Praying for Kenya

Canadian Baptist Ministries

Project Officers for Ministry with Muslims 

William, Geoffrey and Laura

We spent today in meetings with our friends and colleagues Laura, Geoffrey and William who are each leading CBM's project interventions with local churches serving in Muslim majority communities in Kenya. These past few years have been increasingly tense as conflict between Kenya and the radical Islamist group Al Shabbab continues to escalate. The Easter week massacre of students at the Garissa University College has led to wide spread fear and anger. 

Despite the challenge of high insecurity in these areas, God is at work bringing about hope and transformation. In the CBM food security project, the number of Muslim farmers has doubled in the past three months with now 40 local farms in the "Farming God's Way" conservation agriculture initiative. Our colleague William, and volunteers from six local churches, continue to facilitate training and weekly mentorship for these local Muslim farmers and their Bulas (villages).

Public Health Forum in Bula Bukuyu

In the CBM relief project, monthly mobile health clinics are providing antenatal care, immunizations, and other public health services that are making a dramatic difference in reducing child mortality. In the past three months, 31 new pregnant mothers have been coming to the village clinics and 15 newborns have been receiving care. 

In a recent public health form on sanitation and hygiene an astounding 95% of each of the three target villages attended the half-day training. Together these communities have identified needs for more safe latrines and school facilities for their children. Through "food for work" initiatives, the villages are constructing their own latrines and classrooms:

"Food for work has had a dramatic impact in the community. The people are very proud of the roads, farms, and latrines that they have already built through food for work." shared Geoffrey.  "In these activities both men and women are involved. In the latest project the elders had identified the need for opening a road from the community to the nearest market and primary school. The work was planned to go on for 8 weeks whereby 20 people would come each week and work 3 hours a day (time that they had sacrificed from thier own farms) and at the end of the week they each received a family food bundle of 10kg of rice, 5kg of beans, a litre of cooking oil, and a packet of salt. Through their efforts they opened a clear road for the children to reach school and for the mothers to reach the market."

Monthly mobile health clinics in Garissa County

In Prayer:

May God kindle in the hearts of all people a love for peace, and the wisdom and courage required to set aside violence for reconciliation and forgiveness. Come Lord Jesus come.

Please pray for the families of the student killed this past week, on April 12th, in a stampede at a Nairobi university that was sparked by an electrical explosion. We pray also for the other 141 students who were also injured in the rush of trying to escape what they perceived to be another terrorist attack.

We pray for the families grieving for the loss of their 148 sons and daughters who were murdered in the Garissa University College attack. Many families are still desperate to locate missing children who were studying at the school. We also pray for eleven families from our partner churches who lost children in the terror attack. We stand in solidarity knowing that God alone can heal their brokenness. 

We pray for the 30 local churches of Garissa, including their pastors, as they seek to comfort the mourning and build peace and understanding with their neighbours. Many of these churches are struggling as so many Christians have moved out of Garissa following the Easter week tragedy. We continue to pray that God will sustain their witness through these difficult times.