June/July 2017

One of the things I will remember about the summer of 2017 is living out of a suitcase. I will also remember it as two months spent meeting new friends and catching up with old ones.  

The Thomas Family Mission was on the road for June and July as we raised support to continue in ministry for another three years in Costa Rica.  To all our friends and churches that support us, thank you so very much.  

We are back in Costa Rica and glad to be home! We enjoyed our time in the states but Costa Rica is home to us now.  As I sit in my living room, with the doors open, I feel the crisp morning stillness that is accompanied by the Costa Rican sunrise.  The stillness is only interrupted by exotic (and sometimes not so exotic) birds occasionally chirping past. I am learning to enjoy these mornings before the hustle and bustle of the day. Waking up early is tiring work though.  

An important event will be taking place in the life of the school soon. August 7-11 is a very special time at Colegio Metodista called "Spiritual Emphasis Week". This week is spent in worship at the school.  Imagine summer camp being brought to your school for a week. Students will be in class for a few hours and will then spend the rest of the school day in worship with some extraordinary folks learning more about Jesus.  The Mark Swayze Band is leading us in worship for the week and is bringing a team from The Woodlands United Methodist Church. Holy and Spirit filled conversations will be had. Please be in prayer for this short term mission team that will be serving us at the school, for our small groups, and for the students.

A personal prayer request that we have been asking God for is community. On tuesday we had the pleasure of welcoming a new family to Costa Rica who will be in ministry with us at the school! Praise God! Kyle and Tessa, with their four kids, have moved in next door to us. Please be praying for their family as they adjust to living in a foreign land and learning to speak Spanish.

Even though Costa Rica is our new home, and we've been here for two years, there is still a lot that is new and questions we still don't know the answers to. Kendra and I figured out this week that we can pay our electric bill right down the street from our house instead of driving across town! No matter what country you live in there will always be frustrating things. There will always be something to be mad about, and there will always be something not worthwhile that we can tie ourselves to and brood about until the floodwaters engulf us. The most joy filled  people I know are the way they are, not because they've somehow managed to remove themselves from frustrating things or solved them somehow, but because they personally know their Creator and seek the presence of God daily. 

We must not building upon anything other than the costly cornerstone that is Christ. We must not anchor our soul in anything other than Jesus. Worry/squabbles/frustration/gossip... these things are like an ugly piano, broken beyond repair, sitting in the middle of  the living room during Christmas morning. It is in the way and keeping us from opening presents! 

The Challenge:

Trust in someone who knows Jesus and ask them how they let go of the things keeping them from Christ. Then, with an open bible, ask Jesus to help remove the things that hinder you from him.  

-Spencer Thomas

If you have any questions about The Thomas Family Mission please email me at Spencer.Thomas@kfumc.org

Meditation Words

-----Meditation Words-----

Meditating is only for ninjas and wizards... FALSE! Our perception of what meditation is has in part been twisted by movies. When I think of meditation, the first thought that comes to my mind is the Ninja Turtles. There is a specific scene in one of the movies where they have to meditate as a punishment. Balancing expertly while trying not to be distracted by pizza. Of course they fail, for it is common knowledge that the Ninja Turtles' greatest weakness is pizza. 

Being mystical does not make meditation. Reciting mantras does not make meditation. Mental gymnastics does not make meditation. We claim meditation to be a difficult practice although many of us already do it daily, simply on the wrong things...

We are so prone to meditate on "worry". We fill our minds with obscure realities and sometimes empower those false-realities with a voice loud enough to influence, or even overrun, day to day life. Practicing meditation is important. It is not a question of whether or not we meditate, it's a question of what do we meditate on. The meditating part, for us, is inevitable. The material on which we meditate is subject to change.

One of my biggest pet-peeves is when people say "like" over and over again for filler while speaking. Example: "It's like, a thing when like, you have to like, do that thing". Figure out what your trying to say, and like, say it... This annoys me to no end! I am not perfect, and I have a confession. When I was in high school I developed this weird habit of saying "and, a ummm" for filler while speaking. It was a terrible phase. Every sentence would contain "and, a ummm" before, after, or in the middle. It took 4 long weeks to finally break this atrocious habit. 

Our perception of reality is subject to the contents of our meditations. When we meditate on worry it obscures our vision of God's promises. It causes doubt and frustration towards God. Jeremiah 29:11 is a fact. Our perception of reality is twisted by meditating on worry and God's promises will appear far away. It is our choice to practice meditating on other things... better things... the best things.

It took 4 weeks for me to break the silly habit of saying "and, a ummm". I challenge you to spend the next 4 weeks being intentional about the things with which you fill your mind. The purpose is twofold:
-First, to break the habit of letting worry obscure the reality of God's promises.
-Second, to develop the daily practice of giving your thoughts to something worthy.

"Spencer's Guide to Practicing Christian Meditation 101"

1- Scripture. Have it with you. From a book into your heart. 

2- Catch yourself meditating on the wrong thing? Start thinking about the verse you decided to memorize.

3- Ponder scripture while you drive, bike, or walk to work. 

4- Daily repetition. Practice, practice, practice.  

Let's meditate. 

Here is content to meditate on:

"Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my rock and my Redeemer." Psalm 19:14

"The soul is dyed by the color of your thoughts."

Prayer Words

-------Prayer Words-------

"And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words." Matthew 6:7

More words does not mean better. I sometimes find myself trying to imitate the cadence of people who I think to be "good" at praying. It's silly. What usually ends up happening is that I'm so focused on trying to sound a certain way on the outside, that the inside becomes babble. 

I enjoy a multitude of hobbies! Kayaking, fishing, frisbee, skateboarding, video games, playing guitar, and on and on and on. Kendra, my wife, will sometimes have to make me pause and evaluate the priority of my hobbies. Since moving to Costa Rica, these are the priorities of my current hobbies: 

1- Coffee drinking. 

2- Reading

3- Guitar/music

4- Games (Basketball and video)

To be the best at any of these hobbies a person has to practice. I'm so horrible at basketball, but I'm better than I was 3 months ago because of practice. Playing guitar takes a TON of practice. There has to be enough time spent learning and developing muscle memory so that holding a guitar and navigating the strings becomes second nature. We must practice praying. 

Everything we find important, we practice. What are some of the things you purposefully practice? What are some things you unintentionally practice? I realized, a few weeks ago, that I unintentionally practice having a bad attitude every morning when I first wake up. I don't like it. I'm not a morning person. I had practiced having a bad attitude every morning. Having a bad attitude in the morning had become second nature! I'm still not good at waking up in the morning. It's exhausting. But mornings have gotten easier with practice. Practicing getting up, and drinking coffee.

Practice praying so that it becomes second nature. Spend enough time in prayer daily developing "muscle memory" so that holding a prayer and navigating a conversation with Jesus becomes part of your nature. Drinking coffee has made my morning practice of having a good attitude easier. Opening the bible makes the practice of prayer easier. 

"Spencer's Guide to Practicing Prayer 101"

1- Use simple words. "God, I want to know you. I need you. Help me practice being in your presence."

2- Be honest. With yourself, and with God. 

3- Pray with an open bible. 

4- Daily repetition. 

Let's pray.

"See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!" 1John 3:1

Dear Jesus, I want to know this love. Amen.

2+3

It's time to stay in Costa Rica for another three years and chew bubblegum, and I'm all out of gum!

   The Thomas Family is very excited to tell you all that we are going to be in Costa Rica for a little while longer. Originally our commitment to being in Costa Rica was for two years. As we have gotten closer to the end of those two years, a decision had to be made. This decision has taken over 6 months to make. We feel with every fiber of our being that we are to be a part of this ministry in Costa Rica for 3 more years. Jesus Christ is moving our hearts in ways we never thought possible. 

   Our hearts are overjoyed to continue in this calling. Our response to Jesus moving our hearts to stay longer in Costa Rica has brought new energy and vision to this ministry at Colegio Metodista. 

   We have a few goals to pursue throughout our time in Costa Rica, one of them is blogging more often. Sharing multiple times a month with you about what we are doing in small groups and how you can continue to pray for us and our students. Another goal is that we must raise more monetary support.  To the churches, individuals, friends, and family who support us, we are extremely grateful for your offerings. We want to share, in person, the workings of Jesus we have witnessed during our time here thus far. We also want to extend the same invitation as when we first discerned to go on mission in Costa Rica, and invite you to be a part of it. 

   Here two ways you can be a part of this ministry, and we ask that you prayerfully consider each one. 

- Pray for us. Follow this blog and speak to God about what He's doing in Costa Rica, at Colegio Metodista, and in our hearts. 

- Monthly monetary support. This mission is made possible because men and women responded to God's calling to be a part of this ministry in Costa Rica.  

  We are looking forward to visiting with you. Stay tuned and buckle up! It's going to be a wild ride!

- Spencer and Kendra Thomas