SMT CAST – Update #3

Greetings! The Creative Arts Service Team hopes you are all doing well. This week, we have been in Eleuthera, Bahamas along side SMT Central team. CAST and Central teams arrived on the island, Eleuthera on Sunday, June 3rd. We then drove south to Palmetto Point, the location of the only Salvation Army Corps on the entire island. We met Joseph Deal the Corps Sergeant Major; he was such a gracious host, helping us out with whatever we needed. We are so grateful we got to meet him. The corps members and the community of Palmetto Point were very welcoming. They were so happy we were there to lead the VBS program and they presented us with water bottles, a dozen pineapples and around 80 mangoes. Several ladies of the Home League Ministry helped prepare the lunch meals- for the children and the staff. We could not have done VBS without their help every single day. The theme for VBS was based on Ephesians 6:10-18 “The Armor of God.” The children seemed to really understand that the devil will try his hardest to break them down, but with God all things are possible and he will never put them through anything they cannot handle. The Armor of God is important because it helps you protect yourself from the devil’s handiwork.

We were able to put on a Vacation Bible School for the children of the village. We averaged about 50 children on a daily basis and they ranged between the ages of 2 to 16. We had four different age groups; The Warriors (4-5 yrs. old), The Snappers (6-7 yrs. old), The Pink Conch Shells (8-9 yrs. old), and The Panthers (10-16 yrs. old). Each age group had at least 1-2 counselor from CAST or Central team. We had four stations; Bible, craft, recreation, and miscellaneous activity. We also had the opportunity to take the children to the beach after the VBS program was done for the day. The children, volunteers, and teams had a wonderful time playing with the children and trying to teach them how to swim. For some, it was their first time visiting the beach.

There was a few times where both CAST and Central were asked to assist in evening events. On Monday night, we were able to have a Home League meeting with the ladies and teach them a craft. On Tuesday, we were part of the evening meeting. We asked the Central team to join us to share the message by doing Jesus Theatre: Balloons. The message is primarily geared for children and teens to understand the gospel but the adults in the room were moved and blessed to see the gospel acted out. We had a nice time of fellowship after the meeting and got to know the corps members. On Thursday, both teams did Jesus Theatre: Balloons during the opening meeting for VBS. Afterwards, we had a time of prayer with the children and an altar call. Most, if not all, of the children came forward and prayed to God. Many of the children step forward to accept Jesus as their Savior. It was so beautiful to see them give their hearts to God. We were then able to talk about the show in Bible class and what it meant to them. Most of the children understood the story and the representation of the devil trying to destroy everything God has made. But God always wins against the devil, and His children came home. On Friday evening, we had a wonderful time of fellowship with the corps members. They all prepared a delicious meal for us as a way to express their gratitude for our ministry. That night, everyone exchanged stories and said, “Until next time…one-day we will return to visit, if the Lord allows it!” We had wonderful time of prayer with them. It was amazing to see how the children and the adults of Palmetto Point shared their love with everyone and loved learning about God’s love. This week in the Bahamas was such a blessing for all of us!

Keziah, a member of CAST had her own small mission trip in Grand Forks, ND (since she was not able to travel to the Bahamas). Lieutenants Matthew and Rona Beatty were very welcoming to Keziah. She was able to help out in the community wherever needed; she volunteered in the food pantry, talked to many different people, helped with Sunday school and meet the mayor of Grand Forks. Although the rest of the team was in the Bahamas, we were able to video-chat with Keziah to do our nightly team devotions.

Thank you for keeping CAST in your prayers. Please pray for the Palmetto Point Corps and everyone we’ve come in contact with over the last couple of weeks.

Next stop- Fort Wayne, Indiana.

See you next week, Lord Willing!
Brianna Kruse and the Creative Arts Service Team