This morning was PPI (Pastoral Program for Instruction). Usually the Minister teaches class 8, the Evangelist teaches class 7, and the teachers teach the younger students. Today I had the opportunity to teach the kindergartners and boy did we have fun!
I did a 10-week internship in Christian Ed a few summers ago, so hanging out with a bunch of 6 year-olds was familiar territory. The teachers began by leading songs. Despite the fact that it was 8am, these kiddos were already amped up and full of energy. We danced and sang and danced and sang and danced and sang. Then, I taught a lesson about Hannah based on 1st Samuel 1. We used our arms and our bodies to act out the whole story with motions. Acting out the story was a good way to keep them engaged in the lesson. The fact that I'm a mzungu probably didn't hurt either. I think everyone had a good time and learned something too.
It truly is amazing how much joy a bunch of smiling little ones can bring. Watching them sing, dance, and pray with such joy reminded me of what delighting in the Lord can actually look like. In growing up, I think we loose certain senses of curiosity and joy that we have as children. I aspire for my faith to resemble the same joy and curiosity I saw in the SPA children this morning. I've been primarily spending time with middle-aged adults, so being with the little humans was a good change of pace. I spent the afternoon in bed power napping and lesson planning. I'm still not any better and have changed medications so hopefully that will help me recover more quickly. This evening, I was invited by Elder Harriet to preach in the Baraka (means blessing) district fellowship. After connecting so well with Hannah's story in the morning PPI program, I decided to adapt and expand the lesson for the adults this evening. Despite a few coughing fits, I made it through the lesson. Like many other fellowships, this one incorporated singing, prayers, presentations, and some quality fellowship. When they got wind that my birthday was coming up, they blessed me with some money to buy a birthday cake and sang happy birthday to me (the American way and the Kenyan way). One of the the members asked for my phone to record the occasion and got a few blurry pics and this one instead of the video she intended to capture. Enjoy!
~ Nell in Nairobi
PS: This little one was just too cute not to share.
