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The 1947 Christmas movie Miracle on 34th Street is about a little girl and her mother who are surprised by the gift of a house for Christmas from Santa Claus. We have good news to share- much better than this Christmas classic- about one of our students in Kenya and a real Christmas miracle that just unfolded over the last few weeks.  One of our students named Melvin is an orphan who lives with her aunt and uncle along with her three siblings and five cousins. The house they lived in did not have enough space for all of them, and some of them had to sleep outside which was dangerous for the children.  Steve and Ann McGregor from Charles City, Iowa have sponsored Melvin, and when they found out about her living situation, they offered to help build her a house for Christmas adding to funds raised from the last Rafiki Run. And within just a few short weeks, the materials were purchased, and the construction was done between December 3-6.  On Friday last week, Melvin came home from boarding school not expecting to find a new house on the site of their property, and she was crying tears of joy.  Today (December 20), Bishop Kaaleng (founding pastor of Children of the Kingdom) and Veronica Lemuya (current Children of the Kingdom director in Kenya) gathered a small group of former and current Children of the Kingdom students along with church members and other people in the village to come together for a house blessing.   May you and your family have a very merry Christmas, and may you be blessed knowing that your gifts to Children of the Kingdom really are making lasting difference and helping to make miracles unfold in the lives of our brothers and sisters in Kenya and in India.  Melvin pictured above (age 16) 
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This fall, we have had several students graduate from programs, and there is much to celebrate as we recognize the achievements of their hard work through the years. In the midst of a world that seems very dark right now with weariness from Covid-19 still being an unwelcome guest along with political divisions and global challenges, good news is hard to come by. So take a moment to read this letter written by one of our top students, and give thanks to God with us for what He has done in and through her life through Children of the Kingdom!  My name is Deborah. I’m 22 years old. I was brought up in a Christian family and am the first born in my family. God has been gracious and full of unending love, for He has been our provider, our sustainer, our hope, and our every good thing. I was privileged to get sponsorship from Children of the Kingdom at a young age. It was all God’s doing through the hands of the concerned individuals that I got this opportunity and the blessings of being a child in this program.
Being in Children of the Kingdom has really transformed my life from all angles, and it has given me the opportunity to learn a lot of things. It has given me the joy of being an ambassador of Christ, and it has gifted me the happiness of pursuing my academic life with minimal struggles. I have not only turned out strong spiritually, but also socially, academically, and economically, and I can proudly look back with assurance that I have lived up to Children of the Kingdom’s commitment to equip us to be servants in the Kingdom. I’m so grateful. My loving parents are pastors at International Pentecostal Holiness Church in Nataparkakono. We are a happy family, and I have one sister and two brothers. God has always seen us through, and everything has always turned out for the good at the end of every single struggle. I started my primary education at Loyo Primary School from class one to class three, and I later transferred to Lodwar Girls Primary School in 2010 from class four to class eight. In 2014, I managed to score high marks for my Kenya Certificate of Primary Education. My primary level learning experience was a success through the help of Children of the Kingdom which gave me support with finances, school uniforms, books, pens, and all other academic necessities. I later on joined Our Lady’s Girls Secondary School from 2015 to 2018 for form one to form four, and I managed to pass and get my Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education. My education journey was challenging as I was learning different things every day, and nothing was easy compared to my primary level education. But my full time gratitude goes to God and the entire Children of the Kingdom family at large for their moral and financial support. In September 2019, through the continuous support from my sponsor and from Children of the Kingdom, I joined KCA University and I took a diploma course in procurement and logistics management. In addition to school, I had the added responsibilities of managing many things as an adult. Through the help of my loving parents, I was able to cater for my other expenses outside my school fees. I finished my diploma studies in April 2021, and I was privileged to secure an internship opportunity in the Ministry of Health Services and Sanitation in Turkana. This helped advance my learning in the classroom into a practical zone of experience as I was able to acquire skills and gain knowledge in the field. This was a big breakthrough for me as I can proudly tell myself that learned so much through this experience. I graduated from this part of my program with a diploma in Procurement and Logistics Management. I’m so grateful and I am so proud of this accomplishment. I started the next step of my program to earn my degree in the same course in September 2021, and it’s my prayer through the support of my sponsor and Children of the Kingdom at large that I will complete the program. I want to start by deeply thanking my sponsors, Jane and Brevard Haynes, for their love, moral support, prayers, and financial support. Thank you for always ensuring that my academic life could be a success. I pray that God will bless you abundantly. I wish to sincerely thank all involved in the Children of the Kingdom organization, , especially Madam Director Veronica Lemuya for always being a supportive and understanding mom, a caring and loving friend, and always being my number one teacher of life. She really inspires me and shows me the essence of working hard in life. Being a girl child in Children of the Kingdom, Madam Director has been always an easy person to approach not only as one who challenges gender narratives but also as an understanding mom; she is a role model to many young ladies in Children of the Kingdom. My great appreciation goes to the rest of Children of the Kingdom staff for their support and for giving me an opportunity to pursue my dreams. May God bless you. As we all take time to reflect on the challenges the pandemic has brought to us, we would like to highlight a handful of heroes who have devoted themselves to supporting children and families in Kenya over the last 18 months. Martha Koech Martha serves as an administrator in the Children of the Kingdom office in Kenya, and she is a mother of one child. During Covid-19, she has shown herself to be a strong leader as she has supported children through some very difficult times. She goes the extra mile (literally) to make home visits to children in the program, and she knows the children and their families well. During times when the community went into lockdown, it was not easy to get information about how the children were faring, but she made a way to keep the connections and to continue to show support. Her big heart and unconditional love for the children has been a motivating force in supporting the work of Children of the Kingdom ministry.  Martha delivering soap to Nakuutan Primary School  Pastor Wilson Lopungurei Pastor Wilson is the father to a boy named Victor who is currently being sponsored in our program. Since the beginning of the Covid-19 outbreak, he has supported children in Kakuma which is a town in northwestern Turkana County, Kenya. It is the site of a UNHCR refugee camp, established in 1992. Even though Pastor Wilson has his own health struggles with diabetes and high blood pressure, he has made continued efforts to reach children and their families in the refugee camp and host community. For some of the children that our staff could not reach in the refugee camp, he made it possible to deliver food and supplies to them with his motorbike, and he gained access to the refugee camp through a pastor’s organization he was a part of. We are so grateful for Pastor Wilson serving as the bridge by providing support for these families during a critical time.  Pastor Wilson delivering food and supplies to families in Kakuma  Please consider making a gift to support these everyday heroes.
https://www.childrenofthekingdom.net/donate.html In our June post and our July update, we shared about Children of the Kingdom’s small scale farm in Lodwar, Kenya that has supplied nutritious food for children and families in the community. Students studying agriculture in our program have been able to apply their technical skills and training in a time when it has been most needed due to food shortages and strain on the community due to Covid-19. The land has been provided by the KVDA (the Kerio Valley Development Authority), and Veronica Lemuya, our director in Kenya, continues to lead students in projects like this that deepen community partnerships and offer opportunities for empowerment and success. More pictures of the continued joy of the harvest are below.     As a follow up to our last update about the Children of the Kingdom farm in Kenya, this update will be sure to encourage you on this summer day to see the bounty of watermelons in Lodwar. They have harvested over 1000 watermelons (yes, watermelons!) - sharing some with schools, selling some in the market, and giving some to families in need in the community.      "Honor God with everything you own;
give him the first and the best. Your barns will burst, your wine vats will brim over." Proverbs 3: 9-10 The Covid-19 pandemic along with the looming drought in Kenya has left many people very vulnerable in the Turkana region. Children of the Kingdom students studying agriculture in colleges came together this spring and brainstormed ways they could apply their skills to make a difference in this crisis. Along with Veronica Lemuya’s help, they asked the government to give them a piece of land to plant some crops which then would be sold at low prices and shared with those in need. This property is located by the river, and they are using a solar-powered drip irrigation system. See below to see some of the fruits of their labor and the way they are giving back to the community. Seeing watermelons growing in the desert is guaranteed to bring you some hope for the days ahead.  The watermelon growing here will be ready in just two weeks.  Anderson, one of our students helping on the farm, inspecting the sorghum  Spinach growing strong  Pumpkin patch  The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. Isaiah 58:11 India's second wave of Covid-19 has been devastating, and Ratnakar Thota (our director in India) has shared the sad news that friends of theirs have died this past week from Covid. We were able to send funds over for some supplies to keep families healthy while we wait for the vaccine to become available for them, and Ratnakar gathered a small team that was able to distribute items to families last week. We are grateful for the generosity of Children of the Kingdom donors who made this possible. The Los Angeles Times reported today that "about 12% of Indians have received at least one dose. The number of shots administered daily has fallen steadily since a peak in April due to shortages. What’s available is going overwhelmingly to those who live in cities. The pandemic is laying bare the frailty of public health in rural India. It’s further exposing the inequality."      I share this reflection from Cameron Bellm and ask you to continue to pray for God's mercy and grace to abound for our Children of the Kingdom families in India.
"Where is God when terrible things happen? Right in the middle of it, holding us close. Walk straight into his comforting arms." Every year, students in Kenya are encouraged to write to their sponsors twice a year- once for Easter and once for Christmas. This spring, one of our students named Irine wrote a letter to her sponsors named the Gilberts in Seattle, WA.  Three days after I sent the letter to her sponsors, they sent me a letter back for Irine.   Along with these letters, I shared a picture I had of Peter Gilbert who was recently on the cover of USA TODAY as he has been the lead statistician for the US Covid-19 Prevention Network.  Then less than a week later, we received a letter back for the Gilberts along with pictures of Irine showing the newspaper to her head teacher at her school as she was so excited and proud about the connection.   This just goes to show that a short note goes a long way in building connections across the miles.   This reminds me of this beautiful song by Andrew Peterson: "Planting Trees" We chose the spot, we dug the hole We laid the maples in the ground to have and hold As Autumn falls to Winters sleep We pray that somehow in the Spring The roots grow deep And many years from now Long after we are gone These trees will spread their branches out And bless the dawn He took a plane to Africa He gathered up into his arms An orphan son So many years from now Long after we are gone This tree will spread its branches out And bless the dawn So sit down and write that letter Sign up and join the fight Sink in to all that matters Step out into the light Let go of all that's passing Lift up the least of these Lean into something lasting Planting trees She rises up as morning breaks She moves among these rooms alone Before we wake And her heart is so full, it overflows She waters us with love and the children grow So many years from now Long after we are gone These trees will spread their branches out And bless the dawn These trees will spread their branches out And bless someone  If you have not written to your sponsored child in a while, I encourage you to take inspiration from the Gilberts and sit down and write that letter. Thank you so much for your continued investment!  CNN reports that "India is on the brink of recording 20 million coronavirus cases as it continues to buckle under its worst outbreak yet. Authorities also reported more than 400,000 daily cases for the first time on Saturday and a record-high number of deaths yesterday." In light of this news, we are raising funds to get vaccines and other needed supplies for families in India. We have a donor willing to match up to $2000 for people who are considering giving a donation for this emergency relief. Please donate here and send an email to emilyhuff@childrenofthekingdom.net to confirm designation of your gift.  A Liturgy for a Time of Widespread Suffering
by Douglas McKelvey Christ Our King, Our world is overtaken by unexpected calamity, and by a host of attending fears, worries, and insecurities. We witness suffering, confusion, and hardship multiplied around us, and we find ourselves swept up in these same anxieties and troubles, dismayed by so many uncertainties. Now we turn to you, O God, in this season of our common distress. Be merciful, O Christ, to those who suffer, to those who worry, to those who grieve, to those who are threatened or harmed in any way by this upheaval. Let your holy compassions be active throughout the world even now-- tending the afflicted, comforting the brokenhearted, and bringing hope to many who are hopeless. Use even these hardships to woo our hearts nearer to you, O God. Indeed, O Father, may these days of disquiet become a catalyst for conviction and repentance, for the tendering of our affections, for the stirring of our sympathies, for the refining of our love. We are your people, who are called by you, We need not be troubled or alarmed. Indeed, O Lord, let us love now more fearlessly, remembering that you created us, and appointed us to live in these very places, in the midst of these unsettled times. It is no surprise to you that we are here now, sharing in this turmoil along with the rest of our society, for you have called your children to live as salt and light among the nations, praying and laboring for the flourishing of the communities where we dwell, acting as agents of your forgiveness, salvation, healing, reconciliation, and hope, in the very midst of an often-troubled world. And in these holy vocations you have not left us helpless, O Lord, because you have not left us at all. Your Spirit remains among us. Inhabit now your church, O Spirit of the Risen Christ. Unite and equip your people for the work before them. Father, empower your children to live as your children. In times of distress let us respond, not as those who would instinctively entrench for our own self-preservation, but rather as those who—in imitation of their Lord—would move in humble obedience toward the needs and hurts of their neighborhoods and communities. You were not ashamed to share in our sufferings, Jesus. Let us now be willing to share in yours, serving as your visible witnesses in this broken world. Hear now these words, you children of God, and be greatly encouraged: The Lord’s throne in heaven is yet occupied, his rule is eternal, and his good purposes on earth will be forever accomplished. So we need never be swayed by the brief and passing panics of this age. You are the King of the Ages, O Christ, and history is held in your Father’s hands. We, your people, know the good and glorious end of this story. Our heavenly hope is secure. In this time of widespread suffering then, let us rest afresh in the surpassing peace of that vision, that your whole church on earth might be liberated to love more generously and sacrificially. Now labor in and through us, O Lord, extending and multiplying the many expressions of your mercy. Amen.  In a recent interview with Melinda Gates about her book Moment to Lift, Brené Brown asked Melinda to tell her about the world we live in right now for women and girls globally and to describe the world she would love to see. In honor of International Women’s Day today, I decided to interview our partners Veronica Lemuya in Kenya and Saroja Thota in India to ask them these same questions. Veronica’s answers are below along with pictures from their International Women’s Day celebration today with women and girls in the village. Tell me about the world you see now for women and girls in your communities.
Describe the world you'd like to see.
What are your hopes and dreams?
   Saroja’s answers are below along with pictures of her with some of the women in the sewing program and some of the girls in our sponsorship program. Tell me about the world you see now for women and girls in your communities. Our society is a male-dominated society; moreover, women are not given priority in the home and are not treated as equals to men. In my experience of life, in my professional world and in my ministry in working with women, women are never able to share their opinions boldly or freely. They have to follow the instructions given by their parents or by their husband. Even today, women in our community do not have financial freedom, and in a marriage, everything depends on the views and opinion of the husband. Even though India is an independent country, women in our community still do not have independence. Describe the world you'd like to see.
What are your hopes and dreams? I want to help empower more women in India so that we can bring all these above points into reality by educating women as well as men in the proper way. Through the sewing program we have established for women, we are working on giving women skills and empowering them to have financial independence. See this site for photos of what the women have created. I feel fortunate to work with them and teach them important skills to overcome so many problems.     On behalf of all the girls in our program, thank you for your continued support! |
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