Day Three: Sunday in Costa Rica

I woke up to another early morning in Costa Rica to another beautiful day. The one great thing about the whole week is it didn't rain one single time. The weather was perfect all week. We all got ready in our church clothes and headed to breakfast, then headed to the church for morning service.

I'm not sure I've ever taken a hiking backpack and water bottle to church before. I'm always in for something new! We arrived at church and found a seat. At least half of the people at church that morning were from the States, another group was on a senior trip and their leader was to preach a sermon that morning. Olivia brought her violin to church and she was also going to play when the other group was singing.

 

The worship was great. It was so lively and everyone was clapping and smiling. It was all in Spanish, and a few of the songs were songs you hear on Christian radio stations all the time.

The worship leader was a great singer and it was so refreshing seeing everyone praising the Lord in such a joyful way. God is supposed to be worshiped that way. We are called to exalt Him and praise Him with joy and thanksgiving in our hearts. The sermon was also very good. It was about finding rest in Christ. Not physical rest, but spiritual rest. If we follow Him we will find rest in His company. During the service the man preaching would say a few words and then the man beside him would translate it in Spanish. It was a very cool experience to hear God's word in two languages. That's what it will be like in heaven someday, every tongue and nation. Offering was taken during service and the pastor prayed over it. Overall it was an experience that I will always remember and keep close. After service we had prepared a lot of Easter eggs but instead of a hunt we decided to give them away in bags. We all stuffed 400 eggs in colorful bags and handed them out. When you're giving out things the children flock around you and you'll find many little hands in your face reaching for more. It was fun watching their smiles as they opened each bright colored egg and found a treat inside. We even gave some to the older teenagers and parents, and they were excited about them.

We played with the kids a little and hung around the church as everyone mingled and fellowshipped.

After church we ate a refreshing lunch and headed out to go grocery shopping for dinner.

Along the way we stopped for a few items for the family at church that was in need. We bought the little girl a new pillow and enough food to last them a few days to a week. At the grocery I bought a few things as well, a jar of salsa and a couple postcards. I did not buy the normal salsa that you usually find in the States. In Costa Rica they do a lot of their cooking with a sauce called salsa. It tastes a bit like A1 sauce, just tangier. It's very good on rice and meat. When we were done we headed to Ariana's house so that her mother could teach us to cook. We arrived and met Ariana's mother and father, who only speak Spanish. Ariana's sister speaks English as well as, and Ariana has a brother but he was not there at the time. We cooked a savory chicken and rice dish, as well as a potato and meat appetizer that was absolutely delicious. 

The carrots there are huge! They are more than twice the size of a regular carrot in the States, and even more sweet. Ariana's mom was a very good teacher and very nice. We had our appetizer first while waiting for the main course. Us teens just hung and talked while the adults talked together.

It was very relaxing. About 45 minutes later dinner was done and was absolutely amazing. I have never had such amazing refried beans in my entire life. I will never be able to eat them out of a can again. After dinner we had some sort of German pudding that had cookies crushed over top of it. I loved it and ended up eating Ruth's portion again. Mmm it was wonderful. We stayed awhile longer and then left in good spirits. Ariana will be sending us recipes so we can hopefully make them at home! We went back to the hotel and swam in the pool, had devotions and awaited another day of service and VBS. Such a great Sunday.