Heading out to Kenya I did not really know what to expect. When we finally reached Kisumu Airport the level of poverty was more than I could have imagined. We arrived at Vision and Passion (VISPA) orphanage on the Saturday afternoon and we were greeted with a song from the children which was awesome! We spent most of the afternoon with the kids and Helen Ochieng who runs the orphanage with her husband George. Helen also took us to her village where we were able to walk about and meet some people in the area. This was a great experience for us.
On the Sunday we went to church and I was amazed by the love and passion that the church had for Jesus Christ, which was clearly seen in their worship and prayer. Alan Dundas from the team spoke in the VISPA church and everyone was really blessed by his message.
On Monday we started into the coaching program. We held our sessions at Rabour School. There where over 160 kids each day from different schools that took part. We had two sessions each day; one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Mid-way through each session we were able to share the Gospel (good news) message with the kids. Day 1 was Creation, day 2 Sin, Day 3 Jesus Christ, and day 4 Salvation.
The coaching sessions were amazing. The kids really enjoyed them and had great fun learning different football drills and skills. It was a real blessing to see the kids all running about with big smiles on their faces. On the Wednesday and Thursday we would sit down with our groups of kids and ask them if they had any questions about anything they had learnt through the week. This was also a great time to get to know the kids.
It was during one of these question times that a young boy called Evans said he had something to tell me. He told me how he was an orphan and that he lived with his mother’s sister but that she did not love him. He had no friends and was very sad. I was able to share Jesus with him and tell him that Jesus loves him so much, and he will be a father to him and a mother and a best friend, and it was so encouraging to see the smile that spread across his face. I also had the great pleasure to see him give his life over to the Lord Jesus Christ.
On the Friday we played a football match against the VISPA high school pupils. This was great fun. It was also really encouraging as some of the boys playing have been experiencing C4C since the first trip in 2006. The game ended 0-0 which was probably a fair result! Man of the match James Wylie played a blinder.
On Saturday morning we took the kids from the orphanage to the swimming pool and they all had a fantastic time - even the rain could not stop the fun they where having. After swimming we got them all chips and sausages -everyone had a blessed day.
On Saturday afternoon we went to a community centre in a poor village of Kisumu to give out food and play games with the ladies and the kids. This was also another opportunity to share the message of Jesus with the people. It was also great fun for all the ladies playing handball, the boys and girls playing football and the younger children playing different kids games.
Being in Kenya was a real blessing for us as a team and as individuals. It was such an awesome opportunity to serve God out there, and to see a different culture.
About James McCreath
