Hitting the ground running!

Katie, the children and I toil through the hot sand for 2 kms to get to Eluwa (boarding) school for the deaf and blind.

I had arranged last week with the principal to come and run a Bible study for some of the children today (Wednesday) at 3pm.

Seeing us, the principal asks, in typical Oshiwambo fashion, ‘You are here?’
‘Yes’, I replied. ‘We are here.’

She sends someone off to find Meme Aina, a teacher who would find us a classroom to use. Hordes of children crowd in and around the school reception area, signing ‘hello’ to us. And numbers continue to grow as we wait for Meme Aina to arrive.

Like Halley’s comet, we then have a trail of children following us to our destination. When there is usually nothing on after school, word soon spreads that things may be about to change!

The Theory …
Katie and I had planned an informal introductory Bible study with a few of the teenagers we have so far come to know. Maybe 5-10 people? We would do a presentation of the Gospel, using the wordless book, and then have a time of interaction.

The Reality!
Hot on our heels, about 80 children cram into the small room, which soon becomes stiflingly hot. Not quite sure what to do with such a crowd, I commence with a game that requires me to sign numbers to groups, which is good practice for me. And, unlike hearing children, these children keep their eyes on me lest they miss their number being ‘called’!

Then Katie and I take turns, with our limited vocabulary, to explain to the children the Good News of Jesus Christ. Meme Aina, herself deaf, helps us out when we get stuck or do not sign a word correctly, which is a great help.

We finish with prayer and another game outside, in the shade of some trees. Caris and Étienne enjoy playing with the other children and trying some of their limited signing, too. Étienne, in his inimitable way, remarks that going to a deaf school would be good for him as no one would tease him about breaking wind (to which he is prone). David, arriving back in Ongwediva at the perfect time to give us a lift home, replies that the school was not for ‘smelling’ impaired people!

And now?
Well, it seems there is now a kids’ Bible club to run!
But we still want to see if we can do something separately for the youth, as a smaller, interactive group.
As Katie puts it when we get home, “Can you believe it? We just told the Gospel in sign language!”
Thanks for your prayers, assisting us to do this.
And please continue to pray for the hearts of these young people to be turned to Christ and to grow in him.