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Camp Langano Impacts Village
Abdula (not his real name) was the smallest camper at one of our summer sessions. All of the boys were supposed to be 13 – 15 years old; Abdula was about 10 (it’s hard to know for sure, since many don’t have birth records). He was definitely our smallest boy at camp. Being the smallest, he was occasionally roughed up a bit by the older boys. One day he was playing goalie and was steamrolled by an older boy’s shot on goal, leading to a bloody nose. Abdula was always one of our favorites – mixing it up with the older boys and having fun.
Last week, Negash (not his real name), our Sports Friends leader who has been working with Abdula and others in Abdula’s village, gave us this report: Prior to camp, Negash had just recently begun building relationships with the youth in this village. He was using sports (primarily soccer) to engage the youth of this village, and through the youth, to build relationships with the adults of the community. There were no Christians, but Negash was praying that God would open the doors to the hearts of the youth through the sports outreach programs. When given the opportunity to bring one youth from this village to camp, Negash chose Abdula.
After Abdula returned home from camp, he talked constantly about what a great experience he had – how much he was loved, how he had learned Godly character, how he had had the most fun of his life! His parents and the village leaders wanted to meet the man who had given Abdula such a wonderful experience. As a result, Negash had the opportunity to build relationships with many more of the youth and adults in the community.
He continued to love and mentor Abdula as well. Abdula talked about wanting to follow after Christ. Negash was amazed when he heard that Abdula had washed the feet of his older brother as a sign of love and servant hood (which he had seen us do at camp). Negash had opportunities to share the message of Jesus with Abdula, his brother and family, and other adults in the community. Negash said he was treated like a “hero” in the community because of the incredible camping experience Abdula had. Since returning from camp, Abdula, his brother, his parents and a total of 28 in his village have placed their faith in Jesus. There is now a worshipping church in their village. Praise God!
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