Rachel's Reflections

Elizabeth and Refilwe clung to me. Their long faces matched mine. The dreaded time to say goodbye had come.  Last week I told them I had one more week left with them. They were sad and asked if I was coming back next year. I told them no and explained that there are still people in the world who do not know that Jesus died on the cross for their sins and people groups that do not have a Bible in their own language. I told them I want to go to some of these people to tell them about Jesus. They understood but were still sad. They both came Thursday afternoon for the final day of ministry hungry for the Word of God, excited for the fun games, and happy to see me. They also came with something for me... They each gave me a note that expressed their thanks and love. Our time was drawing to a close. The lesson was over, the games were all packed up, everyone else started to leave. Elizabeth and Refilwe sat down next to me to say goodbye, their friends crowding around.  ...

This morning I had the privilege of teaching the Bible lesson for our Larsen's road ministry. In the book of Judges God's people forgot who the Lord was and what He had done for them so they started making bad choices (worshipping idols).  During small group with the older girls we talked about why it's important to remember what God has done and the need to share those things with other people. They all gave specific examples  and ways they could apply this to their lives: daily reading God's Word and telling their friends at school about God. It was the best discussion I've ever had from those girls. Praise the Lord for their genuine interest and pray these seeds take root in their lives and grow. Gugulethu, one of the girls, talked to me afterwards. She was concerned about why the Israelites would forget God and make bad choices. This gave me the chance to review the Gospel with her, especially sin nature and the need to believe in Jesus for salvation. She had...