Carnival in a Suitcase

I bet you didn't know that everything you need for a children's Carnival can fit in a suitcase.  You are probably thinking there is no way an entire Carnival will fit in one suitcase.  But in fact it will.  Let me tell you just how much joy and fun this one suitcase brought to children across Cebu.

One Saturday afternoon I ran into the party store to get a gift I had seen earlier for my niece.  I knew exactly where it was and I thought this would be a super quick errand.  Boy was I wrong.  When I got into the store everything had been rearranged from the last time I had shopped there.  As I walked up and down every aisle looking for the sock monkey, I came across the "Carnival Party" aisle.  Seeing the games and prizes I instantly thought it would be so much fun to do a Bible themed carnival for the kids of Naga.  Standing in the store, I decided every game could have a Bible theme and the children could win small prizes and candy at each booth.  We could tell a Bible story before the carnival and sing fun songs.  The longer I stood in that aisle the more fun I thought this carnival was going to be and the more anixous I got to tell Gepher my big idea!!

That night I could hardly contain my excitement as I talked with Gepher online.  I told him we could play "Jonah and Whale Ring Toss" and "Pin the Nose on Noah's Lions" and "David's Slingshot" and many others.  That night I did most of the talking and he did more listening.  At the end he asked, so what's a carnival exactly?  He was in for a BIG SURPRISE as I began explaining more.   





When I landed in Cebu I could hardly wait to unpack all the games, supplies, and prizes for Gepher to finally see what was in store for the kids of Naga.  I don't think it was until this moment that he got it.  We had a total of 10 games each with a Bible theme.  The games ranged in difficulty level and all had a Bible theme.  We had "Fisher's of Men Fishing Pond", "Moses's Snake Pit", "Pin the Nose on Noah's Lions", "Jericho Walls Come Down", "Creation Bulls Eye", "David's Slingshot", and a few others.  We had over 1000 prizes that the children could win at each booth.  The children would either win a prize or a piece of candy.  The two of us got more excited as we talked.  We tried the games out played them as if we were 6 years old.  It wasn't until this moment that Gepher realized my "crazy idea" was bigger and more work than he imagined.  (I think at this moment he had wished he asked more questions.) 

On the day of the carnival we had a team of 20 teenagers and young people to help us set up and run the games.  The sun was shinning and the temperatures were rising but nothing was going to stop the fun.  Gepher and the Naga ministers had gone out inviting all the children from both church and the surrounding neighborhood a couple weeks earlier.  We planned for 80 kids.  After a quick explanation of each game to the team we made our way to the Elementary school yard to set up for the event.

When we arrived at the location the real work began.  Before we could set up each of the booths, the ground needed to be cleared of all the trash and weeds.  It was important that it was a safe area for the kids to enjoy and play.  As we began sitting up the games, the children came from all over the neighborhood.  We had children coming from all directions.  Some came alone and others came with their parents.  Everyone was running, laughing, and patiently awaiting what was about to happen.  Shelou and Crystal were great at getting every child a name tag while several of the boys served as crowd control.  It wasn't long that we ran out of the 100 name tags we have brought.  We ended up with 120 kids (and for those of you who may have forgotten we only planned for 80).

The afternoon began with singing under the tree.  Filipino children love to sing...especially the animated songs.  Listening to these kids praise God and watching their expressions was simply awesome.  Gepher told the story of David and Goliath.  He is an amazing story teller.  He captivated the audience through the flannel and different voices for each of the characters.  The children (and adults) were so quiet you could have heard a pin drop (and remember we were outside with LOTS of distractions).  The children hung on every word he said, anxiously awaiting to hear if David would kill Goliath.  As I stood back looking at the children and seeing the mother's faces as they listened to the story, I realized that some of these children (and parents) were hearing a Bible story for the first time.  That moment made carrying the suitcase from the otherside of the world worth the effort.

As the children said "AMEN" we followed the prayer with the moment everyone had been waiting for.   Let the Games Begin!!  The children had the look of Christmas morning on their faces.  It was as if Santa had brought a gift they had never seen but couldn't wait to begin playing with and discovering everything about it.  The smiles and sounds of children's laughter filled the neighborhood.  They could have been heard from miles away. 

Every child had the chance to play every game once.  And they loved every minute of it.  They couldn't wait to see what number fish they caught at the "Fisher's of Men Fishing Pond" with Earlie and Mom.  They wanted to kock down Goliath with Fred at "David's Slingshot".  They wanted to nail the bulls eye at "Creation's Bulls Eye".  I'm not sure if they had more fun knocking the pins down or watching Clark and Shelou set them up at "Jericho's Walls". The children loved playing every game and no one wanted to see the fun end.

Following the events of the day, each child received a snack of a sandwich, chips, cookie, and drink (which they shared with a friend due to the crowd multiplying).  We not only wanted to feed the soul of the kids but also their little bodies.  The laughter was quickly replaced with "YUMS" and showing their friends and parents all the neat goodies they won.

One little girl told me it was the "best day of my whole life".  WOW, I couldn't believe that God used me to bring this little girl her best day ever.  God also used that little girl to put things back into perspective for me.  He reminded me that Jesus loves the children and when we do for the least of these we do for Him.  

Our carnvial was such a success we couldn't stop with just one.  We went on to have the same event in two other parts of Cebu, Danao and Minglanilla.  Each of these were just as special and exciting.  In all we had about 300 kids come through the carnival, hear one Bible story (maybe for the first time), and experience the love of Jesus.

After all 3 Carnvials Gepher told me that my idea might have been "crazy" but one that will become a tradition in children's ministry across Cebu.  I can't wait to see what next year's Carnival has in store!!