Costa Rica mission trip

In 3 weeks from today our family will be heading to Costa Rica on a mission trip to serve with Rice & Beans Ministries.  We're part of a 10-person team from CUMC going over Spring Break 3/9-3/16.

We'll be feeding families by delivering food bags, serving in children's ministry and vacation bible school, and doing some construction.  Here's a brief 4-minute overview of what our week will look like. Rice & Beans Costa Rica - YouTube

This will be our 3rd mission trip as a family; we went to Mexico in 2013, Guatemala in 2016 and now Costa Rica in 2019. (Wonder where God will lead us in 2022?)

This morning I was reflecting back to my very first mission trip in 2009, a disaster relief trip to Houston following hurricane Ike, which was nearly 10 years ago to this day (we left on 2/19/09).  I distinctly remember having two verses I had prayed over in preparation for the trip:

• "Here I am, Lord send me" ~ Isaiah 6:8 
• "Choose for yourself this day whom you will serve...as for me and my house we will serve the Lord." ~ Joshua 24:15.  

During the trip, while working on the 2nd house that we repaired, God clearly revealed himself and confirmed his calling of me on this trip when I discovered the homeowners had this same Joshua verse beautifully painted on their front door.  

I remember thinking to myself...how often have you even seen a bible verse painted on a front door?  Only God could have orchestrated this...placing me right here in this moment responding with the verse I had been praying.  This verse remains close to my heart and it has served as a calling for "my house" in our going on family mission trips.  

In preparing for what God has in store for us in Costa Rica, I've been reading through Exodus and reflecting on the passage in chapter 33:12-23, specifically verse 18: Then Moses said, "Now show me your glory."  Moses' prayer was to see the manifest glory of God.  He wanted assurance of God's presence with him.  God only allowed Moses to see his back (v.23), meaning Moses could only see where God had passed by.  We can only know Him by what He does and how He acts.  

In the following chapter, Exodus 34:29-35, Moses' face was radiant after spending time with God on Mount Sinai.  The people could clearly see God's presence in him.  How does our face reflect God's presence after we have spent time with Him in worship, prayer or reading the Bible?  

We cannot comprehend God apart from Jesus.  Jesus reveals himself to those who believe.  He came to serve, and as followers, we should feel compelled to do the same.  We can reflect God's presence through our words and our actions.  A verse I've been praying over for this trip is from Mark10:45.  

May our team see God's glory through what He has been doing in Costa Rica through this ministry, and I pray that we can radiate God's glory through our acts of service with love and compassion.