Today was day 1 of VBS at RBC. God has smiled on us! Even the chickens who wander around the front yard seemed chirper as we headed out with expectant hearts for what the Lord would do today.

When we pulled into the bumpy RBC parking lot (40 minutes early) about 100 little eyes were eagerly staring at us! Many children had already arrived; and we weren’t sad. We occupied the 50 children as the rest slowly came. And came. And came. About 340 of them. The Lord used the energy of the youth on the team and the professional teaching/principal experience of Sandy. We were all transfixed by her magic as she single-handedly engaged a large group of kids with songs, chants, and hand play.

The children enjoyed games including hula hoops, tug of war, parachutes, futbol (again, the real kind), frisbees, and beach balls bigger than them! Everyone, even the adults had a blast.

The kids did two crafts—a tote bag which they used their creativity to decorate with fabric pens, and a cross bookmark which they decorated with stickers.

We were encouraged and impressed by the RBC volunteers who jumped in to help, translate when we needed, and provide snacks for all the kids. What a beautiful gift to the church! Blessing, an RBC member, gave the Bible lesson to the kids in Chichewa on Revelation 22:12–Jesus is coming quickly and there is an urgency to respond now.

Josh surprised the team by pulling out his guitar and singing songs from his days in Africa for worship time. The “mzungu” (white guy) really entertained the Malawian kids!

As if the day wasn’t wonderful enough, some of the team had the unique opportunity to participate in dorm-to-dorm evangelism on a college campus. We were able to clearly share the gospel of Christ with dozens of students. Eight students heard the gospel message, received it, and prayed to accept Christ! Please pray for true saving faith that results in fruit.

Tomorrow will be day 2 of VBS at RBC. Please pray for energy, stamina, flexibility, and another fruitful day. Pray that the gospel will be clear and reach the tender hearts of these precious children.

Thank you for those of you who are reading these updates and praying for us. We are eternally grateful.