April Praise and Prayer Requests

Praises

Pastor Steve Njenga, Mary, his wife and nurse, and 2 sons have arrived safely from Eburru to share their dreams and plans for Camp Brethren and DHI. They will be here until 4/29 visiting Va., D.C. Md. and N.C.

Requests

That God will be glorified through our efforts with all the events, fundraisers , vacation time for Pastor Steve’s visit and family
That Pastor Steve and Mary will be encouraged in their ministry and strengthened in their faith due to the visit
That God’s will for DHI (fundraising, direction and growth) is accomplished and clearly visible to DHI leadership during this trip
For safe travel to all the events and churches
For all the leaders back in Eburru that will be keeping up all the ongoing activities and programs, feedings over- seeing schools, church services and the clinic
For future mission teams that will serve in Eburru in the Summer and Fall of 2010

March Praise and Prayer Requests

Thank you so much for lifting Davids Hope up to the Lord in prayer!  Here are the current praises and prayer requests for March.

Praises

A young couple from N.C. felt called to move to Eburru, Kenya on March 6^th to serve there after spending 2 months there each year since 2006. They will be married by Pastor Steve there. Gitti and Curt are learning Kikura the local language, will farm on the 1.5 acres they have bought with Francis a native there, and will build a small hut to live in. Their church in N.C. and 12 sponsors will fund them. They will help Pastor Steve with Camp Bretheren Ministries, farm, and be our western eyes and ears for the work funded by D.H.I.

Help on filing our first tax return for D.H.I. from Jeremiah

Pastor Steve Njenga, Mary, his wife and nurse, and 2 sons will be coming to share there dreams and plans for Camp Bretheren and DHI from April 6^th-29th. They’ll visit D.C., Va., N.C., and hopefully Md.. churches, fundraiser events, George Washington Hospital local school etc..

Requests

That God will be glorified through our efforts with all the planning for Pastor Steve’s visit, setting up events and churches for them to share with

That Pastor Steve and Mary will be encouraged in their ministry and strengthened in their faith due to the visit

That God’s will for DHI (fundraising, direction and growth) is accomplished and clearly visible to DHI leadership during this trip

That volunteer ands details will come together in a low-stress way that glorifies God during preparation

February Praise and Prayer Requests

To all our supporters of David’s Hope, we want to say thank you for your support and prayers.  January was an exciting month as our first team went to Eburru under the newly formed foundation of David’s Hope.

Praise
Over $30,000 dollars has been raised in less than 1 year
For the ministry of Pastor Steve, Mary and Jonathan (Steve’s brother)
For tax exempt status going through before the end of 2009.
Building and opening of the new Camp Brethren school (2 classrooms built!)
Two new water tanks have been purchased and are in place ready to be set up
An abundance of new students (70)
Two acres of land by the creek in Riff Valley to educate people on farming, provide food for ministry, and to sell food to promote sustainability

Team Praises
Safe return of the team from the January team trip, sponsored by David’s Hope.
Wonderful VBS program talking about Jesus’ characteristics and hygiene lessons that incorporated the message of Christ
Business seminars created much interest in pursuing future endeavors with the Keyans. Kenneth and Eliud (both locals) gave great examples and were a big help to the business team.
Medical supplies- $1500.00 of supplies were purchased in country for the clinic in Eburru
Two large community feedings to celebrate the new year and the new school! These also provided and opportunity to share about Christ.

Requests
New teacher needs to be sponsored for all the new students
Irrigation system for the new land to be productive
Direction for the leaders of Camp Brethren and DHI as they set the vision for the year.
Prayers and donations to fund the future work
Smooth logistics and safe travel for Steve, Mary and their boys to Us Mar./April2010

Live from Kenya! Update from Monty

“Only one life, twill soon be past; only what’s done for Christ will last. Don’t waste it”

I have seen so many things over the past week, I am on sensory overload. We started at Kibera slum where somewhere between 1 and 3 million people live. I saw things that will be burned in my memory forever. We walked in initially and it was a lot of mud huts. As we got further in, we were on a hill overlooking miles of tin roofs on top of huts for as far as you could see.

I watched a lady wash fresh greens in dirty red water that she had scooped out of the run-off ditch, which was full of trash and waste. It represented so many wrong things on so many levels. It was filthy squalor and it was filled with millions. And growing. It is easy to see the natural progression of an unhealthy life in Kibera that leads to illness, crime, or prostitution. It would take an army of people and perhaps a half a century to turn a place that size around. When you think about healthcare, education, clean water, infrastructure- it is still very hard to wrap my mind around how and where you would start.

We were invited to visit a women’s group meeting. It’s strange that I haven’t seen a lot of men here, I don’t know where they all are. Anyway, the women sang some of the most beautiful songs. I couldn’t understand a lick of what they were saying but felt so honored that they allowed us to sit in and listen to them sing praise music to God. For me it was a bonding moment with these women. I feel like they let us in on something personal to them, yet I knew that they were singing to the same God that I have learned about my whole life. It is amazing to me that I can travel to the other side of the world and listen to people, who are suffering more than I will ever know in my lifetime, praise the same God that I learned about in my Sunday school classes as a little girl. These are women who told me from their own mouths that they do not know where their next meal will come from. Women who are experiencing shame and embarrassment for being poor, who don’t want their community to know that they are suffering and need food. They have the same feelings of pride and shame that I would have if I were in their place. It was such a comfort to see them bond in their group and praise the same God I have learned about my whole life, it was like we had a great old friend in common and that made my heart warm and peaceful.

On Jan 1 we participated in community day and did several feedings. Hundreds showed up. I cannot think of a better way to spend the first day of a new year. The community showed up and participated in running races, where I saw several women TAKE OFF their shoes before they ran. Welcome to Kenya. Even the old old men with canes participated in running races.

When it was time for the feedings, the food didn’t look like enough to cover the whole crowd, and culture demands that children eat last. We said a quick prayer for the food to last. The men, women, and children were divided into groups.

I had an opportunity to serve the children and gosh they were so hungry. We served them white rice and they were desperate and pushing in line to get to it. They had no plates so we served rice into their hands. Sometimes it was too hot and they would drop it, which really hurt my heart. Half way through they came up with their shirts cupped so we could put the rice in there. Filthy clothes used as plates. What we would discard and throw away is what their little bodies were desperate to get. I’ve played with several kids for days and thought they were three or four years old. I found out yesterday that one of them, who is smaller than my 3 ½ year old niece , is seven years old. I guess this is how the lack of proper nutrition affects your physical development, especially when your main source of intake is rice.

We fed them again at their graduation ceremony. This time they were able to benefit and eat the meat of the bull we bought and slaughtered when we arrived. You know I did NOT watch nor was I anywhere close by. However, one of the locals commented that he was shocked that we did not kill in the yard. One of the girls on my team replied, “I live in an apartment complex.” Cracked me up.

While worlds and miles apart, the good work that God is doing for these suffering people has connected us all. It is my prayer that the children and families of Eburru realize that we are loving them the same way that God loves all of us, 1 John 4:11 says “since God loved us, we also ought to love one another.” And Psalm 9:18 says “the needy will not be forgotten.”

Lastly, I would like to offer some explanation to my purpose here. I believe that God has commanded us to help e and love each other. Matthew 25:40 says “whatever you did for the least of one of my brothers, you did for me.” I also believe that what we do in faith, God will see through. Philippians 1:6 says that “he who started a good work in you will bring it to completion.” While our time here is limited, I can rest easy knowing that God will finish what has been started here and according to Romans 8:28, he “works for the good of those who love him.”

Live from Kenya! Updates from the Field

“God’s Agenda”

By Denise:

I was a bit nervous this morning because it was “my day” to teach the women’s group “my” hygiene lesson. I started preparing Thanksgiving weekend with my mom, a few months ago for this moment, I had prayed for this moment, I had gone over the lessons with my mom 3 times and had two of the other team members join in the preparation 2 days before the trip. So, this morning I woke up and had my quiet time and read a few letters from home. God gave me this verse from 3 different people in the past 3 days– Psalm 73 “Nevertheless, I am continually with you; you hold my right hand. You guide me with your council….God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” This changed my heart, I was no longer to put on my “Hygiene Show” but rather be a vessel to serve along with the team and let the results be up to God. What a relief! The session went well and the women were a little taken aback when the team went around washing all of their feet. Giggles, smiles and a connection was forged after an initial cold start. And honestly, I wasn’t sure that it went that well, although the team assured me it was great. Then! I saw the ladies from the session at our “tippy-tap” testing out the new hygiene methods. I went over to take a picture and I was greeted with shouts of joy and one of the ladies mimed the picture of a boy pooping from the lesson – which we all had a great laugh over. My heart overflowed knowing that God had chosen to use me, supported by an amazing team to communicate to the women of Eburru. They invited us to teach more lessons at their next meeting– I am absolutely thrilled to see what else God has on His Agenda.

“The Lord’s Got it Covered”

By Angela:

Our relationships with the people of Eburru continue to grow and deepen as our time here progresses. What a blessing this has been! We have met so many interesting people and fun children. We continue to learn more Swahili as days go by, and now phrases like asanti sana (thank you very much) are a part of our vernacular. We have also adjusted to the much simpler & relaxed way of life here; where when you say that an event will start at 10, that really means 12; you only have electricity when the generator is turned on after dark, and the toilet facilities are nothing more than a hole in the ground! But what an amazing adventure this has been!

The activities that were planned today were probably some of the most challenging of the trip thus far. First, we were helping out at a medical clinic in the morning. As people waited for medical treatment, we took some time to talk to them, ask them about their lives and pray for them. Bible verses were shared, and praise songs sung. There were just a few people that came to the clinic today, but we are expecting many more tomorrow.

The medical clinic will certainly be an experience that will put us all to the test. As we talk with these people, God will surely obliterate our comfort zone and call each of us to be His voice, and most importantly, a conduit of His love. As we were praying and sharing this morning, I came across this verse:

“Thus says the Lord to you, Do not be afraid……..for the battle is not yours but God’s” –Paraphrase from 2 Chronicles 20:15

As we keep this in mind, I pray that we will find peace as we realize that all we need to do is be receptive to the Lord’s voice and allow Him to use us how He wants. I know sometimes our own expectations can trip us a bit.

Second, we ran a VBS for the area children. We started out with who I call the “usual suspects,” the kids who normally show up at our huts early in the morning and hang out with us for the better part of the day. We had Julius (affectionately called Pastor Julius), Janet, Rose, Joseph (the cutest kid in the entire world), and a few others. We talked about how Jesus wept and how he understands how it feels to be sad. Since he is able to sympathize with us, He tells us that He will listen when we pray. We did a few fun activities with the kids, including making “God’s Eyes” and playing the now famous clothespin game. After the VBS ended the kids stayed to hang out with us for over an hour, just coloring, talking, and of course, knocking each other over to get their picture taken!

I am looking forward to tomorrow, though I am admittedly a little nervous about talking with people and sharing my faith and asking about theirs. But, as the song “Hope Now” by Addison Road says: “If everything comes down to love, then just what am I afraid of?” ‘Nuff said! The Lord’s got it covered!

Live from Kenya! New Years and Community Day in Eburru

From Jillian:

Hi all! Jillian here. The team agreed to let me blog today, since it’s New Year’s Day and New Year’s is my favorite holiday. I’ll be honest… I was a little bummed to be missing the festivities back home, but knew that celebrating in Kenya would be an interesting experience. We all camped out in the kitchen, preparing food for the New Year’s Community Day. At 11:30 we passed out some glow sticks which were donated to the team – pretty soon these became glowing earrings & halos. They were a big hit! We hung a “Happy New Year’s” sign in front of Tasty the Bull’s carcass and counted down with a live TV show from Nairobi before screaming and making noise to welcome in a new year. New Year’s in Kenya – definitely something I’ll remember forever!

The real fun came today though when the whole village of Eburru was invited to join Eburru church for a “Community Day”. We watched some incredibly fast runners compete in multiple races – the 2 km winner completed the race in just over 9 minutes! – and saw some great volleyball & futbol played. Everyone participated, from the little toddlers to the elderly “mamas”. Some of the team even got to participate, although none of them were at all in the running for a prize! J They actually had a race for women 50 years or older, and our team isn’t really sure if we could have won had we raced them. After feeding the community, we were able to share a devotional. All of the fun & games were a great way for Pastor Steve to share God’s love with a lot of the unchurched of Eburru. We’re praying that events like this convince the villagers of God’s love and make them want to know more. Please pray with us!

Live from Kenya: Blogs from the Field: Team Kenya 2009/2010

This just in! Team Kenya was somehow able to get internet access and sent along a few blog posts for us to have a look into what the trip has been like for them so far. Take a look at their stories and stay tuned as we hope to have even more to share later in the week!

December 28: Team is on its way to Kenya.
By Phil

Nine members of David’s Hope are en route to continue the service to the people of Eburru Kenya. As we write we are in the Paris airport resting from a long flight in from Dulles and resting up for 2 weeks of loving kids. We have taken over a small section of gate F55 with bags strewn on the seats and sound asleep bodies covering the floor. Monty has been traveling the longest, her journey began early Sunday morning as she flew from her home in Augusta, GA to Atlanta to DC and then met up with the rest of the team for our 7 hour flight to Paris. In a few hours Monty will get on another plane headed to Nairobi, Kenya. Angela has already been putting her photography skills and brand new camera to good use snapping pics of John as he sleeps seemingly lifeless on the floor. Fortunately John, one of our co-leaders did awake and is currently doing some pre-trip bible study. Brother and sister Nathan and Becca are sitting side by side trying to stay warm and hydrated, not a cheap task given that bottles of water cost $7.50. Always organized and encouraging Jillian has passed out little bags of goodies to everyone, which people pull out from time to time to much on. Denise made our trip through security more fun by quoting verses from James with a hilarious accent. Francis, no stranger to travel, growing up in Brazil, Canada and the U.S., now working for the World Bank, found a delicious pastry shop here in the airport with delightful ham and cheese sandwiches. Phil, who cannot figure out why he is not tired, has been spending some time coming up with activities for the business seminar.

December 29: We’re Here!
By Denise

Wow! We are only a few days into the trip, but yet there is already so much to share. First off, our journey to Eburru has been long and quite eventful. Three days after we stepped foot in Dulles Airport, we are finally settled in our cozy mud huts in the beautiful, green land and spotting zebras, baboons, and screeching large birds overhead. What an answer to prayer to see a green Kenya! After 10 months of drought, Kenya has been blessed with a few months of rain. Things that I will remember from the last few days include: walking through the slums of Kibera and seeing the most beautiful children living in absolute filth, meeting a dentist from NC who has lived 23 years of his adult life in Kenya and considering it “without sacrifice”, singing songs in Swahili with children, and sleeping in every airport and van ride that I could. It’s been full. It’s been blessed. And I can’t wait to see what lies ahead.

December 30: No Regrets
By Francis

Today we visited the hospital in Kijabe founded by Africa Inland Missions. It was quite an amazing experience to be stepping into one of the mission agencies that I studied in Perspectives class. While in that hospital, we met a missionary dentist. Dr Richard shared with us his story of how he came to Kenya with his family. I was strongly touched by something by his words: “I have no regrets”. I could see his conviction of his words in his eyes. This man came to serve in Kenya and lived a life with no regrets. How can you live such a life without regrets yourself?

First DHI Mission Team Has Landed in Kenya!

David’s Hope International is proud to announce that our first dedicated mission team has landed in Kenya!  This group of young adults from northern Virginia will be working with Pastor Steve and Mary doing a variety of activity related to the feeding program, the school, and the Hope House property.

The team will be sharing a few updates here on the DHI website/blog so be sure to subscribe or check back often to get updates from the field!

Prayer Requests from the team:Pre-trip Answered Prayers and Praises for DHI Team 2009-10

Team:

* Opportunity to return to Kenya to serve (Nate and Becca)
* God providing a really strong co-leader and an amazing team of people with different passions and backgrounds who all were called to serve in different ways from different experiences
* The pro-activeness of our team, and the level of organization from everyone in planning and preparing different aspects of the trip
* Amazing unity & bonding among our team, even after barely knowing each other with only a few months to prepare for this trip!

Retreat:

* God providing a place for us to have a really special team retreat through Francis’s friend Richard
* Everyone’s openness in sharing and serving each other during the retreat

Trip:

* Love and support from last year’s team, friends and family, also God providing financially for our team in big ways
* Logistics coming together with Pastor Steve and Mary
* Really cool project opportunities (feedings, women’s outreach, VBS, collecting stories for DHI, business seminar)
* Swahili lessons and cultural prep with Phil’s friend, Dorcas
* Random donations: after our retreat when Denise mentioned needing soap for a hygiene lesson. Before asking anyone, Jessica, a member from last year’s team emailed me saying she had a bag of small soaps that weren’t taken last year and asked if we could use them.
* Random support: My roommate, Emily, offered to host a pancake breakfast to raise money and awareness about our trip and we collected over $750 dollars!
* God just making himself very present in my life as a realize my absolute weakness and dependence on Him and those around me to lead this trip which goes along with my gratefulness for our teams passion to serve and organization which has made this so much easier to plan!
* Monty, who heard about a super-peanut butter that helps malnourished children was able to contact some peanut farmers in Georgia who donated 200lbs of this product to us to take!

* I called up my friend Cal, a professional video photographer, expecting 10 minutes of phone advice on how to shoot video on my little personal digital camera. Through God’s amazing provision, Cal donated his time to have me over to his house to teach me how to find the right backdrop, level of light and sound balance. Cal also offered for our team to borrow his super sweet camera, tripod and batteries! (Phil)
* God has already provided opportunities to share the Gospel with the nurses giving us shots for the trip to co-workers and family, by talking about our upcoming trip to Kenya

Other Praises from the Team:

* Generosity of people in providing encouragement and support… oftentimes from places I wouldn’t have expected
* My mom’s unexpected excitement for the trip and the cause

* A new boldness to share about what God is doing in my life in the workplace
* Unexpected generousity of my financial supporters
* A wonderful new “zest in my step” during a somewhat difficult Christmas season this year (aka feeling alone)
* The amazing curriculum of material my mom was able to get from Living Water International - which seems timely and needed given the article on Cholera “water-bourne illnesses”
* The constant reminders that God has his hands all over this trip (awesome bonding of team members already, amazing retreat location with PERFECT weather, the different personalities and spiritual giftings, the cheap(er) plane tickets, LASERTAG, the 7 HEAVY boxes of plumpynut in my kitchen, finding drivers to the airport two days after christmas, vehicles that can transport 18 suitcases and backpacks…so many)
* The chance to go on an ADVENTURE orchestrated by God
* Thinking about people and praying for things way beyond “my bubble”
* Knowing that Satan will attack us each but excited to stand up to the spiritual battle in the name of the Lord
* Being giddy for the first time in years
* The amazing support of my parents, who rock, now, always and forever
* Knowing that this trip was NEVER on my agenda and is totally a gift from God

Praises and Prayer Requests for December 2009

Thank you for being committed to praying for God’s work in Kenya through David’s Hope International. Here are some specific prayer points that you can lift up to the Lord on behalf of DHI.
We are sending our first mission team to Eburru in a few weeks.  Below are some specific prayer requests from the team:

• Preparation- spiritually, physically, emotionally
• Health and Safety for the team before, during and after the trip
• Wisdom- for John and Becca as they plan last minute details and any in-country decision making, for the team members as they pack and prepare for their activities, for Pastor Steve and his wife Mary (who we’ll be working with)
• Spirit of flexibility and team unity; Sense of surrender- understand that our expectations and plans may differ from what God has for us
• To really depend on God for the strength to do all that he has called us to do related to this trip
  opportunities before, during and after the trip to share about God with our friends, family, and the people of Kenya

General Requests

• God’s wisdom as to His priorities for Eburru
  Food, health, clothing, water, spiritual growth and education for the children of Eburru and Kenya as a whole country
• Successful ways to fund the projects-letters, fundraisers, donations etc.
• Needs in Eburru be seen and dealt with on a timely basis, for people to communicate when they are in need before it’s too late
• Future sustainable resources so the people can live independent of outside help
  For money to continually and successfully be transferred to Eburru
• Mary and Pastor Steve to get vistas so they can come to the US for both sharing their work, vision and to get some rest
  Wisdom about Morgan house and its future uses

Praises

• Over $24,000 that has been raised
• For the ministry of Pastor Steve, Mary and Jonathan his brother and others
• For all the willing workers and volunteers in the U.S. and Eburru
• For our web site that shares the dream and heartaches-check out the videos by pressing on vimeo section on the present video

Give the Gift of Hope this Christmas

The first annual David’s Hope International gift catalog is now available online.

Click here to browse the different options available for you to give the gift of hope to children in poverty.

Click the DONATE button to make a secure, tax-deductible online contribution.

Thank you and Merry Christmas!

Next Page »