All eyes were recently on French Polynesia for the Summer 2024 Olympic surfing competition. Athletes from numerous countries, unified by the love of the sport and the spirit of competition, vied for gold, silver, and bronze medals on some of the world’s biggest waves in Teahupo’o, Tahiti.

Just an hour and a half to the north of the competition site, a Samaritan’s Purse ministry partner in the city of Papeete is helping underprivileged Tahitian children and their families conquer waves of spiritual poverty and neglect. These boys and girls are unified by two things: they each received an Operation Christmas Child shoebox gift brimming with toys and other fun items, and today they are being discipled to pursue their relationship with Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour. Their reward? “I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14).

Excitement About Tomorrow

The buzz began two years ago when a church in Papeete hosted an Operation Christmas Child outreach event for children from a neighbourhood nearby. Using colourful illustrations supplied by Samaritan’s Purse, they presented the Gospel of Jesus Christ in a child-friendly way and surprised each of the 35 children with a gift-filled shoebox sent by loving people from around the world. The children rejoiced in their newfound treasures!

Many of these children enrolled in The Greatest Journey discipleship course, and over the coming weeks, 17 children completed all 12 of its Bible lessons to graduate.

Even after the children celebrated this milestone, the church continued to reach out to their neighbourhood every other weekend. One Saturday as a teacher and an assistant were leaving, a child overheard them saying to each other, “See you tomorrow!”

“Are you coming back tomorrow?” asked the child, hopeful that class would resume again on Sunday. But instead, the teacher indicated that he would see the assistant at church the next day.

“I want to come, too!” the child exclaimed.

This simple request led the church to begin welcoming as many as 15 kids from the often overlooked neighbourhood to their Sunday school classes every week. At first, their presence unsettled some of the longstanding members, but the joy they brought to the church was unmatched. Week after week, these children learnt Bible stories and continued to be discipled as Christ followers.

Service to Entire Families

Late last year, the church hosted another Operation Christmas Child outreach event in a second underprivileged neighbourhood in Papeete. This gathering ministered to so many children that they had to use five large Gospel posters to allow each boy and girl the opportunity to view the illustrations! The combination of the Good News of salvation together with the shoeboxes overflowing with items the children had never before seen impacted entire families with the message of God’s love.

A mother named Marie Claire thanked the ministry team on behalf of her children: Junior, 13, Mahealani, 11, and Kohailani, 9. Though originally from the French Polynesian island of Scilly, which is west of Bora-Bora and so small that it only appears on sailors’ maps, Marie Claire and her family now live in a forgotten part of Papeete. When two pastors visited them in their home, they made the decision to begin attending church. Praise God, they have been coming ever since!

After Sunday services, the ministry partners host a class of The Greatest Journey discipleship course for the siblings and their parents. This tiny group is a nucleus for additional outreach efforts in their neighbourhood.

Marie Claire is grateful for the teaching she has received in The Greatest Journey and at church. She said she had known some of the Bible stories before, but never knew they could be applied to her life.

Transformation on Both Sides of Ministry

Sometimes this ministry partner serves the children from these two different low-income neighbourhoods at the same time.

“Both outreaches have opened my eyes more and more to the necessity of going deeper in our relationship with these precious children and their families,” said one of the partners named Sara. She also noted that her own family’s life is being transformed as those they serve change.

“We are able to experience the reality of storing treasures in Heaven,” Sara said.

“Yes, it’s often difficult, tiring, even frustrating,” she continued, explaining that their life pace, priorities, and weekend schedule changed to accommodate their new young friends.

But the spiritual dividends have been great.

“It’s especially a blessing and great reward to see the children realising how much they are loved by the Father and how greatly they need Jesus.”

Sara and her family are grateful for their front row seats to the Holy Spirit’s work. Now years after their Operation Christmas Child outreach events, they’re still seeing shoebox recipients learning and growing in the Lord.