So let’s just say that children’s ministry was never really my thing.
I grew up as a young rambunctious child that acted like she had teenage angst all the time. I never went to a whole lot of bible camps. Needless to say I didn’t really pay attention and the whole thing was “not my scene”. So before I started the race I imagined myself spending more time preaching to adults or working with the elderly rather than teaching children. In fact the thought of teaching kids was utterly terrifying. Our first month of ministry was working at the Overflow Guesthouse, doing any cleaning, painting or renovations that they might need completed. We also spent a good amount of time doing ATL (ask The Lord). But we never really needed to teach children. And I was relieved. The rest of my team knew all of these bible stories and songs to teach kids, while I could only tell the story of Zachious. I knew that the Lord had called me on the race to pull me out of my comfort zone but in my head I rejoiced in knowing I made it through the first month without teaching.Or so I thought.We had to leave Overflow Guesthouse one week early because other AIM teams were coming in. And where was our next ministry sight you might ask? A school in Poi Pet Cambodia. It was my biggest ministry fear. We only had one week at this school, then off to Thailand we went. I thought I would just slide through the week. Working on evangelism and avoiding teaching. Tuesday rolled around and my team leader asked ” Who wants to volunteer at the Joy Care Center?”. I felt the words fall out of my mouth. “I will.”
It was too late now, I was placed on a tuk tuk with one other person and off we went. The Joy Care Center was a school set up in the middle of a small Cambodian village. I felt the gravel pound on the tires as we pulled up. I jumped out of the tuk tuk, my heart beating out of my chest. Maineta ( the teacher) looked at me and said “ok, time to go fetch the children, you come with.” And just like that I was walking down a mud road full of trash, fetching children for school. Maineta began to tell me the story of the village and the extreme poverty and addiction that grips the surrounding community. As I looked around my eyes saw indescribable things.
We called to the children, asking them to come to school. I watched in awe as the kids picked up their siblings and began to walk back to Joy Care. Kids of all ages gathered. Some of them came completely naked. Maineta would take the children and clothe them. Using pants and shirts she had collected from donations. They would run up to the front of the classroom and motion for water. One by one, Maineta would bring them a cup of fresh water. Who knows the last time they had one.
Teaching these kids was hard. In fact it was near impossible. They understood no English. They had never experienced any type of classroom structure before and most of them just genuinely weren’t interested in being there. I began to get excited about going to teach. I began to embrace the chaos of children screaming. I felt my heart changing. I enjoyed the uncertainty teaching in a classroom brought. And I loved the children. Each face had a story. A story of love, pain, redemption; what ever it may be, they all brought something to the classroom.
The Lord teaches us that He is the ultimate Shepherd. Since I was 16 years old I’ve been allowing the Lord to Shepherd my life. To give me a path. Show me a plan. And teach me ways to improve upon myself. He calls us all His sheep. He promises to protect us and to make way a righteous path in our lives. He promises redemption. He promises prosperity. And He never leads us astray.
The Lord let me be a Shepherd that day. He showed me a glimpse of the physical herding He does to make sure that His people are where they are supposed to be. He allowed me to gather these children and herd them back to the school. Making sure that no child was left behind and that everyone’s path was straight and narrow. During that time at school, the children were safe. They had a place that promised redemption. A place that promised prosperity. And although the sowing in hard and the harvest is long, The Lord is teaching these children. He is shepherding their life and their families.
“And those He predestined, He also called; those He called, He also justified; those He justified, He also glorified.”~ Romans 8:30
Isn’t it a beautiful thing that The Creator of this universe has predestined all of our lives?! He already knew that I would fall in love with that school. He knew my heart would transform. He knew what those children needed and He provided. He Shepherds them into His kingdom. He glorifies their life. He glorifies our life. What a thing to rejoice in! We hold so tight to the things of this world, worrying that if our grip loosens we will lose everything. But oh, think of all the things we would gain if we just let go and let our Shepherd work.
