Day Ten - Ministry Fruit

Thursday provided an encourage- ment for the team as we were able to experience some fruit from our ministry efforts. God is working through us! At lunch Vicki explained to us a couple of conversations that she has had with adults because of the camp. A couple of days back we went to a community center adjacent to the courts in order to refill our water jug that had been depleted. They were gracious to us by providing water and so Vicki came up with the idea to buy pastries for the staff there. When Vicki delivered the pastries the people there were shocked and the director of the center offered to allow the Anthony's to use their facility in the future! This could allow for the Anthony's to provide language and computer outreaches in their efforts for the community to know Christ. In addition to this a couple of moms and a sister of the children have come to the camp to watch and Vicki has been able to befriend them. If you recall, one of our goals for the trip was for the Anthony's to establish contacts within the community, and God has been faithful to your prayers in this regard!

Today's basketball camp was eventful. Thanks to John, Kevin, and Joel, the older kids are really starting to grasp basketball concepts quickly and bring a competitive spirit. The younger boys, well, pray for Rob, Kyle and Jeff as they seek to exercise patience. They are rowdy! We see God at work within the hearts of the children. Moussa went from yesterday being indifferent and ill tempered to today being eager to learn and joyful (and earned a prize). By God's grace the children are listening to our testimonies. How do we know this? One kid asked Kevin, "if today was the day he would be telling his story." The most interesting aspect of the day involved Yaya's (child) psychiatrist paying a visit to us! Vicki approached her to see why she was walking to the courts. The psychiatrist went on to explain how Yaya had told her that John, an American actor, had explained to him about God and the Bible! Praise God for the children taking notice of Him!

Kevin went on to do a great job telling the kids about how God has changed his life. As an unbeliever, Kevin was a "self-made man," overcoming a bad family situation to become comfortable in life. He took great pride in this but started to realize that he wasn't satisfied. Soon after he started attending Grace Community Church through a friend (now fiance). Kevin would soon come to saving faith in Christ. The kids were drawn to Kevin's story especially when he took off his shirt, revealing a tatoo that stated, "Soli Deo Gloria," meaning "all glory to God."

At nighttime the Anthony's were gracious enough to drive us to a gymnasium for some basketball against some French adults. The games were fast paced, after each game is played within 30 seconds the next team is out there and you are playing again! Not to brag or anything, but we were able to rule the court for 3 straight game before succumbing to a dark gym and fatigue. We enjoyed our interaction with the guys, who were predominantly from the Muslim based projects. There is a possibility that we might be able to play with them tomorrow, so pray that we might be able to minister to them in some way.


Thank you to those who are keeping up with us and praying. Please pray that we might be "always abounding in the work of the Lord." 3 more days to do so in France!