St. Mary’s Church, Mount Lavinia organized by the Ceylon Bible Society on 03^rd, 04^th, 10^th & 11^th September 2022 

This is Ms. Mary’s personal testimony

“Jesus is with me what ever the troubles come in my life”. I will continue my life with Jesus because He has chosen me. I am happy about myself because I learn and do everything for Jesus”  

 This was the first time where the Healing the Wounds of Trauma Teens’ Healing Group was initiated by Sister Lakmini and Shawn and was organized by the Ceylon Bible Society on 03^rd, 04^th, 10^th & 11^th September 2022 at St. Mary’s Church, Mount Lavinia, with the participation of 23 teens under the supervision and guidance of Master Facilitator in Training and two training Facilitators in Training in Sri Lanka.

The teens comprising girls and boys were from various family backgrounds representing the coastal area of Sri Lanka. Even within the urban area these people live with much difficulty and they are mainly the fishing community. The fishing community find their wages for their needs only if they go fishing despite the stormy and bad weather and thus their family life is not stable as they risk their lives while they go for fishing. Also, the parents of these teens are very violent and many are even addicted to alcohol and drugs. Therefore, the environment they live is not peaceful at all. At the outset it must be pointed out that these girls and boys had various problems, from rejection, abuse, neglect and various traumatic situations.

At the Healing Groups programme they got an opportunity of having a one to one conversation with their Facilitators and poured their hearts out and unburdened themselves of all what they had stored within them for the last so many years, and found great relief in doing so.

We realized that this healing group had brought a new life experience to those girls and boys in the midst of economic and social problems, sicknesses, rejection, abuse, neglect, sufferings, challenges and various other issues in life. At the end of this Healing Group program, these teens were able to study in depth as to how to find answers to the above in the Word of God with the guidance of Master Facilitators.

During the closing of the programme a girl shared her testimony in which she stated that she used to gets angry more often and therefore people had also given her the nickname “Kenthi Nona”.But after attending this programme she mentioned that her life had changed and and she has got out of her anger issues and is having peace within herself.

At the end of this programme the Teens were awarded participation certificates by their Facilitators, and the Ceylon Bible Society was able to recognize and appreciate the dedicated ministry accomplished by the Trauma Healing Facilitators in Sri Lanka.

The Special invitees who graced this occasion were as follows:

• Rev. Fr. Sameera D. Fonseka, Director, St. Vincent’s Technical School, Maggona and the Master Facilitator in Teen and Children’s TH Sri Lanka.
• Rev. Priyantha Wijegoonawardena, General Secretary of the Ceylon Bible Society
• Facilitators of Trauma Healing

But Jesus called for them and said, “Let the children come to me, and do not stop them, for it is to such as

these that the kingdom of God belongs.
(Luke 18: 16) NRSV