Here we are walking down the aisle of Grace United Methodist Church, Charleston, SC, the first stop on our Camp Lakewood outing dedicated to the Holy Spirit.
A successful Camp Lakewood drew to a close, with our final day dedicated to the Holy Spirit. We started with Worship, Music and prayer, then we began talking about the Holy Spirit. I told the children about how Jesus sent the Holy Spirit on the first Pentecost. We talked about how the Spirit gave courage to the early Christians and still works today in the Church. We talked about how the Holy Spirit can help us in our daily lives and give us courage to witness as Christians.
After preparing the kids for the day, we paid a visit to Grace United Methodist Church, where Pastor Don prayed with the kids and gave them their Certificates of Completion for Camp Lakewood. (Thanks, Arleigh, for designing these certificates!)
Then, John Johnston, another sighted angel and Grace Church volunteer, spoke with the kids about the layout of the church. They got to feel a stained-glass window, kneel at the Communion rail, and walk up to touch the altar. We even offered a couple of songs to God in the sanctuary.
After our time at church, we went to Wal-Mart, where there is a McDonalds. Each of the children was allowed to order his/her food independently. As we sat down to the table, the restaurant was very noisy. As we sang our table prayer, the room became very quiet and many people bowed their heads to join us in prayer.
For our Holy Spirit project, we asked Miss Marti to help us pick out items appropriate for the Shoebox Ministry of Operation Christmas Child, a ministry very near and dear to her heart. Dixie Land Guide Dog Users gave each child $20 to spend on items for the shoeboxes. The kids were allowed to find the items independently on the shelves, put them in the shopping buggy, unload the buggy onto the counter and pay for the items.
We got back to my place in time to play a few more games of Uno. Miss Marti even joined us for a game!
The real joy came when I asked T to lead our closing prayer. During this prayer, his very first, he openly accepted Christ into his heart. His Grandma asked, "Did Laurel Jean teach him that prayer?" We all assured her that these were his own words, at which point she started to cry. Well, we all cried, as T wrapped up his prayer and told God, "I want you to be in my heart forever, in Jesus Name. Amen."
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