“You will share the gospel to 1,000 young men tomorrow,” is what I was told the first day I arrived at my ministry site in Kisumu, Kenya. WELCOME TO AFRICA! Okay, well God, you must give me the words to say, but I’m willing to do it. To be honest, this is why I was nervous to go to Africa. I knew I’d be asked to preach. I’ve never done that before…or have I? Preaching is sharing what God has laid on your heart. A sudden calm washed over me. I knew that I just needed to be open with the boys and share about God’s goodness in my life and tell a little of my story. Confidence built inside of me and I knew that I could do this and I was no longer nervous. I love how God can do that. In an instant, He can calm all your nerves. I knew He was telling me, Lauren, I will give you the words they need to hear. They will be my words and not yours and they need to hear them. You can’t really argue with that. So, that night I went to sleep and prayed for some scripture to share with the boys and knew I would have it by morning.
I woke up the next morning via my alarm clock, aka a rooster. I jotted a few notes on what I wanted to talk about and the scripture God had given me. In the afternoon we jumped in the van to head to our respected schools. It turned out that we would be paired with a fellow teammate and one member of the church. So Leisa and I were sent together. Again, God knew what He was doing. In the car ride over, I asked Leisa what she was planning on sharing and she told me she wanted to talk about “is our God the same God back home as He is on the race?” and I wanted to talk about God’s steadfast love in our lives. Hmm…that seemed to go hand in hand.
We arrived to the school and were greeted by staff and faculty. We met the principal of the school as well. We were then lead to an outdoor stage, where the boys were all seated. I looked out in the crowd–yup, that’s a lot of faces. The boys choir got up and sang two songs that were absolutley beautiful. During the first song, Leisa looked over at me and said, “you’re going to have to go first. I’m going to cry.” Okay, that’s when the nerves kicked in a bit. Me? First…YIKES! Okay God, help me. I asked her to pray for me the entire time I was up in front.
Before I knew it, the boys were done singing and I was being introduced. I got up and told them a little about myself. Then away I went. Another calming peace washed over me and I stopped shaking and just started talking (or preaching). I shared with them how our God is a good God. He blessed me and allowed me to come to Kenya to be with them this very day. I shared about my family, who God blessed me with and about growing up in the church. I then told them that they could personally know this same God if they chose so. I read them Psalm 111 and pointed out specific parts in the scripture. I reminded them that we are only human and we will always mess up and make mistakes and God will forgive us again and again. His mercies are NEW everyday! I then shared a scripture for them to pray, Pslam 51:10, “Create in me a clean heart, oh God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” I told them that we can always ask for a renewing of our spirit because God is so constant and we are not. He is happy to give it to us when we ask. Then I thanked them for letting me share and I passed it off to Leisa.
Phew…I sat down and I think that is when I finally exhaled. Leisa’s message was great and she really challenged the boys. And here is the exciting part…when we had both shared, Fred, the church memeber who came with us, got up and asked if anyone wanted to commit their life to Christ and know Him like we do. Seven boys came forward. I almost started to cry. Leisa and I met them one on one and were able to pray for them.
The boys were then dismissed and were told they could come ask us more questions if they wanted. One boy came up to me and told me that the message really spoke to him and that he was thankful we came to share it. He knew it was from God that we were there that day. And then he asked me, how many times will God forgive him? I told him 70 times 7 and that, that meant again and again. God will never stop forgiving us. If we ask, he will forgive. The boy smiled and thanked me, shook my hand and ran off. Another boy asked me why is it that after you become a Christian you are tempted more. I looked into his eyes and with authority that I knew could only come from God, I told him, “You know why? Because Satan doesn’t want you to give your life to God and he will try and make it as difficult as possible. He will try to lead you astray. (and yes, the pointer finger came out) But, God is far more powerful and He will give you the power to overcome your trials and temptations. Jesus was made a man so that He would understand the temptations that we would face. If you ask for His help, He understands, and He will give it to you.” I then told him to just pray for the Lord’s strength and he could overcome anything Satan tried to tempt him with.
It was an incredible day. One I don’t think I will forget. I discovered that I love sharing with young people. It reminded me of home, when I worked with high schoolers and freshmen. I smiled because God knows this is near to my heart and all the way in Africa, He allowed me to have a similar experience and share with young people, 1,000 youn men, at that. He is SO GOOD! �@
