Ministry Details

Here is all our ministry details for what we are doing here in Costa Rica, organized by my awesome brother in Christ Brent Long. I am so thankful that he has allowed me to use this to share about what God is doing here!

Brent’s Post:

My World Race (WR) squad will be serving every day alongside the local ministry in San Jose, Costa Rica called Til He Returns, but because of English to Spanish translation issues, we call it The Hope Project. Here is the website for more information other than what I am about to tell you: 

 

https://www.tilhereturns.com/programs/

 

Before we get into the mission and the details behind the statement, let me say this, We are all in poverty. Poverty means in need of . . . money, food, love, relationship, a desire that cannot be satisfied but we know we crave it. When we have the heart posture that we are all in need of something, we can enter into helping others without a savior mindset and come alongside people to provide for their actual needs.

 

We see poverty as the brokenness between 1 of 4 relationships:

Self-God

Self-Self

Self-Others

Self-Creation

 

When we are broken in 1 of these relationships, living in a place of abundance is extremely difficult and we are unable to steward ourselves, our relationships, and our resources effectively. For more information on this concept, check out the book Helping Without Hurting

 

But, for now on, when I mention poverty unless specifically noted, poverty will have the context of being materialistically poor. 

 

Ministry Overview:

 

The Hope Project has a three-part mission:

Reshaping Identities- by grounding individuals into what God actually calls them. As Sons and Daughters, we are image-bearers of God and worthy in our brokenness.

Restoring Dignity- As believers, we know that all people are valued and have individual God-given gifts that are important, so we must help others find their own dreams, passions, skills, and gifts.

Rebuilding Families- The family unit is the most vulnerable, yet an important place for building the next generation of believers, so we provide resources to maintain its health. 

 

What does this mean in practical terms when helping the poor? It means we are not here to provide bailouts, buy food for people on the street, or provide shelter to the homeless. These are short term needs that don’t address the internal brokenness. We are here for the development of people and the long-term process of helping the individuals in impoverish communities find their passions and have them become their own vehicles of empowerment for change. We come alongside people and walk them down the long process of whatever recovery they need and help them build confidence to find themselves. 

 

These mission statements are implemented into 4 different branches, each with different ministries, under one community center in downtown San Jose. The 4 branches are counseling services, community outreach, spiritual development, and economic empowerment. 

 

 

Counseling Services (Relationship with Self):

 

The Refuge Pregnancy Center:

This service is a two-year program for women who unexpectedly got pregnant or need guidance in childcare and motherhood. Individual counselors provide help to these women through training, therapy, and responsibility lessons to prepare them for the 9 months of pregnancy and the first year after childbirth.

 

Drug/Alcohol Counseling:

This service is pretty straight forward. Just like in the US, drugs and alcohol are a major problem in low-income communities, so many are unable to provide rehabilitation for their loved ones. These individuals usually destroy families and end up in gangs or on the streets, so The Hope Project offers trained counselors for the entire family. 

 

Community Outreach (Relationship with Others):

 

Club de Ingles (English Club):

This club is meant for Costa Ricans to learn English. English, being the lingua franca of the world, is highly valuable in almost all countries, so offering classes in English is the perfect class for a community center. Using a conversational curriculum, learning English is an awesome way to build relationships in the community. 

 

Art and Coffee Club:

This club is another part of the community center outreach that teaches art lessons over a cup of coffee. This time is meant for fun, creativity, and relationship building within the community. 

 

House of Raw:

This is by far the most unique but amazing ministry I have ever been a part of. There are so much information and stories I can tell you about this ministry that when I come back, please ask me about. But for now, House of Raw is a hip hop dance class/battle ministry. The purpose of this is to help kids in gangs and on the streets find their passion in street dance and then train them to make a career out of it. Jose, the leader of this ministry, is the top Krump dancer in Central America and is known around the world for his dancing. (This type of dance is highly respected on the streets, in gangs, and now in American pop culture). His dancers are highly respected and highly discipled by Jose so they are grounded in a truth that will set them free from their pasts. 

 

 

Spiritual Development (Relationship with God):

 

House Churches:

The community center for the Hope Project is also a house church. For those who don’t know what a house church is, it is an intimate church of a small number of people intended for an emphasis on community and discipleship. The Hope Project intends to continue to raise up pastors within their house church to create a network of house churches across San Jose. If you are interested in house churches, read Letters to the Church by Francis Chan!

 

Bible Studies:

This is straight forward as well. Bible studies are intended for spiritual growth in a small group of people where they read and dig into the Word together.

 

Evangelism:

This word, when I first heard it, set off some alarms because of the connotations within it. But let me explain what this means in this ministry. Evangelism is just relationship building with the community whether that looks like inviting people to English club or listening to stories of people that just need a friend. There is no agenda or goal because if there were, I would be out. We simply build relationships within the community by letting the Holy Spirit highlight people that need support.

 

Economic Empowerment (Relationship with Creation):

 

Business Club: 

This club is meant for business owners across San Jose and those who want to start a business to come together in the community to build relationships and to share and help others in the area. This is a place where business meets God to uplift the kingdom and create more intentional relationships than just networking and favors.

 

King’s Economy:

This class we all get to take and I’m excited because this is what school doesn’t teach you. King’s Economy is a class that teaches individuals to budget, spend, and steward their money and resources well. As Christians, we are called into a high level of stewardship in which we use our resources wisely to honor the kingdom and not be foolish in our uses. 

 

Waves of Grace:

This program is meant to provide sustainable income and employment to women living in low-income communities. The Hope Project teaches women how to make bracelets (similar to Pure Vida bracelets) and bars of soap as a home business and then connect them to stores around San Jose and online to make a livable income. Check them out on Instagram and at https://thepassionistacr.com/collections/waves-of-grace

 

 

A Final Note

 

As a short-term missions team serving alongside The Hope Project, we are involved in every ministry by building community relationships. We are also building relationships and encouraging our partners at the Hope Project that live in the community by doing a variety of tasks that coincide with each individual ministry. That means I don’t teach dance classes. We are here to serve in ways that are sustainable and make sense for the long term vision that the Lord has in store for the Hope Project.

 

 

We have been so blessed to be able to come and serve in Costa Rica amidst a global pandemic and because of this we have taken every precaution to maintain safety for the San Jose community, for our ministry partners, and ourselves by daily temperature checks, facial coverings at all times outside of the base, and consistent sanitation. Check out the Adventures In Missions website for more details on Covid safety guidelines