She followed me around the school campus, pushing through the crowds of excited children to get close to me, to STAY close to me, to grab the hem of my shirt and reach for my hand - and when she finally had my full attention, she put her palms on my cheeks and looked directly into my eyes, full of hope as she said, “Do you know my name? It’s V… please don’t forget me. I will pray for you. Will you please pray for me? For my family?” My heart was instantly attached to hers as we prayed together there on the dirt pathway, and I found out later that she was not yet sponsored. Well that was all it took - I immediately signed up to sponsor her. The next next week, MOHI gathered all of the children we collectively sponsored for a field trip, and the moment captured in this photo was one of the most beautiful moments of my life…as V got out of the vehicle and realized I was the one who had sponsored her. We ran towards each other, tears in both of our eyes as she squeezed me tight saying, “You didn’t forget me! You didn’t forget my name! Oh thank you!” I bawled like a baby as I thought - what a beautiful picture of Gods love for us! Chosen, not forgotten, redeemed and called by name. Each one of us, His beloved.
>
> In the midst of such poverty and suffering, to see the Hope of Jesus, spilling out all over Kenya through the faithful work of the missionaries and staff on the ground there - to witness such powerful and transformative Light in the darkness - has served to renew my own Hope and Faith in the One who is making all things new, restoring the joy of my salvation and reviving my zeal to trust Him more fully with the story He is writing in and through my own life and in my own community here at home.
>
> I could go on and on about the incredible things and people we witnessed and experienced, and would say that I simply had no idea - despite all the stories and pictures and testimonies I’ve heard over the years - just how broad and beautiful is the width and depth of transformation in Kenya as a result of one woman’s faith, one woman’s YES to God. But then just as I had no idea until I experienced it for myself, the same would be true for the reader of my stories. You simply cannot truly KNOW it until you are IN it. He is hard at work! His Kingdom is being built in BIG and miraculous ways all across the world. May we have eyes to see it coming in all its fullness, and hearts and hands ready to participate in it wherever we are.
>
> Here am I Lord, send me.
>
> In the midst of such poverty and suffering, to see the Hope of Jesus, spilling out all over Kenya through the faithful work of the missionaries and staff on the ground there - to witness such powerful and transformative Light in the darkness - has served to renew my own Hope and Faith in the One who is making all things new, restoring the joy of my salvation and reviving my zeal to trust Him more fully with the story He is writing in and through my own life and in my own community here at home.
>
> I could go on and on about the incredible things and people we witnessed and experienced, and would say that I simply had no idea - despite all the stories and pictures and testimonies I’ve heard over the years - just how broad and beautiful is the width and depth of transformation in Kenya as a result of one woman’s faith, one woman’s YES to God. But then just as I had no idea until I experienced it for myself, the same would be true for the reader of my stories. You simply cannot truly KNOW it until you are IN it. He is hard at work! His Kingdom is being built in BIG and miraculous ways all across the world. May we have eyes to see it coming in all its fullness, and hearts and hands ready to participate in it wherever we are.
>
> Here am I Lord, send me.
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