Slumdog Millionaire

Today we woke up to monkeys in the trees just outside the ENT house and knew it was going to be a good day!

The drive to Nairobi for Sunday morning church at Wells of Joy Church took just over an hour and was filled with shocking images of poverty that I can’t even begin to describe. It was like a light switch went off as we neared the Lunga Lunga Slums just outside Nairobi. The road was a murky, black substance and the piles of trash lining the streets were similar to a dumpsite. But this is not a dumpsite; this is a city and a home to approximately 20,000 impoverished Kenyans.

We parked our vehicles behind a gate on the outskirts of the slums and were greeted by Pastor Jeffery, head pastor of Wells of Joy Church, and his family. The welcome was warm and the smiles many as team members from last year greeted old friends and the eight new members took their first steps into what felt like a movie. Pastor Geoffrey led the group outside the gate and into the heart of the slums toward two shacks where the church stood before it grew in size. As we walked down the narrow black road, the images I saw were something I couldn’t have made up if I tried. The majority of the homes and businesses couldn’t have been larger than 10 ft x 10 ft. The road was covered in trash; some half buried in mud; some raked into a pile and set on fire. Everything was covered in filth and the buildings were pieced together with scrap metal and wood. Seeing a site like that in a movie is nothing compared to actually walking within arms length of the adults and children who actually live there as the stench of sewage and body odor drenched the air.

The two former church shacks were smaller than my living room with almost no circulation at all. Pastor Geoffrey then led us to the current church shack that was a short walk away. African gospel music blared as women and children lined the front and danced with absolutely no reservations. They danced around as they waved their arms, sang at the top of their lungs and jumped to the beat of the music. Once worship was over Pastor Geoffrey introduced almost everyone in the room and then our very own, Joe Crenshaw, delivered the first sermon on Jonah and his call to Nineveh. The sermon was stirring and I couldn’t have been prouder to be a part of his team as the Lord gave Joe a message that touched the hearts of people from two very different backgrounds. The second sermon was delivered by Pastor Francis from Limuru and interpreted by Pastor Geoffrey with a lot of yelling at the top of his lungs and plenty of old fashion “amens!” Four hours later the service was over and we made our way back to the car.

After church we ate at Java House in Nairobi and had our first westernized restaurant meal since our arrival one week ago. Ordering off a menu with recognizable meals and using a public restroom with a real toilet was quite a treat!

We made our way back to the ENT house in time for an early debrief where Daniel Shanks and I shared our testimonies. Two Cure volunteers, Divine and Precious, from Zambia sat with us as the team poured love and encouraging words over our struggles. We didn’t expect the Cure volunteers to say anything but Divine ended our session with a heartfelt encouragement to continue our work with the same heart that was evident to him in only a short evening. It was a beautiful and unexpected cross-cultural moment that I will never forget.

We ended the night hanging with the Mendonsas, playing mafia, and listening to the Cowboys game.

That’s all for now. I love and miss you family, friends and supports!

-Rachel Lewis