Since November we have been in an exciting season of construction. It all started when we signed a contract to rent out our new training center for 6 years. That contract allowed us to start building and making the years of dreaming and planning a reality. We began with a wonderful ground breaking with food and fellowship where we prayed over our new building grounds and made our partnership official.
Then began the leveling of our property by taking down the Rancho and storage. The Rancho was one of the older buildings on the property and included a hang out area as well as our tool and art sheds. The Rancho was full of wonderful memories including worship nights, bible studies, church meetings, movie outings, discipleship, and tons of fellowship and prayer. It was sad to see it being torn down, but we knew that big things were coming!
Once the ranchos were down it was time for the foundation to be laid. A lot of fill was brought in to help with drainage and then they mapped out where the building was going to be. After that, we were now ready to lay the bottom floors.
Once the foundation was laid, the next step was for the walls to go up! The workers started with the first floor which was soon to be our coffee shop and worship/multi-use room. It was so great to see them start to build these areas we had been praying for over and over. Soon after, the bottom floor was poured of the second story followed by the second floor walls.
For a while, the property didn’t look in the best shape. It was full of supplies, construction material, trash, and lots and lots of dust. We had to remind ourselves daily to trust the process. It was always a great reminder of what the Lord was doing, molding, and preparing us for on our property.
Next they smoothed out the walls and began working inside to install fans, electrical outings, lights, and more to get those rooms ready.
Now it was time to paint all the walls – but before that, our Ocean’s Edge Team requested to put up some graffiti! We spray painted all of the walls with Bible verses and truths about God! Just another example of how we are claiming this property for the Lord! It was a fun process to continue to mark the foundation and to speak His name and truth over the future of the building
After our fun time with spray paint, it was then time for the walls to be officially painted. We choose for them to be painted white. For some of the rooms we began to dream of the future murals that we were soon going to paint inside to make them more fun. One of our projects at Ocean’s Edge is painting murals around the town of Jaco – on the light posts, the city parks, hand washing stations, beach showers, and more. So to include our own building in those murals is an exciting task.
As the walls were being painted and the little details were being done, both inside and outside, the workers started to lay down the bricks for the walkway and put in all the windows. The walkway started in the front of the property, through the garage driveway, and into our back parking area. At the same time, we started our Ocean’s Edge Buy-A-Brick Campaign allowing people to purchase one of these bricks with their name or favorite bible verse reference etched on it. These bricks are currently being made and will be placed down soon.
Once these stages were done, we started to have the workers work on the back of the property as well. They laid down an outdoor seating area for our devotionals and hang out time as well as started on our wonderful garden areas. We then were able to plant our beautiful plants all around the property. This has made it more welcoming and pretty – which made it even clearer that we were getting closer to finishing the construction and seeing the final vision come to be.
Our new Business As Missions Training Center is so close to being done. We are so thankful for all of the amazing people who have supported and prayed for us along this incredible journey. We recently put out a video taking you on a short tour inside the new building and around the property. Check it out below…