“My family goes out on the street or in the marketplace to play music to attract people’s attention. Then my father tells them about God. People are curious and stop to listen because our music is made with homemade horns."
Gracia is 9 years old. She lives in Kinshasa, the capital city of the Congo. [Locate the Congo on a map.] She and her four brothers and sisters share a unique ministry in their city.
Making Their Own Music
“My family goes out on the street or in the marketplace to play music to attract people’s attention. Then my father tells them about God. People are curious and stop to listen because our music is made with homemade horns. They’re made of cardboard paper towel holders, funnels, plastic pipes, and tape or wire.”
“One day a school friend of my sister stopped to listen,” Gracia says. “She asked what church we attend, and we told her that we’re Adventists and that we worship on the Sabbath. Our father helped us answer more of her questions. She really wanted to know.”
Gracia’s brother, Joey, is 7. He likes to play the horn too. “It doesn’t sound so good when I play alone,” he says. “But when we play as a family, we sound good.”
Sharing With Friends
Playing together and sharing their faith in public has helped Joey feel brave about inviting his friends to church. He invited one friend who likes to come. But he can’t attend every week, because Joey’s family doesn’t have a car and his parents don’t always have money for bus fare.
Joey’s brother Beni talked to one of his friends about God. “You have a strange religion,” his friend said. “You go to church on Saturday instead of Sunday.” Beni explained to him that God made the world in six days and rested on the seventh. Then God invited people to spend the Sabbath day with Him. Beni’s friend was interested to know more, but he too doesn’t have the money to ride the bus to church.
Appeal
The city of Kinshasa is very big. It has about 10 million people. But there aren’t a lot of Adventist churches, so many people have to go a long way to church. Often it’s too far to walk, and when people don’t have money for bus fare it’s difficult to attend every week.
Gracia’s parents are planning to start a Branch Sabbath School in their neighborhood so the neighbor children can come and worship. “We already have the music,” Gracia says. “My older brother can preach, and my sister can tell a Bible story. I can lead the singing, and my little brother can pray!”
Gracia and her family are eager to share God’s love with others. Part of our Thirteenth Sabbath Offering this quarter will help build a lay training center and two children’s chapels so that more people can learn that Jesus loves them and wants to spend time with them. Be sure to bring your offerings every Sabbath—and especially on Thirteenth Sabbath, June 29.⎭
[See our website, www.AdventistMission.org, for instructions on making a simple kazoo similar to those these children play.
