As the saying goes, “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” And that is very much true at Kingdom Driven Ministries.
The Marc Carrier family, serving KDM in Kenya since 2012, returned stateside in February of 2021, having brought the Kingdom Driven Ministries organization and our network of indigenous churches to a place of strength where it seemed like local leadership would be able to make a successful transition and step into a new (but similar) future.
Isaiah Carrier, the oldest son of Marc & Cindy, now has a family of his own in Kenya. He carries on the work that he has devoted himself to since his youth. He has volunteered with the mission since earning his GED at age 16 and earned his work permit at age 18. He began by serving as a general hand in our various “Great Commandment” programs and projects, and has worked as an evangelist and teacher, pioneered a music ministry to Kenyan youth, and now functions as a program administrator, also with the intention of empowering our local leadership and their fellowships to autonomous function.
Throughout the years and the changes they have brought, Kingdom Driven Ministries remains focused on its core mission:
“Expand the Kingdom of God locally and abroad through training, church planting, education, and ministering to the various diverse needs of the poor.”
With apologies, the blog here has not been updated in some time. There are many reasons for that, much of it a desire to maintain individuals’ privacy and do the Lord’s work in a quiet way. Marc shares more on his personal Facebook to “friends,” so anyone looking for more detail about the work of the ministry can try to friend him there.
In general, during this period of forced quietness during Covid-19, we have still been active, albeit in slightly different ways. KDM has, for the past year or so, been developing a dairy farm and tractor business to try and make the ministry here less dependent on foreign donors. We are learning as we go, but so far are pleased with the progress. Though far from being self-sustaining as a mission, we are working toward that goal with a unity that is, in itself, encouraging.
Tractor and trailer, ready to work!Baby cow being temporarily hosted by the Carrier family (pictured with Marc, Jr., known as “Mop”).
The work of our hands has kept us busy during the Covid-19 restrictions, even as our church gatherings, prayer meetings, and evangelism have (of necessity) decreased. We are trying to actively encourage the saints in our various groups through regular text and WhatsApp messages. Although not all our people are online, enough are, and there is still enough inter-personal communication among members on the ground, that people are hopefully remaining strong in the Lord and focused on what is important. Needless to say, we look forward to the day when all restrictions are lifted. But in the mean time, we are doing what we can to keep people connected.
The economic impacts here are real and people are financially struggling as work decreases and food prices increase. We were blessed to be able to send bags of maize and sweet potatoes on a couple of occasions to be distributed according to need through the local churches.
Maize and sweet potatoes, ready for distribution
Our medical program and malnourished/feeding programs continue unabated as essential services.
Our evangelists and teachers, while on temporary hiatus, volunteered their labor for several projects on the farm and many are now helping with various upgrades to the new Wajumbe Training Center. We can’t wait to open that up for our first class!
New platform for the water tank, plumbing upgrades to the facility.Adding multiple bathrooms (for bathing) and toilets for classroom use.
Within just the past week, some of our evangelists have returned to the harvest fields (while complying with existing government rules). We celebrated the baptism of two people recently, and give God much praise for the encouragement and hope this brings.
Our prayers remain with our brethren around the world; please continue to pray for us.
As you can see from the date of our last blog, we have not been regular enough in keeping our supporters and prayer partners abreast of what’s been going on here at Kingdom Driven Ministries. Facebook friends of Marc Carrier or Isaiah Carrier or Glenn Roseberry get regular updates that way, but unfortunately the blog has not been kept up very well. Perhaps we ought to make a resolution for 2018 but then, we’d have to let our yes be yes (Matthew 5:37), and it’s probably not wise to make that commitment.
Silence on the blog is not because there isn’t much going on; in fact, we’ve been so busy doing the work that we have little time to write about it. 2017 has been an amazing year and God has done great things! We recently looked at our 2017 financials in preparation for doing year-end accounting, which seemed a good way to present our year in review and let you see just a bit of what’s been going on here in East Africa. The financials do not represent any of the work done by Glenn Roseberry (primarily in Tanzania and Nairobi), as this is independently managed and accounted for. Glenn provides regular updates via Facebook, so that is a good place to catch up. The work reported here focuses on Kitale-area fellowships and evangelism, and various programs in the Carriers’ village community and the surrounding area. Below you can see the breakdown of funds by percentage and category.
In summary, we spent approximately $47,000 in Kenya. 27% went to medical treatment; 14% went to feeding the hungry; 10% was invested in clean water projects; 8% went to jigger treatment; and 10% went to other Great Commandment work (includes funerals, housing, weddings, and other services for the poor and needy). Therefore, 69% of KDM’s Kenya budget went directly to support the various needs of the poor in our area. The remaining funds supported our team of evangelists and “overhead,” or General Fund expenses.
General Fund expenses do not include support of any American missionaries; this type of personal donation can be made through KDM but must be earmarked as such. Instead, our General Fund (GF) provides a salary to a number of indigenous brethren who provide valuable services in evangelism, discipleship, and program management. To help you see how these GF funds are allotted, let’s look at November 2017 as a representative month (although every month is different).
To do both Great Commission work (kingdom expansion) and Great Commandment work (assisting the poor and needy), we need to have legal authorization, be able to communicate, have a place to work, and a way to get from place to place. That makes up our “overhead,” which is taken from the General Fund. Gasoline and public transportation used up 18% of our General fund spending in November. That was higher than normal because of hosting an American visitor (we used the car rather than motorcycle several days per week which consumes much more fuel). Legal paperwork consists of keeping passports and work permits current, and going to Nairobi necessitates overnights and meals. There were two such trips during November, though this is a bit atypical.
Our facilities are paid for, but during November we upgraded our solar to accommodate two additional families (KDM workers and brethren) in our compound. We also upgraded two phones for field workers.
The General Fund pays salaries for four field evangelists. During a normal month, the manager of our medical program is paid out of the Medical budget, but since there was a budget overage during November, his salary was paid out of the General Fund.
Taking an estimate from our November figures, General Fund expenditures are about 50% devoted to the Great Commandment (helping the poor) and 50% to the Great Commission (spreading the gospel and making disciples: kingdom expansion work). Overall, then, approximately 80% of our total budget assists the poor and needy, and 20% is applied to kingdom expansion. However, this does not in any way represent the proportion of effort applied to the two tasks; it is just that the Great Commandment work requires more funding than does the Great Commission effort.
With that said, this is a brief summary of spending, not results. Let’s put a face on just a few of this year’s numbers.
As you can see from the graphs, the lion’s share of funding goes to our medical program, which we allocate as “regular medical” and “special medical.” We spend approximately $300-$400 per month on acute medical needs among the impoverished in our village: treating malaria and typhoid, broken limbs, various infections, and so on. We send an average of 15 such patients per month for treatments at our local clinic or hospitals. Larger medical needs are solicited on a case-by-case basis.
One of the most expensive cases we took on this year was that of Mary Nelima, a 42 year-old mother of three who was the victim of a motorbike accident in 2012. Her medical care for a shattered femur was minimal because funding was simply not available. Once she was left disabled, her husband abandoned her and she was forced to return to her parents’ home along with her three children. Unable to work, you can imagine the life that she and her children have lived for the last five years. When she developed signs of infection in her leg (pain, pus discharge, and even splinters of bone coming out of a now-festering wound), she came to us for assistance. We took her to a private, orthopedic hospital and were given an estimate of $3,000, which we assumed would take care of existing infection and address a long-term solution for her leg. Instead, she was immediately admitted and treated for chronic osteomyletis (bone infection), which had progressed for so long that it was very hard to treat. And because it will likely return, no further work was recommended by the surgeon.
Mary, upon discharge from the hospital
Mary spent three weeks in the hospital, where her bone was scraped repeatedly and she was given strong antibiotics by IV. Eventually, the infection was brought under control and she has been discharged, though she continues to take oral antibiotics at a cost of approximately $100 per month. The outcome was not what we had hoped for (in terms of allowing her full use of her leg), yet she praises God for healing the infection and all of its effects. Please pray with us that though diagnosed as “chronic,” the infection would not return.
Violet Osia was just one patient who came through our regular medical program during the month of October. She is a widow and mother of two who lives in our village. Her husband passed away two years ago after being poisoned by “friends” while drinking alcohol, thus leaving the responsibility of raising their two daughters with Violet. Just a few weeks ago, Violet’s neighbor broke into her single-room house and stole several bags of dry maize which Violet had stored for her children as food during the hunger period. When Violet confronted the neighbor and demanded that he return her property, the man got extremely angry at her, finally chopping at her hand with his machete. Violet’s two small children watched in horror, unable to help their mother, as the neighbor ran away. Thankfully, some good Samaritans rushed her to us so that she could receive the necessary first aid.
Our food program is designed to provide a small but consistent amount of dry maize (a staple here) for those with food needs, especially widows, the elderly , and the disabled. At present, approximately 80 people per week receive food assistance! Here are some of their faces, from one of our weekly distribution days during the month of September:
During 2017, we also regularly served plus-or-minus 7 malnourished children, providing them with protein-rich foods, porridge, milk, oil, and sugar, to supplement their regular diet. In one particularly sad case, a child died even though every effort was made to rehabilitate him after his circumstances were discovered. However, others have formally “exited” the program after making great gains and being given a seal of approval by our local nutritionist. This three year-old, a particularly pressing case we took on this year, is making great gains. He added about 2 kg of weight in just months, but he is still receiving assistance:
Our evangelistic efforts have resulted in large numbers of baptisms and our evangelists and teachers are also devoted to ongoing discipleship. One of our evangelists, a former Imam, has slowly but surely been exposing his multi-generational Muslim family to the gospel of the kingdom, and we rejoiced when his younger brother renounced Islam, repented of his sins, and was baptized just months ago!
One of the highlights of our year has been instituting weekly kesha (the Swahili word for “watch,” which also refers to the practice of an all-night prayer meeting) and monthly multi-day, corporate fasting meetings. This has been great for discipleship, as we spend some time teaching, but it has also fostered an incredible unity among the brethren and we have really seen an operation of the gifts of the Spirit as we gather together regularly. Attendance remains high and we rejoice to see how God has so faithfully answered our prayers: guiding the mission here, strengthening the brethren, growing our fellowships, and bringing healing and deliverance. We praise God for all He has done this year, and hope that this little glimpse will show you how many lives have been impacted for the kingdom of God because of you, our faithful supporters. Please continue to keep us in prayer during the coming year.
Kingdom Driven Ministries is just a convenient vehicle through which saints around the world contribute to the work that God is doing, whether it be in expanding the Kingdom, discipleship, meeting medical needs, providing food for the hungry, or developing clean water sources. We are blessed to have many indigenous brothers and sisters working with us on a daily basis to see that this work is done efficiently and with integrity and compassion. One of our deacons, Silas, felt the Lord’s leading to spend much of his free time during the month of October coordinating with other brothers to reach out into a number of fellowships and communities to remove jiggers.
A jigger infestation of the feet
Jiggers, or sand fleas, are the scourge of village life in Africa. Though they can be minimized by regular bathing and removed one-by-one with a razor blade, one quickly turns to many because jiggers live abundantly in the dirt, and most home construction here is dirt-floor and mud walls. Jiggers conveniently implant themselves in any part of the body that maintains prolonged contact with the dirt—typically the feet, as folks usually walk barefoot, but it can be the knees (if they are kneeling, for example, to weed their crops by hand in their fields), or evens legs or arms (particularly in the case of impoverished children who do not have sleeping mats but rather sleep on their dirty clothes or even directly on the dirt floor). A single jigger is uncomfortable; an infestation is downright excruciating, as layer upon layer of jiggers lay eggs and reproduce in their human hosts. They are active at night, preventing sleep. Approximately $20 worth of investment enabled our brother Silas to alleviate the suffering of many in our communities, and we praise the Lord for putting it on Silas’s heart and for providing financially through His people. We hope to continue this work as the Lord leads. If you would like to contribute toward this initiative, or other works like it, visit www.kingdomdriven.org/donate.
Imagine with me, if you will, being a young man and the sole support for a wife and three growing children. One child is in school and you must pay for her uniform, books, and other supplies, even though her education is technically “free.” The other two children must be cared for and you are happy that your wife can be invested in the things of home while you make yourself available to work.
Unfortunately, you live in a small village. Opportunities for work are rare, though you sometimes get day labor, usually swinging your jembe (hoe) and weeding fields of maize. You make a few hundred shillings—really, just enough for the day’s needs. Only the Lord knows how you will pay the school expenses when they become due. To stretch your shillings you might only have tea for breakfast and lunch, then a filling meal of ugali and greens for supper. You persevere, doing what you can each day. “Give us this day our daily bread” is your reality.
Such was the life of Anthony Mirundu. He and his wife, faithful adherents of a local denominational church, trusted in God for their provision. Yet an unexpected turn of events put their faith to a very real test. A small growth appeared on Anthony’s wrist. Over time, it grew aggressively. The sight of it was appalling; finding work became increasingly difficulty as Anthony could no longer hide the disability. While some families would still be able to survive by growing a crop of maize to last them through the year, Anthony was not so fortunate. He does not own enough land for farming, and the family was even too poor for him to seek medical care.
In time, things got bad enough that Anthony was brought to Kingdom Driven Ministries in hopes of getting some medical assistance. He was sent to a local hospital for scanning and consultation. It was determined that the growth on his wrist was cancerous, but the cancer had not yet metastasized. Anthony was concerned, yet relieved at the same time. Unfortunately, his only option was an amputation of his arm at the elbow. Though the idea of such a radical surgery and resulting life change was daunting, the alternative—death from cancer—was certainly not desirable, either.
It has now been almost two months since Anthony’s surgery. He has physically healed and has learned to do life with some limitations. Yet, as a man and the sole support for his young family, he feels at a loss and, to a point, despairing of his future. He can no longer work a jembe in the fields. His wife can do the work, but that leaves her often busy and unable to care for needs in the home and with their small children. For her to work outside the home is just not practical at this juncture. How can they pay for their oldest child’s school needs and get the few daily things they need: maize, soap, oil, sugar for their breakfast tea?
We would like to assist Anthony in setting up a small business that would permit him to have an ongoing source of income for his household. We have talked about him raising and selling chickens, or perhaps opening a small shop where people can buy staple goods. There don’t seem to be any shops locally, so such a business might be profitable for Anthony. We will continue to ask questions and assess what might be best in his situation. What we need at this juncture is for someone with a heart to help, to step up and offer hope to Anthony and his family. A financial gift of $150 or even $200 could set Anthony up with something that, ideally, will be self-sustaining and support his family on an ongoing basis. What a blessing, in many ways, this will be to a man who continues to trust God in spite of such challenging circumstances.
If you would like to assist, you can donate toward Great Commandment needs at www.kingdomdriven.org/donate. You can note at checkout that it is for Anthony. And regardless of whether nor not you can help financially, please pray for this need, for Anthony and his family, and for his continued spiritual growth and perseverance in time of trial. God bless you.
The monthly gifts we receive towards our medical missions program are the lifeblood of our work here in the village, where many impoverished people often have to choose between food and medicine. Everyone likes to hear about the impact of their generosity. Photos and stories are a great way to give that feedback, and we strive to let folks know that what you are doing makes a difference! But sometimes at the end of the month, as we try to faithfully report how many and what maladies have been treated, it seems that everyone “just” has malaria. Perhaps there’s really nothing glamorous about treating a bunch of people for malaria, but don’t think it’s nothing. Come with me as I introduce you to Silvia, the daughter of one of the wazee (“old men”) in our fellowship.
Silvia
Silvia exhibited symptoms of malaria in 2010; she was a normal, 19 year-old village girl who lived at home and helped with the daily tasks of fetching water, making meals, and whatever else needed to be done. At the time, money simply wasn’t available to treat her, but that so often happens here. Many don’t have 100 shillings ($1) to buy malaria medicine, so they go to the local shop and get a small package of two “Mara Moja” tablets (the equivalent of Excederin). The fever goes down temporarily, the body aches subside, and if you asked them if they took medicine, they will say, “Yes!” But the malaria is still there. The fever may never go down below 100 degrees Farenheit, even with the Mara Moja. But it’s better than it was, it allows for some sleep, and things seem better for a few hours. Then what? This cycle can go on for days, even a week or more.
Such was the case with Silvia. And unfortunately, because of the delay in proper treatment, her malaria took a turn for the worse…it crossed the blood/brain barrier and became “cerebral malaria.” Treatment, in this case, is usually too little and too late. But she lived, praise the Lord. Even so, now she has frequent epileptic seizures and takes daily pills (when the family can afford the 90 shillings to get a month’s worth of medication). She has also visited our District Hospital more than once for psychological examinations and medications. On good days, she can function in a normal manner. But there are many not-so-good days. Her father has sadly reported that “she only wants to get married and raise a family like other girls her age!” but he knows that, because of her physical and psychological deficiencies, she will be at home with him until he can no longer care for her. And then what?
Another young mother of two small children in our community was likewise affected by cerebral malaria and, as a result, abandoned by her husband. She struggled to care for the children on her own for a time, not realizing her new deficiencies. Thankfully, eventually she returned to the family home, where the grandmother brought her now-malnourished children to KDM. After emergency medical interventions, they are now ongoing recipients of monthly, nutrient-dense food packages through our malnourished children’s food program. (This is another significant area where our donors don’t get dramatic feedback…but they are faithfully, quietly making a difference!)
These are the effects of untreated malaria.
We thought of Silvia recently when our own 8 year-old son, Micah, came down with malaria. We are fortunate that at the first sign of fever, we can take him to the local clinic for a test. He got an immediate injection of malaria meds (the first of three daily injections) and a Diclofenac injection for his fever, as he was nauseous and vomiting and couldn’t take oral medication. We were thankful to see improvement within just an hour, and saw a light at the end of the tunnel when he was able to enjoy spaghetti supper with the family without vomiting. But by the next morning his fever was back up and his nausea had returned. We went back to the clinic for his second injection, and he immediately fell asleep on the couch when we returned home. I (Cindy) was working in the kitchen preparing lunch a couple hours later when Micah came in to talk to me. I could see that he looked a little “out of it”–his eyes didn’t seem to be focusing on me. His voice wavered, and I realized quickly that he wasn’t even speaking in coherent sentences. He would enunciate a few words, then falter off into mumbling. Trying again, he seemed to be trying to communicate something totally different, but still with the same result. I put my hands on his head, prayed for him, and sent him back to the couch with some rehydration drink, hoping for the best.
The rest of the afternoon passed with some uncertainty, we being very concerned at the possibility of cerebral malaria and what it could mean. However, there was not much that could be done outside of prayer, as he had already begun treatment. Thankfully, by the next morning, Micah had returned to himself. After his third injection, he was back to complete health. But it’s not lost on us that the outcome could have been far different. It was for Silvia, and for others that we know in our village. And, if we did not have faithful donors assisting with timely malaria treatment for our community and folks in our fellowships, the statistics in our area might well be far worse.
Doctors at our partner clinic, Solonamu Medical Centre, helped us to understand the risks associated with malaria a little better. They acknowledge malaria as perhaps the worst disease in Africa. The World Health Organization reported almost a half-million deaths from the disease in sub-Saharan Africa in 2015, the majority of them children. Severe malaria, and its permanent health effects, typically occur as a result of delayed treatments, particularly if the delay is a week or more (which we have found is not unusual). Cerebral malaria is among the complications that arise. Other complications can include liver or kidney failure, or rupture of the spleen. Untreated malaria can lead to chronic re-infection, as the parasites “hide” in the liver and re-emerge at a later point in their reproductive cycle.
Aside from the physical effects of the disease, there a couple of other problems associated with malaria: one, folks typically can’t afford both a malaria test AND medicine, so they usually self-diagnose and self-treat. The over-use of certain drugs (even when malaria is not actually present) has led to resistance to some types of anti-malaria drugs commonly used for treatment.
Secondly, when people are affected with malaria and don’t get treatment, mosquitoes can spread the infection to others. This is significant to everyone, but particularly to pregnant women, as malaria infection during pregnancy can lead to many ill effects for the developing baby, if an immediate miscarriage does not result. (This is particularly relevant to me, as one of our babies became a miscarriage statistic due to one of my bouts of malaria a couple years ago.)
However, as more and more people in a community are able to get proper diagnosis and treatment, not only is their individual health improved and risks avoided, but fewer people in their community will be infected with the disease. Though it is unlikely that malaria can be eradicated in endemic regions, the effects can certainly be ameliorated. Lab confirmation of malaria and timely treatment are vital! This is the work of KDM: referring the sick to the clinic, and getting them treated as soon as possible when symptoms of malaria occur. Sending someone to the clinic, getting them tested, and medicine in the form of tablets or injections might only cost $8 or $10 (with the cost of transportation by piki piki included). We rely on our donors to accomplish this every month…so know that when we are “just treating malaria” (even if there aren’t any dramatic stories to tell), you are making a significant difference in someone’s quality of life, and in the overall health of a community at risk. God bless you for your heart and your generosity toward this work.
If you are not giving regularly toward KDM’s Urgent needs/Medical fund and would like to, feel free to visit www.KingdomDriven.org/donate.
Perhaps you remember our first report of 6 year-old Faith Anita, whose deformity of the spine/neck was debilitating her, and whose family has been financially unable to get her the care she needs.
At that time, while we had a great deal of sympathy for little Faith and wanted very much to assist her, we were also not in a position to report with certainty her condition, or what would be needed to complete her treatment. But we thank God for granting us an opportunity (through those who so compassionately gave for this need) to take over the process of restoring Faith’s health and future hope.
After several visits to medical institutions here in Kenya, we were assured that the disease can be treated, though it will be a lengthy process requiring further financial resources. Preliminary laboratory tests and x-ray scanning reveal that Faith \is suffering from advanced scoliosis, in this case an exaggeration of the thoracic curve that causes a pronounced hump or backward bend in the upper back–a so-called Gibbus deformity that pitches the shoulders and neck forward of the normal gravity line. This condition has greatly hindered her physical growth and limits her ability to walk straight and upright. It has also been socially debilitating as far as her friendships and her ability to engage in schooling as other girls her age do.
According to the local orthopedist, the next step is radiology scanning to determine the best course of treatment. There is a possibility of stents placement, which will help in straightening the thoracic spinal cavity. (Stents placement is a surgical process.)
Thus far, your generosity has enabled us to begin the process of healing for Anita, and now we need your help to continue! Though it is difficult to get accurate estimates for medical procedures here, we have been told that the next phase of her care can be addressed for approximately $250. Once again, we invite anyone interested to lend a helping hand by giving at www.KingdomDriven.org/donate. You can earmark the funds for Great Commandment/medical or make a note at checkout that your gift is for Faith Anita. As our Lord has promised, you will store up for yourself treasures in Heaven as you bless little Faith in her time of need!
It with a mixture of joy and sorrow that we share the report of a successful surgery for Anthony Mirundu. We are so thankful for those of you who have made it financially possible for him to have the tumor on his wrist evaluated in recent months. Though the report of cancer was disappointing, it was not a surprise, and we were happy to know that there was as-yet no metastasis. Anthony was given hope through the possibility of amputating his arm at the elbow, an option that he embraced in hopes of prolonging his life for his wife and young children.
On Thursday last week, at around 9 pm, the surgery was finally completed. Though he is now handicapped, both KDM and Anthony know that it is better to have lost partial use of a limb than to experience the slow growth of cancer and its inevitable consequences. We pray that this experience will cause Anthony to contemplate eternal things and perhaps draw closer to the Creator who loves him.
We also ask that you all pray fervently for Anthony during his recovery period, for the inevitable life transition that this will be for him. Life won’t be the same again to him, his family and friends and community may not treat him the same, but we know that the LORD remains the same. Please remember Anthony in sympathy and compassion of Christ.
As of this writing, the Carrier family has moved from Kenya to Uganda and we have been adjusting to our new home and community for about the past two weeks. For the most part, the transition has been remarkably smooth, mostly because we’ve been in Kenya already and there are many similarities. As well, Marc and Isaiah both spent quite some time in Uganda as our home was being built, so we were pretty much in move-in condition when we arrived.
We had to drive our large family in two shifts: Marc with the older children, the two dogs and three cats, and some of our household supplies and tools on trip one. On trip two, the younger children and me (Cindy) with clothes, school books, and whatever else remained of our household items. The animals needed more paperwork to cross the border than most of us people did, but they made the trip unexpectedly well and have adjusted as can be expected. Except for our big German Shepherd male, Rex…he had been in the habit of getting out of our fenced yard in Kenya in order to “sow his wild oats,” as they say. In this regard, he was incorrigible, and we were constantly repairing the fence where he ripped holes in it with his teeth or where he dug under to escape. Here, we proactively engineered our fence to be “Rex-proof,” and we are happy to report success! However, Rex is not exactly happy with the new arrangement and has taken it upon himself to chew anything and everything that gets left outside overnight. In lieu of any such items, he has consistently uprooted one of the trees in our front yard. We dig and re-plant, he digs and uproots. And repeat. But at least he stays in the yard.
Rex, who is ashamed, yet unrepentant, about his tree-digging escapadesHand washing station
We began our life in Kenya with no electricity or running water. Here, Isaiah had spent enough time before our arrival that we were wired for solar, with lighting in every room. However, our attempt at digging a borehole (which we would develop into a well) dramatically failed, so we are back to fetching water, washing dishes outside and sponge-bathing in basins, etc. Isaiah made a pretty neat set-up in our dining area for easy hand washing and also a spigot for drinking water, which adds a small level of convenience. We quickly discovered that although the locals drink the lake water, it’s really not a great idea. (It’s brown…has stuff floating in it…and is kind of swampy-smelling.) We add some bleach to it and use it for laundry, bathing, dish washing, and hand washing, but one of our neighbors gets us clean water for drinking and cooking from a local school (about 4 km away) for a decent price as often as we need it. Praise the Lord!
I’m sure the Lord allowed the failure of the borehole, as afterwards a KDM donor who had previously funded a water project in Kenya offered to assist with digging a community borehole on our property. It will be developed with a pump for clean water. That project is now underway, and we look forward to what it will mean not only to us, but our entire community.
Boys with snake skin
So, yes, we’re on Lake Victoria, which is a big excitement for the kids. They spent quite a long time observing a species of monkey different than the ubiquitous Colobus monkeys of Kenya. We’ve studied all the local species of snakes (at least, until our “Reptiles and Amphibians of East Africa” book got left outside and chewed on by Rex…ugh…), and when Jonah, Micah, and Enoch went down to the lake one afternoon, they found a Black Mamba skin about 6 feet long! Though I’m glad they didn’t meet him face-to-face, we now make sure they do all their adventuring in pairs or threes. All carry hefty wooden sticks (for confirming that brush areas are clear of snakes, and for defending against any snakes that chance to be laying around!) and big kids carry pangas (machetes), just in case. Our access to Lake Victoria is disappointingly inadequate, as it is very overgrown, marshy and muddy. We’ve decided to try and have it cleared, in hopes that we will one day be able to walk into the water, maybe even from a beach, or at least launch a small boat (something all the children are looking forward to).
Boats needed for clearing deeper water
Clearing a path to the water
Our local “market days” are Wednesday and Thursday. I’m enjoying that this local outdoor market is within walking distance and on the lake. Many of the vendors and shoppers come from islands on the lake–here’s a handmade wooden boat used for ferrying passengers on shore for repairs, about 50 feet long:
The selection at the market is not really what we’ve been used to in Kenya. Fruits and vegetables are pretty limited, which I find difficult, but fish, as you can imagine on Lake Victoria, is plentiful and cheap–a welcome change! We’re having to adjust our eating habits once again as we rely on market days for fresh food, since the local shops really don’t offer much by way of variety–only staples like flour, sugar, baking powder, rice, oil, and eggs. It’s quite a trip to get any unusual items that we use with some regularity, like my instant coffee, margarine, simple seasonings, vinegar, and “Irish potatoes” (white potatoes, as opposed to the local sweet potatoes), so that’s an adjustment as well. We definitely appreciate that Ugandan food prices, thus far, seem to be better on the budget than those in Kenya.
Mission-wise, things are progressing slow-and-steady. Because Marc and Isaiah spent some time here before our move (along with our Kenya evangelists/teachers Lazarus and Nashon), there was a small fellowship already established prior to our permanent arrival. Marc has been teaching a small group of guys a couple of days per week, as well as meeting up with many of them during the week for one-on-one conversations and discipleship. Nashon has been living on our compound in one of two small mud houses, so he also visits with a lot of the guys and continues to teach seekers and evangelize in new areas locally. In Kenya, we had to start the mission with a mzungu face because we didn’t have a Kenyan partner for quite some time. It is nice that now our goal can be realized: minimizing the mzungu so that a sustainable, reproducible mission will develop–hopefully more quickly than it did in Kenya. I would say that Marc is a bit uncomfortable with the comparatively slow pace of the mission; he had been very busy in Kenya and enjoys being productive with his time, especially as concerns the things of the Kingdom. Yet I have heard him counsel many others that “sometimes you have to go slow to go fast.” Perhaps this is just a time when he needs to take his own advice!
Our local fellowship
Recent baptism
Saturday teaching
Nashon at home
Thanks to all those who have supported us financially and especially through prayer as we have transitioned to Uganda. We look forward to seeing what God will continue to do in this new place!
Not too long ago, Veronica, wife of John and mother to 6 year-old Faith Anita, came to visit us at Kingdom Driven Ministries with her little girl. Here is their story, in her own words:
“In the year of 2012, when my daughter was 3 years old, we saw a small node on her back but we never knew what it was. We thought it was something that would go away after a little while, but to our great surprise it kept on growing and growing until it became a huge mountain on her back.” As we interviewed her, Veronica’s eyes filled with tears, but she continued. “We thought of taking her to hospital for medical assistance, but before we took the step, another bad luck came upon us; my husband was fired from his work as a watchman, and so we were unable to afford even our own meal. We were forced to watch our daughter’s condition deteriorating day after day. We thank God for bringing Silas our way, who shared with us about Christ and linked us with Mzee Timothy.”
Faith
Faith and her Mom, Veronica
As you can see in the photos, this painful deformity has affected little Faith normal growth. We yearn to help this family and bring new hope to them. We are likewise sure that many of our faithful supporters will be moved with compassion to help this young girl. However, we are not even sure what to ask for. We are not doctors, and Faith has yet to see a medical professional regarding this problem; we would only surmise that it could be scoliosis or perhaps spinal TB. In either case, treatment might be in the $200-$300 range, but a smaller amount would at least get us started with a consultation at the local hospital. Depending on the diagnosis, we could then move forward as we have ability.
If you wish to help Faith, you may give to Urgent Needs/Medical or earmark funds in a note at checkout at www.KingdomDriven.org/donate. Please pray for provision for this need and that Faith can get the treatment she needs.
Within just the past week, some of our evangelists have returned to the harvest fields (while complying with existing government rules). We celebrated the baptism of two people recently, and give God much praise for the encouragement and hope this brings.
Such was the life of Anthony Mirundu. He and his wife, faithful adherents of a local denominational church, trusted in God for their provision. Yet an unexpected turn of events put their faith to a very real test. A small growth appeared on Anthony’s wrist. Over time, it grew aggressively. The sight of it was appalling; finding work became increasingly difficulty as Anthony could no longer hide the disability. While some families would still be able to survive by growing a crop of maize to last them through the year, Anthony was not so fortunate. He does not own enough land for farming, and the family was even too poor for him to seek medical care.
