May 2019 Prayer Letter

Dear Friends and Family,

We hope that this letter finds you doing well! We have been working to get established here in Costa Rica and to begin a new church. As we were praying and developing plans on how to get started, we were contacted by a fellow BIMI missionary here in Costa Rica. He is working in a church plant, but some things have come up and they are in great need for a furlough for many reasons. We have agreed to take over their church plant so that they will be able to take the much needed furlough. This is an excellent and unexpected opportunity to help another missionary, begin serving in Costa Rica, and will help us as we seek to establish future church plants. Since then, we have begun transitioning into the work. Jeremy has begun preaching. Since then, we have seen one man trust in Christ as Savior and 2 others make decisions to rededicate their lives to the Lord. Michelle has been helping in the children's ministry. We will also continue to build relationships and lay the groundwork for our next church plant in San Pablo. It is also a possibility for the current church plant that we are assisting to aid in starting the next one. In the meantime, we have also been working to iron out an issue in the process of obtaining legal residency. We also had to work in a quick trip to the Nicaraguan border in order to renew our visas. There are a few obstacles, but we are trusting the Lord to work it all out.

Thankfully, last month was much smoother than March. Lila's eye is doing much better and Ellowyn's problem with the mosquito bites has been resolved. All of our children are making progress in their Spanish. Here in Costa Rica, the week preceding Christ's resurrection is known as "Holy Week" and most businesses close. We were able to build some relationships with our neighbors and focus on the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. Unfortunately, as we were returning home on Resurrection Sunday, a motorcycle crashed into our vehicle and immediately drove off before we could get his plate number. He was likely uninsured and this type of "hit and run" is very common. Thankfully, we are all okay, but now we have to work out all of the repairs with our insurance company.

This month, there will be much transition. Please pray:

1. That God help us overcome the obstacles to us obtaining legal residency in Costa Rica.

2. That God will bless our efforts to bring the Gospel to the Costa Rican people.

3. That God will use our ministry to strengthen and build the church plant where we are serving.

In Christ,

Jeremy, Michelle, Lila, Ellowyn, and Elijah Blanz