Faith

A few weeks ago I had blogged about receiving 3 new girls; Faith, Elizabeth, and Deborah.  What I didn’t have a chance to write about was Faith’s story.  Faith was  abandoned in a town about one hour from the Baby Center.  Apparently she had been thrown into a choo (outhouse).  She was thrown down into the hole and left for dead.  Eventually someone heard her down there and called the police to rescue her.  It’s amazing she didn’t drown.  Upon getting her out she was covered in maggots from head to toe.  They said that every orifice of her body had maggots in it and her stomach was bulging and hard from all of the maggots inside.  They took her to a local  hospital for treatment and were able to get her cleaned up and stabilized.  It looks like she was in there for over 24 hours.  Upon receiving her here at the Baby Center she looked mostly normal except her eyes were swollen and one eyelid was drooping.  We took her to Tenwek Hospital to see one of our Missionary ophthalmologists.  He said that her eyelids had grown into her corneas (this was due to the maggots having been in her eyes and causing an  infection).  He was able to cut the lids and cornea apart and we expect her to make a full recovery.  Currently she is doing really well.  ~Nicole

Losam Part 1 – Ready Or Not, Here We Come

After a crazy few days of scrambling to make all the last minute arrangements and a prayer from the church elders, we set off for Losam.  We didn’t make it too far before the first issues arose.  After about a half hour of driving, we got stopped at a police check, which is usually no big deal, that is, unless your driver does not have his license or permits with him.  Thus, we waited around for almost an hour.  I finally went to talk with police myself, and he told me our driver was being arrested.  I told the policeman that we would make arrangements for the company we were using to send us another car.  After about 5 more minutes, the policeman let us go when he realized he was not going to get any chai (bribe).  We were off again.  Luckily, at the other police checks, they never asked to see  our driver’s documentation.  We arrived at the church in Kitale where we were going to sleep for the night at about 7ish.  The food was not prepared as it was supposed to be so we went to town to make arrangements for the 80 plus youth that had come from several churches from around Kenya.  The planning committee met while the youth were eating to make all the arrangements for transport and food in the morning.  We finally finished at around 1 in the morning and tried to get some sleep.  I woke up around 6 to discover that my sandals and my hat had walked off with one of the youth.  This was the first of many of my things taken and one of the cultural differences that I don’t think I could ever get used to.  I learned quickly not to leave my stuff in the open.  I finally found my stuff and explained to the youth that he was not to use my things without asking first.  We set off for Losam in the morning and arrived around 6 in the evening with only a few minor issues.  The trip was long, hot, cramped, and bumpy.  Upon arriving, we received a great welcome from the locals (welcoming party video), and the youth were excited about the coming week. ~ Jeremy

Losam Part 2 – Life is Different in Losam

The first evening we set up all the tents that we had.  There were about 20 or so boys that did not have room in the tents so they had to make arrangements using tarps and rope.   I also got the chance to sleep outside later in the week when one of my youth was getting pretty sick and the doctors did not want him sleeping outside.  He thus took my tent, and I took his spot shown in the picture.  But the first few nights I had a nice tent.  We then went to sleep around 11 that night.  My tent mate and I awoke in the morning at around 5 am and discovered we had some uninvited guests.  After getting bitten several times, we finally found that we had slept with hundreds of ants.  We spent the rest of the morning getting them out of our tent and getting some insect repellant powder to put under our tent to avoid future visitors.  This was when I first realized that life is going to be much different this week.  The people of Losam, called Pokot, have a very simple and difficult life.  They live out in the middle of nowhere, and food and water supplies are scarce.  When we were there, it was even the rainy season, but water was very limited.  We had to dig down several feet in a dry river bed until we found water.  Then we had to scoop out all the dirty water and let new water filter in.  After that, we filled water containers and carried them for drinking water, cooking, and showering.  It was a long process.  I am not sure how the Pokot women survive.  They have to fill their containers and carry them on their heads for several kilometers.  As for the showers, they consist of filling a bucket, walking around the corner of the river, and using your hands to get wet, lather, and rinse.  The showers are very simple as you can see in the first photo here.  I also sometimes had visitors who were very interested in what this white person was doing out in the middle of nowhere, showering out in the open.  Here they are in the photo to the right.  Bathrooms are also much different in Losam.  The good news is that they are all around everywhere you go.  The bad news is that they are only bushes.  At a few places the Pokot people have built some coverage around the bathrooms as in this photo.  Naps are also very common for the Pokot people when they are out traveling in the desert.  The men carry this chair here, which also serves as their pillow.  The women and the children usually just find and stone to use for a pillow.  It is safe to say that I had to make a few adjustments while in Losam. ~Jeremy

Losam Part 3 – The Real Work Begins

Definitely, the best part of the trip was the ministry.  Each morning, we woke up and had a short time of praises, prayer, and devotions together.  We then took breakfast and were off to work.  We divided up into four teams, and we took turns with the different responsibilities for the week.  One group collected water and one group cooked food.  Both of these tasks were challenging and took a lot of hard work.  The third group helped with construction and the fourth helped at the medical camp that we were providing for the people of Losam.  I have already discussed the challenges of water, but the food was also a challenge, especially when cooking for 80 plus people with nothing but a few stones, a few fires, and a couple really big cooking pots.  We had traditional Kenyan food the whole week, which consists of ugali, beans, or rice with no drinks.  Needless to say, there wasn’t a moment the whole trip where I was not thirsty.  Occasionally, we had some goat meat, which was very fresh as you can see from the photos.  Some even enjoyed it raw. 

The construction teams worked on building a school for the locals.  This is a huge need since there is not a school within probably about at least 30 kilometers, which is a long way to walk.  The youth did a wonderful job with the help of one construction worker.  All of the 2x4’s and poles were cut by either a machete or chainsaw, and the wood was carried by foot, sometimes for up to 5 kilometers or more.  Even though it was a lot of work, we accomplished our goal and the school was completed by the end of the week.  Now, the Kenyan missionaries need to find good teachers to run the school.  The medical camp was the last of the 4 ministries we had during the daytime.  This was also a very important outreach because medical care is very scarce out in this area.  I met several people who are currently blind because they didn’t have means of treating some of the eye infections that are so common in this area.  With the team that we brought, we had two doctors, a nurse, and several other medical staff.  Nicole was very disappointed that she missed out on this ministry.  We had the medical camp each day and the medical staff saw and treated hundreds of people.  They worked very hard and had a huge impact on the people of Losam.  During each evening, we had a church meeting with the locals.  The first night, we sang some praises and introduced ourselves.  I also had the privilege of preaching to the group, though I was not well prepared since I was asked to preach about 3 minutes before the sermon was to begin.  I decided to speak on one of my favorite passages from Luke 10, when Jesus answers the question, “And who is my neighbor?'”  The pastor of the church translated to Pokot and our youth really enjoyed my accent and attempts at speaking Swahili.  The following nights, we showed a Jesus film in their own language.  Though it was a great deal of work to set up and prepare the film, there was a huge response, and we saw God move in a powerful way throughout the week.  Around 300 or more people came each night to view the film, some who walked 30 kilometers or more to see it.  We did face several challenges though.  The first day we got there, the generator was broken.  Luckily, we were able to borrow one from a center not to far away.  On the last day that we were showing the film, we did not have our sound equipment because it was sent back to the church in Kitale for a wedding.  Thus, we had to use a very old megaphone type speaker that the missionary used in the area.  The problem was that the input for the speaker was a headphone jack, and we only had RCA jacks.  After some discussion, we decided that we could try cutting the headphone jack from one of the pastor’s headphones.  After about 30 minutes of work, we were finally able to connect it to the former RCA jack wire.  After some adjusting of the wire, we kept the sound from crackling as long as no one touched the wire.  We then switched back to our generator, which had been “repaired,” and we returned the old one.  After that, we set up the projector and discovered that it was not turning on for some reason.  The only thing we could figure out was that the generator wasn’t producing the proper voltage because it was powering everything but the projector.  After another 30 minutes or so, I heard a pop from inside the projector and then saw some smoke coming from the lens area.  Needless to say, there was no Jesus film that night despite all our efforts.  All in all, we spent about 3 hours and ended up with ruined headphones, RCA cable, and projector.  Hopefully we will figure out a way to replace the projector.  Even so, the Jesus film was a complete success and many people committed their lives to Christ.

In addition to the ministries that we provided, we were also able to give loads and loads of clothing and food to the pastors to disperse amongst those in need.  Several youth even gave much of their own clothing and shoes to help the locals.  We also donated a water filter and 3,000 Kenyan Shillings to each of the pastors and the Kenyan missionary family.  They really appreciated the gifts and they will go a long way in helping out the people of Losam.  The youth were also able to spend some time getting to know others from different churches and played many games together, such as Phase 10, Scrabble, and Uno.  We also showed a few movies, such as National Treasure and Batman Begins, which they really enjoyed.  On Saturday, our second to last day, we also went on a long and challenging hike up a local mountain.  We named it Mlima Wa Mzungu (mountain of the white man) because I was the first white person to climb it .  Overall, from what I have heard, they had a great time and were heavily impacted by the trip.  We appreciate all your prayers and support. ~ Jeremy

Losam Part 4 – The Journey Home

On Sunday, we woke up early, packed up everything, and went to attend church with the people of Losam.  Pastor Bones, self-named “the general,” was the pastor who lead our entire group with assistance of the youth pastors.  He gave a powerful sermon in the church service and shared his testimony about growing up as an orphan.  After the service, we set off for the church in Kitale and then for home, or so we thought.  What follows may be hard to believe, but I assure you it is not exaggerated in any way.  I tell this story exactly as I remember it.

After church, we left for Kitale around 1PM.  All in all, we had one Land Rover packed with 12 of us and pulled a trailer full of luggage.  We had two public matatus (14 passenger vans) that came the night before, and we had two of our own matatus that we had been using all week.  The trouble was that our two matatus were not running well at all because we had spent the week packing them full of up to 25 youth and many full water containers, driving on the Kenyan roads, if you can call them roads at all.  Thus, we had big problems.  I talked with the other pastors after church, and they said that the vans were almost fixed, so we took the Land Rover to the next center about 20 kilometers away because we had to drop of the rest of our remaining medical supplies at a local dispensary.  We waited at the center in the Land Rover, and we assumed it would only be about 20 minutes or so, but after a few hours, we were really starting to get concerned.  We had no cell phone signal, so we could not call them.  Finally, the two public vans arrived and the youth informed us that one van had broken down after about 15 kilometers.  They also informed us that one of the youth in the van was convulsing.  The drivers of the public vans refused to wait around so we sent them to Kitale.  We were not sure what to do.  We finally found a mechanic, discussed what was wrong with the one vans, named Posta Pay, and sent him with the doctors and a rope in the Land Rover while the rest of us remained with the trailer at the center.  You might be asking yourself what the rope was for, and you may not believe the truth but here it is anyways.  I discovered that the main problem among many others with Posta Pay was that the belt had broken.  I know that I said they were repairing Posta Pay in the morning and they were.  The problem is where do you get a fan belt for an engine when you are out in the middle of nowhere?  Well, their idea of repairing meant that they had reconnected the several pieces of the old belt together with speaker wire.  Don’t ask me how or why they thought this was a good plan.  Anyways, the belt of course broke after 15 kilometers.  This is were the rope comes into the story.  The mechanic’s idea was to replace the belt with the rope, which was more like twine.  We had no other option, so he hooked it up, and surprisingly, the fan was running.  So finally, at around 7, we see the other vans and Land Rover arrive at the center.  After six hours we had made it 20 kilometers.  Those of us that were waiting at the center were relieved to say the least because it gets dark at 7, and we had no place to sleep nor any idea about where or when the others were coming.  So we all set off together again for Kitale.  We made it another 5 kilometers or so, and Posta Pay starts overheating.  Apparently, the rope is not running as efficiently as a belt.  The other van goes ahead a few kilometers, and we remain behind to help Posta Pay.  The driver removed the water cap and steam flew everywhere.  We added what little water we had left and waited.  We were finally able to get ahold of the other van by cell phone after walking around everywhere to try to find a signal.  To our dismay, we discovered that the other van had broken down as well.  To add to our problems, we had one youth, who was throwing up, and another who had begun convulsing again.  Luckily, we had the doctors with us, so they were able to manage it.  It was close to 10 o’clock by this time, so we had traveled around 25 or so kilometers in 9 hours and still had over 100 to Kitale.  We had not eaten lunch or supper and had to conserve what little water we had for the vehicles, two of which were overheating after about 5 minutes of driving.  Our only hope was in another van that was sent to us in the afternoon to replace Posta Pay.  The problem was that we could not reach them by phone.  So we waited and waited.  When we finally got hold of our rescue van, we discovered that they had taken a wrong turn, were lost, and were about 5 hours away.  So here we are in the middle of nowhere, we had two vans broken down, our third was leaking brake fluid, we had no food, very little water, one youth sick, and another that needed a hospital, and our only hope of rescue was lost 5 hours away.  All the leaders that remained met, and we had literally no idea what to do.  We discussed all our options, laughed a lot (I think we were on the verge of insanity), and in the end, we decided to go forward very, very slowly.  At least it was a moral victory as we were going toward our destination rather than just sitting, even if we only made it a few kilometers ever hour.  We decided that before we set off, we better pray, so we joined hands, prayed, and discovered that one youth passed out during the prayer, but we set off nonetheless.  We continued to laugh at the whole predicament that we were in and began singing praises, especially “Blessed be Your Name” because of the bridge that says “You give and take away” for we joked that the Lord had given us two vans and He had taken them away.  But we  kept our spirits up and kept trudging along.  I began timing the time between breakdowns.  We usually made it around 4 minutes and one time we made it almost 9.  We finally made it to an area that had a clearing on the side of the rode and decided to stop and hopefully the other rescue van would arrive.  We also discovered that another rescue van was sent by the team that went with the two public vans.  We set a tarp down, unpacked our blankets, and sent the Land Rover ahead to try to go to the next small center to get some food.  Luckily, they came upon a drunk lady, who was on a motorcycle that had broken down.  They brought her to where we were sleeping and brought the soda and crackers that she had with her.  They then bartered with this drunk lady from Uganda at 2AM for sodas and crackers out in the middle of nowhere.  Only in Kenya can you have this experience.  I think it was around 4AM that our first rescue vehicle finally arrived.  The second came an hour later.  Thus, the remaining youth were on our way while Bones, a mechanic brought by the first rescue van, and a few youth remained behind with the two broken vehicles.  Eventually, the mechanic got one of the vans fixed and they towed the other the rest of the way.  I talked with Bones later that day when they finally arrived about 16 hours later.  He said they made it, but it was pretty frustrating because the twine that they were using to tow broke about 150 times.  By the way, throughout the whole ordeal, I did not hear one complaint from any of the youth.  I was very impressed.  The Kenyans have a proverb that says, “polepole mwisho hufika” “slowly slowly the end always arrives.”  Never has that saying been more true.

The most memorable moment for me was when we were praying together at the end of the trip before setting off for home from Kitale.  Everyone was exhausted and ready to be at home, but we still had two youth in the hospital, and Bones and a few other youth had not yet arrived with the broken down vans.  Just before the prayer, one of the youth began leading us in the praise song, He Knows My Name.  There was something so powerful in the words of the song, and they were so appropriate. 

I have a Maker, He formed my heart

Before even time began, my life was in His hands

I have a Father, He calls me His own

He’ll never leave me, no matter where I go

He knows my name, He knows my every thought

He sees each tear that falls, and He hears me when I call

The song brought tears to my eyes and reminded me about what missions is all about.  My Creator cares deeply about me.  He cares so much that He sent His son to die upon a cross for me.  “By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.” (1 John 3:16)  Our Creator also cares deeply about the people of Losam and every where else in the world for He commands us “to go and make disciples of all nations.”

I feel very blessed to have had the opportunity to work with and learn from many of the Kenyan pastors and churches of AGC (Africa Gospel Church).  They have so very little, yet they give so much.  I have learned much about the few verses that follow 1 John 3:16 through the examples of these dedicated disciples, and was able to see the fruits of their labors through the four mission trips over the past 5 years that the urban AGC youth have taken to Losam.  The youth have made a lasting impact.  There is now a local church, which the youth built on their first trip to Losam 5 years ago.  The church is thriving with over a 100 members, who attend regularly.  There is a Kenyan AGC missionary couple in Losam full time.  The church is beginning a school and the health of the community has been impacted in a profound way.  One Pokot man that we visited used to be one of the worst cow thieves in the area.  He was angry and a drunk.  Because of the ministries of the youth, he is now saved, an active member of the church, and is a leader in evangelizing to the rest of the community.  What a privilege it has been for me to work with these fine young men and women. ~ Jeremy

“People will always look at our lives before they listen to our words.” Richardson

The New Girls

Deborah  

  Elizabeth

Faith  

   Teresia

New Roommate

I had blogged on Tuesday that we were to get 2 new girls on Wednesday.  We ended up only getting 1 because the other baby’s paperwork wasn’t ready.  Anyways, the one who came (Teresia… previously named by her mother before she was abandoned) brought a little surprise with her.  She has Chicken Pox.  As it happens none of our other 25 kids have ever had it.  Also, most of the caregivers haven’t either.  As you can imagine, if we had an outbreak of Chicken Pox at the Baby Center it would be disastrous.  Trying to manage that many sick kids would be awful not to mention we currently have several new babies who are malnourished, underweight, and immunocompromised.  If one of these babies contracted Chicken Pox it could be deadly for them.  So as soon as she got here we got her up to our apartment and have been keeping her quarantined here.  Luckily both Jeremy and I have had it in the past.  Teresia will be 5 months old next week and weighs only 7.9 pounds.  She is doing well right now and will be staying with me until she is no longer contagious.  I will post pictures once Jeremy returns with the camera.

  As for Jeremy, I haven’t heard anything from him since Monday night.  I don’t think they have cell phone reception out where they are.  I’m sure he will have some interesting stories to tell when he returns on Monday.  ~Nicole