Davoll Family to Ecuador

2011-08-10T08:03:00.000-04:00

Evangelistic Basketball Camp in Guapulo

What an incredible opportunity to go into a little town called Guapulo, a town without a single gospel witness, and share God's word through basketball. Jeff, Jordan and Lukas were invited in June to play a basketball game with their team in this little neighborhood. It was the FIRST game ever played on the brand new court. We started praying about how God might use this. In July, we were invited back to the inauguration of all the basketball teams - there were over 300 people present that day. We invited the town to come to a free basketball clinic where we would also share God's Word.

For the week, we were privileged to run daily clinics with 3 different age groups. We had a children's clinic and an adult clinic with more than 89 students. We are grateful for the help in this ministry that we have received from Pastor Eric May and his group Ira Baptist Church, Ira, VT. Our teammate Jason Maynard and his church, Willo-Hill Baptist Church, Willoughby, Oh, raised funds to help with purchasing materials and ongoing equipment for these camps. These churches both have a great heartbeat for reaching people for Christ. Ira Baptist were here on the ground helping us to conduct the basketball camp. Willo-Hill is a church that has a passion for sports ministry in their "Jerusalem" so they were behind us praying, encouraging, and providing us with funds so that we can do more of this ministry in the future.

Please pray for continued follow-up. We stop and visit from time to time. Our heartbeat is to open up a Bible study with some of the families and eventually see a church planted.

2011-07-18T21:03:00.001-04:00

Meetings in the Park

In July we were privileged to have Pastor Mike Keeton from Faith Bible Church, Vineland, NJ, with us for vacation Bible School. FBC helped with Pastor David Vasconez at La Iglesia Bautista El Calvario. During the mornings we held meetings in the parks with puppets, music, singing and a gospel presentation. What a beautiful image captured as even little hearts desire to talk to God. We sent the team out to invite kids to the puppet show and Deanne came over the hill like the Pied Piper with 50 kids in tow! We met one family praying for their sister who lives in NJ! What a small world it is!

2011-06-17T14:19:00.000-04:00

Our son, Jordan Jeffrey Davoll has completed his high school education. We praise the Lord for him, his testimony, and for this important step in his life. This is a great time of celebration in our lives as a family.

Jordan graduated here in Cumbaya in our new church, La Iglesia bautista de La Conexion de la Esperanza on Sunday afternoon June 5. It was a great day with our church family encouraging Jordan as he transitions from high school to college, from Ecuador to US, from home to away. We had 74 people present to celebrate with Jordan on his special day

The Pastor of our home sending church, Latham Bible Baptist, Pastor Dean Walter called to inivte Jordan to participate in the graduation ceremony of Latham Christian Academy on June 10. It was a real blessing as he had attended this school from second to eighth grade before we went into missions. He was able to reconnect with so many people. He thoroughly enjoyed the graduation with his grandparents and sister Bethany there with him, and we watched LIVE via skype.

Deanne's dad, Pastor Roger Ellison is working at Perth Bible Church and Jordan was able to be apart of their baccalaureate service on Sunday pm June 12, 2011. It was wonderful for this supporting church to include him in their ceremony. Thank you Pastor Appel and Pastor Ellison for this opportunity. Jordan enjoyed having cake at all three celebrations as well.

God has called Jordan into future ministry, and he will begin his preparation for ministry at the Word of LIfe Bible Institute this fall. He is working at a Christian camp this summer in NY.

Jordan's life verse is I Peter 5:7 "Cast all your cares upon him for he careth for you."

We praise the Lord for His work in Jordan's life.

Video: What If Twitter Was Around at the 1st Easter?

2011-04-15T00:37:00.000-04:00

Video: What If Twitter Was Around at the 1st Easter?

2010-12-30T21:19:00.001-05:00

Enjoy the Journey!

Our family made a trip south in Ecuador to the small town of Patate to get the needed paperwork for our visas and for the visas of our BRAND new teammates Laura Fouser and Lynell Smith. We were able to stay at the ministry property of some other missionaries. It was a blessing to see a new part of the country. The paperwork process is incredible. A dear friend called it a "remarkable process,” and it is truly an accurate expression. We praise the Lord that the paperwork is done and on to the next step. We started the paperwork process October 27. After 3 days in Patate, we received the papers on December 23! Except…they were not notarized correctly. We submitted the papers on December 27, received them back on Wednesday, December 29, and happily headed over to DHL to mail to Sao Paulo Brazil. “Sorry, our computers are down until Monday.” Oops. Unfortunately Quito has a driving restriction and Wednesday is my day to stay out of the city after 4 PM…therefore we went back to Quito on Thursday, found a different location and mailed them… What? $49 to mail a stack of papers? Remarkable process!

2010-12-26T21:43:00.003-05:00

Merry Christmas From our Family to Yours!

Christmas time was a real joy for our family. We enjoyed our time together as a family, reunited as Bethany was home from the Word of Life Bible Institute. We also really enjoyed opening all of our familiar Christmas ornaments and decorations. It had been 5 years since we were able to decorate with our own special treasures. The kids analyzed all of their ornaments that they receive each year, looking at each one as if it were the very first time. This year's ornaments seemed to be centered around FOOD - Jordan got a donut, Bethany a cute little cupcake, Amanda a ball covered with glittery things, and Lukas, well, he had to get an ice-cream ornament of course. Jeff and Deanne got ornaments this year as well. Jeff's was a handmade llama, and he made Deanne a COFFEE themed ornament by filling a glass ball with Coffee beans, a mini spoon and a packet of sugar! So fun!

2010-12-22T21:50:00.009-05:00

Visitors From Texas

Mr and Mrs Mossman came to Ecuador for their Christmas vacation. This was a great opportunity for us to meet our advisor with Lighthouse Academy. Mrs. Mossman helps missionaries all over the world with their curriculum and grades for their children's education. It has been a great blessing to meet them in person. We are praying for them as they look to the future of what the Lord is directing in their lives. It was their first visit to Ecuador and we shared a great day together. We did some shopping in the artesan market, had lunch in a Ecuadorian restaurant, and showed them our new church property. Our kids were so excited as they brought a WHOLE bag of American candy treats. Jeff and Deanne enjoyed the Starbucks coffee they brought! One of our traditions here to to take people to this picturesque photo spot. We call this our "prayer spot" as it is overlooking Cumbaya and the whole Tumbaco Valley. We ask our visitors to pray for the ministry and for the people of the Valley we have claimed for Jesus Christ. Thank you for your prayers!

2010-11-10T10:15:00.000-05:00

La Conexión Jóvenes - Youth Bible Study

Tonight began our first meeting of the youth from La Conexión. It was a great blessing as Jordan taught the lesson, Amanda led the singing, and Lukas held the dog! I think our dog, Waffles, is an atheist as she does not like being caged during meeting times…and lets us know it! They began with a time to get to know one another, music and then the lesson. They are studying the “Story of Hope,” an evangelistic tool we use as an evangelistic and discipleship Bible study. There were 13 in all. What an open door! One special blessing, one family brought 3 visitors with them and said on Sunday their parents are attending also. God is good as He builds His church.

2010-11-05T11:07:00.000-04:00

Lord, I want this...valley!

2 Timothy 4:5 - "But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry!"

2010-11-05T10:59:00.000-04:00

Bethany Davoll - Missionary to Guatemala

Bethany just wrote us last week and told us she was approved for a short term missions trip to Guatemala, march 19-27, 2011. This is a blessing to me, as Dad, as I had promised each of the kids we would work for them to take a missions trip for their graduation from high school. I am not sure why, but NONE of them think that traveling to Colombia for a missionary conference, living in Costa Rica for a year, and now moving to Ecuador counts! They say, "Dad, that's not a missionary trip. We live there!" I praise the Lord for their hearts.

Bethany will be traveling during her spring break with the Word of Life Bible Institute, where she is attending for this year. She will have the opportunity to minister in public schools alongside the WOL staff through an evangelistic drama called “Born Again to A Living Hope”. She will also be ministering in local churches, Bible Clubs, work projects, one on one witnessing opportunities, getting to know the missionaries, of course some sight-seeing and much more!!! This will be a great time of encouragement for her and for the missionaries on the field as she has opportunity to interact with them on a daily basis.

I ask you to consider participating with her in sending her, she needs to raise $1702 in all; $851 by January 4 and the balance by March 1. We are praying and are confident that the Lord will supply all of her needs.

2010-10-23T22:05:00.001-04:00

"Shawarming" up to the people in Cumbaya

We enjoy trying new things in our culture. When we see a new restaurant open up in Cumbaya, we are anxious to see what it will serve. Recently there have been several "SHAWARMA" restaurants open up! Shawarma is traditional Turkish food in a sandwich wrap which is filled with meat which has been roasted on a spit. It is served with a creamy garlic yogurt sauce and a very spicy sauce. There is a very nice little Shawarma shop that is the middle of downtown Cumbaya; it was the first one we tried and it quickly hit the our top of our families favorite list.

We have made friends with the owner and the staff. They have photos of famous Ecuadorian soccer players from the most popular national team in Ecuador eating in the restaurant. The day we took this picture with the owner, we told him now we feel famous because we have a picture with him like the LIGA team members do. Please pray for him as we seek to reach him with the gospel of Jesus Christ.

2010-10-21T21:38:00.000-04:00

New Teamates on the Way!

September brought us some special guests; Laura Fouser and Lynell Smith came to Ecuador for the very first time. These two women are veteran missionaries with ABWE. It was a special time together as they saw our vision for the Tumbaco Valley. They called us on October 20th to share that the Lord has led them to join ABWE TEAM ECUADOR. We are praising the Lord for these new teammates. We are in the process of getting all the paperwork needed for their visas. They desire to be here early in 2011. God is so good! They will be a great asset to our team. Laura and Lynell are gifted in evangelism and discipleship and training others to do the same, and they are anxious to get to work here in Cumbaya. Please pray for them as they transition to our ministry.

2010-09-15T22:14:00.001-04:00

Off to College!

It is a great blessing to see Bethany transitioning this year from Ecuador back to her home country of the USA. It has been a great transition for all of us as our first child/first sibling has left home. In June, Bethany worked for the summer at Word of Life Family campground in the children's ministry. This was a great blessing for her as children are a part of her heart and her DNA. She loves children...all children. She had many great opportunities to meet people and to see many friends from all over.

In September, Deanne was able to visit with Bethany and to be with her during yet another big transition as she began the Word of Life Bible Institute. Both Jeff and Deanne are alumni of the Bible Institute, and we are pleased for her to be studying God's Word this year under godly care. It is a concentrated 1 yr Bible study program.

It was a special visit for mother and daughter. Deanne participated in Parent's Weekend, helped Bethany move into the dorm, and even visited with both sets of grandparents with Bethany. We even had time for special treats like Dunkin Donuts and a Starbucks coffee together. Family is a special gift that we carry with us our whole lives. We love you Bethany, and we can’t wait till you get home for your winter break!

I love you Bethany Lynae Davoll!

2010-09-14T19:21:00.000-04:00

A brief look at

Life and Ministry in Cumbaya

2010-09-10T22:23:00.004-04:00

ECUADOR – COLOMBIA Field Team Conference.

We had the privilege of hosting the ABWE COLOMBIA field team for our annual team conference Sept 5-11. We were delighted to show off our country and all that GOD is doing here in the Tumbaco Valley. We took the majority of the group to our "lookout spot" over Cumbaya where we can see the whole valley. It is a great place to get a vision of what God is doing and will do in the future. It was a special time for us to have the team here for prayer and encouragement.

The conference was held in the small charming town of Mindo, two hours from Quito. It is famous for birdwatching-- especially hummingbirds! The theme of the conference was "The 5 Dysfunctions of a team", and we had a lot of hands on sessions interacting with each other, attempting to avoid the 5 Dysfunctions! We enjoyed great fellowship, sharing in God's Word, ministry updates, and encouraging one another. It was a blessing for us to get to know our teammates in Colombia better. God has blessed us with a group of co-workers passionate about Jesus Christ and His church.

One special blessing we received…Eduardo, our breakfast cook, just “happens” to live in Cumbaya! Isn’t God good! After Jeff enjoyed a “cafecito” with them, they have been attending our church the last 3 weeks! What a blessing to serve our great Savior!

2010-08-07T15:47:00.001-04:00

NORMAL DAY IN ECUADOR

People often ask -- what is a your normal day like in Ecuador......Well, honestly I dont know that there is such a thing as a "Normal day," not yet anyway. So, I will just tell you what TODAY was like. Some days you pour cement..... We have a church that is near us, and today we were driving by and we found out that they were doing some cement work. So, the three men in our family came home, changed their clothes, and went right back to help work. The church members had been there all morning loading buckets of cement by hand and pouring them. In the 4 hours they were there they were only able to get about one-quarter of the floor poured and there was a storm that was coming. Our men quickly jumped in and helped. They talked with the men about trying a new way, an assembly line, and in just 3 hour, they were able to get the other three-quarters of the floor poured just in time before the rain came. Praise the Lord. It was a great blessing to the church to get that done and especially to have it done before the storm came.

2010-08-01T21:57:00.001-04:00

Missionary Team—La Iglesia Bautista El Calvario

In 1984, Jeff and Deanne first went on mission trips as teenagers to Portugal which impacted their lives to serve the Lord both in our local church and around the world. In 1995 and 1998, we were able to take young people out of our youth group to the Spanish-speaking country of Mexico to help with a church plant outside of Mexico city. Here we are in 2010, praising God as we have hosted our first missions team from Pennsville Baptist Church in PA.

The team was such a blessing as they saw God provide many supplies for the vacation Bible school at El Calvario, where we have been working this year. They came together as a team long before they arrived in Quito to ask God to work. When you ask -- GOD provides in amazing ways. There were Beanie Babies and Hershey kisses. There were about 1800 pencils before we stopped counting. There were erasers and rulers and school zipper bags all as prizes for the over 175 children who came to VBS throughout the week. They brought medical supplies for Dr David Vasconez, the pastor and medical doctor who has clinics each week in the church building. God provided clothing and Spanish New Testaments and tracts. Our children were not so thrilled as they brought our school books and some needed supplies. They filled ALL of their suitcases using only their carry- on luggage for their personal luggage. What a blessing to the church and to our new ministry here in Ecuador.
We saw God open doors during our week of Vacation Bible School. We praise the Lord for many hands to work. As a team, we spent two days cleaning, decorating, practicing and advertising in the neighborhood with the church family in preparation for the week. There was a lot of prayer paving the way for this week of ministry.

We saw over 175 children attend and they heard the Word of God. What a blessing to be Salt and Light in this neighborhood. VBS was followed up with a game day, which we were in put in charge of. More than 120 children attended. On Sunday, the morning included a mini VBS format and the parents were invited to attend for a full Gospel presentation. It was a packed house and we estimated there were more than 200 children and parents there for the services. We praise the Lord for this opportunity to share the Gospel message in the South of Quito.

Thank you Chris and Debbie Harbaugh for all your work and coordination. Thank you Pennsville Baptist Church for standing behind us on bended knee and for sending reinforcements for the battle! You are a blessing.

2010-07-28T11:00:00.001-04:00

Davoll Kids in the Jungle
One of the blessings we have here in Ecuador is to translate for groups that come from the USA on missions trips to serve. This is a blessing to us, not a burden, as we have oportunity to travel to different places, to learn more of our culture and to see how God continues to work in Ecuador.

Our kids were privileged to serve in the jungle translating for a group of teenagers that came to do VBS, painting, and encouragement of the believers in remote towns in the eastern jungles of Ecuador. We were privileged, as a family, to be invited to Shandia, the home of Jim and Elizabeth Elliot, to translate the testimonies of 3 of the men who helped kill Jim Elliot in 1956. What man sees as a tragedy, God sees as an opportunity. It was a blessing to hear Mincaye, Dyuwi and Kimo share that since their lives have been transformed, they now will walk God's trails sharing the gospel whenever, wherever and however possible.

2010-06-02T00:04:00.000-04:00

Lukas 13th Birthday Party

Lukas celebrated his 13th birthday with some of his friends from the Neighborhood. We had a pool party in our back yard (no, we don't have a pool, but praise the Lord our landlord does and it is right out our back door). When everyone was throroughly exhausted, we came inside for hotdogs and cup cakes. Cup cakes are not really popular here so that was a new treat for many of the kids.

Lukas proudly anounced to us on his birthday morning that he was going to be a grown up man starting that morning...now that he was thirteen. That lasted just a couple of...minutes. He told us a couple of weeks later that this teenager thing is tiring! He can't seem to get out of bed in the morning!

We praise the Lord for Lukas as a vital part of our family and a vital part of our Team Ecuador. He is a constant bundle of energy and has more contacts in the neighborhood than anyone else. I pray you will grow to be a man who loves the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength! We love you, Lukas.

2010-05-28T12:22:00.002-04:00

John 21:3 - I go a fishing!

Just a little intimidating as they caught a shark the day before. Not accustomed to such a "big" boat. Yes, I caught fish, yes, I got soaked, yes, I loved every minute of it. God is good!

2010-05-25T22:20:00.001-04:00

Horseback Riding the Pichincha Volcano

This was a very special day. My Dad loved to ride horses. I love to ride horses. My kids like to ride horses. Lukas even asked if we could move up there! Jeff took all four of our children horseback riding on the top of Mt Pinchincha. It was a tremendous day for all of them full of much anticipation. Jeff had learned of this special guide-led tour four years ago when we first visited Ecuador, and he has been planning this trip ever since. Bethany, Jordan, Amanda and Lukas all love to ride as do their parents. Four hours on horseback on one of the high peaks of the Andes Mountains. INCREDIBLE! The views of God's creation from an altitude of nearly 14,000 ft. They were dressed like caballeros (Cowboys) with sombreros and thick Andean ponchos for the mountain trails, and boy did we need them. Memories were made! If you get a chance to visit us, you now have 5 'brand new' tour guides to take you higher than you have ever been before!

2010-04-24T22:39:00.000-04:00

Christmas in April

We had our first FAMILY visitors to Ecuador!! We had planned to have Christmas together with Dad and Mom Ellison here in Ecuador, but they were unable to come as planned. It was such a treat for all of us when they were able to come in late April for 2 weeks. We bought a turkey, made some stuffing and had a Christmas feast together as a family. Jordan thinks we should celebrate Christmas every month just so he can have turkey! The term 'better late than never' rings true! It was a lot of fun; the kids insisted on making a whole bunch of Christmas cookies.
Dad was a tremendous blessing to our ministries while he was here. He was able to preach 3 different Sundays at La Iglesia Bautista El Calvario with Pastor David Vasconez and to share in our Wednesday evening Bible studies. One man stated, "Jeff, we are glad to have you with us every week, but this guy is really good!" We already knew that! We really enjoyed the time together sharing our new country, home and ministry with our parents."

2010-04-15T16:59:00.009-04:00

Ministry in Otovalo

We had a tremendous opportunity to do a week of personal evangelism, children's vacation Bible school, ministry and translation in the town of Otavalo. Translation was a real stretch, and we all really felt that our ability with the language grew from the experience. We worked with Word of Life Directors, Daniel and Anna Gonzalez to translate for a church from Atlanta, GA who brought a large group during their spring break. The kids made some great friends with the other Ecuadorian translators and with the American visitors. God blessed and many doors were open to the Gospel. Following the different meetings, we had the chance to counsel in small groups. There were many opportunities to share the Gospel. God was truly at work that week.

2010-04-12T00:29:00.000-04:00

El Mitad del Mundo - The Center of the World
Ecuador is named after the equator. We took a field trip today to "see" this invisible line that divides the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. El Midad del Mundo or the Center of the World, is a great place to learn more of Ecuador's culture and diversity. In the cultural museum, we learned about all the different people groups of Ecuador including their habitat, dress, and daily life. There was live Andean music to enjoy and artisans selling their goods. We took the opportunity to mark the occasion at the monument and take some photos on the imaginary line that circles the globe. When you have the chance to visit us in Ecuador, we would enjoy taking you for a trip to Mitad del Mundo. We may even feed you deep fried guinea pig if you like. It's a delicacy!

2010-04-12T00:14:00.001-04:00

Swiss Family Davoll?
We have had many new adventures in Ecuador. We have had the opportunity to make many new friends. Sometimes, these two things overlap and things really get interesting. We met the Schole family around Christmas time and they invited us to their home. They are directors of a beautiful retreatcenter, El Refugio, just north of el Mitad del Mundo, the monument on the equator. When we arrived, they offered for us to go on a hike. We enjoyed it immensely. When we reached the top, they showed us this incredible treehouse. We enjoyed our time with their family and our exploration immensely. Everyday is a new adventure. Isn't God good.

2010-04-10T10:16:00.003-04:00

Fanesca - A "Semana Santa" Tradition

An Easter tradition that is unique to Ecuador is the soup, Fanesca. It is served all over the country but only during 'Semana Santa," the week before we celebrate Resurrection Sunday. It is the thickest soup I have ever tasted. It is made of 12 different beans, many of them native to Ecuador. The story is told that the tweleve different beans represent the 12 Apostles and the salted cod fish represents Christ. Although every family has their own recipe of this traditional dish, here is a list of the twelve beans and grains which are cooked along with potatoes, and squash.

1. chickpeas
2. great northern beans

3. black-eyed peas
4. yellow split peas

5. brown lentils
6. adzuki beans
7. black beans

8. wheat berries
9. quinoa

10. barley
11. sweet corn

12. green peas

With all of these ingredients, you can imagine how thick it was. My favorite part was the presentation. The bowl we were served was just amazing. There were three strips of cheese, two small dough balls, three slices of plantain, a mini empanada, a wedge of hard boiled egg, a hot red pepper curl, and a onion flower. It was almost too pretty to eat! We take every opportunity to learn more about the people and the culture where God has placed us. It is a great blessing."

2010-04-06T23:44:00.000-04:00

Celebrating Easter in Ecuador

We celebrated in our new country in new and different ways.

First, we were privileged to spend Good Friday with 4 ladies who had been working in an orphanage in Riobamba Ecuador and were getting ready to leave for the USA. It was a great blessing to spend time with them as they had been praying for us before they came and they even brought us candy from the USA...definately a special treat.

Second, we attended the processions in Quito. Good Friday is anything but "good" in Quito. There is a great procession, or parade, called, "Jesus the great power." During this time, 120 are chosen to be apostles, 200 chosen to be the weeping Veronica, and more than 2000 chosen to be "cucuruchus." The cucuruchus cover their faces with a big purple hood and walk barefooted, carrying heavy crosses, chains, wrapped in barbed wire. Both years I have seen the processions, one of the heavy crosses falls on people in the crowd injuring them. Noone is quite sure as to the origine of the purple hoods, but the idea is to walk this great distance in this procession to earn favor with God. The blacktop was so hot they had to stand in puddles people would pour for them or stand on papers their helpers would tear up and put down. One cucuruchu in the photos is talking on a cell phone. I was profoundly struck by the name of the parade, Jesus the great power, and those in the parade trying to earn something from God. The music is earry. The procession is sad. I am reminded that the scriptures tell us, it is finished! The debt has been paid! Jesus in reality is the gread power, He paid a debt I could not pay! it is time for celebration, not penance. Praise be to God who has given us his unspeakable gift.

Thirdly, we celebrated the Resurrection by observing a Seder supper in our living room with 16 Ecuadorians. The Spanish was bad, but the message is great!What a blessing to rehearse the freedom from bondage the Israelites recevied form God and the freedom from sin past, present and future experienced by the blood of Jesus Christ that liberates us death and hell for eternity. To God be the glory!

2010-03-30T08:01:00.004-04:00

WEEKLY HIGHLIGHT

When talking about weekly highlights, it is difficult to shorten the discussion. God has been so good to us. I must say just one of the weekly highlights is our Wednesday night Bible studies. Earlier we have shared of other highlights such as the 2 ladies Bible studies Deanne attends and assists, our Bible study we have with our landlord and his family, and our church family at La Iglesia Bautista El Calvario (Calvary Baptist Church).

Our couples Bible study on Wednesday night is a blessing as attendance ranges between 14-24 people, mostly couples. This lovely group of people have deep burdens for teaching and training their families to love and serve God. We meet in different host homes. This proves a challenge for us as everyone else knows the locations, but often the directions are sketchy for us. Therefore, we solved this problemy by offering a ride to someone who knows the area! We are currently studying God's plan for the family. This is especially exciting as we are doing basic discipleship beginning with the priority of the Word of God as our guide. Please pray with us as we desire to see those needing Christ as their Savior come to him in faith.

On a light note...we also enjoy the Bible studies as we get to sample Ecuadorian food each night. We also are stretched and growing in the language. One night I responded to a question by saying we must all stand before God and answer for our actions. One lady repeated the phrase "before God" (ante Dios). So, I said yes, "before God". She repeated again "before God." I again said, "Yes, before God." She said...I said, she said, I said. This went on for some time. Finally I realized I was not saying it correctly and she was trying to help correct me! I was not saying we stand before God, I was saying we stand before the time when God existed! Que verguenza (how embarassing)! Please pray we keep our theology straight by continued language learning!

2010-03-27T23:54:00.001-04:00

Still Dating after 23 years!

We like to celebrate and on March 27 we celebrated...US. Normally we celebrate other things, but this time we celebrated us. Twenty-three years ago we had our first "date"; so, we have much to celebrate. For our night out, we went to sushi place right here in Cumbaya. Who would think you could get Great sushi in Ecuador, but we found it! We went to Noe Sushi Bar (not sure baptists are allowed to use that word so we will call it a restaruant). It is a really great spot for a special occassion, and we had the whole place to ourselves. We went at 5 PM, but dinner does not get cranked up here until after 7 PM. We are thankful that we are still dating after 23 years. God has really blessed us. We praise Him for the strong relationship that we share...and the plate of sushi!

2010-03-23T18:37:00.001-04:00

WAFFLES, A SPECIAL BLESSING!

We would like to Introduce you to WAFFLES, the newest Davoll member. Here her name is said "waf-less." On March 23, we could resist no longer and this cute little ball of fur came into our lives. Her name is WaffleS. She gets a lot of attention everywhere we go. we have met a lot of new people in our neighborhood with her by our side. You may wonder how we came up with such an unusual name. First, we have always named our animals after food. But, we wanted this dog to represent our step into missions in a special way. It was a big decision, and there was voting and even veting going on in the family, (oh the politics!). The decision was made together. You see, as we were travelling around the United States, we enjoyed a lot of yummy foods. We remember one week in particular in Volusia, Florida, where we ate Waffles every morning for breakfast. Jeff thought for sure that the kids would be sick of waffles forever. Well, the rest of us assured him that it could never happen. In fact, the opposite is so true, that we named our little dog "Waffle." We praise the Lord for our children who have waited so patiently for 3 1/2 years while we traveled and studied in Language school. Well, got to go. That little bark is telling me something...if I only knew what that was!

2010-03-20T23:50:00.001-04:00

ROYAL TREAT AT El Cañón del Chiche!

Today was a special treat. One of Deanne's Friends from her ladies Bible study is a chef, and this week after Bible study on Tuesday we had the opportunity to meet her husband. Jaimie and Paola invited us to their home and restaurant on Saturday. We enjoyed viewing their incredible property in this canyon between two or three moutains with God's creation surrounding them on all sides. We hiked all over it and enjoyed picking some fruit right off their trees. Lukas got to ride a 4-wheeler with their son. Then, the kids played on a trampoline. We sat down for a lovely dinner which was a mix of Ecuadorian flavors and mediteranean foods. It was such a relaxing day for all of us. We never cease to be amazed at the open doors and opportunities we have to enjoy God and his blessings!

2010-02-15T10:03:00.000-05:00

Amanda's Quinciera - Turning 15
Amanda's Birthday -- Her Quinciera was celebrated in Cumbaya! Amanda's birthday is Valentine's day. She has been a party waiting to happen since she was born! This year she turned fifteen. We have been looking forward to her birthday since we first started learning about the Latino culture. A 'Quinciera' is a very big deal for a young lady. It is the 'Sweet Sixteen' of the Latin world, but it goes way beyond our celebrations!

We enjoyed this celebration with our family and many of Amanda's new Ecuadorian friends. Traditionally, a quinciera is done in all pink, but for Amanda it was ALL PURPLE, or course. In a Quinciera, a young lady passes from a child to woman figuratively and there is a special time when the dad presents his daughter her pair of high heels to signify that she is a woman now. Well, in Ecuador it is very difficult to locate larger sizes of shoes, and we searched for Mandi a pair of shoes............. but we didnt find one. Instead, we presented her with a gift of amethyst jewelry. Perhaps this was the story of Cinderella's slipper, but instead of looking for a princess for the shoe to fit we were looking for the shoe to fit the princess.

It was a very fun evening. We took pictures with her guests. They went on a video scavenger hunt in our urbanization and then we watched the fun tour of the neighborhood. We played lots of games and of course, had lots of food including Amanda's favorite Red Velvet Cake." Congratulations Amanda. We are so proud of the lady God is making you.

2010-02-14T20:23:00.000-05:00

The Kitchen is Open!

One of Deanne's heartbeats is to use her kitchen as a means of outreach. This sounds simple doesnt it? And it is! God has given each of us things in our hands, just like Moses had his rod, we can use what we have.

We began "Cocina Contacts" ministry this month of December by making Christmas cookie wreaths for our neighbors and different people we have met. Since we did not have our shipment yet, we were limited on pots and pans. We got a little creative and found a stovetop recipe that we could make in large quantities. We made 48 Christmas cookie wreaths in all.

When we do a project, we make it a WHOLE family project. We put everybody to work on our project. We had cookie makers, wreath formers, sprinkle decorators, and wrappers. We put a small candle in the middle ,and Jeff made a Christmas card telling about Jesus being the light of the world.

We wanted to make something a little bit "American" to draw the two cultures together. We have found Ecuadorians to be friendly people who are as curious about our culture as we are about theirs. By making a recipe from our culture, we are inviting them into our world for a moment through our kitchen door. Then, we took them around our neighborhood and delivered them personally. It was a great time to get to know our neighbors. Deanne even had a request to teach a neighbor how to make banana bread just from our Christmas cookies, but more on that later. We are so glad to be living here and to be getting to know our neighbors.

2010-02-14T20:03:00.000-05:00

A Special Visit with Bob and Lynne Trout

February 6-10 brought our second visitors to Ecuador missionaries Bob and Lynne Trout, Spanish Speaking South American Regional Administrators. It was a blessing to have them here with us. We were so glad to welcome Lynne to Ecuador as it was her very trip to our new country. BIENVENIDOS A ECUADOR, LINA!

Ecuador is ABWE's newest Spanish speaking field, and we value the input and leadership of our these veteran missionaries. The Trouts were a great encouragement to our family and we enjoyed our time with them. We appreciate their input and direction as we launch the work here in Cumbaya. The kids especially enjoyed Uncle Bob's passion for icecream!

Their friendship and mentorship is such an asset. The children really enjoyed having them with us. Uncle Bob enjoyed watching the Superbowl with the boys, and Aunt Lynne enjoyed shopping, playing with our two bunnies, Pork chop and Butterball, and getting "Facebook" pointers from the girls. Thank you for your ministry!

2010-02-14T19:51:00.000-05:00

Carnival - alive and well in Cumbaya!

Another new experience was waiting for us in early February as we approached "Carnival". Cultural traditions are different in every country. We have heard many stories of Carnival, and in some countries the celebration is to be avoided. In Ecuador, it is a kid's dream come true. In the weeks that precede Lent, people "let it all out" and put on a "water fight" in the streets. People throw water balloons, and spray crazy foam at unsuspecting strangers just for fun. At every store you can buy this crazy foam spray, and it seems to sell out fast. It was rather sporadic at first until THIS WEEKEND! All the children in the country have a few days off, and many people take it as a big family vacation and go to the beach or have family over for a few days. It is a huge time of fiesta!

Let me sum it up for you, THIS WEEKEND, STAY INSIDE OR PREPARE TO GET WET! Kids and adults are into this Country-wide water fight! Water guns, hoses, water balloons, cups of water, full size buckets..... nothing is off limits! Our next door neighbors invited Bethany, Jordan, Amanda and Lukas over for an afternoon of water craziness. We wanted them to get to know the neighborhood; Im not sure this is exactly what we meant. They sure had a good time. If you are a kid, could there be a better holiday? Sorry....... gotta go. I have four cold, wet hungry kids to feed. It seems they worked up quite an appetite!

2010-02-12T16:44:00.000-05:00

Enjoying the Coast of Ecuador

Our family took a brief trip to the coast of Ecuador to the small village of Same (pronounced like the name Sammy) for a few days after New Years. It was far different than our daily surroundings in Cumbaya. Hot, humid, rustic, sandy were the days. We bought fish and shrimp right on the beach and cooked it for dinner. We enjoyed picking shells and relaxing in hammocks. Jeff, Jordan and Lukas were able to do some fishing on a river for a few hours. They watched :dug out" canoes go up and down the river. It was a reminder that we are living in a third world country. It was a great privilege to reconnect as a family including some late night monopoly contests. We were reminded during our few days on the coast of the majesty of God's creation through the crashing waves, the swelling tides, the magnificent mountains; the views were around us on every side. We are truly blessed! Psalm 19:1 The Heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament showeth His handiwork.

2010-01-31T10:00:00.001-05:00

Field Team Leaders Conference in Arequipa, Peru.

Jeff had the privilege of attending our Spanish Speaking South America Field Team Leaders Meeting in Arequipa, Peru. It was a great blessing to be with the other leaders learning and growing together. The best part of the conference is to have time to interact and ask questions of other veteran field team leaders. It was a great conference set up by Steve Douglas who helped in our training in prefield ministry. I was privileged to be at a table with Andy Patton from the jungle area of Peru and with Scott Russel from Santiago, Chile. I roomed with Don Fulz from Argentina. Ate with Bob Trout, Johnny Bolin and Tim Bilbry from Colombia, was encouraged by Paul Fields from Paraguay, enjoyed jokes from Tim Farly who leads the seminary in Iquitos Peru. I enjoyed music from Andy Pace and even got to play the electric guitar for a time with him. It was also a blessing to be out of the snowy climate of Ecuador...NOT, we don't have snow except on the tops of our volcanoes! Dale Marshfield from South Africa and Jim Ruff from China led our team training. If I missed anyone, I hope they don't have time to read blogs. Thanks men for the time of Iron Sharpening iron.

2010-01-10T07:21:00.000-05:00

Our house is now in our home!

We praise the Lord for His great blessing. On January 8th, our shipment from New York arrived on our doorstep. Praise the Lord! It has been held in customs for more than 4 months. What a joy to combine little treasures from our life in the United States with our new life here in Cumbaya. In only fifteen minutes, our 60 boxes were unloaded from the truck and up the stairs into our living room.

Lukas, our foreman, was calling out the number of each box to cross off our inventory list. Some of these boxes were first packed 2006. What a journey we have enjoyed since that time. It felt a little surreal at that moment to think that we were really Home in Cumbaya. It was time to finally "unpack". We took time to pray together......in a circle, just as we had on that night in 2005 when God moved in our hearts to make the family step into career missions. Another milestone in our journey. We are "officially" settled in Cumbaya. I took a few minutes to "take in the moment" to gather my thoughts, but the kids jumped right in as fast as they could find their boxes. They were unpacking and proudly displaying treasures in no time at all. Deanne began with a box of her mother’s china in the kitchen. When the delivery truck had opened its’ door, we noticed that our shipment had been packed half right side up and half upside down. Quickly we identified that several of the inverted boxes were fragile boxes from our dining room. Deanne opened her mother’s china timidly, but the pieces were intact. It is another reminder of God’s provision for us down to the smallest details. The next box was even more interesting. Containing antique plates and a stack of glass platters; amazingly, there was only one small little chip in the entire stack of antique dishes, but the platter directly beneath was broken in half. It was not a special platter because it was bought at a garage sale. These are the little things that we will always remember. Thank you for sharing the journey. God’s goodness is something to celebrate.

2009-12-25T09:47:00.000-05:00

First Quarter Returns
Just a brief Video of our first 3 months here in Ecuador. Thank you for keeping us in your prayers. Part of our responsibility is to learn as much as we can about the language and culture. What a blessing to be able to explore and learn!

2009-12-03T20:50:00.000-05:00

TORO, TORO, TOROToday, Jeff, Jordan and Lukas went to a MAJOR cultural tradition in Quito. The first week of December the toros come to town in a BIG WAY. This afternoon there were 12,000 people around as the 3 of them watched the elaborate show in the ring. We learn much about culture by what people deem as "entertaining". All we can say is that it was quite different than a day at the ballpark. There were definitate cultural rules, and when one on-looker got rowdy at the wrong time, the entire crowd turned against him by "whistling" and yelling which is their equivalent to "booing". Another cultural note, "Panama hats" which are actually an Ecuadorian industry not Panama, are worn by everyone at the bullfights. Jeff got into the new fashion, Lukas opted for cowboy style, and Jordan, well, he was the "Americano" of the bunch.

2009-12-03T16:56:00.000-05:00

VIVA QUITO.............

This is quite a week to be in QUITO............

All week is leading up to December 6-- the day Ecuador celebrates the Independence of Quito from the Spanish in 1534. It is a national holiday......and it is a HUGE party in downtown!

We are a little removed from it in the Tumbaco Valley, but we needed to go into the city a few times this week to get our vehicle registered; so we were able to see just how crazy it can be.

There are street vendors everywhere. They are selling all kinds of things. This is a special week for the TOROS. For just this week, there are bullfights in Quito. Outside of the bullrings, there are rows of booths selling hats- every kind of hat imaginable, for the people going to the bullfights. Jeff and Lukas each bought a hat. In Ecuador, at street vendors, you are able to negotiate for the true price of an item. Deanne can bargain with the best of them. Jeff...well he just walks away when the bartering begins. If he wants it, he buys it. If he want's it cheaper, he calls Deanne.

There is music playing in the streets. We even saw mariachis singing in a auto repair place. That is a new twist on culture for sure. We have also enjoyed all the little vendors selling Christmas decorations that have shown up everywhere. They built little shacks just for the month and live there while selling their wares. Yesterday, we found several locations to buy Christmas trees. When we got out of the car, we saw that all but two of thh trees were artificials set up on the lot. The live trees are cyprus trees quite different from the evergreens of North America. All of this is quite new to Ecuador-- as a developing country.

We are learning quite a bit about our new country and it's culture. Thank you for sharing in our journey with us.

2009-12-03T16:23:00.000-05:00

Happy THANKSGIVING

Ps 105:1 Oh Give Thanks unto the Lord, call on His name, make known upon the nations what He has done.

Thanksgivng has long been one of our family's favorite days. Late autumn in Upstate New York with the crisp cool weather and the beautiful masterpiece of God's watercolor in front of you is a great time for a celebration. We love gathering around a great big table with our grandparents, our cousins, our aunt and uncle and remembering all that we have to be thankful for together. This year-- it was spent in a new place--Cumbaya, Ecuador, our new home. The weather was a balmy 80 degrees-- and the landscape incredible with mountains on every side.

We had a blend of old and new traditions to celebrate. We were invited to share the day with an Ecuadorian/American family who have recently returned from Miami. They were looking forward to "EL DIA de La ACCION de La GRACIA" as much as we were. It was a great time of fellowship together-- including a lively game of Monopoly. In the morning, we were able to talk to our families on the phone-- to join in a bit on their day of Thanksgiving.

There was much anticipation as we thought about the food-- We very much enjoyed having turkey again! (Last year, our family lived in Costa Rica while we attended language school and we celebrated thanksgiving with ham and chicken) This year we shared a GIANT TOM TURKEY!!!! There was enough turkey for everyone-- even our Jordan. We had homemade stuffing, sweet potato casserole ( a recipe our kids have enjoyed from their favorite elementary school teacher-- We love you Mrs. Parker) and a brand new homemade twist on Green bean casserole (no campbells soup or french's onions-- and no body missed them). Cranberries-- well, they are hard to come by-- we did see one lonely can of oceanspray sauce in the grocery store for $2.68. Ximena made an Ecuadorian equivalent out of Naranjilla. (Watch out cranberries-- you may have some competition on your hands). For dessert, we had apple pie, ice cream with yummy mix-ins, and pumpkin roll (Davoll family tradition).

We laughed too much. We ate too much.

We had a wonderful time together.

Thank you Lord for all you have done for us.

Thanksgiving may be a day--- but our year should be devoted to thanking YOU!

2009-11-08T11:41:00.000-05:00

Electricity?? Maybe-- Maybe Not.

Everyday is a new experience in our new home. For example, today we learned that because we are in the middle of a drought and 48% of our electricity comes from hydroelectricity, there just is NOT enough water to generate electricity to power the country. So the government has restricted electricity to 20 hours a day until we receive enough rain. It will be at various times throughout the day. Yesterday, we were without power in the evening from 4-8pm. Today, it was 11-3. Each day will be different...until it rains!

2009-10-18T19:11:00.000-04:00

35th Anniversary of La Iglesia Bautista Calvario

Our family enjoyed this great event of the Calvary Baptist Church in South Quito on October 18, 2009. The day began with praise, thanksgiving, and worship to God for what He has done in and through the church over its history. There were many visitors and past attenders which were a great testimony of God's goodness.

Jeff was asked to preach for this special day. He shared from God's Word from Acts about the purpose of the church. Following the service, we enjoyed a celebration cake. Pastor David, Ximenia and the entire Vasconez family sang together and shared testimony of the blessings of the ministry. They also remembered David's father who had planted the church many years ago.

The picnic was quite a time of festivity for all. The women were busy cooking four different kinds of meat. They grilled chicken, pork, beef, and sausages. We have Never had a church dinner like this before. The men played Ecu-volleyball while the children played soccer.

It was a tremendous day. We praise the Lord for our ABWE national partner, David Vasconez. It has been a great blessing to be a part of his ministry in our first few weeks here in Ecuador.

2009-10-18T11:22:00.000-04:00

Building Relationships through CAFECITO!

How to you begin a new ministry in a new country. You take it to the Lord in prayer. You proceed as He leads and guides. We have sought to follow Gods' direction and timing on each and every step of the process.

As we begin, our ministry in the Tumbaco Valley. The process starts with meeting people and making relationships. Everywhere we are and everywhere we go we have the opportunity of beginning these realtionships. God has brought amazing opportunities.

Things are MOVING>...........We were invited to the home of Robalino family for cafecito. It was a fantastic time to meet their family. We are praying with this family about the next step--beginning a Bible study in their home. Please pray with us for this great opportunity.

2009-09-26T10:48:00.000-04:00

Handsome man in black, our Lukas!

We attended a wedding in Quito at Calvary Baptist Church on Sept 26th. The church opened it's doors to the family and the community for this great event. We saw many new faces come into the church for the first time. The bride and groom were a great testimony of the love of Christ as their marriage was established as a Christian home. Pastor Vasconez gave the Gospel.

We enjoyed learning many things about the differences in culture. For example, Everyone's chairs were angled to face the bride and groom during the ceremony; so you are really participating in the ceremony with the couple. Also, the couple really enjoyed the photo time following the ceremony. It was not limited to the wedding party; everyone who attended had their photo taken with the bride and groom-- although the bride and groom did not smile in the photos. My favorite part of the wedding was when the groom sang to the bride with his guitar. (He also made the wedding cake-- not a bad touch either!)

They wanted to honor us for attending their wedding-- so they made sure to introduce us publically. However, when I presented the bride with our gift she seemed shocked and embarrased that someone who barely knew her would give her a gift. It was all a learning experience. (We did ask questions before-- and yes, we were to bring gifts. I just think we took her a little off guard. She is very shy). We are very glad to see the couple at church. They are very warm and friendly to their "Gringo" friends.

2009-09-22T10:38:00.000-04:00

Not your ordinary Chicken Soup............

We have all heard that chicken soup is the best thing in the world to eat when you are sick. This is the time of year when Moms everywhere are cooking up their favorite recipes to keep their families healthy or to bring them back to health.

Well, it is a popular dish in Ecuador as well. Our family loves chicken, and we love soup. So, it is natural for us to have tried all sorts of Ecuadorian chicken soup. We have had all sorts of things in our chicken soup. The first day we were in Ecuador we had a wonderful soup that was thick with potatoes and it was served with cornnuts on top for a garnish. It was very good.

However, our most memorable soup to date had to be a seemingly plain chicken soup until Jordan's spoon produced a whole chicken foot. In Ecuador, nothing is wasted! We have found ALL parts of the chicken in our soup. We will just leave it at that.

2009-09-20T10:53:00.000-04:00

Visas Acquired!

The journey -- adventure--for our visas began in San Jose several months back. We had all of our paperwork sent to us that we needed (which is a process in and of itself) and we went to the Embassy/Consulate downtown San Jose. We were told our paperwork was incomplete. So, we made contact again with the wonderful missionary who was helping us with the legal paperwork from Quito. He assured us that our paperwork was complete, but he secured one more paper and sent that to us as well. We returned to the office to hear the same bad news. We went around this merry-go-round a few more times. Finally, with two days before our departure to the United States. The Consulate contacted another office and reviewed our paperwork and said that it was INDEED correct as presented, and we would be issued our visas the very next day. We rejoiced. We began the paperwork trail including going to the bank and paying for our visas.

We returned in the morning with our entire family. We all signed our visas and took lots of photos of this great moment. Then, Jeff was called into the Consulate office where he was questioned for a lengthy amount of time. The Consulate was challenging the validity of our paperwork yet again. We are a new organization going into Ecuador, and the Consulate was taking this very seriously. There was some serious resistance to our application.

Now, we are in Quito. We are required to register our visas. The San Jose Embassy had told us to expect more resistance. However, the power of prayer was behind us. Jeff went in Wednesday and presented our visas for registration. He said that they were very helpful and welcoming. They told him to return on Friday for approval. He returned on Friday when the office opened. The visas were ready and waiting for him. Praise the Lord. We found out later that one of our supporting churches had an ALL DAY prayer meeting for their missionaries that day. We know that our needs were taken to the Lord's throne that day. We praise the Lord for the faithfulness of His people to pray for us.

Ok-- so, you want to know a little bit of the excitement. As Jeff was walking through the streets of Quito to find the government offices on Wednesday. He walked right through a school protest. Apparently, they did not care for their teachers very much; so, they took it to the streets. The riot police were there with tear gas. It was quite the welcome for Jeff!

2009-09-15T18:33:00.000-04:00

Our First Sunday in Ecuador was a day to remember. We got up early...still a little weary from our journey on Thursday, and our bodies are still aclamating to the high altitude of Quito at 9500 feet (yes, that is nearly TWO miles in the AIR). We made our way down the mountain where we are living in two taxis; then, all of us met up again, and rode the electric trolley for about an hour to the southern part of Quito. We found two more taxis and had our directions to the church in hand, but neither of our taxis knew where we were going. Half of our family got there-- the other half had a nice scenic view of the southern part of Quito! Jeff, Bethany and Amanda all made it to Sunday School. Ximenia Vasconez, the Pastor's wife, was the girl's Sunday school teacher. She was teaching on having difficulties in your spiritual life. She wanted to make it practical to her new students. She applied it to their lives.... You will have difficulties as you adjust to your new life here in Ecuador...... like learning a new language, and losing your mother!

Well, Jeff had instructed us that if our taxis did not get us to the church-- we were to return to the trolley station where we began; we were so glad to have a back-up plan. Jeff arrived with two men from the church. We were all in attendance for service together! It was such a joy to worship the Lord as a family in Ecuador with fellow believers at the Iglesia de Bautista Calavario en Quito. Dios es bueno.

Following the service, we had lunch with Pastor David, Ximenia and their six children. It was a great time together. We praise the Lord for what He has done to bring us to this place. We know how wonderful it is to be a part of the FAMILY of GOD.

2009-09-12T08:45:00.000-04:00

This is the day that the Lord has made, I will REJOICE and BE GLAD in it"

We are praising the Lord for all He has done to bring us to this moment. I was struck by symbolism as I was walking up the stairway at the airport. The stairway was divided into 3 different landings. I was reminded of our “first level” of prefield ministry, our second level of language training in Costa Rica and now we have arrived here in Quito at the third level. Just like each of the previous landings, there are many unknowns as we trust the Lord in this next phase. We know God is already here working in the hearts of people, preparing the way. We have been overwhelmed by His power to bring all the details together. We thank you for your love, prayer, support, and encouragement along the way.

The last few weeks in the USA have been filled with ministry, details, and a little family time. We were privileged to report in six different churches including a lovely send-off service at our home and sending church Latham Bible Baptist. We repacked repack all of our boxes for Ecuador, list each individual item, and translate that list to Spanish. Jeff and the boys and Papa Roy took our belongings to NYC for shipping. As always, God had done before us. The Ecuadorian Embassy in NYC was not accustomed handling Missionary visas. This necessitated an overnight in NYC and a second attempt at another office for final approval. When we arrive there the 2^nd day, God went before and the Consulate was working on our case before Jeff even arrived that morning. God is so good!

As we begin our new ministry, we ask you to pray for our families whom we left in the USA. They are such a great encouragement to us as they whole-heartedly "send-us", but as a very close family it is still difficult to part. We ask you to pray for wisdom for many upcoming decisions transitions.

Thank you for your partnership!

From the Center of the World to the End of the Earth!

Jeff and Deanne and Team Ecuador

2009-07-08T15:12:00.000-04:00

God's Magnifying Glass

Deanne and I arrived home from school today to Lukas' sad announcement. “The fire would not light.” For this we were thankful! He loves to explore & try new things. He was trying a science experiment. He learned you can make fire using direct sunlight focused through a magnifying glass. He said he could not complete his goal because he had to stand completely still and wait for the sun to do it’s job. Standing still...almost impossible for a 12 year old boy!

We find ourselves in a similar situation as we wait on God’s timing to complete the details and paperwork for beginning church planting ministry in Ecuador. We are waiting on the Son and sometimes not much more patiently than our 12 year old Lukas waiting for the sun to work. Thank you for praying with us through this process of establishing the work in Ecuador. This uncharted territory is teaching us much as we wait on the magnifying glass of God’s perfect timing. During this time of waiting (and finishing our language instruction) we are learning much more about the people and country God has prepared for us. We are thankful to know He has all of the details already under control.

Visa update: We are waiting for approval for ABWE to be invited to begin work in Ecuador. Once approved, we must secure the proper paperwork to complete the visa process. If God should allow this process to be completed in the next 31 days, we will seek to secure our visas while still in Costa Rica which will save time and money. Thank you for your prayer and concern. We look forward to informing you all the details are complete!

Prayer Requests:

Visa paperwork to be secured and completed
Our kids are working at Word of Life Camp in Costa Rica from July 6-18
Our Spanish Bible studies are progress. One family asked if they could invite a friend this week. Please pray for Freddie & China & for Cali & Sirley.
We leave for the USA on 8/8/09 and enter Ecuador 9/10/09.
Pray for our team mates, the Maynard family as they serve in pre-field ministry. We have a potential teammate attending ABWE Candidate Seminar this week. We look forward to introducing her to you in our next prayer letter. Teamwork is vital to the establishment of this ministry!

2009-06-30T01:18:00.000-04:00

I'm Giving Spiritual Bunnies!
A bunny is a conejo.
Counsel is consejo.
A crab is a cangrejo.

I am acustomed to getting strange stares, but this was over the top. While orally reviewing my homework with my teacher I was telling her I was able to give spiritual counsel (consejo espiritual) this week to a family in need. She looked at me very puzzled and asked me to repeat what I had just said. As always, when someone does not understand your language, I spoke louder and slower. I told her I was able to give spiritual counsel this week to a family in need. She asked if this was common in the my country and I replied with gusto that it is quite normal. She asked if we do this all year or only at Easter? I was completely puzzled. I needed to pray that God would send more missionaries to Costa Rica if a Christian teacher not aware of giving spiritual counsel to those in need. Then it dawned on me...I told her I was giving out spiritual rabbits (conejos) instead of spiritual counsel (consejo).

2009-06-29T23:43:00.000-04:00

40 Days and 40 Nights!

2009-06-05T22:07:00.000-04:00

Felicidades Bethania!

Congratulations Bethany!

2009-05-30T12:56:00.000-04:00

Lukas 6th Grade Graduation - We are so proud of him!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

2009-03-30T21:15:00.000-04:00

Great Song I heard and made a video.

2009-03-17T21:29:00.001-04:00

SPECIAL NIGHT IN SAN JOSE... Jeff and Deanne went to Mirador Ram Luna for a special dinner date. High above the city of San Jose on top of a mountain at nearly 6,000 feet above sea level, we dined with a view of the entire city's lights. It was a magnificent view of the city and its 3 million inhabitants. We drove up the mountain on a motorcycle that is a story in and of itself; we were leaving the city at rush hour no less. We enjoyed many of the traditional foods of Costa Rica. We loved the ceviche, the soup, the homemade tortilla chips, and of course arroz con leche y cafe con leche for dessert. There was a show featuring many cultural aspects of this culture. It was such a memorable evening. Clouds came in and completely covered the lights of the city. It was like the David Copperfield made the city of San Jose completely disappear. What a scientific lesson. Thank you Lord for these special opportunities to view your creation and your people from a different vantage point.

2009-03-07T11:05:00.000-05:00

INTERNATIONAL BIRTHDAY BASH -

February 26 was Deanne's birthday, and Jeff surprised her with not one but TWO birthday parties. Our Costa Rican neighbors and our friends from our church here in San Jose were invited. Jeff and the children did all the cooking and cleaning to get ready for the fiesta! It was a wonderful time of mixing people from different parts of our life here in Costa Rica. We had a traditional Costa Rican birthday meal, Arroz con Pollo with Deanne's favorite Costa Rican vegetable picadillo de chayote, and a tossed salad which we were told was totally American. Jeff, Bethany, and Jordan also made Deanne's favorite cake, Carrot cake with cream cheese icing. This yummy cake "Queque zanahoria" has been one dessert that we have found to be popular here.

During the party, we took the opportunity to share our testimony with our guests. It was such a blessing to be able to share what God has done in our lives. This was our first time we shared our testimony together in Spanish. We pray that this story of God's grace might reach into the hearts of our neighbors. Please pray with us for these dear people to understand God's plan.

2009-03-06T21:00:00.000-05:00

CHICKEN WINGS...WHO WOULD HAVE THOUGHT?

Bienvenido a Carneceria Gringo! Lukas and I cooked chicken wings on our borrowed wheel rim grill tonight. 5 cars stopped and asked if the food was for sale! Lukas could not contain himself! He said lets sell each wing for 500 colones (89 cents). We did give some wings to a man who was hungry. We then cooked smores and our neighbor girl Sukura came over and enjoyed. She lives in the blue house in the background.

2009-02-01T22:57:00.000-05:00

How was your old lady?
Our Costa Rican pastor just returned from a month trip to another country to visit his wife's family. I proudly welcomed him to our church and jokingly asked if he was a visitor for the first time. Welcoming visitors is a big deal in churches here in Costa Rica. I then proudly proceeded to say, "Como estaba su vieja?" (How is your old lady.) I meant, "Como estaba su viaje?" (How was your trip.) He looked at me very puzzled. So I repeated it louder and slower, "COMO ES SU VIEJA?" My mind was asking, "Don't you already speak spanish? After all you live here..." Then, a small smile crept across his lips. He said, my trip was fine. Part of the language learning process is just opening your mouth and getting comfortable speaking the language so you brain can engage. I can't wait till the brain is engaged!
vieja = old woman
viaje = trip

2009-01-28T23:44:00.000-05:00

GLADLY LOCKING OUR DOORS!

Today was more emotional than eventful, but still a thought provoking day. About 3:45 today a police officer was shot at the bottom of our hill, a little more than 100 yards from our house…on our street. There has been an increase of robberies in our area. They have significantly increased in brutality as well. After Christmas, "Gus" from our store at school was walking by the SW corner of Parque Bosque with 2 of his friends when 6 armed men robbed them. I had just walked through the corner of the park 30 minutes prior with 3 of my kids. We live 1/2 block from the park. December 2, just behind Parque Chino, a friend witnessed a severe armed car jacking across the street from his house…only his second day in country from South Carolina. Two weeks ago, the pharmacy on the corner of Parqua Bosque, the pharmacist, outside guard and people waiting for the bus were robbed by 2 armed men. Today the police officer on moto pulled over 2 guys on a moto and they shot him with 12 gage birdshot. They fled on foot up the road toward Parque Sauces. One dropped his bag and the shotgun in 2 different locations as he went. One robber was picked up by a car thought to be involved in the robbery and the other fled on foot. We heard the sirens from everywhere and went to see. We were there only about 5 minutes after the shooting. They were just taking the officer away. Very quickly about 20 moto cops charged off chasing a lead. The downed officer was wearing a bp vest but it was a lower grade vest. He had injuries to his shoulders arms and stomach. One cop we talked to felt terrible because this was his area to patrol. He had been called off to sit at a traffic corner for the day. He was especially irritated because this was his beat. I called Ryan, our missionary that works with the groups in law enforcementt, and he came and talked to a few of the cops. He helped us fill in several of the blanks we could not quite understand. Needless to say we are much more aware of our surroundings tonight!

The personal side of the story is this: Jordan had a Bible study at a friend’s house just up that road at 4 PM today. About 3:30 we decided he was not going. Jordan would have at that corner about the time of that shooting. At the same time, Deanne wanted to walk to Pali-our grocery store at the bottom of our hill. Our neighbor stopped over for a few minutes and “would not leave.” Deanne would have been at that corner about the same time. God is good all the time. Whether we were at the corner or not, we know God is good all the time. Please pray for us as we serve and minister here on our street with our neighbors. We have worked hard at building relationships with them and this is another open door of communication and sharing with them where we find our security, in Jesus Christ.

On a lighter note, I was privileged to go to a school in Poas this past Saturday. The school is a shelter for the displaced from the earthquake. I have included my Spanish version of our day. I had to write it for an assignment today. I thank you for being such an encouragement to us here in Costa Rica. I think I am writing all of this to be an outlet for my thoughts. Thank you for listening…or not :)

2009-01-28T23:36:00.000-05:00

Shaking things up here in Costa Rica.

I was privileged to go to a school in Poas this past Saturday. Poas is the place hit by the 6.2 earthquake on 1/8/09. The school is a shelter for the displaced from the earthquake. I have included my Spanish version of our day. I had to write it for an assignment today. I thank you for being such an encouragement to us here in Costa Rica. Thank you for listening…or not.

For those who want to try something fun. Try translating this by copying 5 lines into http://babelfish.yahoo.com/ and see if you can understand the gist of the story. Welcome to our life!

Yo visité a la gente que fue afectada por el terremoto el Sábado, el 24 de enero. Yo anduve de mi casa a la iglesia y llegué temprano…otra vez. Había ocho personas en total de cuatro iglesias diferentes que fueron juntas.
Después de un tiempo de oración, nosotros viajamos en 3 diferentes carros. La primera parada fue una casa de una cristiana que vive en Poás. Nosotros le dimos muchas bolsas de ropa, comida y jabones para distribuir a la gente. La vista detrás de la casa fue muy bonita.
Después de salir de la casa condujimos los coches encima de la montaña. Nuestro destino era una escuela que ahora es utilizada para contener a los refugiados desplazados de sus hogares por el terremoto. Cerca de la puerta fuimos parados por La Fuerza Pública. Un hombre había asegurado el permiso del Ministerio de Vivienda y Asentamientos Humanos pero la jefe en este lugar no recibió la información.
Mientras las negociaciones entre mi amigo y la jefe, el resto de nuestro equipo preparó para la reunión. Más de un hora pasó mientras ellos estuvieron hablando. Yo estaba colocad cerca del tablero de pintura que utilizamos para predicar el mensaje. Muy rápido muchos niños y jóvenes empezaron a pedirme decirles palabras en inglés. Ellos me pidieron cantar en inglés.
Después de las negociaciones y muchas objeciones, la Fuerza Publica nos permitió servir a la gente. Nosotros condujimos juegos por treinta minutos. Los niños se divirtieron y los padres tuvieron sonreían.
Cuando fue hora de predicar la palabra de dios, yo introduje el mensaje con un truco de tres cuerdas para ganar interés. El truco fue bueno pero el español necesitaba mas practica para que el evangelio fuera más claro.
Después del mensaje, once personas indicaron que ellos quieran aceptar a Jesucristo como Salvador. Fue una gran oportunidad de servir.
Después de nuestro tiempo en la escuela, la directora de los campos temporales nos dio una carta de recomendación que da el permiso para entrar en cualquiera lugar en que deseamos servir.
Yo observé tres cosas muy importantes. Primera, la gente en estos lugares no tiene mucha esperanza. Ellos no tienen muchas cosas del mundo, y no tienen un plan para el futuro. Para ellos, es un mundo sin esperanza. Todo el día ellos se sientan y esperan la próxima comida o instrucciones del gobierno.
Segunda, es posible servir Jesucristo incluso cuando usted no sabe la lengua bien. El amor de Dios es más que palabras.
Tercera, es Dios el que abre las puertas, no los hombres. Yo tengo que usar las oportunidades que Dios nos abre.

2009-01-08T17:12:00.000-05:00

HEY-- We were in a EARTHQUAKE today. The kids thought it was a BLAST because they actually felt this one, and it shook the whole house. Earthquakes are common, but we have "missed" several because they were at night. This one-- NO BODY could miss. We praise the Lord for His protection.

The following is the Associated Press release just minutes after it happened.

Strong earthquake shakes Costa Rica
1 hour ago
SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (AP) — A strong earthquake shook the Costa Rican capital of San Jose Thursday afternoon, sending frightened residents running into streets.
There were no reports of injuries in the minutes following the earthquake.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the 6.1 magnitude temblor struck 22 miles (35 kilometers) northwest of San Jose, at a depth of 28 miles (35 kilometers).
Canal 7 television showed images of broken windows, fallen ceiling panels and cracked walls. It said the quake was felt strongly throughout the small Central American country.
Hosted by
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

"SAN JOSE, Costa Rica",

2008-12-24T08:56:00.000-05:00

It's beginning to look alot like Christmas...almost. This is my first Christmas in 43 years without any trace of snow! Now that the rainy season is over, It cracks us up to see people selling gloves, mittens, and winter hats when it is 65 degrees! Bethany has been aiding in the kindergarten class all semester and brought home a Christmas card from the children last week. I said, "It's about time to bring that home." I thought it was summer break...not Christmas break! This year has been filled with change, challenge and confirmation of our calling. I was convicted while reading Luke 1 this past week. I am sure when Mary was confronted by the angel, telling her she was to be the mother of our Savior, she did not comprehend all that God's plan for her would involve. Yet, she harnessed God's plan and willing followed. She maintained a

PERSPECTIVE OF ONE CALLED BY GOD - Luke 1:26-42. Here we find a:
1. Concrete Promise (1:37) "With God nothing shall be impossible."
2. Confident Perspective (1:38) (46-56) "Be it unto me according to thy word"
3. Committed Pursuit (1:39) "Mary arose...and went"

Although we do not comprehend all the circumstances and situations that have come into our lives and confronted us this year, we still are ones called by God. We have concrete promises from God, must maintain a confident perspective, and pursue confidently

2008-11-06T22:40:00.000-05:00

IMPACT OF ONE SMALL MARK!
Spanish "Dona" = donut

Spanish "Doña" = Mrs.

Thanks to Lukas for modeling these "donas" for me. Actually he modeled them after the photo shoot as he devoured just a small portion of each...so he says. I went to the bakery to purchase 2 donuts, one white and one black and could not understand why the cashier was smirking. OK, I realize I did not look like I needed more donuts, but they were for my wife! What I actually said in Spanish, "I would like 2 ladies, one white and one black." I am glad she knew what I was actually asking for, because it would have been very difficult to carry 2 ladies home to my wife...in a plastic bag!

2008-10-29T20:01:00.000-04:00

THANKFUL TO PRAY IN SPANISH!

I was excited when Mandi told us at the dinner table. "I am much more thankful now that I pray in Spanish." As a dad, I was thrilled to hear of the cultural and spiritual advancement of our third child. But...my pride was cut short when she finished her statement. She said, "...because I do not yet know how to ask for things in Spanish!" Amanda says hahaha. Sooner or later we will all learn how to speak with the one and only true God...in another language!

2008-10-27T17:17:00.000-04:00

CHECK OUT THE ABWE MESSAGE!
In the fall of 2006, I had the privilege of being on the cover of the Message Magazine, our info, encouragement and recruitment magazine for ABWE. Don't get too excited because you know me. I am not famous, I just happened to be the only male missionary candidate in the office when they needed a picture STAT!I will say I am excited about the article written in the Message magazine this month. It is a brief interview about our prefield ministry experience. So many of you were a part of this journey, we praise God for YOU! I am reminded of a phrase from the article, "I know there will be difficult days on the mission field. I also know I have a bank vault full of valuable reminders that this ministry is of God." Check out the full article at http://message.abwe.org/vol56no04/Step-by-Step.html. Thank you for keeping us in your prayers! To check out our testimonies in the ABWE Message magazine from Fall 2006, go to: http://message.abwe.org/vol54no03/Candidate-Class-2006-testimonials.html#D

2008-10-27T07:38:00.000-04:00

Recently, a friend posed the question, "What is a missions minded church?" I must admit, that while learning the Spanish language, my mind has been focused more on how to buy milk and to tell the taxi driver how to get to my house than it has been on missions. But...this question got my juices flowing! I began to think and write and here are just a few of my thoughts. I welcome your feedback.

MISSIONS MINDED CHURCH - The church is missions, therefore, it is impossible to validate the existence of the local church without intentionally fulfilling the great commission in its Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and to the uttermost parts. A Missions Minded church is one that is committed (verbally and visibly) to obeying Christ's great commission by making, marking and maturing disciples as we have already been sent by Jesus Christ.

MARKS OF A MISSIONS MINDED CHURCH.

PASTORALLY the pastor is personally INVOLVED in going
PASSIONATELY the congregation is INTENTIONAL in it’s pursuit
"PURSE" FULLY the budget is INTEGRATED with opportunities
PERSONALLY the body is INFILTRATED by missionaries
PRAYERFULLY the body is INFORMED of needs & oopportunities
PURPOSEFULLY the leadership INITIATES missions partnerships
POSSIBILITIES the body INVESTIGATES who will WE send next

Some random PASSIONATE thoughts at 9 PM

2008-10-22T17:59:00.000-04:00

Hey, this is Amanda! I want to let everyone know about an important thing in missionary life. Peanut butter! Peanut butter is a very American thing in most parts of the world, including here. Therefore, it is either hard to find, or EXTREMELY expensive. In our case, it's expensive. This jar of peanut butter I'm holding in the picture, you would usually throw awaybecause it's basically gone; we will use for about another week's worth of PBJ sandwiches :). So, when you eat peanut butter, pray for us, that we would learn Spanish well, and that our peanut butter would go far. Thank you for praying for us! Dios te bendiga!

2008-10-21T15:34:00.000-04:00

FLOWERS FOR MY LOVE

Ok, it has been long enough here in Costa Rica without buying flowers for my wife, I figured it was about time. Lukas and I walked 1.5 miles to get them, but the smile on her face was worth every step!

2008-10-20T22:41:00.000-04:00

SUSHI NIGHT AT THE DAVOLL HOUSE
Psa 57:9 I will praise thee, O Lord, among the people: I will sing unto thee among the nations.

We have always enjoyed foods from different countries. Sushi just happens to be one of our favorites. Jeff made this sushi tonight with cucumber, immitation crab, carrot, avocado, and red pepper. It came complete with wasabi that burns your nose and homemade noodle soup (made by Amanda). It is a good reminder to us there are people around the world that need Jesus Christ!

2008-10-15T20:05:00.001-04:00

Update for Faith Baptist Missions Conference

2008-10-11T23:27:00.000-04:00

2008-10-07T17:39:00.000-04:00

"CONFLEX" - CONFLICTS - CORNFLAKES?

Language barriers are always fun. We were asked to get "conflex sin dulce" for a chicken recipe a Costa Rican lady was making for us. "Sin dulce" is without sweet, but what is "conflex?" I looked in my pocket dictionary...nothing. I looked in the online dictionary...nothing. I looked, and asked at the grocery store...nothing. I asked another student who has finished their language studies and likes to cook...nothing. I asked another missionary for whom she cooks...nothing. Finally we had to ask her to tell someone else who who spoke Spanish. It was Corn Flakes! Since we do not eat cornflakes, since they are about $4/box, Deanne spared no expense and bought 2 individual serving boxes for 180 colones, the Costa Rican money. I am looking forward to our chicken and brocoli with $ .34 worth of "conflex."

2008-09-15T00:09:00.000-04:00

I AM HERE TO FISH...AND I WILL LEARN SPANISH WHILE DOING IT!

I figure if I keep that mentality, I will enjoy every minute of our learning process. Jordan and I were able to go fishing with 2 other ABWE missionaries this weekend. We drove about 2 hours into the mountains to the Savagre Mt. and helped catch these beautiful "trucha" or trout. When we got home we baked them with some homemade shake and bake Deanne had made and stuffed them with garlic, onion, tomatoe, and peppers. True to form, Jeff made enough of the veggie stuffing we could have stuffed an entire hatcherie! So, we had tortilla chip dip along with the fish. It was a great lunch.

2008-09-14T19:44:00.000-04:00

We are enjoying our new culture in Costa Rica. This week we are learning some history of this country. There are fascinating traditions surrounding Independence Day. On the Eve of Independence Day, the whole country goes outside at 6 pm and sings the National anthem & lights a lantern and walks in the streets. This goes back to the actual night before they declared their independence when people stood outside the meeting where leaders were discussing whether or not to declare independence. These people stood outside all night with their lit lanterns chanting to call for Independence. We were told the celebration began at 6 PM...but by 6:15 it was only our family and one other of our classmates standing alone in the park. We asked some Costa Ricans if this was a joke they play on the gringos. Here we are all dressed for the party, lanterns in hand, and no party in sight. We hopped a bus and headed 10 minutes north to the town of Zapote and found a great celebration there! What a blast!

2008-09-14T19:36:00.000-04:00

Deanne, Bethany, and Mandi enjoyed going to ABWE missionaries LaMar & Joanna Salley's home to help make bracelets for their church ladies. Joanna makes these lovely bead bracelets for each lady visitor that comes to their church plant. Each bead represents a different part of the twenty-third Psalm. This is a tremendous teaching tool for ladies who are new to God's Word. It is also a great conversation starter with unbelievers. They have seen several women come to Christ as a result of their church women sharing what the bracelet means and these women leading other women to the Savior! There are so many ways to share the Gospel. We are looking forward to using ideas like these in our brand new work in Ecuador in the very near future!

2008-09-14T19:27:00.000-04:00

Along with most things, we are buying eggs in a new and different way here in San Jose! Each Sunday, we purchase our eggs from our local huevos vender who drives slowly up the streets with his microphone speakers announcing "Huevos". Then, we scramble :) outside to purchase our fresh brown eggs for the week out of the back of his little hatchback. These eggs are considerably cheaper than from the local supermarket. We buy a flat of 30 eggs for 2,200 colones. which is about $4. We are quickly becoming one of his best customers!

2008-09-10T16:10:00.000-04:00

Market Day

Every Saturday is Market day-- which is a highlight of the week for Deanne and Lukas. We wake up knowing it is time to go and "fill our cart". We purchased our shopping cart from another student who had completed the language program. (it reminds Jeff of an "old lady" shopping cart.) We make sure we eat a hearty breakfast on market day because we walk to the ferria which is 3/4 mile from our home. We carefully select our fruits and vegetable for the week. We have our normal list of string beans, cucumbers, lettuce, red and green peppers, garlic, bananas, pineapple, apples. Every other week we buy potatoes, onions, carrots and celery. We have enjoyed the abundance of fresh cilantro-- although Deanne was accussed of putting it in everything including cereal. We are anxiously awaiting mangoes to come into season. We occassionally enjoy watermelon and a bright red spikey fruit that you peel open and eat a small melon ball type fruit out of the center.

On the way home from the ferria, we have been known to stop for a postre (Pastry) at the bakery. All that shopping works up an appetite! We are trying to make sure we get the full cultural experience and not miss any of their culinary offerings in the postre department.

When we get home, the real work begins. We must wash the farm dirt off the veggies and fruits. For example, the cilantro will be packages with the roots and dirt included at no extra charge. After the soil has been removed, then the disinfecting can begin. All of the items that are not to be peeled must be soaked in a disinfectant solution for twenty minutes for our safety. Then they must be dried and properly stored for the week. We have found that this process does speed their deterioration; so we are still learning about the proper storing techniques. So, this is a true "taste" of life in Latin America. We are so pleased that the Lord is allowing us to learn this whole process now, as we will need all of this practical living information in Ecuador. (Now-- put down that yummy New York apple, did you soak it first? )

2008-08-28T23:37:00.000-04:00

First Day of School for 6!

The kids were excited as they packed Mommies lunch today and wrote her little notes. They reminded us there is to be no TV or internet until our homework is done. We get to walk to school together...about 1/2 mile, but Jeff and Deanne get out of class 1.5 hours before the kids (just enough time to recuperate from our brain hurting from thinking in a foreign tongue!)

2008-08-26T20:24:00.000-04:00

SET YOUR CLOCKS BY THE RAIN!

Yes, it rains every day! But that way you don't need to wonder what the weather is going to be this afternoon! For a fun look at our daily weather, visit the following link!

http://www.wunderground.com/global/stations/78762.html

2008-08-21T21:24:00.000-04:00

Life in Costa Rica has been a whirlwind for our children -- They have been so busy since our arrival with meeting many missionary friends, other language student family like ours, and Costa Rican friends too. They have enjoyed attending a youth group on Saturday night that runs over between 40 teens and has a Bible study, song time, and game time. They are really enjoying getting together with these Christian friends. They have been getting the teens together to play soccer or basketball in the park near school. Today they had about thirteen friends out to play before till the afternoon rains came. (It is rainy season-- so it's not "if" it rains, it is when it rains, and how hard. Today, the all of us got caught in the downpour rains! Welcome to Costa Rica! It is a literal statement here, "When it rains, it pours!")

2008-08-21T10:14:00.000-04:00

Dia de la Madre

Last week we celebrated mothers day in Costa Rica, 15 agosto 08. That's right, Deanne got two mother's day in ONE year! It was a very big day for our family. It was MOVING DAY into our new Costa Rican home. For our first full week in the country, we lived in the AMCA Christian hostel facility which was a blessing as it was close to the school, our new house, the grocery store, the bus route and provided a place for all six of us. Now, it was time to move into our own house for the year, we were all looking forward to it. After all there is no place like home, and our home for this next year is in this lovely home God has provided in San Jose, Costa Rica. Thank you, Lord for what you have done on our behalf. What a great mother's day present-- a roof over my head (and a coffee pot too!)

2008-08-08T21:04:00.000-04:00

Our last American $

We we figured we would not use our American change here in Costa Rica, so...while waiting at JFK we made "good use" of our last American $. It was sooo good!

2008-08-08T11:00:00.000-04:00

Lukas on the loose in JFK
Waiting for anything is a challenge. Waiting for 2 hours to board an airplane is...excruciating when you are 11 years old. What is left after exploring the terminal, reading all the signs, counting all the airplanes, and being an 11 year old little brother? Only thing left to do is make faces at the camera!

2008-08-07T21:45:00.000-04:00

Always room for more catchup!

Lukas loves his ketchup. It does not matter how fancy the meal or how great the food, there is always a little more room for some ketchup.

2008-08-07T21:40:00.000-04:00

Go ahead, smile for the Camera!

I'm planning to eat your crab cakes while you are not looking! A dear family provided a night in the Crowne Plaza Hotel and a wonderful meal in the dining room prior to our departure for Costa Rica. We are fed up and ready for the next step of God's great adventure.

2008-08-07T19:28:00.000-04:00

Banana boxes TO the largest exporter of bananas in the world...Ecuador! We are praising the Lord for the provision of storage of our belongings with one of our supporting churches while we are in language school. Everything we own was packed into 83 bannana boxes and 8 - 24 gallon Rubbermaid Actionpackers. It fit well in a Uhaul trailer 5'x6'x9'. It was a sweet moment as we drove away knowing it was packed, secure, and that phase of our adventure was over. I never knew it could take so long to weed through pictures, desk junk and clothes that fit well...at one time.

2008-08-07T19:20:00.000-04:00

One of the kids broke out in laughter as we were driving our stuff to Mountainside Bible Chapel to be stored for 1 year. They just realized that "Uhaul" meant that it was you that would haul it, not someone else. Deanne and I began to laugh as we realized that 18 years ago we drove away from Schroon Lake in the smallest Uhaul truck as we began our ministry in New Jersey. Now, 18 year and 4 kids later, we were returning our goods to Schroon Lake in a trailer. After getting rid of so much, we have deteremined not to buy another thing unless it is edible....unless it is for fishing...or hunting...or camping...ok! Enough! We just thank the Lord for all of His blessings, evening getting rid of stuff! By the way, we did not store the kids. They came with us.