Hello one last time from Jinan, China!

As we wind down our last two days here at camp we’ve had some time to reflect on all that He has done. However, we’ve not abdicated our role and are looking to finish strong. The conversations about Truth are ever increasing, Books are flying off the shelves, and questions are popping up out of nowhere. We’re unsure at this time whether this is the harvest or the time to plant, but we’re listening to the Voice and trying to follow His lead through these final moments with the crop. Please uplift these moments, conversations, and opportunities as we attempt to determine the Will for each situation.

Things have run smoothly over these last few days at camp. Everyone has the schedule emblazoned into their brain and are operating on autopilot in that regard. This has enabled the Americans to focus on their relationships and interactions with the Chinese students and volunteers.

Teaching has gone well and we’ve seen a definite impact on many of the student’s English. They speak more comfortably and freely than they did two weeks ago. Inside jokes and personal relationships abound. Laughter is often heard and I’ve seen few tears though I expect that to change once the end of our time together draws near.

Last night’s talent show was a huge success! The Chinese volunteers did a traditional wedding dance with a twist that made it one of the funniest performances thus far. The Americans did dances, sang songs, and performed some different talents to everyone’s enjoyment and often times, amusement. Tonight’s evening activity will allow us to prepare for tomorrow’s (Friday) closing ceremony that includes parents and students alike. For the ceremony, each class has prepared a skit, dance, song, or combination of the three that shows off some of the things they’ve learned at camp.

Saturday morning we head to Beijing very early to begin to debrief, prepare to come home, and tour the main sights. We’ll blog one more time before heading home, but until then please continue to spend time on your knees thinking about our health, opportunities over the next 24 hours, and safety as we travel to/through Beijing.

Funny moment of the day: As I write this sentence, our exhausted director is sitting in the chair next to me snoring quite loudly and entertaining everyone in the room.
The real funny moment: At the talent show one of our male students filled in for one of our resting females to be the only male participant in the all girl dance line. Don’t worry, there’s video.

Excited and hopeful,

The Jinan Team