Committed to Costa Rica
//Gary & Elena Meador
Gary and Elena Meador were put to such a test when they started Rhema Costa Rica in 2007. The school had been open for only a few months when armed bandits raided it. Gary saw their car pulling up in front of the building and rushed to the front entrance to lock the door. But by the time he got there, it was too late. The bandits had already barged in. They pulled out their guns and began pistol-whipping Gary until he was knocked unconscious.
When the bandits entered the classroom, they shot at one of the students, but the bullet went between his legs without striking him. The bandits kept demanding laptops and were enraged when they couldn’t find any. They were able to steal only one old laptop that belonged to the guest instructor who was teaching that day.
At one point, one bandit returned to the front entrance, pointed his gun at Gary, and was about to shoot him when suddenly the second bandit called from the classroom. The armed intruder returned to the classroom without taking the fatal shot!
| The Deaf Shall Hear Again! In October Elena Meador and two Rhema Costa Rica graduates traveled to the Nicaraguan city of Estelí near the Honduran border. While there, the small missions team ministered in two churches. Elena was also able to visit with some of the international students who live there. A main topic of discussion was how to start a Rhema extension campus in Estelí! The group then hopped aboard a small propeller-driven airplane and flew to the coastal city of Bluefields, where Elena ministered in El Verbo Church. While Elena was preaching, a man who had been deaf for a long time received his hearing! Many others were also healed and baptized in the Holy Spirit. The fields in Central America are ripe for harvest. And the Meadors have dedicated their lives to training more laborers to bring that harvest in! |
Thankfully, after the ordeal, not one of the students was harmed. Gary was examined by doctors at the local hospital, and test results showed that he suffered no internal injuries—only a few cuts here and there.
After the incident, the Meadors were told they should leave the area—that it was too dangerous to start a Bible school there. But Gary and Elena were firmly resolved to stay. God had called them to this nation and had led them to that property. They weren’t about to quit—especially when they were just getting started.
Fear, however, gripped the students. In fact, a couple of students left Rhema because of what took place. But shortly after the incident, Pastors Craig and Sharon McCune from New Creation Church in Salt Lake City, Utah, were guest speakers at the school. As they ministered to the shaken students, the Holy Spirit moved powerfully. Shackles of fear were broken and a sadness that choked the students lifted. Students were able to move beyond the chilling experience and boldly press forward to prepare for God’s call on their lives.
Instead of packing their bags and leaving after that harrowing experience, the Meadors have poured the message of faith into hungry students. And since December 2008, Rhema Costa Rica has held four graduations!
Rhema Costa Rica
Nestled in the capital city of San Jose, Rhema Costa Rica offers three avenues of study. Some students first enroll in Academia Biblica Cristiana (ABC), a discipleship program. The next step is enrollment in Rhema’s two-year program, which is patterned after the Rhema USA curriculum.
While most students are from San Jose and the surrounding towns in the Central Valley, others have come from both the Caribbean and Pacific coasts. One dedicated student from the northern province of Guanacaste takes a four-hour bus ride every week to attend classes.
Rhema “Boot Camp”
The Meadors found that prospective students from outside of Costa Rica wanted to attend Rhema, but it was difficult for them to leave their jobs. To accommodate them, the Meadors started what they call Rhema Boot Camp, an intensive, month-long, 40-hour-a-week study program held in January and June—the two months that regular classes are not in session. In Central America it’s possible for workers to get a special permit that allows them to leave their jobs for one month. The concentrated program perfectly accommodates international students.
This year eight students—five from Nicaragua, two from Panama, and one from Costa Rica—descended upon San Jose to bury themselves in the intensive Boot Camp. Rhema Costa Rica provides accommodations and food, which allows students to shut themselves off from outside distractions.
Fast Facts |
Run with military precision, the Boot Camp keeps students on strict schedules. When the morning alarm sounds, they race in and out of the shower, grab a quick breakfast, and head off to eight hours of classroom study. Evenings are cordoned off so they can complete reading assignments and study for exams. No TV is allowed, and phone and Internet use are restricted. And of course, it’s lights-out at 10 p.m.
Boot Camp students complete five sessions before they graduate. Needless to say, they return to their countries transformed and on fire.
“It’s a strategic way to get into a country without being there,” says Elena. “Whenever we go to these countries, we already have grads there who can help us and who are already talking to people about Rhema.”
Transforming a Nation
Since its inception, Rhema Costa Rica has graduated 33 men and women. And they’re sharing the Gospel with a boldness that is typical of Rhema grads everywhere. Many graduates are in ministerial positions in their churches or are working in full-time ministry. One graduate started a small Bible school in the rural, mountainous region of Tarrazu. Another graduate travels to poverty stricken areas ministering to children.
Although the international students attending Boot Camp haven’t graduated yet, they’re already impacting their nations. Two students are ministering in churches throughout Nicaragua. And another student is helping to open doors for Rhema in Panama.
The Meadors have begun to duplicate themselves. They’re imparting everything they know into hungry men and women who are eager to share the Gospel. Graduates, in turn, are taking what they’ve learned to the far corners of Costa Rica and beyond. But there’s still much work to be done in this popular tourist destination. The nation is steeped in humanism and liberalism. The Meadors are plowing in rocky soil, so to speak. But they won’t stop until Costa Rica is transformed by the Gospel and inroads have been made into all of Central America.