Today is saturday so we were able to sleep in. Brogan and I are scheduled to go to a Bible study with the girls choir today but I'm not sure if that is what we will actually be doing. Things change here so much. There are no schedules and they just go with the flow. It is kinds messing with my scheduled personality that I have at home. It's a good thing I can "fly by the seat of pants" also!
So, above you see the beautiful faces of the Youth Choir. They are mostly girls, only a few boys, and they are between the ages of 7-17. A lot of these children are orphans (which I didn't know until several days later). I had planned to do a Bible study on Esther and Daniel and their faith and obedience in the Lord and those that are their elders. Turns out I didn't have to do much reading, teaching or explaining. The girl in the turquise shirt on the left knew the entire story. I asked what they could tell me about Esther and she stood up and told me the entire story. Basically, word for word what I had written down to explain it. She knew all the details and names of everyone and did a great job relating it for everyone. I found out later that she has been raised in a Muslim home and accepted Christ as her savior about 2 years ago.
Our time with this group was awesome!! John Bosco is the leader of the Youth Choir and he is doing a great job with them. His desire is to finish and release a CD of their songs and sell it. This would provide extra money for the choir and the church. So far they have two songs done. They need around $3,000 US dollars to finish the CD and get it ready to market and sell. (If you feel called to help it would be a great blessing to these children and the church!) The girls tried to teach Brogan to dance and well, she moves a lot like her Daddy so that didn't go so well. They sang some songs for us and were really happy to have us there. Most of all, we were happy to be there. A 30-45 minute plan turned into almost 3 hours. After we finished singing, dancing and Bible study we blew up balloons and handed them out. Those were a big hit! The girls all loved Brogan and had lots of questions for her. Will she stay, will she come back, what does she eat at home. I thought that one was interesting. "What do you eat at home? Do you eat beans?" Beans are cheap and a staple here. You see little ones snacking on raw beans and they might be some of the only things they eat. So, the "Do you eat beans?" was a question that I am sure they expected her to say "No" to since she is from America. God-thing here: She does eat beans...and a lot of them! See, beans and rice is a staple in our home because it is cheap and we can feed a lot of people on a little money. And, when I say a staple I mean every 7-10 days we are eating bean soup or beans and rice or beans and cornbread. So, when they were expecting a "No" Brogan pipes up "Yes". The response "You eat beans at home?" Brogan, "Yes. All the time!" You see, God was preparing her for this moment her entire life. This moment was a connection between girls who live across the world from each other and have very little in common otherwise. You see my dear sweet Brogan, as much as she doesn't get everything she wants she still has more than she needs. And, while we made her some cute skirts for this trip, and are going to leave them for the girls, the fact is that she gets to wear something different every day that we are here and still has a closet full of clothes at home while these girls are wearing the same thing everyday. And, while Brogan has a family that loves her and cares for her, some of these girls don't. And, while all of that and so much more could seperate them instead, the fact that she eats beans often just like they do has bonded them in a way that means so much to these girls. She IS like them...even though her skin color and her geography and her circumstances are different...she IS like them!
So for all those that questioned why we would allow her to come to Africa and why we would spend the money on a 9-year old to come over...
THAT IS WHY!!!
Brogan and I have played a ton of Uno and SkipBo games. She has won all but maybe two. I think somehow the cards are rigged. I got tired of playing, actually losing, so she begged me "Please mom. I promise I'll go easy on you." and started giggling. Does that look like a face that will go easy on me? I think not! We have also played some volleyball, with a beach ball, as well as we could. The people here at the hotel love watching her play outside. I'm not sure that maybe they haven't seen a little white kid before.
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