Live As Children of Light
For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; live as children of light. For the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness, and truth.
Ephesians 5:8-9 (NIV)
It is the time of year when most of you await news from North Haiti Music Camp held annually on the UCNH campus in Limbé, Haiti. God allowed me, once again, to go to Haiti this past July to experience His transforming power through the ministry of North Haiti Music Camp (NHMC). Seeking to transform Haiti, NHMC aims to identify individuals who can use Christ-centered fine arts to reach out to people with God’s love, and to equip and empower young leaders to bring about positive change in their communities, their churches, and their own lives. Last year, I closed my Camp 2008 update with the following words, “[Camp 2009] is sure to be an exciting ride with God.” My hopeful statement was not a mistake.
God answered our prayers and those of many people by providing the team with an experience that was fulfilling, life-altering, and growth-producing.
As a prelude to the regular camp, we hosted a leadership conference which granted us the opportunity to sharpen the skills of the leaders who came to the camp and provided ample time for our volunteer teaching staff to bond as a team. The 40 leaders in attendance and the volunteer team studied Joshua 1:6-9 for the four days we were together and learned a great deal of biblical truth from Pastor Simon, our keynote speaker. Our main camp ran from July 19-28 in Limbé, Haiti on the campus of UCNH. We had six volunteer teachers, a total of 250 students, a prayer team of four members, and about twelve volunteer supporting staff members in Haiti.
This year’s theme, Live as Children of Light, is extracted from Ephesians 5:8-9 which reads, “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; live as children of light. For the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness, and truth.” (NIV) The theme offered abundant opportunities to discuss the struggle between light and darkness. We memorized scripture, held a 24-hour Bible reading marathon, hosted a night of prayer stations, shared our testimonies with the student body, lifted up prayerful/worshipful songs that dealt with the topic, taught workshops, visited local villagers, and had numerous one-on-one conversations that caused us to be light in the darkness.
The camp was exceptional. The leadership, prayer, and teaching team members were especially selected by God and the unity we shared was treasured by all. Most of the students were hungry for learning and conveyed an attitude that urged us to teach them all we possibly could. The lush, colorful vegetation of the UCNH campus made it the ideal place for fostering hope in the hearts of these Haitian students. The food was delicious with all kinds of fresh fruit and exotic spices. The workshops including movement, music theory, recorder class, drumming, band instruments, hand bells, classical choir, gospel choir, keyboard skills, songwriting, keyboard class, voice class, money management, leadership issues, bible, drawing, dance, and pedagogy were well-attended and relevant. The times of sharing during morning devotions and evening sessions dared us, volunteers and students alike, to shine brightly for God. The small group sessions offered us possibilities for confession and encouragement to one another. The recitals, performances, and concerts were much improved from previous years. The opening and closing ceremonies brought the whole camp together as we sang, prayed, ate, and laughed together. Christ was right there with us and so were you through your prayers, financial support, and concern.
Yes, we have returned home but far be it from us to forget the hearts that have been stirred and transformed, especially ours. I, for one, have learned that my God is so big and I am so small that I have no choice but to surrender all of my life to Him. I am a child of light! Students and teachers alike have shared with me about the impact NHMC 2009 has had on them and how motivated they are to shine brightly for God no matter where they are. Clearly, Camp 2009 was an exciting ride. My prayer is that you will be encouraged to live as children of light practicing goodness, righteousness, and truth in all your undertakings.
I would like to offer a special invitation to you for Camp 2010. Please prayerfully consider joining our team in July 2010 if that is God’s plan for you. Our prayer team and I are already praying for the volunteers who will become our 2010 staff and we will pray that God will make it clear to you in terms of your involvement with NHMC. Please partner with us through prayerful and financial support, and also through exciting service opportunities.
Louima Lilite, Camp Director/Coordinator
