'As I passed the school, I saw ...'
Shatito is about 16 years old, but if you saw him, you would probably guess him to be 12, missionary Nadia Hattingh writes. His father died a few years ago and his family is “one of the poorest of the poor.”
Shatito once was one of the malandros, a group of wild boys who wreaked havoc in the Mwinika community.
Through God’s intervention in changing some of his life circumstances, Shatito became interested in attending the Bible teaching. Whether it was a thirst for spiritual truth or out of boredom, Nadia wasn’t sure.
But when the chronological Bible teaching began, Shatito was there. And, says Nadia, “He always found some way to catch a ride in the truck going that way. … In the end, he was one of only a few younger people sticking it out through the lessons.”
This fact, she writes, is “quite amazing in itself.”
And the teaching from God’s Word began a path of transformation in Shatito. Nadia recognized clearly the change in him. Then the Hattinghs didn’t see him for awhile and wondered if he was still on the right path.
Last week, she noticed something interesting as she passed the local school.
The usual school situation, Nadia explains, is a sad one. The Mwinika children are accustomed to schools with leaking roofs, no chairs or tables, unprepared teachers and mud walls that frequently collapse.
Sadly, this year, is even worse than usual. There is little left of the actual school structure. Three walls are entirely gone, in fact. And worst of all, there is no teacher at all.
But as she looked into the little scene beneath the grass roof, Nadia saw a few children gathered in the schoolroom. There were also “some old handbooks and one or two blunt and well-used pencils.”
As she looked closer, she saw Shatito. He was bending intently over a book, teaching the younger children.
Nadia was amazed. “Why was he doing this?” He was not being paid. How strange it was for her to see this kindness and unselfishness showing up in the Mwinika culture where, she says, “no one will do anything for nothing!”
Is God changing lives?
Think about the wild and destructive street boy—the one that God transformed into a concerned, volunteer teacher.
And ask yourself how He can use you to bring His transformation to people who walk in darkness and need the hope of the Gospel. Find out more.