Costa Rica 102

We were very thankful to arrive in Costa Rica. We almost missed our flight from Houston due to circumstances beyond anyone’s control.

We were the last five people to board the plane.

It was almost 2 AM before we got to bed. 

Breakfast was at 6 AM.

Our introduction to ministry here was to help a mobile ministry that provides a meal to homeless men once a week. That is why we needed to head out by 7. I thought we were feeding them lunch. Later I found out why we left so early.Many of the men sleep in front of businesses.When the business day begins the men scatter.

When we arrived downtown we parked in front of the bus, next to a park. We got out of the van and car and received an overview of the plan. We were divided into groups. One group stayed at the bus and received instructions on how the meals are presented. The other groups went around the park and invited guests.

Men came.

Most sat on the raised concrete ledge surrounding the park.

Some were easy to spot as homeless.

Some were not.

A man who was here from Columbia shared a message.

Afterward the men were offered a meal-

"(something) rooster"; rice and beans, cooked together, served with sour cream and thick slices of baguettes.

T-shirts were handed out to those who wanted one.

As I stood on the bus with Raisa and Carlos they shared the most common story- bad choices, alcohol, more bad choices.  A cycle that is difficult to break. My heart ached.

It reminded me of my family tree. There was more than one drunk on the Ellis side. I saw what it did to their lives. How it impacted my life. We have also made  a lot of bad choices.

I wondered aloud how my father escaped that lifestyle. Not homeless, but drunkenness. Praise came from my mouth as I shared that that he became a believer about eighteen months before he died.Tears filled my eyes. His brothers, my uncles, did not have a relationship with Jesus when they died.

A man come to the window asking for a t-shirt for a female. “She is very small.”

We did not have anything that would come close to fitting her. It was all too big. My heart broke. My face leaked again.

I asked Raisa “How do you do this?”

All I could think, as I stood and looked out the window was 

“Except for the grace of God, this could very well be my story.”

Amazing Grace