Home in America, but Heart Still in Africa

Well, our team has been home for four days now but my body definitely still thinks it's in Kenya. We made it back home safely with only a minor bump in the road! Our luggage was left in Washington when we made it back to Houston, so they sent it to all of our homes the next morning. I had some intense jet lag the first night; went to sleep at 8:45 PM and woke up bright and early at 4:30 AM! 


It has been hard at times to adjust back to American culture. I'm still use to every person I walk past saying "Jambo!" and five children running up to me at once to be held. The friendliness of the people in Kenya is something I will always miss, and the hospitality they greet you with upon arriving at their homes is something I hope to establish in my own apartment at school. Even though Elyse warned us about the emotional effect of coming home, it still hit me pretty hard. I went through every phase she told us about and even suggested we avoid. (Sorry, Mama Dhahabu). I went through my "send-me-back-to-Africa" depression and cried on the way to Zumba one morning. I've gotten frustrated with the excessiveness of everything we have in America and how much people take for granted here. 


I think the hardest part for me is feeling like I can't do anything to help those children now that I'm back home. But that isn't the case at all. I can share my stories with those here and encourage them to go on mission trips. Above all things, I can pray for those amazing people. I can pray for those who accepted Christ and that they will continue to pursue a relationship with Jesus Christ. I can pray that every child I met will always have a meal to eat and will be able to attend school each month. I can only pray, but prayer is my biggest resource. Prayer changes EVERY circumstance. Prayer is what brought me to Africa. I might be thousands of miles from those sweet children, but My God isn't. My God is there now, cradling every child in His loving arms and that is the greatest comfort! How amazing to think about; that God is the same God here in America and there in Africa. He remains the same on every continent! 


My time in Africa was a complete blessing through and through. Each face I saw is still etched into my memory. I can't help but smile as the names of each precious child runs across my mind and connects with a smiling face or an adorable giggle. I will always remember little Sylivia in babies class, who ALWAYS had a huge smile splashed across her face. She LOVED to be held and would get pretty feisty if she didn't get her way! Of course, everyone knows who I will never forget...and that is my little love, Esther from Masai Corner! She was the sweetest little girl! I loved talking with her mom and holding her for practically the entire day. She wouldn't smile in pictures, but if you tickled her she would light up! I could tell a million stories about each child, but that would take way too long. I didn't think I could love so many children the way I love those children in Kenya. They completely changed and I thank God daily for sending me to Kenya. 


I have been so humbled by the people in Africa, and I pray God will continue to bless each and every one of them. I am so thankful for my amazing team that the Lord blessed me with! They are such an amazing group of ladies that absolutely love the Lord and love to serve Him. I am so thankful for Jenny and the amazing organization that is Imani! Imani is an awesome organization, and I am so glad I was able to go to Africa through them! Jenny, thank you for your hard work and dedication to Imani and the people of Africa. You are an incredible example of a woman of God serving the Lord 100%! 


Lastly, thank you to my wonderful sponsors and amazing friends and family! Without your donations, support, and prayers, I wouldn't have been able to go to Africa. You are all such amazing people, and I am so thankful that you served the Lord in the way you did! I hope one day, Lord willing, that I can go back to Africa and serve God there! 


-Maua (Swahili for flower)


*Hannah* 

In our final moments...

The time has come to write our last team blog in country! People always say that time flies when your having fun, and man it sure does! Our time as a team is drawing to an end tonight and tomorrow morning. We left south coast today and had to say our goodbyes to those wonderful people. I could see the hearts of my girls breaking a little as we saw the church disappear from view! Saying goodbye here is never easy. I have had the absolute privilege of leading this team and watching each and every one of my girls grow in their faith while sharing God's love with these people here. I am so very proud of their decisions to come on this trip in the first place and to be able to sit back and watch their hearts melt for these kids has been awesome. I could not have asked for a better and more dedicated group of girls to be lead here to Kenya to share the word of God.

We have certainly bonded quickly and have stayed encouraged through each of our personal life stories! This team has made my second trip here one to remember for sure! God has used them in such different ways to relate to the people we have visited! Their unfailing faith in our Lord has allowed Him to use them as a vessel to bring others to Christ!

As the team is packing up, getting ready to head back to America tomorrow, I want them to reflect on a verse I hold very near and dear to my heart. Matthew 5:16-- "In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."  In my own life, this verse helped lead me to the mission field. During their time here, I know that their good deeds have shined so bright in sometimes very dark places! These girls have stepped out on faith and lead people to praise our Father! I cannot say enough how proud I am of each and everyone of them!

Pray for their safety as they journey back to the states. Pray that their hearts stay open to the wonders of God as He leads them down His narrow path! I hope for this place, these people, and this trip to remain in their minds and on their hearts for years to come. They have done something few are willing to do. God will continue to bless them for that.

I am truly blessed by each of their unique personalities, stories, laughs, smiles, tears, and open hearts! I can't help but tear up right now as I write this while reflecting on all that God has shown them and used them for in these really short 2 weeks. And for what they have taught me! Missions are never easy: continuous days of uncomfortable beds, hot weather, lots of walking, cold showers, sore muscles-but in the end, you don't remember any of that. The only thing remaining as they travel home is the bright eyes and giant smiles of the kids that have captured their hearts!

I love them and am already missing them.

-Mama Dhahabu
(Elyse)

Just a glimpse.

 

Our beautiful welcome from all of the kids at the school =).

 

The sunrise at Mbewau

 

The 3 girls I was trying to share the gospel with. 

(from the left) Wanamisa, Sara, Watake, Emmy, and unknown.

 

The kids practicing before church.

 

A few of the beautiful smiling faces in my class

 

Hannah and Ustes

 

The leaves here are GIANT!

Check our Facebooks for more pictures and videos!

- KaRonna (Kadzo)

There are not enough words

How do you explain your heart exploding? How to put into words the way it feels to have 100 joyful Kenyan children stealing your heart? What words can describe the overpowering sensation knowing those passionate songs of praise you cannot understand are being sung to the same God that you passionately love and serve?

I don't have words. I can't, and almost don't even want to try. We have done SO much since we have been here. You've read about that in the other blogs. But right now, I just want to share these feelings with you...as best I can anyways.

The missionaries we came to work with established a school in Mtepani Village called Mbewau Academy, and that is where we've been staying the past 4 days.

When we arrived we were "greeted". I'll post a video later. All 200 of the kids were lined up along side the driveway, singing and dancing for us upon our arrival. I've NEVER been so moved. They didn't know us, but they knew why we were there and they were so happy to see us. The smiles....man...I knew it was going to blow me away but I had no idea it would be that intense. They were singing songs of praise for us, then they started singing "Father Abraham (its Abraheem in Kenya haha) had many sons..." absolutely the cutest thing ever. We went down both rows to say hi to all of the kids and shake all of their hands - I was moved to tears. Their faces radiate joy, even when they aren't smiling. Their smiles are really an attempt to cover their extreme excitement at seeing us - they want to jump up and down. Being loved before ever being known...wow hello God. I immediately loved each one of them. I wish they were at the school all day long so that I could get to know each and every one of them personally. They are beautiful! Their hearts are so joyful, so grateful, so loving! Boy do they ever know how to love!!!

My words simply aren't doing me justice right now. The video later will show you. I forgot my camera and am currently at a coffee shop blogging.

Yesterday we went out to evangelize in the village. We left at 9am and were out until noon. All of the kids in the village followed us everywhere. It is so wonderfully completely different from America. We were the main attraction haha. There were three little girls in particular that were with me the whole time. They spoke very little English and I "ninajua Kiswahili kidogo" or spoke very little Swahili. However, my wonderful friend Emily Earl gave me a Swahili dictionary and I made the most conversation I could with them using that. While the group I was with were telling the lady about the gospel (via the translator of course), I took the three little girls off to the side and was talking with them. (OH AND PS - THE LADY THE TEAM WAS TALKING TO ACCEPTED CHRIST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! PRAISE THE LORD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) We were given gospel tracts to share with the people in the village - its in English and in Swahili - and I was attempting to share it with them. I told them (in what little Swahili I could muster from the dictionary) that it was about God, that God is important, the tract was important, and that God loves them. I told them (or tried to) that the tract was a zawadi (gift) for them to keep, after making sure they could anasoma (read).

The language barrier was so intense. The translator that was with our group was talking to the lady, and I was trying to make conversation with these girls on my own. Words cannot successfully convey how intensely I wanted them to know about God, and the wonders of Him, and His insanely beautiful, deeply passionate love for them. Showing and sharing affection is minimal between Kenya people, so for them to know God's love would blow their minds. I kept having to tell them "Sifahamu" which means "I don't understand" because they would just start talking to me non-stop in Swahili, not realizing that I was only talking from the dictionary. My heart is SO heavy for those girls. I have no idea if they understood what I was saying or not. I have no idea if they fully understood the importance of what I was telling them. That kills me. I don't know what happened to that tract after we had to go our separate ways. I can only hope and pray that they kept it and maybe, just maybe actually tried to read it.

Please be praying for them. Their names were Sara, Wanamisa, and Watake (to the best of my understanding). I just wanted to share the joy of the Lord with them. I wanted to tell them how stinking awesome He is. I wanted them to know how insanely much He loves them. I wanted them to share the joy of knowing Him intimately with me. They don't go to a Christian school so I don't think they have ever heard of Jesus. I just wanted to tell them. And I could do so, so, so little. My heart was reaching out to them. My heart was captivated by them. My heart is theirs, and I could do so little. I can't explain to you how frustrating that is, how much it breaks my heart. I don't even know where they live so I probably can't go back and talk to them. Nevertheless, I trust my God. I know He works beyond language barriers. I know what I see and hear is nothing to Him. He knows no limits and works through all things. I trust that what little conversation took  place, He used and is still using it. I trust and know that He is bigger than all of these barriers I think I see. I trust that it was a seed. I have to, because otherwise I would beat myself up and be so frustrated that I couldn't tell them more. Honestly, its really hard not to do that. But I'm so blessed to have the amazing God that I have, that works wonders and miracles despite all barriers because He has no barriers. Its hard. It's really really really hard. But I do trust him. I do.

Today we went to a church in the village. The pastor of the church is the head cook at Mbewau (the school we were staying at). God blew my mind today (again, as He does so often). Meeting all of these people here in Kenya that are Christians, my perception has been so off. Their natural demeanor is to show little expression, so when I've heard them talk about Christ it seemed so nonchalant. It seemed as if they were more like "yeah I believe, I guess. It's whatever" rather than being passionately devoted and lovingly following Him. That assumption was completely destroyed today at church. There were actually two sermons - the first from the assistant pastor, then from the head pastor Kafani (the head cook at the school). In between the two, the youth choir from the church came up and sang. Mind you: This church is made of sticks, mud, and dried palm leaves. The floor is sand and there is no AC or anything. They have their voices and whatever they can find to be a drum, if they can find anything. And they love it.

The youth choir was BEAUTIFUL. They were sang two songs in English, and the other 4 were Swahili. They clap, dance, sway, and raise their hands - all to worship. Its so unlike any church service I have been to. During the Swahili songs, I couldn't understand anything other than God and Jesus, but my heart was overjoyed. During this moment of worship, when I had no idea what was going on, I knew fully that they were worshiping to the exact same God I worship. Without any doubt, I knew God heard every word clearly. I knew with all of my heart that He was so insanely joyful in hearing their praise. In that moment of worship with them, as I was clapping, swaying, lifting my hands with the biggest grin on my face, God came to me and sweetly told me, "KaRonna, they are worshiping me too. I love them, just as much as I love you, and they love me just as much as you do. We have the same relationship. Nothing is different. Listen to them. They are rejoicing in me, and look at what they have. Just look, watch, listen, and be still. My presence is here. I love them. I love you. Listen." Commence the intense tears with the insane grin on my face. It was beyond beautiful. My God that I love and cherish with all that I am, knew every word they were singing, even when I did not. My God that sent me across oceans to come share the gospel, is already living in the hearts and souls of some of these people as fully as He is in me. Wow. Wowowowowowowowowowow. Words and letters can't fully explain the immensity and intensity of that. It hit me right where I needed it to.

THEN when the pastor, Kafani, began to speak, the passion with which he shared his message had him shouting and moving all around the church floor expressing his intensity. It was insane. I wasn't prepared for it at all but it moved me beyond words to hear this man, in a "poverty stricken" village in Kenya passionately preaching the Word of God. His love of the Lord is absolutely radiant. The way the Lord has captivated His heart is so so apparent. I had NO idea what he was saying in Swahili, but it was being translated for us and I was amazed by the words coming out of his mouth. I didn't think I came to Kenya with any expectations, but apparently I brought along Americanized assumptions. I am so incredibly thankful those have been demolished.

I could go on for days about all of this. This pastor just blew my mind because - this man, he has NOTHING! Those kids in the youth choir - they have NOTHING! But they DO have God. And they have Him fully, deeply, passionately. They KNOW him, worship Him, honor Him, love Him. They know Him just like I do - if not even more so. And here I was thinking that these remote village people knew nothing...

Thank God for all the missionaries that have traveled before us to share the gospel. Thank God for the insane ways He has crossed all language barriers. Praise God for the blessings He has showered on the hearts of these people the rest of the world tends to see as ignorant and unfortunate. God is everywhere, even when we don't think we see him there. He is across all language barriers, even when we can't understand them. God is in the hearts of the poor, the lives of the "ignorant", the circumstances of the "unfortunate".

Our God is everywhere, especially those unreached places He has called us to go and make disciples of.

"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." Matthew 28:19-20

God has sent us. We have followed. We are insanely blessed. Thank you for your prayers. Thank you. God is moving radically here. Thank you.

Love you all insanely much! Pictures, videos, and more stories to follow later!

Lala Salama (Good Night!)

- With all my heart from Kenya,
              KaRonna (Kadzo)
                    *Kadzo is the African name that was given to me that means beautiful*

PSA: I'm Alive Mom

Jambo! Well, this is my very first blog from Mombasa, so I'm sure my mom is freaking out. To my mother: I am alive and perfectly fine! Internet isn't something we get every single day, so it's precious when we can use it! 

Wow...where do I even begin?! If I even attempted to blog about everything since we've gotten here, I would probably write for hours and end with a complete novel on my hands. So, I'll do a quick summary of last week and focus on the safari, etc. My experiences while on this trip have been completely and utterly amazing! I have never fallen in love so quickly with a place and its people as I have here. Everyone is extremely friendly and so welcoming (even more friendly than College Station, Mom). 

From Thursday to Sunday we stayed at Mbewau (the school) in one of the extra classrooms. I helped in the babies class (3-4 yrs old) and oh my word! They are the CUTEST little kids in the world! Their personalities are all so funny, and I can't help but smile thinking of their precious faces! I definitely attached myself to each and every one of them so it'll be a VERY hard day when we leave. They all love to be held and will fight each other until you pick them up. Holding two at a time is common and if you're really strong, like Jessica, then you hold three at once. Every morning when I walked into the classroom they would shout, "Teacher! Teacher!" and immediately run to be picked up. Words don't even describe how precious these children are, and I can only hope and pray that the Lord used me to shed His love on them. 

Yesterday we left in the morning to head on safari! That was super awesome! We went on three trips through the preserve: one going to the hotel, an evening safari, and a sunrise safari this morning. I felt like a little kid every time we would see an animal, and I definitely had the Lion King soundtrack going through my mind the whole time! During the evening safari, we sat for a solid hour (maybe a little more) watching three female lions and one male lion stalk an entire herd of water buffalo. Needless to say, nothing happened and we were all very disappointed that the lions didn't attack the buffalo. My favorite part was this morning's sunrise safari. I woke up early to watch the sun rise and it was breathtaking. Words can't describe the beauty of an African sun rise and the colors that spread across the sky as the sun slowly ascends. There was a moment during the safari where my entire van was silent (I think at this point Jenny was sleeping), and I just stood staring at everything around me, trying to take as many mental pictures as possible. The silence combined with the surrounding landscape left me in awe of God's amazing creation. From the red dirt to the overwhelming mountains, God created specifically to show off His glory. Once again, I am humbled by the majesty of God!

I have already been so blessed by this experience, and I thank God every day that He allowed me to go on this trip to serve Him. The Lord has humbled me so much and shown me what true joy in Him looks like! From day one, I have made sure to set aside any emotions I may have and allow the Lord to fill me with His overwhelming peace so He may use me 100% each day. I look forward to heading to Southcoast this weekend to serve the Lord even more! 


Kwaheri! 

-Hannah

 

Bittersweet moments

Blog by Jessica on Sunday, July 1, 2012

Where to begin....

My time here thus far has been surreal.  I have met some wonderful people and shared many amazing moments with so many beautiful children; memories that will stay with me for a lifetime.  Our first day at Mbewau (Thursday) was like being in heaven.  It was hard to just exist in the moment because of everything happening around me; I wanted to absorb and digest every second.  The children--their smiles, their laughs, their voices, melted my heart.  They swarmed around me like flies on a lightbulb.  I wanted to look in each one of their eyes and take a mental photograph that I could never forget.  The feeling I had when I held them in my arms is something I cannot begin to describe.  

I first went to music class where I met Immanuel, the music man.  He is full of energy and is great with the children.  During the break between classes, I picked up his guitar and began to play Oh Taste and See.  He grabbed another guitar and started playing along with me.  We played that song together the following day at chapel in front of the whole school!  It was so cool to sing and play guitar and see the faces of all the children gazing back at me.

I later sat in the baby class (3-4 year olds) and OH MY WORD they are the absolute cutest little things you’ve ever seen!!!  I was there during their nap time so it was pretty cute watching them sleep at their desks.

Thursday evening we walked home with Irene, the custodian at the school.  She lives at the top  of this hill and her view of the country was breathtaking.  Irene is a widow and she has 6 beautiful children, my favorite is Maria – such a sweet little girl – contagious laugh and captivating eyes and smile.  On our walk we were stopped by these women who were cooking rice and porridge in their huts – they invited us in where we stayed for a few minutes.

Friday – Morning Glory at 6:45 AM – Praise and worship with some of the school staff members and Immanuel playing guitar.  I spent most of the day in KG1 (4-5 year olds) where I fell in love with Gloria – her eyes are beautifully translucent and she has the sweetest little voice. 

Saturday we walked through the village with Jackson, school principle, and evangelized at four homes.  Most of the people listened but Jackson said if they were just “agreeing”, they were probably Muslim.  We had three women accept Christ and it was absolutely amazing.  Later that day we had a “fun day” for the children and had over 100 children show up!  We had lots of crafts for the kids and played Red Rover and Duck Duck Goose.  We also had an adult volleyball match with several of the male staff members and it was so much fun!  That night Jenny, Elyse, and Kellie went to town and grabbed us some Kenyan made pizza and soda pop!  I have never been so appreciative of Coca Cola ever in my life.  We also were given a live duck (as a gift) from one of the teachers which was killed that night and eaten – it was delicious.  Jackson gave me the African name, Bahati, which means lucky :)  I adore that sweet man.

Today we visited Kafani’s church – it took about 20 minutes to walk there.  We were welcome with many hugs and smiles.  After church they served us Chai and Mendazi where we fellowshipped together.  We got back and had to say our goodbyes – until next Monday.  Bittersweet.  Now we are at the most awesome coffee shop near the apartment!

More to come!  Thanks for reading and coming along on this journey!

Sincerely,

Bahati – Jessica

Kenya--Week 1

Jambo from Mombasa, Kenya!

My time in Kenya has been speeding by. I can't believe that I only have a week left. The culture is amazing and the way of life for these people is incredible beyond anything I could have ever imagined.

The first couple of days our team spent at the school.  Our 2 week team got to help out the interns and teachers in their classes.  It was interesting sitting in on a class reading lesson...seeing how differently the classrooms are run.  The kids are so joyous.  During music class they sang at the top of their lungs and danced around with such enthusiasm.

Today was our first Sunday in Kenya, and our first day at church.  We walked to Kafani's church, a local pastor near the school.  It took us about 30 minutes to walk...a humbling experience to think about how some people walk miles every Sunday to get to church.  The church was small and simple, but so lively.  The youth choir was extremely loud with their music with nothing but voices and an empty water jug as a drum.  Kafani was very loud and passionate with his message on the good samaritan.  Afterword, the entire church sat down together for tea and mendazi's (a little fried bread).  Even though they have so little, they joyously give so much.

I am excited to see what God has in store for the remainder of our trip! Keep our safety in your prayers!

--Laura Kasichana  

My Mom is Probably Already Planning my Funeral.

Jambo from Kenya!

I can't believe we have already been in Kenya for 5 days, the time is just flying by! So much has gone one these past 5 days and I don't even know where to begin, so I'll just talk about my first full 2 days in Kenya!

We got to Mbewau on Thursday and got to help in the classroom both days! I can't even describe how cute the kids are! On Thursday I got to work with Ryan in his KG1 (4 years olds to around 6 years old) class and on Friday I worked with Hannah S. in the babies (3 year olds to 4 year olds) class! Working with the babies class is hilarious because they don't speak very much English so they are always running up to you yelling at you in Swahili, the one thing they can say though is "Teacher picture picture!!"  My favorite part about being at the school during the school day is playing with the watotos (children) during recess. Three things that I've learned that the watotos love is 1. You taking pictures of them & them taking pictures of everything around them 2. High fives (Which basically means they try to hit your hand as hard as possible until it is bright red and you loose all feeling in your hands) 3. If you pick up one watoto then about 10 more flock too you wanting you to hold them all.

On Friday night we had a talent show with the Americans & the Mbewau staff! It was probably the funniest thing I have ever witnessed my entire life. For us Americans we all did basically the basic stuff singing, backflips, signing the entire alphabet in under 3 seconds. The Kenyans talents included signing, doing a "crazy laugh", reading the news, making various animal noises and much much more!

I'm so glad that I decided to go on this trip! I am absolutely in love with every single thing Kenya has to offer. It's going to be so hard to leave for home on Monday and as much as I miss my family and friends I just don't think I will be ready to leave here so soon. I've never met such friendly/nice people in my entire life. When we left Mbewau today (we won't be back till the Monday before we fly out) I almost started crying.

Welllll thats it for now!

Oh one last thing ¡Vamos España!

Kwaheri

Lindsey

(My african names: CD, Santa (it isn't pronounced how you pronounce the fat white guy that comes down your chimney during Christmas, it means thank you in Swahili) also sometimes the Kenyans have trouble saying my name so I've been called Nancy and Onesy)

Meet some of the adorable kids I got to hang out with the past 4 days:

"You Too Fat!"

Well folks, our team has been in the depths of the jungle for the last 4 days! I know I promised parents that we would blog everyday, however, with the circumstances in Mombasa when we arrived, we decided to stay out at the school for safe keeping.  So WE ARE ALIVE for all those who have been following our blog. We have arrived back into the city to stay at the apartment. We are now at a new coffee shop that is very nice where we have the opportunity to get on the internet! As the team leader, this trip has been a great time of reflection for me being able to watch my team be filled with such joy and happiness as they play with the kids. I remember seeing this wonderful oasis of a school for the first time and being completely blown away! I had that same feeling once again as I returned! I am so in love with this paradise of greenery. Life becomes simple here and your worries of back home melt away the moment the watoto's (children) little fingers wrap around yours! I am blessed to have been lead by God to return to this place with my amazing team! I never want to leave!

Yesterday, we had a community play day at the school. We had crafts and sports going everywhere. I decided to go help play Little Sally Walker on the field. There was probably around 80 kids around in our circle! Well we changed the game to Duck Duck Goose and the fun began. About halfway through the game, I was the chosen one to chase the little Africa boy that was literally as fast as Flash! I was about 1/3 of the way around the mega circle when I happened to step in a little pot hole. I almost had then kid! As I was running I could feel my body leaning forward and next thing I knew everything went blurry as I fell to the ground and rolled about 3 or 4 times! Hilarious! I shot back up and cut through the circle to try and catch him, but it was an epic fail! At least I got a good laugh out of everyone! Ha when I sat down the kid next to me was laughing so hard and said "You too fat!" I just died laughing. Always something exciting happening in Kenya!

Tomorrow will be such a fun day! I am excited for them to experience our journey tomorrow to the safari! Such an unforgettable trip!

That's all for now folks. Quick shout out to my family and friends! I love you and all is well on this end. I wish you could be here with me to have your world rocked by what God is doing here. We have seen His mercy and grace change 3 lives yesterday as we shared the good news and saw them accept Christ for the first time! God is good all the time, all the time God is good.

From my new world to yours!

Dhahabu (my new Africa name meaning gold)
Elyse DeBuck