• Click on the link below and read what the Center of Disease Control has to say about how to combat malaria
• Go to www.touchinglivesmissions.org and click on the Donate page to help us purchase the mosquito nets
• Contact us at tlministry@verizon.net if you would like to be a part of this medical mission team 

Even as all this activity was happening in the lower section of God's Hill, the WMI engineer and community members were working hard at the top of the hill digging the foundation for the water treatment house that will be instrumental in providing clean and treated water to the people of Sanjweru, Kenya for the first time. Only God! These pictures follow the progress of the construction of the treatment house up until the present.

• Become a part of our worldwide on-line prayer by contacting us at tlministry@verizon.net. You'll receive weekly Praise & Prayer Updates and be invited to pray with us every Monday.
• You can contact us at the above e-mail address if you feel God is calling you to go or send someone to Sanjweru, Kenya with our July medical and children's ministry mission team.
• You can visit our Donate Page to financially support the completion of the solar pump and water treatment system that will provide the hospital and community with much needed clean and treated water.

A second construction project came in the form of a "thank you" to the Sanjweru Primary School Board as the second donor of the land for Sanjweru Medical Center. Touching Lives is partnering with the school board to add a much needed classroom to the school. The construction began not long before we arrived and already much work had been completed. To the left is pictured the contractor for the schoolroom with one of the construction worker. To the right you see some of the members of the Sanjweru Medical Center Community Committee with Kathi "inside" the schoolroom. As this is being posted the schoolroom is having the finishing touches applied and will be ready to use very soon!

We were also able to visit St. Camillus Hospital and the Magunga Health Center, both in western Kenya. The directors of both facilities were quite hospitable in giving us tours and discussing the scope of the health they offer to each community. We were able to identify ways Sanjweru Medical Center will be able to partner with these health care providers to increase the effectiveness of all three facilities. We felt that God was revealing another piece of His plan for the future Sanjweru Medical Center!

As God began to establish these partnerships we got yet another glimpse of His goodness to His children in Kenya and to TLK. Even though He could accomplish His will without us, He is allowing us, both Kenyans and Americans, to be His hands and feet in this country. How good is our God!

We'll be sharing more about how God revealed His goodness during this mission in future postings. Thank you always for your faithful prayer and financial support.

• Children's Ministry
• HIV/AIDS education
• Evangelism
• Assisting with non-medical components of the Medical Camp

You can find the mission application on the home page of the TLM website. Team preparation will begin in February and we're expecting the team to fill up quickly. So, there is no time to loss!

If you can't go but God has put this ministry and this mission on your heart we would appreciate your prayers now even as we are preparing to go. Soon more details of the mission and ministry supply needs will be posted but all prayers are cherished until that time! God is working in mighty ways in Sanjweru, Kenya and everyone can be a part of it!

Friday, November 4, 2011 will always be a land mark day for Touching Lives Ministry and Touching Lives Kenya. By God's grace it will also be remembered as a day that ushered in a new hope for the people of Sanjweru, Kenya and surrounding communities.


The day started with the children from several of the schools in the area entertaining community officials, the TLM/TLK mission team, and the 500+ people gathered for the occassion. We were treated to native songs and dances accentuated by the beating of drums. And the children were both talented and entertaining!



Next, some of the women who are a part of the Mustard Seed Microfinance did a dance and presented gifts to Wendi to express their appreciation for how the microfinance ministry has touched and changed their lives. They soon had most of the mission team members dancing with them for joy!

• God will provide wisdom as we make the final preparations
• God will protect the team and family members of the team at home during the mission
• The many medical supplies needed to meet the physical needs of the people will be provided
• God alone will be glorified in all we do

You can support the mission materially by:

• Visiting our Donate page on the website
• If you live in the Delaware Valley, contact us at tlministry@verizon to donate:
• Vitamins, especially children's (no gummy type please, they don't do heat well!)
• Dollar store reading glasses
• Over-the-counter analgesics - Tylenol, Ibuprofen, etc.
• Ointments: Triple antibiotic, analgesic, etc.
• Wound dressings: gauze, tape, band-aids, etc.
• Children's items: jump ropes, girls' hair items, pens, pencils, toy cars, etc.

We are so grateful for your partnership with Touching Lives. You are a blessing on both sides of the globe!

• Safety for those who are working so hard to prepare the land
• Wisdom in preparation of the November medical mission team
• Provision of the funds for the drilling of the well
• That God alone will be glorified in and through all we do!

• Pray for God's will, God's timing and God's provision
• Encourage others to pray by telling your family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, and church family about what God is doing
• Stayed tuned for information about our fall benefits
• If God's leads, visit the Donate page on our website to find out how you can donate funds for the well or the building project

 
 

We have shared extensively about the blessings, mercy, and grace that God has showered on Touching Lives Ministry over the past two years. And rightfully so; we know that no individual could have brought us to the extraordinary place we find ourselves in such a short period of time. Our awe and love for God has grown as we have had the privilege of watching Him do what only He can do.

Yet, it would be a disservice to others who are "stepping out of the boat" to follow God's calling if we were to ignore the challenges that He has allowed along the way. You see, the blessings have impacted and changed the lives of those whom we've been called to minister, the difficulties have changed our lives. Some of the trials have been:

• We believed that God had called us initially to India, but He closed that door.
• We then believed that God had called us to a different village in Kenya, but He closed that door.
• On three separate occasions little ones have gone to heaven.
• God has directed us to reschedule missions.

...all in a two year time period! At times we've felt like a robot that has run into a wall. And each time God has whispered, "Turn." Each trial has been a crisis of faith. Each trial has, once again, proven God to be faithful. And by God's grace, each trial has been a faith-building source of growth and learning.

The February mission team has returned - and we bring Good News! Sometimes in life we realize that God has been working on our behalf in small ways, sometimes in big ways, and occasionally He reminds us that He has been working in both small and big ways all along. Such was the case during our time in the western Kenyan province of Nyanza over the past two weeks.

Shortly before our departure we received word that some kind, compassionate, and generous people from the village of Sanjwero donated 23 acres of land to Touching Lives Kenya for the purpose of building a medical center for the community! To the left of what we having lovingly named, "God's hill" you can see a "table". This is the future home of Sanjwero Medical Center - A Ministry of Touching Lives. The TLK land continues half way up the hill.

The committee members who have been appointed by the Sanjwero village have already become "ambassodors" to the surrounding community, gathering support and much needed muscle power to begin clearing the brush from the land in preparation for construction to begin. The boards and officers of TLM and TLK are grateful and indebted to this group of men and women for all they are doing.

One of our final privileges before departing Nyanza Province was to witness the placement of a sign announcing this as the site for the coming medical center. Around the sign are just a few of the dedicated committee persons who are sacrificing much for the betterment of their community.

We have much to share regarding what God is doing in and around Sanjwero and more updates will be coming soon. Until then we do have prayer requests to share:

• That God will move hearts to supply the funds needed for ground breaking and the commencement of construction before our summer medical mission at the beginning of July
• That the medical center's well can be drilled prior to the arrival of our summer mission team
• That God will call, prepare, and equip the summer mission team
• That God will provide for the safey of those who are working to prepare the land for the construction to begin
• Above all else, that God will be glorified in and through this awesome work!

If you are feeling a "tug" on your heart to be a part of God is doing in this region and are would like to be a part of the summer mission team please go to the "Home" page of the TLM website to download an application. If you cannot go but feel called to support this work or send others, please visit the "Donate" page on the website. Whether going or sending we ask for and cherish your prayers on our behalf as we begin to step forward in this outrageously wonderful move of God.