There has been quite a bit going on in Kenya at the Understand the Times and Lighthouse Trails sponsored mission project. Since Roger returned from his second trip to meet with Pastor Achilla and his pastoral team, 15 Bryce Homes for Children have now been started. Donations coming from both UTT and LT readers are supporting all these homes. While there isn’t a lot to spare, provision is coming in to make sure the children and caretakers of all these homes have food, clothing, and housing. Pastor Achilla has told us that this has really made a huge change in the community – people around are seeing the hand and love of God in a once-forgotten region.
The needs are very great there – that is an understatement! But we love to see the way God provides for specific needs right when they are most needed. For instance, about a month ago, we learned through Pastor Achilla one morning that the rains had come and the twelve teen girls at Bryce Home #12 in Suna had no jackets and were cold. About an hour later, a Lighthouse Trails reader called and told us that she had felt very strongly that she was to give something for the 12 girls. She asked if they had any specific needs. We told her about the need for jackets. By the following day, we had the money she gave to Pastor Achilla, who purchased jackets for all the girls and promptly delivered them in Suna.
Another time, that same donor called. The girls had just received their new school uniforms (they are required to wear these to attend the small Christian school for girls in Suna), but they needed socks and shoes. Within a couple days, thanks to the donation, the girls had their stockings and school shoes.
And there are other stories like these where God has provided the needs for this work in Kenya through the UTT and Lighthouse Trails donors.
Whether you are able to donate or not, we hope you will pray for these 12 girls and also for the children of the other 14 Bryce Homes. Sickness and disease are a constant threat. And then there are the extreme weather conditions (drought or torrents of rain or hail) that make life in Kenya very difficult much of the time. Water is often not easy to get, unless a good well is near by (which we do have at the location in Suna – praise God – thanks to donations from Lighthouse Trails readers), but many of the Bryce Homes do not have a working well near by.
In addition to health concerns, please pray that the children’s hearts will be receptive to the Gospel and God’s Word. While the Bryce Home project is certainly working to provide for basic physical needs (food, clothing, and housing) of the children (now over 110 children in Kenya), our greatest desire is to see all of these children raised in the ways of the Lord according to Scripture. UTT and LT have provided Bibles and other materials so that the pastors and other church leaders working with the homes will be able to grow spiritually themselves and teach the Word of God to the children and caretakers.
We’ve had to move slowly (as resources become available), and when we first launched the Bryce Home project, it was imperative that we first met the physical needs of the children. In many of the homes, the children were only getting one meal a day and several of the houses were leaking very badly. Some of the children did not have mattresses to sleep on or even their own blanket. Now all the children have enough food each day, mattresses, blankets, and other necessities. UTT has used donations to start building new houses where needed.
This week one of the homes – Widow Florence – burnt down. This happened when an ember from the cooking fire smoldered in a pile of clothing causing a full fledged fire around 11pm one night. Praise God that no one was hurt during the fire, but the house was destroyed as were all the belongings. There are 10 children who live with Widow Florence. UTT is going to finance to have a new house built for Florence and the children living there. We are in discussion with Pastor Achilla and the architect, Walter, to see that three rooms are put in new houses from now on, one solely for cooking. We are also working with them to develop a plan where a stone chimney and stove of some sort can be put into the new houses so the risk of fire is diminished. If you would like to donate to Widow Florence’s new house, please email UTT at: understandthetimes@cox.net or go to http://www.understandthetimes.org/ongoingkenya.shtml where you can donate online. You can specify what the donation is for.
We post ongoing stories and information about this work, which is supported solely by UTT and LT readers, in each newsletter. You may visit www.missionsfortruth.com (the LT missions site) and www.understandthetimes.org for more information, photos, and how to donate. Donations going to UTT are tax-deductible and used for food, housing, education, medical needs, agriculture, and other needs. Donations going to LT are not tax-deductible and used for clothing, medical, new construction, transportation costs, new Bibles, and other needs.
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