Moses and another street kid posing with me at Made In The Streets' center
A reminder on the wall before you leave MITS
Francis, Larry and Moses
A street in EastleighWhether it's Seattle or Nairobi, the homeless have a rough life. But our trip with Made In The Streets (MITS) to the Rounda and Calif bases in Eastleigh convince me that it's much worse in Eastleigh.
We walk with Larry & Moses through the streets of Eastleigh towards Rounda, a base named for a roundabout in an intersection - the base is now situated about 50 yards away, against a fence. Throngs of people and cars fill Eastleigh. Most are Somali, most are immigrants (legal and not), and most are Muslim. I find out later from Moses that we caused quite a commotion - people are talking and wondering why these strangers (from Japan, China?) are in Eastleigh.
The Rounda base is set against a fence, across a foul smelling drainage ditch next to the road. Approximately a dozen people greet us as we arrive. More stop by during our 10 minute stay. We shake hands or do "fist bumps" with them all. As is Kenyan custom, they introduce themselves, followed by our introductions.
As we share a short message of love and encouragement with them, I'm astonished to hear them express appreciation and thanks for simply visiting them. Really? Don't they want money, food, a way off the street? That may come later, if they can stop by the MITS center on Sunday for church, a chance to shower and a hot meal. But right now they want to be remembered, and they're honored that these visitors from 10000 miles away would come to see them, right where they live, in the Rounda base.
The Calif base is quite different from Rounda. A dozen or so kids, some as young as 12, sit on a curb at an entrance to an apartment comples. Open bottles of contact cement (glue) hang from the corners of their mouths - glazed, empty eyes stare at us. Some can barely stand - they're so high from sniffing the glue.
The kids sniff glue to quell the hunger pangs from not eating. They're addicted, and they just can't get themselves to stop. I find out later that the new addiction is sniffing gasoline-soaked rags. Moses appeals to them to give up the glue - to come to the MITS community center - to get a new start and break the cycle. None come. They politely ask for each of us to say something to them - we share about Jesus' love for them, about what God has done in our lives - and we pray that these words can make a difference for them someday.
MITS is doing tremendous work in Eastleigh. Moses formerly came from the Calif base - now he's faithfully reaching back to those in his community - as an example fo one whose life Jesus has changed forever. there's no easy answer for all of the problems that you see in the Eastleigh bases - it's a jumble of international, national and local politics, economics, discrimination, addiction and feelings of hopelessness. But people like Larry and Moses are devoting their lives to making a difference - one person at a time - and we would be wise to support them in their effort.
We walk with Larry & Moses through the streets of Eastleigh towards Rounda, a base named for a roundabout in an intersection - the base is now situated about 50 yards away, against a fence. Throngs of people and cars fill Eastleigh. Most are Somali, most are immigrants (legal and not), and most are Muslim. I find out later from Moses that we caused quite a commotion - people are talking and wondering why these strangers (from Japan, China?) are in Eastleigh.
The Rounda base is set against a fence, across a foul smelling drainage ditch next to the road. Approximately a dozen people greet us as we arrive. More stop by during our 10 minute stay. We shake hands or do "fist bumps" with them all. As is Kenyan custom, they introduce themselves, followed by our introductions.
As we share a short message of love and encouragement with them, I'm astonished to hear them express appreciation and thanks for simply visiting them. Really? Don't they want money, food, a way off the street? That may come later, if they can stop by the MITS center on Sunday for church, a chance to shower and a hot meal. But right now they want to be remembered, and they're honored that these visitors from 10000 miles away would come to see them, right where they live, in the Rounda base.
The Calif base is quite different from Rounda. A dozen or so kids, some as young as 12, sit on a curb at an entrance to an apartment comples. Open bottles of contact cement (glue) hang from the corners of their mouths - glazed, empty eyes stare at us. Some can barely stand - they're so high from sniffing the glue.
The kids sniff glue to quell the hunger pangs from not eating. They're addicted, and they just can't get themselves to stop. I find out later that the new addiction is sniffing gasoline-soaked rags. Moses appeals to them to give up the glue - to come to the MITS community center - to get a new start and break the cycle. None come. They politely ask for each of us to say something to them - we share about Jesus' love for them, about what God has done in our lives - and we pray that these words can make a difference for them someday.
MITS is doing tremendous work in Eastleigh. Moses formerly came from the Calif base - now he's faithfully reaching back to those in his community - as an example fo one whose life Jesus has changed forever. there's no easy answer for all of the problems that you see in the Eastleigh bases - it's a jumble of international, national and local politics, economics, discrimination, addiction and feelings of hopelessness. But people like Larry and Moses are devoting their lives to making a difference - one person at a time - and we would be wise to support them in their effort.
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