry activity after another. There are days when my main thing is just to run a skate session, making sure the kids are following the rules and are safe, that they have the kind of environment where they can experience God's love for them, and that I'm here if they want someone to talk to or if they encounter a problem. But I function as part of a ministry team, and I know that the role I play helps the others be able to do different things. As a ministry team, we have two house churches (one in Spanish and one in English), a children's church (Spanish AWANA program), Skate sessions four days a week, weekly youth nights (sometimes with Bible study), plus a lot of purposeful time spent mentoring and encouraging believers! On top of that there are all the administrative responsibilities, facilities management, and struggles of living on a tight budget in small town in a foreign country! And I love it all.

Recently God has been showing me that He can be worshipped in so many different ways. I believe God can appreciate skateboarding that is done for His glory. When a Christian athlete gives it their all, pushing the limits of their God-given abilities, surely God smiles upon that. The apostle Paul said that we can eat and drink for God's glory, soI don't see why we can't skate for His glory too!

It is with that thought that I put together this little video from Friday's youth night. Enjoy, and to God be the glory!