Week 2 of Spanish in Costa Rica

Posted on by Spanky Rouse

¡Dios te bendiga! This past week has been great! I have felt a little less stressed with the learning and work load even though it has been greater. I have had 2 different exams and I felt like I did good on both. One was for conversation and even though I was more scared about it I think it went the best. The second one was for grammar. The problem here is that I am not good in English grammar so I am already behind in learning Spanish grammar rules. One cool opportunity the Lord has given me is someone that I can practice with everyday. He is the guard for our road where I live. He loves trying to learn English and he helps me in correcting me as I try to conversate with him. I believe that I have already learned more Spanish in the past 2 weeks than I have learned in the past 5 years. Praise God for the opportunity!

I believe that the missing my family part of this experience has been magnified this week. I believe that I know the meaning behind the saying, time apart brings you closer. I can’t believe that I only have 2 more weeks here but I also can’t believe that I still have 2 more weeks apart from my beautiful wife and amazing boys! Speaking of my great wife, she is such a blessing to me and gift from God! She has taken the boys to the beach, camping in the mountains, taken care of the house, and managed to keep up with her work and most of my work load too. On top of all of that she had to deal with everything in our lives falling apart like our heating system breaking. As I sit here many, many miles and hours away she tells me on the phone not to worry about it because God is just preparing us fore bigger and better things and He is the one who is holding our hands today. What a gift from heaven and Christ centered heart and mind. “Set your minds and hearts on the things above and not on the things of the earth.” Col. 3:2

I believe that I am here in Costa Rica not just for the purpose of learning Spanish. God has bigger things to teach and show me. He has elected and chose me for the purpose of bringing Him glory and doing His work! The Lord is teaching me new and exciting things about the gospel. He has saved me to do good works for His name sake and so that others may know the glories power and love of our Abba Father! Phil. 2:13 “…for God is at work in you, both to will and work for His good pleasure.” My satisfaction comes from doing His will and following Him in the paths that He has set before me today. John 4:34 ” My food is to do the will of Him who sent me and to accomplish His work.” I praise God for calling me, choosing me, using me, and providing for me and my family. Glory a Dios!

Primero Semana de Clase de Espanol

Posted on by Spanky Rouse
¡Glory A Dios! The first week of class is over and I feel completely overwhelmed. I have enjoyed the class and living amongst the Latin culture. I am living with a traditional Tico(Costa Rican) family in a small neighborhood out side of San Jose. I have nothing but Spanish spoken to me and some how I have figured out how to get by. It is suprising how much I have been able to understand after only a week of living here. It really helps that I spend all of my free time conversating with my Tica Mama.

My days consist of getting up early, getting ready and eating breakfast with Mama. I then start my homework of studying words and verbs before I walk to school in the afternoon. It almost feels as though I am reliving my elementry years over. I have a mom that makes all of my meals, washes my clothes, packs my lunch, and makes me snacks(coffee) while I study. I go to school, talk with friends, and have to clean my room daily. The simple life but wierd. When I am finished with my studies if that is possible, I walk around the neighborhood meeting new friends and hanging out until dark. I have made a friend with the local neighborhood gaurd that sits in front of my house daily and with a Greengo from Virginia that lives across the street. Yes he is a Hokie!!!! One of God’s gifts to me. 🙂

I have two classes. One is for grammer and yes I am just as bad in Spanish grammer class as I am in English grammer class. My other class is Conversation. We have to write stories about our families, houses, and life here in Costa Rica and then talk to the class about them. Whats tough about that class is that we have to ask and answer questions about our presentations. Also, none of my teachers speak English. I was shock on the first day when the teachers announced that they “no hablo ingles” but it really is not that bad.

Life is simple, quient, relaxing at times, and fun. I could definitly see my family and I living somewhere like here and enjoying it. “God is using the circumstances in your life to prepare you to accomplish His plan for your life.” Andy Stanley, Visioneering. If you could keep praying for Lara and the boys!!! I miss them so much as I know they miss me too! Keep me in your prayers as well as I am learning Spanish for the glory of the Lord and for his Kingdom. Pray for my mind and ears to understand, my mouth to speak it, andmy heart to fill it. Ephesians 6:19 “Pray for me that the utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the goespel.”

Beginning Spanish

Posted on by Spanky Rouse

God is so good to us! Upon returning a week and a half ago from Panama the Lord laid on my heart for me to have more trainning in the Spanish language so that I can be more effective in ministry. If we are going to live some where that speaks Spanish then I thought that it might do me some good to have a better handle on the language. Lara and I started praying about what to do. We knew that I did not have much time and that we were going to be traveling a lot over the next 6 months. After googling the internet for an hour I found a Spanish language school in Costa Rica that is tailored for missionaries and it has many short intensive coarses available. It looked like the right fit for me.

After looking at our schedule and money we realized that we had to leave it in the Fathers hand because we were short on both. October was the only month that I could have done this very short intensive coarse so we prayed, Father if it is your will and time then make it clear and provide the resourses.” That seems to be the one of many common prayers in this stage of our life. After only telling a very small group of friends about this with no intentions or expectations it all came together.

We needed $1000 for the school, $350 for room and board, and about $300 in other fees and misc. God provided almost all of it in a matter of 2 days!!! Even after that amazing answer to prayer I still was not sure if this was suppose to go or not. I know I can be a bit hard headed. Lara being the most amazing, God fearing, wonderful wife and partner in ministry told me that I had to go because God has provided and that was that. Inspite of us being apart for a month and the sacrifice that was going to have to happen on so many levels for our whole family I left one day before classes started for Costa Rica.

I have only been hear for 2 days but it has been so great! It maybe one of the hardest things that I have ever had to go through mentally but it also one of the most effective things that we have done for our ministry. Praise God for the opportunities and for the people in our lives that believe in us and our ministry! Glory a Dios!/Glory to God!

What a cool guy!

Posted on by Spanky Rouse

IMG_2240If you have ever meet Henry you would love him too. Henry is a good friend of mine from Venezuela. I actually like to call him my brother. He has a Christ like heart. He loves to serve, encourage, teach the word, lead others to the Lord, and eat peanut butter.

I had the privilege of spending a week with Henry in the Jungles of Panama this past spring. I know I said that he was Venezuelan but he goes where the Lord leads him. He came to visit and work for a week with our wonderful friends in Panama ,the Vegas, and then realized that God had more for him to do there. We just briefly knew of each other before this week but quickly recognized how much alike we are. It was like I had found a long lost brother. I was able to sit a listen to him teach and disciple some new Christians and leaders for a couple of days and I was amazed. Then I saw Henry give it his all when it came time for us to teach and play with the children. He is a real missionary at heart and Christ follower in life!IMG_2069

Another reason I am so fond on Henry is because he saved my life. I thought I was going to die climbing this mountain but he keep encouraging me. He also gave me some power food, as he called it. We call it Fruit Loops here in the US. It must have some kind of power because I made it to the top. Love you Henry!

Please be praying for Henry!

“…never truly experienced until now”

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I was blown away this week when I received the newsletter of a missions trip participant that went with us to Uganda in February. It left me crying on my computer and praising God for allowing me to be apart of His work even in the smallest ways. Lara and I have always known that one of the biggest reasons we wanted to be apart of e3 Partners ministry is the joy of taking people to the mission field. We have the privilege of engaging the local church in missions. It doesn’t matter where one is in the journey or even if they have started down the path with Christ. We know that when they go and see the glory of God displayed on a mission trip and they are personally used for an eternal difference. Lives will be for ever changed! I am reminded ever time too that God can and wants to use this non qualified knucklehead to be His hands and feet. How cool and powerful that is when we realize that truth.

What is even better than being used by God is knowing what we have in Jesus and who we really are in Him. This tripper participant had no idea of what was to come. Not just for the next 12 days but for the rest of her life. I have know her for about 10 years and have been diligently praying for God to work in her life. I was never sure about where she stood on church, Jesus, and salvation but I knew that she didn’t go or didn’t talk about it very much. If I had to guess I would have had to say that there was no relationship with Christ.

When we began planning our last trip to Uganda we had no idea how life changing this trip would be for us. This lady said that she was interested and that in it self was exciting for us. Then when she went with us we were in shock to see how God used her and how Christ drew her near. I don’t think that I could tell you all of the ways we saw her grow in a relationship with Christ on a daily basis. Even today we still see God answering our prayer by working in her life.

People ask us all the time “when will you move over seas and be real missionaries?” If God wants us to we will go tomorrow but for now we are apart of one of the greatest mission opportunities here today. This lady’s story is why we do what we do. We love seeing God’s church in America go to the missions field and then come back home with a renewed fire for worshiping Him. “…I never truly experienced Him until now.” This was one of her closing statements in her newsletter, and that is a HUGE win for us and for the Kingdom. That makes it all worthy especially when she is my mother in law, Lara’s mom!

I think that you would really enjoy reading her news letter. It is powerful, so please take the time to read! Copy and paste this link. Then click download.  http://drop.io/momsnewsletter

A week worthy of praise

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This is a week worthy of our praise. During this Holy week we find ourselves worshiping our savior for all that he has done for us. We know that we are not worthy of His love and compassion but we are reminded of what He went through for us. The coolest part of it all is that Jesus had “Spanky” on His mind the entire time. He really loves and values me? That in it self is amazing.

Then He not only died for me but super naturally came back to life and arose out of the tomb for me. WOW!!! I don’t know if you have actually thought of this other than in the sweet little Sunday school way but that is crazy, awesome, and amazing! Jesus, the one that carries us as His children (Deut. 1:31) is all powerful and able to concur everything in our lives. He concurred it all including death! How cool is it that we get to call Him Father and we have the privilege to serve Him.

This Easter weekend I encourage you to worship the risen king who is able and all powerful in your life. How worthy is He!!! We have victory all ready because of Jesus. Psalm 47:1-2

He is already at work!

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IMG_0312Talk about the pressure being on! Our first time in Africa Lara and I worked in an all Muslim city. We were a little nerves the first day of evangelism but our morning devotion was from Acts 10. It gave us a little more hope for the day. God went before Peter to prepare hearts and so I prayed but not fully believed that God would go before us.

Later that day a lady walked up to me on the streets and she looked right in my eyes. She did not look to friendly and she began to speak loudly and I knew she was talking about me. My translator said that she had a dream about a big, white man coming to her city and he was coming to tell her something that was going to save her life. She believed that this dream the night before was from Allah and she said I had better tell her this story that I was telling everyone else on the street. I looked around and realized that I was the only big, white guy in this city so I pulled out my EvangeCube and shared the story of Jesus with her. She asked accepted Christ right there and went away smiling. I know now that it is His work and He is just letting me be apart of it. God is at work in hearts all around this world and He gives us the privilege to introduce the spiritually blind to Him so they can too have sight.

Traveling the River

Posted on by Spanky Rouse
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I just returned home from a 9 day trip in the Panama jungle. You will probably hear a lot form the Rouse House regarding Panama because this country has a special place in our heart. I often look at life and compare it to our time spent in the jungles. There are many similarities and lessons that can be learned from life and the jungles.
This past time in Panama was the most extreme time that I have ever had. After a 12 hour drive from one end of the country to the other end near the Costa Rican border we finally reached the city of Changuinola. We continued our journey up the Teribe River for almost 2 hours. This area of Panama just received what they call the 50 year flood so passing through this area of the jungle was difficult to say the least. Hundred year old trees were uprooted and washed down stream while entire villages were demolished. The power of this unusual and unpredictable amount of water was almost unbelievable. The worst part of the flood is that it is suppose to be the dry season therefore it really is unexpected.
I remember that the only thing that I could think of as we went farther up river was how content and satisfied I felt. Talk about the peace of God! Philippians 4:6-7 talks about no matter what we face or go through we can always count on God to give us the peace to make it. That kind of peace that He gives is really indescribable. It is one of those things that you have to experience first hand. In life there are so many unexpected and unplanned for “floods” that can really destroy us and wipe us out in just a moment. But we don’t have to live in fear of those things that are to come. Praise God! Nothing is ever unexpected or unplanned for the Almighty!
I have to say that most people including me probably wouldn’t think of contentment when seeing the banks of this river bed. Then I began to think about where I really was and any fear that might have been there vanished. I saw that I was looking at the finger print of God the Creator. I looked up and saw the sun setting behind a mountain and at that moment I believe that the Holy Spirit brought to my mind Psalms 63:3-8. I had just read it before I left home and how cool it was to see God put His word in to practice. I really felt like He had answered my hearts prayer and satisfied my soul abundantly and lead me to praise Him with my lips and hands. I knew that He was absolutely better than life. I knew that I was in the shadow of His wings, His hand was holding me, and that my soul was following close behind Him. That is a great place to be!!!
When Jesus is the focus, priority, and desire of your heart and life then you will always be abundantly satisfied! John Piper says in the book “Stand”, “When we are so satisfied in Christ that we are enabled to willingly die for Him, we are freed to love the lost like never before and Christ becomes our great Treasure” I was not about to die at that moment by any means but with the spirit and mind that He gave me, that of Him being what I live and die for, I was able to love the Nasso people so much more.

To begin with…

Posted on by Spanky Rouse

Rouse House Happenings is going to be compiled stories and pictures updating you on our life and ministry. We hope to bring some comical stories along with some heart warming events. We are the Rouses. Spanky, Lara, Mac, and Grey. We often have some hilarious times and we believe that you will find these times funny too.
We are currently church planting missionaries with e3 Partners ministry. We love what we do more than anything else and when we are asked what would be your dream job we gladly say that we are doing it. We get to see God uses us to help indigenous people start new churches through evangelizing and discipleship. God is working in mighty ways and we have the privilege to be apart it. We have been apart of some amazing stories that will bless your heart so we want to start sharing them with you.
Stay tuned for many laughs and exciting stories.