The kids are on break until May 6 which means all of our high school students are back at home and are easily accessible. We decided to update their photos and current information today. One of the best parts, though, was that we got to take a group photo of the Form 4 students (our equivalent of a Senior). This special group contains some of the first 50 students recruited to Missions of Hope. The first. This is so monumental. The first kids will soon graduate from high school and go on to do awesome things.
This morning as I got ready for the day I was thinking about what that must have been like for these kids. I wonder what their parent(s) thought when Mary recruited them to school? Did they think it was just another person wanting to "help" them because they were poor or did they notice the something different,the something very special in her? I wonder if they dreamed of the future for these children. Did they thank God for an answer to a prayer? I wonder what they thought when the small building at the school's initial site became a towering beacon in the slums? A building that can be seen from the super highway! What did they think when visitors came to their houses to pray with them and share the love of Christ? When someone assisted them in paying school fees through sponsorship. When the school went from one school to two to 17. What must have happened in their hearts when their kids went out to the boarding school and then passed their 8th grade national exam? I wonder what must they have thought when they were no longer given handouts or relief, but rather empowered to use the skills and talents God gave them to better their lives, their children's lives, and the world around them? What must they be thinking now as their kids enter their 2nd term of their last year of high school?
Before that; however, while we waiting for the high schoolers to show up (some things are the same no matter what continent you are on!) I went outside the gate to see what was going on. Two sweet, little ones RAN up to me and jumped into my arms (it is no secret that I love this and I literally think my heart will explode sometimes). In my best Swahili, I asked them their names, where they lived and where their school was. They said "here" and pointed to Missions of Hope. They are in nursery class. The littlest kids at our school. New ones. So I wonder, where will life take them? How will their recruitment to Missions of Hope school change their life? What did their parent(s) think when our social workers invited them to school? When their children come home with a head full of new things? When their kids are smiling because they KNOW they are loved. I wonder if they thank God for an answered prayer. If this renewed their hope. If it displayed the love of Jesus to them.
What the future holds for these kids only God knows. But I wonder, will I work alongside of them at Missions of Hope someday. After they finish college or university, will they give back to the place that gave to them. Will they be my doctor when I am sick? Will they become a welder and make windows and desks for our schools? Will they hold public office? Will one of them be president? I wonder if they will pastor a church? or be a missionary? Will they stand up against injustice? Will they fight against the power of poverty?
I wonder.
