Out of Africa
Alan Ahlgrim, Rocky Mountain Christian Church

I had an unbelievable experience! In fact, even though I saw it, I still can’t believe it! Several pastor friends joined me for a quick trip to Nairobi, Kenya, to check out ministry opportunities. We went with Doug Priest, Executive Director of Christian Missionary Fellowship. Wow, did we ever see ministry opportunities, and were we ever impressed with those addressing them! One Kenyan couple we met has been working in the slums for several years. Mary is a university graduate, leading a school for several hundred slum kids. Her husband Wallace was an accountant and manager with Price-Waterhouse in Nairobi. Now they both give their lives to serve those living in the slums. The school has grown to 300 since the year 2000. Amazing!

We toured the slum on foot . . . yuck! You wouldn’t believe it. Even though I saw it, I can’t believe it! There’s virtually no sanitation; therefore, the people put human waste in plastic sacks and throw them in the dusty (or often muddy) alleys. We visited a 10 x 12-foot home that sleeps 20 people. It was amazingly primitive. Then we discovered it had just been improved by a church group that put in a concrete floor, “new” metal on the roof, walls, and a door. The people in the slum have no steady income, only what they can make on their own. About 80% of the women sell themselves to buy food and survive. It’s a hopeless place, unless they turn to Christ and the body of Christ helps them. Some sell small items like soap or vegetables, cut hair, or sharpen knives. They do whatever they can to earn a few shillings for food.



Try to imagine a city of several million where over 70% live in squalor. Even though I saw it, I still can’t believe it! These are people who, in many ways, are victims of horrible circumstances and corruption. But now, by the grace of God, more and more Christians are serving and helping them to have hope. I was extremely impressed with what the church is doing. The primary approach is through a program called “CHE,” Community–Health–Evangelism. The idea is to meet basic needs in the name of Christ; and, as a result, many are turning to Christ.

Imagine a city the size of Longmont with limited toilets and all the sewage flowing down to the river. Even though I saw it, I still can’t believe it! We walked through small pathways, rutted and filled with debris of “various” kinds. We visited in the home of a 35-year-old woman dying with AIDS. She has five kids; her husband died a few years ago. Their house was a shanty, extremely small. And right outside was the mess. The little children have nowhere to play except in the mud or worse. No one could imagine this. I’ve seen it and smelled it, and I still can’t fathom what it would be like to live in that. Yet the people somehow manage to stay somewhat clean; and most wear decent secondhand clothes from the States, with logos and names you would recognize.

We also visited the work among the indigenous Maasai. The CMF clinic is working with a population decimated by AIDS. What amazed me is that the clinic director and several on staff are second-generation Maasai Christians. These committed and gifted people are doing an exceptional, life-saving work. With the culture in free-fall, the church is flourishing. As John, the clinic director, said, “The church is the only savior. The church is the only hope.” I believe it because I saw it!

We visited a Maasai village and were welcomed into a home. Actually, it was a hut made of mud and cow dung, filled with smoke from a cooking fire. As we sat in a circle, the woman asked if we wanted tea. I had no desire to consume anything! But before I knew it, the five of us were drinking chai tea. It was surprisingly tasty. However, after we saw where the water came from, we weren’t certain it was tea at all!

One of our last stops was the New Life home for abandoned babies. I saw it, and I believe it! It was a real oasis . . . beautiful in every way. They now care for 50 babies, and they set the standard for quality. The Kenyans are a proud people. Therefore, as a matter of national pride, New Life is closely monitored by officials. While the home can’t help the majority of abandoned babies, they are grateful for the difference they are making with a few. Once again, we see it’s better to light a candle than to curse the darkness!

The church is alive and well! I saw it, and I believe it! The living Lord is at work even in the worst of circumstances. It’s only by His grace and mercy that people ever have any hope. That’s true for those living in the slums of Africa or the abundance of America. (Frankly, without Christ, everyone lives in “poverty” of one kind or another.) As we celebrate Good Friday and Easter Sunday, we can indeed rejoice that Jesus is the hope of the world!

I’m looking forward to celebrating with you and those you bring to RMCC this Easter. Remember, someone is waiting for your invitation. You could be used of God to help bring someone out of darkness and into the light!
I love you all.