Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Steps of Faith


I think that sometimes God challenges our faith just to see if we will take that initial step of faith that feels like jumping off a ledge. The same way that God tested Abraham when he asked him to sacrifice his only son Isaac. Abraham didn’t know what would come next, he didn’t ask why God wanted his only son that he had waited so long for, he didn’t even hesitate. His response was simply responding by God by saying “Here I am” and following God’s instructions. 

I feel that God was putting me through a similar test with Stephanie. We aren’t set up to take such young kids. Many of the children here need almost as much care as a baby does. Our staff and I already have full days and having a baby here pushed all of us to the limit. God put Stephanie in front of me to see how I would respond. 



The logical reaction would have been to think about how hard it would be staying up at night with a baby and then still finding the energy to carry out my other daily responsibilities that come with the other twelve children under our care. Or to think about how hard it is taking such a young child, who is most likely HIV+, who is very fragile and sick and needs special care. God prompted me to meet her immediate needs and I did.

We serve a gracious and merciful God. He knew this was too much for me and the rest of our staff to be able to handle at this time. Because of his love, he doesn’t make us bite off more than we can chew. He rewards our “Here I am” response of faith and provides us with another solution. 

Today we took Stephanie and her older sister Selina to live with their grandmother in an area outside of town called Cherangany.
Selina and her grandmother

Stephanie's grandmother holding her for the first time.

 Their grandmother was disappointed to see that her grandchildren were not being taken care of. We talked with her about Ida and she was totally on our side and thankful that we wanted to help her family. She knows that her daughter is sick and said that she has tried to get her to change her lifestyle, but that is something that Ida has to do for herself. 

The grandmother agreed to take care of Stephanie and Selina. This was the first time she had met Stephanie yet she took her into her loving arms and held her close. She agreed to move closer to town so that we can weekly bring them food and be checking on the progress of the girls. Not only will we be closer to them, but they will also be closer to the hospital in case either of the girls need to go for treatment. 

I am thankful that I still get to be a part of Stephanie’s life and thankful that now both girls will be getting the care they need. We are taking Ida to the hospital tomorrow and we are praying that she makes a quick recovery and will be more responsible and willing to care for her children once she gets healthy. Most of all I am thankful that we serve such a big God who knows each and every one of our needs and limits and provides for us accordingly. Remember that he rewards our faith and will never leave us in free fall when we surrender to him by saying “Here I am.” 

Friday, May 10, 2013

Comfort Zones


We all have our comfort zones. The things we do that don’t push us to our limit of what we can take. Some things come easy to us and some things are difficult. God wants to challenge us, to grab our hand and lead us into our zone of discomfort. Once we let that happen, he’s the only thing we can rely on. It’s  a scary place to be, but you feel a calm and peace even though in the back of your mind you feel like you may have made the craziest and possibly worst decision of your life. 

That’s where I am today. Living with the tiniest little baby I’ve ever seen. If you know me at all, you know babies aren’t my cup of tea. I love kids when they get to be about 8 months, when they can move around and play and laugh and are not so fragile. Despite this fact, this sweet little five month old girl is now the newest resident in our house. 

We met her a few days ago. Her brother Alex, has been living at a children’s home, run by my friend Leila for two years. When they found him he was in bad shape, so they got him treatment and took him to live at their home. His mom was healthier at the time and was always moving and has no phone so we hadn’t heard from her in a while. 

By chance we made our way down to Kipsongo on Tuesday. It wasn’t a part of our plan for the day, but it was certainly a part of God’s plan for our day.We were going there just to check on a few other kids when we heard Alex’s mother Ida was back and not doing so well. They brought her up to see us and she was so weak she could barely walk. Her feet had huge open sores and she was emaciated. We made our way in the rain down to their little mud hut. I don’t know if words could describe how terrible the scene was in that house. Ida couldn’t stand on her own and was slouched against the wall. She is nothing but skin and bones herself and doesn’t even have the strength or the will to be able to carry her children. 

There was a little naked baby lying on the floor, wrapped in a sweater screaming and a four year old just quietly standing and looking around. 


There were no plates, no dishes, no cups, not a sign of food in the house. They didn’t even have a mattress to sleep on. 

After living here for almost two years I’ve seen so many people living in heart breaking situations. I thought that I was almost numb to it, that no situation would ever bring me to tears. I was a mess. I was fighting back tears the entire time and my hands wouldn’t stop shaking. This woman is HIV+, so sick and she has given up on herself and her children. She was drunk, weeping uncontrollably and complaining about her laundry being dirty. I was looking at two starving kids and all she could talk about was herself. She didn’t even bother to name her five month old child because she has gotten to such a desperate place that the only thing she knows how to do is to numb her pain with alcohol.

In the Bible, God lead His people with pillars of fire and clouds today He does the same. God brought me there that day for a reason. I couldn’t leave her there. As much as it terrified me to sweep this little one up in my arms and take her home I knew that was exactly why God had brought me there. I had no money to spend that day and we had everything we needed. Imagine having baby clothes, diapers, formula, bottles, blankets literally everything and not having to spend a single dime. God was making himself clear. Grabbing me by the hand and leading me forward into the wilderness, promising to be with me every step of the way. 

So we took this little baby to the house to stay with us. We named her Stephanie. It’s only been two days and she already looks so much better. She is drinking milk and porridge constantly and catching up on her sleep. She is an easy going little girl that just needs love and care. As long as her belly is full she is content and doesn’t cry. 

I am thankful that God is using someone so small to make my faith grow so big. I am thankful that He loves me enough to play such an active role in my life and thankful that He cares even for the smallest of children living in the most forgotten places in this world. 

Please pray for Stephanie and the rest of her family still living in Kipsongo. Pray that the Lord will guide our next steps and show us how he wants us to help Ida and her other daughter Selina. 

Back to School


School is back in session and the kids are all excited to be back in school and even more excited that their friends are coming over every day so they can learn and play together. More and more people are starting to hear about the school and asking to enroll their children. We are excited to have four new students this term. 

Caleb and Kenan are brothers. They always have great big smiles on their faces and weren't even a little bit nervous on their first day of school. They walked right in, sat down and started reading books with the other kids. 
Kenan

Caleb
Ester is the neighbor of my good friends Leila and Manu. Everytime I go to their house she always comes and says hi. Her mom decided to put her into our school this term. She has been a little nervous these first few days when it comes time for her mom to leave, but as soon as she is gone she starts singing, playing and learning right along with everyone else. 
Ester

 Rose is a sweet little girl. Her mom works around the house and always heard the sound of students when she walked past. She came and asked if she could enroll her daughter and brought Rose to learn with us the next day. She loves the swings the most and has fun playing with the other kids.

They are all great kids with sweet little personalities. We are looking forward to having them at our school this term and are excited that we get to play a role in their learning and growing. 

Good to be Back


It’s good to be back. After spending two and a half months at home spending time with family and friends it’s great to finally be back in Kitale. While I was home I was amazed at how much love and support I have from people back home. I was humbled by how many people are excited about what we are doing here and thankful for the various ways that they show there support from so far away. People donated everything from financial support, to wheelchairs and walkers, to school supplies and clothes. It’s great having such great supporters back home that we can rely on to help us keep the work that we are doing here going and for that we are so thankful. 

It was great seeing the kids again and how much progress they have made in such a short time. The most changed award goes to Lavender. Before I left she would mostly sit in her chair or lie on the floor. If you told her to crawl over to you or roll over she couldn’t do it on her own. When I walked in she scooted across the floor to come say hi. If she is in the living room she can make it all the way down the hall into my room. Not to mention she has grown a few inches while I was gone. 




She was a little nervous to try out the new stander. 


She loved her new doll.
Willy was sick while I was gone and was in and out of the hospital. They had been changing his medication to try to help stop his seizures, but nothing was working. Since I have been back we also have had to make two hospital trips to get him IV fluids because he stopped eating and drinking. He has been lethargic since then, but today he is starting to talk a little and feeding himself again. We are praying that he keeps improving that we find a combination of medicines that helps keep the seizures down. 


Lillian started school in January at a local public school. She had never been to school consistently, but she tested into 3rd grade. We thought that it might be a little difficult, but she is doing great. Out of her entire class (60 students) she was ranked number 3 after her first term exams. She is such a bright little girl and it’s great to see her thriving. She is also so loving and caring and helps out around the house without even being asked. 


Bramwel is just as sweet and caring as ever. He is always the first to jump in and help whoever might need an extra hand. When he came his speech was very mumbled and difficult to understand. He has been doing speech therapy and his speech is so much more clear and easy to understand now. 


Manu is growing tall and finally healthy and as active as ever. He loves his new walker and crawls to the door and just waits for us to put him in it every morning.





Allan is losing his teeth left and right and now his toothless little grin is cuter than ever. He is so determined to get around and doesn’t let his body get in the way. He was thrilled when he saw his new walker and took off running down the hall. He is learning how to get around and we are excited that he now is one step closer to becoming more independent.


He wanted to try on Lavender's headband.

Franco finished the first term of school at the top of their class. He are not only bright, but is a great motivator for the other students who need that little extra push to participate in class. I love coming in and seeing Franco sitting and holding Manu when they are watching TV or helping him walk around outside or pushing him in his new walker. It’s sweet to see his great big heart showing love to these other kids at such a young age.

Sammy also did well in his first term of school and is still as cute as before. He is such a happy guy and loves updating me on everything that I missed out on while I was gone. 

 Isaac is now gaining strength in his neck and his muscles are becoming less tense and he can almost lay flat on his back. He is growing taller by the day and has almost outgrown the special chairs we have that give him the support that he needs to be able to sit. 

Therapy time.


Dan is becoming more alert and pays more attention to his surroundings. He loves being outside in his chair and he is getting more used to being in his stander and putting weight on his feet. His mother came by the other day and finally brought some of the documents we have been asking for since he moved in. She was always very guarded about telling us how old he was and would give us any age between 3 and 6 so we figured he was about 8 because most parents round down a few years. She brought is immunization card from the hospital and we found out that he is actually 11 years old. 


Cyril is doing well. She always greets me with a huge smile when I walk in the door and her laughter makes everyone in the house smile. 

Augustus comes to stay with us when his school goes on break. He has such a great personality and is also very helpful. He changes the kids, helps wash them in the morning, feeds them breakfast, anything he can think of that will be helpful without anyone even asking. He doesn’t see the differences between him and the other kids and it’s encouraging to see how well he fits into our little family here. 

Thanks again for all of your support, prayers and love for all of us here. I’m getting back into the groove of blogging (and finally fixed my internet) so many more pictures, stories and updates to come!