God is Good...All the Time

Wow so it's been ages since I've posted a blog. It has been a little crazy here in Zambia. We just wrapped up our first Camp Hope and it was amazing!! The kids were a blast and teen mania did a great job leading each of their groups! It was so cool to see their relationships build with their kids and translators over the course of the week.

So I guess I should recap the last week and a half...

• We also got to go to the Lusaka mama's devotional one day which was incredible. We talked about Ephesians 6:10-18 and putting on the full armor of God. It was really cool because we had talked about that with Cheryl, our intern mama, before we came here and how that would be/is so important for us. It was also cool because going into Camp Hope that is really important.
• We got to spend a lot of time at homes 1 and 2 the week before Camp Hope which was really awesome. 
• Mama Christine, Mama Florence, Mama Josephine, and Mama Juliet taught us how to tie our chetenges which was a fun experience. Mama Florence then informed us that once we put on chetenges all the men will say "I want to make you my wife." Lolz then on our walk to homes 1 and 2 Mama Christine had to turn down some proposals for us. Mama Florence wasn't kidding.
• Thoko's birthday is two days after mine so we got to take her out for a girls night and go out to eat for her birthday. She turned 20! Whoop! I am so thankful we got to celebrate with her and enjoy our new friendship.
• Brooke and I had a very interesting conversation with Peter, the gardener/cleaner for the office, about him being a Jehovah's Witness. We had to leave somewhat in the middle to go to a meeting but we are planning to finish the conversation with him. Pray for him and his heart to be open to what we have to say.
• We took a bus for the first time on the way to church last week and I got hit on. Then once I turned him down he looked at Lauren in the seat behind me and then moved on to Brooke as we got off.
• We went to church with Lubasi and Thoko (who leads the praise and worship team!). Funny story: we were supposed to go with Humphray but he ended up being sick so we called Lubasi at the last minute to ask what time their church started and he said 9 and it was 9:05 or something so we said "oh you're already there then huh?" And he said "no I'll come get you guys! I'll be there at 9:30." We were very confused since it started at 9 but we said okay yeah!
• We picked up teen mania from the airport and welcomed them to Zambia. They didn't really accept our welcome because we are white. Classic. It was funny though once we talked to them later.
• Brooke, Lauren, and I found out we weren't going to be teachers for Camp Hope like we thought. We found out we would be doing what the past interns had done which was hand out the tshirts, bandanas, crafts, and be available to help out in any other way possible. We were disappointed to not have our own little group of nuggets of course but we were very willing to serve in any way we could. And that meant that we now had 283 nuggets not just 17! Best ever!
• Camp Hope 2014 started on Tuesday and it was an absolute blast. Camp Hope is a week that kids who are orphans or have the potential to be orphans can come to camp and are well fed, stay the night so they get rest, and most importantly hear the hope and love that comes from Jesus. And they are loved on immensely. These kids have so much joy. The first day the three of us got out of the car kids swarmed each of us and at one point I ended up on the ground from a group hug. That might have been because Brooke told them to all come hug me at once but ya know totally worth it. 
• I learned some Nyanja. They all wanted to teach us words and then the next day they would come and quiz us on what they taught us. 
• I met some kids that I just wanted to take home with me. My friend, Peter, who is 14 and lives with his mom, is such a sweet heart. He was one of the main kids who liked teaching me Nyanja and he protected me from the kid with the giant grasshopper so we were insta friends after that! He would help me translate what some of the younger kids were saying who didn't speak much English. 
• And then there was Susan. She is 5 years old and so stinking cute. She didn't speak very much English but she would talk to me in Nyanja and I would repeat it back to her and she liked that. We would make faces at each other and I taught her my fish face and she taught me camdanda which is the cross. She liked to play with my necklace. She has a laugh that is filled with joy and that was one of my favorite things from the week. Listening to kids laugh.
• Lubasi led a chant with the kids multiple times throughout the week and the kids ate it up. They loved it and would come up to him later and ask him to do it again. He is great with kids and is going to be an awesome dad some day.
• I learned some new songs and games from all of the kids this week. Do like I do is a very popular game where everyone forms a circle and then a kid gets in the middle and does a couple dance moves and everyone copies them then they pick someone. Super fun!
• Day 3 was when things got real. The past two days of just hanging out and fun games of getting to know each other were over and everyone was getting real which was super awesome. One of the teen mania girls told me her group spent 40 minutes just going around and doing testimonies. I was like that's awesome! Along with the Spirit moving and Jesus changing lives comes satan and evil spirits attacking. We had one kid come to the tent where we had the first aid station and his leader said something was wrong with his eye. I asked him and couldn't really understand so I asked Charles to come translate for me and then another kid came up bleeding so I left Charles with him. When I came back I learned that he was having visions of his dead mom and Lubasi just said we just need to pray for him. So I sat and talked with him a little bit and then Lubasi and Lauren came over and we all prayed over him. He was hearing the gospel and was under attack because the enemy didn't like that. 
• Oh we ate lunch with the kids and translators this week and they ate nshima everyday and each day a lady would come up to either me or me and Brooke and say, "You like nshima?" and we would say "oh yes! we love it!" and each time their face was shocked. They thought we were part of teen mania and had one been here a couple days. We were like no we've been here about three weeks now.
• All of the kids had a blast with their teachers and translators and learned a lot. I think it was harder for the younger groups just because it's sometimes hard for younger kids to understand anyway but throw in the language barrier and then that adds a whole new eliminate. 
• Yesterday was the last day of camp and it was so much fun and so sad at the same time. When it was about time for the kids to get on the buses to go back home, I saw a teen mania girl and she was crying so I gave her a hug and told her that yeah it does suck that these precious kids have to go back into their situations but you shared Jesus with them and they have hope in Him. They know that they aren't alone in whatever they go back to and that is something to be joyous about. I had to remind myself of that as I said goodbye to Susan and Peter and Stella and Aster and Tendai and all of the other precious nuggets. God has a plan for them and they are each so precious to Him. They each heard the gospel this week and that is something to be celebrated. I'm not sure on the total salvations from this week but I'll be sure to put that in the next blog.

These little nuggets will forever have my heart. And nuggets doesn't really translate but Charles, Lubasi, and Humphray have adopted the word already so we are slowly getting people. : )

This week was a whirlwind. God has definitely been teaching me so much and using all of the amazing people in my life here to do it. I am so thankful for Camp Hope and all of the workers that helped to make it possible. The kids stayed overnight at the church so we had round the clock caregivers. The cooks, the coordinators, the translators, and of course the EOH staff worked so hard to make this an awesome camp for the kids!

I'm continuing to pray for the kids as they have gone back to their daily life, whatever that may look like. Praying that they have heard and now know the truth and have the hope and love that comes with knowing Jesus Christ. He is all they need. I am even more thankful after this week that God is the Father to the fatherless. So thankful that each of the 283 kids are His.