Last morning of camp; the clouds have parted, and we are greeted with sunshine and warmth. The temperature varies greatly with the movement of the clouds. When they move away, it can warm up nicely, but they can quickly regroup and a chill fills the air. So we greet the day with the sun and talk about the last subject of the week – being on mission. Using Matthew 28: 18, Adam and Laura share what our mission is as believers – go and share, make disciples. They did a great job of explaining how to share the gospel clearly and simply. The campers were asked to think of three people they could share the gospel with and begin to pray for them. Before the morning break, the students were asked to share some of their own testimonies. What a joy to hear them! Here are a few excerpts from what they share.
“This camp has transformed my life. Before coming here, I was bitter and
resentful. I have learned that harboring
bitterness hurts only me. I learned to
forgive and have been able to forgive those who have hurt me.”
“Before coming here, I didn’t read the Bible much. After learning how to read and study the
Bible, I am serious about studying it and hope others have changed their
feelings too.”
“I appreciate learning to respect girls as my sisters. If I
see boys bullying girls, I am going to stop them and protect them.”
“Before coming here, I wasn’t following Jesus. Now I know that God changes us, and we are to
not only read the Word, but also do it.
I don’t want to be like the foolish man who built his house on sand, but
build on the rock. I want to share with
my friends and give them Bibles.”
This is transformation!!
In the small groups, discussion of the week and how to share
the gospel continued. Then we asked if
they would write down something about the week and what they thought about
it. What testimonies!! Pages and pages of sincere praise to God as
they told about what they had learned and how their hearts had been changed! One asked if we could stay a month or so…….
The week has flown by; it has been so very rich and
full. We are all sad to see it end, but
how grateful we are to have had the privilege of sharing these days with the
young people and all the helpers. But we still have Sunday!
Today was the last day to polish and have “dress rehearsal”
for Sunday’s presentation at church.
After numerous run throughs in groups, they had several practices at
putting it all together within the time frame allotted. It is obvious that they have worked hard;
they are taking pride in their accomplishments.
Their whole demeanor has changed since Monday - they are full of enthusiasm and hold their
heads high.
We have been here for six days now, and at long last our bag
was located and after an all day ordeal at the airport, John was able to secure
our bag containing our photo printer, paper and ink, and projector. So as teen week concluded with a celebratory
cake (served by the girls to the boys to show that they respected and wanted to
serve them, too) John was able to take individual pictures of the campers so
that we can give each of them a picture on Sunday as a special remembrance of
this week.
Tomorrow we will go into Kibera to visit several Bible clubs
that meet every Saturday, help serve them lunch and make home visits. It will be a very sobering experience for
those who have not been there before.
The enormity and density of the slum is overwhelming, but this is home
to an estimated 1.5-2 million people in a 600 acre space. With little/no sanitation, running water or
electricity, you can imagine what it is like.
But God is in the midst of this community! As Adam and Laura shared this morning, if
each of these young people discipled three people, then each of them disciple
three, and so on, more than 27,000 people would be disciples of Jesus in a relatively
short amount of time. Imagine the impact
on Kibera, Nairobi and beyond with these witnesses – talk about kingdom
building!
The Son has indeed shone today! The words of the song the young people wrote
(lyrics and music) that will be shared on Sunday say it all:
“Kibera, we will preach.
Nairobi, we will witness. Kenya
will know that Jesus is the Lord!”
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