First Update

It has been a busy few days for the Zambia team! The flight went well, Travis was able to get the rest he needed and he arrived with all his luggage.  Sunday was the first day in Lusaka and they spent it recuperating from the flight and a little bit of team building. Monday was spent training for camp. Every day, the team starts with Breakfast, a devotional and worship time.  The worship time led by the locals was incredible and a privilege to experience.  After that, they load up onto the bus and head over to the camp.  

One of the leaders from Every Orphan's Hope spoke during the training and explained that they hired a circus to come to town to entertain the kids and that circus is our Woodcreek and Colorado team.  They are the teachers, but they are also the entertainment! Today Travis finished his first day of camp and he absolutely agrees with her.  

The Colorado team is made up of about 30 high schoolers. A very interesting high school, I don't remember exactly what Travis told me, but they go on about 25 mission trips a year and they had 80 kids apply for this trip and chose these 30. These kids know what to do and they are bringing the energy and excitement for the participants. The camp kids are completely enamored with them and will run 50 feet if they are offered a fist bump.  Lots of hugging, fist bumps and high fives!  Lots of dancing, clapping, and silliness!  I wish I had some photos to share. We will have better pictures eventually, they don't want phones out being a distraction.  

The team was able to pick the age group they wanted to serve, and Travis was happy to choose the older teen group.  He wanted the older kids, hoping to get into real questions and discussions. His group is made up of 14 17 year old girls! He wasn't expecting that! They were very sweet, listened well and participated pretty well.  Today's theme was Truth. Travis taught about how God created the seen and the unseen world, and that He is the author of truth and the author of the Bible.... and so we know the Bible is God's word and true.  They talked about how Satan is the father of lies and then talked about some lies he might tell us, like we are unloved or we will never be successful. They talked about rebuking those lies with scripture.  He read to them that they are fearfully and wonderfully made, and that God has a purpose for them.  

Next they did crafts and they were a huge hit! Travis was worried the girls might think it was too juvenile but they really loved them. They had lots of fun with the crayons, markers, glitter and stickers.  They also made broaches to pin on your shirt out of flowers and leaves. They also made a team name, a flag and a team song.  They are the red team so they went with the Red Babes. There was also a lot of dancing and running around! Travis is glad for a consistent workout habit to keep up with them.  

They were outside on the ground in the sun all day. The girls didn't want to go into the shade because it was too cold....Travis says it was not cold... But Travis has a little bit of a sunburn so prayers that it heals quickly and he is able to get those gals into the shade this week.   

The high schooler paired with Travis is named Braden and he's 17, seems like a real sweet kid.  So please remember him in your prayers.

Travis's translator is named Jonathon. He is helping out a lot more than expected. English is being spoken, but the accent has been difficult for the team to understand.  So please pray for clear communication and that everyone is able to understand one another.  

Travis's prayer request is that he will be able to have meaningful 1-1 time with his students. The language barrier is very hard for all of them.  Plus, while he believes it can be good for these girls to see a man who loves Jesus and tell them what they are worth and how they should be treated, they probably need a woman to confide in.  The plan is to have another Woodcreek member tag team with him. So please pray that these girls are able to open up to and confide in Sarah and that Travis is able to provide the same support for her group of 16 year old boys.  Pray that this is a safe space for them to open up and for Sarah and Travis to speak truth into their lives.  Give them the right words to say.  

 

Travis will be leading the team devotional on Friday, Prayers for him as he plans out what he will talk about and that he can encourage his teammates so they can encourage the campers. 

I'm sure you are all wondering about how the world events are affecting the group.  They were in and out of Qatar before any of the missile were fired and, besides that, their airport wasn't close to the US airbase.  Thank you for your prayers for travel, we are glad they were not delayed in Qatar due to the fighting.  

Thank you for reading this far!  I plan to update you again after camp is over.  If I find out any other prayer requests, I will pass them along to you!  We are so grateful for your prayers

Woodcreek Zambia crew at DFW