The Hardest Part

Pam and I enjoy almost everything about this crazy new chapter. We love being spiritually stretched in fresh ways. We love the adventure of living in a new country. We love the beauty that surrounds us. We love problem solving. We love seeing God work in amazing ways as ECF begins to be filled with robust spiritual life and increasing numerical growth. We love the relaxed pace of our lives. We love many, many things about this season.

But there is one thing that is hard: living at a great distance from our adult kids and nine grandkids is really, really hard. And it never gets easier.

When Pam and I were younger, we made a choice to move away from our extended family to serve Jesus in Chile.  We took two small children with us. Rachel was two-years- old and Christina was less-than-a-year-old. During both of those birth experiences Pam had her mom and/or sisters nearby.

While in Chile during our first term as missionaries, we added Jennifer and Tommy to our family. For those two births, Pam only had me next to her.  Her mom and sisters were thousands of miles away in the USA.

At many levels, moving away from our extended family to serve Jesus was not easy. Our kids missed countless family birthday gatherings. Pam and I missed being close to our parents and siblings. In those days, phone calls were exorbitantly expensive. As a result, we almost never spoke on the phone. Email, FaceTime and Skype did not exist. Letters took two weeks to arrive by snail mail. As a result, for a season, we actually used a ham radio to communicate “back home.”

This distance-from-family was part of the cost we paid to serve in Chile to advance the cause of Christ. However, looking back, Pam and I have no regrets. We grew. We stumbled. We poured our lives out, along with an amazing team of fellow missionaries. As a result, a beautiful national church was established that continues to thrive today.

So, we know personally what it is to pay a price in family proximity to advance God’s kingdom. We’ve done it before.

But living at a great distance from our kids and grandkids, somehow, feels harder than the sacrifice we made as a young family. Perhaps it’s because Pam and I are older and we know the years we have left on planet earth are numbered. Perhaps it’s because we see the changes and growth in our grandkids more on Facebook than in person. I’m not sure exactly why.

But it never gets easy. Distance from our family is, by far, the hardest part of the current calling God has placed on our lives to serve in Costa Rica.

So, we have made it a priority to periodically get back to the States to see our family.  There is something special that happens when we are in their homes: morning coffee, evening discussions, seeing the grandkids play sports, and just hanging out. Right now Pam is in California doing just that.  It is a gift that we both treasure.

“And everyone who has left houses, or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.”  (Matthew 19:29)

We saw this abundant return the last ten years of Pam’s parent’s lives as they relocated to Sparks to be near us and eventually moved into our home.  Those many years ago when we served in Chile, we never dreamed her parents would one day live near us.

So, what are you willing to give up for Christ?  Can you trust him enough to make him first, even above the people and things that you treasure the most?

Ukraine War Hits Costa Rica

This past Sunday we had several new visitors at English Christian Fellowship. Among them was a young couple with their young son. It turns out that they are Russians who fled their country as the war was beginning in Ukraine. The young man was born in Ukraine, but years ago immigrated with his family to Russia. As a strapping mid-twenties young man, he was certain to be drafted to fight for the Russians against his own people.

The young couple described a nightmarish scene in the airport as they tried to get out of Russia.  The Russian officials eventually relented and let them leave. With only a few suitcases, they first fled to Turkey. Once there, they discovered that Costa Rica has a generous tourist visa allowing visitors to stay for three months. As a result, they arrived in this neck of the woods a few days ago.

It's one thing to learn in the news about millions of people being displaced by the war in Ukraine. It’s another thing to have one of those displaced families show up on your doorstep. What an amazing opportunity! We feel blessed and privileged.

Our new Russian friends are vibrant Christ followers and finding a Jesus-centered church was a top priority after arriving in Costa Rica. Our billboards continue to draw guests every weekend.  But our Russian guests, along with many others who have visited, found ECF through our updated website. We thank God for these means of communication!

They are currently staying in an Air B&B, but they are looking for more permanent housing with a limited budget. The young man is REALLY big, so he’s at a loss to find clothing to fit him in Costa Rica. Pam is traveling to visit our California “kids” next week. She plans to bring back some XXXL clothing. Imagine fleeing your home and leaving behind most of your clothing, household items, vehicles, etc. That is what our new friends are facing.

If you would like to contribute to their resettlement fund, please go to ECF’s website. On the GIVE link, we have set up a Resettlement Fund that will be channeled directly to our Russian refugees. Thank you in advance!! What an honor to assist these new friends!

Pam has a lovely Christian woman who assists with our deep house cleaning once a week. When Brenda heard the story about our Russian visitors, she teared up and said, “Pamela, if you had not come to Costa Rica, they would not have found the refuge that your church is providing.” That makes it all worthwhile, doesn’t it?  

As I’ve said many times in this blog, when we launched into this new chapter, we had no idea what was awaiting us. We just knew that God was calling us to step into deep water. Now we know that part of the reason for being here is to be a refuge for a beautiful young family that was thrust out of their homeland. Pam and I are glad we are in Costa Rica to play a small part in the story of redemption that God is writing in their lives.

Are You Listening?

The world has turned dramatically darker in the past few weeks. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has set in motion a series of gut-wrenching history-altering events. No one (except God) knows how it will end. Just as the aftermath of the COVID pandemic seemed to be waning, our tragedy-weary world has been rocked with another tsunami of bad news.

All of this brings to mind one of my favorite quotes from one of my favorite authors (CS Lewis). “God whispers to us in our pleasures…but shouts in our pains. It is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world.”

God does not cause wickedness, evil or pain. But he can always use them. God uses pain as a megaphone calling people to repent and reach out to him. God uses wickedness and evil to remind us how powerless we are, and how desperately we need him. The world is writhing in pain right now. I wonder if people are listening to God’s call. I wonder if you are listening.

One of the core doctrines of Christianity is that humankind is broken. We are fallen people. We are sinners. All of us. You, me and Vladimir Putin. My brokenness leads me to behave selfishly toward my family and friends. Your brokenness also leads you into pride and selfishness. (If you deny it, that in itself is a testimony to your pride.)  And Putin’s brokenness is on display for the whole world to see in the nightly news.

Jesus entered into the muddy mess of humanity because, apart from the intervention of God’s grace, we are helpless to change. Human beings are not fundamentally good. That is the core lie promulgated by modern-day secularism. We are NOT fundamentally good. We are broken.

As a result, none of us can be rehabilitated with education, social programs, or money. Certainly, we are not all as bad as we could be. But none of us are as good as we should be. The Bible, and decades of personal experience, have convinced me that apart from Jesus, you, me and Vladimir Putin are the same in our core. We are all broken.

Jesus offers the only solution that can irrevocably change the human heart. He offers forgiveness. He offers relentless love, new values, new purpose, new meaning and, as an added bonus, he also offers the assurance of eternal life.

For most of my growing up I wanted to become an attorney. Toward the end of college, this passion grew and I began to realize that becoming an attorney would potentially help me to make the world a better place. I desperately wanted to make a difference. The world was a mess in 1975…and it still is!

However, when I was 21-years old, as a senior in college, I came to the conclusion that the only way to fundamentally change the world is by helping people, one-at-a-time, to see their need for Jesus, and then helping them to become his fully devoted followers. Heart change, life change, real change can only take place when the brokenness inside us is healed and forgiven. I’ve spent my entire adult life dedicated to this mission.

No doubt, my heart breaks for the ruthless violence in Ukraine. But it would be difficult for me to find even a brief moment during my entire lifetime when there wasn’t some sort of madness going on in the world.

Jesus said the world would grow increasingly violent before he physically returns to earth to establish his kingdom in its fullness. We may be living in the “last days.” I don’t know. But what I do know is this: God uses pain as a megaphone to “rouse a deaf world.”

And I am listening.

Thus, as gas prices sky-rocket and world events continue to unravel at breakneck speed, I am choosing to press closer to Jesus more than ever. I am praying more, listening to him more, trusting him more and leaning into him more than ever. Being glued to a 24-7 newsfeed and cursing Putin or complaining about the ineptitude of other world leaders is woefully unhelpful.

God is trying to rouse the world to see its need for his grace. I hope you are listening.

55 Never Looked So Good

55 people attended English Christian Fellowship this past Sunday. This was, by far, the largest attendance since Pam and I arrived. The hotel meeting room was packed. It was amazing! Most of the new people are finding their way to ECF through our billboards.

What we had hoped and prayed would happen is actually happening. English-speakers who are looking for a Bible-centered, love-saturated and outreach-focused church are finding their way to ECF.

When I first arrived, I told our tiny congregation that when growth occurs a church does not become a bigger version of what it had been. Every time a church doubles in number, it becomes an entirely new church. Relationships change. Ministries change. Worship changes. Leadership changes. Organizational structure changes. Everything changes. I have seen this phenomenon repeatedly in the churches I have served.

People who once knew everyone, eventually know only a handful. The larger church is no longer “their church.” It feels and looks very different. As you might imagine, this is difficult for some people to process. Your prayers are now more important than ever! Pray for Pam and me as we seek God’s wisdom about what adjustments need to be made immediately and what things can wait. We want to move forward wisely…not too quickly but not too slowly, either.

However, one thing has become abundantly clear: there is a cavernous need for the Jesus-centered ministry ECF offers. At this point, it is not hard to envision God raising up a thriving congregation of hundreds of people.  But that will happen one step at a time. One answered prayer at a time. One person at a time. One wise decision at a time.

In the past few days, Pam and I have asked ourselves this soul-searching question: What kind of a church do we want to lead? If you were building a brand-new congregation, how would you answer that question? There are all kinds of answers. None of them are wrong, per se. Around the globe, God uses many different kinds of churches.

However, this week, Pam and I resolved that we want to invest our ministry efforts in Costa Rica to build a spiritually deep congregation.  We pray that the thumbprint of Jesus becomes stamped so deeply into ECF’s DNA that it would amaze the world around us. 

We know that God-honoring ministry “is not by might, nor by power, but by his Spirit.” So, we are learning to depend on God to plant in the growing ECF family a hunger to go deeper. We are also beginning to see spiritual seekers who want to discover more about Jesus and his amazing grace.

The journey continues. Thank you for your prayers and support.

Steve and Pam

P.S.

There is still time to join us on our trip to Israel, November 1-10. Click on ECF’s website (ecfcr.net) under Events to see the details.

No Pain No Gain

Enjoying a tour of the Starbucks Costa Rican Coffee Plantation.

When Pam and I decided that the next chapter of our lives would call us into deep water, I don’t think that we fully appreciated that deep water can often be painful. We told ourselves repeatedly that we wanted to live on the edge for Jesus. We wanted to go full-throttle for the Lord until our last breath. We did not want to coast in ministry or spiritually chill-out for the last quarter of our lives. 

So, we made some not-so-common decisions for people in their mid-60’s. We stepped away from leading one of the most amazing churches in America (Summit), sold our dream house and most of our belongings and moved to Costa Rica to lead a small English-speaking congregation that was on the verge of shutting down.

The thrill of the new chapter propelled us forward for several months. The excitement of making a home in our new country was energizing. Seeing new places, learning new rhythms, discovering how to minister in a new setting were all very rewarding.

But the deep waters have, also, not been without pain. We have been stretched in ways we could not have imagined. In many respects, our ministry with English Christian Fellowship is like planting a new church. After the pain and sacrifice that it took to plant Summit, we told countless people over the years that we would never plant another church. But God has a curious sense of humor, doesn’t he? I now realize that it’s better to never say never when it comes to God!

When this chapter began, Pam and I looked ahead to new spiritual adventures, fresh ministry victories and traveling to exotic places. Somehow, I had forgotten the wisdom I heard years ago from Dean Pense, one of the men that God used to call us to Sparks, Nevada.  Dean often said: “Before God will work through someone to plant a new church, he will first work in him (or her)…deeply and often painfully.”

So, these first few months of deep waters have been exhilarating, but they have also been filled with challenges. But that’s how we grow, isn’t it? Spiritual growth of any kind almost always involves navigating through difficulties. We rarely learn significant spiritual insights or have our character molded while relaxing on a beach sipping a piña colada. I need to remember that going forward. You need to remember that, too.

In the midst of a recent challenging episode, someone approached me and said he thought I looked more relaxed…deeper perhaps…more serene. I assure you that those are not descriptions about me that I’ve heard very often in my life. But I’ve reflected on those comments. And I wonder if the most important thing that God wants to do in this “exciting new chapter” is not to grow another thriving church...but to grow me into a more thriving Jesus-lover.

Looking back, I don’t think Pam and I really knew what we were asking for last year. We wanted deep water. Adventure. Fun. Kingdom advancement. But now I realize that Jesus just wanted more of us. And he wants more of you, too. And that will inevitably be painful. “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.” (James 1:2-3)

The Best Part

This past weekend, Pam and I were in Sparks, Nevada for the inauguration of Summit’s new 1,300 seat Worship Center and a retirement celebration for my 23 years serving as the church’s Founding Pastor. In 2000, one year after we planted the church, we purchased Summit’s 36½ acre site. From the beginning, the Master Plan for the campus envisioned a Worship Center seating more than one-thousand people. It was wonderful to see the new facility finally reach completion after dreaming about it for over 20 years.  The new Worship Center will be an invaluable ministry tool for decades to come!

However, for me, the highlight being at Summit went beyond seeing a beautiful new building that still had the “new carpet” smell. The best part was hearing scores of stories about how Pam and I had impacted individuals for the cause of Christ. People approached us all weekend sharing deeply personal experiences. Words of comfort we had shared. Messages we had given. Prayers we had offered.  Our presence at a hospital during a crisis.

I’m not certain how it came about, but throughout my ministry I have enjoyed building. We built numerous buildings when we lived in Chile as missionaries. And since returning to the USA, we’ve helped to fund several more buildings. In fact, next week I travel to Chile to take part in the dedication of yet another new church. After we moved to Wisconsin, we led the charge to purchase 40 acres for the church to relocate. And we led through three major building programs at Summit.  I really do love building!

But, over the years, I have come to love even more the people who worship and minister inside those buildings. At this point, some of the buildings in Chile that we so proudly dedicated 35+ years ago have become weathered and worn. The sparkle has rubbed off the fresh paint when the buildings were new. But the people inside those facilities still shine for Jesus. And that is the best part!

Yes, I still believe that buildings are an invaluable tool for ministry. The truth is, I fully expect that the church I now serve in Costa Rica will one day have a capital campaign to build a permanent facility. But the best part is never the fresh paint and new carpet. The best part is always the people who are touched by God’s grace and changed for eternity.

Two brief announcements:

·        I’m organizing a trek to climb Costa Rica’s tallest peak, Mount Chirripó. It is 12,536 feet in elevation and an average person takes three days to go up and back. I’m planning the trip for July 19-21. If you are interested, please let me know.  

·        Also, Pam and I are leading another exciting trip to Israel, November 1-10. It is an experience of a lifetime to actually walk where Jesus walked. We’d love to share this spiritually encouraging journey with you. If you are interested, please send me an email at sbond@summitnv.org.

Warmly,

Steve and Pam

How Do You Reach English-speaking Internationals?

This is a question we’ve been pondering since we arrived in Costa Rica. English Christian Fellowship seeks to bring the good news of Jesus to the English-speaking internationals who live in this area. There are over two million people living in the Central Valley, but only a portion of those are English speakers. One website suggests there may be 60,000 English speakers in this area. But most people think it’s less…perhaps 20,000 or so.

So, how do we reach them? We faced a different problem when we planted Summit Christian Church in 1999. At that point, church attendance in Northern Nevada was less than 5% of the population. So, we used an extensive direct mail campaign to get the word out. In Summit’s first year we sent eight oversized post cards to the 20,000+ households in our primary target area. It was costly, but the results were amazing. Over two hundred people became part of the Summit family in our first year.

Pondering and praying about how to reach the “hidden” 20,000+ English-speakers in the San Jose area, we are trying a new approach. This week we put up two billboards on the main highway between the areas where most of the English-speakers live. One billboard faces one direction and the other faces the opposite direction. I’m quite certain that the vast majority of the English-speakers travel this highway regularly.

The question is: Will the billboards catch their attention and cause them to check out ECF? We don’t know for sure. But we’re asking you to pray in this direction. The Bible tells us that at one point God opened a donkey’s mouth to speak clearly. If God can do that, we’re pretty sure he can also use a billboard to spark spiritual interest among English-speakers who are seeking the more and better life that Jesus offers.

We also want to thank you for your prayers for ECF’s Christmas Eve service. We had our largest attendance yet with 43 people…and God’s loving presence was evident. We are encouraged as we continue rebuilding ECF in this new season of ministry for us.

After Christmas, we traveled to Santa Rosa, CA to spend several days with our daughter, Christina, and her family. We enjoyed playing games, sharing meals, laughing, talking and connecting with each other. Their three kids are growing up quickly, so it was nice for Pam and I to be able to connect with each of them.

One of the goals Pam and I set for this year is to develop a new hobby. So, this week we are taking our first golf lesson. Our marriage has weathered some tumultuous storms in the past 43 years. Now, we’ll see how we do on the golf course. Fortunately, we are both at ground zero knowing nothing about how to play golf. We hope it’s a fun new experience that we can both enjoy.

Thanks for your prayers!

Steve & Pam