A Part of Something Great

From Samaritan's Purse blog: A Part of Something Great March 15, 2013
Liberia
More than 100 children complete the The Greatest Journey discipleship course and help spread the Gospel in Liberia By Chris Blackham, staff member from the Samaritan’s Purse office in the UK

Today is the last day of my trip to Liberia, and what a way to end it.

We spent time with a group of children practicing for their graduation party from a Samaritan’s Purse discipleship program. Sounds like fun, but nothing ground-breaking, right? Wrong!

Two years ago this community was completely unreached by the Gospel, with no believers in Jesus and no church! Two years ago, Samaritan’s Purse invested time and energy to place two local missionaries there, calling them community development facilitators. They worked tirelessly, engaging the community and sharing God’s love with them in practical ways. They hosted outreaches and Bible studies to build on the platform created by their practical work, as well as organizing a simple distribution of shoe box gifts from Operation Christmas Child.

This team also hosted a summer camp for kids and had youth sports programs and literacy programs for adults. After two years of wide-ranging, diverse, yet complementary, investment from Samaritan’s Purse, we had the privilege of witnessing a milestone in their development – a celebration of more than 100 children completing the comprehensive discipleship course, The Greatest Journey. This training and graduation was hosted by the community’s thriving church, which has nearly 100 adults in attendance every Sunday morning. Again, I remind you, two years ago this was an unreached people group with no knowledge of the transforming power of the Gospel. God has no boundaries, so long as we are willing to be used by Him.

Samaritan’s Purse staff in Liberia were obedient to God and offered their services under His direction. God responded and used this amazing group of people to do something remarkable. It’s seeing things like this that make the early mornings and long days worthwhile! God is at work.

If you didn’t know that already, then I hope this has opened your eyes! You and I are a part of something great, something supernatural. It truly is amazing how God weaves together the most unlikely combinations of ideas and opportunities so that conditions are created to bring His children back home to Him. Operation Christmas Child, The Greatest Journey, projects… all of them combined bring life and hope to a lost community. This is our God; this is what we do. Now that’s worthy of an amen!