One in Two Million

We got home late Friday night. Since then, we've unpacked, done mountains of laundry, welcomed our 2 year old son home, prepared and given a report at church, restocked the refrigerator, and gone back to work. So much for a couple of days to relax before getting back to the grind. I've been meaning to write a post on our experience in Kibera--Chad actually asked me to do it 5 or 6 days ago (depending on which time zone you're in). I've honestly been putting it off. We left Kibera with such mixed emotions...it's hard to put it into words.

For those that don't know, Kibera is the second largest slum in the world with 2 million "citizens." There is 1 toilet for every 10,000 people. Houses and shops are assembled with whatever means available--sticks, mud, pieces of tin, whatever. We were told to stay close together in a group and to not take any valuables with us. Our team walked about 20 minutes zig-zagging our way through the tiny allyways in order to reach a primary school founded by Slum Outreach Ministries International. The dirt path was a little tricky to maneuver with rocks and trenches and little streams of sewage running this way and that. I soon figured out why Margaret (the founder and director) sternly lectured us about staying with our group--it would have been so easy to get lost. But even amidst the dirt and the smells and the sheer horror of witnessing first-hand the living conditions for 2 million Kenyans, smiling children rushed to our sides saying, "How are you?! How are you?! How are you?!" over and over again--all you could do was laugh and smile at their beautiful little faces...so eager to give us high-fives and hoping for some "sweets."

We finally arrived at the school. Margaret explained that they have 290 children at the school (1000 are on a waiting list). The school provides priceless education and a lunch (ugali) to the kids 5 days a week. For most of the children, this is the only solid meal they get. Everything is provided by donations--in other words, they receive no help from the government. My, what we take for granted. Our team got to lead recreation with the kids and then ate lunch with them. We sang songs, took pictures, played with soccer balls, and had an amazing time. I spent most of my time holding a little boy. He looked like he was only a year old, but come to find out he was 4. Malnutrition is an evil we must conquer. The left side of his beautiful face was scarred from what looked like a really bad burn. I clutched him tighter and prayed for his safety.

We eventually said our goodbyes and headed back to the bus along the same twisty little dirt path. I couldn't help but feel completely overwhelmed by it all. I mean, it's one thing to see pictures online and read stories and know that millions of people live and die everyday in these conditions. But to experience it first-hand. To look them in the eyes, knowing I have lived an extremely priviledged life. And then to walk away. I know I can't single-handedly rid the world of hunger and poverty, but I can work to change one life at a time.

Until next time...

England-A Whole Different World from Kenya

We arrived in England on Tuesday-what a stark difference than Kenya. From what I can tell, England is a place of thousands of rules-many of which have been set to protect the environment. One such law is that fisherman are required to use only green umbrellas-no other colors-so that they blend in with the environment! In Kenya, on the other hand, people in some ways are often ruled by necessity-you use what you have. What is interesting is that England's strict laws protecting the environment come after thousands of years of development and harming creation. While Kenya does have laws protecting trees and wildlife and the such, extreme poverty has given many people there the desire to be like the West-an industrialized nation with a strong economy. My hope is that the Kenyans will learn from Englands and America's mistakes and help their people have a comfortable life without abusing the environment during the process. From what I could tell, kenya has a long way to go and England may have done too little too late.

TARAJAH{HOPE} BOYS CENTER

I am trying to tell a story that really touched my heart during my mission trip with the members of GRACE POINT BAPTIST CHURCH.Am a pioneer benefit of their program;CHANGING ONE LIFE AT A TIME.Here comes my touching story at Tarajah boys centre,these aboys center whereby Street boys are gathered and they are catered for with there basic needs.I mean education,food and even accommodation.what touched me most is the way they were giving testimonies about their spiritual change from drug addicts to God fearing christians.I think you understand what i mean when i mention STREET LIFE.The boys are completelly changed and they are really ready to continue growing in faith and work hard in order to change the lifes' of others in the coming days.They are well talented boys who are exploiting their talents in a better way since GOD shined in their lives.We were very happy to share with them about thier experiences.They really moved me spiritually and i had so many questions in mind,like can i change a life?the answer is yes,I CAN CHANGE A LIFE.since i believe God moves in a mysterious way,because these were boys whose lives were void and bleak just as mine was before GOD sent me the guardian angel from these program.but now am changed for nolonger the same.BLESSED BE THE NAME OF THE LORD.and may the lord continue filling the cups of the members of Changing one life at a time program for they also helped these boys and others in growing spiritually in faith. AMEN.
NURU ASHIFILA SUDI.MOI GIRLS SECONDARY GRADUATE,A BENEFIT OF CHANGING ONE LIFE AT A TIME PROGRAMME.

our time at Daystar

I'm sitting here at Chip Kingsbury's house near Daystar University--Athi River campus near Nairobi. Jeff, if you're reading this, Kimeli and Collins say hi!! Chip is a William Jewell graduate (my alma mater) and has lived here with his wife for 29 years. They have 3 grown children. We arrived here on Friday after a long, long trip. Had a few bus issues--the spare tire fell off and a car behind us ran over it and got stuck on top of the tire :) and then a few kilometers down the road we had a flat! We were very thankful that Chad had figured out how to remove the spare tire from underneath the car because it wasn't long before we needed it!

Saturday morning, we visited the Machakos Rescue Children's Center and helped the guardians plant some seedlings in the shamba (garden). The Center provides plots of land for the guardians to plant greens. The guardians then sell the greens and deposit the profits into a shared bank account. They are saving money to hopefully start individual businesses for the families--in order to become self-sustainable. They also use the money to provide small loans to guardians that need a little extra help from time to time. We also distributed maize and beans to the guardians and did some craft projects with the children. It was awesome. Saturday afternoon part of our team dug trenches at the Ukarimu House on the Daystar campus. The rest of the team visited a boy's primary school and then just hung out with Chip's family and some Daystar students.

Today, we went to Kileleshwa Community Covenant Church in Nairobi. It was a "contemporary" service with a full band that was amazing! I would love to bring them home with us and have them play at our church. They were really good. Our team was brave and led the congregation in 1 song. After church we ate at an Ethiopian restaurant--yummy. :)

Our time here is quickly coming to an end. We will visit Kibera (Kenya's largest slum) tomorrow morning and depart for London tomorrow night. This has been an amazing journey, and we're already talking about and planning our next visit!

Thanks for all your prayers and support.
Until next time...

Special time with some One Life graduates

We have just finished a few days in Mombasa. We have had a great time. One of the highlights has been taking some of our graduates, Nuru and Jackline, from the sponsorship program and one of our main Kenya contacts, Stella, with us. They actually have been serving with us since the beginning of our trip and have been a huge asset in understanding the culture, relating to students as well as getting better deals on souveniers! But best of all we have gotten to know these young ladies very well. They are wonderful people and the time with them has made our time even more special. They are planning to continue traveling and ministering with our team for the remainder of our trip. We are getting ready to leave on a 9 hour ride in a hot bus on a bumpy road to our next ministry location in and aroun Athi River. -Chad

Safari!

Tsavo National park was our great adventure today! We took the sponsored girls on a field trip to see the wild animals in their natural habitat. Before we entered the park, we got off the buses for a bathroom break and a baboon tried to steal one of the girls' bags out of a tree that she set it in. Our brave Dana chased after the primate and scared it off, rescuing the bag and giving us a great reason to blog! We saw an amazing array of wildlife including two kinds of elephants, zebras, water buffalo (aka cape buffalo) several species of deer like creatures such as gazelles, dik diks, and impallas. We also spotted some wild boars and a lucky few saw lions. We stopped at a beauiful hotel to see the scenic view of the park and the watering hole they had there. I took several pictures of a creature called a rock hydrax, known as the nearest living relatve of the elephant, all be it that they are the size of beavers. We had a snack lunch in the campgrounds and on out way home had some intesting bus troubles, the tailpipe separated at the manifold and we had to wire it back into place in order to make it home. it was a loud and stuffy ride because the bus was getting CO in it. We finally made it safely back to the school. We came back to the farm and had supper. Afterwards, we had a special presentation to present gifts and to say goodbye to Grace and her staff.

Kendra and Samuel

We've had an amazing week at Moi Girls. We finished our seminars yesterday and went to church this morning at the Africa Inland Church in Kiunduani. Chad preached and one of the church elders translated. This afternoon we took the sponsored girls to a local squatter's village to deliver maize, beans, water and candy to the children. Our team was deeply moved and devastated by the living conditions. The huts were made of tree limbs, mud and various scraps that the villagers can piece together. The children were precious...smiling little faces that lit up when they each received a piece of hard candy. I hope to post pictures soon.
Later this evening, we met with the sponsored students (there are over 40) and presented them with care packages. Tomorrow, we will take them to Tsavo National Park for a game drive. The students are very excited...most have never done anything like this before.
Chad and I have sponsored a girl since 2004. She graduated from Moi Girls School in 06. The really cool part is that we got a hold of her and she came to see us 2 days ago. She will stay with us the entire time we're here, and we're having so much fun getting reaquainted.
Well, I'd better go for now. Other team members are waiting to use the internet, and it's getting late.
Until next time...