As I was walking in the dark Tuesday night, after everyone had gone to bed early, I came across two ladies filling tin cans with sand. I inquired into this unusual behavior and they told me they were going to wake all the kids up for a little midnight snack of cookies, chips, and roasting marshmallows over candles. “We wouldn’t want them to think we’re too normal,” they said. What a great youth ministry motto!
Wednesday night was the camp ‘talent show’. Each of the teams put together a drama. There were some dances, lots of songs from hip hop to reagge to old Afrikaans hymns, and one American shilumbu (white person) with an acoustic guitar. 
At their invitation I gladly joined in and shared For The Moments I Feel Faint by Relient K. When I got to the line “I think I can’t, but I think You can” the whole place erupted. As an encore I got them to join me in singing You’re So Good. It was really a cool moment for me as all these kids that I’ve been getting to know through volleyball and just around welcomed me in as one of their own. No matter how different I look or my musical style, we still worship the same God.
This afternoon we caravan down to Windhoek where we’ll catch a train to Mariental. We’ll arrive about 2am when we’ll move into our accommodations and catch some sleep before a full day of setting up for the weekend. Unfortunately there’s no place to lock up valuables so Dieter suggested I don’t bring my camera. That’s gonna kill me all weekend, but it will make sure I get out from behind my lens and enjoy the experience. It also means I won’t get to update you all until I get back. Please pray for the weekend, for tender hearts in the people of Mariental, courage and boldness for the youth and the rest of the team from Emmanuel, and safety during our travels and everything else. Thanks so much and have a blessed weekend!
Youth Camp - Day 3 and 4
Photo of the Day
This is Deborah (pronounced with the emphasis on the O), the girl we took to the doctor, sharing a few songs at the talent show Wednesday night. I've enjoyed watching her joyful spirit as she worships and never stops smiling.Photo of the Day
Tuesday night after everyone had fallen asleepYouth Camp - Day #2
Volleyball went great with the kids today. The whole camp is split up into 5 teams and they send some kids to soccer, some to volleyball, and some to relay games. The points are tallied up for daily winners and an overall camp winner at the end of the week. Today’s volleyball group was a blast. Everyone got involved and even those who’ve never played before jumped right in and had fun. Naturally there’s some competitive spirits, but they were pretty well behaved and didn’t argue with the referee.
This afternoon we had to take a girl in to the doctor. She had eaten an apple which she was allergic to. In the end it was simply hyperventilation with a dose of panic, but it caused quite fright amongst the campers. As we left Dieter told the other kids ‘don’t worry, just pray’. I hope seeing her come back just fine will be a good faith lesson for them all. And on top of that, the doctor who usually charges N$175 per visit and isn’t well known for his charity didn’t charge a thing. Now that’s an answer to prayer if I ever saw one.
What a weekend
It’s been pretty crazy these past couple days, and it doesn’t look to let up anytime soon. Our Bible Study at the high school just finished the Firm Foundations book that they’ve been going through for over 2 years now. To celebrate we had a little Fun Day with the kids. We spent the morning over at Gross Barmen, 
a natural hot spring in the area, enjoying all kinds of pool games like sharks & minnows, Marco Polo, and some chicken fights. Then we headed back to Dieter & Joan’s plot where we braaied up some food and gathered around in my living room to watch The Passion of the Christ projected up on the wall. We had some great questions and conversation following the film. Overall, a great day and a good conclusion to the study.
As I mentioned, next weekend I’m joining Dieter & Joan and a group from Emmanuel Church on an outreach down to Mariental. Joan was put in charge of the volleyball ministry, for her leadership and ministry sense rather than her volleyball skills I’m sure. In fact, no one who joined her team knows much of anything about volleyball! As usual, Joan was excited about the Providence of having an American coach living on their plot. So Saturday morning I held a little clinic for them, demonstrating some of the basics that they can then show the girls next weekend and teaching the rules so they can referee their tournament. They were an attentive class and most importantly, they understand that this whole project is for the sole purpose of sharing the gospel and God’s love with the teens that come.
Have I mentioned yet how thankful I am that God provided good friends my age to hang out with? Saturday night we had a little game night with some of the other ministry volunteers around the area. Markus and JoJo are a German couple who are helping Lon & Val Garber with their ministries. Isabella is an Ovambo girl who’s been staying with them as well, helping with the beading ministry and often used as an interpreter in Vyf Rand. Anna is a German volunteer at the Ark. Then there’s Buddy, Julia, and myself. It was awesome being halfway around the world, sharing the same table and breaking bread with people from 3 different countries and cultures. We quickly decided that there needs to be a Namibian version of Apples to Apples, a perfect opportunity for me to use my print-your-own cards. It wasn’t until I played it over here that I realized how very American that game really is. But it was cool because they could learn a little vocabulary and I could learn how deeply engrained my own culture is in me.
The Judea Harvest Youth Camp arrived tonight. I helped out playing guitar during the opening session and it gave me flashbacks of the crusade back in Arandis. The leader starts singing a song and I have to figure out the key and the chords on the fly, but this time I don’t have Tresford to follow. Should make for an interesting week. :) Dieter keeps telling me how African I’m becoming, but I can’t help but think how American I really am.
Mr Gardener
This is the beginnings of the gardening project I've been working on. Unfortunately I don't have a before picture for you to see the jungle it started out as. It's now a lovely place to sit and read your Bible as the sun first peaks over the horizon, or just pray and listen to the wind rustling the tall grass.
This is what's next...and here you can see the jungle. :)
100
I used to think of Orion as a decent sized constellation, but not that big compared to Taurus or the Scorpion. But that was before I saw the flashing light of a plane flying through the middle of "The Hunter”. I’ve stood next to planes. I know how big they are. But this one, as it inched across the constellation, was no bigger than one of the stars making up his shape. Now I look up at the western sky and Orion looks enormous.
It is the Lord who created the stars, the Pleiades and Orion. It is he who turns blackness into dawn and darkens day into night; who draws up water from the oceans and pours it down as rain on the land. The Lord is his name! ~Amos 5:8~~~~~~~~
Guinea fowl are usually pretty timid, but making it’s home in the Windhoek Botanical Gardens, this one probably sees it’s fair share of inquisitive tourists. It was quite a peaceful walk through the hills enjoying the quiver trees and the bottle trees and the Windhoek Aloe in full bloom. It’s these little things that you don’t have the chance to appreciate when you’re in and out in two short weeks.I’m pretty excited about the Judea Harvest youth camp next week. Like I said, I’ll be teaching a volleyball clinic in the late morning, but I also volunteered to be a part of the worship team. There will be over 100 kids from churches all around Windhoek. They’ll spend Sunday night through Thursday here at the plot learning evangelism training and other life skills. Then over the weekend I’ll join them down in Mariental (an hour and a half south of Rehoboth) for an outreach to put their training into practice. It should be a great week…although it does mean I’ll miss the bazaar in Arandis which I’m kinda disappointed about.
Other random updates: The animal adventures continue…I’ve killed 4 mice in my house within the last week. For those animal rights people, there are still plenty around even without those who desire to reside in my home. I also skidded out pretty hard core on a bike the other day and scraped up my knee pretty badly. It looks rough, but it’s already on the mend. And as surprising as it may sound, I found a juice I think I like better than Juicy Fruit’s Mango Orange. Fruitree’s Clear Apple juice is phenomenal! With every cup it’s as though I’d forgotten how good it was!
