Refugee Day

I appreciated your prayers today- it was an impactful day for me and for the team. (We now have two sick which means I will likely stay behind tomorrow to provide them support). It’s going to take a while to process all I heard and saw today. I’ve seen and experienced a lot in my life, but today’s experience was about as impactful of an experience I have ever had. For now I will share a few random observations, thoughts and feelings from today.

1) their homes in which 7-9 people reside is barely larger than my kitchen. And they are stacked up close to another house- not isolated on several acres of land. Our missionary colleagues say the adults usually can usually only eat once a day, and they try to feed the children twice a day. (We gave gifts of flour and beans today.)

2) Because they are refugees, school fees are doubled. One mother we spoke with was concerned because the “chief” would be by on Monday to see if the kids were in school- they are not because they don’t have money for rent let alone school fees for 5 children. (Rent is $25/month). When you begin to understand their financial picture, you can see why the medical camps and medicines given are a help, even though it barely scratches the surface of a complex issue.

3) Because everyone has to pay school fees in order to attend school, and many Kenyans as well as refugees are lacking in resources (unemployment is running about 75-80%), parents must decide which child can go to school because they can’t afford to send them all.

4) We heard stories of past trauma, of having to flee their homeland because of war and terrorism carried out by different factions in their homeland. Stories of being victims of crime even after coming to Kenya. (One family had a business of making dresses but their sewing machines were stolen not too long ago, so now they worked off and on for another dressmaker.) We heard the frustration of seeking help and time after time being denied for one reason or another.

5) My group visited with a woman who chose to tell us her story unfiltered. She and her children have endured unspeakable horrors, not once or twice, but repeatedly. And yet she has a hope in Christ. Our missionary colleague shared that when she prays, it is so deep and powerful- it moves the group to a deeper level. I won’t be the same person for hearing her story- and the awful reality is her story is just one of many. When we hear of refugees and IDPs (internally displaced peoples) we are hearing about not numbers but people who have experienced a level of trauma that most of us will never experience. I know I can never be the same after sitting in her home, looking into her eyes and hearing her story and seeing the scars she and her children bear on their bodies and souls. Below is Sifa and a few of her children. Please pray for her, for healing, for a path forward that will allow for their needs to be met.

All of the people we met today were refugees from the Congo. Here in Nairobi the UNHCR has over 100,000 registered refugees- but how many undocumented refugees there are is anyone’s guess. The organization I was a part of for so long has a refugee team here in Nairobi- working with refugees from South Sudan, from Somalia, from the DRC, and many other African countries. We were with a missionary couple here working specifically with the Congolese, and they are seeing fruit in their ministry. They have various projects they are doing as they minister among these Congolese people, and have about 50 people involved in regular Bible study.

As I listened today, and observed, I wondered at how different my life is. I think about finishing graduate school and starting a new career path, of connecting and investing in the next generation of my family, about what sort of vacation destination would be nice. I think about who won the college football national championship, what teams advanced in the NFL playoff picture, who will be the next coach and GM of the Patriots, and the list goes on and on. The people I met today probably don’t think of any of those things- they think of how they will survive today, how they can feed their children and themselves, and they give thanks for what they have already endured and survived. They all asked us to pray for them in the resettlement process, that one day they would have a future different than the life they live today. One mother commented, “My children ask me how long they have to live as we do- piled up together on the floor to sleep, moving from house to house because they get so far behind in rent and have to move, eating one meal a day.”

In my heart I could hear the Psalmist prayer: “O Lord, how long will you forget me?” Forever? How long will you look the other way? How long must I struggle with anguish in my soul, with sorrow in my heart every day? How long will my enemy have the upper hand? Turn and answer me O Lord my God! restore the sparkle to my eyes, or I will die. Don’t let my enemies gloat, saying, “We have defeated him! Don’t let them rejoice at my downfall.” But I trust in your unfailing love. I will rejoice because you have rescued me. I will sing to the Lord because He is good to me.” (Psalm 13, NLT).

Something for us to think about: We are living in a time when there are more refugees than at any other point in history. There are significant population upheavals taking place all around us. The UNHCR estimates globally there are now over 110 million forcibly displaced from their homes, with over 36 million being refugees. And many of the people who have lived in places where it was hard to send Gospel workers are now coming to cities like Nairobi and can hear the hope of the Gospel.

My experiences today challenge me anew to consider how I live and how I steward the resources God has entrusted to me. We have before us an opportunity to see one of the greatest harvests in all of history replete with significant challenges– how will we respond?