Slum domination

Turning Point is taking over. The new Kianda project opened on Monday this week, 43 kids rocked up on the first day for tea and mandazi, teaching, stories, songs and games. It’s a really simple project for now, just a couple of hours in the mornings to start feeding the kids and getting to know them and their families. It will be a while until we understand what the needs are in the area and how to develop the project in a relevant way, so it may end up looking different to our project in Mashimoni.

Mary is the project mama on that side, its great to watch her with the kids she so loves them and she is not still for a moment she is always looking to who needs help, what needs doing, taking every opportunity to get alongside the kids and get to know them. Not to mention spending a lot of time cracking up. Mary is heading up a team of two other staff, Benson who helps with teaching and caring for the kids and Jane who cooks the tea and mandazi.

We went to visit the project again this morning, there were a few less kids than Monday but already the need for us to be there became evident in a kid called Daisy. She is maybe eight years old and had been beaten by the aunt she has lived with since her mum died. She was so upset, her arm was swollen and had also been burnt. So when we left this morning Mary was planning to go and find the aunt with Daisy once the program had finished and try to sort something out.

Jesus was evidently in the room as we prayed with Daisy for her protection, that His perfect love would push out her fear, that He would heal her arm. I kept thinking of how throughout the bible God calls us to speak up for those who don’t have a voice, to stand up for the powerless and that’s exactly what Mary is able to do for Daisy. God is all about redeeming situations, setting them right, putting families back together as He intended them to be so please be praying for this family. God is in the slums.

Also you may have heard that the long rains have taken their time about starting and the mamas at the farm were really struggling. We went up to the farm last week and did a prayer walk around the land, I know loads of people (probably the whole of Kenya) have been praying for rain so Pastor got soaked when he went to check up on the farm yesterday!