I hope you have been enjoying reading about my journey in Hong Kong. I really had a fantastic time leading and teaching the VBS children in both Bible study and music. I am so thankful that God has given me the passion to minister to children. They are so special in God's eyes and I want them to know that.
Enjoy reading how God blessed these final two days of VBS in Hong Kong. There are some videos in this post & I hope that you are as encouraged by them as I am! (If you are just now following along, please read the previous 3 posts concerning the first few days of my journey by looking at the links to the right of this post...)
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Thursday
Woke up this morning to the ever popular weather for the week - RAIN! :) Luckily it wasn't heavy rain, but it was raining nonetheless and it ended up raining all the live long day. Not that it's a huge problem, I just forgot my umbrella today :( So needless to say, I got a bit wet.
Despite the rain, however, we had another great day at VBS! In my class today, we had 19 children. They are all so precious and sweet - I'm going to miss their little smiles and laughter greeting me each morning. It's so cute how their English is so British - I find myself talking with a British accent on accident :) Must work as they seem to respond. When I do that in America, I get a weird look. LOL!
Everything went pretty well in my class today. I taught the Bible verse time and made sure they knew it backwards and forwards....well, it was only three words, so it wasn't that hard :) "Jesus is Alive!" was the verse for today! What a great verse for little children to memorize. Even the non-English speakers were able to say the verse in English! (The translators translated its meaning for them). I was a proud teacher :)
In snack time, the children made airplanes out of bananas and pretzels. It was so cute and the kids were mesmorized by it!
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| Some of my kids at snack time! |
I got to talking with a little girl who doesn't really say much and discovered she can understand English, but not speak it. I asked her how old she was and she held out her hand and responded in Cantonese. Since I know my numbers in Cantonese, I decided I'd try it out on her. I must have done pretty well, because she would say no when I didn't get her age correct and would nod yes when I said her age correctly. However, when I talked to another student who was bilingual and asked her how you say "1 years old," she responded with a number I had never heard before. To say someone is # years old, you say the number in Cantonese then "soy." Learned something new today. Later in the day, one of our CBIBC guides, Christi, told me that this was normal for ages.
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| Precious girl who didn't really speak much English, but loved to chatter on with me in Cantonese :) |
During recreation, I led a game of Simon Says (called "Pilot Says") and learned that this is not a world-wide game for young children. They did not understand it at all - I attribute this to the lack of English knowledge. I would venture a guess to say that it would work well with older children. We just regrouped and played Duck, Duck, Goose - great fallback game, for sure :)
It was then time for our learning activity time. This next story is a story of epic failure turned marginally okay. My learning activity was going to be a secret message that the children had to color to find. On white copy paper, I wrote the Bible verse in white crayon that the children could "uncover" as they colored across it. When I tried it the day before, it worked....but when it came time to do it for real, not so much. The kids were like (and say this in a British accent), "I don't see anything." I was like, "It's there...(and then as I looked down, realized it wasn't)." Great. I'm in the middle of an activity that has plummeted to epic failure. What do I do? Take a deep breath, ask God for quick guidance, and tell the children to make pretty colors on the paper and write the Bible verse on their paper. For those who couldn't write it, I wrote it for them. They seemed to enjoy the creativity, and for that I'm grateful, but I wish it could've gone better :)
We headed down for music where I reviewed a couple of the previous days songs and then taught them the new one - "Worthy." This song is the Gospel message - Jesus died for our sins, rose again, and is now alive! I love that these songs relate so well to the memory verses this year. Just about all of them have the Scripture verse for the day within the song, that hasn't happened all the time in years past. I think it really helps the children learn the memory verse better when they have some sort of way (music) to remember it. (I wrote a blog post about the benefits of Christian music on children a while back...look here).
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| Leading the children in one of the songs for VBS |
The missions time was presented, we sang the theme song one last time and then it was time to dismiss! All the leaders had a group picture taken, we had a debrief meeting, and then my team headed out (in the rain) for Stanley Market to get some shopping done. It took a bit of time to get to Stanley, but it wasn't too bad. Stanley is on Hong Kong Island and we are staying and working on the Hong Kong mainland. We finally arrived at Stanley and went to eat lunch. Half of us went to McDonalds. McD's in HK is very much like McD's in the US as far as basic food. Desserts, however, are a different story. They had a green tea sundae, some sort of sundae that was purple, and their McCafe had cheesecakes, danishes, etc. As we were eating, something happened at McD's that I've never seen happen before in my life - in HK or the US. A bride and groom (in full wedding attire) entered McD's and sat down at a table. It was kind of a strange sight to see....I'm not sure McDonalds would be on my list of places to go immediately after getting married. :)
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| View of part of Stanley Market |
We shopped a little bit and I picked up a few small things. After about an hour or so we left and went to see Repulse Bay. This is a popular beach on HK Island. It was still raining, but it was still very lovely to see. It seemed so relaxing and I wished I could be there in better weather. We took a few pictures and then went back to the hotel.
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| Repulse Bay |
On our way to dinner, we stopped a jeweler that sells jewelry with Chinese Christian characters. He is a jeweler that has come highly recommended by CBIBC and always has beautiful works of art that he sells for a very discounted price to the team each year. Also, if you give him your address, he will send you a Christmas card each year. :)
Today was a great day, despite the rain. I love my children. I love leading the music. And I LOVE waking up each morning to the bustling city that is Hong Kong. I miss this place SO much. As we were returning from Stanley this afternoon, I was listening to the song "Be" by Selah that was sung at the Southern Baptist Convention this year. The main part of the song (part of it including the words of Jesus) says, "Come, anyone who wants deny yourself take up your cross, follow Me, no matter the cost, be my heart, my hands, my voice." As the song hit the point that goes "be my heart, my hands, my voice," the bus came up on a hill that overlooked the entire skyline of HK Island. It took my breath away and my eyes began to get teary-eyed. I am so blessed to be here in Hong Kong. I am so blessed to be Jesus' heart, hands, and voice this week as I minister to the children.
Friday
I can't believe we have completed the week of VBS! What a week it has been! Today went very well. Although, rainy, we had a good number of children and were able to lead some more children to Christ! Praise the Lord! Today we had 104 children who learned about how to have God's power over their life and live to glorify Jesus. My class learned about the Good Samaritan and how they can help others. I had 19 children in my class today and we began our class time taking a class picture. I must admit, I was a bit nervous as to how this would go...especially because I have a somewhat rambunctious group, but they were actually very well behaved as we took the picture. I was so proud! :)
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| Our 4 &5 year old class picture |
We separated the children into groups and I led the Bible story while my teaching partner led the Bible verse time. I must stop here and say what a God-send my CBIBC teaching partner has been this week. Her name is Haining and she has helped me so much with all that I planned to do this week. I know that doing the stations was probably confusing and added a bit more work, but I think in the long run it was more beneficial to the children. Haining has been so patient and kind to the children and myself and I am so grateful I got to work with her this year!
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| My amazing co-teacher, Haining! |
Like I said before, I told the children the story of the Good Samaritan. I found that I had to really lower the terminology used in this story with my group than what was recommended in my leader book. For example, words like Samaritan, inn, Levite, and priest had to be redefined as hurt man, hotel, church leader, and church helper. I wanted the children to know these words, but when you combine their age plus the fact that they aren't entirely fluent in English, it makes it just a bit difficult. I used objects to help tell the story today, so I think that helped a little bit.
We went to snack and the children made volcanoes out of crackers, cookies, and fruit roll-ups. I'm telling you, these snacks are just so adorable! :) I had a good interaction during snack time with a Downs Syndrome girl in my class. She is the cutest thing, but has an attitude :) Yesterday, she wasn't too fond of me, but today she was feeding me Goldfish left and right! :) She's a sweet girl, I'm glad to have had her in my class.
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| Love this precious girl! We finally found a mutual understanding...over Goldfish crackers! |
Following snack was recreation where we played with a parachute. That was fun. This was probably the first day in recreation where I felt like the kids understood what to do (remember Simon Says not working so well....). They had fun and it tuckered them out...which was nice for when we went back to the classroom. As we returned to the classroom, we separated into groups and I did my learning activity. Again, it didn't go the way I planned, so I just adjusted my activity and we managed :) If I have this age group next time, I am really going to plan things to do that are a bit under their age-range so that all of them (including non-English speakers) can understand what is going on. I truly believe they all had a great time, I'm just wondering if for some children, things were lost in translation. Regardless, they were able to take home things that related to the story and contained the Scripture verses on them so they could have reinforcement as to what they learned. Hopefully, they will be able to understand the meaning in English one day.
It was then time for music time where we reviewed all the songs in order to prepare for Family Night tonight. I really like all the songs this year. They are catchy and the motions are fairly easy. The kids have done a great job learning them and I am so blessed that I have gotten to be a part of the music this year. I even heard that one of them went home and watched all of the motion videos on YouTube so that he could be prepared...how funny is that! Out of all the songs that the kids have learned, I think that "A-M-A-Z-I-N-G" is probably their favorite :) They just giggle when we start doing the song and it makes me laugh. The video below is from Family Night, but you can hear them giggle as they do the motions to this song...cute, huh? :)
Following music was missions where the kids learned more about the mission offering to Cambodia. I found out that the videos that the children have been watching were all made by the VBS Director and his wife. They are awesome videos! I was very impressed to know that they were made in-house. Faith told me that the videos will be used for other organizations to use that desire to help with mission work in these Cambodian villages.
We closed with our theme song and it was a little bittersweet because I knew this would be the last time the children would all be together (as not everyone would be at the Family Night tonight). After the children left, we had a debrief meeting and then went to clean up and undecorate our rooms. I was afraid it would take a while, but we were able to clean our room pretty quickly. FUNNY STORY: When we started our debrief meeting, the VBS director asked all the children whose parents hadn't come to sit down so that we could have our meeting (in reality meaning all children should sit). His children were also standing, so I pointed to the chair and said, "Sit here." They looked at me and said with a puzzled look, "We don't have to sit...our parents are here." :) They were right! LOL! Love this age group - so literal.
For lunch, we went to the University. We were all pretty quiet as we were tired from the day. I called our family friend, Carrie, to set up arrangements for me and Meredith to have lunch with the old HK Baptist Mission office staff. It was great to hear her voice. I am looking forward to seeing her on Monday. While we waited for the guys to finish eating, Jennifer offered us some Chinese candy called "White Rabbit." It's basically a vanilla Tootsie Roll. It was pretty good. We then loaded the bus and headed back to the hotel.
After resting a bit, we all went back to the school for the Family Night. CBIBC had provided dinner for us, so we ate and then waited for the children and families to arrive. I was a bit more involved at Family Night this year because I was helping to lead the music. Once all the children got there, we lined them up on the stage and had them sit there until the program started. I was so glad to see many from my class come to Family Night. Before the program began, we showed a video slideshow of pics/videos from the week. A sweet VBS worker had put together the video and it was SO good! The children really enjoyed seeing their pictures on the screen - it was funny to hear them giggle at each photo :) The program began and the children did such a great job singing all the songs they had learned for the week! Since I didn't want to be in the way of parent photos (but still wanted to be in a place where the children could see me), I stood at the back of the room and did the motions for the kids so that they could see me. I must admit, doing all of the songs at once was a little tiring, but it was fun to see the kids enjoy themselves. It was also sweet to watch all the parents take photos and videos of their children...some parents even turned their cameras to me in the back...not sure how I feel about that, but it was humerous. In between each song, the pastor told the parents the theme for the day and the verse for the day. I'm glad he did that because I really think it helped everyone have a frame of reference for the week, as well as the songs. I was so proud when the children finished all the songs...I have really enjoyed teaching the children the music this week. It has been such a blessing to watch them worship the Lord through song and dance....(remember, it's not dancing if one foot is still on the floor!!!) :)
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| The kids on stage singing their hearts out and dancing their feet off! |
The children then went to sit down while the pastor presented a evangelistic message. His message was very good - it related to the Olympics that were coming up the following day. My young class, however, had difficulty paying attention during this time. Their attention span is very low, so for some, I had to keep them occupied and/or redirect them constantly as the pastor spoke so that they wouldn't disrupt. There was one child I practically had to hold down so that he would stay still! :) Bless his heart. FUNNY STORY: Near the end of the message, I turned around to make sure the part of my class behind me was behaving. When I turned around, I saw one of my little boys completely knocked out. His little head was leaned over to one side and he was fast asleep. It was so cute and SO funny! He finally woke up when everyone started clapping as the pastor finished his message.
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| CBIBC pastor preaching evangelistic message |
Following the program, the church provided refreshments for everyone. All of the families had a nice time fellowshipping and meeting their children's teachers. I got to meet many of my students' parents and tell them how great their child was during the week. Many of them asked for a photo to be taken with me and their child. It was weird for me to have my photo taken so many times, but constant picture-taking is very popular here. I also got to see one of my previous students from two years ago. She came up to me and said, "Hello, Allison!" I was surprised she remembered me and it was SO good to see her. To see that I had enough of an impact on her for her to remember me was so reassuring.
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| Some of the children who attended VBS this year |
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| Don't let this smile fool you... :) Sweet boy, though! |
Following the Family Night, Oscar & Faith drove me to the airport to pick up Meredith. I am SO excited to see her as I haven't seen her since mid-May! :) We are going to be spending a few days together here in HK before returning home next week. We got back to the hotel very late, but it was great to have part of my family with me.
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| Picking up Meredith at the airport! |
What a great day to cap off such a great week! No matter where in the world it is, VBS is always so fun and such a blessing to be a part of. I remember being a child in VBS at CBIBC and having a team come in and teach us the theme...so I know exactly how all of these children feel to see and interact with us. To know that someone cares enough to travel around the world to teach you important truths and have fun with you means a great deal. I don't take that lightly. I have done my best to show pride and love to each child in my class, as well as those I pass in the worship rally or in the hallway. Remember that a personal touch means SO much. Today's theme was God having power over our life. One little boy in my class said today that God gives us power. He is so right. We even sang about it today, "God, I want to walk, talk, live, pray, stay, and move in your POWER!" No matter what happens in our life, God gives us the power we need to make through each day or the power to help others in need or the power to travel halfway across the world to tell people about Jesus. Our God is AMAZING and I am SO ecstatic that the children here at VBS in Hong Kong got to learn about and experience his AMAZING POWER this week!
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I leave you with a video of our theme song from the week. The message of this song encapsulates the entire meaning of the week...God is so powerful and He is with us constantly! What an "AMAZING WONDER"FUL VBS week this was!
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