Two months....CHECK!

I can not come to understand that I have been here for 2 months. To say the least it has flown by!! I feel like I have adapted quickly and have been told so by some but at the same time everything is still new. I still get stared at for being the only mzungu (white person) in the market (unless Christine is with me!) and I still can't quite figure out how to get to church on my own (that's probably because I'm directionally challenged) but at the same time, i walk the streets of tigoni with confidence, establishing my existence here to my neighbors, am starting to recognize faces in public places, and hoping to get mine recognized. We know which booths we like in the market, where to get each of our particular grocery items in nakumatt (the Walmart of kenya), and how to barter for goods. Christine and I even tackled taking a matatu to school and back multiple times last week! For those of you who don't know, a matatu is a form of public transportation here in Kenya and if you have never ridden one before, or are used to the luxuries of American transportation it can be scary. They are rickety, tin can looking vans that cram literally as many people they can in them until they are hanging out of the sliding door driving down the road. I also anticipated them being smelly with body odor but so far, they have been proving my judgy, American mind wrong! I actually prefer it to walking to the school! All in all, these past two months have been jam packed full of new experiences and opportunities and they keep on coming!!
So, as you may or may not know, Uhuru Child, has some social businesses in the form of farms or mashamba that grow lettuce (mboga), tomatoes (Nyanya), and chicks (vifaranga). So, we raise the chicks for KenChic (the equivalent of Tyson in the states) and we have been working on sealing contracts with some hotels and restaurants in Nairobi so they will buy our lettuce and tomatoes. And God has been providing!!!!! We sell to so many places now that our whole team must wake up soooo early on the days of delivery to harvest the lettuce from the farm, chop it, clean it, bleach it, dry it, and package it just the way the restaurant would prefer it. And they all are different! But we are so excited about how God is making this dream of allowing the social businesses pay for the school that we will continue to pray for more and more contracts! (and so we can hire people to do this earlybird work for me because I am NOT a morning person.... We are all called to some sort of suffering right? Haha)
Also, as many of you know I am an aspiring veterinarian! I took two years off from that path to go where I felt the Lord was calling me and am so glad I did but I miss animals! So one day, I was talking to our schools handyman/garden worker dude and telling him how much I loved animals and wanted to be an animal doctor (foreign concept here). He tells me there is a British woman down the road who is a veterinarian and does a lot of charity work in certain villages with donkeys and what not. So he took me to meet her last week and she is like what I dreamed to be! She has 8 dogs, all strays who were starving or hurt and she nursed them back to health, 3 cats, I think 12 cows, 3 donkeys, and many chickens! She loves animals too! So I introduced myself to her and got her number as she showed me around her compound and told me about the main work the she does. I think she mainly zones in on donkeys because they are so poorly treated here. Donkeys are one of the most common forms of livestock here but they get treated the worst because they are used for manual labor and hauling things. She goes around and does work, sometimes for free, to help these donkeys and educate the people on how to properly care for them otherwise, they won't be having a donkey for long! I mean some of these poor donkeys work right up until they give birth! I will tell you one thing, if someone made me pull a cart 9 months pregnant I would have to give them a piece of my mind! But anyway, she said I could go with her on her village calls she does on Monday mornings! I was overjoyed to enter in to her world and be reunited with animals who needed me!
So, yesterday was the day. I was so excited all morning (even though I had to wake up at 6 to do lettuce hahaha) and went with her to the few villages she does most of her work at. We mainly came across some donkeys who needed to be deformed or vaccinated but some needed some serious hoof trimming. People are so used to seeing flat-footed donkeys that they think it's normal!! So she educates people (who all flock when white people are around anyway) while she is doing the service. We came across this one area she does not normally go to and found a donkey whose hoof was shaped like a "u" it needed to be clipped so badly!! Also, whenever she sees anyone using what is a "kiboko" on their donkey, or whip (bc they aren't allowed) she will stop them and take it from them. Donkeys are very smart animals so it has been proven that if you just use your voice to guide them they will listen and do what you say! Or used leading stick that isn't used to hit them with but to wave on the opposite side of their vision you want them to go so they steer away from it. But, Kenyans are stuck in their ways sometimes and do not believe these ways are effective. So some you can't win to animal welfare. But the saddest thing we came across (and that I had never seen done before) was when she had to euthanize this one donkey via captive bolt. The donkeys front legs were bowed out and it's hooves wedged with no tread on the outside from malnutrition it could barely walk. It was by far, the saddest donkey I have seen since being here. The owner left her to fend for herself and not being able to find adequate nutrition this is what happened. She was painfully bow-legged, starving, and frightened and there was no hope for her because she wouldn't be able to be used for work or breeding and could barely stand. So we did the humane thing and euthanized her. So, captive bolt is not for the faint of heart. I knew what it was but had never seen it done in person before. It's basically this gun that. Has a metal prong that punctures the skull and lodges a piece of bone in the brain, instantly killing the animal. It's not gruesome just loud and the animal falls to the ground immediately and starts having muscle contractions post mortem. To stop them, you must stick a metal rod in the hole and stop the brain from causing those contractions. The animal is already dead, no worries. But it was just sad it had to come to that for that poor girl. I was thankful to be part of it regardless because the more experience the better for me, and it educated everyone who was watching in that village what happens when you don't properly care for your donkey. Another plus to spending time with this vet is she is not a Christian I don't think and I could see God using this as an evangelism opportunity!! And I am excited about spending more time with her.
Also, we finally got our kitchen table! It's unfinished wood like the rest of our furniture because we think it's cool looking and had our first dinner with it last night!
Basically, I have loved my time here thus far! I have learned so many things about myself being out of my element and seeing how this is becoming my element!! I mean it's starting to feel like my home which is should because I will be living here for the next 2 years. I am thankful for everyone who has supported me throughout this whole process and could not feel more blessed! I do ask that you continue to tell everyone you know about our car fund and contribute whatever you can so we can expand our ministry into other schools in this area!! Praise God for this work He is doing in Kenya!

Mungu ni mwema sana! (God is SO Good!)

I can't even begin to express the joy that I have felt this week. I am overwhelmed at God's  faithfulness and goodness towards not just these girls we are ministering to, but Christine and I. One of our most frequent prayer requests has been that God would provide deeper relationships that are based on trust and allow the girls to feel free to be vulnerable with us. I am currently studying the book of Habakkuk and I truly believe the Lord has just been calling Christine and I to be patient and wait for Him to do His work in ours and their lives.

Habakkuk 1:5 says, "Look among the nations and see; wonder and be astounded. For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told." Immediately when I read this I HAD to commit it to memory because of the joy it filled me with knowing that God was being faithful to answer my prayers even when I could not see it.

In Kenya, the culture is very much communal in that people do not have a sense of individual identity. Their thinking is group-based and they have a hard time answering personal questions or talking about themselves as individuals. Their upbringing is so community-oriented that the children in one's village are seen as everyone's children and you are able to punish a child even if it is not yours. So, its been difficult getting the girls to talk about specific situations in their lives, where they struggle with patience, for example, because they will usually just give us a hypothetical situation as an answer. BUT, due to our prayers and those who are praying for our ministry here in Kenya, God has heard our request for vulnerability among the girls and trust to build our relationships with them on. SO MUCH HAS HAPPENED IN THIS LAST WEEK!!

Like in Habakkuk, the Lord totally proved to me that He is doing a work that I really would not have believed if He told me because I thought developing those kinds of relationships with these girls would take 6 months at least!! He has proven me wrong. DRAMATICALLY!

On Tuesday, when school started again since the elections, Teresia, the oldest girl at our school and possibly one of the most influential on the other girls approached Lydiah, our Kenyan discipleship coordinator and told her she has decided to commit her life to Christ and wanted Lydiah to pray with her! Teresia had told us before she left for break she had not been saved, but we were waiting on her to make the decision....AND SHE DID! Lydiah and Francis (our other Kenyan staff member) shared some scripture with her about what it really means to become a Christian and Teresia decided her life was worthless to her if she was not following Christ! She saw the value in Him and prayed to follow him AND WE COULD NOT BE MORE EXCITED FOR HER! But it doesn't stop there....

Teresia shared at our youth group event what God had done in her life with the other girls and basically, shared the gospel with them. Now, most of the girls either are Christians or think they are (kind of like in the Bible belt where biblical terminology is known but a relationship with Jesus is not necessarily present) and it was so amazing to see her new found joy for sharing the gospel just because she is following the Great Commission. This definitely had an impact on some of the younger girls once they saw the joy she had when she spoke about Jesus and her new life. So on Friday, after our Life Skills Club with the girls, two Form 1 (or freshman) girls came to me and wanted to talk.

Lucy and Josephine are two girls from different IDP camps that are on scholarship at our school as well and come from very strongly rooted community-oriented thinking. The first thing they said to me once we were alone was they wanted to be SAVED! They told me they had been so attracted to what Teresia was saying and realized they had always gone to church and believed in God but did not have a personal relationship with Him. Right then and there in Form 1 Homeroom I told them the gospel and what it means and looks like to follow Christ and the Lord used me to help them pray to receive Him!!!!! I could not believe it!! Christine and I went from praying desperately, assuming this process would take way longer than we had ever planned to break down their walls, to having girls coming up to us out of their own free will wanting to receive Christ and talk about their personal issues!! I am still astounded at how apparent it has been that God is moving in this school. So after they received Christ, they began asking all of these personal questions regarding actual things they struggle with and scenarios in their lives where they need counsel and not just hypothetical situations. OUR RELATIONSHIPS WITH THESE GIRLS LITERALLY CHANGED OVER NIGHT!!

And then this Saturday morning we had Bible Study like we do every Saturday morning with the girls. Normally, they are quiet and do not participate very much and sometimes are just not serious about it at all. But today, they were quoting scripture to one another, sharing the gospel in their answers to questions, and most of all, totally paying attention and excited about what we were learning WHICH WAS IRONICALLY ABOUT GOD'S GOODNESS! We are going through the different fruits of the spirit right now and goodness, coincidentally happened to be the next fruit (obviously all in God's plan so we would give Him the glory for it). I was just so excited that they were participating and excited and that English was not becoming a barrier this morning even for the girls who are not as fluent! Everyone wanted to read the word and explain what it meant to them and even share verses they must have been focusing on the night before to share with the group. IT WAS SO ENCOURAGING TO SEE THEM HUNGRY FOR THE WORD! And not just hungry but wanting to share it like we are called to do! Reading your Bible and talking about God is no longer something they think they are supposed to do but something they want to do and share with others!! They are falling in love with Jesus!! BUT IT DOESNT STOP THERE EITHER....

After Bible study, another girl, Nicole, came to Christine to talk to her about some personal things she was struggling with. Nicole was bullied at her old school which is one of the reasons why she transferred to Uhuru Academy but so many more things came out of her mouth during her and Christine's conversation that Christine could not believe what she was hearing. NICOLE WAS OPENING HER LIFE UP TO CHRISTINE RIGHT BEFORE HER EYES! They talked the whole free time until it was time for Nicole to go to study hall and I could just see the amazement on Christine's face when she came to tell me. THESE GIRLS DO NOT SHARE THEIR PERSONAL LIVES NATURALLY, THIS IS A PHENOMENON OF GOD WORKING IN THEIR HEARTS. Praise God!!! And just when I thought we were about to leave Christine had to go talk to one more girl, Lynette before we left because LYNETTE CAME TO HER wanting to talk. When Christine approached Lynette and told her she was ready to talk, Lynette immediately broke down about her uncle who had died in January that she was still upset over. I mean really I couldn't believe it when I saw them embracing because Lynette was crying, SHE WAS CRYING! IN PUBLIC! WILLINGLY! I was just beside myself, trying to understand what was going on. We literally went from 0 to 60 in 24 hrs! Christine got to talk and pray with Lynette and provide her comfort through sharing truth with her and we left the school this morning just still in shock at everything we had seen.

GOD MEANT IT WHEN HE SAID WE WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO COMPREHEND EVEN IF HE TOLD US BECAUSE THE WORKS HE IS DOING ARE SO GREAT! It's amazing!!!!!

I just had to get to my computer as soon as I could because this ministry is just bringing me so much joy I have to share it! And I am so thankful that God made us wait for this moment because the reward is so much sweeter! We came here expecting these girls to want to open up and it turned out to be the opposite, but by GOD"S GRACE, He made us wait patiently and build trust in His plan so that when it reveals itself we receive so much more joy and He is so much more glorified.

God truly is blessing this ministry at Uhuru Academy and Jesus is on the move in the hearts of these girls! And our hearts! We are learning so much about faith from them its incredible! And we are still hoping to be able to get a car soon so we can expand this program into other girls' secondary schools! We are seeing the benefits of this type of life-on-life discipleship and the effect it can have in a culture where the idea is so foreign but God is so much greater than human ways. IT IS PROVEN! Please if you can help us expand this ministry that is changing the lives of these girls please donate to our car fund! I can't think of a better way to tithe your money in hopes of making a difference in someone else's life like our girls. It is clear God wants to use Uhuru Child for His purposes and we are praying that lack of funds would not stand in the way of that! Let the Great Commission continue to be carried out across this nation and into more girls's secondary schools because there are so many more girls we have the opportunity to reach if we could just get there! The link to donate is: http://www.youcaring.com/help-a-neighbor/Help-Christine-and-Jordan-buy-a-car-for-ministry-in-Kenya-/41234 and we are so appreciative of the all of the donations we have received so far! We are at 1500 dollars and only 2500 left to go!

We know that God is capable of way more than we could have ever imagined and we will continue to pray and trust that He will provide the funds needed to reach more of His daughters in this country.

"Delight yourselves in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart." -Psalm 37:4

Elections....over or not??

On March 4, 2013, Kenya held its first elections since 2007 when the results caused massive post-election violence for months, killing over 1,000 people and displacing more than 600,000. A large majority of those that were displaced still live in IDP (internally displaced people) camps and some of the people in those camps still live in tents from 5 years ago. Many families living in those camps are without running water or a relatively close water source, a consistent food source, and jobs. The violence that brought all of this poverty into fruition was caused by the politicians who used tribalism for their personal agendas. Kibaki, the president leaving office, rigged the elections in 2007 by buying votes. Once his opponent Odinga (who also lost this year) found out, he was enraged and went public and basically rallied those followers of his political party (mostly those from the same tribe as him) to fight for him. Odinga belongs the Luo tribe and his followers made this loss a personal attack against all Kikuyu, assuming that everyone from the Kikuyu tribe (the same tribe Kibaki is from) should be punished for Odinga's loss and Kibaki's corruption. Uhuru Kenyatta, the new President Elect, is being indicted by the ICC for supposedly paying Kikuyu men to retaliate against their persecutors. His running mate, a Luo named Ruto, did the same thing with the Luo men. (They have since made amends are now running mates in this election to set an example, I guess). Due to this huuuuuuge problem of tribalism in this country, violence broke out and now elections have to be more about a personal vendetta against all other tribes to get the candidate from your tribe into office. It's sad.

Kenya held its first presidential debate in its history this year in hopes that it would spur Kenyans to vote based on platforms and factual information rather than ethnicity. The problem with this method while though a good idea in theory, is that the majority population do speak English or understand well enough to understand the debate and if they do, most do not have access to a television to watch it. I believe that Kenya took some necessary steps in the right direction to help Kenyans think for themselves and not based on their tribal affiliation and having a debate in general is a good thing! Also, Kenya tried to prevent any vote stealing this year by using computers at every polling station instead of written ballots. Again, while the sentiment was honourable, of course, the computer systems crashed during voting and votes were forced to be taken by hand, allowing for a whole day where votes were not streaming into the public, and paper vote delivers to go missing for hours. The only time during the elections we ever felt like violence was going to happen was during this time period because that's when rumors started to go around saying that someone had hacked the computer system and the government was withholding information about the tallying of the votes for over 24 hours and people were getting restless because of it. Luckily, the next day before Kenyans could actively assume the worst, votes began streaming in again and all was well.
Then the results were officially announced Saturday at 11 am although many Kenyans (mainly Kikuyu) began celebrating Uhuru Kenyatta's victory (also Kikuyu) days before it was officially announced. WE WERE SO THANKFUL IT WAS FINALLY OVER.....not so fast though......

Odinga, not willing to take his defeat by 0.07% percent gracefully, has decided to go to court for God knows what. We assume he is asking for a recount or for some justice using the argument that someone hacked the computer system and that some of the vote tallying process was compromised. We don't know much information about it right now other than he is not conceding defeat yet even though Uhuru Kenyatta has been pronounced the President Elect. (Whether we like him or not)
All in all, the elections were very peaceful, especially where we lived and even though Odinga is protesting, he asked that his followers remain calm and let the courts handle his "injustice" and not to take it to streets (very big of him considering he has blood on his hands from last elections, right?). Whatever the outcome of his court appearances, neither candidate's hands are clean and we will be praying in the future for a God fearing, responsible, honest leader to rise up for Kenya and defeat these corrupt leaders. In the meantime, we will be praying for Kenyatta to follow through with the promises he has made to this country and that Kenyans would be unified as Kenyans and not divided as many different tribes. We also pray that the girls at our school would be the next leaders of Kenya, having been taught critical thinking skills and problem solving so that Kenya can be restored to its stable environment it was once so highly praised for.

Also, here are some pictures of the compound Christine and I live on. Compounds are basically plots of land that are gated with high walls covered in shrubs, sometimes barb wire and metal spikes to ensure no impregnation of the property. All compounds look different just like all yards are not the same in America. I enjoy our compound and the amount of sun it gets, not to mention the view we have from our back yard!

 This is our humble abode! Its a little burnt red wooden cottage and very cozy but we love it!

This is our landlord's house. He lives right next two us and is the only other house in the compound. He obviously has money haha

This is our compound's front gate and driveway. This is the view from our doorstep. 

The side of our house so you can see our little screened in back porch!

Where the geese live. Our landlord has guard geese instead of guard dogs because geese are territorial. They are not used to us yet and still try to chase us when we go outside!

This is our little shaded, outdoor relaxation area. We do not get to enjoy it though because it doesn't have chairs and the geese chase us. Also, you can see the huge wall or shrubs that encompasses our compound for safety and privacy.

This is the little backyard behind our house from where you can see the beautiful view of the fields and hills!

The driveway and view from the side of our house.

It's our home away from home and apart from the geese we really enjoy where we live! It's right on the main road and close to our frequently travelled to destinations so we are very fortunate! And our landlord is such a sweet Kenyan man! 

Now, all we are missing is a car! Our plan for this year as part of the discipleship team is to expand our discipleship program of life skills club, bible study, youth group, and discussion groups to other all girls secondary schools in this area. The only thing holding us back at the moment is our lack of funds for a car. By God's grace we have currently raised $1500 in donations are looking to raise $4000 total. We are really excited about what God is doing here in Kenya at Uhuru Academy with these girls and believe that discipleship should not be limited to just Uhuru girls! We want to change the way women are thought about and think in Kenya starting at their most impressionable ages! So please, if you believe in what God is doing here and want to see His mission go forward donate to Christine and I's car fund!! The website is http://www.youcaring.com/help-a-neighbor/Help-Christine-and-Jordan-buy-a-car-for-ministry-in-Kenya-/41234 and every donation helps! SERIOUSLY! We appreciate anything and are praying to raise all of the money by the end of March! We believe God can do this and ask that you would pray and consider what impact this could have on the rest of Kenya!!

The Calm Before the Storm

Anticipating that this week would end up being filled with uncertainty as to how Kenyans would act at the voting polls and after elections, a few of us girls took advantage of our weekend before and had a mini-vacation! The students at Uhuru Academy left the school for election holiday on Friday so we had no work to do! Luckily, there is this outdoor shopping "center" in Nairobi called Toi Market where a bunch of individuals come and sell the American and European clothing they receive from ex-patriates and short term mission groups. LADIES, ITS AMERICAN CLOTHES THAT ARE IN STYLE FOR WAY UNDER THE PRICE. The only catch is you have to go searching through piles and all the little huts to find some treasures but we spend all day shopping anyway right?? So, Christine (my roommate), Caitlyn (our director of education, American), Lydiah (a Kenyan Uhuru staff member), Jody (Tim our field director's wife), and I all decided to make a trip last friday! It was fun just to go somewhere with us girls and buy some clothes since we werent allowed to bring much on the plane! Here are a few pictures of what we got!

 Everything you see in these pictures was found in Toi Market....for like 90% off.. LOVE IT! Anyway, on Sunday, Christine, Caitlyn, and I went to church that morning and then went to this place called River Cafe. It's in Nairobi near our church and according to Caitlyn's husband it is very delicious! It's all outdoors with a nice little patio and seating area in a beautiful garden! The food was amazing too and I got my first burger since being in kenya that had meat in it! I was very satisfied with my BBQ hamburger and french fries (all gourmet of course) and we may or may not have ordered nachos as an appetizer as well.....SO GOOD!! Then, we ventured on over to Village Market, where we normally go after church, and went to a cute little jewelry store called Kazuri which means "small and beautiful". All of their jewelry is handcrafted and painted and so elegant :) Here are some pictures of the restaurant and our little Sunday afternoon outing!

The architecture was very rustic but fit in well with the surrounding garden. Almost like a tree house!

Christine and Caitlyn in their new dresses from Toi Market!

Caitlyn and I (my new dress too)

My roommate, Christine, and I

All three of us after our delicious meal heading out to the garden :)

Our view while eating!

Then, on Monday Caitlyn, Christine, and I met some of our friends from church at the Windsor Country Club to do some lounging! This was the same day as the elections but the results were not supposed to be released for a while after so we felt safe venturing into Nairobi. The Windsor is this country club owned by Europeans so we just went and hung out by the pool and stuffed our faces all day. It was our last official day to relax before elections so we wanted to do something FUN and surprisingly, it was not expensive. So, we arrived around 10:30 that morning and while Christine and Caitlyn took advantage of the nice gym, I relaxed beside the pool and read. Then our friends, two married couples in their 20s came. We ate lunch beside the pool (I got BBQ wings and celery sticks!!! Missed them!) and got roasted in the sun! All in all a successsful and relaxing election day!Here are a few pictures of the Windsor!

The golf course

The pool area

 The view from the dining patio

Their cool, little shrubery

Christine and Caitlyn relaxing in our PADDED lounge chairs!

Some more of the pool area and just behind it the bar and dining patio.

Christine and I hanging out by the pool

Caitlyn and Christine excited for the scrumptious food!

Maybe a little over excited.....

Caitlyn and I!

After we left the Windsor, we were feeling burnt but well rested! We had such a wonderful time that weekend getting to relax with no worries before the looming elections. Currently, we are still waiting on the votes to be counted and announced but all is well in Limuru for now. I will be posting an elections aftermath blog and pray that I have only good and peaceful things to say about Kenyans reactions to whoever wins. We are praying for peace and anti-tribalism and that Kenya would unite as nation under One God! We are also praying for our students as they went home for the election holiday and that they would return safely back to school on Monday! Same for the teachers and guards! Kenya is such a wonderful and beautiful place and we are praying for it to be restored to that beauty and peace this elections. More to come soon!

One last thing...... I LOVE ANIMALS AND  GOT TO TAKE SOME PICTURES WITH MY NEIGHBORS LIVESTOCK LIKE THE ANIMAL SCIENCE NERD I AM :) ENJOY!

Ng'ombe (cow in swahili) and I

 They have pet rabbits!!!

precious!

Waiting for me :)

Tuna rafiki. (We are friends) :)