It’s Friday night and the first week of camp has officially finished! It’s crazy how quickly the week has already gone by, and I can’t believe that we’ll be sending the first week of Americans home tomorrow morning!
Overall, camp went really well this week and we were able to figure out what worked and what didn’t for each day. Every day of camp looks different than the one before. If you’ve never been to camp, here’s a quick rundown of the daily routines:
Mondays begin with a tour of Lusaka for the Americans while staff organizes the hundreds of kids into their groups for the week. Then, after the tour is over, the Americans arrive at camp and meet their groups for the week.
Tuesdays are ‘rotation days’ and the groups go through three different stations for the morning. There’s the coloring station where the kids each get to color their own “Armor of God” page and take it home at the end of the day, the ‘snaps’ station where the kids have their pictures taken individually and with their American, and then the blessing time station is when the Americans have extra time to do one-on-ones with their group.
Wednesdays are the least chaotic- it’s small group times, big group times, and blessing times all day.
Thursdays are community days- the Americans are all bussed out to the compound from which there kids are and they spend the day going around and watching their group evangelize to the people in the community.
And finally, Fridays are the final celebration days of each week of camp! The kids are fitted for and receive a pair of school shoes, along with a Camp LIFE bracelet, a Bible, a piece of candy, a bookmark, and their certificate (with the snaps taken on Tuesday). Goodbyes are said, so many tears are shed, and countdowns to the next year of Camp LIFE begin.
Each day brings somethings special to the table, but I always love to hear stories from Thursdays in the community. Every night at dinner, the American ambassadors will share “testimonies” about the day, or stories about how the Lord moved in their group. This week was no different from the past summers when I listened to story after story about how beautiful, 360 degree transformations that occurred that day. The students become the teachers, and the teachers become the students on Thursdays. Everyone was so amazed at how boldly these orphans went around to drunks and witch doctors proclaiming the Gospel.. a story of our God’s overwhelming and redemptive love that they first learned about only 3 days before. Hundreds of precious children are unleashed onto these dirty, dusty streets with their Evangecubes and such hungry, eager hearts to tell the world about Jesus; and the result is completely awesome. Orphans, who are completely overlooked, neglected, and kicked around, are bringing the best news in the world to people and are changing the face of their community for the Kingdom. Their 3-day old (some less) childlike faiths bring numbers of people of Christ every Thursday, without fail.
These kids, who are surrounded by nothing but poverty, darkness, and hunger, and have never felt loved by anyone, are able to go out and proclaim the most perfect, beautiful love to complete strangers without hindrance. As for me, I live an easy, comfortable life and know I am loved by my family and friends, yet I still freak myself out and have never proclaimed the Gospel that I have known my whole life to people in the same way that those orphans do every Thursday. The last verse of Acts has always been so convicting for me, but I see it perfectly displayed in the communities when these children are evangelizing:
“Boldly and without hindrance he preached the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ.”
Acts 28:31
I’m praying that God would make me more like these kids, that I would feel more than comfortable going up to a random stranger and sharing the story of our Father’s love with them. That I could have the same childlike and pure faith. That I would boldly and without hindrance share the Gospel like they do. Never would I have imagined myself praying to be more like an orphan, but here I am.
Hope that’s long enough for you! I know it was a lengthy post, but it’s really what the Lord’s been laying on my heart lately and I promised to keep you updated! Anyway, that’s all for now! Blessings until next time!
No comments:
Post a Comment