SEED Program

This morning we woke with heavy hearts knowing that it would be our last day with our soccer children. We began our morning with worship and devotions and after we welcomed the kids for the last day with games galore. Once everyone was here, we went inside the hall to hear testimonies from Chris and EJ. Chris talked about growing up and how his life has changed since he has found God. EJ shared her favorite verse from the Bible which was 1 Peter 5:10 and explained that God has the power to heal even when you go through hard times. He will give you chance at new life.

Once the testimonies were finished, we broke into small groups to go play new games with the kids. Today, we had clothespin tag, classic volleyball, track and field, and ultimate Frisbee once again. They showed improvement to the old games and quickly picked up on the new ones. Looking around, there was nothing but pure happiness and love throughout the morning. After hours of playing both new and old sports, we gathered back into the hall to hear from Caroline and Coach V about the word of God. They both talked about perseverance and how important it is in life and sports to pursue God. They read scripture from Romans 5: 1-5 to help explain their message.

Later in the afternoon, we broke into small groups to teach the children about hygiene, strength training, how to warm up, and leadership. Kyle, Maya, and Jenna led the hygiene group where they reminded the kids of basic hygiene and how to keep their bodies healthy. Alli, Sara, and Tena were in the leadership group where they talked to the kids about who they look up to and why and talked about how they should look up to Jesus because He is our leader. Jager, Eddie, and Britta were in the strength and conditioning group where they did a lot of plyometric exercises and fun games to stress the importance of exercise. Haley, EJ, and Brian led dynamic warm ups where they different types of dynamic stretches to show the importance of stretching before playing sports. All the kids seemed to enjoy the small groups today, learned a lot, and asked great questions.

We went back into the hall to sing Father Abraham in front of everyone before we were released for lunch and team pictures. As some teams went out for pictures, others stayed in for a quick dance party with live African drums. For lunch, we had a classic PB&J sandwich and had fellowship over the meal with the little ones. The games continued after lunch for about an hour before everyone gathered into the hall for one last time. The whole staff and kids said thank you with loud cheering and whistling which made our team feel so welcomed and loved. Abby mentioned that we will always have a family here in Choma and we are welcome back anytime. We thanked the kids for being so awesome this week with handmade bracelets, Hope stickers, and candy!! We also got into groups of 4 with some of the kids and prayed for whatever was heavy on their hearts.

Once the commotion died down, some of us got ready to go into the community for home visits and some stayed in their athletic wear for community kids to come to the base for Kids Club. We went into Armor’s kids family homes where we asked questions to learn more about their culture and every day life. We also talked about the word of God and gave them any advice we could offer. We ended each home visit in prayer with everyone hand-in-hand. When we arrived back to the base, there were several community children there for Kids Club. We ended our night by playing games with them and said our heartbreaking goodbyes with so much love and several hugs all around.

For dinner we had nchima!!! We were all excited and we thank Mama B, Mama D, and Mumba for cooking our favorite Zambian meal on our last day. To top the night off we all gathered to thank the staff here at EMIZ and Poetice for their wonderful hospitality and welcoming us into the family. We gave them their very own SEED shirt as a way to always remember us. Last thing on the agenda for the night was debrief. We all shared our God moments for the day, which everyone looks forward to every night. We all felt overwhelmed with gratitude for the week that we had together and the experiences we’ve encountered. We joined together, hand-in-hand with an emotional prayer for anyone to jump in when they felt the need to. Overall, it was a beautiful last day to spend in Choma. We want to thank everyone who has made this trip possible and we all look forward to see what God has planned for us when we go back to the States!

Blessings,
Kyle and Maya

We started the day with devotions and worship after breakfast. Felix, our worship leader for the morning, encouraged us to pray for each other during the songs that we were singing. A lot of us were moved and felt the Holy Spirit during the morning. After devotions, the Armour’s kids came for another talk from Caroline and Coach V. Today, their message was from 1 Corinthians 9:24-27, which talks about dedicating your bodies to compete and serve in a way that will glorify the Lord. Caroline talked about running the race with perseverance so that we can have eternity with Jesus Christ. Jager and Blessing also shared their testimonies with the group, which was inspiring for all of us. We then separated into stations with the kids. We introduced some new activities and sports, including American football, capture the flag, ultimate Frisbee, and their favorite: volleyball. After the sports stations, Kyle, Jenna, EJ, and Brian did some very enthusiastic cheers with the kiddos (ex. The banana cheer). We then split up into 4 different session groups led by Team Z. The sessions today were: speed and agility, sportsmanship, nutrition, and yoga. All of the kids paid attention, asked good questions, and seemed to enjoy each of the stations. We were all super pooped after a long and eventful morning. We took a short break to put some food in our tummies and then we were off and running for the rest of the afternoon.

After lunch, Abby split up the kids up into groups. Some of us did home visits with some of the kids from Armour’s and some of us stayed back to do more water filter demonstrations. The rest of the kids went to soccer practice. We were assigned do home visits with two brothers from the Armour’s boys teams. After walking to their home, we were greeted by their step-mother and some other relatives. At the small home that we were visiting, there were 19 people living there. The mother that we had the chance to talk to was raising the boys and their siblings because both of their parents had passed away. Not only was she taking care of the brothers and their 7 others siblings, but she had 6 children of her own. There was only 1 person in the family who was bringing in income for the family. It is very hard for them to feed their family – most of the time they only eat one meal a day. When asked about her life, the mother seemed helpless. She asked that we pray for more years for her so that she may provide for her children. We were all struck by her selflessness, kindness, and strength. However, after taking a glimpse into her life, we were impressed, but also frustrated because we felt like we couldn’t do anything.

After the home visits, we had some down time as a group. Most of us focused on making friendship bracelets for all of the Armour’s kids (80+ kiddos). Others focused on improving their volleyball skills (Coach V).

After dinner we debriefed as a group. This is our favorite part of the day because we all share how we saw God throughout the day and how we were challenged. It’s so awesome to see how friendships are growing and how God is working in each of our lives. Today we focused on how our stories, both before and after this trip, can be an influence to others. We were also encouraged by what Abby had to say about our home visit. She said that even though we feel helpless, “what we have in us is the most helpful.” Food is a short-term need but the gospel is a long-term aid. The fact that God is pushing this on our hearts shows that there is hope for change. What we feel as helplessness is actually hopefulness from God.

We only have one more full day in Choma but are so excited to see what God has in store for us. Life here feels so real and the idea of going back to school in a week sounds superficial. It’s hard to see the necessity of school when we have seen people live this way in their daily lives. We feel like we are needed here.

Much love,
Mother T(ena) and Eddie

This morning we woke up early, watched the sunrise, ate breakfast, and were supposed to get on the bus to leave for the village of Macha at 6:45. Push the Rock is a sports based ministry present in the community there. Last year Caroline had the opportunity of working with the Messiah College student athletes in Macha and today we partnered with them in their sports ministry. However, the bus was running on Africa time again so we actually left at 9:05. While we were waiting for the bus, the members of our team either made string bracelets or played sports with the U10 and U12 Armour’s soccer teams who were coming with us to Macha.

After a long and bumpy ride we arrived in Macha and began our day with Push the Rock. We split up and partnered with Messiah College student athletes serving at the base in Macha that week. We worked on different sports stations, which consisted of games such as lacrosse, tug of war, and volleyball. After the session we continued to play with the kids while our Armour’s kids got ready to scrimmage the players from Macha. During the scrimmage our team and Messiah’s students continued to have fun with local kids and adults. We danced, played games such as netball, and Coach V taught the kids how to play softball.

After the scrimmages, we had the opportunity to share another Zambian meal, which included Nchima. Post lunch, we played volleyball against the Messiah College athletes. We won two of the three games in the match, and it was fun for us to come together to work as a whole sports team.

We ended our time in Macha with worship with the Push the Rock staff, Messiah Students, and the children of Macha. Elam spoke about how God loves each and every one of His children the same, no matter the differences between us, and He loves us so much. He also made the point that it is no accident that we all were gathered together today. God had planned all of our interactions far before today and knew that we would all cross paths to love on each other. Two Messiah students sang songs for the children to listen to and spend time with God. We want to give a special thanks to Push the Rock and Messiah College for letting us be a part of your mission in Zambia.

Sadly, it was then time to say goodbye to our new friends, but we got to head back to Choma for a delicious meal waiting for us (thanks Mumba!). We spent the rest of the evening in discussion and fellowship with our team and the Poetice/EMIZ staff. It is always wonderful to hear the different God sightings and highlights of the day!

We woke up on this crisp Sunday morning with breakfast and went to church at Bread of Life in Choma. The service was very memorable and spirited and everyone seemed to enjoy the new atmosphere. During the service, the pastor preached a powerful message how the God the people of Zambia serve is the same God that is worshiped around the world. We all thought that this was very relevant to our whole mission of spreading God’s word. At the end of the service, the pastor asked if there were any visitors in the service today. Although we stand out, we stood up in our seats and were welcomed by the congregation. They then ushered us into a separate room and gave us food, talked with us, and extended us an extra warm welcome.

After service, we had the opportunity to explore the downtown market. The market was comprised of numerous small wooden huts with various items to sell such as food, clothing, electronics, etc. The main attraction for everyone was the chitenge shop. A chitenge is a traditional wrap that women wear around their waist similar to a skirt. They come in a variety of colors, patterns, and fabrics. We thought of them as a way to connect with the culture, a reminder of our amazing trip we have had so far, and a cool fashion statement when we get back to campus.

When we got back to base, the rival volleyball games continued as a few more victims were hit in the face. Although this trip has been such a blessing in itself, it was great to have some down time and enjoy the Sabath because we have been very busy these past couple days. It was another great way to connect with each other.

For lunch, we had a classic American grilled cheese with veggies topped with some Coca Cola. Once everyone finished lunch, we prepared for the afternoon as the families from town were coming to the base to learn how to assemble the water filters. When the dirty water was put through the filter and came out clean, the faces on the parents were overjoyed. We then broke into small groups and let the parents assemble the filters on their own with the help of a member from Team Z. Each family that attended went home with a water filter that they will be able to use for a lifetime. Not only does the water filter prevent water borne illness and disease, it also serves as a friendly reminder that God cleanses us of our sins! Everyone was so thankful for what we were doing to help the community and the different families.

Later Sunday night we went to the soccer pitch to support the amateur men’s team as they battled for the first place seed. While some were cheering for our guys, others were spending time with the younger kids in the community playing crowd favorites such as: duck-duck goose, jump the river, ring around the rosy, clapping games and several others. Although the guys had a tough loss of 0-2, they brought their best effort and we couldn’t be more proud of them!

To finish off the night, we ate spaghetti for dinner, cleaned up the base, played cards, and had our debriefing session. One point that Coach V talked about was how Sawyer has been very generous with their equipment and made it possible for us to come here and change the lives of many. She hoped that one day we can take what we have learned with our time here and can apply it in our future lives to keep changing the world for the better. #WordsOfWisdomFromCoachV. In our debrief, everyone testified to feeling God’s presence these past couple days and we all just look forward to see what else He has in store for us and in what ways He will bless us and the community!

Sincerely yours,

Alli VanderStoep & Kyle Weck

 

We woke up this morning to the power out in all of Choma. This apparently happens often in the area. After breakfast, we went to the hall for morning prayer and worship. This included songs in both English and Tonga as well as praying out loud. Throughout our worship, we had Armour’s kids slowly drifting in curious about the music and what was happening. God was present in this moment and was felt by everyone in the room.

Today, all of the Armour’s soccer teams came to the Elijah Missions International Zambia (EMIZ) base where we are staying. They came to learn from our group. Caroline and Coach V gave a group message about the importance of teamwork and connecting sport and faith. After this, the kids split into their teams and went to four different sessions lead by us, Team Z. These included first aid care, static stretching, core training, and the importance of teamwork. At the end of these sessions, some of Team Z gave a little of their stories and how they put God into their sport. Despite how young some of the kids were, they still were able to take a lot from this, which was amazing to see. The locals from the mission were very helpful in translating throughout the day.

After the sessions, we all gathered together for lunch. Once we were done with lunch, everyone brought their plates to be cleaned and were shocked to see four little girls taking initiative and offering to clean everyone’s dishes (close to 100 people). Boys were also drying the dishes for everyone.

Next, we Team Z, got into different groups so that we could teach them sports besides soccer. These were volleyball, kick ball, softball, and fun relay races. They all loved learning the new sports and were very talented at them.

The highlight of the day was when we were able to show the kids how to use the Sawyer water filters. They watched us assemble the filters and see that they worked on dirty, rocky water, creating a clean stream. They listened intently and rushed forward enthusiastically to see how it worked. After, we explained the symbolism of how the filter acts as God does when he transforms us from dirty sinners, to a pure and saved person that can never go back to being dirty,

Once the kids left, we all gathered together to play a competitive game of volleyball, which included getting hit in the face, and some definite winners and losers (for now). The dinner bell (pan) rang us over to our first authentic traditional Zambian dinner. This was AMAZING. We had chema, fried chicken, greens, soup, cabbage, and okra. All of these were eaten with our hands. During the meal, Richie, the chicken, decided it would be fun to bother everyone. He wanted to jump on the bench and Maya’s plate.

We introduced new card games to our Zambian brothers and sisters. They learned both spoons and Euchre. While we were playing, the power went out again and we were able to continue playing under the light coming from phones and a headlamp. Sooner or later, the lights came back on, and we all cheered and it stayed on for the rest of the night. God is working in our team and through us and we are excited to see how he’ll use us in the days to come.

Maya Smith & Brian Simonich

 

We woke up in Zambia this morning feeling a WOW moment that we are finally here!! The day was started off with devotions and a Biblical meditation session on Psalm 91 with Mumba, a Poetice staff member. It was cleansing and a great way to start our day. We then had a cultural talk with Bruce, a speaker from Livingstone and staff member of the Elijah Mission. He has traveled around the world and is a very wise man who spoke about the cultural differences between Africa and the U.S. and how we prioritize task, teams, and self differently when working in groups. They were very valuable lessons for our group.

After lunch we were split up into groups and visited different villages in the community. We were faced with poverty many of us had never seen before. Some of the houses did not have a roof, and most of the houses did not have electricity or running water. As we walked through the community, there was joy and excitement from the kids as they would gather around us and give us hugs and hi fives and ask us “How are you?” We could see that the Holy Spirit is very powerful in this community by their welcoming nature and kind hearts. Our staff member that showed us the community said “even a simple smile or wave will bring the members of the community happiness and a glimpse of hope.”

After viewing the community, we were assigned different groups that will participate and work with the various age groups of the soccer teams with Poetice. There are four teams: 10U boys, 12U boys, 16U girls, and the local amateur men’s team. The kids seemed to be very shy when we first arrived, as were we. We played multiple icebreaker games and taught the kids some games that we learned from the U.S. The children also taught us some Zambian childhood games like: 7UP, the Zambian version of Simon Says and Red Rover. Towards the end of the day, the children were very comfortable with us and were very passionate about including us. It is crazy how a simple little game or sport can break barriers. The kids would dance with us and follow us everywhere we stepped. The little children did not know much English so this was a small challenge for us. To overcome this we spoke in God’s language showing each other love and compassion for one another in whatever activity we were doing. Seeing the smiles on each of the children’s faces showed us that God is truly with us this week.

Britta Johnson & Eddie Ip