Posted in Kenya by on 11/30/2011
This blog is to honor one of my supporters. I am blown away by the love and sacrifice that this family is making this holiday season.
A few weeks ago I posted a blog about a couple guys that were raising funds this December to go on a mission to their homeland and preach to the gospel to the remote people there. The blog was titled "missionaries don't just come from America." After posting that blog, one of my supporters contacted me so say that their family didn't have a lot to give, but they were interested in supporting these missionaries, my friends, here in Kenya.
After following up with this family, I found that instead of getting a Christmas tree this year, they were going to donate the $50 that they would have spent to support them. Now that is sacrifice. The thing is, you don't have to have a lot of money to make a difference in the life of someone.
This $50 is going to help a group of people give up their time to travel hours a way to preach about Jesus. This $50 is going to change the lives of people in an entire village. This $50 is going to bring the love of Christ to an area that has never seen it.
So, thank you, lovely supporter, for the sacrifice this year. You are changing the lives of so many. Let this be a challenge to you this Christmas. What can you sacrifice this holiday to make a difference in someone else's life?
Buy someone a cup of coffee.
Volunteer at a homeless shelter.
Get a gift for someone who won't get one this year.
Sponsor a child.
Donate to an organization (yes you can donate to the Kenya Initiative!!!!).
One of my favorite quotes is from Gandhi, "be the change you wish to see in the world." It starts with you. How are you going to change someone else's life this Christmas?
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Posted in Kenya by on 11/13/2011
This weekend was a weekend of celebrations! A weekend full of j oy and good times!
On Saturday we had a camp-wide feast with everyone at Camp Vision. We wanted to get everyone together to fellowship and eat together. We got there around 9:30 am and didn't eat until 4pm! Haha. That's what happens when you feed over 120 people! It was a time to get together, cook together, celebrate the new businesses starting, a nd celebrate what the Lord has done in the camp!
It was awesome because all the women helped cook and all the men helped with the slaughtering of the goat. Yep that's right, they killed a goat for the feast! Everyone helped, everyone ate, and everyone was happy. It was such a good day!
Then on Sunday we had the  chance to celebrate the girls. On Thursday they finished school! We celebrated God's faithfulness and provision. These girls have worked so hard in school and now they have completed. We baked chocolate chip cookies and had a little party for all their hard work! It was such a good day, full of smiles, laughter, and lots of sugar!
It's fun to celebrate with the people you love...to honor them, to bless them, and to glorify God with them. And that is exactly what we did!
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Posted in Kenya by on 11/10/2011
Mazungu means white person.
Sometimes I hate the color of my skin.
Being white in Africa has its advantages and disadvantages. When i walk down the road everyone stops what they are doing to stare directly at me. Kids run from far away just to say hello and wave. You get charged triple the price of a Kenyan for everything you buy. You get invited into every home and offered chai just because you are a foreigner. And naturally every person along the street thinks you are rich and you will give them money.
I think this past week I reached my limit of this. The money part! I mean you can't blame them. Most "white" people who come to help anyone in need in Africa, just come and give, and leave. It creates a dependency. So that when we come along and we want to help a group of people long-term and not just give handouts, they think we are "holding out" on them. They think that somewhere along the line we will just stop everything we are doing to give them money.
In America, if you want to bless someone you can do it... it's not expected but it's appreciated. If you want to buy someone dinner that a nice thing to do... but in Kenya if I truly wanted to bless someone that I care about I almost fear doing it because it will just play into the expectations that kenyans have for people with white skin. I hate that.
I guess this week i am a little frustrated. I am frustrated by the color of my skin and the precedent that has been set by people in the past. I want to break it. I want these people to only be dependent on the Lord. I want them to see that we aren't just here for a short while and then leaving forever. i want them to see my heart instead of a dollar sign.
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Posted in Kenya by on 11/1/2011
Last Sunday I went down to the camp to see the girls and just to hang out with them and I was asking them what they learned today at church.
Now Anne, she likes to talk, she was so eager to tell me what God had taught her that day... and this is what she says, "preparation comes before promotion." I was completely taken off guard by that statement; probably because it came from a 16 year old in the middle of Africa!
But she goes on explaining Joseph's life; how the Lord brought him through all sorts of trials and hardships until he was raised up and "promoted". I have SO much to learn from these girls. What a great statement. I mean isn't this how the Lord works, he will refine and prepare you before He will promote you. And that time of preparation and waiting and can be painful and hard, but when the time comes for the Lord to promote you, to raise you up, it will be so worth it because it will be in His timing and you will be ready. Such a good lesson. Thank you Anne for teaching me and reminding me the He does not forget about His people, but at the proper time will raise them up in His glory.
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Posted in Kenya by on 10/23/2011
 God is moving here.
It's crazy to see His hand at work all the way across the world.
Today I got to see some old friends from the last time i was in Kenya. A couple of us went to a town called Laure and visited some of our Turkana friends there. We got to speak at their church service that lasted about 3 hours! Oh Africa.
Samuel and Simon are their names. And man is God working through them!
After the service they asked for prayer because next summer they are going to speak and witness to their people all the way up in Turkana land, about 8-10 hours from where they are living now. They felt that it is time for them to go and spread the gospel to their people there. They heard from the Lord and now they are going.
So this December they are raising the funds they need to go there. They need about $3,000 for everything. And they are completely trusting on the Lord that he will provide so that they can go. It is a big commitment and a lot of money, but the Lord told them to go, so they are going!
As, I'm sitting there thinking about all this, i was just blown away. These people have nothing, maybe a couple pairs of clothes, they grow their own food, no electricity, and they are sacrificing everything to go and preach the gospel. Now this is Kingdom right here. I think as Americans we get stuck in the mindset that we are the ones that go to foreign countries to teach about Jesus, but the Lord has given the same call to them! The body is made up of all kinds, and it so cool to be a part of the body, and see the body at work all the way in Kenya.
I'm blown away by the sacrifice. I am blown away by the amount of trust they have. And I am blown away by their obedience. All believers have the same call... to love God and love others, and they are living out that call!
So, please be praying that the Lord provides all their needs before that time! They are putting a lot of trust in Him, and I know that He will be faithful!
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Posted in Kenya by on 10/17/2011
One year and nine months ago I arrived in the country of Kenya with 14 other people. We did ministry at several places, but the one that won my heart was working down at the IDP camps. We would go down once a week, hand out food, and visit each and every tent. These people were squished together with barely any room to grown their crops, they were living in trash, but amidst all of that they were some of the happiest people that i had ever met.
The girls of that camp were the ones that really won my heart. I had the opportunity to gather them together with several of my teammates and just be able to pour into them, tell them who they are in Christ, speak life into their situation, allow them to ask ANY question that they might have, and most of all just LOVE them to death. So, every week we would meet. At first most of them didn't even know each other... but they began to learn about one another; they began to pray and encourage one another, and they began to be a part of each other's lives.
But after 3 months we had to leave.
Now, one year and nine months later the Lord has allowed me to come back to see the place that my heart broke for. As I walked into the camp for the first time, my girls immediately saw me and ran towards me giving me the biggest hug ever. I cannot even tell you how happy that I was. As I sat with them at the church service I was amazed at how passionate and in tune they were at the service. They were the ones that got up and shared with the whole congregation, they were the one's leading worship, and they were the ones that were speaking of God's provision and love for them. They even met altogether after for a youth service! Gosh, I was like a proud mama.
As I was sitting there I was just watching them interact, laugh together, play together, I remembered the first time we got them all together and how they didn't even know each others names, and I almost started crying... it was because of the things the Lord did one year and nine months ago amongst them that they are still meeting together, pouring into one another, encouraging one another, confiding in one another, and trusting in the Lord together. I could not have been more proud of them. And I am just reminded about the Lord's faithfulness and how He takes such good care of His children.
One year and nine months ago, the Lord wanted me to bring together girls and teach them how to be a community, and now today they are still doing just that. I am no longer leading them in discussions, but they are leading themselves! The Lord has brought them together to be able to rely on one another; He has made them a community and that is EXACTLY what i wanted from the beginning.
I believe that these girls have the power to change the world! And after seeing them again I know that God is still at the center of them and He is going to use them for some powerful, Kingdom-minded things in Kenya. And i am so thankful that I get to be a part of that.
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Posted in Apprenticeship by on 10/13/2011
Just wanted to let you all know that i made it safely to Kenya yesterday. Thank you so much for all your prayers and support; i seriously couldn't have done it without you. You are such a blessing to me. Keep looking here for updates and stories that I will be posting soon!
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Posted in Apprenticeship by on 9/28/2011
I am sitting here wondering about how I suppose to sum up
the past couple of months in a blog. Where do I begin? If I were to start from
the beginning this blog would probably be equivalent to a book's length. So, instead I would like to take the time to
honor someone who is VERY dear to my
heart. I probably would have not made it through this past season with out
her. Most of you know her to be the crazy Asian…Liz Martin! 
Liz was one of the four of us that came back from Kenya
completely broken for the Internally Displaced and wanted to do something about
it. She wouldn't take no for an answer especially when it came to helping God's
people and loving the forgotten. If you know anything about Liz, you know that she
is a fire starter! The
Lord has given her the gift of making change around the world, even if it's her
just stepping into a room, a change will happen, because the Lord is on her
side and she knows it.
So, the Lord allowed her to be a part of the birthing
process of what is now called the Kenya Initiative. A lot of hard work was put
toward this vision. A lot of time,
resources, and energy. But all of that did not go unnoticed, especially from
the ONE ABOVE.
When the team left for Kenya in July, both Liz and I were
held back for some further training. During that time a decision was made for
Liz not to go to Kenya. While that wasn't part of the plan…God quickly reminded
me that His ways are not my ways and His
thoughts are not my thoughts…even though sometimes I think my ways are
better than His.
 All I know is that God's
plan is always better. Even though I might not understand, He sees the big
picture. So, needless to say, the past couple months have been really hard. I
don't ever think I have been stretched,
broken, refined, like I have in this season. But God has shown me what it
means to be someone who truly reflects Christ in everything I do, and to live
in the fullness that He has called me to. And Liz has been someone who has
helped me learn these things.
There is something about the way Liz lives her life, in
which the glory of the Lord radiates off of her. She knows exactly
who she is, and she's not ashamed of it. She knows that she has a place in the
Kingdom that NO ONE can take away from her. She understands that God's ways are
better, even if it means postponing a dream. She understands that God's work
needs to be done, and that she is a vital vessel for the job. And most of all,
she knows that people matter and that God loves people.
In the past three months God has used Liz to pour into my
life, to encourage me, to invest in me, and to truly love me as Christ loves.
He has used her to speak words of life, when I couldn't do it myself or when no
one else was. The Lord has used her in more ways than I could write on a blog,
and because she was willing to be used, I am forever changed.
On October 11,
I will be rejoining the team in Kenya! Through these three months, the Lord has
been preparing me to go back and reminding me of all the things I have learned and am going to take with me. It hasn't always been easy, but the Lord has been
faithful in every step. I know that I might be saying goodbye to a teammate,
but I am NOT saying goodbye to a friend, someone
who will always have a place in my heart. And I am so thankful for that.
So, thank you Liz. Thank you for being willing to be used.
Thank you f or all the work you put into this vision that God placed on your
heart; it definitely does NOT go unnoticed and the people of Kenya are changed because of it. Thank you for taking the time to
invest into my life; I will never be the same. And thank you for showing me
what it truly means to be the hands and feet of Christ and love like He loved. God
has such huge plans for you and I am confident that people and places will be
forever changed because of you!
Love.Love.
Please check out her last Kenya Initiative blog posted HERE.
If you would like to follow what the Lord is doing in her
life, follow her new blog! Click HERE.
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Posted in Kenya on 7/17/2011
Sometimes God has different plans.
Sometimes you think you know what's best for yourself, but
really you have no idea.
Sometimes He needs to take it all away to remind you that He
is still in control and His timing is always right.
As some of you might know already, I did not leave for Kenya
on July 7th . The AIM leadership and I decided to hold me back for a
couple more months for some extended training. God gently reminded me that He
is out of time and that He wasn't ready to send me quite yet. God is definitely
crazy in His ways, and I guess that is why He is God and I am not!
I will be spending the next couple of months back in
Gainesville, GA for some more missionary training one-on-one with the headship
of this project. During this time I will be focusing on myself and what God has
to reveal and uncover about who I am in Him and how I can walk in complete
freedom and wholeness to who He has called me to be. I could not be more
excited to learn and gain wisdom from such godly leadership. His hand has
already been in the entire process… at first it was hard to swallow that I
wouldn't be going to Kenya right away, but the Lord has been humbling me day
after day that this is exactly where He wants me right now.
God seems to kindly remind me that this vision was His from
the very beginning. What if my role for the past 8 months was just to get the
vision going, and never to go to Kenya? Would I be ok with that? Would it be ok
if it wasn't me who got to bring clean water and employment to the people
there? And the Lord gently reminds me over and over that I am merely a vessel.
Kenya is NOT MINE, it's His. This vision is NOT MINE, it's His. These are all
hard questions that the Lord has placed in front of me to put my life into
perspective. Now I know that I WILL be going to Kenya in a short amount of
time, but I think that He had to pull it away to get me at a place where I
recognized that my mission had almost become an idol. He had to remind me that
what I do for Him isn't as important as who I am to Him; and sometimes the Lord
has to perform drastic measures to remind us of that.
So when I look at these next couple of months of
preparation, I see God opening me up and letting me examine what is truly
inside of me; I see Him revealing His ultimate truth over me so that I can
stand confidently in His name and KNOW that I am His; I see Him working in the
rest of the team and molding them; I see Him refining the areas of me that
aren't of Him; I see Him revealing more and more of His vision in Kenya and in
the rest of the world; I see Him making our team even stronger than before that
we can fight the hard battles and be victorious for His kingdom. That is what I
see. And I could not be more excited to be exactly where He wants me, even
though sometimes it is really hard to accept.
Kelli, Matt Ruple, Matt Patch, and Logan left on July 7th
for Kenya. They have arrived safely and they are beginning to start some groundwork
in the camps and start to build relationships with the people there. Please
keep them in your prayers as they are walking onto new soil. Pray that God
gives them the eyes to see things that their earthly eyes could never imagine.
Pray for wisdom and discernment as they are beginning to invade the enemy's
territory. Pray for safety and health, and pray for miracles to happen.
Also, please pray for me in this season… that God would do
His thing… and now matter how hard it is, I pray that I would have strength to
get through and that I would be reminded of His promises to me throughout this
journey.
During the next two months I will still be a full time
missionary under AIM. So, thank you to my supporters who have given so
generously throughout this vision. I would pray and ask that you would continue
supporting me financially even during the brief time here in the states and
throughout my time in Kenya. You have no idea how much a part of this vision
you are. Thanks so much for your support and prayers and love towards me, the
team, and Kenya.
Keep checking back here for more about what God is teaching
me through this season and into Kenya! If you would like to see how the team is
doing in Kenya, check out the blog here!
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Posted in Apprenticeship by on 6/30/2011
It's crazy to think that in exactly one week me and my team will be in Kenya. So crazy.... but i think the craziest part about it, is to remember and reflect on what God has done in just one year. He has birthed an new passion and vision in this world.
We leave July 7, and we will be gone until December! Please be praying for us as we travel, pray for health and safety, and pray that the people there would be ready as well. It's finally here. Am I a little anxious? Of course! But i couldn't be more excited.
Thank you to all who have gotten us this far.
Be checking here for personal blog updates, and also check out our team blog: www.kenyainitiative.org for project news and more!
See ya later USA!
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