Operation Impact taught me the importance of complete dependence on God.
Countless times, when my own grit and determination failed, God provided me with the strength to press onward. Indeed, I have found that God often uses us when we are at our lowest to do His most amazing deeds.
One such example was on my last day of Bible Club. The first part went smoothly and according to plan. Over 10 kids showed up — more than any other day that week! We started with some games before sitting down on a blanket for the lesson time. After singing a song, it was my turn to teach the kids the final Bible story of the week, the story of Jesus.
I feel a lot of responsibility when it comes to sharing Jesus’ story, so I put extra effort into preparing that lesson. The story went well, and then it was time to move into the Gospel object lesson. Arguably the climax of Bible Club, this was when I intended to give an interactive explanation of the Gospel. The problem was that I had somehow forgotten to bring the whiteboard — and everything else I needed for the demonstration as well! Fully caught off guard, I had no idea how to continue. I ended up spluttering a couple of sentences about why the kids should trust in Jesus before I decided to go ahead and give the invitation to come back and talk with me.
By now, I was feeling thoroughly frustrated and equally discouraged. I was praying furiously the entire time, but I wasn’t surprised when none of the children came back with questions about the Gospel. I was just grabbing my backpack to return to the blanket area when I noticed two boys getting up and coming my way! I quickly thanked God for the opportunity to talk to the boys as they sat down next to me. That was when I remembered that these boys spoke entirely in Spanish! In a matter of seconds, my prayer of thanksgiving was transformed into a desperate plea for these kids to understand me.
Once again, God showed up powerfully when I needed Him the most. I noticed that Reiko, our amazing translator, was no longer busy translating the lesson time. Calling her over, I explained my predicament, and she quickly jumped in to help. With Reiko acting as a two-way translator, I went through the entire Gospel story in great detail. I was amazed and encouraged by the boys’ engagement and understanding, despite my frequent pauses and very broken Spanish. They both decided to trust in Jesus and ask God to forgive them for their sins! I was able to give each boy a Bible and a tract and explain ways that they can grow in their relationship with God. It was so precious to see their joy as they told another teacher about the decision they had made!
God has proven to me again and again that, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
—Samuel Venegas, OI Summer Missionary
