English Club

We've lived in Palangka Raya for about a year now. Sorta. The past year has been anything but stable and has included two and a half months back on Java to finish language study, our first year of homeschooling, and a 6-week trip to the States. It's been a full year and I'm only now beginning to feel settled. As I've settled, though, I've grown more and more anxious for opportunities to do some sort of ministry outside the realm I usually occupy as a homemaker. I was afraid to commit to too much, though, for the simple fact that I am already very busy being a mom, cook, and homeschool teacher - all things that I see as my primary and most important ministry of all. But near the end of our first year here, I was finally ready to tackle something else on top of all my other responsibilities.

Anyway, for a long time I've been praying about different ministry opportunities and nothing was really fitting. I knew I wanted to do something here at our house and probably with kids but I wasn't sure where to begin or how to make it work. I thought an English Club would be great but I wasn't sure there was much interest in such a thing here. I had other ideas that didn't pan out. I was getting really frustrated.

Then one day, the other MAF wife here asked me if I'd like to help her start an English Club for neighborhood kids! Her neighbors, just one street away from us, were asking for an English class for kids. It was such an obvious answer to my prayers and I jumped at the chance to be a part of it. I asked my helper (who is also my neighbor) if she thought the kids on our street would be interested and she said, "Of course!" She also knew that classmates of her daughter's and the children from her Sunday School class would be interested.

So, about 4 weeks ago, Robyn and I started an English Club. There were 4 Indonesian kids plus ours for a combined total of only 9 that first day. The following week, Robyn was on her way to America because of a family emergency. So it was up to just me and my Indonesian "assistant teacher." There were 12 kids that week. The following week there were 26. Yesterday there were...41!

The picture below was NOT taken yesterday, so picture things looking a lot more crazy! Such a serene little scene when all we had were 26...the class was split up between myself and my Indonesian assistant for the games and crafts portion.

I am loving this. I had no idea I would enjoy teaching English so much. Part of the thrill is knowing this isn't usually my thing, but yet God keeps providing what I need to make it work. I didn't actually think I'd like teaching kids as much as I am, either! I had always believed I just wasn't that good with kids other than my own. Truth is, I'm not. But God has given me a real love for this group (or crowd) of children. Even though there were probably too many kids for me to handle in class yesterday, I don't want any of them to stop coming. They are all so well-behaved and sweet and they don't seem to mind cramming into my front room and sitting on the hard tile floor. My favorite part is when we sing "Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes" and I can hear all their little accents as they sing and see such pure joy and happiness on their faces. They are all great kids.

Maddie and Brooklyn serve as wonderful helpers, especially helping the kids practice their pronunciation.

My girls are having a blast helping. They've made so many new friends - which is really important for them because they don't get a lot of opportunity to hang out with other kids here. I'm getting to know the mothers when we talk after class - which is also so great for my typically introverted self! Slowly, we're building relationships and a platform for sharing the Gospel and/or discipling Christians in our community. It takes time but these are the relationships that truly matter. We've already had one experience where a budding relationship, even in its beginning stages, provided us with the means to minister in a way we otherwise wouldn't have felt capable of doing.

I really appreciate your prayers for this new venture!