I don’t know how to do this. For some reason, writing this post has felt brutal.
I’ve deleted the two previous posts I wrote… Then, I made a couple videos to post. I even posted one of them, but I took it down after several hours. I am struggling to communicate the whole story (concisely), the degree of desperation we have felt, and the overwhelming gratitude…
Roughly 8 years ago, we left all that knew to serve in Costa Rica. The hardest part was leaving those we love.
We had no clue what we were doing…
Everything was step by step…
Holding tightly to Jesus and each other
We sought obedience.
There were so many “firsts” for us… maybe “seconds?”
Kelly and I had to re-marry for legal documents.
Day by day, our hearts became deeply intertwined with the people.
The Lord graciously provided leaders in the community who invited us to serve alongside…
Our children were our dearest ministry partners during this season of extreme learning…
I was fortunate to have more opportunities to teach and to train than I could actually do.
Even though I was learning so much from my new friends, I loved being able to care for their hearts, offer friendship, and provide ministry tools that they did not have the opportunity to learn.
Our deep desire was to embrace the people and the culture…
Learning a new language, a new climate, a new way of thinking…
We chose to be humble students.
Many of you came alongside us and partnered in our new world…
You loved us and served us so well.
My family and I will always be grateful.
As I look at the pictures, my kids seemed so tiny when we started.
It’s hard to believe we raised our family in a foreign land…
They were so brave!
As a parent it’s hard to process all the change.
Roughly 9 months ago, we returned to the US.
We only had what we could carry.
It was definitely starting over again.
Something about building from the ground up felt terrifying and at times irresponsible.
During a much needed furlough, I began applying for work.
It’s hard to express the amount of rejection I received.
This is actually way less than half of the jobs that I applied for.
In all honesty, I was way under-qualified for many… and over-qualified for others. None were positions that made my heart come alive… they were potential vehicles I could use to provide for my family. I didn’t know that the Lord was protecting me. I just felt rejected.
To say that I felt discouraged and anxious would be a gross understatement.
However, I didn’t realize that the Lord was orchestrating something beautiful behind the scenes.
After 8 months of waiting and wondering… an “and suddenly” occurred.
Quite a few ministries began pursuing me with employment opportunities…
I actually had options!
This felt weird… and exciting! I could feel my heart growing as I considered partnering with people I love to shepherd and teach.
Roughly 10 days ago, I went to my first staff meeting at my new church!
It may sound childish, but I’m giddy with excitement!
I feel so honored to get to serve in this role as Discipleship Pastor.
In terms of relational and spiritual benefits from the job… I couldn’t ask for more!
But this is a young church plant, and all of the staff have second jobs as well as working spouses to pay everyday expenses.
This scared me to be honest… I knew I wanted to be a part of this team, but I felt a sense of panic. “And suddenly,” I realized the Lord had orchestrated it in this way so that I could continue doing other passion that burned inside of me!
I HAVE BEEN INVITED BY ANOTHER U.S. PASTOR TO OFFER SPIRITUAL CARE, BIBLICAL TRAINING, AND MINISTERIAL TOOLS TO COSTA RICAN PASTORS AND LEADERS IN SAMARA, COSTA RICA… THE EXACT TOWN WHERE WE LIVED!!!
Only God could orchestrate something so intentionally beautiful.
Continuing to shepherd pastors I already deeply love… with whom I’ve stayed in contact!
This also opens the door for Kelly to be able to continue caring for the people with whom she continues to pursue and love. (No one does it as well as Kelly does!).
What I didn’t realize was that the Lord was orchestrating it all for such a sweet end! I’m so grateful. However, partnering with this organization requires me to raise all the funds for travel, ministry expenses, and a small part-time salary.
This is the part I want to make sure is extra clear: We are so grateful for your love and support. If you are a recurring giver, we would be honored to continue receiving your support, but there is no pressure! To insure that all feel honored, I am turning off all recurring givers by December 16 – unless you specifically tell me to keep it activated. Again, unless you contact me (telling me to keep your giving activated), I will de-activate your giving on December 16th. If you choose to keep giving, we will use those funds to provide love and training to our beloved Costa Rican friends via short-term trips and regular contact. Much of this work will take place at a Bible Institute in my hometown in Costa Rica that I have been asked to help create.
If you have any questions, please contact me.
Much love, Adam
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