We haven’t had wifi this past month, and only had electricity for three hours a day, so I’m posting a recap of the first two weeks in Chiputo.
We’re staying at a compound in Chiputo, camping outside, and we’ve done two days of ministry so far. It hasn’t rained here since August, but the day our team came, the rains poured down (I’ve learned that in Africa, when it rains you don’t get out in it). Our first day of ministry consisted of around 200 village children being brought in by truck loads into our compound. We were able to spend the day with them, feed them, and give some of them new clothes. The next day, I experienced the market place, and I learned how difficult it can be to buy breakfast (people don’t form lines here—they push themselves to the front and buy the bread right from under your nose). That afternoon we walked to one of the villages and prayed for the people who lived there. We went house to house, inviting them to church, and praying with them.
Where do I begin with this blog? When I first heard that we would be doing children’s ministry this month, I was hesitant. God, I’m awkward with kids, why do You want me here? I asked over and over. But it turns out the joke has been on me. Two days of ministry is all it’s taken, and I’m overcome by the beauty of innocence and child-like faith I see in children.
It started when three boys from the village came to our compound. I walked outside to join my other teammates who were engaging with them, and loving on them. I stood back, taking it all in. When one boy with a shirt that was gaping open in the back came up to me and stretched out his arms, it came naturally. I picked him up and began spinning him around and making him laugh. It was his innocence and desire to be accepted as he is that drew me in. I couldn’t speak his language, but I could hold him and make him laugh, and allow Jesus to love him through me in this way.
The day that 200 village children came, I was overwhelmed by what I was seeing to the point that I felt numb. Children of all ages were coming to play, they would stare and smile at us and ask to take pictures with us. They were small, and nearly all of them had holes in their clothes (some looked like they were wearing rags), and some wore pants that were so small they couldn’t button them. It didn’t hit me until I walked into a hut to help find new clothes for some of the girls. I sat in a chair feeling helpless as we shuffled through the limited amount of clothing we had, and tried desperately to find something for some of the girls. We didn’t have enough clothing for each child, and I all I could do was give a thumbs up to the girls who were able to get new clothing.
It wasn’t until we went into the village to pray for the people that God used the children there to really wreck me. There was an elderly woman who couldn’t walk or stand by herself, and our team began praying for her. As we prayed, a group of children surrounded us. I knelt on the ground and felt led to take hold of the woman’s feet, and as I prayed, the next thing I knew, a little girl was kneeling next to me. I felt her arm stretch across my back and rub me, as if she was trying to comfort me in this moment. I felt the Holy Spirit in her, and I knew she knew Jesus. When the woman stood up and walked, our team knew that it wasn’t us who healed her…God used the children and their faith to partner with us in that moment.
So what can I say then, at this moment? The truth is, I find myself lacking for words. God uses the simple to shame the wise, and He uses children to move us in ways we wouldn’t expect. The people who know me, know that I’ve never been the “child loving girl”—I’ve been babysitting once. However, God places us exactly where He wants us, and breaks our hearts for those we may least expect…we just have to be willing to surrender.
The boy that melted my heart on day one
