beautifularethefeet

This is a common question we get!!  There are three main branches of ministry that we will participating in.  They are the following:

1.  Choose to Wait- This is an abstinence program being taught that focuses on God’s plan for sex and marriage.  We will be assisting the local staff member who teaches the program in local schools.

2.  Orphan Welfare- Our basic job is to love on kids (isn’t that amazing)!  There is an orphans prison we will be visiting where children live who have lost their parents to AIDS and have no place to go.  We will also be assisting with some Headstart type programs.

3.  Care & Compassion- We will join a local staff member who makes regular visits to the hospital to love on people.  In Kenya, patients in hospitals are cared for by the nurses and doctors because the family is expected to come in and take care of the patient.  So, this ministry involves a lot of hands-on help along with taking the time to talk with the patients and their families.

Amanda is a special education teacher at a high school.   AIDS in Africa has been a passion for her for several years.  Her church developed a partnership with Christ’s Hope, which led to a trip to Namibia four years ago.  Amanda is looking forward to loving on kids and helping out with the compassion ministry.  She is going to be the team photographer, supply coordinator, and blogger (so obviously I am writing about myself in third person which is slightly weird!!).  

Prayer Requests:  Please pray for boldness in sharing the Gospel with others.  Pray for a servant’s heart and attitude.  Please pray for peace for my mom who gets extremely nervous for my safety.  Also, please pray for the safe arrival of our baggage and that all the supplies we are bringing for the ministry make it through customs.

Suzanne is 19 years old.  She is interested in becoming a pediatric nurse.  Suzanne completed one semester of college and is now taking a small break to work a job that she absolutely loves.  She currently works at home for people with cerebral palsy as a caretaker.  Suzanne is most looking forward to working with the kids in Kenya.  She has agreed to make up skits and work on lessons to teach the children.  Suzanne is a lot like Laura in the fact that she has had a longing to go to Africa for many years.  In fact, her friends knew her desire that at a Christian music festival last year a friend showed her a tent that said, “Who wants to go to Africa?”  She met the Bells (who currently work in Nairobi) and looked at all their pictures.  Suzanne has been asked to go back to that same music festival this year and be the representative in the “Who wants to go to Africa” tent.  How amazing is our God!!

Prayer Requests:  Suzanne is most afraid of getting close to someone on this trip and watching them pass away.  Please pray that she will be able to open her heart without fear and be able to love on the kids.  Also, pray for her travel.  She has never been on an airplane before and this is quite the undertaking.  Her grandmother will be flying with her on the first leg of the journey, but then she will be on her own for the flight from NYC to Amsterdam.

Ashely is currently a student at Western Michigan where she is studying to become a speech pathologist.  Her dad, John, will be the team leader.  When the opportunity to go to Kisumu this June, Ashley let it be known that she was willing to go without him.   She is looking forward to working with the Choose to Wait ministry, which teaches 1+1=0 AIDS.  Ashley feels strongly that change begins with the younger generation and if they can learn to embrace God’s plan for marriage then there is hope for Africa.  Ashley has also agreed to be the worship leader, work on lesson plans, and be the team encourager.    

Prayer Requests:  Ashley has been dealing with a constant headache for the last 2.5 years.  Doctors have not been able to find the exact source or a way to stop the pain.  Her family believes the cause of the headache was a result of an adjustment at a chiropractor’s visit.  The source of the pain seems to be in her neck.  Right now, Ashley’s headache is at a manageable level but please pray that it does not flare up and immobilize her while in Kisumu.  Also, be praying that the doctors will find a way to relieve her headache.  Ashley is not a fan of speaking in front of groups of people.  Please pray that God will give her the courage and the words to speak when given the opportunity.

John is our team leader.  He had the opportunity to visit Kisumu a few years ago and will be the voice of experience.  He currently resides in Michigan where he is a cherry farmer and a builder.  His daughter, Ashley, will also be going on this trip.  John loves fishing, hunting, boating, ans especially cruising the Caribbean.  John is committed family man (who recently became a grandpa) who is caring, loving, hard-working, humble, and would give someone the shirt off his back.  Besides being the team leader, John will also be heading up some construction projects.    

Prayer Requests:  Please pray that God will give John wisdom as he leads this team.  Also, one of John’s concerns is gettingn sick while in Kenya so please pray that he stays healthy.  Another request would be for John as he returns to Kisumu that he does not expect things to be the exact same as they were three years ago.  Keep him open to the changes that have been made since his last visit.  Pray for his crop while he is gone…may it flourish in his absence. Finally, pray for patience as he will be traveling with four women (hee, hee).

Laura is a wife and mother of 2 who currently resides in California.  This is a trip 30 years in the making for her and she is so excited to go.  She has had a heart for Africa for so long and is finally blessed with the calling to go.  She is hoping to make regular trips to Africa and wouldn’t mind moving there one day.  Laura will bring much laughter to our team because she overflows with joy.  In Kenya, she will be coordinating our discipleship times by assigning group members and local staff a day to lead devotions.  She will also be managing our kitchen times by assigning KP duties.  But most of all she is excited to serve in any and all of the local ministry opportunities and hopes to be a blessing to the local staff.

Prayer Requests:  

Laura is leaving a few days early (June 5th) to spend some time with a friend in Amsterdam.  Then, Laura will be staying 2 weeks longer than the rest of the team.  So, please pray for Laura’s family as she will be gone the longest.  Also, please be praying for her as the rest of the team leaves before her.  Guard against her feeling lonely.  Another request that Laura has is to have as large as impact as she possibly can while she is there.  She wants to show others the love of Christ and how to live it out every day.  Please pray for God to provide her with lots of opportunities to do this.   Finally, pray for God to prepare her heart for all she will see and the people she will meet.

Romands 10:15 says:  And how shall they preach unless they are sent?  Just as it is written, “HOW BEAUTIFUL ARE THE FEET OF THOSE WHO BRING GLAD TIDINGS OF GOOD THINGS!”  

Hello to our friends and family and to those who have found us quite by accident!  We are a team of five people who will be traveling to Kenya June 9-24 as representatives of Christ’s Hope International (www.christshopeusa.org).  The purpose of our trip is to love on kids and adults who are impacted by HIV as well as share the gospel as much as we possibly can.    This is our blog which will we update daily while we are in Kenya.  We will share the best parts of our day with you and any prayer requests that we have while we are there.  Until then, we will keep you in the loop about our final preparations, prayer requests, and needs.  Thank you so much for all your support!!  We are counting on your prayers to cover our travel and our time in country.  We love you and couldn’t do this without you.  Introductions of all the team members are coming up next…