Celebration & Reflection (11/28/25)

Hey Support Family!

This month has been filled with celebration and gratitude. We celebrated both of our birthdays, hosted a big brunch at our home, enjoyed Thanksgiving with missionary friends from our language school, and took part in Missions Day at ILE. Each of these moments happened on different days, but together they shaped our November.

We are thankful for the community God has placed around us and

for the ways He keeps encouraging our hearts.

“Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good.

His love endures forever.”

(Psalm 136:1)

Earlier this month our language school celebrated Missions Day. This day was such a fun experience. We spent the day learning about countries from all around the world, watching different dances and cultural presentations, and even learning how to make gallo pinto with our teachers (which was honestly one of our favorite highlights). We dressed up in typical clothes for the event which made it even more exciting. Days like this remind us how big and beautiful the world is.

We have been beyond blessed by the opportunities we’ve had and the people we have met through this school! We have one more week of language school (time goes so fast). Being part of this program and growing in our Spanish has been such a gift. The extra time here has strengthened what we have learned and given us more confidence as we continue to step more fully into our ministry roles. We are thankful for every teacher, classmate, and moment that has shaped this season.

Stepping into our Ministry  

This month we also began stepping into our ministries here in Costa Rica. Rachel has started serving in the preschool rooms, and it has already been a unique and stretching experience. The dynamic is completely different from when she taught in the States. She has been helping out teaching English and most of the little ones do not speak any English. She has been learning how to communicate, comfort, and guide them with very limited language in common.

It has been both challenging and rewarding. Every time in the classroom brings new moments of patience, creativity, and grace while also practicing her own Spanish she has gained throughout these past few months.

We are grateful for the chance to begin serving in this way and to build relationships with the children and teachers at the school. It feels meaningful to take these first steps and to see how God is shaping our ministry.

Josh has also begun serving at ProMETA through helping them set up a recruitment process. He has had the opportunity to meet some of the staff and start working with them as they look for the right person to be mentored by him this year.

This mentorship will be a key part of developing and shaping ProMETA’s new video department. It has been encouraging to see relationships forming and to begin praying together about how media can support Christian leaders and pastors across the Spanish speaking world.

We are grateful for these first steps into ministry. Both roles are already stretching us in meaningful ways and reminding us of our need to rely on God for wisdom, strength, and direction.

Thanksgiving Day

Yesterday we also gathered with a group of missionary friends from our language school for Thanksgiving. It was a sweet and simple celebration filled with good food, conversation, and games!

Being far from home can make holidays feel a little different, but God has surrounded us with a community that feels like family. We are thankful for friends who share the same mindset, the same heart for ministry, and the same desire to follow and share about Christ. Celebrating together reminded us that God provides exactly what we need, even in unfamiliar places.

Here are a couple random things we are thankful for :

-Community

-Growth in language learning

-Uber ride conversations

-Learning to live more “Pura Vida” (living life a little slower)

-An amazing landlord (Dueña) that takes care of us! (our oven broke the other week and she replaced it in less than 24hrs). She also gifted us a REAL Christmas tree & lots of Christmas decor to decorate our house for the holidays.

-The beautiful Costa Rican weather. The summer is just now starting here so the transition from the rainy season to summer is perfect!

-Family even though we are countries apart.

-The gift of being able to go home for Christmas.

Fundraising Update

We are grateful to share that we’ve currently raised about 62.79% of our needed support, which will carry us through the next six months of this year. We thank God for His provision so far and for each of you who have prayed, encouraged, and given so generously to help us reach this point.

Would you continue to join us in prayer as we seek the remaining support?

Specifically, please pray:

-For potential new donors and opportunities to share our vision, even here in Costa Rica.

-That we would not grow discouraged, but instead keep our eyes on God as our daily Provider.

-For faith to rely on Him each day for our “daily bread,” trusting that He will continue to be faithful.

God has already shown His provision in so many ways, and we are confident He will continue to lead and supply all that is needed for the ministry ahead.

Support us

Prayer requests

-Continued Energy as we wrap up our last week of language learning.

-For unity as we continue to serve alongside our ministries ProMETA & Sojourn.

-That Josh, along with the ProMETA Team Would gain clarity on who the right person is to be mentored by Josh this year (for their new video department).

-Ongoing provision and new partners to join our support team.

Praise God

-For three amazing months at the language school.

-For the amazing community we have through the language school & the local church we have been attending.

-For the progress in learning Spanish and the joy of already seeing some fruit from it.

-We were blessed with the ability to go home for Christmas!

We are deeply grateful for your prayers, encouragement, and generosity. Your partnership makes it possible for us to be here, learning, growing, and preparing to serve.

With love and gratitude, Joshua & Rachel Swift