Eliana Grace Pinedo was born on March 21st, 2025, at 8:04 AM, weighing 7 pounds 7 ounces, measuring 21.5 inches, and perfectly healthy!
My God has answered. Our God has answered. This month was one of anticipation. Excitement, readiness, and nerves filled our hearts and minds as we awaited the birth of Eliana Grace. It has been an anticipation different from other life events - baptism, graduation, marriage, moving away, etc. It is hard to explain it, because being able to look at another human being, a little person that you and your covenantal partner brought into the world - how can we describe it adequately? An overflow of our covenantal love has brought a unique person into this world, Eliana Grace, and she completely depends on us and God to live! The weight of that realization and responsibility is unlike any other. It is unique.
Many people have asked us, “How does it feel being parents and having a kid?” What we say is this: it is an absolute world-changer and there is nothing that compares to it. When we think about how God created this reality, we wonder what He is trying to show and teach us through particular experiences and certain structures. Being parents, we realize God has functioned pro-creation and family relations in such a way, the love between parents and children, for us to understand better how deep His love and grace is for all of us.
In the Bible, characters are given names with meanings. Parents often chose the names of their children to be a sign of who they are and would become, and hoped their child would fulfill the destiny of their name. As we have seen God answer us, we hope and pray that Eliana’s name is a testimony to all those she comes across in her life. Her name has already served as a testimony to us, as it reminds us frequently of God’s goodness in answering us. We hope that as Eliana grows up, she sees and testifies of how God answers her.
How has God answered you recently? What has he answered you about? We would love to hear your responses.
We also wanted to share the excitement of a new branch of the ministry blooming into yet another area of our team as construction has begun for a new building for the preschool (daycare) program in Gradas called Semillitas de Luz (Little Seeds of Light). We cannot wait to share more details and updates as we celebrate this huge testimony of God’s provision alongside our fellow missionaries in the ministry. Something that we love about being a part of a team is how we get to see God’s hand at work in different lives, different ministries and in such unique ways. God always provides for His plans and purposes but in His perfect timing as He has made everything beautiful in His time (Ecclesiastes 3).
Praise Reports:
- The healthy birth of Eliana Grace
- Hannah’s strength remaining and increasing during & postpartum
- Daycare expanding
- Two of our team members are getting married-Diana and Jeremy
- Team growth
Prayer Requests:
- Continued great reports of Eliana’s and Hannah’s health/recovery
- Our team as they have stepped in and up during our absence
- Safe travels and preparations to move back to Costa Rica with our little girl
- Conflicts among Christians within La Carpio to be resolved