We were told that we could not share our faith with the kids. So I was shocked when the girl I was talking to asked me if I was a Christian! I said yes, and asked if she was. She replied that all the kids were! Praise God. I found out that the orphanage was established by an American woman, she and many of the 'aunts' who take care of the kids there are believers. So they would have time to worship and study the Word together with the kids. The girl I was talking to showed me her room, and even though I can barely pray in Chinese, I forced myself to ask her if she had any prayer requests. When would I ever get the chance again? Our girls had a great time playing with the kids. They're very well taken care of and seem really happy and healthy!
Anna can blend in with any age group :)
Kids lining up for instructions
Kids picking out gifts that we brought
During this trip, I think I realized that I don't have the maternal instincts that most girls have. Like, I don't have the natural ability to play games with kids. I am afraid of picking up or holding babies. They're cute and I like playing with them when someone else is holding them, but I don't really know what to do with them. LOL, I wondered if there's something wrong with me. I think I feel more drawn to high school and college kids.
Later that afternoon, we got ready for the graduation ceremony, which we were invited to. They really treated us like VIP guests, we had front row seats on the field! We felt so honored and blessed by the school's hospitality, they even announced our delegation and had us stand up at the beginning of the ceremony to introduce who we were! As we were walking onto the field, with the band playing music, I was reminded of my own graduation. My graduation experience was a bit peculiar, in that I had been in a car accident a few days prior and was bruised, had about 30 stitches in my forehead and a fractured nose. I went anyway because I didn't want to miss my own graduation, but I was definitely not 100% there. So it kind of dawned on me, that this is almost like 'another chance' at experiencing a college graduation. Even though it wasn't MY graduation, I still was able to take part in it and appreciate the speeches and grandeur of it all. All of a sudden, I felt like God was giving back to me what I had 'lost' in the past, either based on circumstances or my own bad decisions. This is just more of a personal thing, irrelevant to the purpose of the missions trip, but it was like an added bonus that He decided to give me that I totally did not expect! My college experience, especially my freshman year, was not what I'd call a 'typical' experience. My first year of college, I was assigned on a floor with 3 rooms that no one knew existed. So I did not have the typical 'hanging out in each other's rooms' or 'meeting people on my floor in the lounge or hallway'. Living in the dorm on campus made me feel like I was in college again, meeting new people, hanging out in the rec room or in the hallways, walking around campus and seeing kids going to class or playing sports. I know it sounds silly and is not really a bit deal, but it means a lot to me that He gave me these few days to experience what I never could have experienced because I couldn't go back in time. Likewise, I went to week-long Chinese summer camp a couple of times when I was a teenager, both of which left me with somewhat painful memories. At certain points during this trip, I felt like I was at summer camp, but without the unnecessary drama created by immature teenagers. I never thought these circumstances (graduation, college and summer camp) would or could ever be re-created in my life, and just accepted the fact that there were a few sad moments in my life. And now that I'm 27, God does the impossible and chooses to use this once-in-a-lifetime-situation to grant me another chance to get a glimpse of these experiences, but only with memories that bring a smile to my face and warmth into my heart. He didn't have to do it, it was in the past and I'd already let it go. But it's like He redeemed what I had lost in the past, just because He cared.
Later in the evening, while hanging out in the hallway before bed, a couple of us were able to share our faith with some of the guys on our floor. It was an amazing experience, orchestrated and led by the Holy Spirit. Even with our non-fluent Chinese, God was able to get our words through to the students by the power of the Holy Spirit.
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