Day Camp Day 5

Today is the last day. We can't believe how quickly things went this week. We have enjoyed the kids so much that the time has flown by. Today we had almost 20 kids again (we knew that a couple would not be able to make it today) and we learned about Salvation. Today was the hardest day to teach since salvation seemed extra hard to explain with words that may or may not translate, especially to young children. But, we knew how important it would be for us to get this message to them. Vern taught the lesson today and we all prayed that God would speak through him as he ministered to these young minds. Several students raised their hands to pray for salvation with Vern so we will continue to pray for these kids hoping they understood and truly was seeking to be a believer. Whatever seeds were planted this week, we pray that they will continue to be nourished and not only grow with that child, but with the families of these children. Many of the homes these children come from are not involved with the church, some only knew about the day camp through the feeding program at the church. Many of the families that attend the feeding program have alcoholic fathers and are facing many challenges. Please help us to continue praying for these families.

The kids signed a banner for us to bring back with us to the US and hang at church...

Today was water sport day and the kids loved it!...
Tonight, we had the Family Party where all of the kids were invited to bring their families to the church for a review of what they did during the week and to pick up all the crafts they made. They were surprised to also get goody bags full of fun items for the kids to take home including candy, toys, and other items donated by people in the US. The kids absolutely had a blast! We also gave them all (kids and families) a Across Ministries shirt and two kids even won an ipod shuffle from our ticket program where we handed out tickets for good work during the week! They could not believe how much they were taking home with them! These kids are more than grateful for everything we have done and its an amazing feeling to see them light up with even the smallest things like a craft. These are memories we will definitely never forget.
At the end of the night, we took pictures, thanked the families and thanked the church for allowing us to be here this week. God has truly blessed us with this week!