First week wrap-up

Hi everyone!


I’ll catch you up to speed on what life’s been like here. Ok, last Friday and Saturday (Feb 19 and 20) were YFC staff training at the national office here in Mochudi. Then Saturday night YFC runs what is called “Coffee Bar” (in the summer it’s more like “Ice-cold water” because that’s what we serve, but in the winter it’s coffee). It’s just a 3 hour time when local youth can come and play games, pool, foosball, ping-pong, football (soccer), four-square, etc. It’s a way to build relationships with kids and we take 5-10 minutes in the middle of the evening to share a quick message about Christ/the gospel/God's love, etc. I used to play ping-pong and four-square at my youth group growing up, so it was a great trip down memory lane. I must’ve played four-square for like 2 hours straight! There were 50+ teens there last week, including two twins named Elijah and Elisha!

Last Sunday I went to a local church in Mochudi. The service was almost 4 hours long! Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday I went out with the YfC dance and drama team (composed of 7 members who are Batswana Christians 18-25 years old) to their presentations to 13-15 year olds at 3 local schools. They do a long program involving dance and long skits that share about the gospel, encourage abstinence, and raise awareness about AIDS. Then we try to build relationships with kids afterwards and invite them to get connected to other YfC events. After the presentation last Tuesday, I overheard one of the team members encouraging a group of kids who had gathered around him, urging them to wait till marriage for sex…that it’s possible…commit their lives completely to God and He will give them the strength to abstain from sex. It’s possible because God gives you the strength.” I said “yeah” in agreement, and he said, “She even came all the way from the United States to encourage you guys in this.” I shared, “ I am 26 years old and have waited…it’s possible, by God’s grace. Wait, it’s worth it…”

The actual dance/drama program is well received by the students. The kids love it when the team dances (they scream from excitement every time the team starts dancing—like hip-hop dancing) and sings. And the students laugh a lot, and sometimes cry, from the dramas. The dramas are mainly in Setswana, so I don’t know what’s so funny, but someday I’ll understand it! Along that vein, I have been attending a Setswana class on Monday nights and practicing with a CD-rom I brought. I hope to find a language tutor/helper soon who can help me learn.

Also on Monday, the cool story happened that I mentioned last post (sharing the gospel with the taxi driver Kagiso).  A great first week here in Botswana!