God Is on the Move

Nine months after moving to the Aloft Hotel for ECF’s Sunday worship service, we have outgrown the space. Looking back, we made the move to meet on Sunday morning at the hotel because the church was hovering around 20 people. The first few months that Pam and I were in Costa Rica we were not sure if ECF would become viable or not. We arrived last year in mid-August and by late-January we still had not seen any appreciable growth. Twenty people is sufficient for a house-church, but it’s not enough for the thriving church we envisioned that would offer life-giving ministry to all age groups.

However, since February we have seen steady growth. Every week God has been bringing new guests. Thankfully, some have decided to make ECF their church home. This has resulted in our space at the Aloft Hotel becoming increasingly crowded.

I can’t tell you how exhilarating that feels! Mind you, ECF is “only” averaging 60+ people in our services.  But it has been exceedingly rewarding to see the new life, the genuine joy, the overflowing love and the sense of “crowdedness” in our emerging church plant.   

So, we are on the move. Please pray for us! We are currently negotiating with a Hilton Garden Inn close to our current location. The hotel offers larger meeting spaces for worship and fellowship along with better ministry areas for our growing children’s ministry. The hotel is only two years old and is sparkling new. It is a huge step up from where we currently meet. I believe it will provide sufficient space to allow ECF to grow to 200+ in attendance.

The move will also require a significant retooling of our sound and tech equipment. Our initial equipment investments were “bare-bones” because, at the time, we were not sure if the church would survive. But now we see that God is on the move! If you would like to help with the purchase of the new equipment or the myriad of other investments this move will require, please use the give link at the top of the blog.

We recently celebrated our first-year anniversary in Costa Rica. What a year it’s been!

·       Pam is cancer free.

·       Pam and I have developed rich and meaningful friendships.

·       We have settled into healthy rhythms of life and ministry.

·       We purchased a home and feel “at home” in our new ministry vineyard.

·       New leaders have been raised up.

·       And English Christian Fellowship is beginning to thrive!

 This week Pam and I also celebrate another milestone…our 45th wedding anniversary. God has been incredibly gracious through the years. Our love-story has been a thrilling adventure that continues still in Costa Rica. Pam and I will celebrate by heading to Monteverde for three days. We’ve been told that Monteverde is a must-see destination in Costa Rica.   It is a lush jungle-shrouded area located about four hours from our home.

Pam and I want to say a huge “thank you” to all those who have been praying and cheering for us. We encourage you to join us in thanking God from whom all blessings flow. Truly, God has done and is doing great things! To him be all praise, honor and glory!

Warmly,

Steve and Pam