Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Day Eight - Camp Continues

Today started off with breakfast on the patio; the weather has been beautiful. The sun's been out early and the temperature has been pretty moderate until about mid-afternoon. We're so thankful for the way that the weather has cooperated over the past week and a half. Each of us spent some time this morning reading, prepping for camp, and talking with one another. Rob is finishing up putting in a bathroom on the second floor, and so we gave him a hand hanging some sheet-rock and cleaning up a bit.

We decided to start camp around 4:00 p.m. today because most of the kids don't finish school until later in the afternoon. When we arrived there were already quite a few kids waiting for us and they quickly ran over to the car to help unload our supplies. The kids have been so eager; it's a tremendous encouragement to each of us.

The actual camp time was similar to Monday, except we had about 10-12 more kids. We had to scrap some of the running drills and replace them with less physically demanding ones in lieu of the heat. But despite the temp, the kids participated and had a great time. They drink A LOT of water.

During the break time, Rob gave another short talk on sportsmanship and Kyle took some time to share his testimony. He shared with the kids about how sports was the most important thing in his life when he was their age. Sports and winning were the primary things that ruled his life; his competitive spirit dictated his attitude and defined who he was. However, one day someone shared with him about Christ and opened up the Word to him; one verse that gripped his heart was Romans 5:8 "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Through the Word of God and the work of the Holy Spirit, Kyle turned away from himself to follow Christ and now God is the most important thing in his life. Because God has transformed his heart, he's no longer content to let anger and sports rule over him; he now desires to let Christ rule in his rightful place. Kyle's testimony was straightfoward and very relational for the kids to understand. Throughout the rest of the week each team member will be sharing their testimonies with the kids in hopes of communicating that God is not distant and cold as Islam would lead them to believe, but God is near, loving, and gracious. Please pray that our testimonies have an impact.
After we finished camp, we had dinner with Simon and Radia, fellow missionaries who are a vital part of Point Bible. Radia put together a tasty meal of chicken fajitas that Kevin said reminded him of his mom's cooking. We had a relaxing evening talking with Simon and Radia and playing with their two adorable children Sara and Yannis. Five year-old Sara enjoyed chasing after John and even took some time to teach Stephanie some French vocabulary. The evening was capped off with Radia sharing her testimony with all of us. It was amazing to hear how God saved her out of a strict Islamic family when she was in her early 20's. Listening to her talk about the persecution that her family inflicted upon her and the reconciliation that has since followed was a powerful testimony to God's saving and sustaining grace.

God continues to bless us, please pray for effectiveness in our last three days of camp. We sincerely appreciate your prayers thus far.
Grace and Peace!

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