August 28, 2011
Final 2011 Kenya Mission Update
Well, we have arrived home and would like to extend a very warm thank you to Mr. Bruce Taylor for taking the team to and from the airport. There are so many important roles in an international mission trip and it begins and ends with transportation. We are attempting to clear the cobwebs of our jetlag and find ourselves sleeping at all hours of the day, but we are reconnecting with friends and family. The team had an opportunity to get together at Calvin & Banita McCargo's home last night. We want to thank Calvin and his family for the food and hospitality that they extended to the team. We were missing Elder Chris & Klariza Rivero who had another engagement to attend, but Mary Ellen & Phil Boulden were there and it was a great time of fellowship.We again want to thank all of you who played a most important role in this mission trip by praying, donating backpacks or other items for the trip or just responding to the e-mails by letting us know that you had received them. We feel that because of your faithful prayers we were able to meet all of our mission objectives as we partnered with our Kenyan team on the ground- Joe, Andrew, Pastor John, Teriza, Karen and many other team members. These goals were:1. Discipleship through the Vacation Bible School
Discipleship through the Vacation Bible School2. Evangelization to the broader community of Limuru, through sharing God's Word and helping their neighbors with work projects
Evangelization to the broader community of Limuru, through sharing God's Word and helping their neighbors with work projects3.Humanitarian Support of providing food to some of the neighbors. Clothing, book bags, shoes and household needs at Maddison House
Humanitarian Support of providing food to some of the neighbors. Clothing, book bags, shoes and household needs at Maddison House4. Financial support to the WEEP Center (Women Equality Empowerment Project) that provides work as well as medication to HIV positive women and their families in the slums of Kibera
Financial support to the WEEP Center (Women Equality Empowerment Project) that provides work as well as medication to HIV positive women and their families in the slums of Kibera5. Financial Support to Heart Lodge Ministries- That provides Christ centered community based projects, as well as lodging for traveling missionaries
Financial Support to Heart Lodge Ministries- That provides Christ centered community based projects, as well as lodging for traveling missionaries6. Financial Support to the Water Relief Project in Meru Kenya that is currently ministering to the needs of the Somalian refugees that are crossing the boarders into Kenya as they are experiencing severe famine at this time.
Financial Support to the Water Relief Project in Meru Kenya that is currently ministering to the needs of the Somalian refugees that are crossing the boarders into Kenya as they are experiencing severe famine at this time.I know many of you have read about how Jesus fed over five thousand people with 2 fish and five barley loaves and then they had twelve baskets full of food returned after everyone had eaten. We feel that we have been able to experience this type of miracle in Kenya because of the faithful prayer support that you have all presented on our behalf. Please continue to pray with us for the children of Maddison House as we are getting things in place for the kids to receive educational and heath care sponsorships through Tumaiini Ministries. This will provide us with opportunities to sponsor children to receive more quality education and health care, and to reconnect them with their families. We will provide more information on this in the near future. To say it plainly, there is no way that this mission trip would have enjoyed the success it did without you support.
There are not enough ways for us thank you. When we see you we would like to tell you personally how much you are appreciated.Your Servants in Christ,
The 2001 MVCC Kenya Mission team, Patricia, Brad, Suzette, Calvin and Klariza
August 22, 2011
2011 Kenya Mission Update
Greetings and blessings to all of you in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.We will be leaving Kenya today and while it will be good to return home we will also be saddened by the friends that we are leaving behind. The weather has been good the last few days with sun and temps from the high 70s to the low 80s. God has been truly blessing us over the last few days as we visited the slums of Kibera yesterday and had a chance to visit the WEEP center which is an awesome program to HIV positive women and their children. The women are nursed to health and given anti-retroviral medications that will allow them to live for a long time and see most of their children grow up. Most of these women contacted HIV from their husbands who deny that they are sick and typically leave the home to never be heard from again. The testimonies of these women would blow you away as they shared their personal stories with the team, and we had a chance to share in worship and tea with them, God bless these wonderful women.Today we will be visiting the pediatric cancer ward at the national hospital, Kenyatta Hospital, which is the equivalent of LA County Hospital with far fewer provisions to do the job and far more patients. Please continue to pray for the team to stand strong as we deal with so many emotional and spiritual challenges
God has done a great work in Kenya and I know that this work began and will end with your faithful and tireless prayers. Kwaheri and God bless all of you as we look forward to seeing all of you upon our return. There should be one last update upon our return.
In Christ, Your MVCC 2011 Mission Team, Brad, Patricia, Suzette, Calvin and Klariza
August 20, 2011
2011 Kenya Mission Update
Sasa or Hello friends,
We finished the Vacation Bible Class for the kids of Maddison House and the surrounding Community on Thursday and we were blessed by over 100 children that attended our end of VBS celebration, as well as many of the families from the rural community of Limuru. The Word was preached by Pastor John who delivered a great message that stayed with the theme of sharing our faith. We do not have a total count yet, but some hands were raised to receive Christ.. There were skits performed by the kids of Maddison House and puppet shows that the kids loved. You have heard about how the father of the prodigal son killed the fatted calf when his son returned home, well we slaughtered two goats and many special Kenyan dishes were served at the celebration. The goals that had been established for this trip were all met.We are so grateful for all of your prayers that went before us, I wish that all of you could have seen the kids respond to questions that they were asked about their classes, that was a clear indication that they were all listening when they were being taught. One of the older kids delivered a letter to MVCC that we cannot wait to share with all of you upon our return.Our work is not over as we will be going to the pediatric cancer ward of Kenyatta Hospital and a visit to the slums of Kiberra and a last visit to Maddison House to say good bye to the children. The kids of Maddison House want to say thank you and God Bless You to all of you who continue to faithfully pray for them.Kwaheri or Good Bye for now.
Brad and Patricia Whitehead and the Team, Suzette, Calvin and Klariza
August 16, 2011
2011 Kenya Mission Update
We would like to thank all of you for your responses to our call for immediate prayer for our team. Also, thank you for your e-mail responses that remind us of what an awesome support team we have at home.We have just completed two wonderful days of Vacation Bible School and we saw the presence of God in a special way. We know that your prayers are making a difference. As far as the VBS we had the participation of almost 70 kids and the outcome was great. Our theme was “Sharing Your Faith” and the children responded with great enthusiasm. Starting with the youngest group ages 4-9 with MVCCs own Klariza Rivero and a Kenyan assisting by the name of Martin. The young kids had a great time while learning about the parable of the Sower and The prodigal Son. We believe that the lives of all these children were impacted and changed and that all of their friends in their community will tell others about what God did in their lives.Next, we had the age group of 10 to 13, taught by Suzette Taylor and Teriza who is the house mother at Maddison House and who also leads the kids of Maddison House in prayer and worship daily. They taught from the book of Jonah; and although at times, whenever you teach this age group you sometimes are not sure how much they are taking in. But when the review of the lesson was about the life of Jonah and the importance of sharing your faith, when directed by God, I do not think any of us wants to end up in the belly of a great fish. the last group was taught by Calvin McCargo and myself and keeping in line with the theme of sharing your faith we taught on the Four Spiritual Laws in both English and Swahili and since Calvin and I are seriously deficient in our Swahili we had the very capable help of our Kenyan friends Andrew, Fadhili and Pastor Johna and Pastor Joseph from the surrounding communities, we shared the laws with the class as a means of sharing their faith with others, and the second day we gave the students a chance to practice sharing their faith with each other we had a lot of fun and a great lesson was learned. We had a chance both days to break up into two groups and go into the surrounding community to take food to four neighbors and perform some tasks around their homes, the young men and women of Maddison house were unbelievable in their zeal to serve god with their actions and not just with their mouth. They washed dishes, cleared shrubbery, chopped down trees and did general clean up. Calvin and I had no way of keeping up with them. we were able to serve two grandmothers and their families and two widows and their families, God was extremely good to us. Patricia was busy taking pictures and overseeing all of the different classes and had a chance to visit the local school where most of the kids from Maddison House attend.Lastly we distributed all of the backpacks that were donated by all of you faithful supporters of the mission. I hope that some of the pictures can convey the joy that each of these 66 kids felt as they received their own brand new personal backpack, Bwana Asifewe Praise God. May God bless all of you and please keep us in prayer as we go on a field trip today (Wednesday) with the kids. Tomorrow we have the big celebration and get to find out the effectiveness of the message of sharing our faith.
Your Servants in Christ, Brad and Patricia Whitehead
And the team
August 13, 2011
Immediate Prayer Request
Hello and thank all of you for your continued prayer. Patricia was awakened from her sleep last night and God spoke to her in a might way saying " I am the God of all flesh and there is nothing too great for me" there was a reminder to completely trust in Him for the outcome of this mission trip and there was also a warning that there would be distractions, but to know He was able to overcome all of these. Please Keep the team in prayer it is our belief that God has already done some amazing things on this trip and that His best is yet to come.In His Service, Brad and Patricia Whitehead
August 12 , 2011
Dear Kenya Prayer Partners
Sorry that it has been a little while since you received our last mission update. We have been very busy since the second team arrived on Tueday night at about 7:00 PM Kenya time which was about 9:00 AM your time or 10 hours later then you. This creates a bit of jet lag for the arriving team of four. Patricia has now been on the ground for one week and has got her land legs, and thanks to your prayers is feeling much better. The weather is cool and overcast and we got a pretty decent rainstorm yesterday. The team slept Tuesday night and hit the ground running the next day as we went into Limuru to Maddison House to meet with the approximately 35 kids and met with the Maddison House Staff and additional volunteers from |Cornerstone Church. I believe the team is working well together and earning a good name for MVCC in Kenya. On Wednesday evening the team had dinner at the house of a Missionary from Wycliffe Bible Translators that Patricia and I have been sponsoring fo awhile, and she blessed the team and our unbelievale driver and friend Andrew with an awesome African style dinner. It was a great dinner and a great experience for the Team to see what God is doing in the life of others on the mission field. Please pray for this missionary Akinlana Burrowes as she works with Wycliffe in Nairobi and other parts of Africa. Thursday we went about two hours Southwest of Nairobi to the Community of Massi at the invitation of another Missionary Dr. Stanley Matunga who is the Head of Tumaini Ministry that helps AIDS orpans to get sponsored for both education and health care for only $35.00 a month. This ministry is presently sponsoring over 1,200 orphans and are starting to see the fruits of their vision as many of the children that they sponsor are beginning to finish college and moving into great carreers. It is our hope that Dr. Matunga may be able to assist us at Mountain View to be able to start sponsoring the children of Maddison House and allow God to show himself in great ways in their lives as well. The sounds of Kenya as well as the sights are there to awaken you senses.We see and hear bird sounds in the mornings and hear the crickets at night. we also saw baboons today where we were having lunch. We begin the Vacation Bible School next Monday August 15th and seek your earnest prayers for this VBS with a theme of sharing your faith with others and also the kids going into their neighborhoods and doing small projects for their neighbors. Our hope is that the believers will realize personal growth in their lives and that if there are any that do not know the Lord, that they will come to a saving faith and be descipled by the others that are growing. we know that outside the Lord here is no way that all this can happen but in Christ all thinga are possible. Please continue to pray for all of us and that we will overcome our jet lag.Your Servant in Christ, Brad Whitehead
August 6, 2011
Dear Team Leaders, Mission Team and Prayer Support Partners
Sending You an Update on the happenings of our one missionary on the ground Patricia. She said that the preparations for the work to be done at Maddison House are going well she has met with our hosts and is having a delicious Goat feast at the family of our very good friend and driver during our visit Andrew. She has had a little problem with the time adjustment and was feeling a little under the weather, but your continued prayers are making a difference, we cannot thank all of you faithful prayter warriors enough; She misses everyone and feels the absence of her traveling companions Mary Ellen Boulden and Elder Chris Francis very much as they both had last minute siytuations that did not allow them to go on the trip, please keep both of them in prayer Pat met with the kids of Maddison House and they are all very excited about her being there and the rest of the team of Suzette Taylor, Calvin McCargo, Klariza Rivero and myself coming next week(We leave August 8th). they look forward to the VBS and the time with the team.Patricia wnted me to again thank all of you for your support through joiming us in the week prayer and fasting the yard sale fundraiser to the Panda Express and Simply Sharons fundraisers the collection of the backpacks and the Special Love Offering. You all showed what God can accomplish when His people come together with a singlemness of purpose. You guys are awesome. As you pray for the team, I know it is the intent of the team to keep you all in prayer also. Remember Prayer is one of our greatest tools in Spiritual Warfare. I have attached a picture of our team with our family members,Committed to Christ, Brad Whitehead
August 3, 2011
Dear Team Leaders, Team and Prayer Partners,
I am writing to let you all know of Patricia's safe arrival to Nairobi Kenya. After a 16 hour flight from LAX to Dubai and then another 4 hour flight from Dubai to Nairobi, Patricia arrived and was picked up at the airport by our friends in Nairobi.
Patricia and I would like to thank you for all of your prayers for her safe arrival. Patricia has sent me 3 text messages, one when she arrived in Dubai, one when she arrived in Nairobi and the third after dinner and before going to bed. Please continue to keep her in prayer. I can honestly say that the members of MVCC came through in a big way for the Kenya Team. We received financial and prayer support and we met and even exceeded the request for backpacks for the children of Maddison House and their friends.
God Bless You all and please try to make it to prayer tonight at church.
Brad Whitehead
This page was last updated: September 20, 2013
The Kenya Mission
From the Desk of Brad & Patricia Whitehead
