"He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds." Psalm 147:3
"Blessing Time" was a scheduled part of CAMP LIFE each day. This is when I could go spend one-on-one time with each girl, along with my Zambian partner Magdalene, of course. I'd heard others who had been to CAMP LIFE before say how this was their favorite part of the day, and I was anxious to get to know these girls a little better.
Education is key in bringing about change in the lives of these children, and as I said previously, that is a luxury that most of them are not able to afford. Through Family Legacy's Father's Heart Sponsorship program, children are able to attend a Lifeway Christian Academy and receive one meal a day. In addition to that, as an incentive for the child's good attendance, extra "blessings" of food are given to the caregivers at home. You see, many families would rather keep the kids at home to do the work or take care of the other children. Some of the situations are much like child/slave labor, and that's why the extra incentives have been built in for the caregivers.
To sponsor a child through "The Father's Heart" program, for children in grades 1-6, there is a is a 1-time $95/enrollment fee for school and then a $44/month commitment. For children in grades 7-12, the sponsorship changes to $66/month and a 1-time enrollment fee of $190. The price differential is because of the additional testings that the government requires to take place for the older children.
This short video is very indicative of what I saw and what a difference an education can make. Take some time to watch...
(If for some reason you cannot see the video, I also posted it on my facebook! You can look there or message me, and I will send you a link!)
Over the course of the week, we had "Blessing Time" with all 10 girls, but Tuesday, we met with Nephie, Catherine, and Ireen. I want to introduce you to each one, so you can pray for them specifically for them.
This is "Nephie". Is she not just beautiful? Just look at that sweet, innocent smile! I think you'll find that I'm going to say almost that exact same thing about all my girls. They are all so beautiful, and I would soon learn just how beautiful, inside and out!
Her real name is Nephel Phiri, and Nephie is the one mentioned in the earlier blog who spelled her name wrong on the necklace, but "Nephie" just seemed to fit her well. The last name of Phiri is a common name in Zambia, kind of like "Smith" or "Brown" is here. When I arrived at CAMP LIFE on Monday, looking for my Zambian partner Magdalene so I could identify my group of girls, apparently she spotted me first, so Magdalene sent Nephie over to get me. She literally attacked me with hugs as if we were long, lost friends. "Auntie Beth!!! Come this way!!!!" And that was my first greeting from Nephie, actually, with any of "my girls".
When I sat down with Nephie for "Blessing Time", I learned that she's 11 years old. I asked if she knew her birthday, and she did not. We were told that many of the children have no idea what day they were born, only about how old they are. My heart cracked a little more. If you know me, you know birthdays are big for me. My husband jokes that I celebrate "Beth's Birthday Month" and proclaim it as a national holiday. We were instructed to write down a birthday of 1/1/and the year if the child didn't know her birthday, that way the ministry could identify the child's birthdate as being "unknown."
Nephie is in grade 3, and praise the Lord, she currently has a sponsor through the Father's Heart program. But did you catch that? She is in grade 3, but she is 11 years old. That means Nephie is already 3 years behind because of not being in school. Can you imagine your 11 year old being in 3rd grade, but still being smart as a whip? My heart split open a little more.
When I asked her what makes her happy, she said "I'm happy because I get to go to school now." How many of our children will answer that question like that? But these kids know and understand the value of education. How I wish our children could really grasp that same importance!
Nephie is a single orphan - her mom passed away, and she lives with her dad. She said that there are 8 children in the family, 4 boys and 4 girls. She said she sleeps on the floor of a two room house. Nephie has goals of being a nurse one day, and she asked that we pray for her to be able to concentrate at school.
I asked her what pains her, and she told me what pains her is listening to her 18 year old brother cry throughout the night in pain, due to his sickle cell anemia. She said they don't have any money for medicines, so her brother cries a lot, and that makes her sad. I asked her if she feels safe at home, and she said now that her community chased away one of her neighbors, she does feel safe. She said the man kept preying on her, but he never hurt her though. (Praise God for His protection!)
I learned that before coming to CAMP LIFE, Nephie had already asked Jesus into her heart. However, sometimes she attends a JW church. Please pray that God will invade her home and she will understand the difference between truth and lies, as her mind is probably getting mixed messages. Finally, Nephie asked that we pray for her dad to find employment. We prayed together, hugged, and I told her if she wanted to talk with me anytime later in the week, just to let me know. Please pray for Nephie and the prayer requests mentioned!
At the end of the week, each child was given a wool blanket. This is a picture of Nephie with hers. Special thanks to my friend Ashlie Rich who sponsored this blanket for Nephie. (More on the blankets in a later blog!)
The next "Blessing Time" we were able to do was with Catherine - Catherine Tembo. Catherine was my oldest orphan girl. She is 14 years old and even knows her birthday - November 9th, 1998, but as I quickly learned, she's already had a harder life than most people I know. She's a double orphan - both her mom and her dad have already passed away.
Catherine shared with us that after her parents died, she used to live with her auntie. The auntie made her "go out with boys" so they would have money for food. By the grace of God, Catherine's grandma heard about what was going on, and she stepped in and took Catherine away from the auntie. Now, she lives with her grandma, 2 brothers, 2 uncles, and 5 cousins in a 2-room house. She said there are 8 people who sleep on the floor in the room she sleeps in.
Pictured above is Catherine Tembo.
Can't you just see the joy of the Lord come through her face as she sings one of the praise songs, while waiting in line?
Remember that first "Small Group" I talked about from Monday? The one where I was so concerned about the girls not understanding the decision to accept Christ into their lives? Well, when I asked Catherine if she had ever thought about making that decision for herself, she told me, "I already did that." I asked her to tell me more about it, and she said, "I made that decision in "Small Group" on Monday, Auntie Beth! Isn't that just like God? He has all the details wrapped up perfectly, and we don't need to worry, not one bit!
Like Nephie, Catherine is also blessed to already have a sponsor through the Father's Heart program. She attends the Lifeway Christian Academy in her compound of Chainda, and her favorite subject in school is English, but she has a goal of being a teacher one day.
I asked Catherine if she feels safe at home, and she said she does most of the time, now that she lives with her grandma. But she did say one of her uncles gets drunk all the time and screams at her, "Follow your father to the grave!" She said once he threw a big stone on back, but when he is drunk, she now just tries to stay away from him.
Catherine wept as she asked us to pray that God would forgive her for her past mistakes with boys and that she will stay pure now that she's a child of the King! She was a child. A victim, really, and yet she was holding guilt for what was forced upon her. We prayed together, and I believe God healed her heart and made her whole again. That's what He promises to do, you know, "He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds." Psalm 147:3
Catherine asked that we pray that her sponsor will be able to continue, then she said one more prayer request. "Please pray that God will add years to my life." This 14 year old girl knows all too well the reality of the brevity of life. She has seen it. She has lived it. And she doesn't want to repeat the cycle of death.
"Please pray that God will add years to my life." - Catherine Tembo
Special thanks to my friends Steven and Kelly Bardeua who sponsored this blanket for Catherine!
We had time on Tuesday for one more "Blessing Time" - with a little girl named Ireen Phiri, but I will save that story for the next blog. I'm well aware that as I type all the details, most people don't have time to read all the details, and her story is one that cannot be missed, so stay tuned. It's her story that keeps me awake at night, and haunts me during the daylight hours.
Take the time to pray for Nephie and Catherine, will you please? Especially pray that they will be able to stay in school and grow in the Lord! And pray that God continues to bind up the wounds of these brokenhearted ones who have lost so much.
---Beth Banfill
www.GodandMe2theMax.com