19 August 2009

The day dawned bright and clear...we could hear people up and about from about 4am...having showers and walking around...it didn't take long however for the showers to end as the water ran out. Everyone took it in their stride and we all had another lovely breakfast and Barbara led us in a devotion on being thankful...and there is so much that we have to be thankful for.

Despite an offer by David to have a slightly later start and get there for morning tea, we all wanted to get there early and have a wander around the local town of Chillaw. So we all got our stuff packed and on the bus and were at the conference by 9am.

David began the first session of the day...talking about reaching out to boys, while we put on the sunscreen and our hats and walked out to the main street for an explore of the local sights. Despite being quite early, it was soon apparent that the day would be a warm one. Our first stop was at a roadside stall to buy a couple of umbrellas to help mitigate the sun. At that point half the group decided that the town was a little too noisy and busy for further exploration, so they went to go and explore the quieter backstreets. Andrew, Bethany and Sarah continued on and wandered down through the streets with shops of every description, being greeted with many smiles and calls of "Good morning" as we wandered along.

By the time we got back to the church, we were all feeling a little hot and bothered...and David was just finishing his talk. There were a few less people than the day before...possibly due to the heat, but I think all were glad to have a break for morning tea before the workshops began once again.
The delegates were a little more familiar with us than yesterday, and we were able to remind them of things that had been said or done previously. It was proving hard to concentrate due to the heat, but all in all, we did quite well and after two workshop sessions, we broke for lunch.

What a feast we had for lunch, the Pastor and his team had gone all out and we felt very spoilt by the variety and the amount of food that we found on the table that had been put on just for us. Rice and chicken wings, fish and french fries, vegetables and lots of fresh fruit. It was wonderful...we all ate till we felt we would burst.

The final session was David speaking about the need to be Compassionate in children's ministry. At the conclusion of the time, we formed a prayer tunnel for all the delegates to walk through and we prayed for each delegate as they walked between us. We were then prayed for by some of the delegates...and as has always been the case - though we could not understand the words they used, it did not lessen the impact or the annointing we felt as we concluded the conference. We really felt that it was a momentous and encouraging time together. There were many hugs and well wishes at the end and photos were taken by everyone of everyone from every conceivable angle and configuration. We felt that the time at Chillaw was a real blessing to all. Despite the long trip to Kandy still ahead and as the weather changed and the rain tumbled down, we were all in high spirits as we climbed in the bus and there was lots of laughing and singing as we talked about the great things we had experienced over the past two days.

We reached Kandy well after dark, and had a low key dinner of hoppers (little bowl shaped pancakes) and chicken curry. We were all glad to finally reach the Kidsreach home town and the local team to be able to sleep at home again. We made it to our Kandy hotel, situated close to the lake in the centre of town and after very little ado, crashed for the night...a day of rest, relaxation and final preparations planned for tomorrow. The cooler climate of Kandy was very welcome after the heat of the day...and we all spent a minute or two longer in the shower to wash off the grime of another long but fulfilling day.