Libby returned from a semester abroad in England to begin a summer internship with VML in account management. Nate successefully transitioned back to Kansas City Christian to finish his junior year and now finds himself a senior in high school deciding between colleges and majors. Debi finished her Masters program in Organization Development and now looks toward a future career in consulting. I completed a rollercoaster initial year at Insight School of Kansas and am now preparing to have more than 1000 online students in the fall.
And in the area of orphan care, the planning is over. The time for caring has begun.
On June 30, Debi and I will be departing with three other individuals to spend two weeks in Kenya and Malawi. We are part of the advance team for the Colonial Global Orphan Project that will build two orphan villages in Africa. These villages will care for 250 kids in Kenya and 320 more in Malawi. We will be meeting with our international partners to further those relationships and initiate next steps in development.
Initial funding is in place. Construction will begin in months. Debi and I hope to lead a larger group back to Africa in October to continue expanding the engagement of Colonial in this life changing project. By that time, we expect orphans will be in homes in both countries. At the Pothawira village in Malawi, there should also be a school/church and medical clinic under construction.
I will be blogging during this trip. Internet connection, especially in the rural areas of Malawi, can be spotty so it may not be on a daily basis but we will do our best.
Here is a prologue of the trip:
- Jim West, our lead pastor at Colonial, will be preaching to thousands at the Bahati Martyrs Church in Nairobi on July 5. We will broadcast this sermon back to the US and simulcast it at our two campuses in the KC area. You will be able to see this sermon on the church website at http://www.colonialkc.org/ starting July 6.
- The Colonial Global Orphan Project is part of the new C3 initiative to radically transform the care of orphans around the world. Check out http://www.theglobalorphanproject.org/ for more details. Be sure to watch the promotional video and tell your friends.
- To understand why Colonial and our family have sold out for the care of orphans, watch Joe Knittig tell a compelling story about Aslan and the "deeper magic" behind this movement. You can find the video here.
It has been almost 30 years since Out of Africa hit the big screen with Meryl Streep and Robert Redford. This film won 7 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Music, Best Director, and Best Cinematography. It was a great movie by all standards.
But it was still a movie. And even though it was based on the memoir of Karen Von Blixen, Out of Africa was still a fictionalized dramatization of reality that is now reduced to memories captured on a DVD.
In to Africa, The Colonial Global Orphan Project, will be the dramatic realization of a dream that will be remembered forever through the changed lives of orphans.
Until next week,
Blessings.
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