Monday

 

Monday, 7 July 2008

Bwana Asafiwe!!!  (Praise the Lord!!!, in Ki'swahili)

We continue to be amazed by the work that God is doing here in and through His church and feel blessed to be a small part of it.  The graciousness of the people here is oftentimes humbling.  Following breakfast this morning we attended devotions in the parish sanctuary led by Rev. Simon Kibilo.   Today's message was based on John 15:1-17.  In these verses Jesus explains himself as the vine and we as the branches.  I can truly say that the limb which is Tumaini Children's Center is fully laden with fruit.  It is impossible for me to express in words the gratitude that I have in my heart for the commitment that the Meadows family has made in its support of this mission.  The work of Christ is clearly bearing fruit through the branch which is Meadows, as well.  To see God working across the ocean by using the blessings that He has bestowed upon us to touch the lives of these children here in Nyeri is nothing short of awe-inspiring.  God's Word this morning helped to frame our day and the theme continued to be played out in all that we saw and did.

Our first stop today was the PCEA Primary School where we toured the office, the library, and a few classrooms.  The Head Teacher, Samuel (???), provided us with an overview of the work that they are doing.  Samuel is a Presbyterian elder from a neighboring parish to Riamurkurwe Parish who quoted scripture to us as he was relating his work at the school.  The school is adjacent to the Tumaini Center and is where the young children from Tumaini receive their education.  During our tour, the bell for changing classes rang and the novelty of fair-skinned visitors was too much for the 180 students who attend the school to resist.  We were quickly surrounded by anxious children eager to know from where we had come.  "Are you English?"  "Are you Greek?"  "No, we are from America, and we, too, are Presbyterian."  Excitement radiated from the faces of these young children on hearing this.  The command of the English language displayed by even the very young was amazing, and the depth of their questioning even more so.  Finally, we had to leave the schoolyard in order that order might be restored and learning continued.

From the Primary School we went to the Secondary School, where we were given a tour by a staff that clearly has a pride in what they are doing to provide a firm educational foundation for the children in the area including those from Tumaini.  One of the tour guides was Virginia (???), an elder at the Namaan Githenya Church on the grounds of the Tumaini Center.  During the tour the farm plots of the Form 4 (equivalent of a high school senior) students were pointed out.  Later, in the day some of us would receive gifts of carrots from our Tumaini prayer partners who are Form 4 students at the school.

Following our tour we returned to the center for lunch and then set about loading and delivering the books which had been collected at Meadows so many months before.  The books were delivered to the Secondary School to be sorted according to age group.  The construction of the Secondary School library was completed in 2006;  however, the library is far from full and the condition of the books leaves something to be desired.  But, they are still something for the children to use. The school staff was visibly moved when they saw what Meadows was providing.  Again, a heartfelt thanks to those who helped make this part of the project a reality.

With the books delivered it was time to get back to Tumaini to prepare for VBS, the focus verse for the week being Joshua 1:9.  Our program is a look at great leaders from the Bible.  God's hand was truly at work during the first day from the skits and songs to the story of Moses to the fun craft activity and games.  Following afternoon tea which is provided for the children every afternoon, we put on a program for the older children.  This time was followed by another opportunity for some incredible encounters with these young, spirit-filled, inquisitive minds.

During our evening devotion, a time when we gather to reflect on and decompact the events of the day, a number of team members shared the same thought which I hope will address some of the concerns of those who had questions as to whether it would have been better to send money that would have been used for travel, rather than sending a team.  The children here live in a walled in compound and leave each day to attend school, but must return to the same place every day, except for the one time of year that the Center can afford to send each child to his or her home area to visit the family or relatives who are unable to take care of them.  The children are not allowed to venture outside of the compound for fear of their safety.  Visits by groups such as Meadows help to break up this routine and provide these children with a knowledge that they are not forgotten that another group of believers in God's earthly kingdom cares about them and prays for them.  Much more work could be done here, and it is my hope and prayer that Meadows finds a will and a way to make a continuing difference by tending to this one branch in which the love of Jesus Christ is clearly alive and well.