Graduation Celebration

The last day of school for our Kindergarten Class in Kenya is quite special!!  We throw a party, we have cake and fruit juice.  We dress up in awesome caps & gowns.  And we have a huge celebration ceremony for all these 5 & 6 year olds who have accomplished great things!!  This year we closed both of our schools with three separate ceremonies.  Primarily, Muslim mothers fill the seats, anxious to hear and see what their kids have learned this past year.  It was a busy two days but well worth it.  The kids will have the next seven weeks off and return back to class on January 5th.  Thanks for supporting Lisa & I as we get this amazing opportunity to help change children's lives forever!!!

New Church Plant!!

From L to R: Pastor Hesbon Kioko, Pastor Rasto, Mr & Mrs Mangwabi (owners who donated the land for the church and borehole)

After 7 years of working with MBEWAU Church, God has allowed them to start their first "baby" church. The new church called "Makuhuru Fellowship" is located approximately 5 miles away and is in an unreached area.

It is exciting for me to watch these young churches get to the place that they are now mature enough to recognize the need for an "extension" of their own ministry. I am honored to work with Pastor Rasto as he now mentors Pastor Hesbon Kioko in his new role. Just one more GREAT reason for Lisa & I to be here in Kenya!!!

Mr & Mrs Mangwabi donated the half acre land for the church and borehole. In the next few months we will build a simple mud church and dig a community borehole. I know God will do great things on this "holy ground" HE has provided.

Pastor Hesbon graduated Crossroads Bible College in Vipingo earlier this year. I had the opportunity to teach him in a few classes over the past 3 years. He is 27 years old, single, from Kakamega and works at the Vipingo Sisal Plantation. I am excited to see what God has in store for him @ his new church, Makuhuru Fellowship!

The Work Continues

The work continues at Maasai Corner Ministries.  Tile is being laid in the classrooms, the water tower is being repaired and the church sign has been painted. The staff housing is coming along great!  God is so good!

I feel like I’m stepping into a place of hope!

Hi! In case you don’t know me, I’m Jacqueline, Bob Nicol's, youngest daughter. I was finally able to accompany him to Kenya this summer! After years of hearing stories, seeing pictures, and watching videos, I am finally here, experiencing all of it with my own eyes, ears, mouth, nose, hands and heart. And what an adventure it has been! I have tried a lot of new foods, played soccer barefoot in the sand, built a mud hut, peeled a coconut with a machete, shared the Gospel with Muslims, snorkeled and fished in the Indian Ocean, and ridden on the back of a boda boda (motorcycle) and a camel!

Along with all of this excitement, I’ve had the opportunity to meet some wonderful people and see some beautiful places. It has been so neat to be able to meet and interact with the people that my dad has worked alongside all these years. I have seen a number of the wells that he and his team have drilled and have met people in the communities that they serve. It has been so neat to see and hear their appreciation for the work that my dad and R4C are doing in their villages. I honestly cannot imagine life without clean, pure water available always, but that’s the reality of life in the bush. Water is a necessity of life, which my father, and each one of his supporters, are providing to thousands of people in Eastern Kenya. Not only are they bringing life in the form of water, but they’re also sharing it in the name of Jesus, and it truly doesn’t get better than that!

In addition to seeing the wells, I’ve been able to spend time at the R4C properties, both of which completely surpassed my expectations. Maasai Corner and MBEWAU are absolutely beautiful – the buildings, the landscape, the staff, and the children are all wonderful. Sadly, I have to say that this is not my impression for all of Kenya. In fact, these places are blatantly different than the cities and the streets in which they exist. When walking through the gates of Maasai Corner and MBEWAU, I feel like I’m stepping into a place of hope. Spending time in the classrooms, the clinic, the soccer field, and the sanctuary, I am aware that I am standing on holy ground. It is evident that this ministry has been blessed by God and that it is being used to shine hope and bring life to these communities. The Lord is clearly at work here through Chris and Lisa and the staffs they have assembled. Although I have not been privileged to watch the ministry’s work play out over the course of its existence, I am able to see the light that it is shining, in stark contrast to the darkness that surrounds. This glimpse only serves as a promise of more hope and light to come. God is surely at work, but is nowhere near finished with this people or this place, and I am so excited to see what else He will do.

Thus far, during my time here in Kenya, I have learned a number of things, a few of which I will share. First of all, I am inexpressibly proud of my dad and the work he does. I am thrilled that from now on when he calls me from here to tell me what he’s doing, where he is, and who he’s with, I’ll understand it all. Secondly, the missionary life is not particularly glamorous. From my few short weeks here I can only understand one tiny sliver of what this life is like, but I am certain that it is not for the faint of heart. I have learned that it is lonely to live in a foreign place with a different culture and language, and it is exhausting to be consistently attacked by the devil for fighting to glorify God. I will forever admire and do my best to encourage and support those who have been chosen by God and called across the world to spread his love to the nations. And lastly, as everyone who has been on a mission trip of any kind can understand, I am blessed beyond words. For living in America, for growing up in a Christian home, for having shoes to wear and clean water to drink, for being educated, for being healthy, for being loved and cared for all my days, I am blessed.

Blinded By The Enemy

R4C Board Member Bill DeFrees has been in Kenya the last week. They are having a great trip and he wanted to share some of the things God is doing there in Kenya.

Today, members of our team had the incredible opportunity to baptize 10 new believers at Maasai Corner Church. I never get tired of seeing the excitement of those who have accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior come out of the water with great big smiles on their faces. It reminds me of the Awesome power of God and how He continues to change lives every day. At the same time, I have a heavy heart for the people of Kenya. There is so much poverty and despair. I had a 21 year old young man tell me that he wanted to kill himself because he cannot find work and he is tired of not having any money or food. He was a Muslim and had no hope. As we talked he told me that his dream was to go to America, the land of opportunity and he wanted me to "sponsor" him. I told him that I couldn't do it, but I know some one who could. We talked about Jesus for a long time and he prayed to receive Jesus as his Lord and Savior! I visited with a Muslim woman in her mud hut who did not want to hear about Jesus. She had given birth to 10 children but only 2 are living and now she is raising some of her grandchildren. She has no money and no hope. We have talked to several Muslims who have told us that they pray to their god and we pray to our God so it's ok. It is not ok. These people are so blinded by the enemy. They are so faithful to their religion. Right now they are celebrating Ramadan and go to the mosque to pray 4 times a day. They also fast from sun up to sun down, for what? They are not experiencing the abundant life that the people who were baptized today will experience. We drive through the cities and villages and there are men everywhere on street corners because they have no jobs. Some are drunk or high and continue to have no hope. We see children without clothes and the whites of their eyes are yellow. Most do not go to school. If they survive, there is not much of a future for them. Chris an Lisa are doing incredible things here in Kenya, but they need help to reach more families to feed and educate children, to spread the good news of Jesus and to help families to be self sufficient.

God Bless!
Bill DeFrees

A word from Missionary Brandon Adams

It’s All About God! 

It is hard to believe that just over a week ago we were worshipping God with his people in Kenya. I am still neck deep in awe by how God radically changed the lives of 18 souls willing to go to the other side of the world to serve Him! While we were in Kenya there were a few situations we encountered that had the potential to waylay the morale of our team. In the past two weeks over 70 people, specifically non-muslim Kenyans, were murdered in politically/religiously motivated attacks in Lamu, a coastal city that is close to the Somalia - Kenya border. Lamu is only 6-8 hours from Mombasa, where we were ministering. Even during a very dark time of national tragedy in Kenya, God’s light shined even brighter! Our team worked harder and we shared the Gospel with more boldness. We laughed and cried and prayed for the people God sent us to serve. God had a mission for us to accomplish while we were there and we weren’t going to let Satan stop us! 

Our theme for the trip was “It’s all about God”. I was amazed to see the other 17 team members as well as myself learn so much about who we are in Christ. When we clear away the distractions of life and focus on what Jesus called us to do, you can accomplish so much more for the Kingdom! We all found so much fulfillment in the simplicity of sharing the Gospel in the villages, serving in the clinic, or just bringing a smile to a child who seemed to be having a bad day. I know God was glorified in all of that. The light of Christ shines so bright in the darkness; it was awesome, in every sense of the word, to witness that first hand. Lives are being changed in Kenya and all around the world because of the hope that Gospel brings. Let us share that hope with urgency to the world around us and may God give us grace to do so! 

Prayer and Praises 

• There are several ministry needs for Mbewau and 

   Maasai Corner. Pray that God would supply these need 

   through the generosity of His people.  

• Pray for the people of Kenya. There have been multiple 

   recent attacks by the Somali militant group, Al Shabab. 

• Please pray for our dear friends and host missionaries 

   Chris and Lisa Moore.  

• Please pray that God would allow us to arrive in Kenya 

   by June 1, 2015. 

Mission Accomplished

Mission Mombasa 2014 was an amazing trip to Kenya.  18 team members from several different churches came together as one team and shared the love of Christ with hundreds of people around the Mombasa area.

Here are a few stats from the trip:
17 Souls accepted Christ as personal Savior.
Over 100 villagers received medical attention.
50 students in the schools received medical care.
400 students pictures were taken to update the R4C child sponsorship program.
Funds given to medical and building funds.
18 team members lives changed.
18 bags of medical and school supplies donated.

God is working in Kenya.  If you would like to personally see what God is doing there please contact Real4Christ about 2015 trip dates @  missiontrips@real4christ.com.

Thank you to everyone that donated funds, bought a t-shirt and donated medical and school supplies. Lives have been forever changed with your help.

God Bless!
David Hayes

Mombasa has a place in my heart that I can't describe

Since being back in the states I immediately crave a mandazi and chai tea which tastes undoubtedly better in Kenya than in America. I miss the sounds of kids laughing and singing with me. I long for the feel of a child holding my hand and being all in my personal space because that's how they express their love. I want other opportunities to share the Gospel in the pouring rain on mud roads, slipping and sliding. I won't ever forget the welcome songs and kids chasing after a bus full of missionaries, awaiting for us to get off and screaming, "I want that one, I want that one!" Beyond the disorder of what's going in Kenya, despite that people are struggling to survive, even though there are Muslim attacks, the Lord is among the people of Kenya, especially in Mombasa. 

I asked God to put me in situations that will allow me to get out my comfort zone. Knowing that Jesus intercedes on my behalf, I wanted to have a dependence on the Holy Spirit in a place that was unlike America. God fulfilled all that as He is faithful to do when we ask. I've been arounds bugs and slept with a mosquito net that was as tangible as I could get to God's covering at night lol. With God's guidance, He gave me the words to share when speaking to people about Jesus and the free gift of salvation if they believe Jesus is God and with a repented heart they too could be saved, and have a life forever changed by God. I have an even more enthusiastic heart for teaching one day, and one day to sponsor about five kids through Real 4 Christ Ministries. I've had my eyes opened to how the majority of the world actually lives and what a humbling experience that was. People live in mud huts, no plumbing, no air conditioning. No t.v., no stove, no fridge, no clean water without traveling to the nearest well if there is one. No mattress (or if so, not a new one), no vehicle,  access to the store being 10 minutes away, but God…

I've processed a lot for being in Mombasa for almost two weeks, and something so beautiful to witness was a people who believed in Jesus, that He is their provider, with their whole hearts, they worship and love God, they thank Him for who He is, what He's given them, and they have nothing but joy in their souls. Because when God is literally all you have, He's all you need. Kids and adults alike dance for God without being concerned with who is watching, their mind isn't focused on anyone else. They live out the words they sing, that they are victorious, that God is higher, that satan is the loser, and God is in control. In America, we worship how we feel, not necessarily because we must because that's what we are created to do "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's special possession, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into Hid wonderful light." (1 Peter 2:9 NIV). 

In such a short time I've had the time of my life and have learned a lot. From marriage interests (which can even happen as you're in a moving vehicle, trust me) to laying in my bed weeping, Mombasa has a place in my heart that I can't describe. The people who I've come to know from the kids, the teachers, to the women I've come to call my friends from the hotels I stayed in have shown me how to love more, care more, to have fun without limits, to just keep it moving whatever is going on. Hakuna Matata: it means no worries. And with God you really don't have any.  

Lab coats and whoopee cushions

This is my fourth time coming to Kenya. And as you can guess, some of the shock values have worn off by this time around. I know to expect the different culture, language, smells and driving laws. I have formed relationships with people here and get excited to hug their necks each year. And every time I have planned to return, I have been asked why - why go back? Why go back after I have already been here? My answer - the people. It's a simple answer, but it's one I could not give without an unconditional love through Christ that He first demonstrated. Romans 5:6 - 10 tells us that "while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person - though perhaps for a good person one would even dare to die - but God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since therefore, we have now been justified by His blood, much more shall we be saved by Him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by His life." We started our journey to Kenya with the focus that this trip was all about God no matter what. It sounds cliche and you might wonder what it means since most 'mission trips' are usually about God in some way. Personally, I have seen it in the intentional relationships being built with the people here. I think of a conversation that Kim and I had with Jackson today as he gave us fresh mangos from a tree at Mbewau. With a sincere heart, he told us that they may not have much, but they love us deeply and want to share the blessings that God has given them. How many of us could genuinely say the same thing to someone we have only been around for a few days every year? Things we take for granted in America can be huge over here. A few days ago, I had the privilege of presenting embroidered lab coats to the new doctor and lab tech at Maasai Corner. In his delight, the doctor exclaimed "Now I can be a lifelong physician!" A few hours later, we introduced the staff of Maasai Corner to whoopee cushions. After their initial shock, each staff member took ther turn running out to grab the next person to prank. It is things like this - lab coats, whoopee cushions, medical clinic, hut-to-hut, or even simple games and songs with the children - that demonstrate to me that we are all created by God and because He loved us, we can emulate His love towards one another in everything that we do. The first few verses of Romans 5 tell us that "since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through Him we have obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us." There is hope here. I see it, hear it and feel it as I walk through the campuses of Maasai Corner and Mbewau Academy. I see it in the boldness of our translators as they go hut-to-hut with us. I hear it in the worship songs on Sunday and in the classrooms as the children are taught about God and His provision for us. I feel it in the impact that Chris and Lisa are having as they work to build up the ministry of both schools. The hope I see here is not an earthly hope, but an eternal hope that only comes through God's love for us. And through that love, we can share in the hope the people have here. 1 John 4:19 - We love because God first loved us....Karen Sandifer

Before going on this trip, I was concerned about becoming desensitized with the things that I had witnessed the past 4 years.  This was my 5th trip back and I had seen sick and hurting children, starvation, and all the things that go along with trips to Mombasa.  But, this country never fails to show new and interesting ways to bring me to tears.
Yesterday, we went to witness hut-to-hut.  The notion of doing this the first trip was terrifying, but it's a lot different now.  I look forward to it and enjoy it.  I went with a team of a translator, and 3 women, 2 of them had never done anything like this before.  I was so proud of them as they shared their hearts with the villagers.  After a couple of hours, we came to the home of a large family.  All of the women were home with their children.  There were roughly 10 women and children in all.  As one of the women shared Christ with the women, I was handing out gum to the children.  This proved to be very entertaining because while talking we could hear nothing but smacking coming from the kids.  We talked for a while and a women got up and left the conversation.  This was very frustrating to me and I said, "We spent two days, spent a lot of money, left our homes, and left our families, just to share this message with you.  We want to see you again in Heaven.  We believe this to be the most important message you will ever hear."  At that time I looked to one of my partners and she was in tears as was I.  I did notice that when the women saw our tears, they could tell our sincerity and they listened more intently.  Praise God!  The women said that they believed what we were sharing and said that they would be coming to church on Sunday.  Only God knows their hearts.  I hope to see them this Sunday and told them to come and sit next to me.

1 Corinthians 1:18
For the message of the cross is foolishness to those that are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God....Keith Mathews