Dear Family and Friends,
I have been back in the States for nearly three weeks and it has been such a busy, crazy yet good time of transition- thank you for praying! I meant to get this out sooner but the time has not allowed me to find words that I feel best articulated my experience and were worthy of being shared.
The ten weeks I spent in Kenya this summer where profoundly life changing. Living in Africa has always been a dream of mine and something that had been on my mind, but I didn’t dare hope that it was actually realistic in this stage of my life. But because of your generous help and God’s incredible hand, it was not just realistic but something that came into fruition. And let me tell you, it was everything I dreamed of and more. I don’t use those words because they are petty and are what everyone wants to hear, but during my ten weeks I discovered more evidently what the Lord had designed me to do. The passions and gifts He has woven into my very being were made evident and I felt fulfillment like I have never felt before. It felt so natural to be in that environment and I saw how so many seasons of my life had prepared and led me here. This does not mean that everyday was easy and fun, but everyday was worth it. Through this, the Lord very clearly confirmed my call to missions on the African continent and gave me peace to follow and trust Him in the next steps to come- even in this next season when I am not in Africa any longer.
The people I met took me in right away. They challenged me and inspired me in my own faith. They live in the midst of brokenness, poverty and injustice yet cling to hope, faith and joy. They rely completely on community and their hospitality is genuine and selfless.
While we were there, I was on a leadership team that helped lead 5 short term teams to the different ministries we partner with. Kenya is primarily Christian already so we were more supporting the existing ministries that are established there. I like to think of it like in the Bible story found in Exodus 17 where the Israelites were fighting the Amalekites. As long as Moses had his arms raised, the Israelites would be winning, but once he lowered them they would start losing the battle. Verse 12-13 says, “When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset. So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword.” (emphasis mine). I feel like our teams this summer were called to be Aaron and Hur. To be the people that hold up the arms of these ministries who are in the midst of battle day after day.
This meant a lot of encouragement and support, but an anchoring passage for me that I used as my focus was Romans 12:15, which says, “Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.” To sit with the people, build relationships and come alongside them. To “do life” by their side. To rejoice in the good and cry with them in the midst of the struggles and hardships they were facing. To be the heart of God, in the flesh and love them unconditionally.
Of course, we visited orphaned children at Little Lambs Daycare, and played with school kids at Southern Cross Academy (a school), and let the students at a school for deaf children know that they had value. They have so little yet find joy and excitement in each day and as we spent time with them all we just wanted to let them know that they are seen and they are loved. In our broken Swahili phrases we learned we would try to tell them “Mungu anakupenda” (God loves you) or “Ninakupenda” (I love you!).
They are extremely precious and now have deep corners of my heart, but I found during my ten weeks that as much as I love the kids and my love for children is what led me to Africa, the Lord was just using that as a stepping to stone to reveal to me a different call in my life. Because of a series of events I gained a heart for vulnerable young women. There are many things the Lord used to awaken this call in my life, but there were two things in particular that I want to share with you that revealed my heart for these women.
First off, my favorite ministry we partnered with was at Rift Valley Fellowship at their women’s Bible Study called Women of Courage. Many of the women who attended were outcasts, prostitutes...very broken, vulnerable women. Our time together always started in singing songs together and though they sang in their own language, you could see the genuineness and feel the presence of God as they poured out their hearts in worship and breathed in His grace and joy. The first visit we made they started singing “Amazing Grace” in Swahili and I just stood breathless in awe and wonder at our God. Afterwards they shared their heart so openly with us. We would in return offer words of encouragement, and share our own struggles and that we too needed a God of grace in our own sin filled, broken lives. I loved those women as they embraced us like sisters and granddaughters.
The second thing that sparked a passion was an encounter I had outside of our normal ministry days. On a day off a few people I was with heard about a woman up the hill who could use some visitors and love. Come to find out, she was attending the Bible College we were staying at the year before when she was raped and left pregnant...with twins. When we visited her she told us how her family rejected her and this kind woman took her in but she is from a different tribe than the one of her surroundings so she felt out-casted. The four month twin girls were the cutest things and as I held them I had a contrast of heartbreak and joy in their little lives. She is now trying to return to school to finish her education but lacks the funds. 21 years old, with two babies, trying to finish her college degree. My heart was gripped. I tried to visit her as much as I could but the road was far and I could never venture it alone. I pray for her and that the Lord will provide funds for her to return to school, as I am unable to assist in that way right now.
This woman had my heart so deeply that I became passionate about fighting for women like her, because the sad truth is that her story is not uncommon. Our mountain side town overlooked the valley that has the main highway that runs all the way through Kenya in it. At night you see the truck lights going by. The sad part is that that highway is labeled as “HIV highway” because of the rampant prostitution, human trafficking and victimized women.
There are many more stories I could share at a different time, but I see though, that there is a huge connection with all the different areas that make me passionate and how I don’t have to deny the children if I choose to work with the women instead. Vulnerable women, vulnerable children, their kids becoming orphans, them having aged out of orphanages, etc. I don’t know what the next steps look like, but I’m trusting the Lord to continue to lead me on this journey.
Again, I just want to thank you so very much for your support to in this whole process. My summer has shaped the trajectory of my whole life and that is something that I'm grateful for. I saw the hand of God orchestrating Kingdom work, but He used you as an instrument in making that all happen, and I do not take that lightly. The friendships I made with the Kenyans are deep and special, ones I plan on maintaining. It's true that I left part of my heart in Kenya, and I think about those people everyday. I'd jump on a plane tomorrow if I could. I'm absolutely captivated.
Would you continue praying for them and the things they face everyday?
For the ministries who work so hard every single day to help all they can?
For the Women of Courage who are fighting giants that we can't even imagine?
For a scared lonely mom with two babies that depend on her for life?
For all the tiny hands that passed through ours who are orphaned, culnerable, trapped in a cycle of poverty and do not even have the hope to follow their dreams?
And that the Lord would continue to guide and shape my heart as I look forward to what He has called me to?
Leslie Walker
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