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Embarking on a missionary trip to Kitale, Kenya, was a life-changing experience for me and my dedicated group of missionaries from Slavic Missionary Bible School in Jacksonville Florida. It had taken 5 months of preparation leading up to this trip to learn how to effectively accomplish our goals of spreading the gospel, providing essential aid to the local Kenyan people, and making a positive impact in their lives through simple acts of kindness. Our journey introduced us to extraordinary individuals, but none touched our hearts as deeply as Lucky, a remarkable 17-year-old boy who had overcome tremendous hardships to become a beacon of hope in his community.
Spreading the Gospel and Offering Assistance
As we arrived in Kitale, our missionary group wasted no time in setting up our operations. We preached the gospel in churches, schools, and evangelized at public gatherings, sharing the message of love, hope, and redemption that Christ offers his followers. Simultaneously, we worked diligently to provide food and medical assistance to those in need. We also traveled twice to a tribal village in Pokot and ministered to the people there for a total of two weeks. We shared the gospel with the Pokot people while we led church services, taught elementary education in their sole school, arranged a kid's camp, and distributed bed nets to families to combat malaria. Witnessing the gratitude and hope in the eyes of the local Kenyan people as we extended a helping hand gave us a sense of purpose and reinforced our commitment to the mission.
One particular act of service we performed during our time in Kitale left an indelible mark on my heart. Inspired by the humble example set by Jesus Christ, we washed the feet of sick children. Due to their substandard living conditions, these children have been battling jigger infestations on their bodies, primarily on their feet. A jigger is a small parasitic flea that burrows into the skin of its host and spreads by laying eggs. After washing the children’s feet, we soaked them in a medicinal solution and provided them with new shoes and medicine. It was a profound and intimate experience, symbolizing our willingness to serve others with humility and compassion. Through this act, we aimed to emulate the love and care that Jesus showed to those he encountered. The genuine gratitude and joy we witnessed in the children's faces seemed to replace their pain and sicknesses, if only for a moment. Seeing the power of humility and acts of service in action strengthened our belief in the power of selfless acts.
Meeting Lucky - An Extraordinary Journey of Resilience
During our stay in Pokot, I had the privilege of meeting a young man named "Lucky". He was abandoned by his mother as a baby and left to perish in the streets. But a random woman walking the street found him and took him into an orphanage and he was given the name Lucky because he was lucky to survive. After some time, Lucky was placed in a house, but the family abused him to such an extent that Lucky eventually fled and started living on the streets. After years of living on the streets, Lucky was taken into another orphanage called Full of Love, where he still remains today. Despite the hardships he had endured, Lucky displayed an extraordinary resilience and unwavering faith in God. His unwavering optimism and kind heart were evident in every interaction we had with him.
Lucky's story touched my soul deeply. Despite growing up in challenging circumstances, he refused to be defined by his past. Instead, he focused on becoming a source of light and inspiration for others in his community. Lucky's faith had not only helped him overcome his personal struggles but had also become the driving force behind his desire to touch the lives of those around him.
Lucky was a constant source of joy and inspiration in a place where living, even temporarily, was grudgingly difficult. I remember Lucky once forgot a plate of food on the table and when we returned to the house, it was covered with ants. Lucky looked at it sad for a second but then simply laughed blew maybe 3 of the ants off from it and popped the ant-covered food into his mouth! God Bless Lucky!
HeavenlyCoffee.com Brewing Hope for Communities in Need
In the midst of our missionary work, I am constantly reminded that it is my family's company, Heavenly Coffee, that fuels my missionary efforts. As a faith-driven enterprise, the company uses its proceeds to support our missionary work in various regions, including Kenya, Honduras, Mexico, Colombia, Nepal, Costa Rica, and Germany to date. This missionary machine allows us to provide vital resources and assistance to communities in need, empowering us to make a lasting impact in the lives of individuals like Lucky.
My missionary trip to Kitale, Kenya, was a transformative journey filled with hope, compassion, and the power of the human spirit. Through spreading the gospel and providing assistance to the local Kenyan people, my fellow missionaries and I were blessed to witness the resilience and unwavering faith of individuals like Lucky. Their stories serve as a reminder that regardless of our circumstances, we have the ability to overcome hardships and touch the lives of others with our kind hearts and unwavering faith. It is through your support in buying bags of coffee and subscriptions that we can continue to bring hope and make a tangible difference in the world, one region and one person at a time.
Please support my next venture at the Christ for All Nations School of Evangelism in Frankfurt Germany in August 2023, where I will be continuing my education as an evangelist and servant of Christ. You can support me by purchasing a bag of our 90+pt coffee (or 4), or even better, a subscription to coffee every few weeks to help me with the ongoing living expenses as I attend school. Every dollar goes directly towards my tuition, and living expenses and missionary work. Since I have just come from some excellent Coffee plantations in Kenya, may I recommend
-Esther Kotyakov
(Above) "Lucky" and the Ants Incident
An Orphaned Child Hitching a Ride
Evangelizing at a Men's Prison - 3 Prisoners Saved that day