Teen Retreat 2011

I am in a nation full of morning people. Even the teens are early risers.

At MOH's youth retreat this past week, I was constantly shocked by the energy of the campers. By 5:20 in the morning, most of the teens were already up, screaming as they rushed to the lake to bathe. By 6, the worship band was in full swing, and within ten minutes, all 200 teenagers were dancing to the beat of the “Vision Vibration” praise team.

And that was just the morning devotions.

The four-day retreat, sponsore by First Presbyterian Church of Bethlehem, PA was one, high energy whirlwind of games by the lake, teaching, small groups, and “life skills” sessions. The camp gave 20-30 secondary school students from each of the centers to meet one another, listen to teaching from the Bethlehem group and from MOH staff, and hear from peers who had experienced similar challenges. And while many parts of the camp reminded me of youth retreats back home, there were some noticeable differences.

Worship, for instance, was never just mere repititon of words. It was a reggae dance party, an experience that was as much physical as it was spiritual. (see video below)

Small group discussions centered on issues like and "what to do when people come after you with a mpando knife ( a machete) when they find out you are a Christian,"and "should I still go to church even when my dad won't let me."

Despite the differences in worship style and faith challenges, it was encouraging to watch teenagers from both Malawi and the US connect with each other across. And while none of us were able to master the dance techniques below, it was humbling to just take part.

Fighting within Ministry of Hope

Tired of conflict in the workplace? Observe as members of Ministry of Hope- Daniel, Joseph, Chris, and Thomas- demonstrate the latest techniques in positive conflict resolution. The practice, dubbed "Ninja" by its creators, encourages coworkers to release negative energy through physical aggression. The rules: You have one move to hit another person's hand. If both of your hands are hit, you're out. It's taking a while to catch on.

Operation Christmas Child Deliveries

Growing up my grandmother would always take me and my siblings shopping around Christmas time. We weren’t shopping for ourselves, our family, or even our friends. We were shopping for someone that we didn’t know on the opposite side of the world; we were shopping for Operation Christmas Child. I used to love packing a shoebox to send out every year; it was fun, easy, and somehow even the elementary-aged version of myself understood it was a good thing to be doing. Until Friday though, I don’t think I ever quite understood why packing shoeboxes with presents and sending them to the undeveloped world is a good thing. Actually, after Friday, I now see that Operation Christmas Child is not merely a good program, but an amazing program.

Friday, MOH traveled to the remote village of Kwamba to distribute a truckload of present-packed shoeboxes to children in the community. We arrived at the Kwamba feeding-center around lunchtime and commenced handing out boxes. After several hundred boxes were distributed we moved locations to the local primary school to distribute there. All told we gave away over 400 shoeboxes. I can only begin to describe how beautiful it is to see a child receive, quite possibly, the first present of their life. Operation Christmas Child is not a means of community development; certainly receiving a shoebox full of toys does not solve the problems of poverty, hunger, or homelessness in a community. But, Operation Christmas Child is a means for loving others. The children of Kwamba will never know the person they received a shoebox from, neither will the person who pack a box ever see the smiling face of its recipient. But, at the receiving end of a shoebox there is guaranteed to be a smiling face and a child that feels loved. I am very thankful MOH has the opportunity to distribute shoeboxes. What a blessing it is!