Next Generation

“Wanninī gudio!” The children all shouted as they threw their hands into the air, following the missionary’s lead as she taught them the well-known children’s song translated into the local language: God is so BIG, so STRONG and so MIGHTY, there’s nothing my God cannot do!

For four different afternoons, the missionary compound became a VBS campus, although we would never call it that since that would create too much ruckus among the Muslim leaders. So we just call it kids’ club, but don’t worry, the name may be watered down but the teaching is most definitely not. 

Since this year’s kids club fell around the Muslim holiday when Abraham sacrificed Ishmael (as is taught in Islam), the theme of “sacrifice” was chosen. 

Each of the four days included games, singing, memory verses, snacks, and an interactive Bible lesson. The four lessons centered on sacrifice: the first sacrifice God made to cover the shame of Adam and Eve in the garden, the near sacrifice of Isaac by Abraham, the Passover sacrifice, and Jesus’ death on the cross as the full and final sacrifice. Each lesson pointed to Christ, and the children heard the gospel all four times.

I can’t help but look out at the faces of the little boys and girls sitting on their mats in the sand as they listen to the Bible stories, and I wonder which ones will be the first to give their hearts to Christ and be the leaders of a new Christian generation. Oh Lord, may it be so. 

One afternoon after eating lunch, we were sitting around the table reading the Bible as was the missionaries’ custom. (Great idea, right? Fill your bellies with physical food and then take some spiritual food, too.) Since we had some O people eating with us, we did the Bible reading in the O language. Unbeknownst to us, there was a rather sizable gathering of children on the front porch who had arrived an hour early to wait for kids’ club to start. Since the windows were open and sound travels easily, they, too, heard the scripture reading. In our discussion afterwards, one of the missionaries started to share the gospel and quoted John 3:16, and suddenly all the children on the porch (who we didn’t even realize were there) started saying the verse verbatim with him! He stopped halfway through the verse and just let the choir on the porch finish it as everyone around the table smiled with delight. 

The Word of God is getting into the hearts of these children, and we know that where God sends out his Word, it never comes back empty or void.