I cannot believe it is the last day! Today is our last day in Kenya and the past two weeks have flown by at an incredible rate. It seems like just yesterday that we arrived in the Nairobi airport! Our time of ministry here has been amazing and I wish we could stay an extra week and work more with the children here!
Today we woke up and headed to a place called Village Market. On Fridays, the Village Market is where a bunch of street vendors come and set up their merchandise and people come and shop. It is really cool because this isn't like shopping at Wal-Mart. This is shopping where you barter for what you want and the price you want it for. We went first thing in the morning to scope out what we wanted to buy. We were only there for an hour. As we browsed, some of us bought things and some of us just made mental lists for when we came back after lunch.
After our hour was up, we went to lunch but we went somewhere that was outside of Village Market. We went to a place called Mitchell's Tea Farm. In Kenya, there are two major crops that are exported: coffee and tea. There are fields of each everywhere here. Last week we went and handed out backpacks at a school that was on a coffee plantation. Today, we went to have lunch in the middle of hundreds of acres of tea plants. The landscape looks like a blanket of green because of the plants. The lady who owns this small tea farm told us how they make it and what goes into the tea. It was quite interesting to see and watch. However, the most awesome thing about this lunch was the landscape and the beauty of the farm. It is a gorgeous place! We ate lunch there which was amazing!
After lunch, we loaded back up on the bus and headed back to the market. When we got there it was a free for all to buy what you could at the lowest price you could barter. Many of us did fairly well! We had about two hours there to get what we wanted to bring to family members or even for Christmas presents. It was an awesome experience as well!
Today was a great day to end on because it was as if yesterday was a huge breath in and today was a huge breath out. What I mean is we saw a lot yesterday as far as the poverty of Kenya goes. We saw some very discouraging things. But today was a day to take a step back from all of that and relax and rest. We got to see the beauty of Kenya and not the injustice. We got to just sit back and think about our journey home. This place is an awesome place and I truly believe each of us is leaving a bit of our hearts here! I know that a piece of mine will always remain with the children here and the people here. I believe there is so much more that God has for me here in Nairobi and through partnerships, I want to see them happen. I think everyone on my team would agree with that statement as well!
We are excited about coming home though! We will leave Heart tomorrow morning at 4:30 to get to the airport. Our flight from here leaves at 7:30 and we go to Dubai. There we will have about an 8 hour layover. We don't quite know what we are doing there, but we might go to a huge mall there or just go on a bus tour of the city. We will see once we get there! Once we leave Dubai, it is a 14 hour plane ride to Atlanta and then about an hour plane ride to Louisville! I think we are scheduled to arrive in Louisville at about 9:50am on Sunday! We are looking forward to seeing you all and can't wait to hug you and squeeze you! We love you and miss you! Please be praying for our travels and we will see you soon!!
84 days Mallory!! 84 days!!
- Jameson
Friday, July 10, 2009
Thursday, July 9, 2009
God's Plan
Today was a chapter out of God's book! Before we left for this trip, we had originally scheduled to repair some homes of the FOCUS children; however, God has some different plans for us today!
We started off with breakfast and devotions and then headed over to FOCUS. This was our last day with them and the FOCUS workers who we were partnered with. We arrived and as soon as the children saw the bus, they were ecstatic. They were jumping and waving and shouting at us. When we got off the bus we had about an hour to play with kids while Scott and some of the other workers went to get bedding (mattresses and blankets) for some of the kids' homes. Now, I want you to understand that mattresses here are not what we have in the states. they are pieces of foam with a fabric covering. When they returned we loaded the bus and headed out to deliver them to the kids' homes.
As we were going to deliver them, we would walk up and the FOCUS worker would tell the mother, grandmother, aunt or whoever the kids lived with what we were doing. We were invited into their homes where we presented them with the mattress and blanket. Most of their homes were about 8ft by 8ft and one room! They were not the homes we are used too in the states. Once we gave them the gift, we asked if we could pray with them. You should have heard the awful situations that some of these people were in. They are struggling like no one else I know. They are worried about getting food to feed everyone. They are being kicked out of their homes with five children and no place to go. We heard stories much like that one all day and prayed for them. We would then leave and move on to the next house. The last house we went too was a different story though.
There is a little girl named Joyce that Debbie Jo and Leah have really taken too this week. This little girl came to FOCUS about a year ago and she was very malnourished. Because of that, she had no hair, she could barely walk, and she was very sad. Once she got into the program, she was able to eat twice a day and had joy back in here life. After about three months of this, she was a totally different girl. After six months, her mother moved and she was taken out of the program. Then, one day she was found again by one of the FOCUS workers. She was put back in the program and is there now. She was not at school yesterday or today though. When we arrived to deliver her mattress and blanket, we found that the five kids were home alone and the mother had left at about 4:30am to go to work. We also found out that they hadn't eaten in two days.
When we found this out, Scott and the FOCUS team immediately left to get food for them. On their way out, they noticed that many of the other kids in the village had not eaten that day either. So, they came back with food for Joyce's home for the next two days and bread to give the children. Once we gave it to them, they perked up. We sang some songs with them and then I prayed for them. It was a heart wrenching sight. This was TRUE poverty!! Not having enough money to eat for two days and barely surviving is what real poverty is! We saw it first hand today!! This was one of those moments where you really decide what you are going to do with your experiences here. Are you going to go home and forget them in three months or three weeks, or are you going to do something about what you have seen? What can I or am I going to do to make a difference?
After we had delivered about 23 mattresses and about 33 blankets, we headed back for lunch. Everyone went to a local Kenyan restaurant for lunch and it was good! We got some real Kenyan food there and, though some of it was different, it was great food! We loaded the bus back up and headed to FOCUS and played some more with the kids. Then we had a bit of a going away ceremony where we gave them stickers, candy, and some other things. They thanked us for coming and we thanked them for an amazing and life-changing experience. We then said goodbye to our partners and they gave us gifts too. It was sad saying goodbye to them because we have built relationships with all of them and don't want to leave.
We then came back for dinner and our final download time. Now we are all emotionally, physically, mentally, and spiritually exhausted from an amazing two weeks of ministry! It is time for bed needless to say! We have one more day here in Kenya and it is so hard to believe that our time here is almost over. It has been a whirlwind experience and we have learned so many things! But we will all savor our last bit of Kenya before we leave VERY early Saturday morning!
We love you all and miss you! Two more days and we will see you face to face!! And then you will have to listen to all our stories, so be ready!!
I love you Mallory!
- Jameson
We started off with breakfast and devotions and then headed over to FOCUS. This was our last day with them and the FOCUS workers who we were partnered with. We arrived and as soon as the children saw the bus, they were ecstatic. They were jumping and waving and shouting at us. When we got off the bus we had about an hour to play with kids while Scott and some of the other workers went to get bedding (mattresses and blankets) for some of the kids' homes. Now, I want you to understand that mattresses here are not what we have in the states. they are pieces of foam with a fabric covering. When they returned we loaded the bus and headed out to deliver them to the kids' homes.
As we were going to deliver them, we would walk up and the FOCUS worker would tell the mother, grandmother, aunt or whoever the kids lived with what we were doing. We were invited into their homes where we presented them with the mattress and blanket. Most of their homes were about 8ft by 8ft and one room! They were not the homes we are used too in the states. Once we gave them the gift, we asked if we could pray with them. You should have heard the awful situations that some of these people were in. They are struggling like no one else I know. They are worried about getting food to feed everyone. They are being kicked out of their homes with five children and no place to go. We heard stories much like that one all day and prayed for them. We would then leave and move on to the next house. The last house we went too was a different story though.
There is a little girl named Joyce that Debbie Jo and Leah have really taken too this week. This little girl came to FOCUS about a year ago and she was very malnourished. Because of that, she had no hair, she could barely walk, and she was very sad. Once she got into the program, she was able to eat twice a day and had joy back in here life. After about three months of this, she was a totally different girl. After six months, her mother moved and she was taken out of the program. Then, one day she was found again by one of the FOCUS workers. She was put back in the program and is there now. She was not at school yesterday or today though. When we arrived to deliver her mattress and blanket, we found that the five kids were home alone and the mother had left at about 4:30am to go to work. We also found out that they hadn't eaten in two days.
When we found this out, Scott and the FOCUS team immediately left to get food for them. On their way out, they noticed that many of the other kids in the village had not eaten that day either. So, they came back with food for Joyce's home for the next two days and bread to give the children. Once we gave it to them, they perked up. We sang some songs with them and then I prayed for them. It was a heart wrenching sight. This was TRUE poverty!! Not having enough money to eat for two days and barely surviving is what real poverty is! We saw it first hand today!! This was one of those moments where you really decide what you are going to do with your experiences here. Are you going to go home and forget them in three months or three weeks, or are you going to do something about what you have seen? What can I or am I going to do to make a difference?
After we had delivered about 23 mattresses and about 33 blankets, we headed back for lunch. Everyone went to a local Kenyan restaurant for lunch and it was good! We got some real Kenyan food there and, though some of it was different, it was great food! We loaded the bus back up and headed to FOCUS and played some more with the kids. Then we had a bit of a going away ceremony where we gave them stickers, candy, and some other things. They thanked us for coming and we thanked them for an amazing and life-changing experience. We then said goodbye to our partners and they gave us gifts too. It was sad saying goodbye to them because we have built relationships with all of them and don't want to leave.
We then came back for dinner and our final download time. Now we are all emotionally, physically, mentally, and spiritually exhausted from an amazing two weeks of ministry! It is time for bed needless to say! We have one more day here in Kenya and it is so hard to believe that our time here is almost over. It has been a whirlwind experience and we have learned so many things! But we will all savor our last bit of Kenya before we leave VERY early Saturday morning!
We love you all and miss you! Two more days and we will see you face to face!! And then you will have to listen to all our stories, so be ready!!
I love you Mallory!
- Jameson
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
The Masai Mara
Words cannot explain what we just experienced the past two days! I can sit here and try my hardest to tell you what we saw and what we encountered, but it will not do it justice. The one thing I can tell you is that our God is an amazing, creative, and majestic God! We have spent the last two days in the middle of creation, but a different kind of creation. One we aren't used to seeing everyday. One that we can't explain with words or pictures. One that only God could make! My soul is still taken aback by what I saw and what I witnessed. My God is an awesome God! He is Lord of lords. He is my Redeemer and my Creator!
The past two days we have been in the Masai Mara. It is in southern Kenya and is a HUGE game park. This place is like a thousand miles long and who knows how many wide. It is just an endless landscape of wild animals and nature. We took a 6 hour safari van ride to get there with two stops along the way. We left Heart at about 6:30 am and got to the Mara at about 3 pm. Once we were through the park gates, it is an incredible landscape and out in the middle of no where! You think Debbie Jo lives in the sticks, this place makes her house look like it is in the city! As we drove in, we saw antelope, wildebeasts, deek-deeks, and all kinds of other animals. We arrived at our lodge, which looked like a resort, and went to our "tents". These "tents" were a big green safari tent with a thatched roof over it and with a really nice bathroom attached to it. It was awesome!
After we got settled in our tents, we left to get lunch really fast before leaving for safari at 4. Once we had all eaten, we went up to our vans and got ready to go out for the first of four trips. We popped the roofs up and headed out on safari. The first night out we saw four of the BIG 5. The BIG 5 are the elephant, lion, leopard, buffalo, and rhino. It was incredible to see that much the first trip we took. When we were coming back to the lodge, the sun set right in front of us. It was beautiful! I can't tell you how cool it is to look out at the landscape and be able to see for miles and miles and see elephants. To look out and see giraffes walking on the horizon. It really brought me to my knees to see what our God has done and what He has made.
When we got back we ate dinner and then hung out for a bit and went to bed. We got up the next morning at about 6 because we left for safari at 6:30. The morning safari was good but not too much happened. We did see two lions, one male and one female. They walked within touching distance of our vans. If I were to put my arm out the window, I could have literally touched it. It was awesome! Another cool thing about the morning safaris were the hot air balloons. As we went out every morning, there would be about 5-10 hot air balloons speckling the horizon. It was really cool to see as well!
We came back in for breakfast and then most of us went to an authentic Masai village. These are the Kenyans that wear red and they are nomads. If you have seen National Geographic, you more than likely know what they are. They are also the ones that do the jumping. We toured the village and the guys even got to participate in the jumping. It was pretty cool. Seeing how they live is quite different from the way we live. They are nomads and move every three years because their houses are made out of cow dung so they only last that long. They are small huts that a family lives in. The Masai warriors, the male children, leave when they are 10 and go into the bush to learn how to hunt lions. When they are ready to go out and prove their manhood, they leave with about 10 others and go hunt one. Once they have killed a lion, they return to the village and then are considered men and can get married. Talk about a transition into manhood!!
After we left the village, we headed back to the lodge to relax for the afternoon. We went out again for another safari and saw some pretty awesome things. We saw a pool of hippos and got really close to some elephants (within about 40 feet). The whole time we had been there, Gentry was wanting to see a crocodile kill, so finally our driver spotted a croc with something. As we drove up, the croc came out of the water and thrashed a cow carcass into the water. It was amazing. Before we came in that night, we also spotted two lions hunting. They were spotted by the herd of zebra so they backed off, but we were really close to seeing them kill!
We came in and ate dinner and then hung out the rest of the night and played cards. After that we went to bed and woke up early the next morning for our last safari. We went out and nothing really happened for the first hour and a half but then one of the drivers spotted a couple of lions eating. We got really close to the lions and saw that it was a wildebeast. We could hear them eating and it was SO cool. It wasn't a kill but it was pretty close to one. After that, we came back and got our stuff ready and headed back to Heart.
We are here now, safe and sound! Everyone has all their limbs and no one got eaten by anything! We have two more days here and we will cherish every minute of it! This place is humbling and uplifting all at the same time.
We were sitting around the fire one night we were there talking to another visitor and they asked Laura Henderson what she was going to take home from this experience. She thought for a minute and answered with one word. I think this word is the theme for our trip here. The one word is perspective. Our perspectives will forever be changed. I strongly believe that no one could ever come here and leave the same person as when they arrived. I believe this experience will forever shape who we are forever! God is an amazing God like I said earlier. He is a God of vision and provision. He is a God of creation and destruction. But He is more importantly a God of love! He has called us to love like Christ and to settle for nothing less. He loved us enough to send a sacrifice for our sins, but He also loved us enough to bless us with everything else on this planet. When I look at a zebra or an elephant or a lion running in the wild, I don't think about the zoo or how awesome animals are; I think about how amazing our God is and how much He loves us! I don't see the sun set and the sun rise and think about how all of this came from a "big bang"; I think about how it came from the God of love. God is mind blowing! None of this happened because of chance, it happened because of God!
I challenge you to go through the next two days, before we return, and think about what God has blessed you with in your everyday life. You don't have to come to Africa to learn about what He has done for you! It is right in front of you! How many times do you pass it by though? How many days do you forget to thank the One who created it all? Take time. Pray. Read. Study. Worship!!
See you tomorrow night! Much love and missing!
I love you Mallory!
- Jameson
The past two days we have been in the Masai Mara. It is in southern Kenya and is a HUGE game park. This place is like a thousand miles long and who knows how many wide. It is just an endless landscape of wild animals and nature. We took a 6 hour safari van ride to get there with two stops along the way. We left Heart at about 6:30 am and got to the Mara at about 3 pm. Once we were through the park gates, it is an incredible landscape and out in the middle of no where! You think Debbie Jo lives in the sticks, this place makes her house look like it is in the city! As we drove in, we saw antelope, wildebeasts, deek-deeks, and all kinds of other animals. We arrived at our lodge, which looked like a resort, and went to our "tents". These "tents" were a big green safari tent with a thatched roof over it and with a really nice bathroom attached to it. It was awesome!
After we got settled in our tents, we left to get lunch really fast before leaving for safari at 4. Once we had all eaten, we went up to our vans and got ready to go out for the first of four trips. We popped the roofs up and headed out on safari. The first night out we saw four of the BIG 5. The BIG 5 are the elephant, lion, leopard, buffalo, and rhino. It was incredible to see that much the first trip we took. When we were coming back to the lodge, the sun set right in front of us. It was beautiful! I can't tell you how cool it is to look out at the landscape and be able to see for miles and miles and see elephants. To look out and see giraffes walking on the horizon. It really brought me to my knees to see what our God has done and what He has made.
When we got back we ate dinner and then hung out for a bit and went to bed. We got up the next morning at about 6 because we left for safari at 6:30. The morning safari was good but not too much happened. We did see two lions, one male and one female. They walked within touching distance of our vans. If I were to put my arm out the window, I could have literally touched it. It was awesome! Another cool thing about the morning safaris were the hot air balloons. As we went out every morning, there would be about 5-10 hot air balloons speckling the horizon. It was really cool to see as well!
We came back in for breakfast and then most of us went to an authentic Masai village. These are the Kenyans that wear red and they are nomads. If you have seen National Geographic, you more than likely know what they are. They are also the ones that do the jumping. We toured the village and the guys even got to participate in the jumping. It was pretty cool. Seeing how they live is quite different from the way we live. They are nomads and move every three years because their houses are made out of cow dung so they only last that long. They are small huts that a family lives in. The Masai warriors, the male children, leave when they are 10 and go into the bush to learn how to hunt lions. When they are ready to go out and prove their manhood, they leave with about 10 others and go hunt one. Once they have killed a lion, they return to the village and then are considered men and can get married. Talk about a transition into manhood!!
After we left the village, we headed back to the lodge to relax for the afternoon. We went out again for another safari and saw some pretty awesome things. We saw a pool of hippos and got really close to some elephants (within about 40 feet). The whole time we had been there, Gentry was wanting to see a crocodile kill, so finally our driver spotted a croc with something. As we drove up, the croc came out of the water and thrashed a cow carcass into the water. It was amazing. Before we came in that night, we also spotted two lions hunting. They were spotted by the herd of zebra so they backed off, but we were really close to seeing them kill!
We came in and ate dinner and then hung out the rest of the night and played cards. After that we went to bed and woke up early the next morning for our last safari. We went out and nothing really happened for the first hour and a half but then one of the drivers spotted a couple of lions eating. We got really close to the lions and saw that it was a wildebeast. We could hear them eating and it was SO cool. It wasn't a kill but it was pretty close to one. After that, we came back and got our stuff ready and headed back to Heart.
We are here now, safe and sound! Everyone has all their limbs and no one got eaten by anything! We have two more days here and we will cherish every minute of it! This place is humbling and uplifting all at the same time.
We were sitting around the fire one night we were there talking to another visitor and they asked Laura Henderson what she was going to take home from this experience. She thought for a minute and answered with one word. I think this word is the theme for our trip here. The one word is perspective. Our perspectives will forever be changed. I strongly believe that no one could ever come here and leave the same person as when they arrived. I believe this experience will forever shape who we are forever! God is an amazing God like I said earlier. He is a God of vision and provision. He is a God of creation and destruction. But He is more importantly a God of love! He has called us to love like Christ and to settle for nothing less. He loved us enough to send a sacrifice for our sins, but He also loved us enough to bless us with everything else on this planet. When I look at a zebra or an elephant or a lion running in the wild, I don't think about the zoo or how awesome animals are; I think about how amazing our God is and how much He loves us! I don't see the sun set and the sun rise and think about how all of this came from a "big bang"; I think about how it came from the God of love. God is mind blowing! None of this happened because of chance, it happened because of God!
I challenge you to go through the next two days, before we return, and think about what God has blessed you with in your everyday life. You don't have to come to Africa to learn about what He has done for you! It is right in front of you! How many times do you pass it by though? How many days do you forget to thank the One who created it all? Take time. Pray. Read. Study. Worship!!
See you tomorrow night! Much love and missing!
I love you Mallory!
- Jameson
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Church in Kenya
Today we went to church at Ruiru Bible Baptist Church!! We got up and had breakfast and then headed out to the church. I was speaking in the youth service which started at 9:30 and Scott was speaking in the main church service at 10:30. When we arrived, we went down to the youth building which is a concrete block building with a metal tin roof. It wasn't what we are used to in the States, but it is an awesome thing for them to have their own building! That says a lot about their church's emphasis on the youth. The service started out with some songs and then they opened it up for some of the students to share testimonies about what they had learned over the past couple of weeks or anything that God was showing them in their lives. A couple of them got up and said some things and then we sang an awesome song called "Timbira Jehova". During the chorus you dance and give high tens (two high fives). It was awesome to see this and see the joy in their worship when there was no band or great sound system! Then Scott got up and introduced me and then I spoke on 1 John 2.
When we were done in the youth service, we went up to the main service. They started with singing and continued with singing. Some songs we sang all together and then some they would sing or a group of singers would sing. Many of them were in Swahili, so we didn't know the words; however, they did have hymn books so there were a couple we could sing along with. It made it a lot easier when we knew the beat to the songs because we could actually follow along! After all the singing was done and the offering was taken, Scott got up and preached. His message was about faith and hope. He used a translator which was really cool! Scott had Gentry give her testimony about when she had Lime's disease to illustrate his point and that really brought his message home to us and the Kenyans! It was an awesome message! One in which all of us needed to hear!
We left the church around 1:30 and headed to get lunch. The restaurant we went to was called Carnivore and it is named this for a reason. When you come in and sit down, they tell you that they have a fixed meal of soup, salad, bread, all the meat you can eat, and dessert. We got our soup and then our salad and then came the meat. There was turkey, chicken, beef, lamb, crocodile, pork, and ostrich. I think that was it. But they continue walking around the table and serving you more and more meat until you "surrender". At the table there is a little white flag that you lower when you are done eating. We gave that duty to Jonathan because he outlasted us all in eating. He ate SO much it was crazy! When we were done, we went to the gift shop and hung out for a while and then loaded the bus to come home. We were all stuffed to the brim and wanting a nap SO bad!!
When we got back it was about 6:00. Many of us just hung out and talked and many of us went to sleep for a couple of hours. At 7:00 we had dinner. You can imagine that none of us were really hungry so we didn't eat a whole lot at all. We then stayed up and played Speed Uno and just talked about the safari we were getting ready to go on. We have to be up at 6:30 in the morning to leave by 7:00 so we are going to pack and head to bed. We love you and miss you all!!
I love you Mallory!
- Jameson
When we were done in the youth service, we went up to the main service. They started with singing and continued with singing. Some songs we sang all together and then some they would sing or a group of singers would sing. Many of them were in Swahili, so we didn't know the words; however, they did have hymn books so there were a couple we could sing along with. It made it a lot easier when we knew the beat to the songs because we could actually follow along! After all the singing was done and the offering was taken, Scott got up and preached. His message was about faith and hope. He used a translator which was really cool! Scott had Gentry give her testimony about when she had Lime's disease to illustrate his point and that really brought his message home to us and the Kenyans! It was an awesome message! One in which all of us needed to hear!
We left the church around 1:30 and headed to get lunch. The restaurant we went to was called Carnivore and it is named this for a reason. When you come in and sit down, they tell you that they have a fixed meal of soup, salad, bread, all the meat you can eat, and dessert. We got our soup and then our salad and then came the meat. There was turkey, chicken, beef, lamb, crocodile, pork, and ostrich. I think that was it. But they continue walking around the table and serving you more and more meat until you "surrender". At the table there is a little white flag that you lower when you are done eating. We gave that duty to Jonathan because he outlasted us all in eating. He ate SO much it was crazy! When we were done, we went to the gift shop and hung out for a while and then loaded the bus to come home. We were all stuffed to the brim and wanting a nap SO bad!!
When we got back it was about 6:00. Many of us just hung out and talked and many of us went to sleep for a couple of hours. At 7:00 we had dinner. You can imagine that none of us were really hungry so we didn't eat a whole lot at all. We then stayed up and played Speed Uno and just talked about the safari we were getting ready to go on. We have to be up at 6:30 in the morning to leave by 7:00 so we are going to pack and head to bed. We love you and miss you all!!
I love you Mallory!
- Jameson
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Giraffes and Basketball
Today was a different day. We have been working with the orphans in Ruiru for the past three days, and today we did a little different type of work. All the ladies of our group and Scott went to the Giraffe Center with the kids from FOCUS and all the guys except for Scott held a basketball tournament at Ruiru Bible Baptist Church where we will be attending church tomorrow. So, tonight, I am going to tell you about the basketball tournament and then Kassandra Botts is going to tell you about the Giraffe Center.
We got up this morning and started with the normal breakfast and devotion. After that, we loaded the bus and headed to FOCUS where we stayed about 5 minutes and then left to go to the church. Once we got to the church, the guys got off the bus and headed to the basketball court. Their court is outside and is smaller than we have in the states. We started to warm up and as we did, Kenyans just started slowly showing up. When everyone was there we had four teams that played and many more that just watched.
The guys began to talk with and meet all the Kenyan guys that were going to be playing on the opposing teams. Sylvester, Scott's friend who is a youth pastor here, played on our team as well. We began the tournament and we played in the first game against one of the church teams. Basketball here is based around the church. Churches will have leagues and teams, not the community or other organizations. So, if youth want to play, they play on a church team. We played one of the Ruiru Bible Baptist Church teams first and we got destroyed. I was hopeful to win the first game but we lost pretty bad! Within the first five minutes of play, I was winded. Nairobi is more than a mile from sea level so the air is very thin. Also, these guys play SO fast that it's ridiculous. We just couldn't keep up!
So we lost the first game and then they had two other teams play and then we played again. Sylvester recruited so Kenyans to play for us the second game and we did much better. We didn't win, but we did much better and even led at one point! After that game, there was one more and then we took a break so I could share the Gospel. We all sat on benches and then I presented the Gospel to them. We prayed the prayer but we didn't ask for a showing of hands of who prayed it because Sylvester said that's not how the react to the Message. But, he had about 5 or 6 of them come up to him after the meeting and ask about salvation! Praise God!!
After that, they had lunch and then we played our last game and, again, had a respectable showing. The FOCUS team then performed some of their dramas and then the championship game ensued. The two teams that played have a bitter rivalry. The team from RBBC played another church team from Komaro, which is another town outside of Nairobi. The team from Komaro took home the Graceland Cup and were very excited. After that, we loaded up and came back to Heart and enjoyed dinner and now we are going to bed! It was an awesome day and God really used us to be humble because I really wanted to win today and could have gotten frustrated. But God showed me that I need to be humble in all that I do and that speaks louder than anything I could ever say!
Now it's Kassandra's turn:
Hey guys!
As Jameson said, today the women and children (and Scott...he doesn't "do" basketball) took the kids on a trip which they will probably never experience again. Because many are very poor, it is hard for them to get out to the bigger cities. What they experienced today was literally a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for them.
At FOCUS, 40+ children loaded onto a van, eagerly awaiting the long trip ahead of them. The Graceland team rode in a separate vehicle from the children (much to the dismay of Leah and Debbie), and the van full of children followed us out to Karen, where the Giraffe Center is located. When we arrived, the children were very excited and rushed out of the van to see a "twiga" (giraffe). As soon as they laid eyes on the giraffe, the biggest smiles you would ever see spread across their faces. Few (if any) had ever seen the animals we associate with Africa. They were given food to feed the giraffe with and didn't mind the rough, slimy tongues one bit. Supposedly the saliva is an antiseptic, so maybe that was a good thing!
It was amazing to see how happy they were to be there, and something that really touched me was how happy the women who work at FOCUS were to be there as well. Not many of them had ever been to the Center either, so their attitudes were pretty much just as those of the children.
They weren't discouraged throughout the entire trip despite having to watch a boring 2-hour-long black and white film about elephant poaching :)
These days it almost seems very cliche to mention how crazy it is that children in poverty appreciate anything sent their way, but it really is true. We were all complaining about the movie, wondering "Why on earth are they staying positive when they have to sit through this boring video?" However, the children were simply happy to be experiencing something so new and exciting.
Scott gave a devotion today that focused on being obedient without complaint. OUR negative attitudes can really bring down those with positive attitudes. A spirited woman who works at FOCUS told me that though she is usually outgoing, when someone who is "down" is with her she is brought down with them. It really is a terrible witness to be down in spirit and negative, especially when you are around people who aren't in a promising position in the first place.
It seems that not a lot went on at the Giraffe Center, but when we put it in perspective we see that to the children it was the world. We can all learn what it means to be appreciative by looking at these kids who have little but love the little that they receive. Today we may have ministered to the children, but they really ministered to us as well.
Thanks for reading!
-KBotts
Thanks for reading yet again! I do want you to know that tomorrow night we will post but that one will be the last one until Wednesday night. We will be on safari and won't have access to a computer. So you will have to wait until we get back to hear from me again. I know...you are sad! We love you and miss you!!
I love you family and Mallory!
- Jameson
We got up this morning and started with the normal breakfast and devotion. After that, we loaded the bus and headed to FOCUS where we stayed about 5 minutes and then left to go to the church. Once we got to the church, the guys got off the bus and headed to the basketball court. Their court is outside and is smaller than we have in the states. We started to warm up and as we did, Kenyans just started slowly showing up. When everyone was there we had four teams that played and many more that just watched.
The guys began to talk with and meet all the Kenyan guys that were going to be playing on the opposing teams. Sylvester, Scott's friend who is a youth pastor here, played on our team as well. We began the tournament and we played in the first game against one of the church teams. Basketball here is based around the church. Churches will have leagues and teams, not the community or other organizations. So, if youth want to play, they play on a church team. We played one of the Ruiru Bible Baptist Church teams first and we got destroyed. I was hopeful to win the first game but we lost pretty bad! Within the first five minutes of play, I was winded. Nairobi is more than a mile from sea level so the air is very thin. Also, these guys play SO fast that it's ridiculous. We just couldn't keep up!
So we lost the first game and then they had two other teams play and then we played again. Sylvester recruited so Kenyans to play for us the second game and we did much better. We didn't win, but we did much better and even led at one point! After that game, there was one more and then we took a break so I could share the Gospel. We all sat on benches and then I presented the Gospel to them. We prayed the prayer but we didn't ask for a showing of hands of who prayed it because Sylvester said that's not how the react to the Message. But, he had about 5 or 6 of them come up to him after the meeting and ask about salvation! Praise God!!
After that, they had lunch and then we played our last game and, again, had a respectable showing. The FOCUS team then performed some of their dramas and then the championship game ensued. The two teams that played have a bitter rivalry. The team from RBBC played another church team from Komaro, which is another town outside of Nairobi. The team from Komaro took home the Graceland Cup and were very excited. After that, we loaded up and came back to Heart and enjoyed dinner and now we are going to bed! It was an awesome day and God really used us to be humble because I really wanted to win today and could have gotten frustrated. But God showed me that I need to be humble in all that I do and that speaks louder than anything I could ever say!
Now it's Kassandra's turn:
Hey guys!
As Jameson said, today the women and children (and Scott...he doesn't "do" basketball) took the kids on a trip which they will probably never experience again. Because many are very poor, it is hard for them to get out to the bigger cities. What they experienced today was literally a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for them.
At FOCUS, 40+ children loaded onto a van, eagerly awaiting the long trip ahead of them. The Graceland team rode in a separate vehicle from the children (much to the dismay of Leah and Debbie), and the van full of children followed us out to Karen, where the Giraffe Center is located. When we arrived, the children were very excited and rushed out of the van to see a "twiga" (giraffe). As soon as they laid eyes on the giraffe, the biggest smiles you would ever see spread across their faces. Few (if any) had ever seen the animals we associate with Africa. They were given food to feed the giraffe with and didn't mind the rough, slimy tongues one bit. Supposedly the saliva is an antiseptic, so maybe that was a good thing!
It was amazing to see how happy they were to be there, and something that really touched me was how happy the women who work at FOCUS were to be there as well. Not many of them had ever been to the Center either, so their attitudes were pretty much just as those of the children.
They weren't discouraged throughout the entire trip despite having to watch a boring 2-hour-long black and white film about elephant poaching :)
These days it almost seems very cliche to mention how crazy it is that children in poverty appreciate anything sent their way, but it really is true. We were all complaining about the movie, wondering "Why on earth are they staying positive when they have to sit through this boring video?" However, the children were simply happy to be experiencing something so new and exciting.
Scott gave a devotion today that focused on being obedient without complaint. OUR negative attitudes can really bring down those with positive attitudes. A spirited woman who works at FOCUS told me that though she is usually outgoing, when someone who is "down" is with her she is brought down with them. It really is a terrible witness to be down in spirit and negative, especially when you are around people who aren't in a promising position in the first place.
It seems that not a lot went on at the Giraffe Center, but when we put it in perspective we see that to the children it was the world. We can all learn what it means to be appreciative by looking at these kids who have little but love the little that they receive. Today we may have ministered to the children, but they really ministered to us as well.
Thanks for reading!
-KBotts
Thanks for reading yet again! I do want you to know that tomorrow night we will post but that one will be the last one until Wednesday night. We will be on safari and won't have access to a computer. So you will have to wait until we get back to hear from me again. I know...you are sad! We love you and miss you!!
I love you family and Mallory!
- Jameson
Friday, July 3, 2009
Backpacks and Giraffes
Today was much like yesterday. We started off with another fantastic breakfast here at Heart and then I led our devotion for the morning. I basically talked about what God has shown me over the past month in my quiet time and how this trip has really brought it out and put it in perspective. I have been reading through 1 John and God has really been showing me that ministry and my relationship with Him is only about 2 things: Loving Him and obeying His commands. If I can do those things and if our ministry can do those two things, then I am being obedient to what He has called me to do. Being here has really brought that to the forefront of my mind because it seems like in America that we have to have so much more than that when it comes to our faith. We have to have programs and activities and videos and PowerPoints and all this other "stuff" when really God has called us to only do two things and to keep it simple!
After our devotions, we loaded the bus and headed to FOCUS. Once we got there, we unloaded the bus and then loaded all the backpacks to be handed out today. Half of us rode to the school where we were giving them out and the other half of us waited back at FOCUS. I was in the group that waited. We just hung out and talked with our partners from FOCUS and basically learned about each other's cultures. Once the bus finally came back to get us, we loaded up and then went on a tour of Nairobi looking for supplies for the day. We went and picked up cups from a couple different churches, a generator from a store, and then the sound system from one of the workers houses.
On our route through Ruiru, we had stopped to pick up the generator and there was a young boy about 13 years old lying on the sidewalk. His eyes were open and you could definitely tell something was wrong. When we started to load the generator, he got up and walked over to the bus window where Scott was and asked for some bread. Scott got off the bus and went and bought him some bananas and came back to the bus. When we were driving off, Scott told us that he was a "glue boy". This means that he sniffs glue all the time to get high. He was asking for bread so he could potentially sell it and get more glue. He also said that these boys live for getting high and that's pretty much all they do. The boy looked lost and without hope. He looked high when we saw him and it broke my heart to see a young boy in that kind of shape. Totally desolate and without hope or joy. I just wanted to tell him that there is SO much more to life than that. There is so much more out there. There is a God who is greater than the feelings he is receiving off of glue!! It broke my heart!!
When we finally arrived at the school, we unloaded everything and began to setup all the backpacks and get ready for the ceremony. Parents began to come and sit down in the school desks that all the children had moved outside for us. We got everything ready and had the ceremony. It was much like the one yesterday with introductions, the FOCUS team doing a skit, and then the Gospel being presented. After Scott gave the Gospel, he asked everyone who prayed the prayer to raise their hands and there were about 10 adults and several kids who raised their hands! Praise God for that! We then handed out the backpacks and then let everyone go eat lunch. When all the adults were eating, all the kids began to dance and sing along with the music we were playing. Megan McLean jumped in the middle of them and joined right in! She had many of the older kids ask if she was married too!
After everyone had eaten, we loaded the bus and headed back to FOCUS. Once everyone got back there, we loaded the bus again and went to the Giraffe Center. This is the place that you can go and feed the giraffes and they will take food out of your hands and even your mouth. It was SO cool! We would hold the food between out lips and the giraffes would come and eat it with their tongues. It was a very interesting experience!
Then we headed back to Heart and had dinner and now we are going to bed because tomorrow is a long day! We love you all and know that you are praying with us!
I love you Mal!
- Jameson
After our devotions, we loaded the bus and headed to FOCUS. Once we got there, we unloaded the bus and then loaded all the backpacks to be handed out today. Half of us rode to the school where we were giving them out and the other half of us waited back at FOCUS. I was in the group that waited. We just hung out and talked with our partners from FOCUS and basically learned about each other's cultures. Once the bus finally came back to get us, we loaded up and then went on a tour of Nairobi looking for supplies for the day. We went and picked up cups from a couple different churches, a generator from a store, and then the sound system from one of the workers houses.
On our route through Ruiru, we had stopped to pick up the generator and there was a young boy about 13 years old lying on the sidewalk. His eyes were open and you could definitely tell something was wrong. When we started to load the generator, he got up and walked over to the bus window where Scott was and asked for some bread. Scott got off the bus and went and bought him some bananas and came back to the bus. When we were driving off, Scott told us that he was a "glue boy". This means that he sniffs glue all the time to get high. He was asking for bread so he could potentially sell it and get more glue. He also said that these boys live for getting high and that's pretty much all they do. The boy looked lost and without hope. He looked high when we saw him and it broke my heart to see a young boy in that kind of shape. Totally desolate and without hope or joy. I just wanted to tell him that there is SO much more to life than that. There is so much more out there. There is a God who is greater than the feelings he is receiving off of glue!! It broke my heart!!
When we finally arrived at the school, we unloaded everything and began to setup all the backpacks and get ready for the ceremony. Parents began to come and sit down in the school desks that all the children had moved outside for us. We got everything ready and had the ceremony. It was much like the one yesterday with introductions, the FOCUS team doing a skit, and then the Gospel being presented. After Scott gave the Gospel, he asked everyone who prayed the prayer to raise their hands and there were about 10 adults and several kids who raised their hands! Praise God for that! We then handed out the backpacks and then let everyone go eat lunch. When all the adults were eating, all the kids began to dance and sing along with the music we were playing. Megan McLean jumped in the middle of them and joined right in! She had many of the older kids ask if she was married too!
After everyone had eaten, we loaded the bus and headed back to FOCUS. Once everyone got back there, we loaded the bus again and went to the Giraffe Center. This is the place that you can go and feed the giraffes and they will take food out of your hands and even your mouth. It was SO cool! We would hold the food between out lips and the giraffes would come and eat it with their tongues. It was a very interesting experience!
Then we headed back to Heart and had dinner and now we are going to bed because tomorrow is a long day! We love you all and know that you are praying with us!
I love you Mal!
- Jameson
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Precious Children and Ripe Fields
It's Jameson again! Yes, you have to hear from me again tonight! We will though have guest bloggers on and off for the rest of our stay! Megan did an awesome job last night and I got to go to bed even earlier so I am all for it!
Today was another amazing day! We got to sleep in a little bit this morning and many of us went to bed super early last night. I am pretty sure Drake and Cody were asleep by 8 or 9 last night, so they got plenty of sleep for today. We woke up and had an amazing breakfast here. The food at Heart is out of this world and definitely wins the best mission trip food award. I have never had better than this food here. After breakfast, we had our devotion and then got ready to head over to FOCUS.
We loaded the bus with our 24 Rubbermaid containers but we loaded them on top of the bus and tied them down (that's how they do it here). We then headed off to FOCUS. When we arrived, we were greeted by all the kids again! Many of them remembered who each of us was and many of us have "favorites" now. They come running when we pull in and don't leave our side until we get on the bus to leave. Today was the first day of handing out backpacks and we handed out about 300!! It was an incredible day!
Passing out the backpacks here is not what you think it would be if you were in the states. Here it is a complete ceremony! All the families of the kids were invited to be there and there were government officials there as well. The ceremony started out with a couple of introductions and then the FOCUS kids sang a song which is their theme song. After that they had a couple of people speak who are pretty important and then Scott got up and gave the Gospel. There were about 60 people that raised their hands!! Praise God!! It's so awesome here because the people are so open to the Gospel here. There was no big program or music or videos or anything that we think we need in the states. It was just Scott with an interpreter! The fields are ready here and they are willing to listen because of what you show them and do for them and not what program you put on for them! Their hearts desire to know about God and to accept Christ as their Lord and Savior!
After Scott presented the Gospel, we handed out the backpacks. After that, we fed everyone who was there. This was a HUGE statement because we fed about 600 people. When we were talking with Scott, he said that the meal cost about $300 in the US. $300 to feed 600 people is ridiculous! That's so little money for the amount of people, yet over here, it is unheard of. After we fed them, we got the other backpacks organized and packed for tomorrow when we hand out the rest of them.
Side Note: When the ceremony was going on, we were all pretty much playing with the little children because that's not offensive over here. As we were playing, a little boy (he's my favorite), came over to me and hugged my leg. His name is Martin and he is a handful. If he isn't in the mood to play, he bites and scratches you. But when he is in the mood, he is awesome! He is a precious little boy and today he walked over and wanted me to pick him up. I did and he immediately yawned. I could tell he was tired and within about 5 minutes he was asleep in my arms. Now, I am not a kid person as I have stated before, but this just made me melt. It really touches your heart when you have a sleeping, snoring orphan on your chest fast asleep. He as absolutely precious! I just wanted to pack him in my suitcase and bring him home with me! That really touched my life today more than anything else to know that these children need and deserve so much more yet they don't get it. And how much I can do for them! I can do so much more than I am now and they deserve it! They deserve my love and my support and that is what I am going to give them! God calls us to love without condition and to love those who know no love. Why don't we do that? What are we scared of? How can you and I do more of that?
We then ate lunch with our FOCUS staff partners and then got ready and headed back to HEART! We rested a little bit and then had an awesome dinner yet again! They are amazing here. To finish up the night, we played a little Euchre and then solved a riddle by Christian and then headed to bed!
Goodnight everyone! Thanks again for reading this and I will see you soon! We love you and miss you a TON!!
I love you Mallory!
-Jameson
Today was another amazing day! We got to sleep in a little bit this morning and many of us went to bed super early last night. I am pretty sure Drake and Cody were asleep by 8 or 9 last night, so they got plenty of sleep for today. We woke up and had an amazing breakfast here. The food at Heart is out of this world and definitely wins the best mission trip food award. I have never had better than this food here. After breakfast, we had our devotion and then got ready to head over to FOCUS.
We loaded the bus with our 24 Rubbermaid containers but we loaded them on top of the bus and tied them down (that's how they do it here). We then headed off to FOCUS. When we arrived, we were greeted by all the kids again! Many of them remembered who each of us was and many of us have "favorites" now. They come running when we pull in and don't leave our side until we get on the bus to leave. Today was the first day of handing out backpacks and we handed out about 300!! It was an incredible day!
Passing out the backpacks here is not what you think it would be if you were in the states. Here it is a complete ceremony! All the families of the kids were invited to be there and there were government officials there as well. The ceremony started out with a couple of introductions and then the FOCUS kids sang a song which is their theme song. After that they had a couple of people speak who are pretty important and then Scott got up and gave the Gospel. There were about 60 people that raised their hands!! Praise God!! It's so awesome here because the people are so open to the Gospel here. There was no big program or music or videos or anything that we think we need in the states. It was just Scott with an interpreter! The fields are ready here and they are willing to listen because of what you show them and do for them and not what program you put on for them! Their hearts desire to know about God and to accept Christ as their Lord and Savior!
After Scott presented the Gospel, we handed out the backpacks. After that, we fed everyone who was there. This was a HUGE statement because we fed about 600 people. When we were talking with Scott, he said that the meal cost about $300 in the US. $300 to feed 600 people is ridiculous! That's so little money for the amount of people, yet over here, it is unheard of. After we fed them, we got the other backpacks organized and packed for tomorrow when we hand out the rest of them.
Side Note: When the ceremony was going on, we were all pretty much playing with the little children because that's not offensive over here. As we were playing, a little boy (he's my favorite), came over to me and hugged my leg. His name is Martin and he is a handful. If he isn't in the mood to play, he bites and scratches you. But when he is in the mood, he is awesome! He is a precious little boy and today he walked over and wanted me to pick him up. I did and he immediately yawned. I could tell he was tired and within about 5 minutes he was asleep in my arms. Now, I am not a kid person as I have stated before, but this just made me melt. It really touches your heart when you have a sleeping, snoring orphan on your chest fast asleep. He as absolutely precious! I just wanted to pack him in my suitcase and bring him home with me! That really touched my life today more than anything else to know that these children need and deserve so much more yet they don't get it. And how much I can do for them! I can do so much more than I am now and they deserve it! They deserve my love and my support and that is what I am going to give them! God calls us to love without condition and to love those who know no love. Why don't we do that? What are we scared of? How can you and I do more of that?
We then ate lunch with our FOCUS staff partners and then got ready and headed back to HEART! We rested a little bit and then had an awesome dinner yet again! They are amazing here. To finish up the night, we played a little Euchre and then solved a riddle by Christian and then headed to bed!
Goodnight everyone! Thanks again for reading this and I will see you soon! We love you and miss you a TON!!
I love you Mallory!
-Jameson
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Full of Love
Hey everyone! Tonight you are going to here from someone other than me! I know, many of you are excited about that because you are tired of reading my blogs from Baltimore and from here! So this will be a much needed break in my commentaries. Tonight, Megan McLean will be telling you about what happened in her life today as well as our lives today! Have fun and enjoy!
Hello America! Kenya has been such an amazing experience! Today was all about love. We spent the whole day at the FOCUS center and played with the kids, hund out with the staff, and told them about God's love. We wanted to present it in a way that the kids would understand and could have fun. The day focused on making sure the kids knew that God made each one of them special and that they all have a unique purpose in life. The idea that we are all part of Christ's body was the center for most of the games and crafts.
When we arrived, the kids were so excited! I love running up to a group of them and hugging and playing with them. They just want to be close to us. When we're sitting on the benches they all pile on your lap and sit as close as possible next to you. They really love to feel our skin and play (and sometimes pull lol) with they guys' arm hair. These children crave attention and love and I was more than happy to give it to them.
The first game was the Hokey Pokey but that didn't translate too well so it turned into the Silly Mwili (that's Swahili for body). The kids were a little confused at first but once they got the hang of it they all had so much fun. Each FOCUS staff member and their partner from our group took turns calling out body parts. It was really fun when the last pair was going because we were doing things like teeth and ears. After that, we played Simon Says. This turned out really cool because one of the worker's names was Simon. The third game had children working together as different parts of the body to complete a task such as drinking from a bottle of water to kicking around a soccer ball. Each game emphasized the fact that we are all important to God and that he thinks we're special.
The kids ate their lunch of some sort of rice mixture while we ate the boxed lunches the staff at the Heart House prepared for us. I think there was a bit of a mix up because the ham sandwiches had peanut butter and the others were just jelly. It's all good though because we were all so hungry it didn't really matter.
After lunch, the younger children went inside to take a nap while the others made crafts. They made books and bracelets that were colored to help them remember the story of salvation. Black = darkness and sin, red = Jesus' blood, white = Jesus' light in our lives, yellow = Heaven, and green = a reminder to grow in our relationship with God. I hope the children to go home and tell their families about what they did today and that seeds were planted in both the children and their families. We did a few more working together games and crafts and then had to say goodbye.
On the way home we stopped by a walmart type store and the people with lost luggage got to buy some clothes and toiletries. Turns out they didn't need it because THE LUGGAGE CAME TONIGHT!!! Thank you so much for all your prayers, I know everyone really appreciated it!
I realized today that we need to live life like the little children at FOCUS. Drake brought them stickers and the kids went crazy. They put them all over themselves, eachother, and us. Even though they have nothing, they were more than willing to share what they did have. we as Americans, and especially Christians, need to strive to live our lives like these little Kenyan children.
-Megan
This is Jameson again! Thanks for all your prayers and checking our blog every night/day! We love having you be with us during our journey and this is just one way we can do that. We love you all and covet your prayers!!
I love you Mal and Family!
- Jameson
Hello America! Kenya has been such an amazing experience! Today was all about love. We spent the whole day at the FOCUS center and played with the kids, hund out with the staff, and told them about God's love. We wanted to present it in a way that the kids would understand and could have fun. The day focused on making sure the kids knew that God made each one of them special and that they all have a unique purpose in life. The idea that we are all part of Christ's body was the center for most of the games and crafts.
When we arrived, the kids were so excited! I love running up to a group of them and hugging and playing with them. They just want to be close to us. When we're sitting on the benches they all pile on your lap and sit as close as possible next to you. They really love to feel our skin and play (and sometimes pull lol) with they guys' arm hair. These children crave attention and love and I was more than happy to give it to them.
The first game was the Hokey Pokey but that didn't translate too well so it turned into the Silly Mwili (that's Swahili for body). The kids were a little confused at first but once they got the hang of it they all had so much fun. Each FOCUS staff member and their partner from our group took turns calling out body parts. It was really fun when the last pair was going because we were doing things like teeth and ears. After that, we played Simon Says. This turned out really cool because one of the worker's names was Simon. The third game had children working together as different parts of the body to complete a task such as drinking from a bottle of water to kicking around a soccer ball. Each game emphasized the fact that we are all important to God and that he thinks we're special.
The kids ate their lunch of some sort of rice mixture while we ate the boxed lunches the staff at the Heart House prepared for us. I think there was a bit of a mix up because the ham sandwiches had peanut butter and the others were just jelly. It's all good though because we were all so hungry it didn't really matter.
After lunch, the younger children went inside to take a nap while the others made crafts. They made books and bracelets that were colored to help them remember the story of salvation. Black = darkness and sin, red = Jesus' blood, white = Jesus' light in our lives, yellow = Heaven, and green = a reminder to grow in our relationship with God. I hope the children to go home and tell their families about what they did today and that seeds were planted in both the children and their families. We did a few more working together games and crafts and then had to say goodbye.
On the way home we stopped by a walmart type store and the people with lost luggage got to buy some clothes and toiletries. Turns out they didn't need it because THE LUGGAGE CAME TONIGHT!!! Thank you so much for all your prayers, I know everyone really appreciated it!
I realized today that we need to live life like the little children at FOCUS. Drake brought them stickers and the kids went crazy. They put them all over themselves, eachother, and us. Even though they have nothing, they were more than willing to share what they did have. we as Americans, and especially Christians, need to strive to live our lives like these little Kenyan children.
-Megan
This is Jameson again! Thanks for all your prayers and checking our blog every night/day! We love having you be with us during our journey and this is just one way we can do that. We love you all and covet your prayers!!
I love you Mal and Family!
- Jameson
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Lucky People
Have you ever been told that you will never really understand how lucky you are to live in America until you go to another country? I have been told this hundreds of times in my life; throughout high school, college, and seminary! I never really understood what the difference was until today. I liken it to another experience in my life when I didn't really understand the phrase, "You know when you know." Of course I am referring to when my friends would tell me they just knew that their wife was the one they were supposed to marry. I didn't get that statement until I had met the woman I wanted to spend the rest of my life with and I just knew she was the one! Today was the day that I really understood what people meant by saying that we are lucky to live where we do.
Last night, I think all of us fell asleep as soon as our head hit our pillows. I was awake a little bit but then my Melatonin kicked in and I was in a sleep coma. We woke up to roosters crowing and all kinds of other birds calling in the distance. This place we are staying is absolutely gorgeous. We woke up and got showers and came in for breakfast when they rang the breakfast bell. We had eggs, bacon, granola, biscuits, and oatmeal that looked like gravy. This was a common misconception among the first of us through the line this morning. But then we enjoyed our biscuits and oatmeal just like they were biscuits and gravy!!
After breakfast, we had a short devotion time with Scott and then he prepared us for the rest of the day. Today would be the day we would walk through the slums of Kibera. After our devotion time and meeting, we loaded the bus and traveled to Feed The Children. This is an organization that feeds around 195,000 children and orphans every single day. Their ads are seen on TV a lot as well. We arrived at their compound and took a tour. They showed us the cottages where newborns through 10 year olds stay. As we walked through the newborn cottage and the preschool cottage, the kids would walk up to you and want you to play with them. We only had about 5 minutes in each cottage so it was very hard to just get down and play with them and then leave. This is one of the nicest and safest places for these children, but it still wrenches your gut when you see them. This is also the place that Scott and Alisa adopted Lucas! It was really cool for them to go back there and talk with many of the workers that were there when Lucas was adopted!
After we took the tour, we traveled with FTC (Feed The Children) to Kibera. This is one of the worst slums in Kenya, if not the worst. We went with FTC because the people of the slums recognize their organization and know that they are there to help them. This deters them from harassing or harming the teams they take into this area. On arrival, we entered the complex where the school is housed and immediately saw about 120 kids running around playing games much like we would at recess. When we walked through the gates they immediately recognized us and ran up to many of us. We were there to feed the kids so we took turns doing that and when we weren't feeding them, we played with them or talked to them. Most of them were joyful and had smiles on their faces.
As we began to wrap this time up, we were taken on a tour of the slums in several small groups. We went through and got to see, hear, smell, and simply experience what the slums are like. They are like NOTHING in America!! The Kibera slums are about 5 square miles and there are, at best guess, 1 million people living there. Most of them live in a shack that's made out of materials that they can find like scrap metal. They are only about 5 ft by 5ft and have 5 people living in them each. It is something that you look at and ask yourself, "What can I do to help this? What can I do to change this? What can I do?" So many times today I caught myself asking, "Why?" But, as Scott said this morning, it's not about why it's about what...what can I do? God has created us all to be different and He has a plan for Kibera, but the plan He has for us in seeing this is to do something about it! Not to just walk through and sympathize with their situation, but to walk through and DESIRE to know what we can do to help!
When we got back from the tour, the kids returned to school and we left to get lunch at a local restaurant called Java House. We ate there, all safe food, and then headed over to FOCUS. This is the organization that partners with Project Lucas to help feed, clothe, and treat about 40 orphans. When we arrived, we all piled off the bus and were, again, immediately tackled by children. These are the kids that we are working with for the rest of the week and will be with all day tomorrow! These children desire attention from anyone so they were very excited to see us coming. They want to be played with and picked up and held. They are precious little girls and boys! I will be the first one to admit that I am not a kids person. I love middle school and high school students, but kids just aren't my thing; however, you can't look at these kids and not love them and not fall in love with them. Even I was playing with them and picking them up and holding them. When we were introduced, we all sat on benches and I had two of them in my lap. This is a place where you truly fall in love with these children!
They are so beautiful and each one has been created by God! God has called us to do two things in our lives as Christians and those are to love Him and then love our neighbors. That's what this trip is all about, loving God and then loving others. Our love this week will be poured out on these children. Our love, I pray, will be exhausted on these kids. My hope and prayer is that we get on that plane July 11th with NOTHING left and NO love ungiven!!
We came back to get dinner tonight at Heart and then prepared for tomorrow with a short meeting. Now we are all tired and ready for bed yet again! I never understood the statement, "You will never know how lucky you are until you experience life in another country." But today I did! I experienced what life is like in the worst of Kenya. It is very eye opening to see how people are so happy with so little yet we live in LUXURY every single day and are desiring so much more! Even the worst of our situations is the normal for others. You won't really understand it until you see it and experience it. We are VERY lucky people!!
I love you all and will send your love to the team!
I love you Mal!!
- Jameson
Last night, I think all of us fell asleep as soon as our head hit our pillows. I was awake a little bit but then my Melatonin kicked in and I was in a sleep coma. We woke up to roosters crowing and all kinds of other birds calling in the distance. This place we are staying is absolutely gorgeous. We woke up and got showers and came in for breakfast when they rang the breakfast bell. We had eggs, bacon, granola, biscuits, and oatmeal that looked like gravy. This was a common misconception among the first of us through the line this morning. But then we enjoyed our biscuits and oatmeal just like they were biscuits and gravy!!
After breakfast, we had a short devotion time with Scott and then he prepared us for the rest of the day. Today would be the day we would walk through the slums of Kibera. After our devotion time and meeting, we loaded the bus and traveled to Feed The Children. This is an organization that feeds around 195,000 children and orphans every single day. Their ads are seen on TV a lot as well. We arrived at their compound and took a tour. They showed us the cottages where newborns through 10 year olds stay. As we walked through the newborn cottage and the preschool cottage, the kids would walk up to you and want you to play with them. We only had about 5 minutes in each cottage so it was very hard to just get down and play with them and then leave. This is one of the nicest and safest places for these children, but it still wrenches your gut when you see them. This is also the place that Scott and Alisa adopted Lucas! It was really cool for them to go back there and talk with many of the workers that were there when Lucas was adopted!
After we took the tour, we traveled with FTC (Feed The Children) to Kibera. This is one of the worst slums in Kenya, if not the worst. We went with FTC because the people of the slums recognize their organization and know that they are there to help them. This deters them from harassing or harming the teams they take into this area. On arrival, we entered the complex where the school is housed and immediately saw about 120 kids running around playing games much like we would at recess. When we walked through the gates they immediately recognized us and ran up to many of us. We were there to feed the kids so we took turns doing that and when we weren't feeding them, we played with them or talked to them. Most of them were joyful and had smiles on their faces.
As we began to wrap this time up, we were taken on a tour of the slums in several small groups. We went through and got to see, hear, smell, and simply experience what the slums are like. They are like NOTHING in America!! The Kibera slums are about 5 square miles and there are, at best guess, 1 million people living there. Most of them live in a shack that's made out of materials that they can find like scrap metal. They are only about 5 ft by 5ft and have 5 people living in them each. It is something that you look at and ask yourself, "What can I do to help this? What can I do to change this? What can I do?" So many times today I caught myself asking, "Why?" But, as Scott said this morning, it's not about why it's about what...what can I do? God has created us all to be different and He has a plan for Kibera, but the plan He has for us in seeing this is to do something about it! Not to just walk through and sympathize with their situation, but to walk through and DESIRE to know what we can do to help!
When we got back from the tour, the kids returned to school and we left to get lunch at a local restaurant called Java House. We ate there, all safe food, and then headed over to FOCUS. This is the organization that partners with Project Lucas to help feed, clothe, and treat about 40 orphans. When we arrived, we all piled off the bus and were, again, immediately tackled by children. These are the kids that we are working with for the rest of the week and will be with all day tomorrow! These children desire attention from anyone so they were very excited to see us coming. They want to be played with and picked up and held. They are precious little girls and boys! I will be the first one to admit that I am not a kids person. I love middle school and high school students, but kids just aren't my thing; however, you can't look at these kids and not love them and not fall in love with them. Even I was playing with them and picking them up and holding them. When we were introduced, we all sat on benches and I had two of them in my lap. This is a place where you truly fall in love with these children!
They are so beautiful and each one has been created by God! God has called us to do two things in our lives as Christians and those are to love Him and then love our neighbors. That's what this trip is all about, loving God and then loving others. Our love this week will be poured out on these children. Our love, I pray, will be exhausted on these kids. My hope and prayer is that we get on that plane July 11th with NOTHING left and NO love ungiven!!
We came back to get dinner tonight at Heart and then prepared for tomorrow with a short meeting. Now we are all tired and ready for bed yet again! I never understood the statement, "You will never know how lucky you are until you experience life in another country." But today I did! I experienced what life is like in the worst of Kenya. It is very eye opening to see how people are so happy with so little yet we live in LUXURY every single day and are desiring so much more! Even the worst of our situations is the normal for others. You won't really understand it until you see it and experience it. We are VERY lucky people!!
I love you all and will send your love to the team!
I love you Mal!!
- Jameson
Monday, June 29, 2009
We Made It!!!!
We are safely in Nairobi, Kenya!!
Our day yesterday started off at the church and then 34 hours later we arrived here in Kenya! It is crazy to think that only 34 hours ago we were halfway around the world sitting in an airport in Louisville, KY! Now we are sitting at our residence for the week getting MUCH needed showers and heading to bed. It is about 11:30pm on Monday which means it's about 4:30pm in New Albany, IN!
We started the day on the plane to Atlanta and arrived safely there. Upon arrival we went to the international terminal and had lunch. Then we went to our gate to board our plane to Lagos, Nigeria. This was the long part of our journey. The trip took about 12 hours in the plane. When we loaded, we were all excited to have our own monitors in the back of the seats in front of us so we could watch movies and make the time go by faster. We were also excited about the flight hopefully being not full...but alas, there were no monitors and every seat on the plane was taken! It was a pretty uncomfortable ride but it wasn't as bad as it could have been.
Once we arrived in Nigeria, the chaos ensued. We came down the terminal and were coming to immigration and then we got stopped because our flight was a transfer to Kenya Airways and we were not leaving the airport. We followed one of the security people and then waited for our luggage. Our luggage was supposed to be transferred to our Kenya flight but it ended up coming off the plane and on the baggage carousel. The good news was all our bins made it over but the bad news was some people's luggage didn't! I won't name names, just pray that we get them in a timely manner!
Once we had all our luggage we went through to check back into Kenya Airways with all our bins and luggage. Now you can imagine, 17 white people hauling 24 Rubbermaid containers and their luggage all over the Lagos airport. It was quite a sight for the people there. But we made it on the flight and so did all our checked baggage!
We arrived in Nairobi at about 7:20 pm here. We deboarded the very nice plane, compared to the Delta flight, and went to immigration and then customs. We made it through customs without a hitch! Praise God!!! We arrived at Heart where we are staying for our two weeks and ate dinner. Now we are all taking showers and going to bed pretty much exhausted!
Please pray for us tomorrow as we go the the worst slum in Nairobi. It will be a VERY emotional day for all of us as we see things we never thought were imaginable. We love you all and I send love from all your loved ones!! Know that we are fine and praising God for His majesty and provision!!
We love you and will be back tomorrow!
I love you Mallory and Family!!
- Jameson
Our day yesterday started off at the church and then 34 hours later we arrived here in Kenya! It is crazy to think that only 34 hours ago we were halfway around the world sitting in an airport in Louisville, KY! Now we are sitting at our residence for the week getting MUCH needed showers and heading to bed. It is about 11:30pm on Monday which means it's about 4:30pm in New Albany, IN!
We started the day on the plane to Atlanta and arrived safely there. Upon arrival we went to the international terminal and had lunch. Then we went to our gate to board our plane to Lagos, Nigeria. This was the long part of our journey. The trip took about 12 hours in the plane. When we loaded, we were all excited to have our own monitors in the back of the seats in front of us so we could watch movies and make the time go by faster. We were also excited about the flight hopefully being not full...but alas, there were no monitors and every seat on the plane was taken! It was a pretty uncomfortable ride but it wasn't as bad as it could have been.
Once we arrived in Nigeria, the chaos ensued. We came down the terminal and were coming to immigration and then we got stopped because our flight was a transfer to Kenya Airways and we were not leaving the airport. We followed one of the security people and then waited for our luggage. Our luggage was supposed to be transferred to our Kenya flight but it ended up coming off the plane and on the baggage carousel. The good news was all our bins made it over but the bad news was some people's luggage didn't! I won't name names, just pray that we get them in a timely manner!
Once we had all our luggage we went through to check back into Kenya Airways with all our bins and luggage. Now you can imagine, 17 white people hauling 24 Rubbermaid containers and their luggage all over the Lagos airport. It was quite a sight for the people there. But we made it on the flight and so did all our checked baggage!
We arrived in Nairobi at about 7:20 pm here. We deboarded the very nice plane, compared to the Delta flight, and went to immigration and then customs. We made it through customs without a hitch! Praise God!!! We arrived at Heart where we are staying for our two weeks and ate dinner. Now we are all taking showers and going to bed pretty much exhausted!
Please pray for us tomorrow as we go the the worst slum in Nairobi. It will be a VERY emotional day for all of us as we see things we never thought were imaginable. We love you all and I send love from all your loved ones!! Know that we are fine and praising God for His majesty and provision!!
We love you and will be back tomorrow!
I love you Mallory and Family!!
- Jameson
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Updates and Such
We will do our best to update this blog daily, although we have no guarantee that will have an good internet connection, if even electricity, it's a day to day thing! Also remember there is a 8 hour time difference, notice the clock on the right!
Important Info
We leave Sunday Morning. Please be at the church at 8:15 so we can leave at 8:30am. We will meet in the side parking lot by the old Children's Worship Room:
Here is our Flight information:
Going to Kenya:
JUNE 28, 09 - Sunday
Delta Air Lines FLT:5183
LV:Louisville 1134A 01HR 25MIN
AR:Atlanta 1259P
Delta Air Lines FLT:50
LV: Atlanta 300P 11HR 55MIN
AR: Lagos 755A Monday
Monday
Kenya Airways FLT:533
LV: Lagos 1125A 05HR 05MIN
AR: Nairobi 630P
Coming Home:
JULY 11, 09 - Saturday
Kenya Airways FLT:312
LV: Nairobi 730A 05HR 15M
AR: Dubai 145P
Delta Air Lines FLT:7
LV: Dubai 1030P 15HR 15MIN
AR: Atlanta 545A Sunday
Sunday
Delta Air Lines FLT:4951
LV Atlanta 827A 01HR 23MIN
AR Louisville 950A
Here is our Flight information:
Going to Kenya:
JUNE 28, 09 - Sunday
Delta Air Lines FLT:5183
LV:Louisville 1134A 01HR 25MIN
AR:Atlanta 1259P
Delta Air Lines FLT:50
LV: Atlanta 300P 11HR 55MIN
AR: Lagos 755A Monday
Monday
Kenya Airways FLT:533
LV: Lagos 1125A 05HR 05MIN
AR: Nairobi 630P
Coming Home:
JULY 11, 09 - Saturday
Kenya Airways FLT:312
LV: Nairobi 730A 05HR 15M
AR: Dubai 145P
Delta Air Lines FLT:7
LV: Dubai 1030P 15HR 15MIN
AR: Atlanta 545A Sunday
Sunday
Delta Air Lines FLT:4951
LV Atlanta 827A 01HR 23MIN
AR Louisville 950A
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)