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East Africa
It was 10th June 1998, less than 24 hours before I was to leave for Africa, and if someone had come to me with a half good excuse for me not to go, I would have jumped at the chance to back down. That was the way I felt. Even though the trip had been 18 months in the planning, I had no idea why I was going or even what I would do when I got there. All I knew was that God wanted me to go, and that I needed to be obedient. I was traveling with a Pastor from Brisbane who had been to Africa before, but who I had not worked with previously.
My ministry is with children, his ministry and focus was more on equipping Pastors, and even though he had a love for children, it turned out his ministry was adult focused, which meant that our ministries had little in common.
The first week of my 4 week trip was spent in Kisumu in Kenya. I stayed with a Pastor and his family from one of the local A.O.G. Churches and enjoyed my time with them very much. I spent much time with the children of the Church, teaching them new songs and on the Sunday morning I was invited to preach as well as share with the Church what I had been teaching their children. The children sang some of the new songs they had learnt and we had a lot of fun.
The Church was situated in a poor area, and one afternoon we walked around the neighborhood and visited some of the homes in the district. The people were warm and friendly and many invited us into their homes. We had some clothes that we had brought from Australia, jumpers that had been knitted by some ladies in Brisbane. We gave these to some of the poorer children and they were received with much thanks and big smiles.
It was my privilege to visit a primary school and teach several Scripture lessons, something that I love to do and that I do back here in Australia. We had so much fun and the children just loved to sing the songs I had taught them. I also visited an orphanage run by Agape Children's Ministry, and was so impressed by the work that they were doing in Kisumu. There were 25 boys in the orphanage, and they were educated and looked after by beautiful caring people, in a loving and pleasant environment.
We then traveled to Arusha in Tanzania, and then a 12 hour bus trip to Dodoma. Dodoma is in central Tanzania and is very dry. While we were there we visited a village on the edge of town and saw a young girl drawing drinking water from a puddle at the bottom of a dry riverbed. She would then have to carry the water about 1-kilometre back to her home. Houses in this village were made from mud brick, with thatched roofs and contained tiny rooms. The lounge area was barely the size of an average bathroom here in Australia.
That's me with the children from Dodoma Christian Centre, Tanzania.It was here in Tanzania that I discovered why God had brought me here. I discovered that the Pastor of the Church where we were ministering, was the superintendent for children and youth ministry for the whole of the 800 Pentecostal Assemblies of God Churches in Tanzania, and here at his Church I just did what I loved to do most of all. I spent my time entirely with the children. We sang, we worshipped, we prayed, and in the evening the children from around the area came, and many gave their lives to Jesus as a result of this. I believe that this year was just the spadework. Next year I am planning to take a team back over to do a conference for those involved in children's ministry and to work with the children in the Church and in the community. The team will include some children from Australia, plus adults who have a passion for children's ministry.
I saw much poverty. Many had barely enough money to buy their daily food. I still have a vivid picture in my mind of a little boy pushing an old paint roller, with the foam missing from the end along the road, and another boy rolling a paint tin lid like we would roll a tyre. For those children these were their toys. A little 5 year old girl in Arusha, Tanzania came to my children's sessions three days in a row, wearing an old pink dressing gown that needed a good wash. Everywhere you looked things needed repairing or finishing off. But among all this poverty, these children were just like our children. They laughed, they played, they fought, they cried and I believe that in many ways we here in Australia could learn from them. We often take for granted the things we have, but these people are so grateful for small things they receive. Sponsoring a child through the many Christian organizations can make such a huge difference to a child's life. It can make the difference to their education, their welfare or just to be able to give them a start in life.
Myself with some of the children at a Crusade in Dodoma, Tanzania June 1998I have returned much richer for my experience. The children cried when I left and I cried when I left them. I prayed over many of these children, and my prayer for each of them was that they would live life to the fullest and have opportunities in life. Here in Australia you and I would waste more in a month than they would see in a year. We have many opportunities in Australia because we live in a land of opportunity.
When Jesus spoke about caring for the hungry, the thirsty, the lonely, the poor, the sick and the forgotten, He reminded us that "Just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me." I can hear these children saying to you as you support them. ASANTE (Thank you)
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