CGA Sponsors Visit Mbita

During the last week of February, 21 CGA Sponsors and Supporters embarked on the long journey from America to Mbita, Kenya to visit CGA. It was a unique team not only because it was comprised of many of our children's sponsors, but also because they came from 5 different states (CA, MT, MN, OR & SC), representing 8 different churches!  Many of the team members had not previously traveled much internationally and, for a few of them, it was their first time out of the USA.  They were coming to learn about life and culture in Kenya, better understand the ministry of CGA and, most of all, 18 of them visited their sponsored child!  

On Monday morning, the team arrived at CGA to be a part of our weekly Chapel.  They were greeted with the smiles of 260 students; each eager to meet them.  Kenyans, with their culture for superb hospitality, love visitors. After a welcome song called “Karibu Kenya” and beautiful dancing by our 7^th and 8^th grade dancers, the team members were each presented with a hand-made welcome card by a student.  Chapel was lead by CGA Alumni and it made for a great introduction for the team to understand what CGA is about; raising up children and youth to know and love Jesus and, in turn, live their lives as examples to others.

After a tour of the campus, they received more Kenyan hospitality when they were served chai (tea with milk) and mandazis (the African doughnut) while Teacher Diana shared the history of the school and more about the structure of CGA's child sponsorship program.  During their first day at CGA, each Sponsor had the opportunity to meet their sponsored child.  Over the course of the week, they had much more time to really get to know their child. There’s nothing quite as special as the first hug you get to give a child you’ve supported, prayed for and loved for many years; some of them had been sponsoring that child for over 10 years!

Each teammember was assigned a specific classroom to be with for the week. They spent every morning during Devotions time in their assigned classrooms.  Many shared Scripture, testimonies, a song or prayed for the students.  Throughout the day, each teammember took their morning porridge and lunch breaks with these classes to have a chance to interact with the students and teacher.  The relaxed atmosphere helps the students begin to open up and share about their family and ask lots of questions to the visitors.  When it was lunchtime and the students didn’t see their visitor, they would go looking for them around campus to ask them to join the class for lunch!

While much of the focus of this trip was for sponsors to meet their child and for the entire team to capture a great vision for the ministry of CGA, they also had a desire to SERVE.  The team participated in 5 different projects throughout the school.  The Sewing Group spent most of their mornings and afternoons, endlessly mending torn uniforms or replacing buttons!  The Craft Group went into every classroom during their scheduled Creative Arts lessons and taught a new craft each day.  The students loved the chance to work with new materials, making a beaded cross keychain, foam bookmarks, faith bracelets and much more!  The Painting Group painted our

 recently built computer lab!  The Construction Group worked alongside and under the lead of Benard, CGA’s carpenter.  They learned how to make tables for the computer lab the Kenyan way; getting back to the roots of construction, using handsaws and hand planes!   As one team member put it, "We relearned the lost art of true carpentry."  This group also assisted with putting up a large fence behind the goals of our soccer pitch. The Photography Group took thousands of pictures to help us have updated profile pictures of each student and staff, as well as class pictures and other images from around the CGA campus!  Many of the team members also led a session during the 5^th-8^th grade Club time including Yahtzee, crafts, music and even a lesson on satellite imaging!!  Besides their dedicated service, the team also blessed the school with a number of needed school supplies, including 10 laptops for our new computer lab!

A lesser known part of CGA’s ministry is that we work with over 100 widows; all who are mothers or guardians to our students.  The widows are divided into small home groups where they meet weekly or monthly to spend time together, encourage one another and share their joys and struggles.  For many of the widows, they say that this group is their family!!  The team members each attended one of the 5 widows groups.  They experienced spirit-lead worship and sharing of God’s Word, they had intimate conversations getting to know the ladies, received great hospitality, and, most of all, they saw in each lady a deep desire to love and provide for the children God has put in their care!  Recognizing that while the widows might have little when it comes to material possessions and appear to be poor by Western standards, they are rich in spirit and in their trust and reliance on God!  They saw a beautiful spirit of joy in the women!

The highlight of their time in Mbita was visiting the homes of their sponsored child. Each sponsor had the chance to meet the child’s family, see their home and enjoy a special time of fellowship together.  A few sponsors whose children are in secondary school, even got to go to the child’s school, meet them and see their school.  They were humbled by the basic homes and poor living conditions (compared to the USA).  And they were overwhelmed by the hospitality and gratitude each family gave to the sponsor!

Long before the team touched down in Nairobi, we were preparing them to come to Kenya with open hearts and minds.  The focus of the trip was on developing relationships and not on what the American’s can “do” for the Kenyans, but on what the American’s can learn and better understand about God’s Kingdom through this experience.  At the heart of CGA’s ministry is our mission: “to see God’s Kingdom come to Kenya through though the lives of these children.” We believe this is happening; here and now.  The hope for visiting teams is that they, too, can catch a glimpse of God’s present Kingdom here in Kenya!  And, more importantly, learn how they can begin to see God’s present Kingdom in their own lives in America.  

We believe hearts were moved, perceptions were changed and they saw that Jesus is alive and at work in a rural [poverty-stricken] place like Mbita!  We pray that each teammember is moved to be a great ambassador for CGA and God’s work in Mbita. We are grateful for the team’s desire to “come and see”, for their willingness to leave their families and spend the money to travel half way across the world to Kenya and for their great attitudes and servant hearts while they were at CGA.