January Newsletter

We're back into the swing of things here in Costa Rica after a fantastic month in Michigan.  Classes are off to a great start for our last term of language school.

A while back, Noah mentioned to you all that there was a need for shoes for the homeless here in Costa Rica.  And wow, did people take that to heart!  We were given enough shoes to fill 4 huge duffel bags.  We were also given donations to cover the expenses of bringing them back with us!  Also, we didn't have a single issue with security or customs.  I really wonder what the customs guys thought when we brought in 4 duffels of shoes!  What answers to prayer!

The shoes went to a program called Jesús en Las Calles (Jesus in the Streets) at the church we have been attending here.  More specifically the shoes will go to a part of the program that works to help people get off the streets.  When the contact people came by to pick up all the shoes, they were amazed at how many there were!  They told us that about 75% of the people in the program are men and 25% women.  Funny thing, we had 3 duffel bags of men's shoes and 1 of women's! They knew that not everyone can give so much and have invited Noah to come a be a part of distributing the shoes and working with the people they will benefit.

A huge thank you to all who gave and prayed for this!  Many people will hear the love of Jesus because of these shoes!

"What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead."   

James 2:14-17

Noah and Liz Kamper

2 Weeks Down, 14 to Go

Yep, we have just about 14 weeks left here in Costa Rica for our YEAR of language school!  Wow!  Somehow we managed to make it through the last term, morning, errrr all day sickness, seminary classes and all.  And now we are looking at the Subjunctive and making plans for our summer in Michigan.

Yep, you read that right.  We will be back in the Mitten state (is Wisconsin still pulling that junk about being the Mitten state?) from the very end of April through about September.  I started looking to see what ticket prices would be to fly back tonight.  Crazy!  And here is another crazy thought, tomorrow I round the corner at 18 weeks pregnant!  Almost halfway folks!

So you might be wondering what our plans for the summer are.  Well, have a baby is probably number one on the list.  Second would be finishing our support raising.  Right now we are hovering around 86%.  We really need to be at 100% before we can leave for our field of service (wherever that might be, and yes, we are working on that.)  And third on the list is hanging out with a bunch of really great people.

We are in need of a couple of things for the summer though.  And I wouldn't be completely honest if I didn't say that at times I can get anxious about them.  Biggest need, a place to live.  We don't have a huge budget for renting, but if you know of anyone who needs someone to keep their house nice and occupied in the West Michgian area from May through September, would you let us know?  Or maybe you know someone who has space for missionaries or your church has a missions house we could use?    We would love a 3 bedroom, but could probably get by with 2 for the summer since baby will be, well a baby.

Also, right up there on the list of things that we need, a vehicle.  We were blessed beyond words with a van for the month of December.  We don't want to buy something for the summer, but again, if you know of anyone who has a family vehicle that can fit 3 car seats that just needs to be driven this summer, or a church that has a ministry vehicle we can borrow, let us know.


And please, be praying with us about these things.  I know that God has this all worked out and I don't need to fret, but sometimes I do.  And then usually, Forrest will start singing this song, and I am pulled back to the Truth.

 

Thanks!

Thanks for all the prayers and kind words!  We visited a camp yesterday and had some really good conversations with the director and the head of the program department.  And aside from Elliot getting car sick and throwing up all over the backseat, things went great!  Poor dude!

After we have a bit of time to think through all that we learned yesterday and after we do some praying, I'll share more about our time and our thoughts.

And now, it's back to grammar homework.  Fun times man, fun times.

Where in the World?

Ok.  You have probably noticed some subtle changes around here.  Like the map of Honduras is gone, and so it the clock with Honduran time.  If you were to read our About page, you would find there is a lack of information about Honduras there.  And if you and I are friends on Facebook, you might have noticed I changed my work information.

So what in the world is going on?  Well...

LAM, in preparation for our deployment to Manantial de Vida later this year, did some reviewing of the situation there, and after much prayer, talking, and considering, decided that it was best we consider not moving there.  Without getting into all the nitty gritty,  (if you want more details, you can email me and I'll send you a copy of the letter LAM sent out.) they asked us to pray about this possible change of direction for a week before we talked with anyone. 

Which we did.  And in the end we came to a lot of the same conclusions LAM did.  Let me just say it was a very hard decision to come to.  We had been praying and planning and preparing for Honduras for the last two years.  And just like that, or so it felt, we were without a country. We went through just about every emotion you can think of.  Really.  And there were a lot of questions.  Still are.  Like, hummm, where are we going?  Even ask Forrest and he'll tell you, "we don't know where we are going yet."

But we are learning to trust God at a deeper level, again, still, something.  Before we had to trust that God was going to bring us to Honduras because He was leading us there.  And now we have to trust that we left everything we have ever know for a place we don't know at all.  Like as in, we don't know where it is!  I feel more like Abram than ever!

"By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going."

And can I be honest here?  It's not a fun place to be.  I long for stability.  Really.  If it was up to me, I would have bought a lovely centennial farm in a quaint little town just far enough from a nice city to be out in the country, put down roots, lived there until the day I die.  My kids would be able to know their parents phone number when they were 50 by memory because it would be the same one they had when they were kids.  I would plant a garden, and learn my neighbors names and we would be at the same church and community for 75 years.

Instead, here we are global nomads, with no idea what is next, a baby coming in just a few short months, and all we have is Jesus.  And I can say with everything that is within me, like Peter, "Lord, to whom shall we go?  You have the words of eternal life."  (John 6:68) 

And so we cling to him and trust that He will show us that next step. 

And how are we going to know those next steps?  Well, LAM has been working with us to help.  We have already talked with one camp here in Costa Rica, and while we love the ministry that is going on there, it just wasn't a good fit for our family.  When we were in the States over Christmas, we talked with the personal people at LAM and they were quite excited about a couple of possibilities for us. 

On Tuesday we will meet with another place just about an hour from where we are living to talk about the ministry and get to know them.

And for now, a couple of things are for sures (yeah!!!) 
1.  God is still in control.  He never wasn't. 
2.  We are still going to be in Christian Camping in Latin America.  Somewhere.  Luis Diego, one of the great people we have been working with at LAM said, "We know there is a camp, we just have to figure out which one it is."

And we wait on the rest.  And would you pray with us about the rest? 

Week in Review

One week. That's it!  Sure feels like it's been longer!  Last week at this time we were navigating our way through picking up a rental van in Fort Lauderdale and driving it to Miami.  Wow, what a day!  Thanks to all who prayed!  We made it safe, sound, and all in one piece!  We even managed to get through immigration and customs without any extra fees or issues with what we were bringing (more on that a bit later)!

As for this week, we've slid back into our routine here.  School started Tuesday.  Hard to believe we are beginning our third trimester!  That means in just 4 months we will be done with our year of language study!  Wow! Gosh, ya think I could add one more explanation mark to that paragraph?

This tri, Noah and I are in different classes again, which while we miss spending the morning together, it's for the best to meet us each where we're at ability wise.  And the boys did great the first week.  Both came home each day happy and excited about what they did that day.

I have a lot to share with you all in the next couple of weeks.  We have had some big changes in our placement (if you get our newsletters, you probably know about this already, if you don't get our newsletters and want to, shoot me an email!).  I will be explaining some more about that.  Also, we had an amazing response to a shoe drive we did, and I want to tell you all about that. And just a bit more about our comings and goings in Michigan.

But for right now, know that we are home, all in one piece and back in the routine of life here.

And Here We Go Again

So we are off today.  And yes, this is a prerecorded message.  Today we will be doing a marathon day of traveling. If you think of us, please pray.  It's going to be a longggggggg day.  Here's our schedule.

4:00 AM  Head to the Grand Rapids Airport.
6:00AM  Flight to Balitmore

9:10 AM Flight to Fort Lauderdale

In Fort Lauderdale, we'll be renting a car and driving the 35 minutes over to Miami International.  We land in Fort Lauderdale at about 11:41 and our flight from Miami leaves at 5:25 PM.  It's going to be intresting.

5:25 PM Flight from Miami to El Salvador
Sometime after that, we'll fly from El Salvador to Costa Rica

We are suppose to land in Costa Rica some time around 9:05 (10:05 EST).  From there we'll need to clear customs, find our ride, travel about a hour (depending on traffic) back to our house in San Jose.  We are thinking we'll be in bed sometime around 11:30 PM. 

Yeah, long day.  Thanks for your prayers!!

Just Stopping By

Hard to believe, but we are drawing to the end of our month here in Michigan.  It's been a crazy month, full of lots of traveling, lots of food, family, friends, and fun.  How's that for illiteration?

Anyway, we will be spending the next couple of days packing up, saying goodbyes, and finishing up all those odds and ends.

I haven't had time to really work through the photos I took this month, but I will leave you with this one of the boys from a few days ago.