2018-Feb

2018-Feb

Saturday, January 25, 2014

Welcome to Costa Rica!



We're very excited to be here in Costa Rica!  We've had a wonderful start to our adventure here.  God has been blessing us greatly with new friends, fun new experiences, and gifted teachers.  We hope you'll follow along as we follow God's plan of action in our lives to fulfill His Great Commission!

Upon arriving at the airport in San Jose, we were picked up from the airport by our "Big Brothers" and new friends Jesse and Lisa and whisked away to our new home in San Francisco de Dos Rios (just a few miles outside of San Jose, and 4 blocks from the language school).  Below are pictures of the living room and kitchen.  Check out those cabinets!  :)




Our adventure got off to a fast start, as we went on the Three Crosses Hike on our very first weekend!  This hike takes you up into the clouds and gives you an amazing view of San Jose and the surrounding areas.  We're hoping to be able to try this hike again later in the year on a clear day so we can get the full view from the top of the mountain, but being so far up into the clouds was a very fun and unique experience that we'll never forget!



We've been spending our time studying, enjoying the many parks within walking distance of our house, and eating lots of healthy food from the "feria" (similar to a farmer's market where local farmers come to sell fruits and veggies for cheap!).  Leslie and some of the other students have also been having a fun time doing Zumba at the park with the locals!  


Thank you to all who have been praying for us and supporting us.  God has blessed us richly with wonderful friends and family, and we know your prayers are helping us daily as we go through this transition into full-time ministry!  Please join with us in praying for:

-Our ability to learn Spanish.  We can't share the Gospel without being able to speak the language.  Please pray that God would bless our teachers, our time studying, and the opportunities we have to practice with local Costa Ricans so that we can learn the Spanish language as quickly as possible this year.

-Our safety.  We're blessed to be spending this year in an area of Latin America with a very low violent crime rate. However, things like pick-pocketing and robberies are very frequent here, and have already occurred with a few of our classmates.  Please pray that God would provide us with a keen awareness of our surroundings, sound judgment in choosing the places we go, and wisdom for any situation we may find ourselves in.

-Our encounters with others.  We have many opportunities to speak with and spend time with both Costa Ricans and English-speakers.  Please pray that we would use these opportunities effectively, encouraging those who know Christ and sharing with those who don't!

If you're on Facebook and aren't friends with us on there yet, we hope you'll "Friend" us!  We post small updates most days there, as well as occasional pictures of our time here.  Thank you for your prayers and encouragement!  

In Christ,

Jeff and Leslie

Friday, January 3, 2014

Bienvenidos a Costa Rica!

We are here safe in San Jose, Costa Rica!! At this time we still do not have internet, so we are sitting in the gazebo at the school to send you this update! Once we have internet we will post much more informative updates and pictures! :)
We are so humbled and blessed by all those who are supporting us whether it be through prayer, encouragement, financial or all three!! We are excited to begin language school and hope that once we finish, we will also have the rest of our support raised as well so that we may go straight to Honduras!!
We have enjoyed all of the encouragment we have received via Facebook. If you would like to send letters or care packages here is our mailing address (please make sure you put our names on it, as this is the mailing address for all the students here, also if you have questions on what can be mailed please ask!):


Jeff and Leslie Vanvactor
Instituto de Lengua Espanola
Apartado 100-2350
San Jose, Costa Rica
America Central


We look forward to hearing from you!!