Teen Girl Ministry
A little tap-tap at the door notified me of their arrival, and then four lovely teenage girls in the young scholars program came into our house and plopped down on our sofas. Emily and I asked them about their day to get the conversation going as we put the finishing touches on a pot of chicken and vegetable stir fry. "I know you girls have homework, but even when you have homework you have to eat!" They laughed as I continued, "So my homework is to make you dinner so that you will have the strength to do your homework!"
These girls are orphans, neglected, or otherwise put at a disadvantage because of being a young woman in a paternalistic culture. I grew up with a mother who prepared dinner for me every night. These girls have never had that; they've been on their own for as long as they can remember.
I poured some glasses of cold water from the fridge for each of them. They giggled with delight because they love ice water! Anything from a fridge is a special treat. We served them bowls and explained that this was an Asian dish with a teriyaki sauce - something they've never tasted. When they asked for "piment", a traditional dagara spice comparable to hot pepper that they put on everything, I explained that they might not need it or like it with this dish since it already had sauce. They put it on anyway and then proceeded to ask if Americans eat piment. "Well, we don't have your kind of piment exactly, but we do have other spices." I showed them some Cavendars and Tony's that I pulled out of the cabinet, and then they designated a corner of each of their bowls to try each of the "American piments" in their Asian stir fry. After a certain bite, one of the girls ran outside to spit out whatever she had mixed together, and we roared with laughter. I imagine I might have done so too if I had eaten Cavendars on Asian stir fry!
After dinner, Emily started an impromptu English session with the girls, and they laughed their heads off as they practiced saying basic phrases, talked about where they live, where they go to school, and what they like to eat. One particularly hilarious moment happened when one of the girls said "she is beans" instead of "she likes beans."
Before they left to finish their homework, we circled up and prayed over certain requests that each of the girls brought up. They left with smiles and learned how to say "thank you for inviting us" and "we had a good time" in English.
This simple, sweet event was the springtime rain that caused the first leaf to spring up from hard soil. A new ministry was born - one that will minister to teen girls during these difficult and vulnerable seasons of their lives. Emily and I have already begun planning for the next get together, and we plan to invite all of the girls in he you scholars program plus any other teen girl who needs a place to belong.
We will start out small - an activity once every other week that might involve getting a soda in town, painting fingernails, doing an art project, or cooking dinner together. Each time we get together, we will have a Bible study and a time of worship and prayer. I've always been a fan of teen girl ministry, maybe because it meant so much to me when I was a teen. I always looked up to the slightly older female influences in my life, and now I get to be that person for someone else. I never imagined that it would be a group of orphaned African young ladies, but to me they are the most honorable group I could ever invest in.
Pray for us. Pray for them. And pray for this new idea and this new ministry, that God's spirit would blow us in the direction he desires, and that together we will bear much fruit for his kingdom.
These girls are orphans, neglected, or otherwise put at a disadvantage because of being a young woman in a paternalistic culture. I grew up with a mother who prepared dinner for me every night. These girls have never had that; they've been on their own for as long as they can remember.
I poured some glasses of cold water from the fridge for each of them. They giggled with delight because they love ice water! Anything from a fridge is a special treat. We served them bowls and explained that this was an Asian dish with a teriyaki sauce - something they've never tasted. When they asked for "piment", a traditional dagara spice comparable to hot pepper that they put on everything, I explained that they might not need it or like it with this dish since it already had sauce. They put it on anyway and then proceeded to ask if Americans eat piment. "Well, we don't have your kind of piment exactly, but we do have other spices." I showed them some Cavendars and Tony's that I pulled out of the cabinet, and then they designated a corner of each of their bowls to try each of the "American piments" in their Asian stir fry. After a certain bite, one of the girls ran outside to spit out whatever she had mixed together, and we roared with laughter. I imagine I might have done so too if I had eaten Cavendars on Asian stir fry!
After dinner, Emily started an impromptu English session with the girls, and they laughed their heads off as they practiced saying basic phrases, talked about where they live, where they go to school, and what they like to eat. One particularly hilarious moment happened when one of the girls said "she is beans" instead of "she likes beans."
Before they left to finish their homework, we circled up and prayed over certain requests that each of the girls brought up. They left with smiles and learned how to say "thank you for inviting us" and "we had a good time" in English.
This simple, sweet event was the springtime rain that caused the first leaf to spring up from hard soil. A new ministry was born - one that will minister to teen girls during these difficult and vulnerable seasons of their lives. Emily and I have already begun planning for the next get together, and we plan to invite all of the girls in he you scholars program plus any other teen girl who needs a place to belong.
We will start out small - an activity once every other week that might involve getting a soda in town, painting fingernails, doing an art project, or cooking dinner together. Each time we get together, we will have a Bible study and a time of worship and prayer. I've always been a fan of teen girl ministry, maybe because it meant so much to me when I was a teen. I always looked up to the slightly older female influences in my life, and now I get to be that person for someone else. I never imagined that it would be a group of orphaned African young ladies, but to me they are the most honorable group I could ever invest in.
Pray for us. Pray for them. And pray for this new idea and this new ministry, that God's spirit would blow us in the direction he desires, and that together we will bear much fruit for his kingdom.
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