Jameson Barker (in place of Susan because there was no Internet last night)
Today was an amazing day! Today was the day that we hung out with all the kids at FOCUS for the entire day! This morning Scott opened the day with a devotion covering the last part of Matthew 25. Here is a little excerpt from those verses...
"Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.' They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’"
This was especially true of today! Christ commanded us to love the least, to clothe the naked, and feed the hungry. This is what this day was all about! We had the whole day to hug, play with, and love on these 52 kids that are in the FOCUS program. What a joy! In today's culture, especially in the US these kids would be viewed as the least. Many times, we would just walk by them on the streets and not think anything about them. What a travesty on our behalf! These kids are just the same as us in God's sight and they deserve no less love than we get as Americans.
Scott told us that most the kids only have one parent in the home or they live with close relatives. Those who are in charge of the household (i.e. mother, grandparents, etc.) spend over 10 hours in the day trying to find work or working to be able to provide for their kids. Can you imagine that? That is the very reason why these kids desire to be loved so much. When their parent or guardian gets home from working, they are exhausted and don't have the energy to love on their kids. Now, I know that seems crazy to us in America but it is the culture here. If you spent most of your day trying to find work to feed your kids and then came home with nothing because there was no work, you would be exhausted too (especially after doing that for multiple days in a row).
The kids at FOCUS are so incredibly grateful! We did a day full of VBS type activities. We started off the morning with just hanging out and playing with them. Then we played a game of 3-legged races which they loved! Debbie Jo lead a craft time after that where the kids made foam animals out of pieces of foam and Popsicle sticks. They loved it! They don't get these amenities very often (if ever) so when they do, it is awesome! After the craft, it was time for lunch. They ate and so did we. We have boxed lunches from Heart House everyday that we share with our FOCUS workers that we are partnered with. In the boxes is chicken which is a delicacy to them. After lunch we played a game of "Silly Mwhili" which means silly body (aka the hokey pokey). Then we had a time of sharing a Bible story.
The students and some of the team members acted out the story of David and Goliath. Isak Morehous was Goliath and one of the FOCUS kids was David (with the help of Christian). Part of the story was the five smooth stones which we used marshmallows for. They never get to taste or eat marshmallows so this was fun for them as well. Many of them put them in their pockets to take home to give to siblings. This broke my heart because even in their situations, they are still thinking of others and sharing what they only get a little of. What a challenge to us in America to share the wealth that we experience every day!
After the Bible story, we had time for one more craft and made little pipe cleaner people with beads and pipe cleaners. After this, it was playing time. We had about 45 minutes left so we just played with and loved on the kids.
Once we were done, we went packed up and loaded up and headed for home. Last night we packed all 1000 Project Lucas backpacks. It took about 2 hours with everyone helping and then most of us crashed pretty hard. This day was a day of blessings for all of us on this team!
The daily verse reminds me of my responsibility (and our responsibility) as a Christian to love and cherish everyone I come in contact with. There is not one person on the face of this planet that does not deserve my love and care. That is hard to swallow when we think about people we don't like or people who we don't agree with, but it is very true. So, my question to you today is who do you need to love on today? How do you need to get out of your comfort zone and help those in need that you know? Do you need to stop and give food to the homeless man on the interstate ramp? Do you need to go to downtown New Albany and love on homeless kids? Do you need to work in a youth shelter? Where is God calling you to serve what culture would call "the least of these"?
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Monday, June 6, 2011
Monday, June 6th
Over the next two weeks, we will have almost everyone on our team post on this blog. There are individuals and families that will post each night we are here so that you can hear from a lot of different perspectives. Tonight we start the rotation! We hope you enjoy!
Katherine Ward :)
After a refreshing but short night we woke up to an awesome breakfast provided by the staff here at Heart Lodge! We then headed to the ABC Orphanage which partners with Feed The Children. The staff at the ABC Orphanage gave us a tour of the orphanage. This part of the day was difficult for me. For several years, I feel that God wants me to adopt when I'm married. Seeing these beautiful and happy children moved me so much.
We weren't allowed to pick the children up, but we were allowed to play with them. When we entered a room for toddlers I went over to a boy, Moses, who couldn't be much older than a year. Moses was separate from the rest of the children. He immediately wanted me to hold him and he hugged my knees and held my hands the entire time. Oh my goodness, my heart felt so much for this beautiful little boy. We were there for only about 10 minutes, but I will never forget him. I teared up as I left because I felt like I already loved him so much. Seeing these children made me appreciate the family God has so graciously blessed me with!
After touring the Orphanage, we toured the Feed The Children facility and storehouse. I was amazed at how much work goes into their organization! They put so much effort and time into serving others, something I'm still learning to put into action and not just in words. I cannot wait to see what else God has in store for the team and I during the next 2 weeks!
Well, I'll let Julie take over now. I could write so much more but I'm tired and I want sleep. Haha
<3 Julie Jackson
Jambo! That's hello in Swahili, in-case you didn't know :) After waking up this morning, the Heart House made the team and I a satisfyingly delicious breakfast that included foods like bacon and bread filled with chocolate, not a croissant, but close.
At 9:15, we left for the ABC orphanage. It was emotional to leave the children because they had no family. You just wanted to stick them in your pocket and take them all home, but sadly we had to wave goodbye for the first and last time. When we left the orphanage, we drove to a school that was associated with Feed the Children and located in the slums. Not only was it hard to just drive through the area, but to quickly say hello and goodbye to the kids we fed at the school was even harder.
Leaving that area, we drove a bumpy 45 minutes to an hour. Although, if it weren't bumpy, I wouldn't feel like we were in Kenya, so it was cool! This road led us to Focus, where we met all the adorable kids that are involved with Project Lucas. I don't even know how to explain how amazing these kids were. They were amused by the littlest things such as a clap or a tire. Not only were they grateful, but they were so loving. They would run up to you and give you hug, even if you didn't know them.
At the end of the day, we sadly had to give our goodbye high-fives and knuckle-touches to the children. Thankfully, it wasn't our last goodbye! We get to work with them for the next two weeks! :D Well, considering i have been writing this blog too long and Jameson is kicking me off... I should go! Have fun in the states! We will get back to you tomorrow!
Katherine Ward :)
After a refreshing but short night we woke up to an awesome breakfast provided by the staff here at Heart Lodge! We then headed to the ABC Orphanage which partners with Feed The Children. The staff at the ABC Orphanage gave us a tour of the orphanage. This part of the day was difficult for me. For several years, I feel that God wants me to adopt when I'm married. Seeing these beautiful and happy children moved me so much.
We weren't allowed to pick the children up, but we were allowed to play with them. When we entered a room for toddlers I went over to a boy, Moses, who couldn't be much older than a year. Moses was separate from the rest of the children. He immediately wanted me to hold him and he hugged my knees and held my hands the entire time. Oh my goodness, my heart felt so much for this beautiful little boy. We were there for only about 10 minutes, but I will never forget him. I teared up as I left because I felt like I already loved him so much. Seeing these children made me appreciate the family God has so graciously blessed me with!
After touring the Orphanage, we toured the Feed The Children facility and storehouse. I was amazed at how much work goes into their organization! They put so much effort and time into serving others, something I'm still learning to put into action and not just in words. I cannot wait to see what else God has in store for the team and I during the next 2 weeks!
Well, I'll let Julie take over now. I could write so much more but I'm tired and I want sleep. Haha
<3 Julie Jackson
Jambo! That's hello in Swahili, in-case you didn't know :) After waking up this morning, the Heart House made the team and I a satisfyingly delicious breakfast that included foods like bacon and bread filled with chocolate, not a croissant, but close.
At 9:15, we left for the ABC orphanage. It was emotional to leave the children because they had no family. You just wanted to stick them in your pocket and take them all home, but sadly we had to wave goodbye for the first and last time. When we left the orphanage, we drove to a school that was associated with Feed the Children and located in the slums. Not only was it hard to just drive through the area, but to quickly say hello and goodbye to the kids we fed at the school was even harder.
Leaving that area, we drove a bumpy 45 minutes to an hour. Although, if it weren't bumpy, I wouldn't feel like we were in Kenya, so it was cool! This road led us to Focus, where we met all the adorable kids that are involved with Project Lucas. I don't even know how to explain how amazing these kids were. They were amused by the littlest things such as a clap or a tire. Not only were they grateful, but they were so loving. They would run up to you and give you hug, even if you didn't know them.
At the end of the day, we sadly had to give our goodbye high-fives and knuckle-touches to the children. Thankfully, it wasn't our last goodbye! We get to work with them for the next two weeks! :D Well, considering i have been writing this blog too long and Jameson is kicking me off... I should go! Have fun in the states! We will get back to you tomorrow!
Sunday, June 5th
We are here!! It was a long and incredible journey! Here's the low down...
We started off at the church at 6:30am. From there we left and drove to Cincinnati to start our flights. Checking our luggage went amazingly smooth and we had an awesome American Airlines attendant. Once we checked all our bags and bins, we went to the gate to wait for our flights. 7 members of the group took an earlier flight to Chicago and got there ahead of the other group, so we just hung out there in the food court and played games.
Once the second half of the group got there, we went to our international gate to wait for our flight. We waited for about an hour and then our flight came. We boarded our Boeing 767 and got ready to travel for over 8 hours. We didn't have screens in the back of our seats but we did have movies and music to listen too. Most of us slept the whole way but there were a few who didn't. The food was pretty good as well (for airplane food)!
Once we landed in Belgium, we headed to our next gate and had about an hour til we boarded our final flight. Some of us took what I call "airport showers". That's when you bring all your travel size toiletries and go to the bathroom and take a shower. It was great! Wash your hair, brush your teeth, wipe off your face, and reapply some deodorant. You feel SO much better.
We boarded our flight to Nairobi and we were on our way. Another almost 11 hours later we landed here in Kenya. At this point we went to get our Visas and then get our luggage and bins. After we got all of them (praise God), we started to load the vans and buses. Then we left to head to Heart House and get settled and go to bed. We ended up laying down at about 1:30am local time.
Katherine and Julie are posting tomorrow so be sure to check it out!!
Jameson
We started off at the church at 6:30am. From there we left and drove to Cincinnati to start our flights. Checking our luggage went amazingly smooth and we had an awesome American Airlines attendant. Once we checked all our bags and bins, we went to the gate to wait for our flights. 7 members of the group took an earlier flight to Chicago and got there ahead of the other group, so we just hung out there in the food court and played games.
Once the second half of the group got there, we went to our international gate to wait for our flight. We waited for about an hour and then our flight came. We boarded our Boeing 767 and got ready to travel for over 8 hours. We didn't have screens in the back of our seats but we did have movies and music to listen too. Most of us slept the whole way but there were a few who didn't. The food was pretty good as well (for airplane food)!
Once we landed in Belgium, we headed to our next gate and had about an hour til we boarded our final flight. Some of us took what I call "airport showers". That's when you bring all your travel size toiletries and go to the bathroom and take a shower. It was great! Wash your hair, brush your teeth, wipe off your face, and reapply some deodorant. You feel SO much better.
We boarded our flight to Nairobi and we were on our way. Another almost 11 hours later we landed here in Kenya. At this point we went to get our Visas and then get our luggage and bins. After we got all of them (praise God), we started to load the vans and buses. Then we left to head to Heart House and get settled and go to bed. We ended up laying down at about 1:30am local time.
Katherine and Julie are posting tomorrow so be sure to check it out!!
Jameson
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
**CHANGE IN SCHEDULE**
This is a VERY important update!! Please read!!
Due to the amount of luggage and bins we will be transporting with us, we have had a change in the time that we need to arrive at the Cincinnati Airport. We will be meeting at church Saturday morning June 4th at 6:30am instead of 9:30am. Everything else is the same!
Again, we are meeting at the church Saturday morning June 4th at 6:30am!! Please be on time!!
See you in 3 days!!!
Due to the amount of luggage and bins we will be transporting with us, we have had a change in the time that we need to arrive at the Cincinnati Airport. We will be meeting at church Saturday morning June 4th at 6:30am instead of 9:30am. Everything else is the same!
Again, we are meeting at the church Saturday morning June 4th at 6:30am!! Please be on time!!
See you in 3 days!!!
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Final Info Meeting
Prayer Requests
Flight Info
What will happen at the airport?
Once in Nairobi, we will deboard the plane and head to the VISA line
What will happen?
PLEASE see the earlier posts for a review of what all we have covered in our meetings!
If you have questions, see the earlier posts as well because they will probably answer them
If you still have questions, feel free to contact Scott this week and get them cleared up before we leave (the only stupid question is the one that is not asked)
- Bins
- Luggage
- Safety
Flight Info
What will happen at the airport?
- Luggage (lots of it- everyone will have 2 bins and 1 checked bag)
- Cincinnati (check in will be chaotic but be prepared) (eat lunch here)
- Chicago (we have to go to the international gate which is a long walk) (eat dinner here)
- Brussels (we will go through customs here as well)
- Nairobi (see Customs section below)
- New York City (Customs is very good but high security)
- If you need a ride from Cincinnati back to New Albany, please let Scott know so we can plan accordingly
Once in Nairobi, we will deboard the plane and head to the VISA line
- Pack a pen in your carry on bag
- Fill out your form to answer the question, "Why are you visiting Kenya" to be, "We are traveling for tourism"
- Turn in your VISA and head to the top of the steps
- Once everyone is done, we will head down to Customs
- During this whole process, PLEASE be quiet and on the best behavior so we don't draw a lot of attention to our group in the airport
- We need the group to do multiple tasks including getting luggage and bins, getting carts, collecting VISA receipts, and then loading the carts
- Debbie Jo and Alisa will be checking in the bins and accounting for them
- Susan will be collecting your VISA receipt as well
- Christian, TJ and Isak will be getting the luggage and bins off the carousel
- Jameson will be loading carts
- Everyone else will be getting carts over to the carousel to load them
- Once they are all loaded we will head through customs
What will happen?
- Be here 6:30-7:30pm in the Family Life Cafe (park in the side parking lot)
- You don't have to bring your carry on or your personal item but you can
- Your checked bags can be no more than 50lbs (your carry on can't be more than 40lbs)
- Make sure you have 3 Passport copies (Checked bag, Scott and Alisa and carry on)
- You will be paired with a FOCUS worker to build relationships and, hopefully, share your faith
- Many are Christians but not all of them
- See next blog for the rooming list
- VBS (games and a Bible story- David and Goliath)
- Whoever is not helping with VBS will be painting and doing some work around the new FOCUS Center
- Fill out the form and get it to Alisa ASAP
- This is where you want to buy your souvenirs
- There will be tons of stuff
- 79 Schillings = $1 US (at this moment but it could change)
- It is HIGHLY recommended to buy something for the people who sponsored your trip
- NEVER pay the first price given (barter your way to a better deal)
- We will shop at Java House, the Tea Farm, the Market or the Masai Village (if you go) but those are the only places to really shop
- We need some people to share their testimonies in the church service and the youth service
- If you would like to do this, let Scott or Alisa know (we need about 6 total)
- Expect this in the email this week
- The phone cards are for you to mail to your sponsors for them to keep up with what's going on on the trip
- No news is good news (so if you don't hear from us, that's a good thing)
- Scott's Facebook will be updated occasionally, so you can check his profile as well for stuff
PLEASE see the earlier posts for a review of what all we have covered in our meetings!
If you have questions, see the earlier posts as well because they will probably answer them
If you still have questions, feel free to contact Scott this week and get them cleared up before we leave (the only stupid question is the one that is not asked)
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Info Meeting #4
We are 20 days away...that's less than 3 weeks from leaving!! As we get closer, the details and info gets more intense. So, here is the stuff from our last meeting on Sunday night May 15th in case you missed it.
New News
Project Lucas has moved properties! After receiving an eviction notice on their current property, Project Lucas was forced to look for other properties in and around Nairobi. After A TON of prayer and searching God provided an AWESOME property!!
Meeting Agenda
Ministry Schedule Update
*See the next posting
**The schedule is still TENTATIVE so there could be changes made day of
Here are some highlights of the schedule:
June 3rd
New News
Project Lucas has moved properties! After receiving an eviction notice on their current property, Project Lucas was forced to look for other properties in and around Nairobi. After A TON of prayer and searching God provided an AWESOME property!!
Meeting Agenda
Ministry Schedule Update
*See the next posting
**The schedule is still TENTATIVE so there could be changes made day of
Here are some highlights of the schedule:
June 3rd
- You get one suitcase to pack your belongings in and then one bin assigned will be assigned to you
- Bring your luggage to church this night between 7:30pm-8:00pm and drop it in the Family Life Cafe
- We will meet at the church at 9:30am and we will eat lunch at the Cincinnati airport so bring some money to buy lunch
- First day of ministry begins
- Breakfast is amazing and awesome!! Two words...MANGO JUICE!!
- We are going to visit the Abandon Baby Center (ABC) Orphanage and school for disabled children
- With the same organization, we will go into Kibera (the largest slum in Kenya)
- We will be feeding kids and then walk around the slum but we will be EXTREMELY safe because we are with the organization Feed the Children which has respect and recognition
- After this, we will go to Java House for lunch (think combination of Starbucks and Red Robin)
- Then, we will go to visit FOCUS and hang out with the kids
- Spend time and love on all the FOCUS kids and leaders all day
- We will have our first backpack ceremony where we gather all the kids and their families to give out some of the backpacks that we collected
- This will be a ceremony including music, songs, drama, speaking and even government officials
- This is the day we will visit homes of the FOCUS kids and visit with the family and deliver some gifts to them as well
- This will be an awesome opportunity to speak to the Kenyan families and, hopefully, present the Gospel to them
- Backpack ceremony in a rural coffee field community
- This will be different from the first ceremony because the people will be standoffish due to a lack of education but we will do lunch and the Gospel
- We will be taking the kids from FOCUS on a field trip to the Elephant Orphanage
- We might also be going to the Giraffe Center as well but that's a maybe
- It's Sunday so we will be going to church in Kenya at Ruriu Bible Baptist Church where Sylvester used to be the youth pastor
- Once church is over, we will head to Mitchell's Tea Farm which is one of the oldest tea farms around Nairobi
- SAFARI at Fig Tree Camp in the Masai Mara
- We will be going out on the safari in the middle of the Masai Mara for two days to look at the African animals and eat good food
- You will have the chance to go to the Masai Village as well to see what a real Masai tribe is like
- This trip is so crucial because of everything we are taking in as we do the ministry we will be doing; plus, it's an amazing reminder of our God and how amazing and creative He is in creation
- This is the last day to hang out with the FOCUS kids and there will be a ceremony at the end
- We will go to the Village Market and go shopping before we leave for the airport
- Arrive back in America
- See next posting for this list also
- Pack clothes that you don't care what happens to them
- You can wear jeans but we encourage you to wear khakis
- Your suitcase cannot weigh over 50lbs
- Put a copy of your Passport in your suitcase, give a copy to Scott for the trip and make a copy to keep at home
- Church clothes need to be skirts below the knees for the ladies and nice pants and shirt for the men
- DO NOT bring anything expensive (laptops, jewelry, etc.)
- Go to the bank and get $50s or $100s that are the newest the bank has
- An estimate of how much to bring is anywhere from $100-$300 depending on how much you want to spend on souvenirs
- The Giraffe Center is $7 and the one lunch you are responsible for is about $8
- When it comes to debit cards and credit cards, call your bank and let them know you are traveling to Belgium, Kenya, New York, Cincinnati and Chicago and you can use them on this trip
- Make sure you sanitize and wash your hands
- Do not put your hands near your mouth or in your eyes
- Permethrin is a bug repellent that you can get at Bass Pro for Safari
- Make sure you have your Malaria medications as well and pay attention to when you are supposed to start taking it before the trip
- Make sure you also have all your shots (Yellow Fever, Typhoid, etc.)
- We will be commissioned at the end of the first service on May 29th
- Don't take it during the day because it could be pick pocketed
- Check with your carrier to see about international charges and plan upgrades because it can be expensive ($2-$3 a minute)
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