Usually when
I “rap” it’s because I have a gift to deliver.
And then, I always add a “w”.
Grammar, you know.
Recently two
rappers spent a week at the Alliance Academy for its yearly spiritual emphasis
week. While the onstage rhyming and
dancing of Zae Blacksmith and Stephen the
Levite didn’t “move” every student who attended the daily chapel services,
their open, honest messages and question and answer times did.
I teach all
the juniors and seniors at the Academy.
Recently I talked with the senior class chaplain and she mentioned that,
in her opinion, a third of the seniors are Christians, a third are open to it
and a third are not. This compares well
with a recent talk I had with the school chaplain, who said that in the past
eight years (that is, during the transition from a Christian school for
missionary children to a Christian school for the community) he’s seen his
ministry change from being one for believers to one of thoughtfully sharing his
faith with the interested.
And this
brings us back to Stephen and Zae. They
came to express the Gospel to many students, some of whom are on the cusp of
graduating and moving on in a few weeks. It is my hope as their Christian
teacher that they’ll not only receive a good education, but will see Christ
through the caring attention of word and deed that we strive to give at the
Alliance Academy.
I ended the
week with an hour long private talk with the rappers. They are black, I’m
white. I’m about 12-15 years old than they are. They live in what they call a “grimy”
section of Philadelphia while I’m transplanted here in Quito. They are both new fathers, while my oldest,
Elizabeth, is 16. In spite of the myriad
of differences, we talked openly of faith, hope, dreams, and realities. All
this was “(w)rapped” in a Gospel that gives life to those who receive it.
Thank you
for helping us remain here to try and make a difference!
Sincerely,
Bryon for
the Butlers
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