Kingdom Encounter
This is the 4th time a group of students from Holland Christian Middle School have traveled to South Africa for a Kingdom Encounter.
The Kingdom Encounter trip is about serving, hiking, journaling, enjoying creation, and encountering opportunities to grow in faith through other cultures. Oceans Ministries desires for each student to know they are loved by their heavenly Father!
Be blessed as you read a few of the experiences this team encountered. OceanView Care Center
I thank God for the week at the care center and the opportunity to help out and bless the kids and teachers while serving in a community that really needs it. I pray for the teachers that they can continue to bless others and do their job amazingly and know that the Lord is so proud of them! I pray for the students and that they can know how much God loves each and every one of them and that God has an amazing plan for them as well as the people around them.
The Township of Jim Se Bos
We went to Jim Se Bos and helped people who don’t really have any food at all. It changed me in a spiritual way because I could go and serve people and help them have a meal, and I saw the look on their faces when they got the food. I am very thankful for Pastor Raymond because he is always helping people and trying to help everyone have a better life, like giving them food and giving the children a place to have fun and learn about God.
I am very thankful for the ladies who were working in the kitchen. While we worked together we danced and sang beautiful worship songs. I am very thankful that no one got cut or hurt while making food and that everyone had fun. Many people were thankful for their food, and I pray it can nourish them and keep them sustained.
In the United States, we are very blessed. Even when we go to a place like South Africa, we are living in a nicer place, eating better food, and have more opportunities than some of the people that live there. I encourage the people that are reading this to pray for the people of South Africa. Pray for their safety, health, and most of all that they come to know and love Jesus because when their earthly bodies die they will be able to have eternal life in heaven which will be the best thing that anyone will ever experience no matter where they live.
I also learned that it doesn’t matter where you are or what you have seen because you can still turn to God for guidance. I also learned that helping people brings me lots of joy and peace.
Playing Rugby at Fish Hoek Beach
One afternoon we met Pastor Raymond and some of the kids our age he had brought with from Jim Se Bos at the beach. We played a version of rugby because we didn’t know all of the rules. While we were playing, one of the lifeguards that was watching came down the ladder and played rugby with us. When everybody got back from the beach we had pizza for dinner.
Family Time at Oceans Retreat Center:
Each night after dinner we had family time where we would share our highs and lows of the day. A few nights we had a guest speaker. One night Andrew spoke about his story and ministry. He talked about glorious inefficiency, which is the idea that we try to do things efficiently and don’t always think about the big picture plan. Glorious inefficiency means that God does stuff maybe not the most efficient way but always the big picture best way. We also talked a lot about the power of prayer. Looking back on our days and the opportunity the will have to pray over the teachers at Oceanview Carpenter, we realized more than ever how important prayer is. It can truly change a situation around.
On the very last night we talked about our takeaways from the trip. My takeaway was about God’s love and faithfulness. I talked about how God loves and listens to us no matter what we are: strong or weak, bold or meek, poor or wealthy, sick or hurting or healthy.
Praise God for how He is moving in the hearts of young people!
