Sunday, February 22, 2009

When we arrived at Mansion of Light Baptist Church we were greeted with hugs and kisses. Worship began with a prayer asking God to bless the service. Truly the folks in this church keep the Sabbath holy. They actively share in the worship service through singing and are accompanied by a Praise Band. A parishioner opened with a prayer, a lay leader shared Psalm 133 and Pastor Xinia prayed for Ana, a church member who gave the sermon. Mylinda stood along with each participant and translated for us.

The children that Sue and Eileen had taught to play the bells on Saturday, played “Jesus Loves Me” for the congregation. Another group of little girls shared a liturgical dance and Pastor Xinia dedicated a one month old baby. It was a blessing to have children actively participating in worship. Ana preached a powerful sermon comparing the complete transformation of a butterfly through its metamorphosis to our transformation when we are born again in the Spirit. (John 3:3-7).

Following worship we divided into blended groups, with 3 or 4 of us with a group of Costa Ricans. We taught them a song in English and they taught us one in Spanish. After practice time each group sang their songs. It was a fun time, although it didn’t seem to improve our Spanish speaking ability greatly.

We were served lunch (rice and beans) at the church, and then we had the opportunity to meet with several young men that Pastor Xinia is encouraging to attend special mentoring sessions at the church.

These troubled young men are involved in drinking, drugs, and stealing, and their behavior impacts negatively on the neighborhood. In response to their negative behavior, Pastor Xinia and her congregation have taken a positive step and have invited them into the church. They have served the young men suppers, made them feel welcome, and demonstrated the love of Christ to them. Over 20 young men showed up, and they entertained us with some really awesome break-dancing. We then sat together with them to chat, and the church members served tamales and coffee. Each young man received a small gift from the church.

We had a great experience talking with these young men, and we were amazed that they seemed to enjoy being with us…13 “older” women! Mission outreach ministry is most certainly alive and well at Mansion of Light Baptist Church.

As for our fellowship experience and our newborn friendship with the women at Mansion of Light, we quickly bonded even though we do not speak the same language. The most important part of our lives is the same… we worship and love the same God.

In the late afternoon after good-bye hugs at the church, our driver, Emanuel, took us to a Butterfly Farm. We had a detailed guided tour and were awestruck with the beauty of all the different species of butterflies. Of course, being women it was natural for us to gravitate to the gift shop to make some purchases before departing!

Mylinda took us to the Casona del Maiz restaurant for dinner where we enjoyed various entrees, many made from corn.

Back at the hotel Peggy shared the devotion of the Parable of the Talents with us. She then asked us to reflect upon what our individual response to this mission tour will be once we return home.

— Janice Mott and Marilyn Gustafson