Words cannot do Justice

This morning I woke up once again needed to look around the room for a while before realizing where I was. It's still hard to believe I am in Central America, a completely different world from my home. Words cannot describe nor pictures contain the experiences that I already hold in my heart after only such a short time. The small town of Poas on the side of a Volcano now holds not only memories but experiences, the kind that sit deep inside your soul and begin eroding away at some of the deep misconceptions you have had about people, and the way you thought life ought to be. Tico people are simple yet so incredibly vibrant in color, affection, music and worship. From the first day I felt that I was at home in a foreign community with a foreign language. I really have to laugh looking back now only days later. We went to peoples homes who didn't speak a lick of English and our Spanish has been very limited to the point of what Tico's call Nada. Yet amazingly it was not so much the work we did at the farm or the singing in church that I think back on as the impact we left rather it was the times sharing meals in homes. Often after our meal of rice and beans was finished they would find a guitar take me to a relatives house where all the rest of the brothers, nephews, neices, grandparents ect. ect. were and they would kindly ask me to sing a song or two, or many. I was overwhelmed at these experiences my heart bouncing not with nervousness but a joy for singing love songs to my Lord with my spanish friends, some of whom likely were not Christians. Then the best part always came when they would sing some songs for us! I cherish those times of deep fellowship. It taught me that you don't always need words to truly connect with people, the smiles and the gestures exchanged between them and us spoke a lot more loudly that most words I have spoken. It has really been a blessing to have music and I am content that I don't need any kind of special talent in order to do so. Just two nights ago we sat in the small apartment of some newfound German friends and had a wonderful time of worship, to them it spoke much more loudly because in Germany worship in such a setting is an unheard of event. God has been faithful to open our eyes everyday to see glimpses of His heart in the people we meet. One day last week we took a drive to a place they call ''little hell'' it is a large drug traffic area with elementry schools all around. We met a man and wife who feed the children in this broken neighborhood out of their own income which comes from selling temales wrapped in Banana leaves on the street. My heart was broken I couldn't help but think about all the things that I have, usless toys, clothes I don't need, junk food I always buy and mounds of usless expensive things that to a North American seem like a staple. Their income was less that 400 dollars a month and from that they feed over 70 children a day! Wow. I want to let the Lord break my heart for the things that break His heart. I believe this was one of them. I have learned a lot about culture and I have seen a lot of glimpses to things that I want to learn. Mostly things of Character as that is what traveling usually seems to do. I can feel myself changing from the man I was a year ago or even a month ago. Today I turn 24 it is a sobering day for me because I feel very far from home, I often feel like I need to be acclomplishing things in my life and learning some kind of carreer and here I am playing with kids and lounging around in Costa Rica. But if I have learnt one thing in my 24 years, it has been that there is no better place in the whole world than to be in the will of God. He has so many good things in store for each person if we would only stop and listen. Obedience means sacrifice but it leads to a world of blessings that can never be found alone. I miss home today my mother always made the best cakes. If I could ask for one thing for my birthday it would be to have strength to walk in obedience every day of my life and that it would speak loudly so others might desire to do the same. Thanks again for your prayers we can literally feel a wall of protection in dark places. Daniel