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August NewsletterVolume 13, No. 8
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A BOY'S MAKESHIFT DRUM TO CATCH ATTENTION OF SOMEONE TO GIVE A PESO |
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August NewsletterVolume 13, No. 8
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A BOY'S MAKESHIFT DRUM TO CATCH ATTENTION OF SOMEONE TO GIVE A PESO |
JESUS: THE COMFORTERJesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." Her name is Inday
(Filipino for "Little Sister"), and she was crying. Well, more
than just crying, she was having a temper tantrum. As president of the
school, I was passing the Nursery 2 classroom en route to the business
office and heard the screaming from outside. I knocked on the
classroom door, and one of the teachers came out to brief me on the
situation. As soon as she opened the
door, little Inday ran over to me and leapt up into my arms, clinging to
me and calling out between her tears, "Momma, Momma!" I must admit, this is the first time I have ever been mistaken for anyone's mother, me being a man and all. Nevertheless, she quieted down as I dried her tears. Her classmates finished their lesson and had their lunch. My arms were getting
tired, so after 10 minutes, I set down the now-calm Inday. Sometimes all
it takes is a person to hold you when life gets scary and lonely. Then
everything is fine and makes sense. Often Jesus does that for me. |
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DO YOU HAVE A VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL
(VBS) MISSIONS PROJECT? HERE ARE A FEW NEEDS THAT WE HAVE AT BLC:
MUDDY MISSIONARIES
Which was heavier,
our eyelids as we tried to brush the 4 am sleep aside, or the 3 inches
of mud that clung stubbornly to the soles of our shoes? It was haranna
(serenade) time again, and we were gingerly picking our way through to
darkness to sing happy birthday to the youngest of 4 boys in a Muslim
family that attended our church and school. The young mother smiled as
she picked up the board that served as a door to her hut, and moved it
aside. In flooded the music as we played guitar and sang. Inside the shack, wishes and prayers for the next
year were made under the coconut leaves that were sewn together to form
their roof. Hanging from the leaves was a wire connected to a tin
sardine can with a jar inside, to serve as a kerosene lantern. Slapping mosquitoes from our necks and brushing the
ants from our faces, we got up to leave an hour later, in the daylight
now. |
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OFTEN,
WHEN VISITING THOSE IN THE CONGREGATION, THE LONG TRIP OF MOUNTAIN PATHS
AND TROPICAL JUNGLE IS HALF THE FUN! |
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THE
TEACHER: THE LEARNER
"Elvie, every class in the school has
a teacher and an aide. Now with the addition of a business manager and a
first grade class, and half the pupils in the school free on
international sponsorship, we do not have enough money to pay the aides.
What should we do? We are lacking 25 sponsors for these kids!" We reevaluated the sponsorship program,
which requires that each family put in "sweat equity" for
their kids' schooling, working in the school 2 hours each day. Suddenly,
God placed an idea in my head. "El, are any of the parents of the
squatter kids qualified to be volunteer aides in the classroom?"
"Sure!" Ah, so our problem was solved. We still had to be sure
that they understood the philosophy of a Christian School, so we
enrolled them and a few of our teachers in a local seminary. Every
Friday evening we load up the van and the 9 of us head off for an hour
of training in "History and Philosophy of Christian
Education". Future training seminars that we have planned for our staff (paid by the kinderschool) include Child Psychology/Evangelism, and Curriculum/ Classroom Management. At Barner Learning Center, all, both staff and students, are in the learning process! |
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Archived Newsletters -- Return to homepage Last edited September 02, 2002 |
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