Intersections on a Dirt Road (or a surf board for that matter)

“So be careful how you live.  Don’t live like fools, but like those who are wise.  Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days.  Don’t act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do.”         

Eph. 5:15-17

Some cool things you'll see when you come to visit!

  Intersections of life.  Those times that come each day when we are face to face with another human being.  Occasions when we get to affect another for better or for worse.  Who really thinks about the intersections of life?

Before our pastor left Costa Rica to spend time in the States with family and friends he gave a sermon on intersections, and how we are to be faithful each time to bring God into conversations.  I loved the series that he was preaching through, but this particular sermon seemed extra challenging.  Every intersection?  After some thought and prayer I told God that I was willing to try this out but that he would have to help me know what to say and when to say it.  

It is always cool to look back and see how God uses his word and his servants to plant seeds in our lives.  Those seeds then spring up and start to change parts of our lives, in this case it is my perspective that has been changing.  I now see opportunities where before I didn’t.  

I’d like to start off by saying that not every intersection ends with a deep conversation about God.  Some opportunities end with only asking how the other person’s day is going, but what if we look them in the eye when we ask?  What if we are sincerely interested in their answer?  These intersections can lead to deeper conversations at a later date.  

In looking back on the 5 weeks since hearing this sermon, I can see how am in the midst of some cool relationships and some great new stories because of this new perspective! 

I’d like to share some stories that have come from trying to view each intersection this way.

First there was my mechanic friend that I mentioned before who I have invited to church on several occasions and am now a good friend with.  He has not yet come to church but I honk and wave like a mad man every day when I pass him on the street and am praying for him often.  (One can only imagine what he tells his buddies about the crazy gringo in the big green truck?)

Not long after that, Faith started to see a homeless man on the side of a lightly traveled dirt road.  She became concerned and wanted to do something to help.  One day as I was walking up this road I stopped and talked with him for a while and found out bits and pieces of his story and gave him some food.  

The next day I found him again and was able to give him some more food and a ride.  During the short trip, (while I had a captive audience) I felt God saying that I should pray for him.  After asking if I could pray for him and then praying, we talked a little about what following Christ means.  I shared with him that my wife and kids had seen him and had been and would continue to pray for him.  

The next time we saw him we brought more food and Faith was able to talk with him, and he asked if we might be able to get him a Bible.  Since then we have given him a Bible and are looking for him on the road each day.  I am not sure where this relationship is going, but am excited to see what God and his power can do in a life on the side of a dirt road!  

Last week I found myself talking with a store manager about God!   Finding that we were both followers of Christ he got a big smile on his face, called me his brother and gave me a big hug!  

Finally, a couple times a week I get up early and attempt to surf....  One morning this past week I noticed that the only other person on the beach was one other surfer, but this guy could actually call himself a surfer!  After a particularly amazing ride I simply gave him two enthusiastic thumbs up and didn’t give it another thought.  Then as I walked to my car later he was standing there waiting for me.  We talked a little about surfing and I offered him a ride, but I didn’t work God into the conversation.  

Yesterday I found him again and while sitting on our surf boards waiting for the next set of waves we started talking.  I felt the Spirit pushing me to bring God into the conversation, but I reasoned that I was having trouble enough just balancing on my board and I am not known for my multi-tasking abilities.    

After several more waves and surfing attempts I found myself paddling back out and still feeling that I was to bring God up and make much of him, but I was still fighting it.  I guess I was afraid of what my new surf friend might think.  It was then that God hit me between the eyes and asked if I was going to make the most of this intersection.  (I actually have a black and blue nose from getting hit by my surf board.  I’m not saying that this was of God but the two events happened at roughly the same time.) 

So, I brought God into the conversation and got to see him open up and really start talking.  After hearing about miracles that he had witnessed, he shared about how he had had a bad experience with a Christian Church.  I shared that followers of Christ are still sinners, and church can be messy, but we have a God that will never leave nor forsake!  I told him about our church and he said he’d come if he could, and this time he accepted my offer for a ride to his home. 

Why do I fight it sometimes?  Do I not see God’s hand at work?  Do I doubt the strength of his arm or the wisdom of his timing?  Do you?  

God is looking for ways to show himself strong!  If we are willing to be used by him our lives will be truly full, and we will have countless stories of God’s strength, wisdom, glory, provision, grace, peace, and joy!  Bored with life is something you will never be!  

“Don’t forget to show hospitality to stangers, for some having done this have entertained angels without realizing it.”            Heb. 13:2

I’m not saying that I would have missed all of these opportunities before hearing that sermon, but I know I would have missed some of them!  I am also not ready to state that we have gotten to entertain angles, but I’m not ruling it out either...

And, now you have heard some of God’s words about making the most of every opportunity.  What will happen to those seeds?

In some other new news, I have had the opportunity to help out in some physical ways at a Christian School here in Uvita.  This new school has been growing so much in it's first year that they were bursting at the seams.  They just added kindergarten to all the other grades and have been able to rent the store front next to the ones they already had.  Along with this opportunity came some work that needed to be done to get ready.  Our missionary friends who run the school have done most of the work, but I was able to help out with some painting and hanging of curtain rods and marker board.   

For those of you who are praying for the Ridderings in Costa Rica, we’d like to update our prayer requests.  Isabella has developed a rash that seems pretty persistent.  We aren’t sure if it is heat, food, or soap related, but we would love your prayers as we try to get things figured out!  Also, we have a month from today to figure out a place to live as our 3 month lease runs out.  We may be able to stay in the place that we have, but would like to find something cheaper to try to keep expenses down.  We’d love to find a place several hundred feet above sea level where there is more of a breeze and cooler temperatures as we are spending quite a bit on air conditioning right now.   

Cooling off in the river on a hot afternoon.

Thank you for all the prayers you all have sent our way!  Let us know if there are ways we can be in prayer for you!  We love getting to see God working in big and small ways every day!

Your Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

    The Ridderings

PS. Here's a link for those of you that would like to support our ministry here in Costa Rica -  www.WorldOutreach.org/donations -  you can select Aaron and Faith Riddering from the list under the donate tab.  You can also set up automatic monthly Gifts with your credit card if you choose the "Monthly" option.  Or, simply mail your check to:  World Outreach Ministries, PO Box B, Marietta, GA 30061 and designate for Aaron & Faith Riddering #239. THANK YOU to those of you who have donated already and for those of you that are praying for us! 

God of the "Small" Things

It’s a beautiful morning here in the southern part of Coast Rica on the Pacific side!  The sun is shinning, the birds are singing, the kids are busy with school, and I just drove our "brand new" 1987 Toyota Land Cruiser to the shop to get some work done.   (Work that we knew it needed when we bought it.)

       That’s right!  God has blessed us with a vehicle!  I shared a little last time about our struggle to find a vehicle in our price range with enough seat belts and a diesel engine (in order to get 20+ MPG instead of 12).  We looked all over Costa Rica on many different websites for weeks.  We found plenty of cars that were way out of our price range.  We found vehicles that were in our price range but were in terrible shape, and we found some that didn’t have enough room to get the whole family to a destination at the same time.  (We entertained thought of strapping a child to the top of a car, like Granny Clampit, or buying a bike for the 6th passenger.....)

Some mechanic friends as well as other friends that were familiar with what is available and the price of parts and repairs said that if we could find a 1980’s Land Cruiser that they would recommend buying that as a first choice.  Needless to say this particular type of vehicle is also in high demand.  We found one, but because we couldn't go right away to see it, it sold to someone else.  

Frustrated, we lowered our standards and started looking at other options. It seemed that we would have to increase our “budget” for a vehicle by at least 50% if not 90%.  Even then it seemed that we would end up with a very high mileage vehicle with a shady past.  

We had been praying about this issue all the while, but one morning Faith mentioned that we had only mentioned our need to God and not really asked that he show himself strong in this area.  We got on our knees and asked that he provide a story for us to tell.  A story that would give him glory.  We also asked that he would give us an obvious sign as we aren’t always the most observant in this area.

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.”

Matt. 7:7-8

  

Later that day a vehicle matching our “dream list” was listed for less than we had hoped to spend!  We called on it right away, and found out that it was located in a town literally named Holy Spirit!  In addition we were prepared to rent a car the next day and drive 4-5 hours to see it, but God had other plans.  We found, to our amazement, that the owner of the car needed to come this way anyway and would be happy to bring it not just to our town, but right to our door!  

As our Spanish speaking friend hung up the phone and told us all the details, we had tears in our eyes.  The tears weren’t due to the the stress of our current situation or even tears of joy.  Our tears were caused by our being able to see Jehovah-jireh at work.  We felt at that point that the God of the universe was working on our behalf and that this was all but a done deal.

I see that I have already used around 600 words to describe the purchasing of a vehicle.  I also know that I have greatly overused exclamation points thus far, but at the risk of using more, there are a few more points in this story that need to be told in order to show just how much God was at work and how he gets all glory for this story.

We talked to the owner on a Thursday night, and he said that he could probably come to show the car on Monday.  The normal me, (ram everything through and get it done) wanted to step in and just rent a car and go, but there was a peace and Faith and I both felt that this was of God and there was nothing that we needed to do to “help” the process along.  Then Sunday came and Walter, the owner of the car, called to say that his family was sick and we could not see the car until Tuesday, and again we felt God’s peace even knowing that this type of vehicle at this price would not last long.

Tuesday came and the car was just what we needed and we were able to agree on a price.  Then a mechanic friend said that he could give me a ride to San Isidro where we were to close the deal the next day!  On the way to San Isidro my friend told me some nightmarish tales about using the lawyer of the sellers choosing. He advised me to use another lawyer.  Although this advise made sense, I felt a peace about everything and felt that God had prepared the way ahead of me.  After calling Faith to see that she felt the same way, I went to the lawyer that the owner knew.  It was a great experience and we had to spend 1/2 of what I would have at another lawyers office.

When all was said and done Walter hugged me and told me that there was something different about my family.  I was able to tell him, in spanglish, that God is the difference.  I then invited him to call me if ever he was back in our neck of the woods so we could have dinner.  

On my way home I felt joy!  I felt joy at the way God had arranged things, joy that we now had another story to tell that points others to God, and a joy in the peace that he alone can give!    

“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.”

James 1:17

Some flowers from our front yard.

       My God is huge and often overwhelms me!  He knows the hairs on my head and also that a diesel engine will last us longer and get much better mileage.  He knew that some of us aren’t real keen on picking out his direction, and he made things abundantly plain to Faith and I.  He knew that I was nervous about the language barrier as well as the legal parts of buying a car in Costa Rica, and he took those worries and replaced them with an excited interest in seeing how God would work these things out.  

God has also been faithful in giving us “small” assignments in the past weeks.  Faith has been helping out at a second hand store run by our church.  This store uses all the money raised to buy beans and rice for people in the community who are going through hard times financially and use this opportunity to provide for their spiritual needs as well.  She has also gotten to help out with the Sunday School on several occasions.  

        The pastor and his family here are currently in the States enjoying some time with family.  I get to help out in taking over the set up duties as our church has been meeting in an outdoor covered area because the building has gotten to small.  Also, our church has rented an additional space for the Sunday School program that needed to be painted and cleaned.  I have gotten to help with that work several days and have gained a great new friend in the process!  

Please continue to keep us in your prayers as we are trying not to miss opportunities that God brings our way.  We are beginning to see several different areas that we would like to help with however, we don't want to rush ahead too quickly.  We also have to make a decision regarding housing. Our current lease is up in September and we are trying to find something else.  Please also know that we are praying that all of you are able to follow his plan for your lives and that he gives you His peace in doing it!  

Seeking out God’s plans,

      The Ridderings

PS. Hey y'all if you want to be a part of our ministry here in Costa Rica please check out this link...  www.WorldOutreach.org/donations -  you can select Aaron and Faith Riddering from the list under the donate tab.  You can also set up automatic monthly Gifts with your credit card if you choose the "Monthly" option.  Or, simply mail your check to:  World Outreach Ministries, PO Box B, Marietta, GA 30061 and designate for Aaron & Faith Riddering #239. THANK YOU to those of you who have donated already and for those of you that are praying for us!