Light in Lembinwen

One of the things I've been trying to emphasize with the local congregations here is being a blessing within the community, both as individuals (at work, school, play, garden, etc.) and as a group. I've been encouraging them to find specific ways in which the church can focus on areas of service or ministry to make a difference in Jesus' name. Simply keeping your eyes open for opportunities to serve the community, coupled with prayers asking God to open doors, can work wonders.

One of the things Aiel and his family in Lembinwen Village (Southwest Bay, Malekula) wanted to do was assist the local "kindy" with some supplies. Government schools begin with Class 1 (1st grade), and so each community is responsible for running their own kindy program, which means they are often under-resourced. Aiel met with the kindy teacher and together they came up with a list of items that would benefit the learning of these 20 to 25 four- and five-year-olds (buckets, crayons, floor mat, wall clock, drawing paper, etc.).

Most of the items needed to be purchased in Vila, and we then shipped them to Malekula, including some posters that were sourced from the States. During our recent trip to Lembinwen, the kindy teacher and parents asked us to come see how they were using the resources that had been provided.

It was such a joy to see the kids benefiting from the donations, and I was proud of Aiel's family for putting the teaching into practice. The kids had literally memorized all of the principles and spelling of the information contained on the posters (days of the week, colors, 123s, ABCs, shapes, etc.), and were very appreciative.