Celebrating a special day... Vanuatu style

Hello! It's been a few weeks now since I went to Vanuatu - in fact nearly a month since I got back. But, as promised, I have a few more stories to share yet! And just at Christmas too. The story as I wrote it at the time last left off on a Sunday, when we had gone for a walk to the local church down the road. We were clued in to what would be going on the day after when, as we finished dinner that night, we saw some ladies we didn't know sitting in the backyard trees, picking armfuls of frangipanis. They were picking these flowers to use as decorations, for the celebrations taking place in big blue marquis tent the next day - a tent which had sprung up on the grass, it seemed, in the few minutes we had been distracted. So after bringing all the chairs we could find over to the tent, we called it a day, ready for the next day to come...

DAY 4 - Monday 20th November 2017

It has been a privilege in Vanuatu to see God's provision at every turn, to know more deeply just how faithful our God is. Our God is the God who saves, and every day I see this in beautiful ways; I see God providing for His children, whether for us or for our family in Christ here in Vanuatu. We all love and worship the same God; it is an honour to meet strangers who love God as I do and be able to talk with them and hear their stories.

This morning, after the usual routine and breakfast, people began to arrive for the 150th anniversary of Scripture Union, the celebrations of which were being held at the campsite (Scripture Union is a Christian ministry that began 150 years ago in the UK and today is worldwide).
We headed down to the beach for a while, and some of us climbed trees while others went swimming. We learned the names of some of the kids who had come along to the celebrations and hung out with them at the beach. Then when the guest of honour arrived, it was time to head back up to the big blue marquis tent pitched at the campsite. Just as we reached the grass, a man screamed and ran out in front of us. We all looked a little startled as some more men yelled and blew shells, then realised this was all part of the plan when Albert asked us to sing 'This Little Light of Mine' as we walked up, over the traditional song the men were singing. Then the men did a traditional dance for everyone, singing at the same time. We later found out they were the dance troupe who usually performed at all the tourist hotels, but they had kindly agreed to be part of the celebrations for free I think.

Then we sat down in the tent and sang 'Lord We Lift Your Name on High' with Albert. The tent, despite being just a hired tent, was beautifully decorated. It was artfully strewn with with flowers, colourful bolts of material, and even small trees in pots in true Vanuatu style. An older pastor gave a short devotion on John 15, and then a few different people gave speeches. We heard the story of how the new campsite had come to be - it had been largely destroyed by Cyclone Pam in 2015. But even after everything had been destroyed, the owners still had joy in the hearts, knowing God would provide. People from around the world sent support to help rebuild; a friend from Australia happened to be an architect and became the planner for the rebuilding process... God was moving. Some friends in New Zealand also sent over a shipping container of timber, before the plans had been made, saying 'we're sure it will come in handy'. Now the new buildings are built from this timber, all made to withstand a category 5 cyclone!
The love of these people for God and their community is an inspiration; in everything they say 'to God be the glory'.
After the speeches, the kids did a dance for everyone; then some gifts were given to the people involved in running Scripture Union things. Some gifts were, for example, woven mats - traditionally, these mats seat the family as they share food or teaching or fellowship, so the mats were given as symbolic gifts on behalf of the children of Vanuatu who have been blessed by the work of Scripture Union. Then some woven baskets given as gifts; traditionally you would fill this kind of basket up with water to bring back to your village - but here they were a symbol to 'fill up with good things and the love of God' to bring back to the recipient's 'village'!

A ribbon was cut to officially open the new buildings, after a speech in which they were dedicated to God. That was the end of the official program, and we played games with the kids for a while. Then it was time for a delicious lunch! We also learned the story behind how the celebrations came to be now. They were supposed to be back in July, but that hadn't worked out - but since it ended up being in November it meant us Australians were able to be there too. Then it was raining yesterday, and those organising it began to wonder whether anyone would come at all. But, as Albert said, even if no one came, the glory would go to God. 'We may have plans, but God has the last say!' And in the end, the tent was full.

After talking for a while with various people, including a pastor from the Solomon Islands, we all went swimming down at the beach with the kids and looked at coral. I sat in the shallows for a while, talking with a teenage girl named Jovanna. When the two of us started walking back, we found lots of hermit crabs! I hadn't seen hermit crabs in years. Then I sat on the beach again with Jovanna and another girl named Lilian and talked for a while. All the kids were originally from another island, but lived in Vila. Then the girls started listening to music on their phones, so I began talking to a lady named Daisy. She is 29 and has two daughters, both of whom were there today. She only studied up to year 7; her parents couldn't afford the school fees. She went to sit her final exams in year 7, but they sent her outside because her fees hadn't been paid. She left with tears streaming down her face, and that was the last time she ever went to school. She was married when she was 15. Now she is a cook at a local community school that is partnered with a sister school in Australia; many kids there have their fees paid by the school in Australia. She says being a cook is hard work, but she loves her job because she can talk to all the kids.

She cares very much for her two girls; they are her heart. I asked what would be some things to pray for her and for her community. For herself, she asked prayer for her daughters' education; she didn't want them to end up like her, and she works hard and encourages them to stay in school. For the community, she asked prayer for unity between the churches. Sometimes people in the community have small disagreements that come to stand in the way of unity between brothers and sisters in Christ. So, if you would like to join our brothers and sisters in Vanuatu in prayer, you might pray for love and acceptance between church communities.

After coming back from the beach, I watched everyone else play a game of soccer; then it was time for all the visitors to go home. We had afternoon tea and talked for a while, and then it was time for an afternoon bible study. After discussion groups, encouraging each other as sisters and brothers in Christ, we had dinner (and a cake for the birthday of one of the leaders!). We prepared some of the activities planned for tomorrow, and played a round of the card game Mafia. Then it was time for bed.


...

The next days were to be filled with much joy and laughter and small giggling children, as we had the privilege to be part of running a bible camp for these same kids over the following two days.
Hopefully I will continue the story soon... not that anyone really reads all of these posts haha :P But it's nice to relive the memories while transcribing it all, and I needed a digital copy anyway in case something were to happen to the little starfish notebook I took around everywhere (it's now covered in lots of dirt and the covers are warped from the salty sea air and occasional light rain that fell while I was scribbling things down).
And lastly, I'd better say the obligatory
Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year!

Hymns in the Seabreeze

Hello! I've recently come back from a short trip to Vanuatu, so as promised, I've got some more stories to share. I last left off at the end of the second day of the trip, which was spent getting to know the culture and character of Vanuatu a little bit more. The third day was a Sunday (hey, that's randomly coincidental! Jesus rose on the third day, which also happened to be a Sunday...), and we would get to visit a local church down the road from our campsite. So without further ado, here is pretty much what I wrote at the time (I took a notebook with me everywhere and would always be scribbling things down so I wouldn't forget. I'm pretty forgetful, and I wanted to remember this time away, so I wrote pages and pages of haphazard notes at all angles all over the page. Anyway! Getting to the story...)

DAY 3 - Sunday 19th November 2017
Mercifully, I was able to have eight hours sleep. The music next door (from an ongoing revival crusade type thing) only begun at 5.30am, and I was already up and having a shower by then. Today we will be going to the Presbyterian church down the road; it is a beautiful day today.
We sang some songs together at devotions in the morning, and had breakfast (with frozen milk). We packed some things, and then it was off to meet our dear brothers and sisters in Christ in Vanuatu.
The church was a smallish, white rendered building, simply but beautifully decorated on the inside. A screen up the front showed the order of service, and we would soon see the similarities and differences between here and our home churches (each of us on the trip came from different cities and kinds of churches).
The service began on 'Vanuatu time' - in other words, when everyone got there! Eventually, to get people inside someone rang the church bell which hung on a pole somewhere outside (maybe it was a bell, or a gong, or an old metal fuel can; I don't remember exactly. All these options are commonly used as bells in Vanuatu). I think the whole village knew then it was time for church!
We wandered inside, and sat down.
After a while, a single voice rang out, singing the first line of a song. Then suddenly the whole church joined in, acapella style in beautiful harmony. It took a while, but I managed to figure out what the words were. It was a bible verse:
'Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father in heaven.'
The song ended, and there was silence for a moment. Then another voice began a new song.
'Praise him, praise him; praise him in the morning, praise him in the moonlight...'
After that I couldn't make out the words. No one was reading from anything; they all knew the songs off by heart. When I could figure out the words, I sang along; otherwise I just sang the tune wordlessly.
After a few songs, it was time for the service to start. Someone began the age-old call and response:
"God is good!"
"All the time."
"And all the time?"
"God is good!"
Then I saw that the order of service listed on the screen had begun.

1. Doxology
As it turns out, this was the singing. One person would start the first line of a song, then the rest of the church joined in like a spontaneous choir. There were a few more songs, I think.

2. Call to worship, and
3. Welcome
Someone read a psalm from the bible and said a few words of welcome. The pastor and his family came in, and they sat at the front of the church, facing in from the side.

4. Prayer of forgiveness and supplication
This was amazing to me, and so unlike anything I have ever seen before. I had heard of churches where this happened, but never seen it for myself. Everyone simultaneously burst out into prayer, speaking out loud, having a conversation between God and themselves, talking as though face to face. Sometimes the pastor's voice would rise above the rest, and it seemed people would pray with him, then continue their own private conversations with God. The voices gradually grew quieter, until they all faded away.

5. Opening hymn
Everyone stood up and sang a hymn together in Bislama (the local language, a kind of pidgin English), reading out of the hymnbook Niu Laef Buk 4, like a choir in perfect harmony. There were no other instruments; it was only voices. Some ladies sitting behind us kindly lent us their hymnbook so we could sing along too.

6. Children's talk
All the young kids came and sat on the woven mats out the front of the church, and a man very animatedly told them the parable of the talents from the bible, in Bislama. Then a few teenagers and young adults came out the front with two guitars and sang the song 10 000 Reasons (a popular church song in English, well-known around the world) for the rest of the church.

7. Offering
Woven bowls were passed around for the offering, and someone started a song which everyone then joined. After that was done, everyone burst into simultaneous prayer again, this time for thanksgiving and confession.

8. Announcements
An old man stood up the front and welcomed everyone, including us Australians visiting. Then he read out some announcements to the church for a while (I think it included things like the rosters for who was helping with what etc, since most people probably don't have internet and such).

9. Second hymn
We stood up and sang another Bislama hymn, from Niu Laef Buk (New Life Book) again. It went like this:

"Mi, mi wantem folem
Ol fasin blong yu nao.
Yu we yu ded blong sevem mi,
Yu tekemaot ol sin blong mi."

It was called 'Jisas, Mi Wantem Save Moa', and was based on an old English hymn called 'More About Jesus Would I Know'. From my limited understanding of Bislama, here is a rough translation (if you read the Bislama out loud phonetically, you can probably see the connections):

"I want to follow you
All my ways belong to you now.
You died to save me;
You took away all my sin."

10. Bible reading
The bible reading was from Matthew's gospel, the parable of the talents (Matthew 25:14-30).
After the passage was read out, the pastor prayed, and then began his sermon.
I took lots of notes on the sermon, although since it was mostly in Bislama, I wasn't always exactly sure what the pastor was saying; I think we managed to get the gist of it. It was about giving the gifts God has given us back to Him, and multiplying them. It was about being faithful with what God has entrusted us with, and investing in what God has given you. 'God has given us each according to our ability; He has given a wealth of salvation, wisdom and knowledge. The fear of the Lord is our treasure.' A few more verses from the bible were mentioned, like 1 Peter 4:10 - about using the gifts you have received to serve others - and Romans 12:4-6, about how in Christ it is like we are all members of the same body, and in Christ we are all one but have different roles (according to the gifts God has given us).
The pastor appealed to the congregation to be faithful servants of Jesus Christ, to hear Him say 'well done, good and faithful servant' like in the parable. He urged them to 'be faithful unto death' (Revelation 2.10), and urged everyone to really believe in Jesus Christ. When you are sick you go to the doctor - likewise, when you are lost in your sin, you need Jesus to save you. 'Come before him. Do not be afraid. Be faithful servants, until Jesus comes back, or you meet him in heaven.'
He encouraged us all to be faithful, because God is faithful. God is always faithful, in all the situations and trials we are given.

11. Third hymn
We all sang a hymn in the local language of Efate, the island we were staying on (it was very different to Bislama - this one was the ancient language that existed before Europeans came, which most people still speak). The ladies behind us again kindly lent us the other hymnbook it was from. Then a man stood up and said the blessing; the service ended officially.


We Australians were asked to leave first, and then asked to line up outside the exit of the church. Then, to our surprise, the whole church shook every one of our hands as they walked out! Afterwards, I talked to some women outside. There was a lady named Alina, and another lady Tusia and her little daughter Carlina, who wore matching purple dresses. Alina studies architecture in Papua New Guinea for 10 months a year, and only just got back a few days earlier to see her own little daughter again.
Then we talked to a pastor, not the man who had preached but a younger pastor (maybe the youth pastor). A tiny little girl clung to his side; she was his daughter Alana.
I asked if there were things we could pray for their church; he told us a few things. Young people didn't always come much anymore, finding entertainment and distractions in the new technology available now in Vanuatu (much like in many Australian churches!). As the young pastor pointed out though, it may be a changing world but God doesn't change. He really longed for the young people to know God; he really deeply cared for them and wanted them to know God in the same close way that he and the older people did. However, it is difficult for him and the older church leaders to understand the new world and values that the youth have found by way of the internet, especially the older leaders who have grown up in a traditional Island culture; so he asked us to pray for the next generation, and the leaders in the many challenges they face in helping lead the youth to  deep and meaningful relationships with Jesus.

We said goodbye and began a pleasant walk back to the campsite, a walk of about half an hour or so. I had a good chat with Ed (one of the trip leaders) on the way back, and although the clouds were growing darker it didn't rain just yet. After getting back we went to the beach not far from the campsite, although I only dipped my toes in.
Then we came back and had sausage sandwiches for lunch, and hung around and chatted for a while. The others played cards, and I got my paints out and sketched a frangipani I found on the ground. I went back to the cabin and had a nap, then later came back up to discuss the children's program we would be running in a few days' time. We were discussing the bible memory verse and trying to think up a way to help the kids remember it, and I had an old kids' song stuck in my head. Then I realised that the words of the bible verse just happened to perfectly fit the tune! Everyone else seemed to like the idea as well.
"God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. 1 John 4:16..."
After writing out the verse on about 30 little origami hearts, I went with some of the girls on a sunset walk along the beach (I went barefoot, as anyone who knows me could probably guess :P). Then it was time for a dinner of chicken and rice and vegetables, and we chatted for a while. After helping bring over all the chairs we could find to the big tent pitched on the grass for the 150th anniversary of Scripture Union celebrations tomorrow, the others had their own makeshift church service in English up in the hall. I went to bed early, however; after all the early mornings I was pretty tired.

It was really a blessing to stand before God alongside our brothers and sisters in Vanuatu. We didn't always understand the language, but we Christians have a universal language - love. We were welcomed in love, and farewelled in love. We knew that we were a part of their family, and they were a part of ours.