So I got back to Caronport safely after my trip to Warman for the week. Driving there and back was the longest distance I have ever driven by myself, and it went well, although I did get rather bored. But I made it!

Week 3 of clubs has been a good week that had both blessings and challenges.

Club 1: This club got up to 13 kids, and I had said if they got to 15 they could pie me, but I let them do it anyways… And it was fun! Then, surprisingly, one of the kids wanted to be pied as well! So there was lots of whipped cream and messy faces on Friday. I had a lot of fun teaching this club, and as I mentioned earlier, one girl made a decision for Christ! Pray for her, as she doesn’t go to church.

Club 2: I only ended up getting to do this club three times, as there were no kids on Monday and Thursday. The kids that came the other days were unchurched, and though they sometimes  struggled with not paying attention, I hope some seeds were planted. On Friday, something cool happened, though. There were only two kids (the two who were good at paying attention!) and during the Saul story the girl asked if it was a true story. I told her yes, and then afterward I showed her where it is in the Bible. Both the kids were interested and asked if there were more stories about Paul/Saul and if Noah’s ark was in the Bible, and a few other questions. It was really great to see that they did absorb the teaching, and the club was held at their grandma’s house, so I know that if they have questions they can talk to her.

Club 3: On Thursday this club was canceled because on another event at the church, which lead to a pretty rushed episode of A Little Rascal in order to finish it, but I don’t think the kids noticed! When sorting through lessons, I noticed there were 5 mailbox decisions! There were 3 in club decisions on the first day, and at every club hands went up to receive Jesus, but I was only able to pray with three of them because it took a long time to hand out prizes with some many kids. Since all the kids were churched, I am confident that they with continue to grow and learn more. Praise the Lord that they took that step of further commitment to God!

So that was the clubs in Warman and Saskatoon! Pray for the kids that made decisions this week, and for those unchurched who got to hear the gospel.

Next week I am back in Moose Jaw! Keep praying for energy for me in teaching, safe driving, and that’s God’s Spirit would be working through me and in these kid’s hearts.

-Rose

It’s hard to believe I only have two more days in Warman, and then week three is over! Things have been going pretty well.

Club 1: I asked for prayer that the kids would be more excited about club, and the last two days they have been! They really have been enjoying the Little Rascal stories, although the youngest club member (a girl of 5) said that she liked the stories, and when I asked which one was her favourite, she told me the Bible stories were! I like hearing that.

This club has got up to 10 kids, so yay! I told them if they got to 15 they could pie me, but I may change it to if they get a certain amount of lessons done. They have been a fun club and they deserve to pie me.

Oh, and yesterday there was a decision at this club! This girl didn’t go to church but she said last year at 5-day clubs they gave her a Bible, so that is good. Pray that this girl would stay strong in her faith.

Club 2: After having no kids the first day, there were five the second day! Praise the Lord! The club went pretty well. But yesterday there were only three, and it didn’t go so well because two boys were kind of misbehaving and wandering around during the stories and goofing off. I may need to be a bit more stern with kids like that, especially since they are older and should know better. Pray that God would give me wisdom in this matter.

And pray that there would be at least a few kids today. Some who were there yesterday said they couldn’t come today. Pray that the kids would be engaged and listen well. Also, pray that they would want to do their lessons. I haven’t gotten any lessons back yet, and these kids are all unchurched, and they probably need to hear the truths in these lessons.

Club 3: This club continues to be fun with lots of African kids though I still struggle to keep track of them all and give them the right lessons! With such a big crowd, it is a little bit hard to keep them all quiet and listening, but there are definitely some kids who really want to hear the stories, so that is encouraging.

Since Monday, I’ve had a few more kids put up their hands to receive Jesus, but on Tuesday handing out lessons took so much time that I didn’t get to talk with them. Yesterday (Wednesday) a few more kids put up their hands, and in the flurry of getting them lessons and prizes the kids didn’t come talk to me after.

However, I did notice on one lesson I got back that a boy had written for when he had taken the Lord Jesus as his Saviour, he wrote “Now.” (I don’t know if this was a kid who put up his hand, I haven’t been able to remember names very well!) So whether or not I am able to pray with these kids, God is still working in their hearts. They are basically all kids who go to that church, so I am confident that they understand what they are doing if they make a mailbox decision.

Sometimes I struggle to know if when I lead kids to Christ is I am doing it the “right” way. But God keeps reminding me that He knows their hearts, and that childlike faith is precious to Him.

For this club, continue to pray that administration details would go smoothly and that the kids would be attentive.

Summary of it all: At that last club, God used a little girl remind me why I am doing this. I was explaining that they should bring friends so that they could get a pin, and a girl piped up, “You should bring friends so they can learn about God!”

As I thought about it after, I realized that I’m teaching clubs is so kids can learn about God. It’s not always easy, and some days are fun and some days I’m just praying that God will keep me going. This may be stating the obvious, but I’m doing it so kids can learn about God. Whether or not they make a commitment, whether or not they are sincere in their commitment, God knows. I’ve got five hours in a week to teach these kids the most important things they will ever learn, the things that can completely change their life. That’s something to take seriously. It’s not about me, or whether I’m leading them to Christ the “right” way, it’s about God working in their hearts. A verse I keep thinking of is Zachariah 4:6- “Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit.” God’s Spirit working in these kids lives is what is going to bring them to know Him.

So pray that these last two clubs would go well, that God would bring kids, that kids would be attentive, and most of all that God’s Spirit would be working through me and in the hearts of the children.

-Rose

Yesterday was my first day teaching in Warman! I was a little nervous to drive this far by myself, but it went well!

Here’s the update from yesterday’s clubs:

Club 1: There were eight kids, so that’s good! All churched kids who did pretty well at answering questions in the Bible stories. Pray that they would be enthusiastic! It was a little bit hard to keep them engaged and they weren’t that thrilled about singing. Pray that I’d be able to make friends with them and connect with these kids.

Club 2: Yesterday there were no kids at this one, so pray that some would come today! The hostess and I are hopeful. I left after about half an hour and spent some time praying for the kids who live in that neighborhood, that God would draw them to the house where the club is. So for this club, pray that God would bring kids!

Club 3: This ended up being a really good club, despite not the best start. I thought I had left enough time to drive to Saskatoon, but then there was some construction and traffic, and then I made two wrong turns… I got there about 15 minutes late. It was at a church, which was good, because it was raining, and there were about 30 some African kids! It was really cool! Kaitlyn, who is staying at the same billets as I am but teaching different clubs had come, which was good because I really needed help taking getting all their names and giving kids packages! With that many kids most were listening and I knew some weren’t but I went with it and they enjoyed the stories and songs and I still managed to finish on time! Not sure what that says about my story telling skills, though I did get the point accross and three kids accepted Christ! Praise the Lord! Those were my first in club decisions, so that was exciting!

For this club, pray that I would be able to handle the administration details! These kids almost all have African names that I can hardly say, let alone spell, let alone remember! It’s going to be interesting trying to make sure they all get the right lessons and prizes! This club is super fun though, and I think it’s a real blessing to me to have a large club with excited kids.

That’s all for now! Sometimes the summer ahead (or week) seems so long. Continue to pray that I would have joy in doing the Lord’s work!

-Rose