Teaching English In Costa Rica / Enseñando Ingles en Costa Rica

It hit me so clearly while I was sitting bored on our couch, God was calling me to use the skills and experiences He had given me to serve Him. What did I have to offer that God wanted to be used? I looked around. Well, I could share some of our oregano from the massive plant we have in our front yard. I could donate probably a lot of clothes. Then, I thought I really had it, I could grow my hair and donate to one of those organizations that makes wigs for cancer patients. I’ll admit it I thought I had figured out exactly what God was trying to tell me and to be honest I’m sure this definitely was a part of what He was telling me but this idea of giving from the set of skills God gives us was only just starting to grow.

Over time, I came to realize that God had given me a great gift that He planned on using to serve and build His kingdom, my ability to speak English.

A few months later, my husband and I met Mitch and Marison who were looking for help with their ministry. They were missionaries from the US living and serving in a low income neighborhood called, “La Carpio”.

In Costa Rica, you know when a neighborhood starts with the word “la” (meaning the), it must be dangerous. La Carpio is one of San Jose’s slums that appeared in Costa Rica only a little more than 20 years ago, according to La Nacion. I would explain it as an island surrounded by 2 rivers connected to the rest of the world by a long bridge, meaning there’s only one way in and one way out. The “island” is 23,618 square meters (5.8 acres) and has a population of 18,000 people. Of these people, 44% of them live in shacks. These facts are constantly increasing as more and more nicaraguan migrants arrive searching for a place to live. Simply put, it’s not a safe neighborhood to be and with that there are great needs.

In the midths of the many needs, Encaminame our friends ministry strives to give dignity to the people by providing tutoring to the children and classes to the adults. Last winter, Mitch saw a great way to help the adult population, teaching an ESL class. This was the skill God wanted me to use. My husband and I quickly joined the efforts to teaching English and more importantly to show people the love of Jesus in a relational way.