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Some say it can’t be done. Some say it shouldn’t be done. Well, in March they did it. And we are hoping and praying they do it again. Recently, there have been a string of naysayers coming against, whether in part or wholly, short-term mission terms. Critics wager that most short-term mission groups bring too many selfish wants, hamstring the local’s ownership of a project, and waste funds that could be given directly to the missionaries to improve their program. I would say, “Tell that to our kids who saw God this year.”
This year was a really cool year for us because our old friends from Carrollton Christian Academy (CCA) made their annual visit. But at the same time, a new group came from Wabash, Illinois called Bachelor Creek Church of Christ decided to give up their Spring Break to serve at Morning Glory. Both groups agreed to share the teaching time in the mornings and then split up in the afternoons. CCA offered camps in the afternoon where students could come make crafts, play sports, or learn a new dance. Bachelor’s Creek has a shorter schedule, so they diligently painted to beautify the campus, transforming a classroom and Pappy Manion Hall, where the students receive Bible and Music Class. The whole room feels more alive.
However, relationships are ALWAYS priority because in their friendships with the crazy Americans, our students encounter a person that notices and pays attention to them. In Bible Class, Bachelor Creek and CCA did an excellent job of teaching our students about the decisions they make and the “giants” they face in life. They danced, smiled, taught, played, hugged, and loved. And then something I haven’t I haven’t seen before happened very naturally and purely. CCA invited the students of each section of Bible Class to stay if they wanted prayer. Every single class had a large percentage of students that stayed. Each class had students that wanted help with their giants and the decisions they knew they needed to make. The Americans, who didn’t even speak the language, stayed with the students praying and hugging them for as long as they needed. Words can’t describe the scene of students weeping, embracing, and supporting one another while they sought answers from the Spirit. I can’t tell you what our students were facing. But I can tell you God is working in them. Simply put, God moved in the hearts of our students that day.
We are so grateful to Bachelor Creek and CCA for the time, energy, and resources they invested in Morning Glory. But we are most pleased when we see our American brothers and sisters coming to speak words of life into our students. To all who have come to write into the hundreds of Morning Glory Stories, we thank you. To those that haven’t or haven’t finished with what they want to accomplish. We invite you to come or come back. God has used you and will continue to do so. This March, God used a short-term group to remind our kids who He is. They were faithful. They did it. Praise God. From Lori, the staff, and all the students: Thank you CCA. Thank you Bachelor Creek.
Rob Courtney
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