Thank God that He gives me the opportunity to serve Him and the native kids. God always provides us with a very good team in which every member contributes and shares the same goal. The master in the field is God. The focus of the camp is the native kid. The people on whom we depend are our team members. The lesson that we learn is to listen and obey. Jesus prayed: “I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me.” (John 17:23, NLT). May the native kids remember that Jesus and a group of faithful big brothers and sisters always love them! May all mission team members always remember that God has given everyone many unforgettable faces and memories of smiles, laughs and prayers! May Pastor Enoch and Auntie Freda receive genuine help and joy from our mission team!
Pastoral Sharing S Wong(MJ) Ouje-Bougoumou Sharing
Ouje-Bougoumou Sharing
Written by Rev. Sunny WongOuje-Bougoumou (OJ) means “the place where people gather” according to the language of Crees, a group of aboriginal people living in the northern part of Quebec. To brothers and sisters of ACEM churches, it also means a place where God shows His love and presence.
This year, our team has 16 brothers and sisters from 4 different ACEM churches together with 5 non-ACEM church people. Though we come from different churches and background, we all share one and the same goal - which is to bring joy, blessing and the gospel to the native kids.
This year is my fourth year to visit the reserve and no matter which year we go, the native kids always welcome us. Every year, we run a children’s camp for around 20-30 kids in Bible school 60 kilometres away from their village. We keep them away from their home. They hold our attention all the time. We set up some rules with them. They solicit our understanding and appreciation to their habit and culture. We teach them Bible stories. They tell us their stories which soften our hearts and touch our souls. We stay with them for 5 days in the Bible school. They live forever in our memory.
When we go for a mission, we always ask what we can do for the people there – running various workshops, giving out intensive training, making frequent home visits, providing biblical teaching, etc. We should also ask what God wants us to learn. We should learn to listen and to be humble - listen to what Pastor Enoch and his wife, Auntie Freda, have been experiencing in the mission field; humbly submit ourselves to one another in the team. Pastor Enoch and Auntie Freda have been faithfully serving the native people in OJ for more than two decades. Their stories are one of the most vivid living examples of following Christ wholeheartedly and obediently. We may not be able to change anyone in the field but I believe God wants to change us first in the mission trip.
