Youth and Marriage Conference

A few weeks ago, well almost one month ago, I (Ronnie) was asked to teach at the yearly youth conference at our church.  My friend Jennifer was also asked to teach as well.  It was nice to have her doing it with me because we were able to come up with some great things to do with the youth and we even were able to talk about what we were going to teach on with each other.  

The topic of discussion was Luke 15 and the prodigal son.  I taught on the first 10 verses of Luke 15, which are the stories of the lost sheep and the lost coin.  Then Jennifer prepared a teaching on the lost son.  

We also planned games and some fun things for the youth to do.  We had them play a game of musical chairs, and had them play the game where you have to stand behind someone and the person behind has to do things like wash the other persons face, brush their teeth, ect.  It was fun.  Our goal was also to give them something fun to remember about coming to a youth conference as well as a good message.

Jennifer and I helped cook the first day and that is always nice.  We get to spend time with our friends in the kitchen.  We made a vegetable stew thing and it was such a hit they asked it we could cook it again the next day for them. There was about 160 youth and about 60 little children under the age of 5 that we fed both days, plus all the adults.

Just a view from the back of the church on the first day. 

One of the games we made the youth play.  Jennifer is also in this picture. 

It was a really great time and the youth seemed to really enjoy themselves.  They got to watch the Jesus Film that night and that was a big hit too.  I never know the impact that these types of things have on the lives of those that come.  They all say that it was good, and that they liked it.  Just a very generic answer.  However, I guess someday I will know if lives were changed.  It will be neat to get to heaven and meet someone who's life was forever changed at this event.

Then the next week both Colin and I were asked to teach at the marriage conference.  The theme for this one was Eph. 5:25, the famous "husbands love your wives and wives submit to your husbands" passage.  I however didn't teach on that at all.  Instead I taught on the 5 Love Languages.

It is an old book but filled with great wisdom!  And it was received really well too. The concept of the book is that we all have different love languages and we need to learn what ours is and then learn what your spouses and it can greatly improve your marriage.  I don't think that the couples that I was teaching had ever thought of such a thing before in their lives.  Colin told me that after day one, our friend came up to him and said that after 18 years of marriage he was finally learning how to love his wife, how to "do" marriage.  

I hope to get a bunch more copies of this book to give to the leaders of our sister churches so they can have an on hand copy to learn from.  

Marriage here is so different from what we see in the west.  There is still a "bride price" or "dowery" that needs to be paid to the brides family.  And it would seem that from the moment that the price is paid that young bride becomes property.  A baby producing, cooking, cleaning, digging, planting, water hauling, and clothes washing machine for who ever came up with enough cows and money.  Love is a foreign word.  However, there is always hope.  We know that marriages don't have to look like they do in the west, but they can look like they should according to the Word of God.  Our goal and prayer is not that we mold people into our image (the western way), but to Christ's.  Slowly, slowly, slowly we will get there.  We will see change in our friends and their marriage as long as we endure with and encourage them.  As I sit and write this now, I am filled with a wonder of what life here will look like in 10, 15 or 20 years as God continues to work in this community and allows us to do some work for Him.  I hope I remember this post and give thanks and glory to the One who is deserving.