Romanos Okello was born into a poor family in the slums of Nyalenda. His parents could hardly afford to raise him and his siblings, so he was forced to live on the streets at a very young age. While on the streets, he sold used bottles to make a living. He grew up this way in the slums for many years. After he was married and started having kids, he decided to start dealing marijuana or “bang” as it is called on the streets. For twenty years he was heavily involved in the drug business. He became a very well known and successful dealer in the community.

During this time, Romanos lost both his parents, brother and wife from sickness and disease. It was then that he was tested for HIV. And amidst struggling with the death his loved ones, he had to deal with the status and stigma of being HIV positive. Although his business continued, his life was spiraling downward.

By the grace of God, Romanos decided to join the CFA Center at Central Baptist Church last February. For the first time he heard about Jesus in a way he understood. Lazarus and Elizabeth poured time and love into Romanos, despite his prominence as the community drug dealer. One morning in April, Lazarus and Elizabeth visited his home on a routine home visit. But this time was different. After hearing the gospel and experiencing the love of God, he gave his life to Jesus Christ. His desire for change was immediate. That very moment he left the room and came back with all the marijuana he owned, totaling 150 kilos. Right then and there he burned it all. It was a declaration for Lazarus, Elizabeth, to himself and most of all to God that he was done with his former life.

Romanos decided to be baptized in the river by the pastor of Central Baptist Church. Soon after, he was given two bags of charcoal by CFA staff to start a new business. It was a brand new start for him. Romanos used those two bags of charcoal to buy several more and that business is still supporting his family today.

Romanos is now an active and dedicated member of Central Baptist Church. He comes early and leaves late. He attends the Bible studies and mens gatherings. He is so excited about his new faith that he brings his family every Sunday and frequently shares his faith boldly with neighbors and friends. His neighbors, knowing his past very well, can testify firsthand to the dramatic change that has occurred in his life.

After accepting Christ, Romanos had decided to take his eight children to be tested for HIV, for fear of loosing more of his family to sickness. He prayed fervently for the Lords favor on his family. Miraculously all eight children were tested negative. Romanos gladly shared his new faith and testified to Jesus working in his life.  Prior to knowing Jesus, Romanos had also suffered for many years with a serious hemorrhage as well. Recently he was reading in the Bible about the woman who suffered from bleeding and reached out to Jesus’ cloak to be healed. So Romanos, led in faith, reached out and grabbed a nearby curtain in his home as if to be the cloak of Jesus. And when he did, he was healed from his hemorrhage.

As Romanos told these stories in his home, there was a peace and joy about him. He had finally found what he had been searching for his whole life: Jesus Christ. He held up a painting a friend made for him while he was a drug dealer. With a smile on his face he said, “they used to call me ‘Rasta man’, but now they call me ‘Man of God’”.

At UGA, people can take a photo when they donate books to go on the table – so cool:

Here is a collage from Furman with signs for people to hold, a table banner, and part of this semester’s trendy t-shirt:

Check out the cool spray-painting (and cookies!) at Auburn:

Probably my personal favorite, some Star Wars characters gave their books on Star Wars day at Georgia!  (May the 4th be with you…):

And here is a HUGE banner a volunteer made at GCSU:

Finally, here is the result (courtesy of Belmont)!  We’ve already gotten in over 12,000 books and many campuses are still in the midst of exams.  Keep praying for great returns and for a huge impact on each one of these campuses.  Say a prayer for our student leaders as well – they are working hard and doing an amazing job!

“My name is Susan Wambui. I stay at Gachie, near the health center.  I have been HIV-positive for 13 years. I had gone to the hospital once because I was expectant.  When I was tested, I turned out to be HIV positive, and my husband rejected me.  He said we have to separate. So I went back to my parents home.  After staying there for some time my husband passed on, and when I tried to go there, the relatives would not let me go back.  After two months, my mother also passed on, and so I had many troubles. I suffered so much.

Then I had my baby at the hospital.  When I got my child, children were not being tested, so I just brought him home without knowing anything about his status.  After six years, my child started getting sick.  He knew how to talk by then, and he told me, “I will be healed in Jesus’ name.” So the child continued to stay like that, and even today I came with him to the church, and he is doing well.  He is not taking ARV’s, because he turned negative! 

God is good, because I had just moved to stay in this area.  I found a house, but I did not know where I would get my food.  I did not know anyone in the area, apart from one lady who invited me to this church. When I came to this church, I got a lot of help.  I found I could now get food from the center.  One day I got very sick, and the center workers helped me go to the hospital and I received treatment.  They paid for my treatment, but I am very happy for this program because they then sensitized me and I learned about NHIF.

I registered for NHIF (health insurance) and they paid for me the first three months. After three months, my child was hit by a car. It was a hit and run, so they never helped my child.  So I took my child to Kikuku National Hospital, and we were admitted.  Through NHIF, my bill was paid.  My child had a broken leg and a metal pin was put, but I did not pay anything!

I’m happy with this program, and I pray that this program continues because it is helping many people.  When I came here, I discovered my neighbor who was bedridden, and I came and reported. I got with Sarah, and we came and took that lady to Kikuyu. She was admitted, and because of this program, she was able to come back to her health. So this program has been very helpful.  Even after we graduated in 2011, I went to tell many other people to come here. I always tell people – I talk to them and I tell them what they can do, because now we have this program.  We were helped by this program.

Before, people would hide their status so they didn’t know, but now I can see people coming out.  We are able to reach to many other people.  After we taught them, they also started coming up and teaching others.  God is so good.  I thank all those who sat down and came up with such a program, because they did something unique and something great.  I want to tell them, God will bless them, because God loves those who help others.  They should continue to trust God, and even when they go through hard times, they should thank God for the good things he has done, and God will remember them.

There are so many things in this world, but when we trust God he gives us victory.  I know God is faithful!”

Praise the Lord for Susan’s testimony, and for the hundreds of other families that are growing, learning, and rising up with hope!  Thank you for your continued prayers and support of this ministry – none of this would be possible without you!

That was my part of my preaching some months ago in one of our partner churches when they invited me to speak about what the local church should do in assisting the infected ones with HIV/AIDS within their congregation..I started by asking for a show of hands. Who knows someone…

1. Who is HIV positive?
2. Who has conducted or attended a funeral for someone who died of AIDS?
3. Who is HIV positive in your congregation?

You can guess the answer! Number 1 and 2 were a 100% hands up, while the third question was 100% no hands up!!!

And I said, if you do know someone, you really don’t need me to tell you what situation is. If you don’t know anyone…shame on you!! You are too isolated from what is happening in your community. That isolation could take one of two forms: You really don’t know very many people and those you know are very protected OR you don’t know enough about the people around to know what they are experiencing. In either case, you are not making a connection with people who are hurting and need your care and concern.

HIV/AIDS is not asking anything new of the church community, rather AIDS is confronting us with the necessity of becoming more fully the kind of people we have been called to be. We need to take up our role to:

• Provide Hope, Courage, and Healing.
• Work with God to confront the evils of the pandemic.
• Save the lives of many who are suffering and dying.
• Provide spiritual guidance and counsel.
• Bring salvation to humankind, and finally
• Share and use the knowledge that God has allowed through science to fight against AIDS.

Lastly, I questioned on how the church will respond to the Lord’s word in the face of civil disruption or to challenges faced by specific communities. There are stories that stretch the imagination of how much individuals suffer and sacrifice. However, there are success stories, in CARE for AIDS for example, where churches have woken up to the realization that admitting there is a problem is the first step. We are not going to be talking about being overwhelmed by HIV and AIDS. We are to be talking about the opportunities to represent our God, to minister to God’s children and our brothers and sisters who need our caring.

What do you think about Duncan’s message to the Kenyan church?  What issues are facing OUR churches that we should be addressing as the body of believers?   How are we being too passive or ignoring the reality here in America?  Leave Duncan a comment and we’ll get back to you!

1. “What would my replacement do?” Andy Stanley kicked off the day by giving us three questions to add to our decision-making arsenal. His first one was, “What would my replacement do?” I don’t think my job is in danger, but if someone with more experience was brought in, what is the first thing he or she would do? When I hit a dead end or my strategies and tactics seem tired, this is a great question that brings objectivity and focus to a matter that could often be clouded by personal bias or attachment to an idea or strategy.

2. The Law of Awareness.  John Maxwell shared with us a few laws with us from his upcoming book The 15 Laws of Personal Growth. He said that in order to grow ourselves, we must know ourselves. Mainly, we need to have awareness in three areas:

Requirement – What is required of me?

Return – What gives me the greatest return? (staying within your strengths)

Reward – What is rewarding to me?

Aligning those three answers creates passion. As we begin to coach our staff on their personal development, I will really be focusing on creating alignment in these areas.

3. “Flip the hierarchy.” I could write a whole post on Angela Ahrendts’ talk. She is the CEO of Burberry and assumed that role shortly after the organization’s 150^th anniversary. As you can imagine, she had to make some radical changes to bring Burberry into the modern and social era, but one of her strategies was really mind-blowing. She created a committee of the youngest, most innovative minds in the company and gave them the liberty to create the vision and strategies that would help Burberry succeed in this social age. Then, the executive team was responsible for executing that vision. What a radical idea which is so counter to the typical corporate culture! It has worked for them in a big way. To read more, visit Great Leaders Serve for a complete post on her talk.

4. “The real competitive advantage is a healthy organization.” The final speaker of the day was Patrick Lencioni. He said that there are two sides to any business: being smart (marketing, strategy, etc.) and being healthy (culture, values, etc.). He stated that in this day and age, being is healthy is the real competitive advantage because any organization can be smart. We as leaders have to create cohesive leadership teams through vulnerability and be very clear about the values and beliefs that drive our organizations. We must over communicate those values and reinforce them whenever possible. This was a good reminder that, in this scenario, redundancy is not a bad thing.

Do any of these principles resonate with you? How can you apply these lessons in your organization or family? If you also attended Leadercast last week, what were some of your takeaways?

It got me thinking. First, about how blessed I am to be a part of that story along with CFA, seeing God change lives. Second, about how everyone loves powerful stories. Or better yet, how we need moving stories. Maybe it’s the way we are made. We watch movies, read books, and share life with others because great stories inspire us, empower us, and energize us.

Unfortunately, when it comes to work, I sometimes get caught up in the numbers and figures. Don’t get me wrong, statistics and metrics are great tools (and they show that CFA is doing amazing work!). But they are not everything. There must be a personal connection. I think that organizations like CARE for AIDS can’t be evaluated by mere facts alone, you have to know the testimonies of those that have been touched.

I have the fortunate privilege of being on the ground in Kenya, close to the lives being affected every day. And I realize that it is harder to feel the impact for those further away, those who support the ministry and make this all possible. Believe me when I tell you, CARE for AIDS is changing lives. I have seen it myself. CFA is bringing spiritual, social, and emotional rebirth for individuals who thought their lives were over.

I spoke with the Thika and Limuru staff last weekend at the monthly staff meeting and encouraged each counselor to keep record of the success stories they are seeing every day. Together we want to share with you the stories that touch and affect us, the stories that really move us and keep us doing what we do. I want to bring you those stories. I want you to know that the work being done here is not just about the numbers to us. It’s about God’s bigger plan of redemption and salvation. It’s about life change, and every single person counts.

Meet Sharon Anyango Ouma. When she found out her HIV status, she was outcast and alone. While at the CFA program at Nanga Baptist Church, she accepted Jesus as her personal Savior. After being saved, she was baptized in Lake Victoria by Pastor George and joined the church. This is just one of many more stories to come!

1. Strength of Body and Mind

Many of our clients have the skills to work a trade or the land to farm, but they can’t take advantage of these opportunities because they are physically weak, many times to the point of being confined to their bed for months on end.  For these people, our workers serve as the link to hospitals and clinics, making sure they get the right medication and then teaching how and why to take the drugs.  We help them to eat nutritious food and live in a sanitary way that prevents infections, and soon those who were bedridden are ready to work.

Other clients have lost their emotional strength and simply given up.  They think that with HIV they are destined to die tomorrow, and they see no reason to work, take medicine, or farm their land.  When our staff sit with them and teach them that they can live 15, 20, 25 years – that they can see their children grow up – they take advantage of every opportunity and turn their lives around.

From clients in each of these situations, we hear a constant refrain:  “I was so down, but now I am strong!”

2. New Skills to Apply

After their health has stabilized, some of our clients still don’t have a trade, land to farm, or any other source of income.  This is when the 18 empowerment seminars they experience can revolutionize their chances.  They learn skills like soap-making, cooking, and charcoal-making, and these simple trainings lead to an income-generating activity that puts them on the first rung of the ladder out of poverty.

3. Wise Strategy

For those clients who have a skill or who start running a small business, we often see situations where a person is working but their situation just isn’t improving.  That’s where this third route to self-sufficiency becomes so crucial.  Our staff and outside trainers spend time teaching the clients about business strategy, from product choices to marketing, and financial skills, like saving and budgeting.  We also connect them with sources of financing and credit.  Together, understanding and resources allow them to take their ventures to the next level.  Soon, they not only have the income to simply fend off starvation, but they are saving enough to send their kids to secondary school or move their families into better housing.

In each of these three situations, people don’t need much to get started.  I am continually amazed with how Kenyans facing poverty will strive and push and dig deep to do everything they possibly can to improve their situation.  More than anything, everyone wants to provide education and a future for their children, and they will go to amazing lengths for this.  Often, all we need to do is pick them up and get them to take the first step, then they are off and running!

Duncan Teaching

As we come to the conclusion of studying this book I want to testify that my life will never be the same.  This is because I have been able to learn a lot of things. First, I want to thank God for CARE for AIDS which has given us this opportunity to learn and grow.  I also thank God for Chick-fil-A for continually allowing us to use their materials which are very resourceful.  I promise that we aspire to grow like you!  Last but not least I would want to thank God for our own- the team leader -Justin Miller. I have never met a young person who is as concerned about the growth of his team members.  This man sleeps and dreams about our growth as Kenyans.

In this blog, I will not chase many rabbits, instead I will share with you just few things that the Lord has taught me through two books “Great leaders Serve” and “Integrity” by Dr. Henry Cloud.

1. Integrity is the sum of who I am inside, and who I am will always determine how I lead. Among other things, I also realized that as a leader with integrity, I need to be able to create and maintain trust.
2.  As a leader, I should work hard to gain the complete trust of the people I lead because by doing so, I capture their full hearts and following.
3. I realized that every leader should be looking back to check the kind of wake they leave behind.
4. I learned that those who succeed in life are those who realize that life is largely about solving problems.
5. I realized that for me to succeed as a leader, I must learn how to lose, because losing is part of the game.
6. Lastly, as a leader I should not make myself bigger than I am. The bigger I see myself, the more I remain entrenched in an underdeveloped perspective.  And ironically, the smaller I become, the closer I get to the fullness of life.

But these are not all; I have just shared few things that were very meaningful to my life.  Glory to God!

How could these points from Cornel affect the way you lead in your own life?  What are the biggest lessons you’ve learned about leadership in your experience?  Leave a comment for Cornel with your thoughts! 

Kyle interacting with our clients at Central Baptist in Kisumu

Over the last few months as we were making this hiring decision, I used a framework for this decision that I learned from Bill Hybels at Willow Creek Community Church. This model that he calls the “Four C’s of Team Selection” has had so many applications in my leadership journey, and once again, I found myself revisiting these criteria almost daily as I examined Kyle as a candidate. For those of you who aren’t familiar with this model, I think it will help you in making good hiring decisions in the future. To read more about this, I encourage you to pick up a copy of Bill Hybels’ book called Courageous Leadership.

The Four C’s of Team Member Selection:

Character – This one is first for a reason. It is so integral to the selection of a candidate, but it does not always receive the attention it deserves. The implications of lapses in this character will have a far greater impact than you can imagine. Does the candidate have a growing relationship with Jesus Christ and do they possess qualities such as integrity, humility, hard work ethic, etc.? These are traits that can be molded through good parenting or counseling, but we as leaders should not spend time trying to develop these in new hires. We need to select for character.

Competence – Our work is too important to settle for less than the best available talent. More importantly, we need to seek out proven talent and a track record of success. Despite being a smaller organization, we have set our sights high in this arena, and God has honored that by providing exceptional leaders with a wide array of gifts and abilities.

Chemistry – So much of your time is going to be spent with this new person that they need to have a positive effect on you. They should give you energy as opposed to draining you of it. They should encourage you and build you up as opposed to being critical or negative. The better that they can relate to you and the rest of the team, the easier it is to collaborate effectively and achieve more.

Calling – This is the newest addition to Bill’s criteria, but I believe it is so important. Without a calling, the rest of the criteria don’t matter. Can you detect a sense of purpose and passion that can only be from God? Especially in the work we do, our team members must be willing to make personal sacrifices. That includes time away from family and maybe even passing up more financially lucrative opportunities. Without the calling, it wouldn’t be long before a team member begins to lack motivation and passion, and as a result, their character, competence, and chemistry would all diminish with it.

Do you agree with this set of criteria? Would you assign more or less value to any of them?

Ann was married and blessed with four children, one girl and three boys. Ann’s husband was working as a mechanic with the police mechanical unit. He fell sick and within a short time died. Ann never knew by that time what killed her husband. After two years she also fell sick and she was very weak. She visited many hospitals without much improvement on her health. She was diagnosed with TB which made her admitted in hospital for several weeks and later discharged after having been introduced to medication. After finishing the TB doses she fell sick again with infection to a point she was bed ridden for one year. During this second sickness in 2008 was the time she was diagnosed as HIV positive. This was not easy for her since she didn’t have any hope for her future or the future for her children, since she was the sole bread winner.

Ann was introduced to ARV medication, and this helped her through to a point that she was able to walk again and start doing her daily work,  though she was weak and challenged on where to start.  Her status was known to many people and this created a lot of stigma not only to her but also to her children. She had to transfer her kids from the school where they were schooling since everyone in the school was talking about a family living with HIV and AIDS, and it was not easy for the children.

The following year she lost her second born and third born kids to HIV-related illnesses; this was again not easy for her and the family. After she overcame the grief of her children, she took her daughter and son for HIV test. The daughter turned negative and the son turned positive. It was not again easy for her to accept the reality of her son’s status. All the time she could see death in her family. She encouraged herself and she decided that she is going to live and her son is going to live too. The son was introduced to ARV medications and up to today he is using the medication and he is now a big boy in grade eight.

Though Ann has accepted herself, it has not been easy again for her to relate with other people in the community. All along she has been eager to know and join a group of people who are living with the virus. Early this year 2012, she was privileged to be among the eighty clients we recruited in Kamirithu CARE for AIDS center for the current phase. More than her expectation, at the center she not only found a fellowship of people living with HIV and AIDS but also a Christian environment where she will grow spiritually. In her third month at the center, she has attended several seminars and has learned how to improve on hygiene to avoid opportunistic infections, deal with stigma and so on.  She is eager to attend future seminars and learn various skills.

Ann so far has been one of the best clients we have at the center. She is very honest and very committed and she has not missed any of our seminars and center days. Ann has found a group that has been of great encouragement to her and to her family. She has been very welcoming even in her home and she has even hosted a vision trip team for a dinner in her home. She is looking forward to the remaining months to  learn new skills that she can utilize to become fully self reliant in her life as she looks after her two children – Martha who is in college doing an accounts course and her son Gedion who is sitting for his grade eight national exam this year. May you pray with her for her kids’ education, her health and her son’s health.

Questions?  Thoughts?  Leave us a comment and we’ll get back to you!