Moments like these . . .

Here in Liberia, there are days that you constantly feel surrounded by the masses. It’s loud. It’s chaotic. It’s fun. However, there are sweet, quiet moments, too, where you feel God doing His thing. Moments like these  . . .

Meet Joshua. On a good day, he’s a little spitfire of a near three year old. A downright stinker, if you will. He’s in constant motion. The other day, though, Adam was holding a droopy looking Joshua and brought him over letting me know that this child was not well. Sure enough, he had the telltale fever that accompanies malaria. I cradled his hot little body and just rocked him, sang to him, and prayed over him. With silent little tears rolling down his face, he finally fell asleep and we were able to put cold, wet cloths on his head to bring his temperature down. It’s moments like these . . . when you get to bring a mother’s touch to a sick little someone, that are just sweet.

Meet Pauline. Pauline and I go way back. Well, seven years back when she was a 3rd grade student at the King’s Arms Academy. Pauline is beautiful, vibrant, and funny. She is sweet with a heart for the Lord and hard not to love. Over the years, Pauline and I have enjoyed being in a Bible study together, praying together, reading books to one another and just sharing life. Upon arriving at the mission, I immediately noticed that Pauline wasn’t there. After asking around I found out that she had gone to spend time with some family but would be coming back soon. When she came back, Pauline found me and let me know that she would like to talk. Later that night, we sat in the dark under a mango tree and she talked. While Pauline was with her family, they revealed to her that her mom had passed away in April. They had waited for her to finish the school year to tell her. Now, she was truly an orphan and feeling very alone in the world. How incredibly sweet God’s timing is. I feel truly blessed to have been able to be here to listen to Pauline, to ask her to tell me about her mother, to hold her while she cried, and to pray with and over her. Please pray that God would be healing Pauline’s heart and would continue to reveal himself to her as a perfect, loving Father.

And then, there’s the whole crew. Bless their spunky hearts. As a team, we have been working with a group of about 25 kids from the Children’s Rescue Center to prepare them for an outreach program to Peter Sayklon’s Orphanage home. They decided this year that they would like to bring the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from Daniel 3. They prepared a drama, chose a memory verse, brought craft supplies, and pulled out all the fun songs and games they could come up with. Let me just say, I felt like what I imagine a mother would feel like as they watch their child take his first steps. These kids stepped up to the plate and hit a home run, and I was overcome with pride. They were loving and gentle in their instruction to their small groups. They were poised and prepared. They were selfless, enthusiastic and effective . . . and, most of all, the message of Jesus’ love came through. Even the orphanage mother, Mother Martha, was getting into the drama and the songs. The beautiful thing in all this was that we, the American team, got to step back and let the kids do their thing. We could see leadership qualities in some of these kids that were so impressive--I’m pretty sure we have a couple budding youth pastors among us! We are looking forward to going back this next week, when the CRC children get to put together gift bags for their friends (their idea!) and put on a field day. Two chances to share God’s love with the darling kiddos!

In other notes, there has been a reading frenzy happening down at the orphanage! The kids are working hard to earn their trip to the beach. One group has already made the trek and we felt God’s favor as we woke up to a sunshiny morning that blossomed into a perfect beach day! The kids ‘swam’ and splashed, ate ice-cream, and just got to be kids for a few hours! Not a bad way to spend the day!

Also team two will be rolling in in the next day and a half. Please be praying for them as they transition into life here and pick up where team one left off!

AND . . . we've been back in the light for a week and a half now due to a generous donation toward a generator. (Thank you thank you . . . you know who you are!)

-Whitney