Through the Eyes of Jesús

“I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of God.” Matthew 18:3

Have you ever wondered if children have something to say about poverty? Have you ever wondered if they might have something to say about the injustices of the world? What would change in our perceptions of poverty and our judgments about the poor if we viewed them through the eyes of children?

Located on a steep hillside named Jasmín, in homes of cardboard, tin, fragments of cement, and wood, subject to seasonal mudslides, hundreds of children simply exist. One of these is a 12-year old boy named Jesús. In his world, sickness, hunger, lack of education and many social problems dominate.

God is actively working to redeem this community and the families who live there! Doors have been opened, allowing us to build a small, very basic yellow house with a wood floor and a good roof. Already, houses have been constructed for 10% of these families. In December, we will undertake our most ambitious project ever – building 12 houses in 12 days – and provide scholarship opportunities and tutoring for children living in those houses!

Unbelievable changes are going to take place right in front of our eyes. Can you imagine watching these changes unfold through the eyes of children? What would it be like to experience the trials and triumphs as you walk in their shoes?

“Through the Eyes of Jesús” is a project giving you a front row seat as these changes unfold. Through the photographic eyes of Jesús, featured kids will become our gateway into their community – illuminating the life of their families, their neighbors, their churches and joining them on their real-life journeys. We will follow the lives of these courageous children through photos and videos as they tell their stories and participate in changing their community.

We have purchased a digital camera and have been training Jesús in the use of this camera. He possesses a good artistic sense for composition. By giving him additional skills and means of photography, we hope that he will be able to explore his surroundings and understand his relationship to it, and perhaps discover some technical and interpersonal skills that he can put to practical use some day.

Jesús is a unique young boy who easily connects with others. And he "gets things" most 12-year olds do not. The normal routines of daily life in a place like Jasmín give him insights that even most adults don't have. It will be interesting to see how God uses him, and what he has to say about poverty, his Gringo friends, and God's work in Jasmín -- as seen through his eyes, the eyes of Jesús.

Stay tuned!

Jesús lives with his mother Eli Rodriguez and two younger brothers, Isaac and Jordy. Note the mud floor in their “living room” and the plastic covering their one stuffed chair.

Mom and Isaac prepare an evening meal. Photos by Jesús, Nov. 14 2008.

News from Costa Rica

Yesterday, Pastor Alberto was talking with us about the change he and CCA went through when they realized they were only preaching the Gospel, but they were not been living it (Matthew 25: 31-46). “There wasn’t disagreement in the church – people wanted to live out the Gospel. But we didn’t have a culture of going out of ‘our world.’ We needed to acclimate to the new environment.”

“And we soon discovered that “living the Gospel” also required money. We couldn’t just hug our neighbor and tell them we’ll pray for you. They were hungry, they were thirsty, they were without clothes and shelter and family. This requires money. And so our priorities (as a church) had to change. We couldn’t put all our money into buildings and land and nice musical instruments.”

“What God has done is surround us with friends. Now, because of our friends, instead of a wheelbarrow, we have a pickup truck. It’s still our job to do, but we have friends to come along side us and give us a hand. Without them, it would be much harder and take a lot longer. But we now serve 16,000 meals a month in our various Centers! Think about that!”

“And I look at Ramon, the director of the Men’s Center, with his children, his family and think – this is a man who lived in the streets, in cardboard box, for 10 years! Now he has a degree in Psychology and serves in the Center!”

“And Alexis – 2 years ago was living in the streets, and on one of our ‘Days of Mercy’ in the central park of Alajuelita, we cut his hair, gave him food and drink and invited him to come with us to the Center. Today, he heads up our construction ministry --builds the classrooms at CCA’s school, designs the houses we are constructing in Jasmín, and soon he will be getting married.”

“Even though our current Centers are old, overcrowded and inadequate places, we have good programs. They’re packed with people, and we’re seeing results. God is doing miracles here!”

“But it has always been a dream of ours to have a better place in an atmosphere conducive to achieving a life-changing relationship with God, self and others. We want to make a City of Restoration, where homeless people will come in and ministers will go out; where people will come in without a family and go out reunited with their family; where the sick will come and go out healed. We’ve always dreamed of a place like this. And now, we have the opportunity to do that. We call it the Promised Land. All this land -- all the ways and steps of our church – have been surrounded by God’s miracles.”

Blessings,
Larry and Carole

Old & New Houses

One of the things that is acheived when teams visit Costa Rica, is new homes are built. Here are two pictures that show the before and after.

Before:




After: