Morley Update 2012 #23

Everyone -
Many of our team just finished another week at camp - this time it was a family camp. We kept the ARC going with a small crew and everything went fine. Last night we had a Team Fellowship - we decided to go with a "Camp" theme and have people share their highlights from camp. What an encouraging evening! Here are some of the things that were shared.

Christy shared that the last night one of the men in a family we have been working with stood up and was very bold about saying "These people are speaking the truth and you need to listen". She also told about a day that the women went kayaking. Afterward she said one of the women said "I did it. I was scared but I did it! I was the captain of my own boat!" Many of these women have lived their whole lives under oppression so it is encouraging to see them step out and feel empowered on their own. This gives them courage in their everyday lives and also courage to learn more about Jesus.

Tasha shared that they talked a lot about love during the discussion time. They shared about God's love and about love and kindness to others. She said that during the week almost every woman came up to her at some time and said "we see this love in you (the staff as a whole) - you are different than we are. we see that you do things because you love us and not because it is a duty." At the end of camp 6 women expressed a desire to join an ongoing Bible Study. Tasha also shared that one of the women who is very close to making a commitment to Christ but hasn't done so yet was riding on a big banana being towed behind the boat. The banana tipped over and the woman told Tasha that she thought "Oh no, I am going to die and I haven't accepted Jesus yet." she said "I'm glad I didn't die and I am still thinking about Jesus".

Lisa shared that the women at this camp seemed particularly attentive during the Bible discussion times. Aziz (our Afghan team mate) was translating for the women and they were bold in asking questions that they would not usually ask in front of a man.

Aziz shared that he liked translating for the women but that one night a women became angry and was speaking rudely and they had a hard time calming her down. He said he was surprised when a day later she came to him and apologized for her behavior because that is not something that comes easily in their culture.

Susie shared that little "S" the 11 year old girl in a wheelchair who accepted Christ recently asked her one night if anyone had accepted Jesus the night before - Susie told her that "yes one teen age girl did". She said "S" just lit up and was SO excited to hear this. On the last night "S" wanted to share with the group. On her own initiative she had made a craft of the tomb of Jesus. She held it up and said "I made this because I love Jesus". This little girl does not let her disability keep her from letting the Lord use her!

Kenn shared that at the men's camp (where they baptized 5 men) one of the men who is in a wheelchair and comes in to men's meal days on Fridays was very bold in his testimony. He was baptized with some difficulty but said "No one can stop me from making this decision, you can harm me but I will still follow Jesus." This may seem like a small thing but we know many people who have suffered physical abuse and have been ostracized for their faith.

Our interns shared how wonderful it was to see the kids happy and smiling as they played, did crafts and learned about Jesus. So much in their lives are hard and they grow up too fast. It is good to see them enjoy being a child.

God is moving among the Afghan people here in Athens. Many people have made decisions for Jesus or are very close. We truly believe the these next weeks and months will be very exciting as we see whole families come to Christ. Thank you again for choosing to be involved in what God is doing - thank you for praying, thank you for giving and thank you for encouraging. We love you all.

Serving Him Together,
Kent and Myrna Morley
Tripoleos 76
Elliniko 16777
Athens Greece
011 30 210 96 38 625
backhoeboy1@gmail.com
http://kent-uniquelymorley.blogspot.com
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