Yesterday after prayers, Maxhilda the Club Coordinator at Apostolic Faith Mission in Klingalinga told me her club meets at 8 hours - 10 hours. I told her I would be there. When I shared with Stephanie over breakfast, that I should leave to walk from here at about 7:50, she laughed. "No, you don't need to go that early, no one will be there. That is the time they say, but I have found every time they give me a time, they come about 30 minutes later." Hummm! OK, I'll wait until about 8:10 to start off.
As I walk along the dirt streets of the compound, I am thankful that the rains have dried up over the past three days. The streets are dry and there is not much dust blowing. A dirty plastic bag comes scooting along the dirt and I step over it. Each person, I pass looks rather strangely at me, what is a monzongu doing walking the streets of our compound? They all greet me when I smile and say "Good Morning!"
I arrive at the church, it is now 8:20 and it is all locked, and no one is around. That is OK; I sit down on the step near the door, that leads to the pastor’s home, which is connected to the church, and wait. The area where the church is seems quite unique to me. Even though I have been here multiple times. This time I have time to ponder the setting. There are five finished churches and one unfinished church, all very close to one another. As I sit I can see three other churches. One of the churches is a Seventh Day Adventist Church where they are having services, already this morning. I listen to the singing, the melodies I recognize the words are in a native dialect. I hum along, and sing the words I remember. He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock.
I watch as a car comes between two of the churches, it is barely inching forward, and sounds like it has lost its transmission. It inches to the open pathway toward the road, turns in backwards and begins backing up and moves along at a fairly good speed. He proceeded unto the road and backed away from me. Interesting!
I watch as young girls come to the church and fill buckets and tubs with water and carry them away. I want to take their pictures, but don't feel that I should. Just a few feet from me they set down their water, and ask why I am here. I tell them I am waiting for the GEMS Club to begin. They ask, to come to GEMS do you have to pay? I tell them no, they say they want to come back.
About 8:40 Catherine, one of the counselors arrives, with several girls following. They unlock the door to the church and head to the front pew. They begin singing, as more and more girls come in. At about 9 hours I think everyone must be here, and I show them the video that our girls made for them. They loved to see our girls singing and doing the motions. They laughed and giggled, and said just like us they sing and dance. Some of our girls recorded messages for them and they liked them very much. They gathered together and sang one more song, and then broke into their classes, two classes of advanced girls one older girls and one younger, and one larger group of awareness girls. The leaders that were teaching were all new counselors at training in April, and they were doing a very good job.
The girls as they arrive
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Unlocking the churches padlock.
An advanced group with their leader
Our Sister Club
Club Coordinator from our Sister Club - Maxhilda
About 9:30 Stephanie popped in on her way to Pentecostal Holiness to do some videotaping of the CIT's teaching there. She also wanted to interview the CIT's and hear how GEMS has changed their lives. At 11 hours all the girls at our Sister club gathered for a photo or they would say a snap. The number had doubled since I thought they must be all there. Then they were on their way.
I walked across the dirt between AFM Church and PHC and observed the teaching there. All the classes were being taught by CIT's with oversight from Catherine and Beatrice. These girls are the GEMS Clubs of the future! What great girls. I listen as Stephanie interviews them one at a time, and am blessed by how God has used GEMS to change their lives.
Getrude teaching her advanced class
Mirrium passing out the coloring sheets to the awareness class
A few things are the same in both countries
Just before noon, the PH girls all gather inside, and sing and recite the GEMS aim. Then they are dismissed.
Stephanie and I pack up the cameras and start our walk back to the GEMS office.
About 1:30 we head over to the house. The House that GEMS Built, the children and mommas are busy planting maze. They say it will grow very fast now that it is the rainy season. The sky is threatening rain, and there is thunder and lightning in the distance.
The boys with the new atlases
Stephanie showing them about Africa
Playing a game on the porch, notice the garden in the background
Homemade checkerboard and checkers
Now it is time to play games and outside we go, it is just sprinkling a little, so let the games begin. The children look so happy, and love to have Stephanie there playing with them. Fun times for almost everyone. One of the boys from the other house is HIV positive and he is very thin and tired. He does seem somewhat stronger, than he did on our August trip. He is getting medicine now that he didn't get before he came into the orphan home. He watches as the children play games. The older boys are playing checkers with a piece of wood with colored boxes for a board, and bottle caps for the checkers. They are very good! I'm sure I wouldn't stand a chance against them.
Playing a relay game!
After about an hour outdoors, the sky is getting darker and the raindrops bigger, so we tell them it is time for us to go. Again, hugs and squeezes of love from all the children. We assure them that we will see them again soon. They wave goodbye as we step through the gate and begin our walk back.
I knew going into this day, it would be great! Once again God has blessed me beyond measure, I can't think of adequate words to really express how GEMS is changing lives and making a difference in the lives of both girls and counselors here in Zambia. As well as in North America, it is growing bigger hearts in the girls there as well. There is a hope and a future for these girls and it is just so exciting to be a very small part of it. I praise God for this day!
2 comments:
I would love to have seen the girls faces when they watched our girls singing and talking to them. It really is amazing what God is doing. Thank you for letting him use you in such a powerful way (for letting him stretch you, as you would say!). Love ya!!
Lis, thanks for encouraging your Mom to start this blog. It's a JOY to read what He's doing in and through you as you minister to the boys and girls in Zambia. Praying for you daily.
With love, Lenae
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