From July 1-10, I had the opportunity to serve in Costa Rica with the FOCUS missionary team that is on campus! I would describe the work with three different words—poverty, offering, and solidarity.
The first word, poverty, describes well our standard of living. From the food we ate to the stall I showered in to the place I slept, all reflected the poverty that we lived in. This poverty, however, came with great spiritual abundance. Poverty stripped down our lives of complexity, which allowed us to focus on the essentials: friendship, community, and God.
The second word I would use to describe the trip is offering. While on the trip, we ran into many challenges and difficulties, and when they happened, our response was to send those experiences up as an offering to God. No matter if it was bug bites, muggy weather, or bugs finding their way under your covers, there were many things to pray about and offer up to God as a sacrifice. This helped us learn to rely on God more and learn how to pray for each other.
The final word I would use to describe the trip is solidarity. Our mission group’s shared experiences of poverty and offering inconveniences brought us unity.
One of the projects we worked on was the building of St. Lucia. The day we arrived, it was looking a lot more like a skeleton than a chapel. While our goal at the beginning of the week was to build St. Lucia just enough to celebrate the first Mass there, we said that if we didn't reach this goal, we would accept that outcome with humility. Nevertheless, working with diligence, finishing the roof and a whole side with concrete walls, we finished just enough to have the privilege of celebrating the first Mass ever in that chapel by the end of the week!
While there is so much to say about this trip, it would be difficult for me to fit it all in a few paragraphs. I am very thankful for the opportunity that FOCUS afforded to me! I pray that God will continue to bless this Costa Rican community and that they can grow in faith.
Drew Hoeksema is a senior majoring in business and philosophy.