Written by Reverend Janice Lewis, President, and CEO
Project Hope Global Outreach, Inc. who has served as a full-time Missionary the past 17½ years in Nairobi, Kenya, East Africa missionaryjanice@gmail.com
Chronicling how it began…to be continued next week with a finality.
Matthew 28:19-20- King James Version
“19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”
This Scripture in the Bible is called THE GREAT COMMISSION. It is the command of Jesus to his Disciples to teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
The great commission was given to everybody who calls Jesus Christ their Lord and Savior. The great commission was the last recorded personal directive of the Savior to his disciples, and it holds the most pronounced direction for all followers of Jesus Christ. It is the foundation for evangelism and cross-cultural missions work for us as Christians.
On Wednesday, June 6, 2006, I heeded the call of the Great Commission, to GO!
After a 29-hour flight, from Ft. Lauderdale, FL via London, England to Nairobi Kenya, it was the beginning of 17 ½ years of my saying YES to Jesus’ command to SERVE.
I never imagined or could have written such a transformational, remarkable journey/phase of what God has done in my life.
I had the feeling deep in my heart that I had been chosen by God to Serve in Nairobi, Kenya. After a mission’s trip to Mombasa, Kenya, I walked into my Pastor’s office at New Mount Olive Baptist Church, the late Dr. Mack King Carter, and told him that while I had previously gone on a trip to Mombasa, Kenya, the Holy Spirit had spoken to me and was leading me to leave my job and go to Nairobi, Kenya to serve orphans and widows. I told Dr. Carter that the Holy Spirit continued to give me the scripture listed above.
Dr. Carter had tears in his eyes and told me that it was affirmation what I said because God had told him to place a Missionary in Africa. He told me that he thought he would die, not being obedient to what God had told him to do. He was very happy and immediately as I sat at his desk, set the wheels in motion by calling the National Baptist Association officers to introduce me.
Six months later and again after 29 hours of flying and layovers, I landed in Kenya. I stepped off the plane onto what I considered an absolute wonder. I knew only one person in Kenya who was a taxi driver that I had met years ago when on a mission’s trip to Rwanda. He helped me to become acquainted with Nairobi, Kenya as he picked me up daily to introduce me to as much of Kenya as possible. Because the Holy Spirit had instructed me to look after Orphans and Widows, I asked him to take me to villages that had the most orphans and widows. He told me “That is all of Kenya.”
I continued to pray asking God for His guidance. I realized that God had equipped me for this journey every time I had an encounter.
God showed me to listen to the orphans and widows’ stories. I prayed for them all. Most were out of desperation and having an American to listen to, often intensified the story. A Kenyan man told me once, “when I see an American, I see food.”
As time progressed and the more people I met, the needs became clearer, and all were totally different from what I had thought.
I knew that I was in Kenya to help change lives through teaching about Salvation and to help them towards self-sustainability. Dr. Carter told me to teach them how to fish and not just buy them fish.
The feeding program continued every Saturday for about a year. I was so happy that during this time there were many of the Kenya Tribes that came together which normally doesn’t happen. There are lots of tribal insecurity issues in Kenya. The Children were not prejudice. The children played games, soccer jumped rope and laughed out loud because they were happy. They all sat and ate their food together, never complaining but being very content.
Some of the children asked, “why can’t we do it every day so I can have good food to eat.”
I joined Parklands Baptist Church in Nairobi, Kenya where I have been a member since 2008. I met two Widows who taught me about who a Widow is. I felt that God sent both of them into my life. They told me the many challenges that Widows face. The ministry of widows began in the ministry I was chosen for through their experiences because I didn’t know anything about widows. God had equipped me, and I discovered so, over and over.
Today, one of the Widows serves as my Project and Program Director. With God, she has helped me to build the Great Commission Program in all 13 villages. I could have not done it without Jesus and her. I speak Kiswahili but not Mother tongue.
Over the next six years, James took me to villages that were totally destitute and needed major government relief but didn’t receive much support.
Kenya has many street children that daily turns the garbage cans over searching for food.
In 2007, I was invited to the Machakos Village by a manager where I bought my first cell phone in Kenya. I was introduced to 68 widows. Some had been practicing witchcraft for decades but after I started teaching a Bible Study in the village, many accepted Jesus Christ, whom they called Yeshua… After a few months, some began to cry out to Jesus calling on the Name of Jesus with conviction like I’ve never heard before. Many are now Evangelist.
One of the times, I had health issues, asthma, bronchitis, and pneumonia and spent five days in the hospital. But, as God always does everything for the best, He didn’t allow me to go into the hospital until two of our Mt. Olive members had arrived in Kenya to serve and support me in missions.
The Lord used both mightily as they went into the villages nine days without me. I thought I had to do the work on my own, constantly micromanaging as poverty often doesn’t allow even the one you want to trust to be trusted.
With the missionaries traveling to the villages alone, showed me a lot and truly allowed me to know that when God sets something in order, it will continue, despite. This was a period when we were on high security alert and the roads were filled with some danger. Both went every day despite.
As I lay recuperating in the hospital, the Holy Spirit spoke to me and said, “I gave you the vision, but you are not the one to do all the work.” In the scripture where it says, “…the harvest is plenty, but workers are few” is indeed true but I so much thank God for sending them to help me do the work.
While sick, the Lord again spoke to me and said, “You have developed and trained the staff to go out and work hard but you haven’t done enough to teach them about Salvation.
As soon as I got out of the hospital, I immediately started a Bible Study in my apartment with staff and the Lord blessed it.
Many of my staff had been saying they were saved as they thought going to church every Sunday made them saved. I began to teach them as it is written in God’s Word,
Romans 10:9-10 King James Version
9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”
God knew but I didn’t know how the people, my leaders who I was serving needed to be taught about Salvation. They were overjoyed to know and understand what Salvation really meant.
Most have now introduced salvation to their family members, friends and other tribesman and doing a great job telling what SALVATION means. One of my workers tells it very boldly as the Holy Spirit often makes her shout it out loud. Most of the workers attend village churches and now evangelize to many others as they walk up and down the roads to fetch water.
A couple of church groups in U.S. sent Bibles and I was able to give over 200. All of my staff, including most importantly the Security Guards that worked in my compound received one.
I also taught the security guards about Salvation. They were so eager to learn as every time I would drive in or out of the compound, they would be asking me to explain something about what they had read in the Bible.
They also would be opening the security gate with the Bible tucked under their arms. It became so intense until I would be holding up the car/s behind me trying to answer their questions.
I asked them to write the question on paper and once or twice a week I would call them individually to my front door to discuss. In Kenya, most of the security guards works 12-hour days with one day off and most don’t make $100 a month. They are a group of people that needs ministering to, and I thank God that the Lord allowed me to share more and more with them. They are the people that do a great job of protecting me. We had a number of security alerts, and they watched out for me in a very strong way.
The security alerts increased my Bible study. Also, there were a few days when we would be on security alert, and I couldn’t go out to work so I spent many hours a day having quality quiet time with the Lord which increased my passion and zeal to have a deeper relationship with Jesus. Many Kenyans are hungry for the Word. Now I know what the Lord meant when He said, ‘study to show thy self-approved.”
I have very detailed security that would often call when I didn’t arrive home by a certain time. I fed them a peanut butter and jelly sandwich every Sunday. Most of the guards have only a cup of tea each day because they have to save all their money for their, often, many children and wife at home.
God has blessed us to teach about The Cross first, then to find ways to help towards self-sustained projects.
My Widows who are of the Akamba Tribe average in ages 42-99. The location of this project is about 2.5 hours from Nairobi.
I went to the Widows village twice a week to have prayer meetings and Bible Study. It is now taught weekly by Widows that have accepted Jesus Christ.
We built three chicken farms with our own brick making machine. The Widows and Widowers made all the bricks for our projects.
We started a chicken farm in the Widows village where we purchased 300 chickens, layers-chickens that lay eggs; and broilers- chickens that are purchased at one day old and sold at 45 days.
I grew up on a farm in MS and never knew that chickens lay more than one egg a day. On average, our 53 chickens would lay 120-140 eggs a day and are sold at around 15 cents an egg. After the chickens laying cycle ended, we sold the chickens to villagers and gave each widow a chicken to eat. I can’t tell you how happy they were during this time, mainly if it was around Christmas. We would sell the rest of the chickens to the people in the village and give each Widow $1.50 from the sale.
The chickens called broilers were purchased at one day old, fed for 45 days and sold to grocery stores, restaurants, and some villagers. They were very plump.
The cost of raising the chickens became costly. They were supposed to eat 1 ½ bags of corn a week (approximately $53) but instead ate three bags a week. I frantically started to call the people whose chicken projects we had looked at to inform them that these chickens were eating us out of the house and home. I told the Widows/ers to take the chicken feed up at 6 P.M. The Supervisor called me in the middle of the night to say, “Madame, the chicks have started to peck and eat each other.” We immediately had to put the food out again.
I went to the village and observed them for a couple of days. They would walk over to the food, the water and then under the container we used to put charcoal in to keep the room warm. After about three to five minutes, they would repeat the cycle. We couldn’t believe it. I then had to inform the Widows/ers that this was indeed the end for us to raise broilers.
We purchased the 300 chicks for approximately $243. They ate $656 worth of food. We sold them for $472. NO MORE BROILERS!
The Widows/ers became more self-sustained with layers rather than the broilers. The Widows were able to eat eggs during the week and at the end of the laying cycle, received money when we sold the chickens to cook.
We also made liquid soap from multiple chemicals. They sell it to the schools and churches in the village and to the villagers. I brought in a lady from the Kikuyu Tribe to teach them how to make soap. I constantly invited different tribes in to work with the Widows. I taught them that tribalism is not good as many people have died from it.
Our largest fundraiser is making beautiful hand-woven baskets out of sisal, which looks like an aloe vera stalk. We have sold thousands of dollars’ worth in America which has helped them with self-sustainability. Many of them now have bank accounts and really save their money. They often want me to buy some special food but won’t spend their own money.
We purchased a brick-making machine. It has helped us to keep money coming in. The Widows/ers make their own bricks for all buildings. They make and sell bricks and often loan out the machine for rental. We have some Widows that are very business minded. They make sure they collect every penny whenever the machine is rented.
The Widows make beautiful jewelry from cow horn, magazines, plain seeds and beads.
We have received large donations of used eyeglasses which help them to see better. Many have cataracts but we don’t have the means to get their eyes checked. I pray that Doctors and Dentist Without Borders will one day be a blessing to my orphans and widows.
We are soliciting for doctors, dentists, and educators and all those that are willing to serve with the foreign mission’s projects.
There is an urgency to dig a well for the Widows/ers. Many of the Widows walk miles just to collect water. They then carry two buckets in their hands and one on their head. The water sometimes lasts less than a week when they must share with an animal. The soil where we will dig a well or borehole is filled with red clay dirt and large stones so only a drilling machine can be used.
Having clean water can help them in so many ways as WATER IS LIFE. With a well, they will have clean water to drink, no more cholera outbreaks, water for their crops, bathing and much more. They will also be allowed to sell the water to the villagers for about 25 cents a gallon to help with remaining self-sustained.
In 2007, We purchased four acres of land in a very rural area about nine hours outside of Nairobi where hundreds of orphans live. We built a small library and our first real toilet and a security guard house using our brick making machine.
A carpenter from the village made all the seats in the house. A prize possession was a real toilet dug 30 feet with a real commode, so no one must stand over a hole.
5,000 pineapple seedlings were purchased and planted. The pineapples were sold to purchase food for the orphans. The sale of the pineapples helped in purchasing the material to make the school uniforms, ringworm medicine, de-worming medicine, toothbrush/toothpaste, haircuts, and retreats… Some of the pineapple plants continue to grow on their own and have never been replanted.
A feeding program was started to serve the orphans one meal daily.
Healthcare
Non-stop teaching of HIV/AIDS prevention programs.
A Volunteer Nurse, a doctor and a dentist gave physicals and HIV/AIDS test. The kits were donated by the Center for Disease Control in Atlanta, GA.
Agriculture (we utilize local labor at minimum costs)
We planted and harvested Cassava, something like a white potato. Americans donated seeds and the harvest was thoroughly enjoyed by the Kenyans.
In 2007, we built a small school and library for the Masai Tribe. Over 5,000 people have used our facilities.
A well was dug in 2007 by a church who later came and joined me in missions for two weeks.
A Bible Study is taught every Friday.
Healthcare Program Taught HIV/AIDS prevention with condom distribution.
Buildings a state of the arts library was built in 2019. It has served over 5,000 people and has become the focal point in the entire community. The presence of this Library in the Masai Village, where due to poverty, only one percent can afford to buy a newspaper, has been transformational. Every day there used to be a constant line waiting for the opportunity to read about current events in Kenya. College students, teachers and professors came from far away to use the computers and wi-fi. Someone gave the collection for 2006-2008 of National Geographic to our library. Some of the children saw animals for the first time. They live where all the animals of the jungle are but had never seen one.
Over 4,500 Books and Magazines were donated from America.
School supplies have been donated by many churches.
We were able to cement four floors in the school. The children were suffering from respiratory problems and clothes dirty from sitting on the dirt floors.
Two of Mt. Olive’s members help cement the floors as I was in the hospital suffering from pneumonia, upper respiratory problems, and asthma. I’m grateful that God continue to send Missionaries to serve. I thank God more for the great help. Years earlier a church from MS came, paid for the sand, and put down new floors. Because of the humidity, the floors became damp and disappatiated.
The children are crowded into the classrooms. Five or six children sit on a small bench where only three should sit. We purchased lumber and made new desks for all the classrooms.
Also, we became prouder when our school took the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education exam in November 2019. We managed to get a high score of 296. Our math exam students came in at Number One, five times out of 18 constituencies’.
We celebrated our math teacher, Joseph Muema who received an award and certificate from the Top School Board in Nairobi, Kenya. This was a first.
Joseph would come in an hour early before school started, to tutor the students, preparing them for the exam. They are a phenomenal group of children.
We continue to pay the teacher’s salary quarterly. Joseph was given a raise for his great teaching skills. When I met Joseph at school in 2007, he only paid $800 a year, yes less than $100 a month. Teachers that do not have degrees are paid by the students once a month. The rule is for every student must bring 100ksh which is way under a dollar right now.
As I prepare for retirement from the foreign mission’s field in Kenya, I am concerned that without additional financial support, they will become financially strapped. I pray for donors and donations to come even after I retire.
Joseph, who we consider to be the greatest math teacher ever, wants to attend college, but it is a bit expensive making a little money and having a wife and two children. The cost per year is about $10,000 to study education. He knows that unless there is a sponsor, it will be a challenge. We will keep trusting God.
We also give support to a boarding school. 17 years ago, one of New Mt. Olive member paid for a well. The water has flowed nonstop and has served thousands of our students and Villagers.
Back in April, this year, while I was in Kenya, we purchased two used desktops for our boarding school. The students literally started dancing. Our headmaster contacted the Kenya Board of Education and they worked together to make it a part of the National Curriculum at the Boarding school.
Students can now learn about computers and get a grade. Something simple as buying them two older used desktop computers, has become what could be their way of life as one might become a computer engineer. I thank God.
In another village, we dug two wells, one, the water comes up out of the top each morning before the lid is open. The villagers call it a Blessed Well. A church from my hometown in MS, paid for the well and then came to join me on the mission’s field. They all pulled the bucket up out of the well will beautiful, clear, pristine water. We celebrated and Blessed the Lord.
Since 2008, New Mt. Olive Baptist Church became sponsors to the SOS Children’s International Villages in three areas in Kenya called Buruburu, Mombasa and Kisumu. There is placement of a lady acting as a mother/parent and 10 children are housed, five girls and five boys. We provide their food, clothing, transportation, medical, school fees… Because of challenges after the pandemic, all funds are on hold.
Two of the orphans that were sponsored by New Mt. Olive Sponsors, came from our Machakos Widows village. The children were adopted by SOS. Both were total orphans, both parents died of AIDS. Thank God the AIDS crisis is no longer as severe.
We have three families that have sponsored total orphans between nine and 15 years.
One of the couples, wife deceased, from New Mt. Olive gave support to three teenagers (two boys and one girl) and their grandparents by purchasing food, school uniforms, basic clothes, and shoes (all three got shoes for the very first time in their life in 2008). The grandparents do not have money and both parents of the children died of AIDS.
Another family has taken care of a girl from the age of three to when she joined the university this past April. The mother became the orphan’s mother, and they talked once a month for up to two hours. The sponsor mother, deceased, has passed on but the husband and family continue to meet some of her needs. This past April, the sponsor father purchased her a smart phone to use in her studies for her first year of college. The sponsor father also talks with her every Saturday and gives her fatherly advice.
Another former member of New Mt. Olive has sponsored a little orphan boy from our Widows village for over 15 years. She continues even today to purchase shoes, clothes and what his heart desires. They talk on the phone every chance they get. His in-boarding school.
The New Mt. Olive Baptist Church, Former Pastor, the late Dr. Mack King Carter, and Pastor Marcus D. Davidson, under their leadership, have been my full-time Primary sponsor for 17½ years without ceasing. I have been the most Blessed Missionary and I thank God for them.
I want to thank all the Churches, mainly my hometown churches, private donors, and sponsors for what you have done for me and the people I serve in Kenya. I pray that God will reward you bountifully. It blesses me that my own small hometown, many with not even 200 church members, UNDERSTANDS THE GREAT COMMISSION. THANK YOU, JESUS.
God willing, next week you will read in more detail as I share with you the many miracles that God has performed these 17½ years. I will also share more pictures and YouTube videos of some of the 13 villages.
My email is missionaryjanice@gmail.com FB page is Missionary Janice
To be continued next week…
Be the first to comment