Finishing up VBSs in Tilaran and Tronodora

Our last half of the trip zoomed by us . . . via buses, semis, tricycle taxis, oxen, sloths, iguanas, and so on.  So many new sights, sounds, and smiles.

Day 8: In Tronodora and Tileran, we divided into two groups in order to conquer two areas of painting--the administrative area of a school and the outside walls of a church.  Breakfast was provided by the church people and how we enjoyed it--rice and beans, papaya and coffee.

Our painters perform spectacularly.  We didn't even practice before we arrived, but we have several art students in the bunch, and they are excellent edgers.

After painting, we enjoyed helping Pastor Manuel run his VBS based upon building smart, Biblical character qualities.  Pastor Manuel does an excellent job presenting the gospel.

After the VBS, we mingled in with the youth who came for a youth activity. Part of the crowd seemed quite resistant, but the Lord plants seeds, and our kids were used by him through games, conversations, and camaraderie.

Day 9 kept us in the same location with similar programs.  In the morning we hosted the  VBS in Tileran, and the afternoon, we helped with Pastor Manuel again with VBS and then with the youth.  Such great energy filled the church during both activities. Praise the Lord for what he can do through friendships and fun, and especially through his word. We particularly enjoyed sharing the gospel through the mime, through special music, and then with Katy sharing her testimony.

Day 6: Managua

Today we enjoyed a tour of Managua after our VBS work (VBS pictures in next post). We culminated the day with another celebration for Haakon. That man can eat a whole fish--eyes and all!

Day 4 -- Traveling to Nicaragua (Tipitapa)

Today, we traveled to Nicaragua -- a 15-hour trip, including a 3-hour "layover" at the border, and a fun-filled visit to Pizza Hut in Rivas, Nicaragua.

Day Three -- Atenas, Costa Rica

Our third day took us to a church and a school in Atenas, in the mountains of Costa Rica. The team was split into two groups, and throughout the day we painted some outside walls at the church and both indoor and outdoor spaces at a local, public school. We enjoyed fellowship with each other, the a few local pastors--Jeremy and Mauricio, another missions team from Masters Academy in Florida, and a scorpion in the bathroom of one of the girls. Very exciting day!

Day 2: The Island of Chira -- getting there, ministering on, being stranded on, and being rescued

On January 7, the team traveled to the Isla de Chira in Nicoya Bay. The ride over took about 40 minutes, but because the water was rough, we could not dock at the port. We disembarked in a mangrove swamp and hiked up to the main road--even through someone's back yard. Our team ran a Bible school day for about 45 kids in a church. The team members sang, played games, helped with crafts. Most importantly, they connected with kids. Words learned in class became real life conversations, and where words could not be found, hugs and smiles and ready hands to hold worked to bridge language barriers. Returning to our boat brought another adventure. We walked to a pick-up point at the edge of the island, and where was our boat? Out about 400 yards or so, just drifting. We enjoyed a time of exploring the end of the island, a brief team meeting, and lots of nature before being rescued by a small boat that towed the larger one to us. The little boat (sorry for my lack of boating jargon) pulled us all the way back to the mainland, which this time took about an hour and a half.

Day One: Trip to Charlotte, NC; San Jose and Atenas, Costa Rica

Parent Prayer Send-off (Jan 3)

             

Team Member Bios and Testimonies Part IV

Murrin Brads
A sophomore at Xenia Christian High School, Murrin Brads looks forward to one day studying occupational therapy and workin in special needs ministries.  She even hopes one day, with her own family, to adopt children and to be a stay-at-home-forever-mama for all of her children.

Murrin chose to participate in the missions trip because she is passionate about Jesus.  She shares, "I want to obey and honor him by making disciples. I want to show other people the HOPE and JOY of being a disciple of Jesus Christ.  Specifically, she chose the Costa Rica trip for several reasons--and first off because she loves speaking Spanish.  Having enjoyed these first two years of high school study, she has every intention of using her "limited but ever-growing skills" to communicate the message of Jesus' love.

Previous ministries opportunities have included serving at five Joni and Friends family retreats, a family camp ministry that serves families affected by disability.  These opportunities having had a huge impact on Murrin's life, she plans on having a job one day that enables her to work every day with people who have special needs.  Overall, ministering with Joni and Friends has shown Murrin how ALL people have value in Jesus' eyes. "It has helped me to see a person's heart before their body. It has helped me to see ABILITIES rather than disabilities in every single person," she states.

Other interests  of Murrin include playing soccer and participating in drama (including this year's musical). At home, she is a foster sister who loves playing and dancing with the three-year-old staying with the Brads.

Murrin reminds all of us that in Jesus there is hope -- a forever hope.


Janice Howarah  A junior at Xenia Christian, Janice Howarah, choose to go on the Costa Rica missions trip because she had heard of others who had gone on the trip, had loved it, and had fallen in love with all the kids.  Although she knows that she will not be able to talk and preach to every single person about Christ, she knows that she will be able to speak to many and really make a difference in those lives.

This being her first missions trip, Janice looks forward to meeting all the children and make them feel loved. She wants to be used of the Lord to make the kids feel cared for.

Janice's other interests include sports--particularly participating in soccer, basketball, and softball.She also enjoys spending her time with family and friends.

"If I could encourage someone else today," Janice shares, "I would tell them that every chance you get to go out and spend your time serving or just being with others, take that chance. In your later years you don't want to regret anything." Janice reminds us to make memories in life that can be shared with and that can inspire others. 

Evan Ramey  A 2013 graduate of Xenia Christian High School, Evan Ramey serves this year as one of our leaders. Having two previous ministry trip experiences as well as a summer internship with our host missionaries in Costa Rica, Evan brings with him valuable knowledge of both the countries we will visit as well as the dynamics needed for team success.   Evan currently studies nursing at Wright State University and hopes to use nursing in the future on short-term mission trips that focus on that service to others.  He has a special affinity for Costa Rica having had the three previous ministries in that country, and he has also worked with the Salleys in Nicaragua this past summer.  He particularly looks forward to ministering again with the people of the two Central American countries.

 

Beyond ministry, Evan also enjoys every type of sport. He has concentrated experience in high school soccer, but in the future, he hopes that he is able to connect with others through sports in general.

Evan reminds us all that God will make the struggles through which we pass worth the effort.  Do not give up on Him.

Camille Clements Our fearless leader, Camille Clements, comes from a family of teachers and felt the Lord calling her to teach even as a young person. She has been teaching at Xenia Christian High School for sixteen years. Before that, she spent two years as a missionary in Barcelona, Spain teaching at an international school. She has been going on ministry trips to various Spanish-speaking countries with Dayton Christian Schools since 2001--but only as a co-leader, never the leader.

In 2010, the opportunity presented itself to her and another trip leader to set up a new missions venue. Another co-worker, who had spent several years working in Costa Rica as a missionary, connected Miss Clements with the Salley family who serve as church planters in that Central American country. The Costa Rica Ministry trip came into being. At that time, Miss Clements was only planning on playing a support role, as a co-leader, but God had other plans. 

Miss Clements recalls, “I became the trip leader through a series of events that only the Lord could have orchestrated. I am generally a behind-the-scenes kind of person who enjoys serving and supporting, but the Lord wanted to grow and stretch me, which he has done by putting me in charge of this trip. I am always amazed that God continues to choose to use me and give me the opportunity to take part in overseas ministry. It is both humbling and exciting to be able to take young people on ministry trips and to see how God works in and through them to change lives and to draw people to himself.”

Beyond teaching and using the Spanish language, Miss Clements also enjoys reading, cooking, traveling, and participating in half marathons.

“When the Lord calls you to do something,” states Miss Clements, “trust that He knows what is best for you, and do it. Also trust that He will equip you to do whatever he calls you to do. I have found that he has called me to things that I would not naturally choose to do because in my weakness He is proved strong.”

Tia Reilly The last of our four teacher-leaders in the group, Tia Reilly, is a fourth-year teacher at Xenia Christian High School. In 2009, Tia moved back to Ohio with her family after serving overseas with the mission agency ABWE.  They first worked in Paraguay, South America, and then most recently, in Costa Rica for four years.  The opportunity to return to the ministry, culture, and language of “home” is also an opportunity to encourage young people in their current spiritual walk as well as a chance to share with them what life and ministry looks like outside of the United States.

Having lived there, Costa Rica was an obvious choice for Tia last year when asked to go along as a teacher-leader. Being a part of the team enables her to get to know better the young people of the school where she teaches and encourage them in current and future ministries.

Tia has also participated in missions trips to Chile, South America.  Retired Cedarville University professor Dr. Bev Monroe leads trips to English-speaking seminaries and Christian schools around the world in order to organize and digitally catalog their institute libraries.  Tia has worked on four such projects with Dr. Monroe’s team, and may travel with them to Croatia this coming summer.

Married to Kevin Reilly, who teaches history in the middle school, the couple has four children and one grandchild. (The youngest two—Cole and Tara—are also XCHS graduates.) Tia’s other interests include reading and writing, piano and choir ministries, photography, and mindfulness.