And the winner is......

Today was the culmination of our lessons, crafts and sports, and it proved to be an amazing day. We taught about trusting God by telling the stories of Esther and David and Goliath. The kids participated in a trust exercise, falling backwards off a picnic table into the waiting arms of missionaries and friends (embarassing side note - one child was dropped, but thank God neither her body nor faith were damaged!). The kids also learned that real faith may wobble but doesn't fall down: to drive the point home, each child was given a large Weeble-Wobble-esque "stress relief doll." The kids got to draw faces, clothing, and anything else they wanted on them, and they had a blast knocking them around.

The final sports and rec event was tug-o-war, where we intended to teach the kids about strength by showing them how just a few men could overpower greater numbers than their own. All five of our team's men lined up on one side (author included), and many (15? 20? Some say 30?) of the boys lined up on the other. After the first round, five dusty missionaries were demanding a rematch. One was granted, and although we fared much better the second time around, the kids taught us a well-deserved lesson about trusting in our own strength! We should have prayed for reinforcements!

We surprised the kids by presenting three of them with awards for their performance during the games - one each for Strongest Competitor, Strongest Encourager, and Strongest Sportsmanship. The kids sat in hushed anticipation as Jon pulled out a ribbon with a shiny gold medallion and explained the categories. One of the younger girls, Soben, was struck with awe as soon as Jon revealed the medal, and beamed like the sun when she was annouced as the first winner! The second award went to one of the older boys, Mansoros, who is an exemplary servant-leader.

Lastly, the award for Strongest Sportsmanship went to a young boy named Kea. Kea's story can only be described as bittersweet - he suffers moderate mental and physical disabillities due to harsh physical abuse by his father. But he carries these burdens with a constant, bright smile and tireless enthusiasm. And to be present as his name was called and he walked forward to receive his medal was to see Christ's love on earth in the flesh - living in the 30+ orphans who cheered more loudly in that moment than for any other thing all week, as Kea humbly took his medal and immediately turned to walk back to his seat, wearing a face-stretching smile. I have truly never seen a happier person on Earth than that little boy as he was loved so openly and mightily by his new family of Christ's children.

As if all that weren't enough for one day, we went back tonight to hang out with the kids and cut loose a little. All the kids ran excitedly from one team member to the next, taking pictures in huge groups or pairs and every possible combination in between. We performed a dance for the kids, paying tribute to one they did for us on Sunday at church which you will all see video of soon (of the kids, NOT us! Ok..... probably us too.). Mike W. worked double-super-overtime (including at dinner tonight) to put together a slideshow of our pictures and video from the week, which everyone loved. Then, we popped popcorn, drank Cokes and watched the movie "Bolt," which the kids couldn't understand but greatly enjoyed anyway. They piled on top of us and just hung out until it was time for bed.

Tomorrow, we will go back for our last few hours with the kids. I don't need to explain how emotionally rocky tomorrow will be, so please be in prayer for us and the kids. Although it is tough to say goodbye, we hope to glorify God and leave them with His love, which is far greater than our own love that we are pouring out on them. We all miss our friends and families too, and everyone is grateful for the support and encouragement!