what happens when you get your hand kicked while playing soccer?

This does...

It's a little hard to see but there are 2 fractures in my 4th metacarpal. I play soccer once a week at school and lately I have been playing keeper. (thus the hand injury) I was going after a ball and there were a bunch of people around. I grabbed the ball just as someone went to kick it and...CRACK!!!! I felt/heard several cracks. It didn't hurt like it was broken just like it was kicked (obviously) I kept playing keeper until my knuckle disappeared under the swelling. I switched to forward and finished the night. (after all with only 3 hours to play a week. injured or not I had to take advantage of the time.) So I talked to a doctor about it at school and he said I needed x-rays... Nice huh? 

Well here's the good part. We had some bad news about our house in Visalia a few weeks ago and it looked like we couldn't rent it to cover our monthly payment. We started praying and said that this would be Gods first opportunity to show us His faithfulness financially since we got here. Well we've cut back and had nothing but veggies for the last week and a half. We were thinking we'd have to cover some payments from savings and then out of our budget. Well God had other plans. While the house still isn't rented, we have a rental co. that says they can get enough to cover our payment. Praise God #1. Then Erin finally went to the doctor and had to spend $160 between the visit and meds. Then this with my hand. Praise God #2 is that He put us in a situation where we felt like we had to save money so we did. Even though it wasn't the financial trouble we thought we'd be in He in essence provided the way for us to have the money...God is Good. So after a few hours and a few hundred bucks here's my hand. 

More to come on the house... we're still living as frugally as we can but I have faith that God will provide. If He doesn't it's only to expose something He wants to fix.

Here's a question for all of you reading... Make sure to comment with your short answer. Leave an email address so I can respond individually if needed. If God is going to provide, do I need to cut back on my spending? We don't live extravagantly, and it's all His anyway. Is my act of faith A) simply believing that He's going to provide and not changing how we spend our money?

or

B) changing and bracing for financially hard times, but still believing He'll come through for me in the end? 

It's actually a good question and I honestly want to hear what you would do and why.... 

Have fun with that and I'll talk to you soon.

liguistas pequeñitos !!

Well I learned another lesson about Costa Rica.... the street venders start at more than double the cost of any given thing and will fight to the death. I worked long and hard to buy some soccer jerseys and shorts of the most popular teams here for my niece and nephew (we love you Miah and Teeney, and Micah too sorry there wasn't one small enough for you buddy) Anyways, I got the lady down from 10 mil to a little over six...($20 to $12) and felt like I won the battle of the price war... Come to find out I lost... I just found the same outfits for 3 mil ($6) at a small shop. I bought them for our kids and they wore them out on the town to Pricesmart and McDonalds tonight. We got quite a few looks and comments. Everyone seemed to think that they were very cute. Anyways, here are some pics... 

The other team is purple and white. They're called Saprissa and are actually a better team. When choosing the team that I would cheer for 1)I couldn't bring myself to wear purple and 2)I couldn't jump in and cheer for the best team. That would be like all of the people that liked New England only after they won the super bowl. Or maybe like the people that switched their team to the Cowboys  in the 90s. I'm still a Saints fan... even when they are terrible... Therefore I have no problem waiting for La Liga to get better.... Sorry for those of you who don't care about any of this  at all. Just enjoy the pictures... Until next time. 

Thank you to all of you.

To everyone who has supported us in our transition this year, Thank you. We are extremely grateful that God would impress it on your hearts to be so generous towards us. It is only because of your obedience towards God that we are able to be obedient to Him as well. We were all created to praise and worship Him. Our praise requires different aspects of life from each of us to accomplish the goal which is that all those in the world would see how great He is through our lives. 

I made this video as a thank you to all of you. Feel free to send it to everyone who would enjoy it. It is just a few minutes of how and where we are able to praise our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

And now back to.... What ever ....

Well it sure was great to have my parents here these last nine days. We had a lot of fun and the kids know their Papa and Ninaw a little better (Judah can say Memaw but instead he says Ninaw) We had a great time showing them where we live and what we do as well as seeing some beautiful places. We went to La Paz waterfall gardens (thanks Robin) and to Playa Hermosa for a few days. We visited Manuel Antonio, a national reserve, and saw monkeys sloths and baby sea turtles that had just hatched and were making their way to the ocean. (see the pictures) It was great to see the country but it was even better to just be with family. We're in a bit of culture shock still and things are feeling rough. Sometimes it's hard to see the good things that we have here. I made the comment to my parents that if it wasn't for Gods call I don't think I could live here. I don't know that it's entirely true (due to the culture shock) but at the moment it feels true. It was good however to have people agree with us that cheese is way overpriced, and that the food isn't anything to write about. In a way it makes me more comfortable being here. I don't know why but it just does. 

So we have the weekend to get back in the groove and we start school again on monday. New teachers and new classes will probably be a little difficult but I am definitely looking forward to being able to communicate  better and get into actual missionary work. I don't know that I've posted much about what we are in for, work wise, but I'll post again later with all the details. For now... Thank you all for your support. We wish you could all come down and visit us for a while. I'm sure there'll be plenty of time later. Remember that you're all missionaries where you are and you already know the language. Look for God to move daily and if it seems that He isn't ask Him why... then ask Him to make Himself alive to you and those you're around. Here are some more pictures of where we were. Click the picture of the leaf then click side show and watch it for a while or just check out the ones you like.

Our trip to La Paz and Manuel Antonio

Mom and Dad are here!!

There are different levels of peace that you have when you're living in a foreign country. It's one thing to not have to stumble over your words or wrack your brain to recall the translation and just be able to speak in english, but it's a whole other thing to know people really well and spend time with them in the country that you just never feel 100% at home in. Needless to say we are very happy to have my parents here after 4 months of being apart. It's not only that we've missed them (and all of the rest of you) we didn't realize how hard it is to have nothing around you that is familiar. The friends we have here we now know, but not like the people in the states. We know the ingredients in the meals but not the tastes. We have enough familiarity to feel ok but not enough to truly be comfortable. Now that my parents are here it's just that much more familiarity to make us comfortable. I don't know if I make sense but I just wanted to try to relay what I'm feeling to you all... It's pretty strange. 

Thank you to all of you who sent a note with my parents to us and the Dixons. (Saviors family) we haven't had a chance to read them all yet but it is such an encouragement to know that you would take the time to write to us. More on this later...... 

I don't know why I really want to say this now but if any of you see Steve Haston, tell him that he's been on my heart recently and that I really miss him. Thanks. 

Thanks for reading and may Jesus Bless You All.