Christmas in July

The kids enjoyed a meal of fish,
chicken, greens, tomato salad,
chapati (flat bread) and soda.

Christmas in July is always a big hit with the kids.  In this part of Kenya, people don’t celebrate Christmas with big celebrations or gifts opting just for a big meal, but here, the kids get a big dinner, the message of why we celebrate Christmas, and presents.  The children’s sponsors sent extra money last month so they could each receive a gift and go on a field trip.

Opening presents

Posing with cool new sunglasses and knitted hats

           

Having fun on the playground at the arcade

Bumper cars!

Spinning tea cups

Fun at the pool

This monkey is one of about 30 that were
surrounding the picnic area at the hotel where
we had lunch; the bolder ones tried to steal
our lunches--they were unsuccessful.

Reflections by Jimmy Marr, Living Hope board member

July 4, 2013: I thought this day would never  arrive.  I was so excited about going to Kenya to see first-hand how God was working through Living Hope.  When we finally arrived at the airport, Sherwood and Bethany picked us up to take us to the orphanage.  On our drive to the orphanage, I about wet my pants twice because of the way everyone drives.  Let me say, riding on the roads in Kenya solved my fears of riding with my 15 year-old daughter. 

I know God’s command for his people is to care for widows and orphans and I am excited to actually do this ministry.  The kids were amazing; I loved playing soccer with them and doing night time devotions.  This all confirmed to me that God has called me to serve orphans and widows. 

One thing God showed me during my stay at The Hope Center is, this place is very nice and God has blessed it through many people.  However, the work there is far from being done.  There is much more work to be done still.

Although the Hope Center is great and God is blessing, the village is suffering.  I met many widows whose homes were falling apart.  Also, as we played soccer at the Hope Center, twenty or so kids lined up at the fence wanting to play.  People are having to walk miles to get water to drink.  The church is so packed that no one else can come   inside.  Many people do not have Bibles so they can understand what Christ has called them to do and become.  I sense God wanting us to help the      Kenyans reach and help other Kenyans.  

I think we should build a community well on the Church property.  The Church can give both living waters and real water.  They are both needed in this community.  We also need to help the Kenyans to enlarge the church and build homes for widows. 

I really enjoyed seeing the work God has done, and I know he is not finished there.  We need to pray and be willing to sell whatever we have to help our brothers and sisters in Christ just as they did in the book of Acts.  It is when we become one and full of love for each other that people will see God is real.

"Evone" by CMPC Team Co-leader Bethany Batusic

After mission trips many people will describe their experience as “challenging,” “eye-opening,” or maybe you have heard the classic: “life changing.”  After spending two-and-a-half weeks in Kenya and being blessed enough to be invited to The Hope Center, I would describe my experience in one small word, “Evone.”

Evone is the name of one of the orphans who challenged me, opened my eyes, and changed my life.  Only about four feet tall, eight years old, and a shy disposition, Evone made this trip to Kenya something I can never forget.

You see, Evone’s entire English vocabulary consists of yes, we are fine, hairbrush, school, and football.  My Swahili vocabulary consists of football and rafiki, meaning friend, which I know thanks to Disney’s The Lion King.

Although we could not use our mouths to communicate, we could use pictures, hand motions, facial expressions, and laughter.  Most evenings you would find Evone sitting next to me on my bed either brushing my hair or drawing pictures.  In what I would consider a terrible interpretation of my family through hand-drawn pictures, she could understand.  We would sit next to each other swapping pictures and that is how we communicated.  As all of the other girls were around singing, dancing, doing homework, or mopping—as they often do, Evone and I were busy ourselves.

I have loved watching her little quirks and inexplicable need to straighten her bed every time she walks by.  This little Kenyan girl who has seen so much loss and has already experienced heartache in her short life will have forever impacted mine.  Evone taught me that a simple smile or a few stick figures on a piece of paper can say more than words will ever have to.

Reflections by Intern and CMPC Team Member John Freeman

In 2010, I went to Kenya with a small mission team from my church. I got to learn a lot, and I became really attached to some of the kids there, specifically one of the kids named Gilbert. He and I would sit up late after finishing his school and talk about anything under the sun, whether it was school, family, country, or Jesus. We became good friends; he was my best friend from Africa, and I his best friend from America. One of the things that  astonished me was the willingness to serve that he and all of the kids at the Hope Center have. One morning on that trip, I found him scrubbing my shoes back to their original white color. I learned two things from that moment: 1) Never bring white shoes to Africa.  2) These kids have the humility that parallels Jesus washing the feet of the disciples. My time in Africa during 2010 ended, and it was hard to say goodbye to a friend such as Gilbert, but he and I became pen pals soon after, a relationship we continued for the next three years.

Through this connection, I sought an opportunity to return to Kenya once more. Therefore, this summer, I had that privilege to return to the Hope Center again as an intern. I got to see Gilbert and many of the other kids. Gilbert was now taller than me, but still the same friend I had known. Throughout my five-week stay at the orphanage, he would always refer to me as “My Brother in Christ.” This trip was even more than I could have imagined from my previous visit, but again my time had to end. However, I am holding on to those words, “My Brother in Christ,” as the great hope that I would someday see him and those other kids again in heaven. I believe that Gilbert is a testament to the great work being done in those kids at the Hope Center, and I hope that others get to share in the same privilege that I did by taking the time to personally invest in a trip to Kenya. 

Rural Witchcraft

We’re told in the sixth chapter of Ephesians that our battle is not against flesh and blood but against the rulers, authorities, and powers of this dark world, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.  Believer, we are engaged in a battle but not one we can fight with physical weapons of war.  This battle can only be fought through prayer, because it’s a spiritual battle.

Wherever you live, there’s a spiritual battle raging.  In Africa, perhaps because there’s such a long history and engagement with witchcraft, I believe the battle is more intense.  Simply put, more ground has been voluntarily offered to the enemy.

Each of our children has been touched in some way by witchcraft.  Whether being taken to witch doctors to be treated for bad dreams—the treatment includes being cut on various parts of the body to allow the evil spirit haunting the dreams to escape—or being taken to a traditional pray-er who prays to the spirits for the student to do well in school and gives the student a talisman to carry, which ensures academic success, the    families of our children have involved them at some level in dark spiritualism.

There’s great misunderstanding about a believer’s identity in Christ and the power to overcome the forces of evil that comes along with that identity.  Causing even greater confusion is the mixing of traditional beliefs with scriptural teachings, which takes place in many rural churches.

The result is communities bound to the satanic traditions of their ancestors living in fear.  People fear cats, because they believe demons might be using the cat’s body as a host.  People refuse to carry food in clear containers, because they believe that a witch might see the food, put a curse on it and they’ll die of poisoning.  Doctors, when unable to identify the cause or treatment for an illness, refer patients to “traditional doctors” to seek alternative healing. 

The elderly with dementia are thought to have been put under a curse.  Those suffering from HIV/AIDS are thought to be cursed—there’s little buy-in to the scientific explanation of how the disease is contracted and transmitted.  Young people who die of walking pneumonia, cancer, and other common illnesses are thought to have been marked by a witch.  Sufferers of autism and downs syndrome are thought to be cursed.  On and on the list goes.

And so a community, spiritually violated over thousands of years, continues to invite the enemy to be its bedfellow.  It’s hard to change traditions, harder still to change beliefs.  The door remains open to the spiritual forces of darkness.

The hope?  These children.  This generation.  They are the hope for the future.  Does it sound cliché?  It’s true.  It’s always been true.  If these children commit to renewing their minds, if they commit to transformed lives through seeking the face of God, this community will begin to change.  But it will take time.  Change always does. 

Bottomless Babes

This naked baby was spotted in the field behind our house.  She was contentedly playing alone, brandishing a blade of grass like a sword.

It’s typical to see babies running around with tops and no bottoms.  At first, you might wonder if the parents can’t afford to clothe their child.  But the real reason for the bottomless babes is the lack of diapers. 

While disposable diapers are available in town, they’re unaffordable for members of our  agrarian community.  For some reason, cloth diapers aren't a hit here, either.

During the week, babies are left to roam naked and handle their business wherever they choose.  If they wet on a mud floor, someone throws a handful of dirt over the small puddle and the mess is forgotten.

On Sundays, all the naked wee ones are forced into church clothes, and their bums are well-padded with one or more hand towels.  They waddle around like cowboys since there’s so much padding between their legs.  Rest assured, those towels are coming off as soon as they get home, and they’re free to run around in naked liberation until the next Sunday service.

Summer Fun

The kids have been inviting friends from school over on Saturdays for some friendly, athletic competition.  Each week, a group of kids comes for a soccer match.  Nobody’s keeping track, but we won last week.

After digging an old badminton net out of the storage shed last Saturday, volleyball has become a part of the afternoon activities.  We don’t have a volleyball, but the girls pictured here make do quite well with a soccer ball.

Of course, the little kids aren't invited to participate in the games, so they stay entertained by jumping on the trampoline.  They also enjoy climbing and   hanging out of the trees and playing their own version of dodge ball.

Speaking of field days, we’ve got a 5K race and soccer tournament coming up this weekend with our sister orphanage.  The kids always enjoy some competition.