Easter was perfect!

Holiday get togethers are memorable.  A big part of these special days include being with family, celebrating customs and eating traditional foods.  My mom always did things up big with decorations, delicious food, and gifts.  My parents' house was the place to go for Easter, Thanksgiving, Christmas, the Fourth of July, and birthdays.

When my mom passed away eight years ago, holidays changed.  As time passed, we stopped meeting at my parents' house and would rotate holidays at my brother's house or ours, but we moved further away, then to another country, then back again, yada yada yada.  Don't get me wrong - we've had some good family get togethers like Thanksgiving at my brother's in 2015; my sister-in-law really outdid herself with the meal and our son loved watching "grey" movies* with the family!  It's just that I miss some of the family traditions that we always did.

This year around Easter, I was feeling melancholy and nostalgic and told my husband about some of the things that I missed about Easter with my family growing up.  He gave me a big hug and suggested that I try to do those things again...so I did.

My mom always bought the four of us new clothes to look our best at church on Easter Sunday.  I don't go shopping very often, but decided to do it.  I bought new outfits for the three of us and my dad.

Every year, we'd take a family picture in our driveway with our new clothes on so I did that, too.

We used to have ham, macaroni and cheese, rolls, and lots more for lunch after church.  I didn't get around to cooking, but a good friend invited me to her relative's house and we had a delicious lunch there that tasted as good as I remember having at my parents' house growing up.  While we were there, we got to dye Easter eggs and have an Easter egg hunt with my friend's sons.

Of course Easter was a great day because we get to celebrate Jesus' resurrection, but it was also a great day because God blessed me with recreating special moments that I used to have with my family.

*  That Thanksgiving was David's first time watching a black and white movie which he called "grey".  It was "Miracle on 34th Street".  

Words are so powerful.

My brother and I are members of a Facebook group entitled “You’re probably from Douglasville if” – along with 4,000 other people.  Someone from the group recognized Andrew’s last name and decided to write him a private Facebook message:

Saw your name on the "you must have lived in Douglasville" page and just have to ask ... Is your mom Sally Whatley? She was my 3rd grade teacher. If you aren't, it sure is a coincidence because you sure look like her and I remember that her son’s name was Andrew. If not, sorry I bothered you. If so, just know that she was my FAVORITE teacher and I became a teacher because of her!! : )

After that, Andrew explained to this lady that my mom passed away five years ago to which she replied:

Oh, I am so sorry. I can honestly say that 2008 was the year that I thought of her all the time. I know this because it was the year that we returned to Georgia from North Dakota and I was applying for teaching jobs here in Paulding & Douglas. It brought her to my mind often when I was asked why I became a teacher. I also found out today that you know my brother, Randy. I saw your name on his friend list and asked him about you. I guess it really is a small world. Thank you for your reply. Again, I am sorry that you no longer have your mom here. My prayer is that you WILL see her again because I feel quite certain that she was a Godly woman just based on the memories of a little third grade girl who thought the world of her. God bless you and your family.

Gracious words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body.  Proverbs 16:24

Earthquake!

In the summer of 1999, I was in Mexico City leaning against a handrail outside of a Sanborn’s restaurant (waiting for my boyfriend, Enrique, to pick me up).  The handrail rocked a little which I thought happened due to me leaning upon it, but then I saw the power lines sway and realized that something bigger was happening.  The tremor was so slight that it may not have even made it in the news that day, but it was a big deal to me!

Even bigger was what happened last Wednesday down here in Costa Rica.  It was 8:45am and Enrique, David, and I were getting ready to leave the house.  The earth started to shake and Enrique gathered us under a door frame.  The quake lasted a little over a minute which is an eternity when you do not know what is going to happen next.  It was VERY scary for me.

I am so thankful that the three of us were together because I do not know how I would have reacted without Enrique by my side.  He is always good at being level headed.  I feel like I would have panicked and cried which would not have been good for David to see since he feeds off of our behavior.  Enrique kept us calm and played it off to David like something really cool was happening – no big deal.  At our place, only a picture fell off the wall.  To see more “shaky, shaky”, click here.

But it was a big deal; it was a magnitude 7.6 earthquake!  Since Wednesday, I have read online that many tremors have happened since then.  There was even a magnitude 5.6 quake yesterday at 2:30pm!  Thankfully, I did not feel a thing.

It is very nerve wracking to be in a state of uncertainty where you do not have control over the situation.  I am scared that another earthquake may happen, but I cannot live in fear.  I cannot play the “what if” game all the time.  I just have to learn how to be safe and then leave the rest in God’s hands.  We are not in control of our destiny and we must be ready at any time to leave this world.  

God’s Been Good to Me

I can’t go a day longer without letting you know how good God is to little ole me.  This song by Crystal Lewis explains exactly how I feel. 

More specifically, I really enjoyed my whirlwind visit of 10 days in Atlanta visiting 20 families.  I drove from Lithia Springs, to Lawrenceville, to Cumming, to Villa Rica, to Norcross to everywhere in between.  I have such a great family and caring friends.  God used them to care for me in very specific ways.

Ever since we moved here nine months ago, it seems like I’ve been making a shopping list for whenever I would be able to go back to the States.  My list was much longer than my budget!  And unanticipated travelling costs really ate into my pocketbook before I ever set foot into the first store.  But God knew all of that and provided everything that I needed – even down to olive oil and hair clips. 

We ran out of olive oil the day before I went to Atlanta, but I didn’t buy more assuming that Enrique wouldn’t need it in my absence.  When I got to my Dad’s, I found a bottle of unopened olive oil that I had stored in the closet.

I am growing out my hair so hair accessories were on my list.  When we moved here, my hair was too short for clips and such so I left them all at my dad’s.  I had forgotten about them and was pleased to find them!

There are a few Christian book stores here, but nothing as awesome as LifeWay!  I went a little crazy buying $7.99 movies, $5 cds, and $1 packs of note cards.  I gladly paid the $80, but started to feel buyer’s remorse as I drove on to my next store.  That night, I began looking through some of the stuff that we didn’t bring last August and found all of the note cards and cds that I need so I returned practically everything two days later.

The credit back to my check card took longer than usual which prevented me from shopping for five days.  I was frustrated with this restriction, but then saw that it was God’s way to protect me from buying more stuff either that I didn’t need or that He was going to provide.

Unfortunately, I tend not to listen to God and do things my own way.  Since I didn’t see the money in my account and really wanted to go shopping at the thrift store, I moved some money around and drove to half-off day.  Even though the pajamas for David on my list were only $1.50 (for the top and bottom), the very next day a friend gave David some brand new pjs as a gift.

God also used family and friends to bless me with three new tops; three home cooked meals; eight times to go out to eat; toys for David; gas for the car; an awesome tour of Chick-fil-A headquarters; and money to buy a much wanted purse and shoes, and pay to check my two suitcases at the airport.

While at the airport today, I must share a few more examples of God spoiling me. 

• I weighed my suitcases at home and each piece weighed between 40 and 42 pounds (40 lbs. is the max; if you go over, there is a $25 charge.  I know this because that’s one of the travelling fees I experienced on my way to the States).  When I got to the airport, they were both a few pounds below the limit which allowed to me put some of the stuff I was carrying in my hand into the suitcase.
• You know how for international flights, you’re supposed to get to the airport three hours ahead of time?  I got there just in time, three minutes before they started boarding.
• We travelled on Spirit which is a no-thrills airline. The seats recline ½ inch and are very small.  If you want to choose your seats or enjoy one of the limited larger seats, it costs about $30 for each “luxury”.  Even though I didn’t request the roomier seats or pay to pick where we sit, David and I got to sit on the third row in the big seats (two seats per row versus three)!
• On the way to the States, David’s ears and my head hurt upon descent even though neither of us was sick.  I was dreading that to happen again –especially since we were both a little sick with runny noses and congestion – but there was no pain whatsoever.  As a bonus, David slept the majority of the six-hour trip.

Sleeping in the roomy seat with Buddy, the dog.

Please take five minutes to listen to the lyrics of the song that I mentioned at the beginning of this blog entry.  I am humbled by God taking care of every detail of my life and loving me unconditionally. 

We now have an address!

I am happy to report that the Goveas have an official address where you can send us cards and letters.  Please write to us at:

Enrique Govea, SJO 20066
APDO 424-1260
Plaza Colonial, Escazú, Costa Rica

If you want to send us any kind of package, please e-mail me and I'll give you that address.

We look forward to hearing from you!

*The address on the previous "FAQ: What's our address?" has been revised to this one.

"We've got so much, so much, so much....so much - clap - to be thankful for."

When you move to a new place, it takes a while to make friends, however in three and a half months, we have been blessed by some amazing people who have been very generous with us.  

When we moved here in August, we brought whatever fit into six 32-gallon plastic bins and three suitcases.  We weren’t able to bring everything that we wanted to, but God has provided.

We really appreciate how God has used new friends to give us everything that we need.  Whether loaned to us or donated, we are grateful that He has supplied us these items in addition to the furnished home that we rent:

• Dish rack            
• Coat hangers
• Mirror for the bathroom
• Fan
• Twin bed for David
• Sheets and a comforter set for our bed
• Bathroom towels
• Two desks and chairs for our home office
•  Set of dishes, glasses, and other kitchen items (in addition to what came with the house)
• Casserole dish
• Toaster
• Food
• Clothing and accessories for me
• Clothing for David
• Toys and books for David
• Car seat/booster seat
• Step stool for David
• Bedrails for David
• One-year membership to PriceSmart (a store like Sam's and Costco)
• Car

FAQ: What is our address?

Several of our family and friends have asked for our address in order to mail us letters and care packages. Please know that it is not my intention to avoid this inquiry because we love to receive mail. It’s just that we don’t have a traditional mailing address; we don’t even have a mailbox! How can that be, you ask? Mailing bills, letters, cards, and such is not done the way we do it in the United States. While it may seem frustrating not to have an address, the good thing is that we don’t get any junk mail!

If you would like to send us a letter or card, please write to:


Enrique Govea, SJO 20066
APDO 424-1260
Plaza Colonial, Escazú, Costa Rica


If you would like to send any kind of package to us, please e-mail me and I’ll give you the address.

We would love to hear from you!

We made it!

We woke up at 3am this morning to finish packing and weighed and reweighed our luggage in order to not go over the 50 pound limit for each piece.  Towards the end of packing, we realized that we couldn't take everything that we wanted so we had to make some hard decisions as to what to take and what to bring later.  At the airport, each suitcase weighed around 49 pounds or so. 
The flight was on time and went well.  We all slept a little on the plane and David also occupied himself with a care package full of activities that my sister-in-law, Kathleen, made.  As we were landing, we saw lots of beautiful, green mountains.
Our friends, Julio and Ashley, and one of their sons, Lucas, met us at the airport and took us home.  We don't know why, but the traffic was pretty bad.  The way people drive here is very aggressive and I don't see myself getting behind the wheel anytime soon! 
Julio and Ashley treated us to Wendy's which happens to be within walking distance from our home.  We unpacked our stuff from their car and a taxi van and had lunch at home.  I was simply amazed with our new home; it's the most beautiful home that we've ever had.  There are three bedrooms and two bathrooms; one even has a jacuzzi tub which is very rare in other countries.  The kitchen has a brand new refrigerator, electric stove, and pretty cabinets with contemporary handles.  We have a washer and dryer too.
The "wow factor" is when you walk in the front door into the living room and see an open area with greenery behind a sliding glass door.  It lets in a lot of natural light.  I'll send a picture later so that you can see what I mean.
The windows have curtains and there is plenty of closet space in each room.  We have a garage that has a tile floor, as does the rest of the house, so David can go out there and play by himself.  There is no air conditioning so we leave the windows and front door open to cool off.  Even though the front door is open, the garage door is closed and so is the gate door entrance so David cannot get into the street and no one can come inside without us letting them.
We are the first house in the neighborhood (Residencia Julieta) after the security guard so we feel very safe.  The neighborhood has a playground that we can see from the kitchen window; I know that we'll be going there often.  At the security guard's post is where you take your recyclables - yea!  I'm glad that Costa Rica is so "green" and I can walk a few yards to drop off glass, aluminum cans, cardboard, mixed paper, and plastic. 
Today, we took a small walk and discovered that there are many businesses closeby - a pharmacy, a locksmith, a pizzeria, a tire repair guy, a fruit stand, a convenience store, and a deli shop.  That was just when we turned left at the stop sign.  Later, we're going to turn right and see what there is.
The security guard's name is Eliazar and the deli shop owner's name is Elsa.  We hope to meet all of our neighbors, residential and business owners, in order to form relationships so that we may invite them to our church.  If you would start praying for God to open Eliazar's and Elsa's hearts, that would be great!
When we went to the deli shop, Elsa's daughter was watching "Martha Speaks"...in Spanish!  When we went home, I turned on the TV and found Discovery Kids with all of David's favorite shows in Spanish - "Super Why", "Curious George", "The Cat in the Hat Knows a lot About That", etc.  My eyes started to mist and David asked if I was sad.  I told him that I am very happy that he can watch his shows because it makes the adjustment for him a little easier.  He unpacked his toy box and is having fun playing with toys that he hasn't seen in over a month.
Our first day here has been very nice for which we are thankful.

Going Away Party

We enjoyed fellowshipping with family and friends on July 23 at our Govea Sendoff at our church. There were about 65 people there from all over – Alpharetta, Cumming, Canton, Flowery Branch, Lawrenceville, Dahlonega, Douglasville, Lithia Springs, Villa Rica, Roswell, Norcross, even Tennessee! We enjoyed cake, danced merengüe, explained how to become a virtual member, and had several people pray over us as we embark on our journey. Julian, of GlobalX (our church's missions department), and his family have served as missionaries in Mexico and reiterated that we must be on guard because our marriage will be attacked by the enemy while we are serving the Lord. He also prayed for unity amongst our team in Costa Rica and for the people that we are going to reach.

At the party, two families committed to being virtual members which means that they pledge to donate $250/month for two years. The more people stateside who can make that sacrifice, the more attractive events our church can offer to the community. We know that it is a big commitment, especially in this economy, but God will honor these families' trust in and obedience to Him in amazing ways!  We have also been blessed by several friends kindly giving us one-time donations for which we are very grateful.  God takes these offerings and multiplies them in ways that only He can.

Welcome to our Blog

Thank you for reading our blog.  Most of us have Facebook, e-mail, and other ways to keep in touch so why do we need a blog?  Its purpose is to not necessarily to track the Goveas' everyday life, but what is happening with them as a missionary family.  We also want to use this blog as a place to post praises and prayer requests.  We appreciate you lifting us up to the Father in prayer while we work to make more people aware of God's saving grace and abundant life that He has for us. 

Enrique and I met when I was on the mission field in Mexico in 1999.  Being missions-minded is part of our DNA and for the past couple of years, we have had a desire to go on the mission field together.  That dream has now become a reality as we seize the opportunity to share Christ’s love in Central America.

We have responded to God’s call in…Costa Rica!  Enrique will supervise small groups (Bible studies in homes) by training and encouraging leaders and will also translate and develop original lesson plans for the children’s programming at a new church.  He has actually already gone to Costa Rica three times this year to meet and encourage the existing leaders.

We are excited to serve God in this capacity and look forward to our adventure in this beautiful paradise.  Enrique spends his days corresponding with church leaders and volunteers and translating while I play with David and try to donate, recycle, sell, and pack our stuff.  We are moving at the beginning of August and plan to spend our last days in Georgia visiting with family and friends that we don’t see as often as we like.

Preceding us on this journey are our friends, Julio and Ashley Gonzalez, who moved down there with their two little boys in April.  Julio serves as the church’s pastor.  Due to the fact that Costa Ricans are highly educated and many are bilingual, Bible studies are offered in both Spanish and English!

We are partnering with our church here, North Point Community Church, to start a church for people who don’t necessarily have a problem with God, but with religion.  We want to take people back to the root of why Jesus came and how much God wants to connect with us.