"I had been reflecting lately on the calling that God has put on our lives, to be the founders of Breath of Life Dance Ministry. It was definitely a process for both Jordy and I to come to this point and start something new. Only by God's sovereignty and strength can I say that we are here. We said our "yes" to Him, and continue to say it, and He makes everything else go into place as He wills it.

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Throughout the years, we have come to know other missionaries, ministries, and organizations with various different callings. (It is encouraging to hear their passions and testimonies on how they said "yes" to God too!)

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Yet each type of work for God's kingdom has a different essence to it. (1 Cor. 12:12-27)

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Some are very tangible to see the process from start to finish, like building houses for families in need, or redistributing resources and food. The supporters of those ministries know that their one-time investments into those projects will have a direct fruition into the final product. The impact is very obvious, because there are numbers and statistics that are credited to your work. And it is very satisfying to see the work done, from start to finish.

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Even so, other ministries are meant to empower the people, such as those in community development or education. Their goal is to offer resources and trainings through a Biblical Worldview, so that those individuals can use their own gifts to sustain themselves and contribute to the development of their neighborhoods in a holistic way. If there are students, you can really see the growth in their comprehension, and there is a start and finish to those classes.

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Yet the calling that we have at BOLDM is very evangelistic and relational. It is a long-term vision that you may not see the fruits for a while. You may not have big numbers of material things that you achieved to bless the people with, as a determination of your impact. But every step that we take, and every door that God opens, and each relationship we make, is us advancing forward in God's vision of bringing the message of salvation to those who have not heard or accepted it yet.

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"How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!” --Romans 10:14-15

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Sometimes, I've realized that in my own thoughts, that I wish that we had such "tangible projects" as our work. It would be so easy to explain to people what we do so that they can understand quickly. Even more, if they choose to support those types of projects, they'll have a visible product to see and feel like they contributed to something that's undeniably there.

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But that is not our line of work, or our calling.

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Our place in the body of Christ is uniquely different, but equally important.

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Our calling is to provide free dance classes and workshops to youth, mainly in low-resourced communities, so that they may come to know God and His love, grace, and salvation. And, so that they may grow in their talents and character, to be a light to others in this world, too. We are called to GO to them with our services and talents to make them the most accessible; not so that they are obliged to come find us. We are always on the move! Yes, in the future, we plan to have a base in San José, but the essence of our ministry will always be GOING OUT and finding those youth. That is the evangelistic essence of who we are as BOLDM. Our resources are our hands, our feet, and our willing hearts to go where God calls us to go.

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And something that really encourages me is to see the faith of our financial partners who also believe in this long-term mission of BOLDM. They know the impact of BOLDM's work goes beyond something material. There may be no clear ending to this project--we may only see the stages/phases of our ministry begin and form into the next one. Yet their desire is to see the fruits in the heart of every youth we work with as they come to know Jesus in such a personal way--THAT is their direct investment into the lives of youth that God seeks to reach. From there, the Gospel changes everything for those youth!

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I am so grateful for those individuals of faith who have walked before us, and for those who partner with us, because they get it as well. And if you are one of these individuals, or would like to be a supporter...we are, and would be, so happy to have you on our team to expand God's kingdom here in the hearts of youth!

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One Bible passage that has always really encourages me is in Romans 15, where Paul is explaining in his letter that his calling is to minister to the Gentiles. God had put one of the most evangelistic callings upon his life! He had to start from scratch in a place where they didn't already worship the one true God, nor had they ever heard about Jesus as the Messiah! He says:

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"Yet I have written you quite boldly on some points to remind you of them again, because of the grace God gave me to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles. He gave me the priestly duty of proclaiming the gospel of God, so that the Gentiles might become an offering acceptable to God, sanctified by the Holy Spirit....It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation. Rather, as it is written:

“Those who were not told about him will see,
and those who have not heard will understand.” (v.15-16, 20-21)

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Paul was always sure and confident in God's calling upon his life, even though it was doing something new among the Gentiles that even the majority of Jews didn't understand or support. His Godly conviction led many to know salvation in Jesus! He kept travelling, being led by the Holy Spirit to where he was to go. He helped found many churches in various countries (be it among a group of people, or in a physical location), but he had to shortly leave afterwards to keep starting-up new churches and communities in Christ across Europe and Asia.

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In conclusion: Evangelism is a process of the heart in each individual you come to be in relationship with. It's a "project" that doesn't really have a finish line or a tangible product of an outcome. Those who support evangelistic ministries like Breath Of Life support a long-term, ongoing goal of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to be spread across all nations in the world. We and our financial partners share the same faith in what God will do, and we share the same passion of making Jesus' name known, so that youth may be saved and live a life of abundance in Him!

The praise be to God, whose mercy and grace was poured upon my own life, in my great need for Him. And that He can use us in ways I never imagined to bring the same Gospel message of truth to many more who were in my same situation. He is always doing new things!

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I am so excited to see how God will move in many more individuals' lives."

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God bless you all,

- Abby Gómez Athman

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Breath of Life Dance Ministry

Costa Rica