The Colors of Kenya

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Sunday started off a drab gray as I entered into Nairobi . The skies were gray and heavy with rain that sporadically dripped on the dismal, dirty streets. My friend and I had taken public transportation into the city so that we could attend a church service. We had to walk for about 20 minutes through the streets, the hustle and bustle of people, vendors selling their wares, cars, music blaring from radios and many other obstacles.

I passed a couple of people that caught and held my attention. There were a few street boys in tattered clothing, devoid of color. There was one that seemed to be encased in a layer of grayness from the top of his dirt encrusted hair, ashen skin, down to the what was left of his shoes. His face had no life, no color. Like so many of the other children that live on the streets he has been discarded like yesterday’s paper. I can’t imagine a life devoid of color. This boy has no red bicycle on which to ride home. No brown front door to walk through, no black tennis shoes to toss in front of the door, no blue jeans to leave lying around, no green sofa to lay relaxing, and no soft yellow blankets to wrap in at night. There is no pink lemonade to drink with the big Mac that he can only dream about eating and no mom or dad with the color of love shining from their eyes while looking at their son. He simply lives in a world of gray.

Grey turned to black as I looked upon four different adults sitting on the cold sidewalks waiting for handouts. These were people suffering from diseases. Diseases that were rotting away their flesh and any sense of pride they may have had. People that could not afford hospitals and obviously could not work due to their conditions (I will spare you the details but I have never seen anything like what I saw on these people). Instead of being with their families and going out to eat after Sunday service, they were alone, hoping for enough compassion from passers-by to throw a coin or two into their bowl. There they sit, day after day, revealing their pain in order to survive. It is hard to know how they got to where they are and how they survive the misery of their existence.

The thick cloud of gray and black tried to cling to me and pull me into the despair of these people I had just seen. Satan often does that; tries to blind us to the light and convince us that nothing can be done.

I arrived at church thinking of these people and what could be done. As I joined with about 2,000 other people singing to the Lord (1,198 of them Kenyan plus two white girls) the presence of God could be felt. Light chases the darkness away and it wasn’t long before the gray and black melted to the floor and slid out the door. I was reminded that God is the Light of the World and where there is light, no darkness can dwell. When He abides in us we contain the light and we too can spread it wherever we go. Some live in the light and some live in the darkness.

Our God is the God of the cobalt blue skies that blanket Kenya almost on a daily basis. He is the God of the ruby red, passionate pink and brilliant orange flowers that climb like children over everything, spilling over walls and blossoming anywhere it is possible to blossom. They are a reminder of the Master artist and his works that surround us. He is God of the trees that have violet blossoms that fall to the ground and look like purple snow. He is the God of Yellow; the glistening yellow sunshine that declares its glorious place in the sky, showering everyone with its heat; yellow, the color of joy that emanates from the children who have come into this home. He is the God of the color in our lives. I know it isn’t possible to help everyone but I do know that we have a pallet full of colors that was given freely to us. Our lives are the paintbrushes and it is our choice as to what color we will paint the world around us.

As for the people I saw on Sunday, I don’t know if I will ever see them again. However, I will pray for them as I know they don’t ever leave the sight of our God. I will also be more aware of what I can do for others in situations such as theirs.

Soles for souls

Anyone who has ministered to those in need know that physical help must be given before spiritual help can be received by those we desire to assist. Our actions speak so much more loudly than our words. Sometimes our words seem only like a whisper but if they are accompanied by actions they are as loud as a bullhorn.

One way we minister to the abandoned and street kids in Romania is buying them winter shoes. With temperatures that dip down well below the freezing mark it is so important to get them bundled up in order to survive the elements. Can you imagine not buying your kids winter shoes when you know they were going to walk on the snow? Can you imagine seeing kids that live where there is ice, walking around in tennis shoes with holes in them…or no shoes at all? It is a harsh reality of many of the street kids. So, if you would like to pitch in for a pair of winter boots for them I know their toes would greatly appreciate it…as well as their hearts! $15 or any amount will help tremendously!

Our Eunice:

Dear Friends,

How are you friends? All greetings come from Eunice Wanfa. I am ten years old. My birthday is on October 22. We do celebrate somebody’s birthday. In our school we talk Kiswahili and English only. In our school we have the headteacher. His name is Peter.

He is very kind and he is black in color. In our school we have a garden and we do plant kales, potatoes and even maize. We a use can to water our plants at school. There and two other things for watering crops. 1. Overhead method 2. Canal method.

We do learn about God and Jesus. Jesus washed his disciples’ feet and only Peter refused to be washed. In our school we wear uniforms. In Kenya we do eat rice and also beans. We like eating chicken. My best dish is chicken and also boiled potatoes. We do wash inside our house everyday and we also shower everyday. We do plant flowers around our house and water the flowers everyday. At our home we have four cows which give us milk and meat and also skin. Cows have four legs. We have also chickens at our home and they give us eggs everyday. We talk about God everyday and how God created the earth and made the heavens and earth. I like talking about God every time. I am brown in color. Some in Kenya are very brown. In Kenya some of the ladies and girls have long hair. Our hair is black in color.
Your loving friend,

Eunice
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Wheels of Love update

I am sooooooo thrilled, excited, happy and jubilant to announce that we currently have $1,000 in our van fund! Some very generous people have painted some green into our bank account. Please pray that more will come on board and help us get the kids on the road with safety and a little comfort too in their “Wheels of Love”!

Please send me an email if you want to commit to helping over a 3 month period for the van, or if you just want to give a Christmas donation or if you would like to purchase shoes.

Any donation to any of our projects can be earmarked for where you would like it to go and sent to:

ITHM

23223 S. Warmstone Way

Katy, TX

77494


Thanksgiving

I wish you all a happy Thanksgiving holiday! Eat some pumpkin pie for me please.

I am so thankful for all the friends, family and supporters of ITHM and IAA!

Asante Sana

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