Chapel

I got a call late on Sunday night from one of our teachers who asked me if I could lead chapel on Monday morning. Excited about getting the chance, I didn't have much time to prepare, but its a good thing the Holy Spirit is always ready.

The text was from 2 Peter 1:3-11 which talks about making our calling and election sure. In simple terms it tells us that God has given us everything we need for this life to do good.

I started by addressing the 270 students and 30 staff members with some questions about what we need to be a good student, teacher, police officer and other vocations. We talked about all that CGA has given to these students so that they can do their best (uniforms, books, school supplies, good teachers, nice classrooms with desks, medical help, 2 meals a day and even food during the holiday). Then we compared that to how God has given us everything we need to do good and to escape the corruption of this world that are caused by our evil desires.

Then I had some of my students act out skits we had rehearsed early that morning. We thought of six different scenarios where people face temptations that are common in this area (and the rest of the world). In each case, the student made the choice not to give in to the temptation instead do the right thing. One was tempted to steal a pen, but did not. Another was tempted to lie to his mother about his grade in school. Still another was made fun of, yet he did not retaliate. A girl was propositioned by a boy, but declined his advances. One was pushed down and he chose not to fight back. And the final scenario was a teacher who was tempted to beat the student (which happens a lot in this culture), but he decided to handle it in a better matter.

After the drama pieces we talked about how nothing or no one (note even Satan) can force you to sin. It is always our choice. In fact, life is made up of our choices. Then we shared some of the qualities that we should posess in increasing measure from 2 Peter 1, starting with faith and building on that foundation. We had different students holding up signs with those words on them (goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness and love).

I hadn't planned on this next part, but I think it was the Holy Spirit that brought it to my mind at that point. I shared the story of my friend Will Coker that was kidnapped, held hostage and eventually beheaded in Afghanistan. He possessed those qualities and in increasing measure. I think it shocked some of the students who had not heard the story yet, but it definitely made them think deeply and contemplate how committed they were to God. Most of them may never face the kind of religous persecution that Will did, but it might come in other forms.

I love the opportunities I get to share with our students and when God uses me to deepen their faith and draw them closer to him!

International Star

Former CGA student Primerose Achieng just returned from the East African Games in Kampala, Uganda. Primerose was representing Kenya as she played for Shimba Hills High School in the secondary school event. This is the third straight year her team has competed at the African regional event where the top teams from Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and South Sudan battle it out to see who is the best in East Africa. The competition includes boys and girls basketball, boys and girls football, rugby, field hockey, track and field, volleyball and other racket games.

This year Shimba Hills finished fourth in the region, losing in the semifinals to the eventual champions, Tigoi Girls Secondary School (Kenya), in a closely contested match. Unfortunately, they also fell in the third place match-up by a single point. Primerose uses her good speed, along with her dribbling and passing skills to man the point guard position. She has also been selected to play on the Kenya National Team later this year.

Article on Will

The story of Will has been reported differently by AP and CBS News, and the details are yet to be confirmed. Here is one of the articles in the Charleston Post and Courrier.


http://www.postandcourier.com/news/2011/sep/08/slain-man-saw-mission-work-in-future/

Martyr

A long-time friend and faithful supporter of mine passed away recently. I first met Will Coker when we both came to serve in Kenya at CGA with a missions team in 2003. We became close friends and even shared the same tent. When our team returned home to Charleston, Will was instrumental in helping me decide to leave my college basketball coaching career and serve in Kenya full-time. After I quit my job and was beginnging to fundraise, he invited me to move in with him for several months to help me save money. He even hosted a garage sale at his house.

In the time that I lived with him I saw his strong, genuine faith in Christ. He spent many nights studying the Bible carefully, praying and worshipping God. Almost every day when we would meet, he would share with me something new God was teaching him. His faith deeply impacted my life and he became a mentor to me in so many ways. With Will there were very few "shallow" conversations; most of them get very deep very quickly. He was bold about his faith and shared it with just about everyone he came into contact with whether it was in America or another country.

After building many strong relationships with the children and staff at CGA, he returned to Kenya several times to invest more in those relationships. He had also done mission trips to other places such as Burundi.

Recently, Will was living and working in Afghanistan as an engineer. We had been emailing each other right up to the day before he was taken captive. That day he had told me that he would be travelling to Charleston on September 15 for a short break and then returning to Afghanistan to work until next June. True to his character, he was leading Bible studies in his workplace and also evangelizing outside of the workplace.

More details of his death are still coming out, but apparently he was kidnapped from work around September 2nd and held hostage for several days. Sometime later his body was found in a cave. He had been strangled with a belt and also beheaded.

We can’t be sure of the reasons why, but most likely it was because of his outspoken faith in God. He was a mighty man who was never shy talking about his faith, and surely he must have stood strong up until the time his life was taken.

Will had just turned 59 last week. He will be missed dearly by his three grown children, grandchildren, newly married wife and all of his friends throughout the world. His life impacted many others while he was alive and also now through his death. The CGA family will miss him, but we know that he is before the throne of God now and we will meet again someday.

I am thankful for the contribution he has made to my life in helping me come to serve in Kenya and drawing closer to my Lord and Saviour. I hope that when my time here is finished I will have impacted the world for God's Kingdom as much as he has in the 59 years God granted him.

University, Here We Come!

CGA’s pioneers are once again blazing a trail for the ones following behind them. They began at CGA in Nursery back in 1997, finished primary school in 2006 and then went off to various secondary schools and completed that step in November 2010. With their impressive results on their National Exams several of them received opportunities to be selected to join University, sponsored by the government.

Bill Clinton Owuor earned an A- and will be joining Kenyatta University to study Commerce.

Brenda Ollimo earned a B and will also be joining Kenyatta University to work towards a Bachelor’s degree in Secondary Education

Cathorine Agiro and Edwina Ollimo also qualified, but we are still awaiting word on which University they were selected for and which program.

Carolyne Aoko Orony will be starting Teacher’s College next week. Her program will be for two years and when she finishes she will be a qualified primary school teacher.

We are proud of their success and how God has used CGA to help them reach these heights.

Developing Leaders

All of the CGA secondary students returned to CGA during their August break between Term 2 and Term 3 in their various secondary schools throughout the country. We had two successful weeks of extra teaching in Math, Physics and Chemistry. Then their reunion was 29th August – 1st September.

Just like in April, a group of ten University Students from Compassion International’s Leadership Development Program travelled to Mbita to work with our kids. This time they were also joined by 13 secondary students from the Bondo/Rarieda area across the lake.
It was a lively and spirited four days, as the leaders taught on spiritual gifts, the local church, leadership in Africa, self-esteem, sexual purity, drugs and alcohol, personal devotions, relationships with the opposite sex, entrepreneurship, Biblical perspectives on poverty, career planning and academics. There were also powerful times of worship and prayer as well as time set aside for fun and games.

It is so encouraging to see these young men and women wholeheartedly serving the Lord by mentoring these secondary students with such passion and vigor. They take time to hear their problems, advise them and pray for them. Our kids are blessed to learn from these individuals. They are receiving everything they need to succeed in life academically, socially, physically and spiritually.

One of our students commented to me, “I wish I could get to where those people are.” I encouraged him by telling him that it is within his reach. If he puts God first in his life, stays disciplined and works very hard, he also has the chance to qualify for University.

It is blessing to have mentors like these for our secondary kids. They also come from a challenging past, most are orphans that have worked hard to reach where they are now and have a strong testimony of what God has done in their life. I think it provides much hope for our kids that they can also make something of their lives by putting their faith in God.

Over 100 secondary students benefitted from the program this week.