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"Pura Vida" for Costa Rica
July 14 2008 / ShareHim in Costa Rica B, Jun. 20 - Jul. 5 '08 #305by Luise Schneeweiß
Personal Testimony of Luise Schneeweiß.
More than three weeks of wonderful experiences are already past. As six students and one pastor from Austria, we visited the San José area for a ShareHim Campaign.
As I am a violin teacher, I planned to take my instrument and play some music during the campaign. At the airport in Munich however, I was denied to take a second piece of hand luggage and left the violin there. Would there be an instrument available in Costa Rica in order to play at my church? Arriving there, my pastor took me to Unadeca Adventist University where he had an appointment. Walking around on the campus, I found a building with the inscription Music Conservatorium where some violin students practiced. I asked the local teacher whether she had a violin to give for three weeks. Without further questions (she did not speak English anyway), she gave me her own one! Then, I taught one of her students for about 40 minutes. As I met my pastor again, he was quite impressed that I already got a violin without even speaking Spanish while he did not know how he could get one for me. During the campaign, it was a blessing for the church as they did not have any musical instruments there. My translator turned out to be a famous singer in Latin America and the Music Coordinator of the Conference. God already planned very well.
The first evening I felt unsure about the people I was in front of. I do not speak any Spanish – or at least I did not at the beginning of the campaign. How could a relationship between me and them develop only of smiling hand-shaking and those few words? The following days showed that my fears did not have any reason. Soon I got to know all the children (very many) by name and they came to hug, take photos, or to learn a little English from me. They forced their parents to come, so we had 15-30 (adult) guests each night which is good for a church with 50 members. As I showed photos of my family and my church or projected pictures of their children on the screen, the ice broke and we were soon united as a family.
The second day of preaching – it was Sabbath morning – we had a wonderful experience. In the last row sat a well-dressed man who gave a testimony and drove my translator and me home after the service. Only after that I was told his story. Orlando was a deacon in another church. Due to family problems, he was so discouraged that he decided to give up on church and work on the next Sabbath. So he went with his taxi. On his way, however, he felt that he had to go to church. The next church to go was the one I preached at. Listening to the sermon, he was stunned: his favorite Bible chapter is Matthew 24, his favorite topic the Signs of the Time. This was exactly the topic that was presented. Suddenly he knew that God had led him to go and that he should keep his faith.
The following week my pastor took me for some visits in a poor area. In the next meeting, all the people we visited came. One of them, a young woman, came with her boyfriend. I often looked at them and asked myself whether he would also be interested in the gospel. After the sermon they both came and wanted me to pray with them. They wanted to start a family, but he struggled with a drug problem. We prayed. The next time she told that he was much better.
The church has 40 Bible studies, so many of the visitors are already taught in Bible truths. But there were some of them who had not decided for baptism yet. The ShareHim Series was seen as a harvest evangelization. The pastor mentioned one older lady. She had visited several campaigns and, one time, even decided for baptism but then hesitated. Would she come forward to the call? Well, she came and was baptized the same night, as well as eight others. The second week, there were three other baptisms. Some others have decided to be baptized later because they need to settle some things in their life first. Knowing the people from conversations and visits made this a wonderful experience!
God answered prayers in a powerful way. Three times people asked me to pray for health problems. One example: The church elder told me on Sabbath morning that his wife was feeling very bad. The problem was serious and we prayed. On the afternoon, I was surprised to see her already. They told me that she was healed the same moment. God supported his message with signs and wonders.
A similar miracle – although a European would not recognize it as such – was the weather. In Costa Rica, it is rainy season which means that the morning is clear but the afternoon and evening is rainy. For the campaign, this would have been a big disadvantage as people would prefer to stay at home. The church prayed intensively for no rain at the time of the campaign. God answered; during the whole campaign the visitors came and went without getting wet!
We also thank God for His protection. Within our group two Share Him laptops were stolen. One of my colleagues was robbed during the meeting when two armed men came in and shot into the air. However, after they went, he prayed with the congregation and two young people responded to a call for baptism. They suddenly realized that they were not ready to meet Jesus and decided to be baptized as soon as possible. Still, I am thankful that God saved me from having a similar experience as I also preached in a poor area.
During a trip to the sea, the same colleague that was robbed was bitten by a poisonous snake. He became unconscious and had to go to the hospital. The treatment cost 22,000 Colones, about $40. Together with his friend they exactly (!) found 22,000 Colones to pay for the treatment.
On another occasion, I left my camera in a taxi. I prayed that I might get it again, but I had little hope that this is possible. However, the taxi company made a call and some hours later the driver brought it back. God is really good!
I am very thankful for the great time that I could spend in Costa Rica. There were so many things to learn. A campaign is a huge responsibility, but I could also see some fruit and this makes me happy. I will stay connected with “my church” and pray for them. I would love to go on a ShareHim Campaign again – maybe God will open a way for me.
As I am a violin teacher, I planned to take my instrument and play some music during the campaign. At the airport in Munich however, I was denied to take a second piece of hand luggage and left the violin there. Would there be an instrument available in Costa Rica in order to play at my church? Arriving there, my pastor took me to Unadeca Adventist University where he had an appointment. Walking around on the campus, I found a building with the inscription Music Conservatorium where some violin students practiced. I asked the local teacher whether she had a violin to give for three weeks. Without further questions (she did not speak English anyway), she gave me her own one! Then, I taught one of her students for about 40 minutes. As I met my pastor again, he was quite impressed that I already got a violin without even speaking Spanish while he did not know how he could get one for me. During the campaign, it was a blessing for the church as they did not have any musical instruments there. My translator turned out to be a famous singer in Latin America and the Music Coordinator of the Conference. God already planned very well.
The first evening I felt unsure about the people I was in front of. I do not speak any Spanish – or at least I did not at the beginning of the campaign. How could a relationship between me and them develop only of smiling hand-shaking and those few words? The following days showed that my fears did not have any reason. Soon I got to know all the children (very many) by name and they came to hug, take photos, or to learn a little English from me. They forced their parents to come, so we had 15-30 (adult) guests each night which is good for a church with 50 members. As I showed photos of my family and my church or projected pictures of their children on the screen, the ice broke and we were soon united as a family.
The second day of preaching – it was Sabbath morning – we had a wonderful experience. In the last row sat a well-dressed man who gave a testimony and drove my translator and me home after the service. Only after that I was told his story. Orlando was a deacon in another church. Due to family problems, he was so discouraged that he decided to give up on church and work on the next Sabbath. So he went with his taxi. On his way, however, he felt that he had to go to church. The next church to go was the one I preached at. Listening to the sermon, he was stunned: his favorite Bible chapter is Matthew 24, his favorite topic the Signs of the Time. This was exactly the topic that was presented. Suddenly he knew that God had led him to go and that he should keep his faith.
The following week my pastor took me for some visits in a poor area. In the next meeting, all the people we visited came. One of them, a young woman, came with her boyfriend. I often looked at them and asked myself whether he would also be interested in the gospel. After the sermon they both came and wanted me to pray with them. They wanted to start a family, but he struggled with a drug problem. We prayed. The next time she told that he was much better.
The church has 40 Bible studies, so many of the visitors are already taught in Bible truths. But there were some of them who had not decided for baptism yet. The ShareHim Series was seen as a harvest evangelization. The pastor mentioned one older lady. She had visited several campaigns and, one time, even decided for baptism but then hesitated. Would she come forward to the call? Well, she came and was baptized the same night, as well as eight others. The second week, there were three other baptisms. Some others have decided to be baptized later because they need to settle some things in their life first. Knowing the people from conversations and visits made this a wonderful experience!
God answered prayers in a powerful way. Three times people asked me to pray for health problems. One example: The church elder told me on Sabbath morning that his wife was feeling very bad. The problem was serious and we prayed. On the afternoon, I was surprised to see her already. They told me that she was healed the same moment. God supported his message with signs and wonders.
A similar miracle – although a European would not recognize it as such – was the weather. In Costa Rica, it is rainy season which means that the morning is clear but the afternoon and evening is rainy. For the campaign, this would have been a big disadvantage as people would prefer to stay at home. The church prayed intensively for no rain at the time of the campaign. God answered; during the whole campaign the visitors came and went without getting wet!
We also thank God for His protection. Within our group two Share Him laptops were stolen. One of my colleagues was robbed during the meeting when two armed men came in and shot into the air. However, after they went, he prayed with the congregation and two young people responded to a call for baptism. They suddenly realized that they were not ready to meet Jesus and decided to be baptized as soon as possible. Still, I am thankful that God saved me from having a similar experience as I also preached in a poor area.
During a trip to the sea, the same colleague that was robbed was bitten by a poisonous snake. He became unconscious and had to go to the hospital. The treatment cost 22,000 Colones, about $40. Together with his friend they exactly (!) found 22,000 Colones to pay for the treatment.
On another occasion, I left my camera in a taxi. I prayed that I might get it again, but I had little hope that this is possible. However, the taxi company made a call and some hours later the driver brought it back. God is really good!
I am very thankful for the great time that I could spend in Costa Rica. There were so many things to learn. A campaign is a huge responsibility, but I could also see some fruit and this makes me happy. I will stay connected with “my church” and pray for them. I would love to go on a ShareHim Campaign again – maybe God will open a way for me.