Towards the first of this year we sent an urgent message to
our friends back home in the States for help concerning one of the young people
in our church StoneHouse Fellowship.
From our inception as a church, Abraham Otieno established
himself to be one of our most consistent and hard working young man.
When we built our church meeting place, he was there every
time he possibly could be. He worked hard, expected no pay and always
maintained a good attitude when working in the hot African sun. Abraham was
always joking and coming up with something funny to cheer everyone else up.
One day we noticed that Abraham was working during school
hours and so we asked him why he wasn’t in school. He replied he wanted to go,
as this was the year of his graduation, but was financially unable to go. Having
been abandoned by his parents when he was only 7 years old he was raised by his
older brother. Circumstances left Abraham with little options for surviving, much less making enough to attend school. Yet
he had come so far.
Now we know that money isn’t plentiful among our friends in
the States and when they give it is sacrificial. Yet wonderfully, three single
sisters responded to our plea and took up the financial burden of Abraham’s
final year of education. They probably had no idea the chain of blessings that
their sacrifice would begin.
You see, Abraham is gifted in the performing arts. Our
church already knew that, as he had performed for us several times before. After
three months of returning to school Abraham was selected to perform a dramatic
poem in front of the President of Kenya, Uhuru Kenyatta, at the Fair Grounds in
Nakuru. He did so …. And everyone, including the President was impressed. Now
that, in itself, was a great blessing…. to be selected out of all the other
high school students in Nakuru was a huge honor. Much honor was bestowed upon
Flamingo High School the day Abraham preformed. But the biggest blessing was
still forth-coming.
One month ago, President Uhuru Kenyatta decided he would
purchase a brand new travel bus for Flamingo High School in honor of Abraham’s
performance. Wow! Flamingo High School never had any sort of bus before.
Cynthia and I were asked to attend the dedication of the bus
and we were there when it arrived… and it was so exciting.
All the kids and
staff of Flamingo High went wild. They had never in their wildest dreams ever believed
this could possibly happen to them.
The staff, with the students, then gathered in the school
court yard and publicly, with much celebrating, thanked Christ Jesus for this
great blessing. Everyone there blessed Christ for His love and then… they dedicated
the bus to Christ.
In contrast to my homeland, they did so with no fear of
being fired, sued, or even ridiculed. The reason is because all who could have
persecuted them were standing there praising God with them. In attendance was
the County School Commissioner, the Mayor and other government officials. We
were very blessed to be a part of the dedication.
After the court yard dedication, the school bell rang and everyone met in the school
hall for more celebration, singing, dances and speeches. There was no generational
gap present as everyone, including the school staff joined in the dancing and
singing.
Finally Abraham was asked to speak… as he walked to the
front of the room, all the students and teachers clapped with most standing and
giving him a standing ovation. His poetic speech both thrilled his fellow
students and honored his teachers along with the entire school staff. All in
all, it was very much a great privilege to be there. We were so proud of
Abraham.
After we left, I wondered … did those three single ladies
have any idea what their act of love might accomplish? That… their gift would
have created such a chain of blessings to so many people half-way around the
world? Probably not, but the above story perfectly illustrates just how
powerful giving in the name of Christ can be.
Abraham was so blessed just being allowed to return to
school and continue his education. His family, our entire church and his entire
High School was blessed just to see him be selected to perform in front of the
President of Kenya. Most everyone in Nakuru (over 350,000 people) were blessed
because one of their own was recognized for his great performance before the
leader of their country. Then on top of everything else, came the blessing of Flamingo
High School being given, by the President of Kenya, an expensive tour bus.
So; … what if those precious sisters who helped Abraham were
to have said… “Oh, well things are financially a little tight … someone else
will probably help them.”? What major blessings, to so many people, would have
been forfeited?
A while back we had some of Rose Creek Performers put on a
skit for us about what happens when we do one lone act of kindness. They said
it was kind of like a little stone being thrown into a great lake. The impact
of that little stone can create a ‘chain of events’ that can travel all the
way to the other side of the great lake…. And back! Remember all heaven rejoices when Christ is glorified. Who knows how far your
ripples may travel?
Help us help other Kenyan children get an education. Like
the adage states… ‘A mind is a terrible thing to waste’. Your loving
contribution could create some…. Major Ripples!
It sure did in Abraham’s life!
Your missionaries
Dave and Cynthia
