From April 22nd through May 1st I got to visit our long term missionaries in Kenya. I went to Kenya with a purpose in mind, but God had more plans in mind. Maybe you too are being called to Kenya, or maybe God is just calling you to the mission field in general and He is just waiting for you to take the step of faith. You can read my account below and see that God has plans for us that we may not have scheduled into our calendars. Maybe its time to take that step of faith.
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So you think you are going to Kenya to be able to hang out with some friends. Do some talking and laughing. And do a lot of catching up due to the fact that you live some 8,000 miles apart.
But God doesn't just send us to places for no apparent reason. Or even when we think we have reasons, God has bigger and greater plans for us.
I spent 9 (ended up being 10 due to a 24 hour plane mishap) days in Kenya where I had a job and a point of being there. I was there to spend time with our Kenya missionaries and help them clarify their calling for Kenya and to help push them along the way of getting it done. I was there to hang out and hear stories and encourage them in what they were doing.
God saw this as just a small part in a much bigger plan.
On the first trip down to the camp I got to sit and talk with Courtney, one of our missionaries in Kenya, where she told me a story about a family in the camp who is very dear to her heart. She told me that the mother and the youngest daughter have been gone for nearly 10 days now leaving behind the 3 boys to fend for themselves. Mom was only going to be gone a short while to visit some family. 10 days later, Dennis is man of the house; at an age of 13.
Dennis has to take care of his two younger brothers. Cook the food. Wash the clothes. Clean the house. Tend to the garden. Prepare for tomorrow, which he has no idea what it holds in store. Tomorrow?
Well, today, Dennis and his brothers ran out of food. Mom is still not home and the food is gone. Neighbors cannot help because three more mouths too feed is too much. They cannot give what little extra they have because they do not want to bring shame upon the mother of this family. So the boys go to bed hungry.
And the boys wake up hungrier. With no food in sight and no hope for today.
God brought me to Kenya for so much more than what I had "planned." A huge part of the reason I was brought to Kenya was to see Dennis' smile and to know his story. Living in America, we can grow numb to the atrocities around the world. Children going hungry in an IDP camp because there is no family around to take care of them; that is not something that crosses my mind every night.
But God wanted to re-open my eyes. To remind me that while I work for a missionary organization, so much more happens around the world that I need to remember and keep in mind so that I don't grow numb to the things I do. I help send people around the world to provide hope and life to people just like Dennis.
On my last day in the camp, Cris (another one of the team members) and I walked from the back of the camp to the front to the Dukas where we were able to pick up some rations for Dennis and his brothers. Then we trekked back to Dennis' home and snuck the goods into his 10 x 10 foot tent. No one was home so then we searched out Dennis and brought him home to show him that God had provided food and that tomorrow was going to be ok.
God let me be a part of that story. God used that story to remind me of what I am a missionary for. It is so much more than sitting in a cubicle. So much more than answering emails 24/7. So much more than making phone calls and running errands.
I am a missionary so that I can see Dennis smile.
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Are you interested in hearing more about what is happening in Kenya through Adventures In Missions? Sign up on the left hand side of the blog to receive updates each time a new blog is written!! Maybe you are ready to take the leap of faith and head off to the mission field, Click here to see our Kenya trips for 2012 and 2013 and also to view all of our other trips!!
Are you interested in hearing more about what is happening in Kenya through Adventures In Missions? Sign up on the left hand side of the blog to receive updates each time a new blog is written!! Maybe you are ready to take the leap of faith and head off to the mission field, Click here to see our Kenya trips for 2012 and 2013 and also to view all of our other trips!!
