THE POWER OF GOD'S LOVE IN THE MIDDLE OF AFRICA

EMMANNE. IN THE MIDDLE OF AFRICA IN KENYA THERE IS A VILLAGE NAMED THERI WHERE THE POWER OF GOD’S LOVE KNOWS NO LIMITS. IT IS THERE THAT TWO CHRISTIAN BROTHERS I LOVE DEARLY HAD A VISION TO BRING HOPE TO A GROUP OF ORPHAN KIDS, AND ONCE ESTABLISHED BEGIN SHARING LIFE AND BRINGING HOPE TO ALL OF THE PEOPLE IN THE SURROUNDING AREA. Emmanne is a Ministry and Family that is dear to my family’s heart. It is a story of Stepping Out In Faith to Serve. It is a story of two men sharing the absolute Oneness In Christ As Brothers despite different skin colors, upbringing, and cultural lifestyles. Bound Together in The Love Of Jesus Christ, and a burning desire to Share The Gospel in a Real and Meaningful Way, Mwangi Ndegwa and Matthew Bachali took that step of Faith that so many Christians want to do, but never muster the effort to commit into action. What makes Emmanne so beautiful is the absolute partnership of the many people who pour their hearts into it ! Kenyan people leading on the ground while American people strive to help analyze vision and priorities. WORKING TOGETHER WHILE SUBMITTING TO GOD AND HIS WILL ! A place where you can SEE God At Work Everywhere. Theri Kenya ,before Emmanne, was a typical African Village in a remote area of Hillsides and Trees. No water, no electricity. No real infrastructure, and no real economy. Poverty, Eighty Percent Unemployment. Disease and a Physically demanding life not often seen or imagined from My Small Comfortable World….. and yet, I felt a True Bond In My Heart for the people who lived there, because I KNEW GOD WAS ALL AROUND ME ! I KNEW THAT WE WERE ONE IN THE EYES AND HEART OF JESUS !

SO WE HAVE COME TO KNOW AND BELIEVE THE LOVE THAT GOD HAS FOR US. GOD IS LOVE, AND WHOEVER ABIDES IN LOVE ABIDES IN GOD, AND GOD ABIDES IN HIM. 1 John 4:16

THE LORD YOUR GOD IS IN YOUR MIDST, A MIGHTY ONE WHO WILL SAVE; HE WILL REJOICE OVER YOU WITH GLADNESS; HE WILL QUIET YOU BY HIS LOVE; HE WILL EXULT OVER YOU WITH LOUD SINGING. Zephaniah 3:17

SO THAT CHRIST MAY DWELL IN YOUR HEARTS THROUGH FAITH-THAT YOU, BEING ROOTED AND GROUNDED IN LOVE MAY HAVE THE STRENGTH TO COMPREHEND WITH ALL THE SAINTS WHAT IS THE BREADTH AND LENGTH AND HEIGHT AND DEPTH, AND TO KNOW THE LOVE OF CHRIST THAT SURPASSES KNOWLEDGE, THAT YOU MAY BE FILLED WITH ALL THE FULNESS OF GOD. Ephesians 3:17-19

Theri Kenya was a moment of Awakening for me. I have always had a heart for helping others, but this was Different ! This was a place where even the smallest of things seemed absolutely remarkable. A barren place where there had been no water now had water, grass planted for feed for CATTLE ! A dilapidated building transformed into a community center with a women’s garment business, producing beautiful dresses and school uniforms. Rooms waiting to be filled with people and ideas ! A coffee operation, bringing in sustainable income for the ministry and community. A school with expanded opportunities for education and a future full of promise. Chickens, eggs, banana plants….all new here ! A kids home, where children who had been abandoned could find peace, security, and a place to call home. A HOME FULL OF LOVE AND HOPE ! Kids of all ages loving each other as brothers and sisters ! My Heart and Emotions are still Overwhelmed. Here in my Blessed Life and Circumstances all of this seems like a surreal dream. I live in a place where these things are just taken for granted. Life is SO EASY HERE….and yet So Lacking. Wealth and materialism seems to breed complacency and disdain. Envy and Pride. I sense that even in the deepest struggle one might encounter in America, these struggles pale in comparison to what these people encounter on a daily basis…and Yet, They Are Happy ! SONG AND DANCE AND JOY IS ALIVE IN THERI KENYA, despite the struggles. The Emmanne team got to participate in a Medical Camp set up to bring the people in the area to some very basic health services that are not readily available. Blood pressure checks, blood sugar counts, eyesight checkups, Women’s physicals and family planning. I saw dozens of people as I helped with the blood pressure monitoring; also trying to learn if they had any other issues that had brought them to seek help and information. People trusting me to help them and listen to their needs, often with a Kenyan nurse or student beside me translating from a tribal tongue, or Swahilii into English. God saying to me “ Give them all you can and show them My Love through your efforts Jim”. I felt so Thankful, and Humbled. So lucky to share LOVE.

NEITHER DO PEOPLE LIGHT A LAMP AND PUT IT UNDER A BOWL. INSTEAD THEY PUT IT ON IT’S STAND, AND IT GIVES LIGHT TO EVERYONE IN THE HOUSE. IN THE SAME WAY, LET YOUR LIGHT SHINE BEFORE OTHERS, THAT THEY MAY SEE YOUR GOOD DEEDS AND GLORIFY YOUR FATHER IN HEAVEN. Mathew 5: 14-16

GIVE, AND IT WILL BE GIVEN TO YOU. GOOD MEASURE, PRESSED DOWN, SHAKEN TOGETHER, RUNNING OVER, WILL BE PUT IN YOUR LAP. FOR WITH THE MEASURE YOU USE IT WILL BE MEASURED BACK TO YOU. Luke 6:38

BUT IF ANYONE HAS THE WORLD’S GOODS AND SEES HIS BROTHER IN NEED, YET CLOSES HIS HEART AGAINST HIM, HOW DOES GOD’S LOVE ABIDE IN HIM ? 1 John 3:17

Finding a moment of time once the medical camp was winding down, we all sat together on the edge of an open area where the kids could play and run together. There was music and dancing, and suddenly, I was surrounded by kids ! And the kids began to embrace us with a Love So Powerful that it made us all cry ! The joy I felt holding Alfred and Sarah on my lap as they snuggled in to be close. Exploring my hands and skin, playing with my watch…so content, just to be held and loved ! I felt overwhelmed with the Absolute Power of GOD”S LOVE. I was swimming in it, and it was SO GOOD !!! In a place so far from my daily life, the JOY AND EMOTIONS I FELT WERE BEYOND WORDS….Our lives are so distracted by the myriad of evil things that engulf us every day through the endless efforts of men to hurt and destroy each other. It can seem like a constant pounding on our very souls to be fearful and anxious about everything. THE TRUTH IS THAT JESUS CHRIST OVERCAME ALL OF THE EVIL THROUGH HIS LOVE FOR US ! I think the key for each of us is to SEE HIS LOVE AND ABIDE IN IT ! I got to step out of my world and comfort zone and meet a New World And Perspective. The most amazing thing is that I got to share it with my wife, daughter, son, and niece, all whom I love so dearly. Theri Kenya has changed me, and I know that it has changed my family as well. We have fallen in love with the people of Africa. From Kenya, with Theri and the Masai Mara all the way to Tanzania and the Serengeti. God gave us a chance to SEE AND FEEL THE HEARTS OF THE PEOPLE, AND I WILL FOREVER BE GRATEFUL :). Special thanks to Maddie for all the planning, and to Matthew and Mwangi for helping make it all happen. May God’s Love fill every single place in the world with HIS TRUTH AND HIS GRACE FOR US, HIS PEOPLE. AMEN. GOD”S LOVE IS EVERYWHERE, FIND IT/JAA

FOR GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD THAT HE GAVE HIS ONLY SON, THAT WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM SHALL NOT PERISH BUT HAVE ETERNAL LIFE. John 3:16

Check Out Emmanne in my Ministries Section !!!