WHEN WE ASKED


THE NINE-YEAR-OLD GIRL HOW SHE


GOT TO THE CHURCH, SHE TOLD US SHE


WALKED FROM HOME ALONE THROUGH


THE BUSH, ABOUT 2.5 KILOMETERS.


Reflections From B


Becoming a Safe Haven


ooysen Park is a poor neighbor- hood outside of Port Elizabeth, South Africa. One recent morning, Mrs. Sha-


ron Lewack, a volunteer, and I arrived, as we normally do, around 6:15 a.m. at the Booysen Park Church of the Nazarene to prepare breakfast for children in the com- munity. There we found a little nine-year-old girl standing outside the church.


We were shocked to see her standing there alone. When we asked her how she got to the church, she told us she walked from home alone through the bush, about 2.5 kilometers (about 1.5 miles). She lives with her father and has very little contact with her mother since her parents are separated. Our hearts broke for this little girl because her father could not even walk her to school to assure her safety. She was left to find her own way.


BOOSYEN PARK BIBLE CLUB MINISTERS HOLISTICALLY


The Booysen Park Bible Club meets every Friday afternoon at 3 p.m. Around 120 chil- dren, all students at the Nazarene Child Development Center (CDC), attend Bible Club every week. We have eight volunteers who assist the church with the program.


At the Bible Club, we focus on the holistic well-being of the child. The children get a hot cooked meal or bowl of soup and instruction in several areas.


During every three-month period, we focus on a specific area of holistic ministry. We divide the children according to their ages and teach and do activities on values such as respect, compassion, and self-control. We also teach them about God and the plan of salvation.


At other times, we do hygiene programs where we teach about cleanliness. We also teach hygiene practically by cutting the students’ nails and washing and cutting the boys’ hair. They love this help and attention very much. We play many games with them, and at the end of the year, we have a party for all the children.


LUNGA’S PAINTING


We were struck by the fact that this little girl came straight to the church knowing that someone would be there to help her. Without us even knowing, the church and its Child Development Center (CDC) have become a safe haven in Booysen Park to so many children. Every morning, they come not just because they get porridge or something to eat, but because it has become a home to them. As they sit around the tables, they look like little families.


Since that first morning when we met the little girl, things have changed. Now, she travels to the church in the morning by bus. As she becomes more comfortable, her social interactions with other children also continue to improve. We hope that she will soon become a part of the Bible Club that we offer on Fridays.


We are here to be a place of safety and God’s love in our community. It is so rewarding to know the church can still be a place of hope to people even in these difficult times in which we are living.


Supporting Children in the Arts Lunga is one of the new boys who have been attend- 24 NCM MAGAZINE


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