Mixed emotional day

On Saturday we visited Mercy again. Anastasia needed some personal items that we had bought in Nairobi. Remember she hasn’t been paid for any work she’s done here, she doesn’t have a vehicle to take her to the shops and no one here to help her watch the children if she needs to go someplace. This woman is doing her very best in this situation and totally relying on God to fulfill hers and the children’s needs. While we were talking the kids were out playing a high jump game and Erestus can jump! Remember the child with scabbies on his hands that were so bad he couldn’t hold anything? Now he’s healing and able to move his fingers and grab his shoes! Thank you Father for your healing touch on these kids. We looked around the facility for repair needs. We were told on our first visit that the toilets were working, but that isn’t true. The pipes are broken and not even hooked up to them so everyone here is using this one choo (toilet) and as you can see it’s just sheet metal – they need and deserve a better facility (hint for donations!) The water tanks aren’t big enough for their needs, plus no one was bringing them petrol (gas) for the pump so they could pump water from the well to the tanks. So they were always hauling water from the well. The plans are to get a bigger tank to feed these two smaller tanks so they won’t have to pump so often and to get cash/petrol to them in a timely manner (another hint). Then by putting in the bigger tank the line from the well is too small to handle the amount of water needed so a larger line is going to be put in to handle that (another hint). While I was waiting for Chuck the boys handed me a note to give to “dad”. It read “Please father we are requesting you to take us to school.” Their school fees haven’t been paid and the people in charge of the orphanage haven’t dealt with the issue, so only 13 of the 33 children are going to school. We paid the fees for the nursery children but the other fees are in dispute and need to be resolved before any fees can be paid. So we are trying to get someone to deal with it so they can go to school. The ones who aren’t going to school haven’t gone all year (their school year goes from January to December). So they’ve missed almost a complete year of schooling. Please pray for these children, they need your support to have hope for their future. Some of the children have asked Anastasia why they were brought here if no one is going to care for their basis needs. She tries to encourage them and pray with them and tell them that God will provide. Pray and see if you are an answer to their prayer. Give them food, education, clothing, shelter but mostly hope and an assurance that someone cares.

Then it was back to Nice View for play time on the field. What a difference between the two places. I’m sure God brought Mercy into our sights so I pray He will be faithful to lift them up and prepare a loving home for them. Again it was fun just watching the kids playing and they’re pretty ingenious to find ways of making playground equipment! It isn’t long after I sit down that the girls start playing with and plaiting my hair. They are waiting for it to grow out so they can really braid it. After dinner we had another movie, Madagascar this time and they loved it! They don’t get some of the “Americanized” jokes but they enjoy the physical humor. It’s neat to watch them grow and mature too. They can stand in line quietly when asked, they help with set up, and they help with clean up. During our first visit they were pushing and shoving in line and not interested in helping. We continue to work with them and God is working in their lives and mine. Thank you again for all your support. God is working miracles through that support.