Two Year
Ministry Plan

Over the past few years, many of our international missions trips have been put on hold due to the pandemic. So this fall, we were excited to be able to send a medical mission team to serve with our partners in Kenya for the first time in three years. The team consisted of medical providers, dentists, nurses, and several other members who helped support and organize the clinics—a total of 19 members.

Our partnership in Kenya is with LEFTI, Life Empowerment for Transformation International, led by Bernard Kabaru. Through local church networks, LEFTI provides pastoral training and support for the body of Christ in Kenya. LEFTI also works through community and school networks to support children and their families participating in the OVC Kenya program.

This most recent mission team worked to provide practical resources and meet physical needs for individuals and families in the Kenyan community of Turuturu, serving alongside Kenyan pastors who provided spiritual support. In partnership with a local church, the team helped host a three-day medical clinic for over 690 individuals. While people waited to be seen, pastors and Kenyan believers were able to share the gospel with them. As our clinical team provided medical, dental, vision and pharmaceutical care, they enjoyed having more personal conversations and praying with individuals as God provided opportunities. As a special treat, the team visited one of the schools where children in the OVC Kenya program attend. Several Grace members who are OVC Kenya sponsors were able to meet their child and their child's family! A safari and time in the local market capped off the week for this team as they debriefed and prepared to fly home.

Some of the team members had this to say about their experience:

God reminded me of how restful it is to lay down my life, forget myself, my comfort, my foolish desires, my desire for control. How truly I’m blessed when I live in dependence.

My biggest takeaways were being challenged on being intentional and kingdom-minded with my sphere of influence along with believing and claiming power in prayer.

God reminded me that the world is much bigger than my little bubble and that there is a great need for the body of Christ to continue to go out into the world to help and serve others.

This trip was not only an opportunity to serve our brothers and sisters in Kenya, but an important pathway for our members to be discipled. If you would like to learn more about our partnership in Kenya or apply for an upcoming trip (applications are being accepted for our April 2023 trip), click below!

OVC Kenya is a partnership program that provides sustainable support and promotes long term relationships with orphans and vulnerable children in Kenya. Through our partnership with Bernard Kabaru and local churches in Limuru, Kenya, we are helping expand an existing program that provides physical, academic, and relational support to children in need within each church’s local community.

Grace individuals and families have the opportunity to partner with children in Kenya by becoming advocates! Each advocate not only contributes financially to help provide for their child, but they also send letters of encouragement and support. We currently have advocates for 116 children in Kenya.

Pelham members Matt and Christy Knarr, along with their three daughters Haley, Brooke, and Mackenzie, have advocated for two children in Kenya over the past eight years. They had this to say about their experience:

Being an advocate is an opportunity for our family to share the blessings God has given us with others. Our two Kenyan children are so woven into our lives that our family prays for them regularly and our children eagerly await their letters and want to share pictures, notes, and artwork of their own in return. It has helped our children to see ways in which we may be able to help others in more challenging circumstances. This ministry has also given all of us someone tangible to pray for and then witness how God works in their lives.

It has been a blessing for us to be a part of their lives for so many years. This ministry walks alongside and supports the entire family to have a lasting impact on not only them, but our entire family as well. We have enjoyed being part of their life journey and are excited to see both our OVC children move into adulthood very soon.

What a blessing to see the gospel work through individuals in tangible ways. Will you join us in prayer for the children and families represented in this program? To learn more about OVC Kenya, click below.

Isaiah 1:17 says, “Learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed. Defend the cause of orphans. Fight for the rights of widows.” One way we are seeking to defend the cause of orphans is through OVC Kenya—a partnership program that provides sustainable support and promotes long-term relationships with orphans and vulnerable children in Kenya.

Through OVC Kenya, individuals and families can become advocates for children in need. Each advocate not only contributes financially to help provide for their child, but they also send letters of encouragement and support. We have found this to be an amazing way to build relationships, get outside ourselves, and even create discipleship opportunities with our families.

Recently, we hosted an OVC Kenya Vision Night to give our advocates an update. 71 kids have been supported by advocates at Grace Church, and five of them recently graduated. It was exciting to hear their stories and how the program has helped equip them financially, emotionally, and spiritually. We hope you will join us in prayer and celebration around this ministry. To learn more about OVC Kenya, click below!

As an extension of the last decade of ministry in Kenya, we have been working with our partner, Bernard Karubu, to expand our ministry into nearby Rwanda to help train and equip other pastors there. We are excited about ministries in three African countries (including our members, the Nelsons, living in Cape Verde) meeting together and the ways God is using our service and relationships in Kenya to meet needs and provide similar training in Rwanda. Watch the video below for more details.

Bernard also runs our OVC Kenya program as we continue to make efforts to care for orphans and vulnerable children. If you are interested in helping with this program, here's how you can help: We need 8-10 more advocates for our OVC high school and college-aged children. High school support is $50/month and college support is $100/month, and we ask advocates to commit for the duration of the student's schooling. You can apply to be an advocate below.