Addie Turns ONE Today ----Notes on Kenya Travel

First, HAPPY BIRTHDAY ADDIE...ONE YEAR OLD. WOW. I took this picture last night while Sarah, Ben, and Addie were visiting. Here's another great one with Nana:
Can't help but add one from earlier in the week...can you imagine how much fun these boys are??

Notes on Kenya:




This picture was taken in October 2007 after spending time with our friends from Nairobi, Kenya. Next to me is Pastor John Cichinga, and next to him is Jean Paul (JP) Ndagijimana, Country Director for World Relief, and my dear friend Pastor Joe Davis from EVFree Fullerton, my home church. We had been in meetings about planning for Crown Ministry (stewardship) training for pastors and staff in Nairobi key churches. Little did I know that the election on 12-27-07 would result in the violence and prompt the need for help for JP and World Relief. I will also be doing some bible studies on stewarship with his executive staff, and with senior pastors of some key churches in Nairobi. Following are some excepts that JP has sent with things for me to consider doing:
1-to unite the body of Christ—We now have over 100 pastors interested and taking part in what we are doing
2-Continue to Connect needs and resources—We have a matrix tool we use to collect distress call from all over Kenya, and we try to link the needs with big and small players who can respond. SO far we have had individual churches respond to a small group between 15 and 50 and we have managed to move big players such as World Food program to feed 10,000 plus Internally displaced peoples. We have coordinated Christian NGO’s response, and we continue to play the role of match making between needs and resources. We are recognized by the UN, the US Embassy, etc.
3-Continue to disseminate information—As a marketer, this should be one of your sweet spots as we applaud the great work church based volunteers are doing, etc.
4-Finally Continue to advocate for the vulnerable and the forgotten—we have new cases erupting on a daily basis and I have been running offices pleading and advocating for the dignity of human right. The last success was this last Sunday when a church managed camp was given evacuation order by the government on a less than 12hrs notice, and we managed to loby all heads of UN bodies and they convinced the government to extend the deadline by a week.

and the following came yesterday:
The national Alliance of Churches is one of many activities we hope you can help with, but not the only one.
We just got funding to start a microfinance scheme for women living with HIV and AIDS in one of the slums and I hope you will help us a great deal here with your banking skills.
We are working on our communication strategy as a country and I hope you will help us also a great deal
Peace and reconciliation workshop are about to start rolling and we can use your group leader skills in facilitating some workshops,
etc.

For a better understanding of what is happening in Kenya, go tohttp://community.wr.org/NETCOMMUNITY/Page.aspx?pid=865&srcid=865 . you will also see how World Relief is being a significant connector of the christian churches and the UN, Int'l Red Cross, World Food Program, and other agencies.

Please pray for me, and for Judy as she stays home and holds down the fort.