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There is a special humbling quality inherent in learning
a new language, especially for those who undertake such a task within
the culture of the new language. The student must learn how to navigate
the necessities of life without the aid of a robust and developed
language, which results in the use of gestures, grunts and a
Tarzan-like vocabulary. Every day is an adventure! A recent trip to the
hardware store illustrates a fairly typical day in our blessed, albeit
challenging life here in Costa Rica.
Our bathroom sink was leaking so badly that it is no exaggeration to
say more water drained into the floor than actually made it through the
pipe to the sewer. We called our landlady (actually our friend
called her because we do not speak Spanish) who then responded by
sending someone to "repair" the sink drain. This
gentleman replaced all of the plumbing under the sink except the
one piece that was actually leaking. Rather than continue the confusing
and slow process of contacting the landlady and having the
"disrepair man" return to the scene of his crime, I
determined it more expedient to do the repair myself. This required a
trip to the hardware store to purchase the tailpiece.
Upon entering the hardware store I realized, to my dismay, that it was
a full service store. This means you step up the counter and tell the
clerk what you need, and he then goes and retrieves the product and
gives it to you, much like an auto parts store in the U.S. functions. I
had absolutely no idea what the Spanish terms for plumbing were. So,
the clerk politely hands a piece of paper and pencil to me so I can
draw it for him. My heart starts pounding and I am sweating like it was
the final round of "Win Lose or Draw" with big money at
stake. The problem is that my drawing skills are worse than my Spanish!
Seriously, I can't draw stick people! After the clerk came to the same
conclusion he breaks store protocol and gestures for me to come around
the counter to find the parts myself. Now we are communicating!
After repeating this scenario time and again in our public affairs one
of our teachers spoke candidly with me in a private conversation that
accurately captured our experience. She asked how we liked the school
and Costa Rica. I expressed my love for Costa Rica and how much I enjoy
finally having the privilege to learn Spanish, but then I shared
my frustration with our inability to communicate. Our teacher, who had
lived briefly in the States, sat back and agreed that living in a new
culture and trying to learn a new language is difficult. Then she said,
"Chris, you are a pastor. Pastor's are artists of words and they
hunger for relationship with people to share what God shows them. Your
heart is full but your head is empty. It is very difficult, but God
will give you opportunities."
Heather found opportunity at the downtown market with a vendor
who spoke some English. He asked why she was in Costa Rica. She told
him that she was here to learn Spanish because God has called us to be
missionaries in Latin America. She could have ended there, but she did
not. She continued to converse with the vendor and shared the gospel of
Christ with the man.
God gave me an opportunity as I walked James home from a friend's
house in the dark and in the rain. James began asking about evil in the
world and why God allows bad things to happen. We had an incredible
conversation about evil, free-will, the love of God, God's sovereignty,
sin, and the reason Jesus came into this world and gave his life at
Calvary. At the corner of Parque Los Sauces, James and I stood in the
rain and prayed together. He asked Jesus to forgive his sins and told
the Lord that he wanted to live for Jesus. We celebrated on the rest of
our walk home talking about what happens when we die and about a new
heaven and earth.
Regarding Spanish, our heads are still pretty empty, but our hearts are
full of Christ's love for all people, whether our own children or
street vendors! He knows what we need and He knows where and when He
wants to use us to share His love in the lives of others.
Thank you for your prayer and love. Your support of our family is a
huge blessing! May God’s joy and peace be with you!
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