Sharing the Light of Christ

SEELEY LAKE – From donating blood to swarms of mosquitoes at Teen Missions International Boot Camp in Florida to sharing her testimony and God's love with orphans in Malawi, Africa, thirteen-year-old Grace Wilson returned to Seeley Lake the end of July a changed person. While she learned many life lessons, Bible verses and met many new friends, her biggest take-home was she needed to have a better relationship with God and show her parents more respect.

Wilson was a member of a 21-person pre-teen group, ages 10-13 that spent three weeks in Malawi this past July. She spent two weeks prior to the trip at boot camp in Merritt Island, Fla. where she trained with her team.

Wilson did everything at boot camp with her team. They did an obstacle course, ran everywhere together and sat together during class. Wilson said that her leaders put the slower runners in the front of the team and the faster runners in the back. This taught the front-runners endurance and those in the back patience.

Wilson's team earned the "Piggy Award" the first day of camp because their tents and camping area were not well kept. They all wore a sign with a pig's head strung with "itchy twine" that read, "I live like a pig."

They quickly passed the award on to another group the next day after tidying up their camp and earned the opportunity for time in the pool.

The young missionaries took classes on the Bible, puppetry, balloon-making and concrete and digging. They also learned the fine art of bath and laundry out of buckets.

The pre-teens and teens were commissioned the last night of Boot Camp. As all of the youth sat in darkness, Bob Bland, founder of Teen Missions International, told the new missionaries that they should share the light of Jesus. He lit one candle to represent the light of Christ. The light was then passed to everyone in the room.

"It was so beautiful in the Big Top [their main meeting place] that night," said Wilson.

Wilson was grateful for the two hotel rooms purchased by one of her team's parents the night they spent in the airport. She was able to take a warm shower for the first time in two weeks. After the night in the airport and several flights they arrived in Malawi.

For Wilson and many on her team, it wasn't until they saw the Teen Missions International sign welcoming them to Malawi that the reality of the experience sunk in. They had arrived to spread God's word.

"I was really thankful that God had brought me here with such an amazing team," said Wilson. "We were in a cramped bus but we had all become really close friends since boot camp so we really didn't care how close we were."

The team spent their time building a community playground and playing with children at the Melissa Foster Rescue Unit.

Wilson said the unit was started after the husband of a young woman kicked her out of their home because she was pregnant. Abandoned and alone, she gave birth to their baby boy in the woods and buried him alive.

While washing at a nearby river, she was approached by a Christian who was leading Sunday School nearby. She told them where she buried the child and they found him alive.

"That was a miracle from God," said Wilson. "That is what built the Melissa Foster Unit. I thought that it was a really powerful story that we were going to a place where children didn't have family or homes."

The team painted tires and installed a fort and swing set. Wilson said they also shared the love of Christ with Malawian children while playing games and teaching Bible lessons.

"I realized that helping kids was more important to me than anything else," said Wilson. "I wanted to tell them that God loved them and even though there was no one else there for them, God still loved them."

On Sunday, Wilson and their team attended church. This was the only time they had an interpreter with them.

They joined in praise and worship African-style with professional choirs that were travelling through the area. The team also led some songs, shared a couple testimonies and did a puppet show.

"They loved the puppets. They were laughing and had their phones out," said Wilson. "We were able to share God's word through something that was fun and entertaining."

While Wilson said Jesus touched every aspect of the trip, His love was most tangible at the Melissa Foster Rescue Unit. She and her teammates freely shared His love and she saw the young orphans respond.

Not only was Wilson able to share the light of Christ with others, God revealed to her that she had become distant from Him when she faced challenges back in Seeley Lake. She also realized that all the little fights with her mother were disrespectful to the parents God had given to her.

"In order to go through all this stuff, I need to rely on God," said Wilson. "I need to rely on and respect my parents because God put them in authority over me for a reason. In order to trust them, I need to respect them first."