A few photos...

So I thought I was getting a tan. WRONG. It was just dirt. Bummer. Maybe some day soon...

I changed the template of the blog... as much as I loved the last layout,  a few people told me that they were having problems commenting on it. So, I changed it. Happy? ;]

I don't have long to write now, but I wanted to share a few photos. Just for you, Kelli :]

This is the house we live in, along with Eric and Juli:

 

The first archway on the left is where our room and bathroom is. The sitting area, dining room, living room and kitchen are on the right side... behind that is E and J's room and bathroom. The far left window is the meeting/teaching room, and behind that is the girl's dormitory.

Here is our room, complete with a mosquito net:

  

 [Grandma, the blanket you made for me at graduation came with us! It's my favorite!]

Here is our "front yard;" the view from the veranda.

...and finally, one of my new favorite foods: passion fruit! Before:

After:

It's kind of sweet and sour. You cut it open or peel it apart and suck out the inside. The small dark seeds are crunchy but I think they are good :]

Time for bed... goodnight!

Finally here!

Hello!

It is our 5^th full day in Kenya, Africa. We arrived to the farm on Saturday evening. It is so beautiful here! The compound we are staying at, Camp Jabez, is surrounded by a thick hedge, and you have to go through two gates to get inside. It is so green here right now! Eric and Julianne both said that they have never seen it so green before. Apparently it had been raining quite a bit while they were back in the States. The flowers and gardens are so beautiful. The normal temperature can get down to around 48 degrees at night, and averages around 90 degrees during the day. Quite the variation!
 
The house is made from stone and is very beautiful. When you walk up the steps to the veranda, to the left is the student’s meeting room. In this room is where the teachings and devotions will be held, and where the students can study. Beyond that room is the girl’s dormitory… it is attached to the meeting room but is not entered through there. Back on the veranda, to the right is the door into our part of the house. When you walk in, you enter into a sitting area, the dining room, and the living room. Beyond that is Eric and Julianne’s room, the future baby’s room/office, and a bathroom. Connected to the living room is the kitchen and pantry, and beyond that is our bathroom and bedroom. The boy’s dormitory is in a separate building. It is almost the same as the girl’s rooms: a bunch of bunk beds in a room with a table in the middle of it.

On the farm right now, there are 7 cows, 7 dogs, a lot of chickens, about 20 rabbits, and 2 turkeys. Our goal is for the farm to be self-sufficient, and the former owners were hoping to do achieve that through the cows. Right now the cows are not producing enough milk, and seem to be just surviving. We have been looking into buying more chickens, and we think we can make more of an income for the ministry through raising chickens.

A few of the student leaders are already here… they all have such a great sense of humor. Philister is the only girl. She is about 26 years old with a beautiful smile. Jonny, Vitalis, Marvin, and Mike are the guys. They are all in their 20’s. I have had a hard time keeping them straight… I think I am finally getting the hang of it. When they are separate from each other is when I have problems… when they are all together, it is easier to pick out who is who. I’m going to feel overwhelmed when the students come! 15-20 more ‘abnormal’ names to remember. Aaaah.

We have a lot to do before the students arrive on Monday. We have been working on getting everything fixed that was broken and putting together the program. Julianne and I took on the “library…” two big shelves with books thrown on them every which way. We created an Excel Spreadsheet and categorized all the books (Bible References, Devotions, Theology, Novels, Biographies, etc), and put them in alphabetical order by author’s last name and title. We also put little tabs on the books so we know which order they go in, in hopes to keep better track of them. We are also starting a ‘check out system,’ so that the students have to sign out each book they remove from the meeting room. We aren’t quite finished yet, but maybe today or tomorrow the project will be completed.

I took my first “bucket shower” the other day! It wasn’t as difficult as I thought it was going to be. I heated the water up on the stove in the kitchen (it’s a gas stove), and poured the water a big round bucket. After added some cold water to it, I squatted in the tub and washed. Definitely not as easy or effortless as turning a knob and having streams of hot water pour over your entire body… but it’s manageable.

That probably raises a few questions about the electricity and water. We have some running water… when it rains. When it doesn’t rain, we have to buy the water or get it from the containers outside. But it rained a lot during the last month so we have water for now. It is all put through a fluoride filter and then a different filter. We do have to heat it up, like I mentioned earlier, for bathing. As for electricity… a generator typically runs from 6:30pm to 10:30pm, but it flickers on and off, and we often cook dinner and eat it by candle light. It hasn’t been too dependable lately. Our hope is to someday have solar panels so we can have more dependable and frequent electricity. 

One thing I have been learning to do is to cook from scratch more. I thought I did this a lot in the States! I think I did pretty well; we didn’t use the microwave often or eat meals from a box, but compared to here, cooking absolutely EVERYTHING from scratch was not something I did. Not going to lie, I had never made spaghetti sauce from scratch before, but now I can say I have. We rarely have meat… mostly because we have no place to store it: there is no freezer or refrigerator. We have access to a garden (called a “shamba”), and have been using vegetables from it for every meal. It’s a growing experience for sure; but one I enjoy.

Going to the outdoor market is definitely a different experience. Weaving between many aisles of beans, chickens, food, clothing… stepping over animal feces… trying to keep up with your group as people cut in front of you… it can all be overwhelming; not to mention being bombarded with requests to buy a certain vendor’s products. “Buy from me, buy from me, my sister from another mother!” Many little children will follow you tirelessly at your heels and request money.

Another thing Jake and I have been adjusting to is the ‘personal display of affection’ aspect. In Kenya, it is not looked upon as a positive thing to show affection in public. Apparently those things, even holding hands, are for ‘behind closed doors.’ Jake and I by no means were all over each other back in the States, but it definitely is an adjustment to hold back the quick kisses or loving grabs. Oh well; that just means we get better at reading each other’s thoughts through the looks and glances ;]

In closing… we would love it if you would pray for us… here are a few specific needs:

*the students who are arriving on Monday. Pray for open, soft hearts; ready to learn.
*the student leaders; that they will have opportunities to disciple and lead.
*for Jake, Julianne, Eric and I, that we would recover quickly from jet lag, have Christ-centered attitudes all the time, and find joy in hardship and struggle. Also pray that we would be disciplined and motivated in overseeing the students and student leaders during this ten month program.

I think that’s all for now! If you would like to contact us…

E-mail: hawkins_08@live.com [Laura] - hawk_man@live.com [Jake]

You can get our phone numbers from any of our parents, if you’d like. Texting and calling can be expensive, but hopefully our internet will be totally set up [and be reliable!] soon.

You are all missed and loved :]

Just in time...

I finally finished the project I had been working on for some time! My really good friend, Kristina, had a baby on the 27th of November. I had been working on crocheting a baby blanket for baby Brayden since September, but I ran out of yarn and wasn't able to find it for a couple months. I finally found some [thank you, Micheal's, for restocking your supply, at last!], and was able to finish!

Never mind his look of concern... maybe he was a little terrified of the camera in his face ;] I think he likes the blanket. First crocheted project, complete!!

We have tickets with our names on them...

...which means we have a date! January 21st, 2010... aka, next Thursday! 

RIghteous Anger: Not an oxymoron.

ANGRY: [ang-gree] (adjective) 1. feeling or showing anger or strong resentment.

Last night at CnC, Theo spoke on Ephesians 4:25-28. He spent quite a chunk of time on verse 26, and that is what I wanted to touch on in this blog post. It reads:

"Be angry and do not sin." [ESV]

Be angry AND do not sin?! When I was newer in my faith, I struggled with this verse because I thought being angry WAS a sin. That was until I realized that we serve a God who has emotion [ie, "grief:" Genesis 6:6 - "joy:" John 15:11 - "moved by pity:" Judges 2:18 - "pleased:" 1st Kings 3:10 - "distress:" Isaiah 63:9 - "sadness:" Luke 19:41, to name a few].

Having been created in the image of God, and because he calls us to be "imitators of Him" [Ephesians 5:1], we are to share the same emotions that God expresses. Sharing the heart of God's nature means feeling the same affections of God.

...and that includes anger.

When you think of being angry, what do you think of? Do you think of human, sinful anger? Or do you think of the righteous anger that God exhibits? Don't make the mistake of thinking that God is never angry. God is VERY angry, as Theo repeated multiple times last night. Yes, He is loving and gracious and good... but He is also very angry and very offended at the sin that is raging without remorse throughout the world.

"The word “righteous” has reference to that which is right, good, and holy. Specifically, it refers to actions performed to or among men. In that regard, God's actions performed among men can always be characterized as righteous in that they are always right, good, and holy ( Revelation 16:5). Man's actions, however, because of the problem of sin, aren't necessarily so. Only when man's actions conform to the Lord's will, are such actions right, good and holy and thus, righteous ( 1 John 3:7)."
[taken from an article by Kevin Cauly]

What is righteous anger? Righteous anger is the quality of being angry or having indignation toward those things with which God Himself gets angry. God cannot sin in his anger; however, for humankind, it is easy to allow our anger to take control so that we are tempted to sin.

Two questions Theo answered in his talk:

Why should we be angry? Simple answer: because we are called to imitate God [Ephesians 5:1].

How can we be [righteously] angry? By drawing close to God and being angry over the sin that runs rampant in this world. Being righteously angry at something means that you are angry at the sin that is directed at or is offensive to our Jesus, not something that is offensive to "you" [ie, "You're stupid"].

What are you righteously angry about? Are you even walking closely enough with Him that you feel that righteous anger? Maybe you can see the sin in this world, but it doesn't bother you, or you are indifferent about it. Why? Maybe it's because you haven't experienced new birth. If you have not been called by Jesus, none of this will make sense or is even applicable to you. But if you have experienced new birth and are a child of God, and are yet not angered by the things that God is angered at... it's time for some serious prayer on your face before your God.

Can't think of anything to be righteously angry about? Here's a list to get you started [some of the statistics are older, but they sure will give you an idea of what's going on today]:

-An estimated 9.5 billion is generated in annual revenue from all human trafficking activities, and each year, an estimated 14,500 to 17,500 foreign nationals are trafficked into the United States. The number of U.S. citizens trafficked within the country each year is even higher, with an estimated 200,000 American children at risk for trafficking into the sex industry.

-UNICEF reports that across the world, there are over one million children entering the sex trade every year and that approximately 30 million children have lost their childhood through sexual exploitation over the past 30 years.

-From 1973 through 2005, more than 45 million legal abortions have occurred in the U.S.

-Homosexuality is becoming legal in many states, and the ELCA is now allowing homosexuals to have a leadership position in their churches.

-In 2007, there were 248,300 victims of rape, attempted rape, or sexual assault [and these figures don't even include the victims who are 12 years of age or younger].

-The sexual victimization of children is overwhelming in magnitude yet largely unrecognized and underreported. Research indicates that 1 in 5 girls and 1 in 10 boys will be sexually victimized before adulthood.

-In 2003, the adult-film industry was  making some 6,000 movies a year and grossing more than $4 billion - roughly as much as the National Football League.

-In 2000, there were close to 5 million couples living together before marriage.

-Worldwide pornography revenue in 2006 was $97.06 billion. Of that, approximately $13 billion was in the United States. Twelve percent of all websites are pornographic websites. There are 4.2 million pornographic websites, 420 million pornographic web pages, and 68 million daily pornographic search engine requests (or 25% of total search engine requests).

-Of all known child abuse domains, 54 percent are housed in the United States.

...and that's just a few things. Do your own research and see what a corrupt world we live in if you are blatantly ignorant or are blinded to what is is going on.

My heart is broken... and I am angry. Are you?