The visionary

To continue my blogs on introducing you to those that I live/work with, allow me to introduce Rodney. Rodney is the "D" in the house. The "D" is in reference to the DiSC Inventory. D for dominance... the man with the plan. I believe that we actually have all four letters represented here at Harvest Hands, which makes for a great team!

Rodney is originally from Massachusettes, but has spent most of his life living in Maine. He is a surfer at heart, has successfully planted a Vineyard Church in Mechanic Falls, ME, where he served as Associate Pastor. He used to travel to Costa Rica for the surfing years ago, and that led him eventually to bringing down short-term teams to do missions work. He and Cindy have been living here full-time since December 2006. His background in contracting also makes him invaluable when it comes to setting up and overseeing work projects.

Rodney has a big heart for the poor and tons of compassion for those that are addicted to drugs. His vision to see a church planted here in Los Anonos is just one of many visions that he has. He would like to see a Harvest Hands in Nicaragua in the future - a much more difficult area.

Meet Rodney, and it won't be five minutes later that you will get the privilege of hearing a great story of what God has done in his life, or in the lives of those in Anonos. He sees where God is moving, and I hope that I can learn how to dream as he does.

Gahanna Team

This past week, we hosted a team of seven people. Six were from New Life Church in Gahanna, Ohio and one person from New Hampshire. They were all amazing (and that's an understatement)!

I have been praying that someone would come to Anonos that was capable of painting a great mural... low and behold... they came! There used to be a mural in the local gym that was depressing (and that is also an understatement). It was old, dark, had no relevance to the community, was not of good quality, etc. The team from Vineyard Columbus cleaned the wall and primed it to be ready to receive a mural. See pictures below for before and after. Everyone here was saying how great it is and how it brings joy, light, and happiness to the area.

The team also did work in the school, painting at 25 de Julio where there will soon be a new Funda Vida center, took a woman into rehab, helped a guy with getting to the hospital that had been stabbed with an ice pick, home visits, and much more.

I sincerely hope to see each one of them return to Anonos in the future: Pastor Brian, Patti, Amanda, Cat, Steve (he has my vote for President), Eric, and John.

Before - Ugly mural, ugly back wall...

After - Great mural in Los Anonos!!! Very bright and happy!

After - Multi-colored back wall that is very fun!!!

Team in front of their work!!! :-)

Surprises

I made it into Newark, NJ at about 1am on Tuesday. The pastor from Rodney and Cindy's church picked me up. I've been staying with their family and friends at the Vineyard Eastern Regional Pastors' Conference in Bushkill, PA. The conference has been great, and I'm enjoying getting to represent Harvest Hands here. Our hope is to make some connections with other churches that would be interested in partnering with the ministry long-term and/or through short-term mission trips.

While being here at the conference and in the States, I've experienced some surprises...

1. It is hard to break the habit of not throwing TP into a wastebasket. Flushing TP is a luxury that we in the States take for granted.
2. Fuel and fast-food are more expensive than I remember them being five months ago.
3. I can understand everyone's conversations around me. I am even noticing that I am understanding stranger's conversations/comments that pass by me. Oh, how I pray I don't lose what little Spanish I have acquired over the past four months!!!
4. Some worship songs are just better in another language... I prefer Dulcemente Quebrantado about ten times over to Sweetly Broken.
5. The church family from Rodney and Cindy's church feels like extended family. I feel so welcome and supported by them. I hope the relationship continues.
6. My grandma, aunt, and cousin surprised me at the hotel last night! They were driving through PA (about 8.5 hours from home) and made a point to see me. I was able to have dinner and spend a couple of hours with them after the evening session. :-) It was great to have a surprise visit from those that I love so dearly.

There are only five weeks remaining for my stay in Costa Rica, but for now I am looking forward to being back home in Anonos on Saturday.

Columbus Team

I'm sitting in the dining room right now listening to the youth team from Vineyard Columbus. They are in the living room going around the room and sharing what they are thankful for from each of the other people on the team. There is a lot to be said for each of them, and that is an understatement.

This team is led by Chris and Chantelle Traut, and Brett Evans. I am thankful to this team for a number of reasons. It was Chris Traut who last year invited me to assist him with leading the first youth missions trip to Los Anonos. It was through that amazing experience that brought me back here now. I am so thankful to have a team here from my home church... my extended family. Katie McConnell and Gabe Botkin are the only non-rookies on the team and it is sweet to see how God has given them so much compassion for the people in this community. I hope that there will be more repeaters next year.

Tomorrow, the team is traveling to Jaco for their one day off at the beach. I will be traveling to Pennsylvania to represent Harvest Hands at the Vineyard Eastern Region Pastors' Conference. I am sad that I will miss spending the remainder of the week with this team. However, I am pleased that I will have this opportunity to share with others the ministry that is occuring here.

To Vineyard Columbus: "I thank my God every time I remember you." - Phillipians 1.3

Grand Rapids Team

This past week, we hosted a team from Grand Rapids, in "that state up north." The team consisted of nine absolutely amazing people! They were great to have in the house to spend time with and the activities we were able to participate in with them was also wonderful.

Among doing work projects in the community, they also did work at a future Funda Vida center in Veinticinco de Julio. We hung out with teens at a teen center, assisted with a Fathers' Day event, played a serious game of basketball with the locals, and much more.

One of the things that the team had planned on doing while they were here was a skit. It is acting that goes along with a song. It was great because they didn't have to speak Spanish to get the message across. While we had originally only scheduled two performances, they actually got to do it four times! The first was at a Kids' Club for Funda Vida, then at a church service, after that at a rehabilitation center, and then lastly here in Anonos for our Wednesday night children's program. The skit was well received at all four places; people responded by crying, wanting prayer, etc. It was a great experience.

Grand Rapids Team - We loved having you here! You are each a blessing and we are grateful for your support and friendship. We hope that you will return to Los Anonos - each one of you: Mike, Lori, Courtney, Breezy, Naomi, Delaney, Jill, Chad, and Pete.

While their skit varied from this one, please check this out on YouTube if you haven't already seen it... I think it is worth watching: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyheJ480LYA.

Mail time!

We got a post office box for Harvest Hands! Yay!!! I'm really excited about this... as you can see. I will only be here for another month and a half; however, my birthday is just around the corner, and I guess some of my family members wanted to send me a "happiest of birthdays, to you" card to me. :-) My new address is provided below (don't put my name on the outside... we'll figure it out). ATTN Family: If you do happen to send me a birthday card... please include a picture of yourself... I miss your faces!

Cynthia LaFrance
Apdo 1336-1200
Pavas - San Jose - Costa Rica
America Central