Team returns with full hearts

Alan Ahlgrim, Lead Pastor of Rocky Mountain Christian Church, led a team from the church on a trip to Nairobi, Kenya, recently to see some of the results of their partnership with Missions of Hope in the city’s slums. Here are some of the thoughts he shared with the folks back home as the team returned to Niwot, Colorado:

“We’re on our way home. Our heads are spinning, and our hearts are full. We’ve seen a lot. It’s summer in Kenya, and everything is in bloom. Our hosts took us through the Maasai Mara game preserve with its abundance of elephants, giraffes, wildebeest, hippos, lions and cheetah. No one was tempted to leave the vehicle!

“But life in the slums is far from beautiful; it’s beyond belief. Sewage flows freely down the rutted pathways near where the children play and the meals are prepared. We visited shanties barely 8 X 10 feet, and in one we watched as a woman fried chicken feet over a smoky charcoal fire and sold them to her neighbors for their lunches.

“Kids are everywhere. As HIV-AIDS continues to take a huge toll on the adults, most of the children live with just their mothers or extended families. The Missions of Hope schools that we help support now educate and care for more than 3,000 children. The kids are not only given two meals a day, but a quality education that will prepare them for a bright future.

“Toilets are still in short supply. The Madoya slum of 80,000 people had no toilets and showers until RMCC funded one several years ago. Now, a small gathering room above that facility houses Bible studies. Combining together, the Bible studies became a new church last Sunday!

“Communities are being transformed. The slums where God’s people are at work are safer because the Gospel is changing lives. Love is on open display. The poor are not only being fed, they’re given hope. Through micro-enterprise loans, people are able to launch little businesses, finding dignity and the capacity to support themselves and their children.

“Our team was inspired by what we saw. The business guys are strategizing on how to make more small loans to help more people. Each of the teenage girls who came with us have sponsored a little child and wish they could bring them home to Colorado! Everyone wants to make a difference, and we have no doubt that our visit will have long-range impact. Our growing partnership with Christian Missionary Fellowship and Missions of Hope is changing lives forever!