I cannot express what it means to know that people are standing with me in prayer as Kenya continues to walk this difficult journey of political unrest. For me, the issue I am really praying about is the idea of calm vs. peace. Like so much of the world, Kenya is used to living in calm but not peace. I do not want to simply return to the "calm" where we put up with one another (although it feels much nicer). There are deep issues of hatred between tribes that unless/until they are addressed will continue to resurface. In the midst of this evil, I believe that God is trying to reveal His heart for this place, for His people. There is a deep cleansing that needs to occur. So, we continue to pray. I wanted to share these reflections from an experience I had this past week...
Like so many other Friday’s, I went to the HIV/AIDS clinic this morning to treat patients. Like any other day, people walked to the clinic or were carried on the back of bicycles. They waited in the open air corridors of the clinic to be treated. One man arrived critically ill and desperately needed to be referred to a larger hospital just one hour away; but unlike other days, there was no vehicle to take him. The road towards town contains blockades as the post-election violence continues. So, the possibility of extending treatment or even relief to this dying man seemed impossible. Rachel, the Health Practitioner I was working with, unwilling to give up asked if I would go on a walk with her. I agreed, and we walked a few hundred meters up a large hill to the police station to request them to escort this man to the hospital. As we were walking, a group of women, displaced from their homes, greeted us. They explained that it had really been raining upon them over the past few days, and they asked her for her white lab coat. She responded that she still needed it for work.
I was not prepared for the sights I was about to see. A mere ten miles from my village I entered a refugee camp. As I reached the top of the hill, I was greeted by a lady who I used to eat in her little restaurant. With tears in her eyes, she said: “welcome to our refugee camp.” I looked into the faces of hungry and dirty children. They were playing in the middle of their refuge amongst 20,000 others who had been chased as their homes were burned to the ground. I recognized others I have treated as patients at the HIV clinic. A deep sadness entered my heart. Tears filled my eyes, and I feared if I allowed them to flow they might not ever stop. I talked with a little girl, and she asked me where I was from. I told her that I lived in Kipkaren; and she simply replied, “me too”. The only difference is that her home is no longer. She is struggling, along with 300,000 others who have been displaced within their own homeland, to survive. It is hard to imagine the kind of politics, the tribal hatred that could lead to this injustice.
After arrangements had been made with the police for transporting our patient, we started back down the hill. A little girl, maybe six years old, was carrying water on her head as she climbed the hill. Her name, Upendo (which means love in Kiswahili), struck me. She represents all that we have been called to do as followers of Christ. Overwhelmed by the devastation of this land, I remembered these instructions that say: “Open your mouth for the speechless, in the cause of all who are appointed to die. Open your mouth, judge righteously, and plead the cause of the poor and the needy” (Proverbs 31:8-9).
And then it began to rain. It was not a light, gentle drizzle but a big rain. For a moment, in a small way, I felt their struggles. This may seem obvious; but without a shelter to enter, it is cold and wet when it rains. Without food to eat, hunger is felt. Without peace, there is no rest. As we walked through the rain, Rachel said: “now I know why they needed my coat.” I am convinced, although uncomfortable, there are times we need to know. I recently came across this prayer that has challenged, once again, my view of what it means to be blessed.
May God bless you with discomfort
At easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships
So that you may live deep within your heart.
May God bless you with tears
To shed for those who suffer pain, rejections, hunger and war,
So that you may reach out your hand to comfort them
And to turn their pain into joy.
And may God bless you with enough foolishness
To believe that you can make a difference in the world
So that you can do what others claim cannot be done.
To bring justice and kindness to all.
So, I am opening my mouth on behalf of those without a voice. God has shown us what is good and what is required. We are to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with Him. May God lead our hearts to love more fully and to follow Him wherever He leads.
Friday, January 25, 2008
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Mountain Climbing
Jacob Kyungai, a mountain guide to Kilimanjaro said: "Kilimanjaro is a place where ordinary people come to do something extraordinary, to leave their lives and stand in a place between heaven and earth, a magical place in the Africa of their dreams." To begin the year, I journeyed to the mountain, to the highest point in Africa. Within a few days, I climbed through the lush rainforest to the moorland to the high desert and peaked to the summit which lies at 19,340 feet. So many times throughout the Bible, people went to the mountains to meet with God. This is what I desired and desperately needed.
On December 27th, Kenya held its presidential election. Inconsistencies in the counting and reporting of the ballots as well as delays in announcing the results left many people unnerved. After several days of waiting, it was announced that the incumbent president was reelected. Many people, especially the youth, had been promised change by the opposition candidate and began to respond violently by looting, burning homes and buildings and even churches. Neighbor began to fight neighbor based on tribal differences and political lines. To this point, nearly 600 people have lost their lives and over 300,000 men, women and children have been displaced from their homes. As I climbed Mt Kilimanjaro, I lifted my eyes to the mountain to where my help comes from. With each step, I prayed for this broken land of Kenya that I love so much. I let go of what I could not control and asked God to intervene.
At midnight, on the fourth day of trekking, I began the ascent to the summit. Already breathless and exhausted at camp, which lies just over fifteen thousand feet, I wondered whether I would make it to the top of this majestic mountain. Along with thirteen others in our group, I journeyed step by step through the darkness and cold. I could only see as far as the step in front of me; and as I prayed, I felt like God was saying: “This is what life is like. You can only see the step in which you are taking, but I can see it all. The path is steep and you feel as if you will fall, but I am walking with you. Even though you are tired, if you will keep taking the next step, you will make it to the mountain top.”
As I consider life and the troubles that are faced within this world, I am grateful for God’s word that settles my heart saying: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you. I have called you by your name; you are Mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you” (Isaiah 43:1-2). After nearly eight hours of simply taking the next step, the sun rose beautifully and I stood on the roof of Africa.
As I climbed the mountain of Kilimanjaro, God was with me. As I sit in my village threatened by hatred and injustice, it feels as if we are climbing another mountain. It is difficult to see one step in front of us, but God is with us. As I stood last night with a friend, she shared about her family’s home being burned to the ground because of the tribe she was born into. Not one material thing remained spared from the ashes, but she said that God had been gracious to her and protected each member of her family from injury. She expressed that God has walked each step with her during this difficult journey. Please continue to pray for this nation that justice and peace will be restored and a deep healing might begin.
ELI has created an emergency fund to address all of the current needs that have surfaced because of the crisis. If you or anyone you know would like to give towards this fund, they can mail a check to our office (PO Box 67 Upland, CA 91785) and earmark it for the “Kenya emergency fund.”
Going Home
On December 23rd, my Kenyan family and I filled our ambulance with 18 people full and headed out to visit several of our neighbors in need. We took boxes of food and small gifts to celebrate the birth of Christ together. One of our visits was to the home of my dear friend Hannah. Like so many times before, she was laying outside her house on a blanket. She welcomed us and we sat together and sang the words “What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and grief to bear. What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer.” It is a moment impressed within my heart. Although Hannah’s body had been destroyed by a tumor, her spirit was beautifully alive. Four days later, I returned to her home and learned that she had passed away. She had gone to be with her God that she loved so faithfully. I wrote these lyrics, in honor of my friend. I believe this was Hannah’s song:
In this darkness, I have seen your face.
In my brokenness, I’ve felt your embrace.
Though all fades away, I have found a place.
In the shadowlands, I’m covered by grace.
Thank you Jesus for following me.
All of my life, your tender-mercies.
Have been my hope. They have set me free.
This, my miracle, I’m loved completely.
In this valley, the path is unclear.
I shall not want. I shall not fear.
My cup overflows. Your Presence is near.
What are the whisperings that I do hear?
O Love, is it you? Raise me from the ashes.
O Love, is it you? Healing my disease.
O Love, is it you? Whose covered my shame.
O Love, it is you- Calling me by name.
I’m going home.
CONTACT
On December 27th, Kenya held its presidential election. Inconsistencies in the counting and reporting of the ballots as well as delays in announcing the results left many people unnerved. After several days of waiting, it was announced that the incumbent president was reelected. Many people, especially the youth, had been promised change by the opposition candidate and began to respond violently by looting, burning homes and buildings and even churches. Neighbor began to fight neighbor based on tribal differences and political lines. To this point, nearly 600 people have lost their lives and over 300,000 men, women and children have been displaced from their homes. As I climbed Mt Kilimanjaro, I lifted my eyes to the mountain to where my help comes from. With each step, I prayed for this broken land of Kenya that I love so much. I let go of what I could not control and asked God to intervene.
At midnight, on the fourth day of trekking, I began the ascent to the summit. Already breathless and exhausted at camp, which lies just over fifteen thousand feet, I wondered whether I would make it to the top of this majestic mountain. Along with thirteen others in our group, I journeyed step by step through the darkness and cold. I could only see as far as the step in front of me; and as I prayed, I felt like God was saying: “This is what life is like. You can only see the step in which you are taking, but I can see it all. The path is steep and you feel as if you will fall, but I am walking with you. Even though you are tired, if you will keep taking the next step, you will make it to the mountain top.”
As I consider life and the troubles that are faced within this world, I am grateful for God’s word that settles my heart saying: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you. I have called you by your name; you are Mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you” (Isaiah 43:1-2). After nearly eight hours of simply taking the next step, the sun rose beautifully and I stood on the roof of Africa.
As I climbed the mountain of Kilimanjaro, God was with me. As I sit in my village threatened by hatred and injustice, it feels as if we are climbing another mountain. It is difficult to see one step in front of us, but God is with us. As I stood last night with a friend, she shared about her family’s home being burned to the ground because of the tribe she was born into. Not one material thing remained spared from the ashes, but she said that God had been gracious to her and protected each member of her family from injury. She expressed that God has walked each step with her during this difficult journey. Please continue to pray for this nation that justice and peace will be restored and a deep healing might begin.
ELI has created an emergency fund to address all of the current needs that have surfaced because of the crisis. If you or anyone you know would like to give towards this fund, they can mail a check to our office (PO Box 67 Upland, CA 91785) and earmark it for the “Kenya emergency fund.”
Going Home
On December 23rd, my Kenyan family and I filled our ambulance with 18 people full and headed out to visit several of our neighbors in need. We took boxes of food and small gifts to celebrate the birth of Christ together. One of our visits was to the home of my dear friend Hannah. Like so many times before, she was laying outside her house on a blanket. She welcomed us and we sat together and sang the words “What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and grief to bear. What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer.” It is a moment impressed within my heart. Although Hannah’s body had been destroyed by a tumor, her spirit was beautifully alive. Four days later, I returned to her home and learned that she had passed away. She had gone to be with her God that she loved so faithfully. I wrote these lyrics, in honor of my friend. I believe this was Hannah’s song:
In this darkness, I have seen your face.
In my brokenness, I’ve felt your embrace.
Though all fades away, I have found a place.
In the shadowlands, I’m covered by grace.
Thank you Jesus for following me.
All of my life, your tender-mercies.
Have been my hope. They have set me free.
This, my miracle, I’m loved completely.
In this valley, the path is unclear.
I shall not want. I shall not fear.
My cup overflows. Your Presence is near.
What are the whisperings that I do hear?
O Love, is it you? Raise me from the ashes.
O Love, is it you? Healing my disease.
O Love, is it you? Whose covered my shame.
O Love, it is you- Calling me by name.
I’m going home.
CONTACT
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Kenya Unrest
I am not sure how many of you received the following email update I sent a few days back... I have received many emails expressing concern over all that is taking place in Kenya right now. I want to say thank you for your much needed prayers and for your willingness to assist in this humanitarian crisis.
I returned to Kipkaren yesterday in the afternoon. It is good to be back home with my Kenyan family. We are trusting God for peace to return to this land. I ask that you continue to pray in the following ways:
- The President of Ghana is currently leading mediations between President Kibaki and the Opposition leader Raila Odinga. Pray for resolution that will be just and the best solution for the people of Kenya.
- The Church of Kenya will stand united- fighting for justice, loving mercy, walking humbly with God.
- Parliament, which is largely divided, is set to open on this coming Tuesday. Please pray for peace.
- There is much healing and reconciliation that needs to occur within communities. Only God can break down the divides between tribes.
- Thousands of families have been displaced. Please pray for safety as they seek refuge until the government decides what to do next. Major relief is needed in the forms of food, medications, blankets, etc.
- Schools are scheduled to re-open on January 15th. Please pray for the safety of these children as they return to school. In addition, please pray for the thousands of displaced children who will not be able to return to school.
- Please pray for continued safety of our 182 children in the children's homes in Kipkaren and Ilula as well as the staff who will be returning to the training centers.
-For those who are HIV+ and displaced, please pray that they will be able to continue with their antiretrovirals, that drug resistance will not develop and that they will be able to get proper nutrition.
Again, I thank you for standing with Kenya in this difficult season. ELI has created an emergency fund to address all of the current needs that have surfaced because of the crisis. If you or anyone you know would like to give towards this fund, they can mail a check to our office (PO Box 67 Upland, CA 91785) and earmark it for the “Kenya emergency fund.”
If you are interested in reading more, I have attached an article from the New York Times that was written by a Kenyan. I think it explains some of the complexities of the situation well.
With much love, Juli
No Country for Old Hatreds
By BINYAVANGA WAINAINA
Published: January 6, 2008
Nairobi, Kenya
THIS thing called Kenya is a strange animal. In the 1960s, the bright young nationalists who took over the country when we got independence from the British believed that their first job was to eradicate “tribalism.” What they really meant, in a way, was that they wanted to eradicate the nations that made up Kenya. It was assumed that the process would end with the birth of a brand-new being: the Kenyan.
Compared with other African nations, Kenya has had significant success with this experiment. But it has not been without its contradictions, though they had never really turned lethal until now.
Our Kenyan identity, so deliberately formed in the test tube of nationalist effort, has over the years been undermined, subtly and not so subtly, by our leaders — men who appealed to our histories and loyalties to win our votes.
You see, the burning houses and the bloody attacks here do not reflect primordial hatreds. They reflect the manipulation of identity for political gain.
So what was different about this election? What brought Kenya’s equilibrium to an end?
Five years ago, we voted for a broad and nationally representative government. Inside this vehicle were the country’s major tribes: the Luo, the Luhya, the Kikuyu, many Kalenjin — all the people now killing one another.
We wanted this arrangement to quickly introduce a new and more inclusive Constitution, deal firmly with corruption and start a process of defining the nation in terms that include everybody.
Tragically, President Mwai Kibaki instead steered a course away from the coalition and cultivated the support of his Kikuyu community. He did a good job rebuilding the civil service and managing the economy, but he did it within a framework that was not sustainable.
When it came time to conduct our most recent election, Raila Odinga had built a movement on the back of President Kibaki’s betrayal of the spirit of 2002. His political party, the Orange Democratic Movement, was the big ethnic tent similar to the one that had first brought President Kibaki to office.
On the day we cast our vote, we thought that our optimism and desire for an inclusive and broad government would prevail. Instead, three days later — after reports that votes were being “cooked” in Kikuyu strongholds, after skirmishes in the room where the results were being announced, after the news media were ejected — Mr. Kibaki was announced the winner and a haphazard swearing-in took place. And Kenya exploded.
Mr. Odinga and President Kibaki are not really ethnic leaders, but in the days since the disputed election they have stoked tribal paranoia and used it to cement electoral loyalty.
Mr. Odinga and his fellow party leaders are now determined to avenge the wrong they believe they have suffered. Sadly, this leadership now appears to believe that the violence spreading across the country might be a valuable bargaining chip.
My further suspicion is that Mr. Odinga wants to sell to Kenyans and the world a sort of Ukrainian “people’s revolution” — where protesters take to the streets and change the order of things, and are seen to be throwing happy pink petals on television, so America can say, ah, the people have spoken.
But rather than matters leading to a popular but peaceful uprising against a flawed election, we are likelier to suffer an escalation of retaliations and a descent to that special machete place that nations rarely recover from.
Yet all is not lost. Nations are built on crises like this. If there is such a thing as Kenya, it should be gathering energy right now. Two leaders can sit down, form a power-sharing agreement and put together a system to handle elections and transition. A Constitution that names and recognizes the tribal nations within our nation, that decentralizes some power and that includes us all in the process is possible.
For 40 years we have been dancing around each other, a gaseous nation circling and tightening. The moment is now to make a solid thing called Kenya.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/06/opinion/06wainaina.html?ex=1200286800&en=d44006ed2ffc41e5&ei=5070&emc=eta1
I returned to Kipkaren yesterday in the afternoon. It is good to be back home with my Kenyan family. We are trusting God for peace to return to this land. I ask that you continue to pray in the following ways:
- The President of Ghana is currently leading mediations between President Kibaki and the Opposition leader Raila Odinga. Pray for resolution that will be just and the best solution for the people of Kenya.
- The Church of Kenya will stand united- fighting for justice, loving mercy, walking humbly with God.
- Parliament, which is largely divided, is set to open on this coming Tuesday. Please pray for peace.
- There is much healing and reconciliation that needs to occur within communities. Only God can break down the divides between tribes.
- Thousands of families have been displaced. Please pray for safety as they seek refuge until the government decides what to do next. Major relief is needed in the forms of food, medications, blankets, etc.
- Schools are scheduled to re-open on January 15th. Please pray for the safety of these children as they return to school. In addition, please pray for the thousands of displaced children who will not be able to return to school.
- Please pray for continued safety of our 182 children in the children's homes in Kipkaren and Ilula as well as the staff who will be returning to the training centers.
-For those who are HIV+ and displaced, please pray that they will be able to continue with their antiretrovirals, that drug resistance will not develop and that they will be able to get proper nutrition.
Again, I thank you for standing with Kenya in this difficult season. ELI has created an emergency fund to address all of the current needs that have surfaced because of the crisis. If you or anyone you know would like to give towards this fund, they can mail a check to our office (PO Box 67 Upland, CA 91785) and earmark it for the “Kenya emergency fund.”
If you are interested in reading more, I have attached an article from the New York Times that was written by a Kenyan. I think it explains some of the complexities of the situation well.
With much love, Juli
No Country for Old Hatreds
By BINYAVANGA WAINAINA
Published: January 6, 2008
Nairobi, Kenya
THIS thing called Kenya is a strange animal. In the 1960s, the bright young nationalists who took over the country when we got independence from the British believed that their first job was to eradicate “tribalism.” What they really meant, in a way, was that they wanted to eradicate the nations that made up Kenya. It was assumed that the process would end with the birth of a brand-new being: the Kenyan.
Compared with other African nations, Kenya has had significant success with this experiment. But it has not been without its contradictions, though they had never really turned lethal until now.
Our Kenyan identity, so deliberately formed in the test tube of nationalist effort, has over the years been undermined, subtly and not so subtly, by our leaders — men who appealed to our histories and loyalties to win our votes.
You see, the burning houses and the bloody attacks here do not reflect primordial hatreds. They reflect the manipulation of identity for political gain.
So what was different about this election? What brought Kenya’s equilibrium to an end?
Five years ago, we voted for a broad and nationally representative government. Inside this vehicle were the country’s major tribes: the Luo, the Luhya, the Kikuyu, many Kalenjin — all the people now killing one another.
We wanted this arrangement to quickly introduce a new and more inclusive Constitution, deal firmly with corruption and start a process of defining the nation in terms that include everybody.
Tragically, President Mwai Kibaki instead steered a course away from the coalition and cultivated the support of his Kikuyu community. He did a good job rebuilding the civil service and managing the economy, but he did it within a framework that was not sustainable.
When it came time to conduct our most recent election, Raila Odinga had built a movement on the back of President Kibaki’s betrayal of the spirit of 2002. His political party, the Orange Democratic Movement, was the big ethnic tent similar to the one that had first brought President Kibaki to office.
On the day we cast our vote, we thought that our optimism and desire for an inclusive and broad government would prevail. Instead, three days later — after reports that votes were being “cooked” in Kikuyu strongholds, after skirmishes in the room where the results were being announced, after the news media were ejected — Mr. Kibaki was announced the winner and a haphazard swearing-in took place. And Kenya exploded.
Mr. Odinga and President Kibaki are not really ethnic leaders, but in the days since the disputed election they have stoked tribal paranoia and used it to cement electoral loyalty.
Mr. Odinga and his fellow party leaders are now determined to avenge the wrong they believe they have suffered. Sadly, this leadership now appears to believe that the violence spreading across the country might be a valuable bargaining chip.
My further suspicion is that Mr. Odinga wants to sell to Kenyans and the world a sort of Ukrainian “people’s revolution” — where protesters take to the streets and change the order of things, and are seen to be throwing happy pink petals on television, so America can say, ah, the people have spoken.
But rather than matters leading to a popular but peaceful uprising against a flawed election, we are likelier to suffer an escalation of retaliations and a descent to that special machete place that nations rarely recover from.
Yet all is not lost. Nations are built on crises like this. If there is such a thing as Kenya, it should be gathering energy right now. Two leaders can sit down, form a power-sharing agreement and put together a system to handle elections and transition. A Constitution that names and recognizes the tribal nations within our nation, that decentralizes some power and that includes us all in the process is possible.
For 40 years we have been dancing around each other, a gaseous nation circling and tightening. The moment is now to make a solid thing called Kenya.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/06/opinion/06wainaina.html?ex=1200286800&en=d44006ed2ffc41e5&ei=5070&emc=eta1
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