Testimony from Costa Rica
by Luann Pheneger
On March 5, at 4:30am, 17 of us from North Heights met at the MSP airport to
set out on an adventure to Costa Rica. We knew we had some projects to do, but we didn't know how hard we would work; we knew we'd meet some Costa Rican people, but we didn't know how deep those relationships would go; and we knew we'd enjoy time with our team, but we didn't know the bond we would form while we were there. The goal of this trip was to support the ministry of Camp Penuel, a free camp for 7-11-year-old children who come from less fortunate areas of Costa Rica. The camp is run by my brother, Paul, and his family.
The first night was spent with the camp's cell group. We sang in Spanish and English, prayed together and listened to an encouraging word from one of the members. Although we didn't understand much of what was being said, it was great to get to know some Costa Rican Christians and worship the Lord together. On Saturday and Sunday, we focused on helping with a community outreach evangelistic crusade by passing out flyers, cleaning the outdoor facility, and being available at the outreach to help with games, serve food, and pray. 140 attended the event and four new souls were brought to Christ. One of the men who stepped forward has an incredible story in which the Lord had to 
inflict him with lupus disease to change his focus in life from making lots of money and running here and there to staying in one place and listening to God's voice. Another man that came forward with a decision to follow Christ was the father of one of our young Costa Rican workers named Jason. Jason lost his mother when he was very young and has had a strained relationship with his father. We believe the Lord will change each of their hearts in order to rebuild their relationship. We praise God for his life and for all the gospel seeds that were planted. Follow-up was done two days later by some of our team members where they shared the Word and prayed with each of them.
The rest of the week was spent tackling two big projects at the camp: 1) repainting the boy's dormitory and part of the reception building and 2) resurfacing, expanding, and putting a retaining wall around our multipurpose outdoor court 
which will be used for a variety of sports including basketball, tennis, volleyball, and soccer. With the help of four local workers, a small cement mixer, and eight from our team, we poured around 40 cubic yards (110 tons) of cement. These projects were accomplished through much hard work, beginning at 5:30am most days, working in pools of sweat, drinking gallons and gallons of water, and a supernatural strength from the Lord. Although the team members were all challenged daily in their stamina and perseverance, day after day we did the work and had just enough energy to carry on. Laughter, singing, jokes, prayer, and gallo pinto (the traditional Costa Rican breakfast of rice and beans) kept us going.
One of our team members recounted, "A highlight for me was being able to work hand in hand with the local contractors and work on the cement project. In spite of the language difference, over the course of the week we became like family. The two main contractors, Oscar, Sr. and his son, Oscar, Jr. worked, laughed, and played with us. The younger Oscar was like a gentle giant-very strong and yet he maintained a childlike enthusiasm for life. He was very interested in learning English and enjoyed trying to sing American songs with us. His favorite seemed to be "Row, Row, Row Your Boat." Both Oscars love the Lord and had a strong impact on our work crew and entire team.
Each evening we had devotions and times of fellowship. Sometimes for hours, we would share about our day, give encouragement to one another, and laugh about all the goofy ways we butchered the language and said things in Spanish we didn't mean in English-like I have five eyes (instead of five children) or when inviting people to the outreach, saying bano' (bathroom) instead of venga (come). All of us loved being part of this team that worked and lived well together. The relationships we formed will remain in our hearts forever, and we hope to all return some day and continue these friendships.