Dearest Friends,
THREE SHOWS
At a large school, we did 3 programs back to back. We shared with hundreds of children and this was such a blessing. At first, many teachers did not want to bring their children, but again, God changed their hearts. One teacher even came to us afterwards and asked us to forgive her for even considering such a thought.
Most amazing of all was the response of one teacher. She listened to the first program and was touched. She immediately got permission to leave school and went to get her daughter. She was desperate for her to hear what she had heard. It was like reading a story Bible when Jesus spoke to the woman at the well. She was desperate to tell people because she had found hope and forgiveness. I thought of that story today as the lady made plans to bring her other daughter to another show. I believe from her behavior and her conversation that she met Jesus Christ. Please pray for this dear lady and her daughters.
JOY
After one show, I met with a small group of teachers. One of them had returned several times after the show to talk to me. They were intrigued at the way the children behaved during our program. They could not believe how well they listened. I explained to them that I always pray before a show. I told them how I always ask Jesus to help the children to listen.
Then I realized that God was giving me a very special opportunity to talk to these ladies, so I told them more of my story. I told them about my husband Mike and how much I loved him. I asked them if they had seen me demonstrate joy when I had told the story to the children. They all said that I was full of joy. Then I explained to them how even in this very difficult time God had given me joy. I wanted them to understand how God could give them joy during the difficult times in their lives. I wanted to encourage them to put their trust in Jesus Christ. God is in control of all things and He can take anything that happens to us and redeem it for His kingdom.
YOU ARE ALL THE BEST
It is so funny what God does. We were all so concerned that the teachers might object to what we said. The villages that we are working in are all Orthodox communities that normally are very suspicious of evangelicals. They teach that good works are enough to get a person to heaven. We tell the children that only through the faith in Christ can they know God and experience His forgiveness. This is what God’s word teaches, but it is not what the Orthodox church teaches.
We all prayed about our concerns, but I confess that we still held onto our worry. God took care of the problem in an amazing way. The teacher that attended the program absolutely loved it. When we finished, she began to shout in English, “You are all the best. Never forget you. Never forget you.” She told our translator, Dan, that the program had touched her soul. She said that she felt it in her heart. Wow! This lady was Orthodox and thrilled to receive the Gospel.
There is even more to this story. No program is without its problems. In the middle of this one, a teenager passed out and hit the floor. We had 80 teenagers standing in a small place with too much heat in the room. Usually we have too much heat, or none. After we stopped for her, I was distracted and drew the same page of the story twice. Despite my mistake, God poured His Spirit on those young people as we prayed with them. I saw faces change as His joy filled their hearts. One young man was so anxious to pray that he started to pray out loud in English, before he even received the translation. Praise God!
I really laughed when after the program a student came and told me how she loved the way I drew a picture twice to emphasize that part of the story. God redeems all of our mistakes. He is so kind to us!
In Jesus, Linda for
Sam Shaw- Assistant Director
Silvana Shaw
Calah Sager
Toby Simmons
Naomi Armstrong