Old Woking and Knaphill - Chalk and Cheese

MARRAKESH

Marrakesh is one of those places you love or hate - or perhaps you start off hating it and end up loving it. Certainly it was a culture shock when my wife and I were there a couple of weeks ago. The first three days were like hell on a jet-ski, with unfamiliar smells, lots of donkey droppings, mopeds that swarmed around us like angry bees, dodgy tummy and people who seemed intent on parting us from our cash by hanging snakes around our neck, or trying, uninvited, to balance a monkey on our heads. Actually, by the end of our six days holiday there we ended up loving it - though we won't want to go back :o)

OLD WOKING

Even with all the Marrakesh-mayhem going on around me I felt an inexplicable anxiety, not about our immediate environment, but about Old Woking Outside Light that Tuesday night.

It seems that my anxiety wasn't misplaced, because that night there were several problems with kids getting on to the church roof, a fire extinguisher being let off (£100 down the drain), stones being thrown at a volunteer's car, another volunteer having her arm pulled (a problem because she has physical health issues), and a row of kids sitting across the car park exit to stop volunteers going home.

So, it was with great regret that this last Tuesday we decided not to open, and to pray instead at Paul's home. Jackie and I (and later Nick) went to the church at 7 to tell the kids it wouldn't be opening - which wasn't well received, especially by a half-dozen or so of the kids who repaid us by swearing, calling us foul names and by one of them running over my van bonnet, up onto its roof! Another tried to prize open the church door as an Elder was entering for a meeting. I'm afraid I called the Police, more to show that I would do that than to get them into any trouble.

On the upside, an older lad who who was last year's 'challenge', told the others to behave else we might not open again!. Other kids pleaded with us to open and not let in the rowdy ones - because they 'really enjoy coming'. Another warned me to move my van, because some of the others intended to 'terrorise' me. I didn't.

When we met later at Paul's, we determined that we WILL open next week and that we'll ban, for two weeks, the half a dozen or so kids who caused most of the trouble the previous week and this week. We'll also explain that if they misbehave like that in future, they'll be banned for a year. Hopefully this'll get their attention - but we suspect that we'll be in for a rough ride nevertheless. I think that one or two of us will be parking our cars away from the site and walking there.

This IS a spiritual battle we're involved in. Some of the kids are only 11 but they've attitudes that wouldn't be out of place in lads who are much older and who are extremely street-wise (in a bad way). But we also know something of the background of three of them - which isn't unlike that of Jon Venables. We very much doubt that they know how it feels to be loved. We really want them to experience the love of Jesus. We HAVE to believe that their lives will one day change.

We therefore need your prayers, especially for these kids. It would be a terrible thing if these kids were cast aside - even though they're unlikely to do much to help themselves.

We can't let Satan win. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE PRAY!!!

KNAPHILL
This Thursday just gone at The King's House was, in comparison to Old Woking, heaven. Most of the evening the kids chatted, played on the Wii, played cards, decorated their fingernails, chatted some more and ate Pizza. We're really starting to build relationships there. The worst thing that happened was some of the local 'hard men' who are in reality as hard as immature Cheddar, decided to throw some of the pizza at each other, outside of the building. At the end of the evening as we finished packing up, a half-dozen girls came in and apologised on behalf of the other kids. Then they added how much they appreciate us opening for them, and that they know that we're all volunteers and that we don't have to do anything for them. Wow!  I can't tell you how thankful we all were to hear what they had to say.

PRAYER NEEDS

We'd love you to pray, please, for the young people of both groups - 

• For those who are badly behaved and for whom there isn't really much hope of a future outside of prison. 
• For those in Old Woking who are sensible and who find their lives blighted by those around them (for example by our closure of the drop-in through no fault of theirs). 
• For the volunteers in Old Woking - to tell you the truth I worry for our ladies in particular. They're brave but I really think we could do with some more men to help. 
• For improved relationships, not only in Old Woking but also Knaphill - to build upon the foundations that are firmest in both places.
• For the volunteers in Knaphill - to give thanks for those we have and to ask God for more to help so that the load can be spread.
• For more of the Holy Spirit in all Outside Light ventures.
• For more wisdom, especially in challenging circumstances.
• For the two OUTSIDE LIGHT church services that are about to take place, the first at Send Church on the 24th and the next at Holy Trinity Church, Knaphill, on the 31st.

Love

John