3 kids

We are in the midst of a VBS - with over 90 odd kids clocking in each day.

Its an amazing opportunity to bring hope to kids from many of our families - a time when we are with them and are able to share the joy of Jesus in a tangible way.

The whole operation - in the sweltering heat of late May - has been a challenge. As has been the challenge of looking after the 90 plus kids. There is a lot which seems to border on the anarchical - any time we do not have completely structured activities - the kids are running around - chasing, grabbing - a vast sea of Brownian motion. Some of our larger group sessions also suffer from this challenge - keeping the children focussed when poking their neighbour is always more fun...

I must admit that my patience (never very thick) has been wearing thin and it has shown many a time over these last few days.

But consider three of the children.

One rambunctious boy - when I sat and had lunch with me told me that his mother was in hospital - and that she was undergoing surgery today. After his father's death he had been in a hostel and has been sent back for bad behaviour. His mother has HIV (though he did not tell me this) and is being operated for cervical cancer.

Yesterday a girl bit our daughter. So hard that blood came. We prayed and talked with Asha. She forgave the girl. We have been praying for this girl a lot. Today she seemed a little more subdued. An orphan, the girl is being looked after by a single lady who has suffered a lot in the care of this girl.

Another girl complained to me that a certain boy keeps coming and hitting the girls in her group on the head with pencils. When I talked to the boy's teacher he told me that the boy told him that his father comes home drunk almost every night. He then wakes up the boy and starts beating him. Its no wonder we see such violent behaviour lived out in miniature.

And so it goes. Each one of these kids has been made in God's image. But so many have already started on a life of deviance and mistrust. We know many of their parents and it is a tragedy to see some of the same destructive behaviour live on in these children.

The VBS is one small step in this direction. In breaking some of the cycles of despair. We hold out the word - and allow God to do the work. We see so many limitations in us, but are heartened by the love and sacrifice of our teachers and volunteers.

Can the lives of these three kids be changed? They can, and we hope and trust that they will.
VBS teachers and volunteers talk and pray at the end of the day.