I have written and spoken before about the very obvious
physical needs of the orphans of the Log Church of Kenya:
- Food is almost on a
day-by-day basis, with some days the children having nothing to eat.
- Tattered
clothing and broken plastic sandals for shoes, if any clothing or shoes at all.
- Sleep for some of the children is on a dirt floor covered only with a thin
cloth.
These are the things that were immediately apparent to me when I visited
there.
As I have said to people on various occasions, “I lived in a village in rural India 45 years ago, and the living conditions for the orphans of the Log Church are more rudimentary today than the children in my Indian village 45 years ago.”
These are the basic needs, but then there are the secondary things as well.
As I have said to people on various occasions, “I lived in a village in rural India 45 years ago, and the living conditions for the orphans of the Log Church are more rudimentary today than the children in my Indian village 45 years ago.”
These are the basic needs, but then there are the secondary things as well.
“Sir, we would like a
ball that we could kick,” one of the boys told me one day.
A ball is a play
thing, and one might say that a ball is not really necessary for play—or if you
are a real hard-liner, you might say that play itself is not necessary for
existence. But children need time and space to play, and in a world where
soccer is the sport of choice (of course called “football”), a group of 42
children should have at least one “ball to kick.”
And then there is education.
I was almost surprised that when God began to provide some monies that I could send
to the orphanage, and despite all of these basic needs, Pastor Joel and the
church leadership used a great portion of it so that they could begin to send
the children to school. Before they began to receive help that some of you have provided, they had no funds to do this and were educating
them the best that they could in the orphanage.
I have asked Joel many
questions about this and he has sent me specifics on how the money has been
used. I also have asked him to give me his thoughts on why he considers it is so
important to provide an education for the children, even at the cost of
delaying the construction of the much needed dormitory for the girls.
He sent
me quite a long explanation, and despite the length of it, I have decided to
include the greatest portion of it in this blog, only editing out short bits
for the sake of brevity.
In the words of Pastor Joel, here is why he is trying
to give the orphans the best education that he can:
“All countries are unique,
as each and every single one has their own culture. They differ in simple ways:
from small things like their flag and their languages, to big things like political
leaders and religion.
“But when people think of all the characteristics that
make a country differ from the rest, they don’t consider education as the most
important one, the one that really defines a countries culture.
“Today’s
youth are our future leaders, the ones who will become the face of the
politics, religion, and culture of their countries, and education is what
prepares them for that. Many countries are able to provide their youth with a
stable, structured education, but many cannot. There is an exhaustive list of
countries that lack the resources needed to provide a proper education and
among those countries is Kenya.

“Education is a life-long process. Education therefore
is an instrument of transforming culture, a means of individual development and
a process of preservation and transmission of cultural heritage.
(i) The personal dimension.
Education is aimed at furnishing individuals with the appropriate skills and knowledge so that they become self-reliant, adaptable and for them to self-actualize.
Education is aimed at furnishing individuals with the appropriate skills and knowledge so that they become self-reliant, adaptable and for them to self-actualize.
(ii) The
intellectual dimension.
Education is aimed at providing intellectual nourishment to individuals through provision of knowledge and skills that are favorable in aiding the same.
Education is aimed at providing intellectual nourishment to individuals through provision of knowledge and skills that are favorable in aiding the same.
(iii) The social dimension.
Education is aimed at providing interactions between persons and persons. Education as a social provider is also aimed at providing interaction between people and the world, person to self-interaction and it looks after the physical and emotional aspect of the individual and how they adapt at the family level and social level.
Education is aimed at providing interactions between persons and persons. Education as a social provider is also aimed at providing interaction between people and the world, person to self-interaction and it looks after the physical and emotional aspect of the individual and how they adapt at the family level and social level.
(iv) The
product dimension.
The importance of education should guide the school system to produce members of society who have adequate skills and knowledge that can be used to contribute to a productive society. The aims of education in Kenya today follow these dimensions and others.
The importance of education should guide the school system to produce members of society who have adequate skills and knowledge that can be used to contribute to a productive society. The aims of education in Kenya today follow these dimensions and others.
“Education therefore aims at providing
and achieving the following:
1. The education must have the need of national
development.
2. The education must assist in fostering and promoting national
unity.
3. Education must prepare and equip the youth so that they can play a
leading role in the nation.
4. Education can unlock the potential of children and
young people today, allowing them to secure their futures for tomorrow.
5. Education
lead to better spread of the gospel as the children are able to read the Bibles
are ambassadors of Christ and are able to teach.
“Our prayer request:
-- Food for
the orphans.
-- School fees for the orphans
-- Clothes
-- Dormitory/shelter
“Hannah
never knew how the baby will come but she asked and God gave her
Jabez never
knew how this change will come, but he asked God to bless him indeed, to
enlarge his border, His hands to be with him and would keep him from all evil,
and God granted his request.
Solomon asked for wisdom
Elijah asked for fire
Elijah asked for fire
Bartimaeus
asked his sight to be restored
Hezekiah asked to extend his life
Joshua asked
the sun and the moon to stand still, and God granted all of them.
“Ask from God
in faith and leave the how for Him, He will answer. Ask whatever you need and
whatever you will need; ask always and keep asking without giving up; ask
without allowing yourself to be distracted by the words of others; ask until
you have what you requested in your hands for He had promised to answer.
“Jesus
Christ gave us this assurance, for everyone who will ask, will receive;
everyone who will seek will find; everyone who will knock, it will be opened,
and how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask
him? That is the promise for you this year.
“Being confident of this very thing,
that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of
Jesus Christ: [be confident God will never fail you at all]
![]() |
Pastor Joel in the school yard |
“May the Lord's word encourage & strengthen you as we
walk out His will in the days ahead!
Love & blessings, Yours in Christ
service Son Joel and Church Leadership-Log Church-Kenya..”
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