Family of Faith

It's going to take a while to process and work through all that we saw and experienced in Kenya.  Rather than bombard this blog with a billion pictures and stories all at once, I thought I would just share bits and pieces as they come.

So.  Let me introduce you to the family of Faith...

Actually, this is only a small fraction of the family of Faith.  There are a total of nine children in Faith's family.  And Faith didn't even make it into the above picture.  She was off grinding corn when this photo was taken, but her mother sent for her when we arrived.  Here's Faith:

Faith was a patient of Kyle's in the hospital in Kapsowar.  While under his care, the Lord saw fit to bring her body back into health.  More importantly though, the Lord brought her into a spiritual health when she made Him Lord of her life. She lives about a 20 minute drive away from the hospital, in this beautiful mountainous countryside filled with some of the most gorgeous scenery anyone could expect to encounter in Africa:

It's beautiful, yes, but primitive as well.  Most people in and around Kapsowar live without running water or electricity, growing food in their gardens for a living. This is Faith's homestead:

The huts are used as kitchens.  Faith's mom graciously allowed us to enter their hut and see how she cooks meals for her family: 

She was thrilled to have us pop in for a visit.  Over and over again, she requested we take photos of her, her family, her cow, and her crops.  Most of all, she wanted a photo with Kyle, the doctor who helped her daughter, Faith.

Kyle wouldn't wish for me to glorify him or his ministry with this family.  He would quickly pass along any credit to the Lord.  But I could tell by the way the mother and father of Faith looked and spoke with Kyle that he has obviously made an impact on this family's life. 

Kyle and Vanessa are constantly faced with Kenyan's who request their help financially.  In fact, it is so common for foreigners to give money to Kenyans, that it is not uncommon for Kenyans to outright ask foreigners for money on a regular basis.  Giving money seems like an easy and simple fix for the hardships of these people's lives.  But giving money is not always the answer.  In Faith's family's case, the answer was not money, but instead this:

It's an expanded garden.  Corn, millet, potatoes, beans, and other things I'm not sure I recognized.  These crops will hopefully give Faith's family the ability to produce more and sell more in order to meet the ever growing needs of their family.  In the process, their hard work ethic and perseverance will hopefully prove an example to their neighbors and community of a growing faith in the Ultimate Provider of their needs.  That Provider doesn't wear scrubs and bring small gifts of candy and crayons.  He doesn't hand out shillings on request.  He seeks out and builds true and genuine faith.  

Pray with me that Faith's family becomes a true and genuine 

FAMILY OF FAITH.