This slideshow requires JavaScript.
This slideshow requires JavaScript.
Today is the last full day of my visit with Chris and Sarah in Kisumu. I have been in Kenya for only one week, but that was long enough for me to see some of the great ways in which God is working in the people here. It has also been long enough for me to see how much of these people’s physical needs are still not being met.
The hardest part of this trip has been to look at these kids in the eye and tell them that I am not able to help them in the way that they (and I) would like to help them. In a perfect world, I would be able to cure all diseases, poverty, hunger, and suffering with a wave of a magic wand. The reality is, I can empty my bank account and give myself to these people and these things would still exist. Several students at Ringroad orphanage have pulled me aside and asked me to help them. My heart breaks after hearing their stories, but what is worse are the kids who do not approach me. I know the stories I hear are not unique to a few individuals but every student that Chris and Sarah works with have very similar needs. My heart breaks the most for the kids who are afraid to ask the “white person” from money as they watch their more assertive classmates get temporary relief from a way of life that is unfortunately common to most people in Kisumu. We live in a broken world
What is strangely comforting is that I am not adequate to meet the needs of these people. I am not responsible to fix the problems of hunger, disease, and corruption. Trying to “fix” things by my own abilities will only lead to a group of people who will depend on me to provide for their needs and it will instill in me a sense of self-satisfaction that I am doing good. Contrast that with the picture of God defining the needs of humanity. In fact, God has already defined our need of Christ knowing that we are unable to attain righteousness through our own abilities. I feel like suffering would be viewed differently if people would come to experience God as their source of healing and comfort.
I saw a new face of God here in Kenya that is hard to find in the USA. A God that is worshiped in the midst of severe hunger and disease. A God that is found in villages with children that have never seen a white person. A God that exists despite the traditional spiritual beliefs that still continue in the slums of Kisumu. God is alive here in Kisumu, Kenya and my prayer is that God will continue to use the influence of Chris and Sarah to reveal Himself to the people here.
This slideshow requires JavaScript.
These lyrics are what come to mind when I try to describe how I’ve been feeling the past week and a half. Two weeks ago, Chris and I took a week-long vacation to the coast of Kenya, in Mombasa. We posted a few pics from our trip on facebook, so check them out if you want to. What can I say about this trip, WOW, it was amazing, and much, much needed. Our work here is rewarding in so many ways and we love it, but it is non-stop, so the need for us to get away every now and then and have some time to ourselves is huge. I won’t go into the trip too much, because we basically slept, ate, and laid by the pool, and that was all we wanted to do anyway. I made a couple trips to the salon located at our hotel to get manicure, pedicure, and haircut…I forgot how much I missed these things! I was also trying to do some exercise since a million people have told me it is so important during pregnancy, so I took part in the water aerobics classes they had at our hotel pool. Can I just say, this was hilarious, because we were there during low season, and one time it was just me, the instructor, and one other Kenyan lady. The instructor had us holding each other up so we could do leg exercises and pulling each other up on our backs and all kinds of things that invade personal space. In Kenya, they never think, “this is kind of awkward, I guess we should just skip this.” Chris was just laying in his pool chair smiling at me the whole time. Probably the highlight of the trip was a band that we got to hear play twice in the hotel lobby. They were actually amazingly good, and played tons of popular American songs. They did a little Rihanna, Jackson 5 (on my request:), Kenny Rogers, Adele, and much more-they even played Midnight Train to Georgia! We had a good time singing along and dancing, which I think everyone else thought it was pretty funny to see a pregnant lady out there dancing, but I was having a blast, so I didn’t care:) I did sort of feel like Amy Poehler in Baby Mama when they go dancing one night…if you haven’t seen this movie, it’s pretty hilarious.
Anyway, all that to say, the trip was great, but coming back was tough. In the spirit of optimism, I will focus on all the really good things that have happened since we came back. For one, Georgia seems to be finally getting this whole potty training thing…our friend Amy, who watched her while we were gone, must have worked some kind of magic to make this happen, and we are happy. Chris has started teaching a CRE (Christian Religious Education) class almost every day at Ring Road. This is a great way for him to get to talking with the kids about the Bible, and they actually know a good bit, which is really great. Of course we really missed hanging out with Iddy while we were gone, and we’ve gotten to do that a good bit since we’ve been back. He said a really sweet prayer at dinner last night, and I just feel that God is working in his heart! We met another little boy, Derek, and I’m thankful for his presence in our lives. He was just standing in front of our car at the supermarket as we were leaving, and rain was starting to pour. When we rolled down the window, he told us he needed help and his parents were dead. He says he is 9 years old, and I think he’s been living by himself in a rural village for quite some time. Since then, he has stayed with us a few nights and is now with one of the coaches from Ring Road school. We are still trying to get his whole story, bits and pieces at a time, and today should really help with that. Chris has taken Derek and George (the preacher we work with here who helps us with EVERYTHING), and they are going back to Derek’s rural village to see what they can learn about this boy. I’ve seen a lot of needy children here, but I’ve never seen one that screamed out for help the way this boy seems to do in his actions and mannerisms. I have really been praying that God show us how to best help him.
This past saturday Vince Barker flew into Kisumu for a 10 day visit. We have already had a great time with him in just the first two days. We had 3 children come with us to pick him up Sat morning and we all ate breakfast together afterwards. Then we took Vince to see Ring Road and show him around town. Vince has done a great job interacting with the kids and playing games with them and such…I can tell they love him already. Several of the boys asked if Vince could teach their math class one day, but said he would have to learn to speak slowly so they could understand:) I think if Chris Nicholson can learn to speak slowly enough for them, Vince will have no problem! On Wednesday, Cody Kemp will be arriving for a 2 month visit! We are really excited to see him, as well. The arrival of visitors bearing gifts of candy and pickles has helped me get over my frequent power outage/ milk/butter shortage/ backed up sewage/ no chick-fil-a-age/ life in Kenya while big, pregnant, and slow blues. All-in-all, life is really good, we love the kids here more and more every day, and I got my first ever mothers’ day flowers yesterday!
Thanks to everyone for the continued prayers, please lift up our sweet Derek especially this week. He needs his own set of angels for sure. We love and miss you all!
This slideshow requires JavaScript.
Here are some pictures of our life the past week or so. First of all, my belly is getting big! I am really feeling Ruth Michael move around a lot, and I am feeling very good over all. Thank you Lord! I decided I needed to be getting a little more exercise, so Iddy and I did taebo together for a couple of nights. It was pretty fun having him as a work out partner. Iddy is one of the students at Ring Road that we have gotten to spend a lot of time with. He has really become a part of our family here, and we love him so much. I think Chris is going to blog soon about some really cool things that God is doing in Iddy’s life.
The rest of the pictures in this post are from my birthday festivities. I can truly say it was a birthday like no other! We had 5 girls from Ring Road come over, and 4 boys that have become our regular Sunday afternoon guests were there, too. The boys helped Chris in the kitchen preparing food while I decorated the table. We made bracelets, colored rocks, blew up balloons, danced, watched a movie, and made my favorite cake- confetti cake with sprinkles on top! It was a lot of fun and I think the girls really enjoyed themselves. These girls work so hard every day doing chores at home. In fact, some of them had a difficult time getting permission to come over because the party was taking them away from their chores. Even though we live here among them, Chris and I still only get a glimpse into the hardships these children face every day. At the party, Chris and I were asking one girl about her family and home life, and as she opened up, finally her eyes just welled up with tears, and she began to cry. My heart just broke as I tried to comfort her and tell her how much we love her and want to help her. I think God knows that if we really knew the full extent of each child’s pain that our hearts couldn’t handle it, so He shows us a little at a time, and we try to help whenever and wherever we can.
I’ve had so much fun getting to know these girls better. Chris likes to tell people when they come visit that at first the children just seem like a sea of really cute little African faces. But as you get to know all of their personalities and strengths and weaknesses, they become so much more and each has a special place in your heart. That is how I feel about these girls. There is Susan, who makes everyone laugh but is also the hardest working 11-year-old I’ve ever met, Sharon, who is a bit of a loner but opens up with someone who will invest the time, Synella, definitely a leader and the life of the party, Diana, the quiet, sweet type who will always be a loyal friend, and Vivian, the fun girly-girl who always has something nice to say. And these are just the girls that came over on Sunday. Of course, the rest are very special, too. But they all have their own unique pain and hardships to bear even at their very young ages. Dear God, give us the gifts that we need to bring joy into the lives of these children and to show them that you are the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
This slideshow requires JavaScript.
Here are a few pics of us from our Easter in Kisumu. We had three of the boys from school over to eat Easter dinner (taco soup) with us. We also had Mick, Andrea, and Jasmine. Of course Cindy Kahn is still here with us and we loved celebrating Easter with her. She helped Wycliff tell the story of the resurrection to the Sunday school children using our awesome new flannel board story sets.
So I realize that our last blog wasn’t too informative on what’s been really going on over here, and I thought some of you might actually like to know some “newsy” type updates. So here it goes:
-We spent the month of March with Suzy Williams and had an awesome time going camping with 11 of the Ringroad students, preaching to some Christians in a rural village, hanging out with the Ringroad kids, and, of course, talking a lot about the soon-to-be new addition to our family. Suzy, thank you so much for coming, making us home-made biscuits, and just encouraging us in such a HUGE way. Thank you also for posting those pictures on facebook since, as you know, that is much more difficult to do here! Suzy made her debut as a preacher for a crowd of 70 ladies who came to hear her and Cindy speak words of encouragement into their lives. Suzy did a wonderful job speaking about the fullness of life for us who are “twice-born.”
-Lately, Sunday has become our soup kitchen/hang out with Ringroad students day. This is the only day that the students don’t have school, so they have started trickling over to our house on Sunday afternoons just to hang out (and of course eat some American food if we have it to spare, and we always do). We really love this special time when they can just be themselves outside of their school environment, and I think this has been a crucial time for us to really build close relationships with them. Last Sunday, we had about 8 kids at our house and we laughed at ourselves with all the funny faces you can make in photo booth, had a contest of who could make the coolest thing out of a pipe-cleaner, played with the puppy, and talked a lot. Chris is so amazing at building relationships with these young boys, and I believe these relationships are building a foundation for him to offer some very effective spiritual leadership as they grow up.
-Two weeks ago we got a new puppy and named her Georgia. We love her very much and think she is going to be a great little companion for us here. I like the thought of always having her with me if ever Chris needs to be out of town. I’m so thankful that God gave us another (we still love you Emory) very sweet-tempered dog!
-Chris is feeling more and more focused in his work that his responsibility here is primarily toward the students at Ringroad. We both feel so strongly that they need:
1. Someone to be their advocate in health, education, and spiritual growth. The truth is that right now everyone else has too much on their plates already to be able to focus entirely on these things. We really feel God leading us to that specific calling as our ministry here.
2. Some deep spiritual training as they grow and mature and get ready to go to highschool. Again, the desire for this to happen is there, but the man-power is lacking. Chris has started a leadership class for some of the older boys to learn how to start serving in worship service and taking their faith more seriously-we need to be raising up good leaders for tomorrow’s church!
-Cindy Kahn arrived 10 days ago and we have been having a wonderful time with her, as well. She has spent the majority of her time in the clinic, and has made several visits out into the community to encourage and preach to the women who are infected with HIV and struggling with sickness and poverty. George, who is translating for Cindy when she speaks, says that she really puts ‘meat on the bone!’ when she delivers a message. We are so thankful for the way God is speaking encouragement to these women through Cindy.
-Chris is really just working so hard every day checking on sick children, visiting a child’s home to make sure they are being cared for well, encouraging the teachers in healthier discipline techniques, taking the time to ask the children who are crying what is wrong, etc. He is preaching regularly to the groups of HIV+ people from the community who come to Ringroad for moral support and encouragement. He is also going out to rural churches to preach once per month, and preaching regularly to the church at Ringroad. I am always amazed at his ability to deliver such culturally appropriate and also extremely effective messages each time he speaks. Have I emphasized enough how much the children love him? Chris truly gives of himself all day every day and I am so incredibly thankful to be here serving with him.
-As for me, well I’m just along for the ride the God has taken me on, and enjoying it more and more every day. I’ve been able to build relationships with some of the girls at Ringroad and love every minute that I get to spend with them. In fact, each time I’m able just to spend part of the day hanging out with them or going to see their sports games or drama performances or scouting trips I always think, “Oh yeah, this is why I’m here!” I just love the students here so much, and these girls have a HUGE need for someone to speak hope, confidence, godly worth, and joy into their lives. I pray that I can be a vessel for all that good news!
-Please pray for us on April 11. This is our next OB appointment in Nairobi and we want a good report-we should also be finding out if we are having a boy or a girl!
I think that’s it for now. We love and miss all of our friends and family back in the US and other parts of the world, too:) I can’t thank everyone enough for all the prayers, love, support, and goodies that are being sent our way. We couldn’t be here without the network we have standing behind us. Thank you!
Ever since we have moved to Kisumu, I have had two songs floating around in my head on and off. They are both Acapella songs (what can I say, I grew up on the stuff). One if them says, ‘That could have been me.’
“That could have been me with the homeless, not enjoying a happy home
That could have been me with the dying, all alone
Though my skin is not that color, it’s obvious what’s right
So against ungodly treatment I am willing to join the fight”
I love these lyrics, but they are also very haunting and humbling. When I see someone sleeping on the street, begging for food, sick and alone, I know that the song’s words are true-that could have been me! It is only the grace of God that saves me from the fate that I deserve. I think it is this conviction that drives me to want to help every one I can, in every way that I can. Because I know, that if I was that person, I would want someone to give me a chance. I didn’t choose which country I was born in, or to which parents, and I pray that I never feel deserving of or entitled to these things that I was given so freely. I love the way Francis Chan puts it when he says that we aren’t the ones to ask God, “Why are your children starving and hurting and dying?” Instead, He is the one who should be asking us, “Why are my children starving, hurting, and dying?” Maybe it’s because we don’t realize when we see that desperate person, that could have been me!
The second song that has been running through my head talks about singing songs of praise to people in different parts of the world. Unfortunately, this song has become the go-to song for any post-mission trip picture montage video, and sometimes the familiarity of the song may take away from its meaning. Nevertheless, the message still rings true for me right now. It speaks of going around the world and, at first, the people “praised God because of me.” Isn’t that what every missionary wants? But is that what mission work is really all about? It didn’t take long after arriving in Kenya for me to feel like the second verse of the song was more accurate, “they praised God in spite of me.” I start to feel like such a blundering mess that I feel like if anything good comes of my work here it will be in spite of my efforts, not because of them. But I love the last verse of the song, where he says, “they praised God instead of me.” When I think about the Ringroad children singing, “Blessed be the name of the Lord, He gives and takes away!” that’s when I identify with this last verse. I see children suffering in ways no child EVER deserves to suffer, and yet every Sunday, there they are, singing praises to their maker! They sing, “He has done so much for me that I cannot tell it all.” Sometimes, when I’m struggling, I think, “Really? What has He done for you?” But then I realize that the song of praise they are singing, and the smile on their faces, are gifts from God. And if I was singing the song honestly, I might be singing, “I have done so much for myself, that I cannot tell it all.” Yikes, I don’t think that is what we should be aiming for!
If I could add one more verse to the Acapella song, I would say “I praised God because of them!” Isn’t God amazing? I may be trying to help the “least of these” and, in the process, they put a song of praise into my heart at times when it isn’t there. I’ll tell you one thing, there is NOTHING that compares to singing praise songs with a group of Kenyans who are on fire for the Lord!
I just wanted to write a quick blog on a fun experience that Chris and i had with the kids last weekend. There are several Ringroad students that are in scouts, and some ofthem got to go on a camping trip last week from Thursday to Sunday. They did various fun things like go to the airport to see planes take off and land, go to the Kisumu museum, go to a park nearby to see some of the animals there (including the lions that sing us to sleep every night), and play lots of soccer. They were also led in some community cleaning activities such as cleaning up the morgue- one 5th grade boy happily demonstrated for me what the bodies looked like propped up around them, and he didn’t seem disturbed by it in the least! We went to visit them on Saturday night, and they were all waiting for us around the camp gate, anxious for us to come see what they were up to. We squeezed into one of their tents around a lantern (it was dark by this point) and the girls led us in a bunch of songs and hand-slapping games and chants- all reminiscent to the kinds of things American kids do at camp. It was so fun to be a part of this with them.
That night, they were so excited because it was the night of the bonfire. So around 9pm, we all headed out to a big field where there was a massive pile of twigs, unlit. I’m not sure how it happened, but before we knew it, the whole group (there were hundreds of scouts here from all over the city) was marching around this wood pile and we were all yelling, “we will never surrender!” It was one of those out-of-body experiences that you just can’t believe you are having-what were we never surrendering to? I’ll never know. Later, Chris admitted that he felt someone tapping along to the beat of the chant on his bottom-he thought it maybe was me but I had lost him in the crowd! haha Finally, we stopped marching and, thankfully, one of our students was still standing next to me, although I had no idea who she was because it was impossible to see their sweet faces in the dark. They continued chanting and drumming and making some calling sounds and the girl asked me if I was scared. I said no, but I really wanted to know when the marshmellows would be coming out? Pretty soon, they lit the fire and that thing really took off. The crowd which had been pushing closer and closer inward was all of the sudden scrambling backwards as glowing embers rained down on our clothes.
Later, I just couldn’t help but think of the funny contrast between that experience and the time Chris and I went to a city bonfire in Decatur, Georgia. There they handed out free marshmellows and roasting sticks, the fire was VERY strictly managed and monitored, and we were surrounded by soccer moms with strollers handing their kids biodegradable wet-wipes to remove the stickiness from their fingers and faces. I thoroughly enjoyed both bonfire experiences, but sometimes my mind really reels as I try to comprehend that two such different realities exist in the same world.
Chris and I talked about how when our parents came to visit us at camp we wanted them to buy us some candy or coke at the cantine…these kids wanted us to bring them some bread for breakfast. How do you say no to that? It’s so fun to be a part of their lives and experience all the things they find joy in. Thank you, Lord, for giving us this gift!
Back in December, we posted about how the North Atlanta Student Ministry had raised a considerable amount of money to feed all the orphans at Ringroad some meat for Christmas, which they ordinarily never get. Well, it didn’t happen on Christmas, but one week ago, we had a huge celebration at the Ringroad school, and I want to tell you about how God used the students in Atlanta, Georgia, to bless so many people in Kisumu, Kenya.
The Ringroad students had been told about what was coming and they were unbelievably excited. Because so much money was raised, we were even able to buy sodas for everyone-I don’t know which they were more happy about, the beef or the sodas. Anyway, just like children in America often do, these sweet orphans wanted to put on a talent show for the occasion. With 400 children at Ringroad alone, and the children from Lakeside orphanage being bussed in for the occasion as well, this made for a really long show, but I happily took it all in as they sang their songs, said their memory verses, performed some poetry, and even rapped about HIV! (in a culture where there are 20-30% infection rates, the topic of HIV/AIDS can come up in the most unexpected ways-but hey, at least they are being educated about it).
About 6 hours after we got there, it was time to serve the food, starting with the youngest children. I’m not gonna lie, at this point, mass chaos ensued. There were several complicating factors in the process: 1. We were handing out free food in the middle of a community where many people are starving. 2. We were giving out sodas but trying to make sure people didn’t leave with the bottles (you can turn in the bottles for 10 shillings each). 3. Above all, Chris and I wanted to make sure that all the children got fed, especially some meat, before giving food to other people in the community. It took all the staff at Ringroad working incredibly hard, but all the children got their bellies filled with both meat and soda, and after all was said and done, we fed close to 1,000 people that day (that kind of seems like something that would happen in the Bible, and I truly believe it was a miracle)! There was plenty of beef for everyone (isn’t that amazing-from just one cow!!!) The chaos was TOTALLY worth it. I just wish you could see how hard the people in the kitchen were working to make this all happen. We are so incredibly thankful for them and for the North Atlanta Youth Group.
Here are some pics from the day-notice the joy on the children’s faces.
