Don’t know about you but I can easily fall into a “comfortable zone” and can’t see outside my own situation. Then I’m hit with a video or picture sent from Kenya and it breaks my heart, shaking me from apathy to compassion. Frankly this happens on those occasions I watch the news.
The Lord lead me to write this blog as a vehicle of love, compassion and sometimes even a reality check for you and me. I try not to pull punches but simply state what’s happening in Kenya, presenting the facts, however ugly they may be.
These are real situations, real families, real children. The way of life for many in Kenya is tough, and honestly that’s putting it mildly. While living in Kenya it was difficult to imagine being in some of the situations, even though they were right in front of us.
Talking with people on a personal level, shaking hands, hugging children, extending whatever I had to offer and knowing it was only by God’s grace I was able to do so is a humbling way to live. My life needs to be humbled like this more often and I am grateful for the opportunities God puts before me.
I pray these few videos and pictures will be a reality check for you as they are for me and we will thank God for the blessings He has already bestowed on us. May our heart be filled with gratitude for what God has done for us through Jesus Christ and be diligent in sharing that love with others.
Warning–some of these pictures/videos are graphic.
Sitting in the dark, fixing a meal by an open fire…sounds like a camping trip doesn’t it? Well, this is no camping trip for this family. They must cook every meal, every day like this, and that’s if they have food or firewood that day.
Have you ever sat around on a rainy day just listening to the rain come down? I know I have but this takes on a completely different feeling when your roof doesn’t keep you safe and dry. We’ve been working with widows in helping them get new homes or repaired roofs.
Our friend Ben visited a family recently…
This evening, I was visiting a widow, a mother of three kids. She had requested i visit her. As I was about to leave to go visit another family it started raining heavily. We were seriously rained on right inside this poor widow’s house. Today, it only rained for one hour. I am told there days it pours the whole night. As we thank God for our shelters i pray that we also help one or two or three widows and orphans suffering alone out there.
This video is only 20 seconds long and at first I was going to shorten it…but if this widow and her family must live like this then 20 seconds is nothing for us to see the conditions. I did however turn down the volume because it was LOUD!
Walking around barefoot is something we just do, out of choice. Many children will have a pair of school shoes but wearing them all the time wears them out quickly and they are expensive to replace (especially when a parent is struggling to get food, buying another pair of shoes is out of the question). This goes for school uniforms too.
Pardon my being blunt but I’m sure many of us have more than one pair of shoes. Be thankful for that blessing.
Children and adults alike come to our jigger removal programs. The pain and stigma from this sand flea (it burrows into the skin and lays eggs, leading to toes being eaten away by the insect and even death) is horrendous and by treating them they are given some relief.
So now I ask you, can you imagine living in or with any of these conditions? I thank God for His compassion and love that He would push my heart to breaking for His people.
A school uniform, which includes a pair of shoes is $60 for a boy and $65 for a girl.
Jigger removal program for an average size school is $300.
Building a new home for a family is $1,700.
Repairing a roof is $500.
Please prayerfully consider assisting a widow, student or family. Your generous giving helps us show the love of Christ through action.
Thank you and God bless