The main theme of VBS is John 3:16 so we have gone over it each day with hand gestures.
The first day was focused on Creation and Fall. This was told through story, drama and also drawn illustration. In the drama, Jeremy was God, I was the Serpent (Devil), and the local Mozambique leaders were Adám and Eva (both guys but they were pretty funny).
We sang Me Deus Tao Grande (My God is so Big) and also did the Chicken Dance with the kids. In total there were around 250 children in the morning and afternoon programs combined (some even came to both).
For the craft, each child was able to create a man from the dust (sand/glue playdoh). For games we did relay races with spoons and ping pong balls, sack races and wheelbarrow races.
For the games we had anywhere from 30-60 spectators since we are in the shared park/soccer field for the entire village. Crowd control was a big issue since we had anywhere from 80-120 kids with 4 to 6 leaders. Also most fields are grass with patches of dirt, this field is 95% dirt with patches of grass.
The second day was focused on Jesus' life and resurrection. The story was told and also presented in a drama. Ryan was Jesus, Jeremy and Ron were soldiers, Joseph was Joseph of Arimathea, and I was a dead guy brought to life.
We sang "Voce Sabe que Jesus e Bom" (You Know that Jesus is Good), Ha-La-La-La-Lelujah, and Ron even got on stage for the Chicken Dance (and almost had a panic attack).
For craft the kids made gospel bead bracelets. We had a slight miscalculation on the length of the bracelet and a couple were a little too small. The kids loved them and couldn't wait to show us when they got to games.
For games we did some of the relay games from the day before and also over under, where you pass a beanbag over your head or under your legs and then run to the back of the line.
In both the morning and afternoon, they had and altar call and had those kids who wanted to follow Jesus. A total of 76 kids raised their hands and were separated from the crowd counseled by the Pastor of the church and Becky.
We have also taken on 2 small construction projects. We made a cistern stand for the Harrells so the would have rainwater under pressure when the power is out or city water is out. We also finished up the cistern project at the church. Ron started it last November and now the church will not have to drop a bucket into the top of the underground cistern to get water each day, they also will have a shower and running water in the bathroom at the church (but still squatty pottys, no toilets)
We left the church on a bit of a sad note. One of the other guys that has been helping us out by leading and also translating from Portuguese to Makhuwa lost his father today. He got a call last night that his dad was sick, and he passed away today during VBS. His name is Evangelista. Joseph and I met his yesterday at games and his cousin today. Please keep their family in your prayers. Evangelista stayed till VBS was done and left to go see his family approximately 150km away.
We are finishing off the day eating lasagna. Today is both Megan McDaniel and also Anna's birthdays. We will be celebrating with chocolate cake and Mozambique ice cream. Becky said the first time Anna had it she said it tasted like licking envelopes.
After we are finished we will continue preparation to go to the church in "the bush". The Church we are going to is the home church of Salvador, one of the Mozambique leaders. He went through our training and has also been helping us the last 2 days.
Please keep us in your prayers as this will be the biggest cultural shock for us. Up until now, we have slept in a house with some a/c and eaten really good food (thanks Becky). Starting tomorrow, we will be staying in a tent and eating the native food. This includes Xema (shema) which is a cornmeal food similar to really fine grits. We will also have our last real shower tonight, bucket baths until Friday.
- Garrett
No comments:
Post a Comment