Kapsowar Ministry Update

I apologize for not doing a better job updating our blog here. Our internet connection is really slow compared to back home and sometimes just doesn’t work at all which makes it difficult to do things online. We want to thank all of you who have supported us with prayer, encouragement, cards, donations and love! We thank God for all of you often and really appreciate the partnership in this ministry. It is nice to be reminded that we are not in this alone, but the Lord has provided us with a great team of supporters and partners who are enabling us to be the hands and feet of Christ here in Kapsowar. 

I just wanted to share some of the ministry projects that we have been working on here thanks to your generous gifts and support. We have been praying since we got here for the Lord to give us wisdom in how to use this project money and for the Lord to open doors and enable us to “help without hurting”.

One of the first things we were able to help with was a Christmas party for the hospital staff, nursing students, and patients. Thanks to some donations made by one of our Sunday School classes back home we were able to help pay for some of the food and drinks that were given as a Christmas gift. Everyone was very grateful and it was a real blessing to all of those who were unable to spend Christmas at their homes and away from family.

We were thankful to receive another donation from an AWANA group who raised money for missions. We used some of their money to purchase a large amount of food, treats, soap, buckets, and soccer balls for a nearby children’s home. Again, we were able to tell the children that these gifts were given to help share God’s love with them and they were so thankful!

 

 

We have been learning a lot about the school system here in Kenya and how school fees is a real burden for most families. Families are responsible for buying books, supplies, uniforms, and then paying fees on top of that. In Kapsowar there are at least a couple of good Christian schools that we know of and many families really want their children to be able to go here. January is the beginning of the school year and we learned that one of the family’s we know well here was struggling to provide for their children to the point that the children had not gone back to school because they owed so much debt and did not have enough to pay for the new term. Due to our generous supporters back home, we were able to pay off the debt of all the children from the past and also pay for the first term of this school year. I cannot explain the thankfulness and gratitude and relief that was expressed from this mother and her children. They were so excited to be able to go back to school! We realized that this family is in great need of additional income so that they will be able to continue to pay for school fees in the future so we are planning to build some chicken coops and buy some chickens for them to be able to sell and generate more income. We are waiting until after the elections to begin this project, but I hope to take pictures and post our finished product. We really want to be able to help families in a way that will be sustainable and continue to provide for them even after we leave here. Please pray for this project and that all the details will work out and it will be a profitable business for this family. 

Aaron has also been looking for needs and ways to help improve care at the hospital. We have a few ideas, but so far we have purchased four adult and two pediatric pulse oximeters. This provides one for each adult ward and one for the NICU nursery and one for the children’s ward. The nurses and staff were so appreciative to have this additional equipment to help serve the patients. I have seen the nurses in the NICU using this almost every time I go to visit the babies there. Thank you for helping make this possible!

 

 

Most recently we have learned of a family that has experienced a lot of trials and loss. One of the sons (23 yrs old) was diagnosed with kidney failure and has gone through a transplant and is now receiving ongoing treatment. The hospital bills for this have been overwhelming for the family. The church here has raised a lot of money, but the debt is still very large. The mother is working but has many children to care. We have assisted this family some with paying some of the debt and we are discussing options to help this family be able to generate more income. The family lost their father unexpectedly, who was the main provider, and there have been other trials in addition to this as well. Please pray for this family. We are thankful that the son is doing well with the transplant and we pray the Lord will encourage them and help provide for all these needs.

I am thankful to have the opportunity to study God's word with some of the nursing students here once a week. We usually meet on Monday nights and have been studying forgiveness the last 5 weeks. After we study, we enjoy taking Chai and have a few "biscuits" while we fellowship. I am really enjoying getting to know these girls and studying God's word together. Please pray for us that the Lord would draw us closer to Him and teach us His truth.

Thank you all again for generously supporting us and partnering with us in this ministry here. We are thankful for this opportunity to be here and serve. We pray that the Lord would be glorified through us and through these ministry projects. Please continue to pray for us as we serve here. Please pray for the upcoming elections on Monday that there will be no violence and that the Lord will help people to remain peaceful. Please pray that the Lord will continue to give us strength and wisdom in serving Him.