New week

Posted on April 29, 2012 by Tammy

New week, new challenges, new struggles but thankfully new mercies too!

This week promises to have its share of challenges. School begins next week (they report on May 8th) and many of the students have not given us their report forms (grades) from Term 1 (which ended end of March/beginning of April…plenty of time to get me paperwork). We require these from the students before paying for the next term so we can monitor their progress. But this can only happen if the school actually gives them their grades…which two schools did not. Side note: This is just another example of the school system here….doesn’t matter your individual grades for each term, they are simply teaching to the final, one-time exam in Form 4 (12th grade). Plus we have a couple students who are on a “probation term” in regards to their sponsorship. They had received a D+ or below in Term1 and now we have to wait for report forms before moving forward. But hey, this is the system so this is how we wait.

Another challenge came just this afternoon. I was asked to provide lunch (translation….give me money) for a government official…in our own home no less! I did offer a meal but that wasn’t what was wanted. I was very thankful for God’s restraint in this situation. This person said I was acting like I wasn’t the owner…to which I replied, “I’m not, God owns this place.”

Sometimes I forget the new mercies part through the fog of issues we deal with on a daily basis. Then a friend on Facebook writes a post which seems to be directed straight to my heart…thank you friend and God for using this friend to remind me of your mercies. And another child at C4KK has been sponsored, which also lifts my spirit!

Without God’s mercy and grace I would most likely run back to friends and family, to a “comfortable” life, but God has me here for a purpose and through the struggles and challenges He brings me closer to Him.

Which path?

Posted on April 18, 2012 by Tammy

This is one of those posts that is necessary once in a while to do what God told us to do at the beginning of this ministry….tell people the needs…He would move who He wanted to assist us.

Saved By God’s Grace has several “paths” you can explore, walk down and pray about to see how you can be a part of what is happening in Kenya. Then, depending on where God is leading you, your passion, or both, we have a secure, online donation process for you. Or perhaps you are good at putting together events to raise funds for a specific need/project. We welcome any and all help you can give.

If you are interested or your curiosity is peaked…take a stroll with me down these paths…

Our first path is Child Sponsorship:

Caring For Kenya’s Kids (C4KK), our Kenyan NGO (non-governmental organization, similar to US’s non-profit organization), currently has 9 children remaining who are ready and eager to be sponsored. We have three which are secondary students ($70/month sponsorship) and six who are in primary ($40/month). Your sponsorship helps pay for the child’s food, shelter, clothing and educational fees (you may have heard Kenya has free primary education but it is far from free and you must pay to attend high school). Sponsorship of all the children would be a HUGE blessing for the ministry as the burden to provide the necessities would be covered and funds which come in beyond sponsorship could be used for projects around C4KK Children’s Home (like continuing to improve the facility, keeping the shamba going, getting a computer teacher to come in once or twice a week, giving the kids meat to eat a couple of times a week or a myriad of other such projects). Sponsoring a child is an on-going commitment and you will be receiving letters from your child often (which they love to write) and you can write them back at any time (which they love to receive).

If this seems to be your area of interest please visit our sponsorship gallery by clicking the above link or tell others who may share your passion for children and share a sponsorship to help lessen the expense (a secondary student sponsorship of $70 could be split into two $35 donations).

Our second path is building a mission home through our Stack the Stones fundraiser:

It is becoming more and more apparent Chuck and I are supposed to be with the children at C4KK Children’s Home. Currently we drive approximately 15 miles to and from C4KK on a daily basis (except Sunday) which takes its toll on using precious gas (we literally spend approximately40% of our personal funds we receive on driving to and from the Children’s Home) and limits the time we spend with the kids because they arrive home from school at the approximate time we leave to go home each day. There is much we would enjoy doing, and believe we are called to do, with the children (evening Bible study, help with homework, craft projects and simply being “Mom and Dad” to them all). We are building our permanent home on the property to allow us to be with the kids as long as God calls us to stay…which is looking like a life-time endeavor.

In addition, the second floor will be a mission home which would house groups who would like to come visit the kids at C4KK. They would have a safe, secure place to stay, assist with the project, and it would be convenient working with the kids as it will be only 50 yards from the Children’s Home. It will also serve as a revenue source as the mission groups will pay to stay in the home and local groups will use it as a weekend retreat house….still relying on God, but more self-sufficient instead of continually looking toward donors for everything.

If construction projects are your thing, please visit our website (by clicking the above link) for more details, or perhaps consider holding a fundraising event…we welcome your comments, ideas and help!

Our third path is a sustainable project for C4KK Children’s Home:

This is the ground breaking of a hand dug well, thanks to a generous donor who kick started this project. This well will water a commercial shamba (large garden) which will be planted (when funds are raised) on 1.5 acres of land…this land is part of the 3.25 acres owned by C4KK and currently houses the Children’s Home and a small shamba for the kids. This large shamba will allow the planting, harvest and sale of spinach, cabbage, sukuma (like kale), ho-ho (peppers) and tomatoes (all of which are in demand in this area) year round, even during the dry seasons when many people do not plant because they do not have access to water to keep the plants going.

If self-sustaining projects are your passion please click on the link above and you will be directed to our secure, online donation site. There you can choose “Children’s Home (C4KK) and Farm Project” from the allocation drop down box and write “well” in the comment section to donate to this sustainable project.

Our fourth path is school fees:

As I mentioned earlier education is not free and unfortunately many of the secondary (high) schools have raised their fees this year by as much as double for Term 2 and Term 3. Before the Children’s Home was occupied we were able to use the on-going funds which came in to cover school fees. However, with the rise in school fees and the Home now sustaining 27 children (and all the expenses involved with feeding, clothing, medical care, etc. for them) the “regular” funds are no longer able to cover the fees (of both the children living at C4KK and those outside the Home which Saved By God’s Grace has been assisting since 2008). Chuck’s recent newsletter stated “We anticipate needing around $3,700 by the end of April in addition to the regular funds we receive to run the home.” We are still short approximately $1,000 as of this blog and need your help. If we don’t receive the funds over the next 1 1/2 weeks the children will have to be told we can not assist to keep them in school…what they will do we do not know…I am not looking forward to those conversations.

If education is a hot button for you, perhaps you can help with a one-time donation for this cause. Simply click on the above link (this will take you to our secure, online donation site) and choose “Children’s Home (C4KK) and Farm Project” from the allocation drop down box and write “school fees” in the comment section.

As we approach the end of our second year living here in Kenya (May 5) we have learned to trust in the Lord for His providence. We simply move forward with His strength at the speed He brings provision. Is it easy living day to day, not knowing if the funds will be here to send kids to school or move closer to the kids? Absolutely not, but we (as Christians) were never told life would be easy…but with God’s strength we continue on day by day.

We are so grateful to you for listening to these requests for help. If you are unable to financially help, please consider lifting this ministry up in prayer for God’s will to be done. We would also ask that you tell others about our kids in Kenya and direct them to this blog where you will usually see our daily life with the kids. It isn’t easy asking for help from friends, family and even strangers, but I’m thankful God hears our pleas and will move hearts for His glory and purpose.

More stones….

Posted on April 4, 2012 by Tammy

Five additional stones have been stacked bringing the total to 56 stones! Thank you! For more info on “stacking the stones” please visit our website for details.

I would also like to express my thanks for another person sponsoring a child! It’s been (and will continue to be) a time of great reliance on God’s provision…school fees will be coming due the end of this month for the secondary students. Which means around $3,700 is needed in addition to the regular funds needed to run C4KK Children’s Home. But when I start to feel a bit overwhelmed with it all God shows me yet again how He knows the situation.

C4KK Children’s Home currently has 10 kids waiting for sponsors…of those there are 6 in primary and 4 in secondary. If the secondary monthly sponsorship seems out of reach ($70) we encourage anyone to “share sponsorship” to help cut the monthly (or yearly if you prefer) commitment down per person.

Please visit our “Sponsorship Gallery” to see these great kids….we’ve had fun sending letters back and forth between the kids and their sponsors, a few of the kids have drawn pictures and it seems they are all having a good time getting to know each other via these letters. If you feel lead please prayerfully consider becoming a part of a child’s life here in Kenya.

A big thank you again for any and all help you can give.

Why?

Posted on March 29, 2012 by Tammy

Why…

throw trash out the window?
steal from another?
justify greed?
rationalize selfishness?

Because we have a choice and we choose to be selfish, plain and simple. It’s been this way since the fall of man when we felt there was more to be given than what God gave us. I can (and do) get very, very upset when I see someone throwing trash on the ground like the Earth is their personal trash bin or when I read about a government who takes budget money set aside for teachers and emergency needs and gives it to their government officials in order for them to pay their taxes or a nation who gets angry over an injustice (rightly so) but then says we can do whatever it is we need to do to retaliate and create our own sense of justice or seeing pastors driving expensive cars yet starving the children they are supposed to be loving and taking care of.

Those make me angry but I need to turn the lens around and take a look at myself before sitting atop my pedestal and judging. I’m guilty and God works on me alone and He works on you alone but if each of us would listen to His wisdom and guidance on how to live, the world could be a different place. If we each “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” and “love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22) these issues would be non-issues and I wouldn’t be asking “why?”

Bad apple (or galaxy)

Posted on March 28, 2012 by Tammy

tablet sizes are NOT true to life

I’ve struggled with desiring techie stuff most of my adult life. I freely admit I like the newest items in the technological field, whether that be phones, eReaders, computers, software or hardware. You would think living in a developing country those things wouldn’t be an issue, but it is (for me).

When I’m tempted to covet another item of technology I ask myself “how selfish can I be?” There are people literally dying all around me and I am drooling over the newest Galaxy Tab or iPad (leaning towards the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1). Now here’s the raw, honest truth….sometimes I even think, I’m here and have given up so much to be here, why can’t I look at the newest tablet? It’s the same with running water, I get frustrated (we’ve not had running water for about a week now) but I know firsthand there are people all over the world, our next door neighbor for one, who do not have running water and have to fetch water from various locations (some not so sanitary). Lord forgive me those times and thank you for not striking me with lightening. I know Christ has “given up” more than I can imagine for me and I’m not even as cool looking as a Galaxy Tab or iPad!

By no means am I finished fighting this selfishness but when I catch glimpses of a less selfish me from time to time it reminds me God hasn’t given up on me, He is still working in my life. (I’m also not stupid….I would never refuse a generous gift!)

God knows my selfish nature and He knows I continue to struggle with it, but as I said before, He hasn’t given up on me.

What to do?

Posted on March 26, 2012 by Tammy

I woke up this morning asking God (ok, first I thanked Him for the day and whatever comes from it) to use me however He needs me to work today. Yes I am called, as we all are, to show God’s love to those around us. But the place and way in which we do that will be different for each person. Not only do I pray that I show God’s love to the kids at C4KK, but also that I am showing God’s love through my words on the blog. Yea I know sometimes my blog posts are “menial” issues but even through the day to day menial issues that come up I can still pursue His will for each and every decision, thought and action.

By no means have I perfected this. Each day, for me, calls for a repentant heart for those times I don’t show His love and fail at being a Christ-like example to those around me. Some days are better than others and only when I’m in Heaven will I be perfected. So until that day I will continue to thank God for today, ask for His guidance and forgiveness, lean on the Holy Spirit for strength, and seek Him.

Answer me this….

Posted on March 21, 2012 by Tammy

How would you respond to the following questions/scenarios:

You hire someone to paint your building/home. They show up late on the day they are to start painting and then proceed to tell you they need to go into town to purchase paint and tools (paintbrushes, cleaner, etc.)…and they need money to purchase those items.

You hire a guy to finish digging a well. You’ve talked about what needs to be done a week prior. The night before he is to start you receive a message, he needs money in order to sharpen his tools, otherwise he can’t come.

You pay someone monthly for water (and you assume you will get said water, good assumption but not one you should have while living in Kenya!). When a part breaks on the pump he says he doesn’t have the money to fix it and eludes to the idea of you paying for it.

Yes these are real situations we have been/are faced with. Living in Kenya you must learn how to work with people of this culture. Yes we still love them but we have had to show tough love….not paying anymore money until the job is completed, telling them to come to the job prepared, not paying for their problem just because they haven’t budgeted their money correctly. I would love to tell some of them to go jump in a lake, but then what? You have to go through the entire negotiation process all over again, fighting the “white” mentality of we ALWAYS have more than enough money so sure I can cheat you, what’s the issue? We’ve even had people use the money we’ve paid them for a job on other jobs, then come to us and say they don’t have enough to finish OUR job!?

It’s certainly a delicate balance between helping and loving someone and teaching a good work ethic. I’m not saying I am perfect in this area but I would love to be treated in a kind, honest and fair manner instead of continually wondering “am I being taken advantage of?” or “when are they going to cheat me?”

Plus, I guess doing is better than just saying, so as long as we treat others in a kind, honest and fair manner perhaps others will begin to treat us in the same way. I’m not holding my breath nor making that a condition of my helping, but simply asking the Holy Spirit to help me while working with others.

Joy vs happy

Posted on March 16, 2012 by Tammy

Do you see a difference between joy and happy? Are feeling joyful and feeling happy the same thing? Can you be joyful in something yet not be happy? These are questions I’ve asked myself several times over these past two years while living in Kenya. Some days God blesses me with a clearer understanding yet other days satan really clouds the issue for me.

I do not believe being happy and being joyful are the same thing. They can occur at the same time, but they don’t necessarily have to. From my own personal experience I can say at times I’ve been unhappy with my current circumstances and when I begin to dwell on that unhappiness is when I ask God for clarification on joy vs happiness. Over the past few days He has reminded me of my purpose, which can be found in my favorite verse Micah 6:8 “what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” And also through the commandment Jesus gave us, found in Matthew 22 “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.“ I can do all those things, through God’s strength not my own, whether I am happy or not.

Am I happy being away from my family, friends, community? No, but that doesn’t mean I stop seeking His will for my life. It doesn’t mean that my day to day living is anything less than a chance to walk humbly with God, whether that be through expressing the ministry through the blog, giving the kids deworming medication or balancing the food budget for C4KK. Those everyday, living life things give me joy because I know first and foremost I am serving the Almighty God and secondly, I’m serving in a way and place God wants me to.

If the joy I experience this side of Heaven (no matter how sporadic it is) is any indication of the joy I’ll experience in Heaven then for those days of clarity I am thankful and blessed.

Not the type of excitement I like

Posted on March 10, 2012 by Tammy

It was quite an exciting morning at our home. I walked into the kitchen and thought a worm was in the corner. Then I noticed a pointed tail, unlike any worm I’ve seen. Upon further examination, with a broom, I discovered it was a snake! It was very aggressive too, striking at the broom and cup (which I eventually covered him with). Wouldn’t you know it the one night Patches (our cat) decides to stay away at night and we get a snake!

Anyone have a clue as to what type it is?

Then I’m kind of in a mental state now because our daughter, Tarrin, is leaving for India in a few hours. I’m excited for her and know she loves the Lord above all else and He has her covered in His grace, love and mercy but as a mom I’m a bit apprehensive about the whole trip too. I know firsthand (as many of you do) the fight satan will put up to stop her from spreading God’s love to the people in India. Yes God loves her more than I could ever imagine and I pray for God’s will to be done through her and on this trip, but I wasn’t there to help her prepare, pack, talk out jitters, etc…..but what a wonderful opportunity for her to rely on the lover of her soul! Please keep Tarrin in your prayers as she begins this new adventure, walking the path God has laid out before her.

Suddenly

Posted on March 9, 2012 by Tammy

Today I was listening to random music on my iPod and Superchick came on with their song Suddenly (lyrics are at the end of this post). I’ve heard it before but today I really listened to the words and realized how close it hit home for me over the past 2 years. ”She wonders if she’s where she’s supposed to be“, is a question I’ve asked myself several times and not so suddenly but over time God continues to affirm I am where I’m supposed to be. I know I’ll still have days (weeks? months?) when I’ll ask that question over and over but I know God will continue to love me even through my questions.

“Scared of what she might lose if she moves away from who she was“. God is stripping away the layers of selfishness, dependency and comforts of this life and relayering me with the fruits of the Holy Spirit. I’m still such a complete mess but “skies will clear and the light will find her where she’s always been”…wrapped in God’s loving arms.

Lyrics to Superchick’s Suddenly song:

She feels lost in her own life
Treading water just to keep from slipping under
And she wonders if she’s where she’s supposed to be
Tired of trying to do it right
Her dreams are just too far away to see how steps she’s making
Might be taking her to who she’ll be

Chorus:
And suddenly it isn’t what it used to be
And after all this time it worked out just fine
And suddenly I am where I’m supposed to be
And after all the tears I was supposed to be here

She feels locked in her own life
Scared of what she might lose if she moves away from who she was
And she’s afraid of being free
There’s a way she knows is right
She can’t feel the things she knows
And so each step she’s taking is a step of faith toward who she’ll be

Chorus

And here where the night is darkest black
She feels the fear and the light is farthest back
And through her tears she can’t see the dawn is coming
Skies will clear and the light will find her where she’s always been.

Chorus

Saved By God's Grace:

Our journey in following God in Kenya

Tag Archives: Faith