Debriefing Time!

Today I (Megan) have the honor of meeting our Costa Rica mission team in Phoenix for their post-trip debriefing.   Many of you may be wondering why in the world they would come back to Phoenix and not go home until the next day.  What in the world is "debriefing"?  Are they just staying at a hotel for fun?  Is this really a necessary use of funds?

After an extremely challenging year on the mission field and a nearly non-existent debriefing, I became very passionate about the art and value of missions debriefing.  These next 24 hours are something I look forward to all year!  Let me try to explain...

Debriefing is the process of guiding our student missionaries in evaluating their experiences and translating them into life action.  This day of debriefing is the key in turning ten days on the mission field into a lifetime impact for the student.  Seth Barnes describes it as, "[Connecting] the dots for participants, helping them to see what God is doing."

In the past ten days some of these students...
traveled without their family for the first time
faced significant inconveniences and plan changes
experienced a different standard of living
looked poverty in the eyes and called him/her by name
experienced homesickness
conquered physical, emotional, and spiritual challenges
felt useful for Kingdom work
may have felt closer to God than ever before

They are not the same person they were 10 days ago when they left.  We now have the priviledge of meeting them again for the first time!  Re-Entry from a foreign culture often results in one of the following reactions:

• Alienation: "I can't relate to anything I experienced - I'm going to dismiss it all as a bad dream."
• Condemnation: "Americans are so materialistic and spoiled. I can't believe what a mess they are."
• Reversion: "I know the experience impacted me, but this old lifestyle of mine is calling my name right now."
• Integration: "I see my experience overseas for what it was and recognize the lessons it taught me - I'm making changes to my life."

The goal of debriefing is to bring them to the reaction of integration.
Some of the things we will focus on to facilitate this are to: identify the student's new perspectives on life, God, and the world; Develop action plans to maintain intimacy with God; Develop action plans to remain involved in ministry; help students realize their capacity to serve here and now;  resolve any team relational struggles; Work through the confusion that may arise from experiencing life in another culture; Prepare to share their experiences with their supporters.

When our students return and you see them next Sunday, you will likely be tempted to ask, "How was your trip?"  You'll likely get the answer, "It was great."  You'll both smile and walk away.  Or, you could choose to engage on a deeper level.  Here is a great resource for those of you who want to dig deeper into their experiences.  All it takes is the right questions!

If you're still not sold on it, read more about why debriefing is so important.

And, if you'd like a peak into some of our materials, check out
http://thetask.org/students/Approved/debriefing.htm. 
We will be using some of these materials, but not all.  Parents and loved ones who want a grasp on what your student may be experiencing spiritually may want to spend 30 minutes doing the Coming Home Bible Study.  You teen will be doing a version of this that I have slightly modified. 

Please do not stop praying for the team just because they have safely reached American soil.  Pray for this day of debriefing, and for wisdom for me as I lead them through this process. Last year's debriefing was a day none of us will ever forget.  I pray this year will be just as honest, dynamic, and impacting.

Costa Rica Report - Day 7

This was our last day of VBS, and it went great!  We had 85 kids come on our last day.  We sang all of our songs, talked about Jesus helping the disciples catch fish (and men), and gave a very clear gospel message to the whole group.  We even had around 20 parents stay for whole time, so they got to hear it as well.  By the way, the church normally only has about 15 children attend there.

We ended our time of VBS with water balloon games, which of course ended with everyone getting wet.  The students got to keep their sailor hats that they wore all week while we were here, and the church asked us if we could leave up most of our decorations for Sunday morning (as their sanctuary was our main room).

Tonight they had a outdoor barbecue for us.  They brought a grill and invited many of the church people that we worked with and the teens.  We ate, listened to Christian music in English and Spanish, and then got a few noses covered in cake frosting.

Pray for the church and the kids that heard the gospel message, that it will continue in their hearts and lives.
Pray for us as we have a day off tomorrow and do some site-seeing.

Boasting in Him,

Grace Costa Rica Team

Grace Costa Rica Team Report - Day 6

Today was another great day at Odiseas en el Mar!  The kids have definitely learned all our names now, and they love to yell them out loud in the adorable accents.  We have learned some of there names, but there are just so many of them.  We are continually amazed at the depth of relationships we already have with them.  They already are giving us their email addresses, and wanting ours.

Every night we have our devotions, and we have been working through the book of Philippians.  It is amazing how much God's Word applies to every walk of our lives.  Cali has joined us most of the time, and we have really enjoyed the good conversations.

Pray that on our last day of VBS, that we will communicate the complete gospel message clearly, and that the kids and parents receive it well.
Also pray for safety, as our finale event will be water balloon games!

In His Love,

Grace Costa Rica Team

Costa Rica Day 5

This country has only two seasons: wet and dry season.  This is definitely wet season.  It rains every day; sometimes only 15 minutes, and sometimes for all afternoon .  Thankfully it has never rained in the morning, so the weather has been perfect for the VBS (other than the fact that it is very humid and we are sweating all the time).

We have been amazed with how quickly we feel like family with those helping us lead the VBS.  They are extremely friendly, and inviting.  When they arrive, many of them make their rounds, greeting each one of us personally.

Another thing that has really impressed us is now the kids have learned the songs so quickly.  And it makes us laugh to hear them humming and singing it randomly while we play games, or before we begin each morning.  And we have found ourselves constantly with those songs in our head, even though they are all in Spanish, and we barely know what we are singing.

Pray that the weather will be nice today so that we can continue to work hard on the work project.
And pray that the families see the real reason for why we are there, and what good news we offer.


In His Joy,

Grace Costa Rica Team

Costa Rica Day 4

God has really been honoring our efforts here.  Yesterday we had 30 kids. Today we had more than 50 kids  And they told us to expect 20 more tomorrow.  It is fun to see the kids smile and have so much fun.  We are told that a VBS event like this that focuses on the kids is very unique here.  Even only on the second day, the kids seem to know the songs, and do the actions with us.  But what is best, is to talk with the kids (through a translator) about stories from the Bible.  The theme of our VBS is Odiseas en el Mar (that's Odysseys in the Sea).  Today it was about how Jesus calmed the storm.

The church told how recently someone has donated a large amount to the church, so that they can extend their building.  So with the sidewalk by the kids building being done, we are going to continue to dig next to the church building so that they can expand it soon.  It is much harder than it sounds, has we have to use heavy metal chippers to break the ground and rock to dig.

Please continue to pray that the team continues to bond well, and that even with fatigue we can be good examples of Christ.
Pray also for clarity of mind so that we can focus on God's Word and truth as we give our Bible lessons.

In His Strength,

Grace Costa Rica Team

Costa Rica - Day 3

We woke up to a beautiful morning, with a great view of the active volcano outside out our windows.  And every morning we are served a wonderful breakfast at our hotel, so we get going with great energy.

Today was our first day of VBS.  And it turned out great.  God brought us about 30 kids to the program.  We start off singing several songs in Spanish, to which some of the Costa Rican teens made signs for.  Then we do a skit called "Little Man" in which we teach a typical Bible character a modern day skill.  And it is hillarious!  You will just have to see it on video when we return!  We read a bible story, and then break off into two smaller groups to continue the Bible lesson.  As some of you know, it is very difficult to teach through a translator.  But we did our best!  We then played some great games such as Pato-Pato-Gonzo (that's Duck-Duck-Goose to you) and other trust games such as leading a blind folded person around the church lot.

In the afternoon we started our work project of a cement walkway for the new children's classroom.  Today we just got part of the hole dug.

Continue to pray for our safety, and that we will get great opportunities to share the gospel with these children!
Pray also that God will continue to show us how to be selfless servants to each other, and the Costa Rican people.

~Costa Rican Team

Costa Rica Day 2

This morning we attended Sunday morning service at the Maranatha church. Although we only got to stay for the worship, it was so uplifting and vibrant; we could really see God working through these people. After worship service we split up into groups of 2 or 3 and assisted in the Sunday school classrooms.

After church we had lunch and then promptly returned to the sanctuary to decorate. We spent many hours transforming the church into a sea adventure that I'm sure the children will love. We all had a ton of fun designing and building a boat for our back drop complete with port holes and flags on top of the masts. We also recruited some help from one of the Sunday school teachers to lead the worship because all the songs are in Spanish and it will probably be easiest for her to learn them the quickest.

After we finished with the decorations we ate dinner and then returned to our hotel to finish up some last minute preparations for our VBS. We also did our nightly devotions and came across Philippians 1:27 "Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel " We pray that we will follow the example set forward in this verse and our actions, especially here in Costa Rica, will be worth of the gospel of Christ and that we portray his love to these people.  Please pray this will be true of us!

In His care,

Grace Costa Rica Team