Feed a Child, Save a Life

As many of you know, on my recent mission trip to Kenya, my medical mission team had the unique opportunity to serve two feasts to the children and families we worked with in Eburru and Kibera. I am so thrilled to share with you that these children are feasting again this week, even as we speak.

After our team’s return in January 2008, the 15 of us, under the leadership of fellow teammate Jeff Trexel, prayerfully decided to move forward with starting a foundation to continue supporting the work we were partners in during our mission trip. Specifically, our hearts are burdened to equip local ministers and leaders to accomplish their own dreams of assisting poor, destitute and abandoned children in Eburru, Kenya. We named the foundation David’s Hope International, after a young abandoned and destitute child we met while we were there in January.

In order to formalize much of the foundation planning, our founder and CEO, Jeff Trexel, traveled to Kenya to do some reconnaissance and advance work as we prepare to finalize the parameters of David’s Hope International. Jeff has spent the last 3 weeks living and working alongside our partner in ministry there on the ground Pastor Steve Njenga and his wife Mary (pictured right). Pastor Steve and his ministry partners have big dreams of caring for the lost and forgotten children of their communities in and around the Lake Naivasha region of Kenya’s Great Rift Valley. As our team witnessed first-hand in January, the needs in this region are huge and meeting these needs will mean life or death for many living in this region. As Jeff has further witnessed and confirmed, the situation is much more dire than we originally anticipated.

The livelihood of the people hinges on the livelihood of their crops. The livelihood of their crops hinges on the livelihood of the rainy season which typically happens January – May. This year, the region has seen rain only two times during the rainy season. Not much of a rainy season at all. This is having a drastically negative impact on so many aspects of life in Eburru. This unusual and unseasonal lack of rain is causing crops to fail – a death wish for a town dependent on agricultural production for life. Eburru is just about to enter a harsh three or four month period of no consumable or sellable food while the corn, potato and wheat fields move through their growth cycles, assuming the rains continue.

Upon hearing this news, Jeff reported the situation back to the team here in the U.S. and within 24 hours we raised over $1000 US for Jeff to use to buy food and feed the starving in Eburru. Folks, in a town where people live on $2 US a day, $1000 US goes a LOOOOOONG way. Under the recommendation of Pastor Steve and Mary, these funds are being used, as we speak, to feed many different groups of people, specifically children, who literally have not had a square meal since our team was in Kenya in January. This is the body of Christ in action. This is living out the Gospel, or as Rich Stearns would say, filling the “Hole in our Gospel”.

Why do I tell you all of this? Primarily to give glory to God. Jeff has shared back with us many stories of malnutrition, starvation and death from Eburru and I think its incredible that God sent him back, at just the right time, to provide for those in this community who are facing death due to lack of food.

I also share with you to ask for your prayers. God alone can move mountains and when God’s people pray God responds. I have never felt more burdened to pray for the livelihood of our brothers and sisters in Kenya than I do right now. I pray that you will join me in remembering our friends in Kenya and ask God to provide for all of their needs according to his riches and glory in Christ Jesus.

Finally, I write this today to invite you to be a part of David’s Hope International. Click here to sign up to receive news from David’s Hope and keep up to date on stories of David, Pastor Steve and Mary, and others in Eburru. Learn more about the needs of the poor and destitute and lift these brothers and sisters up to the Lord in prayer.

We are planning events in and around the DC area for folks who are intrested to hear from Jeff about his experience, to show photos, videos, and stories about whats happening on the ground in Eburru and the surrounding areas and generate awareness and interest in whats happening in one of the poorest lands on earth. If you want to stay informed of these events please be sure to sign up for our enewsletter and you will know of all events coming up in the next several months. If you are not local to DC we are planning to take the show on the road in the near future, so be praying for us, that God would open doors for us to tell David’s Story to more people outside of the Washington DC area. If you are interested in having Jeff or someone from the David’s Hope team come speak to your church or youth group, please let me know and we can arrange for that as well.

God is a global God and his church is not limited by county, state, our country lines. The 15 original founders of David’s Hope International are committed to doing our part as the body of Christ to help our brothers and sisters in need. We invite you to join us in our mission!