A couple of days ago we were walking through a poverty stricken part of Nairobi and a tall slender African man, by the name of Silvester, approached me to speak of his orphanage. To be quite honest, he might have thought me to be rude as I did not engage him in much conversation. You see, we have found there to be more need here than our family can manage and Paul has strongly cautioned me not to make any type of commitment to the African people. If you tell an African will do something, they take you at your word and expect nothing less. So we rely on Benjamin (the man in the picture helping Micah) and Pastor Garrishon to filter the legitimate needs and those we can trust. Both of these men know Silvester, the Director of the Foundation for Orphaned Children, and they have known him for years. Silvester had come to us and asked for prayer. Today we visited FOC's classroom for young children and we were able to pray specifically for two children HIV positive. Together with Micah, Paul and I went around and prayed individually for each row of children. Kaden, the candy loving kid that he is, was meticulous to give each child a choice of 6 different types of candy. Micah blew up a soccer ball and we gave the teacher an assortment of beach balls, jump ropes (which they were thrilled over), toothbrushes and some toothpaste. Some of the children's teeth were rotted almost to the gum line but they smiled with delight over the treats. Thank you again Tiffany and Laurel for packing us an amazing bag of giveaways.
The children were so sweet to sing us some of their songs and recite some of the scripture they have been taught. One of the two teachers knew that we were coming and had made Paul and the boys beaded necklaces with a shell and she made me a beautiful necklace as well. It is so hard to take a gift when they barely have enough to eat. When we were leaving, Silvester was off to purchase food for the children's lunch so we were able to provide the children with food. Thank you Mrs. Holllier and Mrs. Pendley. You have blessed my children tremendously and now today you made a difference in the lives of children in Kenya!
The funniest thing that happened today was the children wiping Micah's arm. I wasn't sure what they were doing until Benjamin explained to me that they were trying to see if the white would come off. The little girl in the picture, touching Micah, was convinced that she could remove the white to see the black. Ha.
If anyone is interested in looking at the website for the
Foundation for Orphaned Children, the address is:
http://www.foundationfororphanedchildren.bravehost.com/
Oh, and I'm so sorry for neglecting to say that Paul was able to get Kaden a rescue inhaler of Albuterol. He took it this morning and did not cough again until late tonight. Now it is raining and Kaden told me about two hours ago, "Mom, I think I'm ready for bed."
Note: The little girl in the picture with the pink hooded jacket has a heart condition. She is no longer in FOC's school but Silvester knew her. When I prayed for her, I put my hand on her chest and I could feel her heart beating through her jacket.
Lord, please hear our prayers !!!!!
