The Mocha Club Blog

Dear Mocha Friends,

Here’s something special for December, in the words of the 14 orphan boys you’re supporting in the Kibera slums of Nairobi, Kenya (see November post for details and pics). This month each of the Kibera boys is telling you his favorite Scripture verse and why it’s important to him. I don’t know about you, but this is pretty inspiring for me to hear! Especially sitting here in my comfy office in Dallas, and looking around me, I have so much “stuff”. These young men have little material posessions and yet such a beautiful understanding of the Word of God and how it’s changed their lives…

GEORGE OMONDI: John 3:16
“This is the scripture that changed my life and I use it to preach to others.

BENARD AMBOGA: John 14:1-3
“The verses encourage me not to be troubled. Keep on trusting in Jesus always.”

KENNEDY MUNGANGAI: Deuteronomy 29:29
“What God has revealed to me, I will use it to reach out to others.”

PETER WAMBUA: Luke 19:10
“This is the verse that turned my life around and is the tool I use to reach others.”

FELIX ALAMBO: Isaiah 60:1
“I am going to shine everywhere, for the glory of God is upon me.”

MOSES OUMA: Psalm 23:1
“I shall never be in want for the Lord is my Shepherd. He provides in need and supplies every thing.”

ERICK OTIENO: James 4:8
“The verse shows the importance of drawing near to God.”

ALFRED OCHIENG: Isaiah 43:1-2
“I will never fear for I belong to God and He is with me everywhere.”

REAGAN MOUKO: Matthew 6:25-34
“God assured me not to worry for He will provide for whatever I need. All I need to do is to seek His kingdom first.”

EDWIN SHIKANDA: Philippians 4:13
“I can do all things through Jesus who gives me strength.”

DOMINIC MUTUA: Philippians 4:13
“I can conquer every hard thing through Christ who gives me strength.

KEPHA OKOYO: Romans 8:37-39
“Nothing can separate me from God’s love for I am more than a conqueror.”

JOSHUA ANYAMBA: Proverbs 3:5
“I’m encouraged to trust God always and lean not on my knowledge.”

JOSEPH KIZINZI: Jeremiah 29:11
“God has a future for my life; therefore I will not be afraid with calamities.”

EMERSON JEDI: John 14:6
“The Lord is my way of life, the truth, and every thing who I will put my trust.”

“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”

(James 1:27; NIV)

We have some exciting updates this month on the orphans being supported through Mocha Club! Barrett Ward and I sat down with a few of our Regional Directors – Agrippa Dube, who oversees the schools in Zimbabwe that we updated you on last month, and Benson Mutisya, who oversees the Calvary Youth Hostel in Kenya that we’re updating you on this month. They are asking and expecting God to do big things through the projects He has made happen in their nation.

Last month, we updated you on the 333 children who are now in schools in villages near Bulawayo, Zimbabwe because of Mocha Club. We will continue to update you on these children. For this month, we’re updating you on the 14 boys Mocha Club is supporting who live at the Calvary Youth Hostel…

These boys live in the largest slum in East Africa, called “Kibera,” in Nairobi, Kenya. Here, there are over 800,000 people living in an area that is just over a square mile. The poverty there is unbearable. The following update is from Jackson Atsango (see his pic below), our local director who lives with the boys in Kibera. These boys are now in school and living in this home which supplies all their food and clothing needs as well.

A few of the boys’ stories:

It only costs $806 per month to provide for all 14 boys at the home, including education, caretaker, clothing, food, and shelter! Friends, the money you are giving is actually something much bigger – hope and a future.

Click HERE to view some handwritten messages from the boys and read their personal stories. There are 7 stories…you can read one each day for a week!

The house responsibilities for the boys:

These boys are serious about studying so they can advance in their classes and learn a vocation.

• In their free time, they do devotions, study for classes, play soccer and evangelize to their neighbors.
• At home, they are responsible for
  • Cooking
  • Leading prayers in the evening devotions
  • Washing dishes and their own clothes
  • Cleaning the house
  • Attending church training activities like worship-leading and evangelism

As their physical and spiritual needs are provided for, they are being equipped to lead others!

A note from Jackson, the house director:

“Before this new school term began in September, we held a two-day prayer and fasting mainly for their [school] performance which had gone down last term. To surprise, on Monday they came in the house with smiling faces and gave me their midterm exam results. They really did so well, thanks be to God! They also assured me that end of the term they will pass with flying colors.”

TEAM MEMBER QUOTE OF THE MONTH

“The best thing about the Mocha Club, to me, is being able to help out orphans in Africa, while I’m stuck here in the United States. Even though I can’t be the physical touch these kids are going to feel, I can help make that touch happen by sending just a few dollars a month. It has also been awesome to see how jazzed everyone else has gotten through hearing about the Mocha Club, and then helping get more people to participate!”

~ Brittany Mixon, Team “Bonginkosi”