Category Archives: Famine

What is happening in Kenya with the lack of rains, no harvests and high prices of food

Breaking news from Kenya

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The Wicked Witch of the East from Wizard of Oz says “Oh… what a world, what a world!”  I am in total agreement with her.  What is happening in this world?  Jesus said Satan is the “ruler of this world” (John 12:31) and we only have to look around us to know that is true and Satan’s aliases tell us what his character is like:

  • Abaddon, Hebrew meaning Destruction (Revelation 9:11)
  • Accuser (Revelation 12:10)
  • Adversary (1 Peter 5:8)
  • Deceiver (Revelation 12:9)
  • Evil one (John 17:15)
  • Liar (John 8:44)
  • Tempter (Matthew 4:3)

Recently two news articles were brought to my attention, as I mentioned before, Chuck reads Kenyan news almost daily.

The first article (Kenya’s ‘alarming’ hunger situation) mentions Ukambani land, where Nice View Academy is and according to Dr Suresh Babu of International Food Policy Research Institute -

“In areas like Ukambani, Kajiado and Northern Kenya, the situation has been extremely worse as most farmers have not had an harvest for the past three seasons” he said “some have also lost their animals due to loss of pasture and water”.

The article quotes Regional Director of Deutsche Welthungerhlife, Iris Krebber as saying (about the reported numbers from Global Hunger Index report) “While the numbers are alarming, they are likely worse than the data suggests“.  We hear from our friends and family in Tala and Eldama Ravine, Kenya how very difficult life is right now during the drought and famine.  Though just a few days ago Gideon was able to purchase food (with funds supplied by our supporters) for Mercy Child Foundation, enough to last through November and we just sent more funds to stock the food storage once again for Nice View Academy…we thank God for that!

The second article (Sex for food in Nyeri Slums) says -

They [residents of Witemere slums in Kenya] say theirs is a forgotten village, where hunger is the order of the day. Amidst that misery, predators prowl the dusty lanes, seeking desperate girls who are only too willing to give their bodies in exchange for a few coins to buy food.

Again I thank God for you, our supporters, who continually donate to Saved By God’s Grace.  As God continues to provide through our monthly and annual donors we will continue to purchase food, medical needs, water, educational supplies, etc. for the three orphanages.

Through your donations they are seeing God’s providence and everytime someone turns their face towards Him I can hear Satan repeating these words of the Wicked Witch…”Who would have thought [one person donating funds] could destroy my beautiful wickedness?!”

UPDATE:  after writing this blog I received an email (dated October 15th) from Pauline stating: 

I cant wait to announce the on set of rains in Tala.We woke up today only to step on wet ground.It felt too good to believe and so everybody is happy and feeling blessed.We are feeling like we have more than we need with the rains even before the seeds germinate.This tells you how much we were missing the rains.The dust has suddenly disappeared and temperatures gone down drastically. God really loves and cares for His creation

Please pray this is the beginning of a bountiful rainy season so families can plant and prepare for a wonderful harvest.

Family gathering

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My dear sister, Pauline, had visited her family over the weekend and she sent me a picture.  We had visited them while we were in Kenya last year and they are a close knit, wonderful family.Pauline's family

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pauline is in back with the pink head-dress and she wrote me saying ”Our discussions went on up to morning and we slept for only 3 hours .We did not realise how time passed so quickly”   

As you can see from the picture there are no brothers, only sisters so you can imagine the talking that went on!  I could sense the excitement in her email and I was sad that I couldn’t be a part of this visit.  But she went on to say “You had also sent me your best wishes for the meeting and greetings which i conveyed and made all feel like we were there with you.”   

The rains have not come to Tala yet and Pauline writes…”Here in Tala is still very dry and dusty waiting for God to remember us at His good time for us.We will therefore keep on waiting with a lot of hope for i believe that He really cares for His children”

They continue to pray for God’s providence of rain, please join us in that prayer.

Drought and famine continue

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Let me first say that Timmy is me (Tammy)! For some reason the “a” in Tammy is very hard for the kids to say or maybe it’s my accent (everyone tells me I have a mid-western accent- whatever that means)! Anyway I thought this was a neat picture sent to us by Pauline from the kids at Nice View- thanks dada (sister in Swahili)!For those of you who are supporting Saved By God’s Grace know that you are remembered by the kids at Nice View, Mercy and Eldama Ravine. Your help is greatly appreciated and you can see from the following email that it is greatly needed.

Our friend, Nathan, is a Kenyan we met during our trip in 2008. He and his wife are raising their baby boy during difficult times. He tells us how things are in Kenya at this time:

Kenya is currently undergoing a severe drought,there has been no food in our farms and people are scared,many people including children in the worst hit regions are feared dead,a big no of people are going without food.The biggest problem is however lack of sufficient water!

This is real life for our friends and family in Kenya. I pray that when you read this you will say a prayer for them and their country. My heart and prayers and energy go towards loving our God and trusting Him to bring providence to Saved By God’s Grace.

I wish I could fix it all, but God has placed these specific children in our path for us to reach out to. I have always loved the story of a man who was asking God why there was poverty in the world and why He didn’t take care of it. Then God asks him why the man wasn’t doing anything about it with the resources God gave him.

God will be faithful and I trust Him to move people’s hearts to also reach out and help. I pray we are all listening to God’s voice and stepping out to help those He puts in our path.

Seems we’re always saying goodbye…

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We left Greg and Joyce’s this morning from Indiana and made it to Illinois around 12:30 this afternoon. We had to keep reminding ourselves which state we were in! It’s always difficult saying goodbye to our new friends, but on this trip we know more new friends are just around the corner (or state in our travels!)

Jason and Stephanie are wonderful people and we had a great conversation before the presentation tonight. Thanks guys for opening up your home and allowing us to be a part of your family if even for just a few hours. Here is a picture of their beautiful daughter Grace! Yup, she’s a feisty one but love her compassion and passion for life.

Before we left their home she gave me 70¢ and said it was for the kids in Kenya. She listened to us talk about the kids’ needs and she gave what she had. I explained to her that what she gave was two days’ wages for some people in Tala, Kenya and it would help feed a child at the orphanage. And her attitude was – well I had it and they need it, no big deal, then she ran off to play. “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of Heaven.” (NIV Matthew 18:3)

You ask if that’s all it takes? How about 40¢/day which comes to $12/month? You can help Saved By God’s Grace continue to feed, educate and provide shelter for three orphanages in Kenya at The Change Campaign.

Jason’s church had graciously invited us to speak at their Sunday evening service. Most of the church was there and they had some good questions. We were able to continue answering questions and at dinner afterwards (along with a few stories about our travels to Kenya). Thank you to everyone involved with feeding us, the hospitality was great and we felt very much at home with our new brothers and sisters in Christ.

Many of the young people were very interested in coming to Kenya by themselves, but the parents said “I want to go too!” So maybe during our next trip to Kenya we’ll have a lot of visitors. I know that how ever many people come, God will be glorified in it!

Speaking to people about our kids in Kenya is our passion and calling. The situation there has not been good for quite awhile. The rains have not come and crops are continuing to fail. Here is a short excerpt from an email received today from Gideon (director at Nice View Academy/Orphanage)


“Things are not very good since the rains failed and the future does not look promising but we trust God who Has assured us of prenty even in times of famine. Our help comes from Him

My brother if the cost of food was reasonable things would be easy but its unfortunate food has became costly and our children use one bag of beans for 3 days , one bag of muthokoi for 3 days ,maize flour of 90kgs for 4 days and so food is taking everything but i thank God for He has been with us and He Has continued to provide

I wish to ensure you brother that despite the hard times i will remain faithful to the call of God knowing that He is there for us”

Please prayerfully consider becoming a monthly donor either through Saved By God’s Grace or The Change Campaign. Your support will help us show God’s love to them through providing for their basic needs.

Struggles still continue

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Talking to friends in Kenya today and it’s always a mixed bag of emotions. Happy to hear their voices, sad to hear their stories, impatient to be there and thankful for the chance to encourage them.

Our friend Ruth is working from 4am until 9pm at a hotel. For clarification, a hotel in Tala means a restaurant. They open at 6am and serve small food items in the morning like mandazi, which are like donuts, and chai tea. Then they sell fish, chapati, ugali and other Kenyan foods in the afternoon and into the evening. Since food prices are so high they are struggling to buy the food and many people in the area are not working so they don’t have many customers.

Ruth had malaria a few weeks back and is still weak from that, plus now she has the flu. But she doesn’t have a choice to stay home, she must work to make what she can so she can afford to eat a little bit. Please keep her in your prayers for strength, providence and encouragement.


I also talked with Annastacia and, along with Ruth, I wanted to be sitting next to them talking. I want to be near them so we can pray together, talk and encourage each other.

Annastacia said the children are all doing well but they are missing smokies (sausages) and spaghetti! They haven’t had any since we left in November of 2008. I told her we would see what we could do, but I reminded her that food prices are very high and we have to be good stewards of the provision God sends our way. He has been faithful in providing what’s been needed to feed the children, however work on the school, search for a bus and other projects have been put on hold until funding is available.

Our prayer here at Saved By God’s Grace is that The Change Campaign will bring that providence for Mercy, Eldama Ravine and Nice View not only for the basic necessities, projects to be completed and to be on-site longer but also so they can have smokies and spaghetti once in awhile.

You can make a difference!

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Before I get into the news about the food issue I’d like to update you on Anastacia and her doctors appointment on April 17. (Here is Anastacia with some items we purchased during our last trip of 2008)

This is part of an email I received from Pauline -
“I met with Anastacia today and took her for treatment. She was found to have malaria, and an allergy of the eyes .She was prescribed for eyes drops, malaria drugs and some ointment which i bought for her. She was asked to see the doctor again on 2.5.09″

 
 
 
 
 
 
We thank God that through funding from you we were able to get treatment and the medicine she needed. This is a typical situation that Saved By God’s Grace supports.

 

We are focused on helping the children and adults at Nice View Academy/Orphanage, Mercy Child Foundation and Eldama Ravine Children’s Village, the three orphanages God has brought before us, but we need your help.
Recently in the BBC News – “maize prices have increased by up to 130% in parts of the country since last year.” We can not lose focus now, although many here in the States are feeling the squeeze of financial issues, assistance is available (churches, government programs, food banks etc.). There are no food banks, no welfare, no food stamps available for our Kenyan friends and family.

 

The food crisis is a world-wide problem – “There are over 850 million hungry people in the world in 2009.” “One in seven people on earth goes hungry every day, and when we talk about going hungry every day, we are talking about real pain and anguish and suffering that goes with that hunger.” (source: Talk Radio News Service)

 

One may wonder, what can I do? Become a monthly supporter, have a car wash, host a bake sale…there are many ways of helping. Tell people about this ministry, drive people to the website www.SavedByGodsGrace.org – God will move hearts.
To help make the statistics about people not numbers, here is an email I received today from Pauline:
Dear sister, 

“..he’s already made it plain how to live, what to do, what God is looking for in men and women. It’s quite simple: Do what is fair and just to your neighbor, be compassionate and loyal in your love, and don’t take yourself too seriously—take God seriously.” (Micah 6:8 The Message)

 
 
 
Tomorrow’s blog will have some prices of staple items that are purchased in Tala where Nice View Academy is located, giving you a picture of the costs associated with feeding the children.

 

This is a photo i took the kids of Nice view today as they are on tuition.They are quite happy that they can be in school to learn and take at least lunch before going home. most families are going without lunch nowadays for they can only afford one meal a day

Admire their happy faces and God bless you for putting smiless on their faces

Be blessed
Dada (sister in Swahili)

Now the one in seven people has a face – these children are eating at least one meal a day thanks to the efforts of supporters to Saved By God’s Grace. A big thank you!

Remember those who are hungry

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As we enter the holiday season I can’t help but feel sad for my family and friends in Kenya. They, of course, don’t celebrate Thanksgiving but knowing the food that will be available this Thursday in most homes makes me ache for those in Kenya who will not eat – today or tomorrow and even into the following days.

My daughter handed out food boxes to families in need in our area this past week. What a gift of love and encouragement that is. Those families will have food for a couple of days. And it’s something to be thankful for here in the states – we have services that can help those who are without. In Kenya there are no social services, child welfare, food stamps or unemployment to help families get back on their own. They must either beg, ask their neighbor or go without food.

Please, this Thanksgiving, remember those who will be hungry as you sit at the table with friends and family. Your prayers are appreciated and remember funds are necessary in order to feed the children. If you feel the Lord is asking you to help financially please click here and you can donate online easily and securely.

The Lord never promised us an “easy life,” but living for Him makes life full of blessings and thanksgiving. Your sacrificial giving to this ministry is a blessing to those in Kenya who will eat, be clothed and loved.

Thank you and may you have a blessed holiday!