Follow along with the travels of Deanna and Charleeda as they traverse Kenya, visiting the Miracle House students, staff and guardians. Bringing teaching and quality time with the students during their first extended school break of the year.

Well, after we have resolved some technical issues, we have been able to get the updates flowing once again. We will continue to add to the story with the date of the latest update, so keep reading. There is still about a week left in this trip and your prayers over our small team are greatly appreciated. There are also some needs that we need to care for with special gifts listed at the the end of this post.  Be blessed, for you are a blessing.

Photo Gallery April 6, 2017:

April 6, 2017, Continued:
(Please pray over these updates as Charleeda’s iPad will not do group mail so she is hoping her granddaughter can gain access to her gmail account and forward them to you.)

Yesterday we visited a school where two Miracle House (MH) boys have just begun high school and was able to introduce ourselves to a new principle. Found out he had been a pastor previously and he let us anoint him and pray for him. Today, one school allowed us to go into three classrooms of 7 MH students (grades 6,7,8) and pray with them, around 15-30 minutes in each classroom.

We also went to MH in Limuru. Charleeda taught the little ones (about 35-40 seedlings or preschoolers) the story of Joseph with the coat of many colors, then gave out punch balloons of many colors. One of the older students was her translator. Meanwhile, Deanna had a staff meeting, sharing together, answering questions, and building unity promoting more open communication of needs.

Allan is a Kenyan man (one of 3 MH directors in Kenya) who drives us everywhere and is an amazing man of God and helps us with everything. The 3 of us spent several hours today sharing, praying and strategically planning for our upcoming visits. There is a high place there (a mountain) a waterfall and river from which water is piped into homes. We are praying over the water source and the mountain.

 

 

April 7, 2017 – The Retirement Party:

Mzee Koinange has worked with and for Miracle House for 10 years now. It has come time for him to say good bye and retire from working. It is a bitter sweet ending, he will be missed and is still greatly loved by all – children and staff.

It was quite an affair, several hours and much preparation with tents and chairs rented.

Cutting cake is quite the affair also. It comes first before the meal. It’s cut and fed to each special guest. Note the candles. Charleeda got them from the church food bank before she left the US. Never know how such a small thing adds to life overseas!

The menu was fried chicken, bite size fried beef, rice, an amazing vegetable dish with potato and peas, chapati (tortilla like bread), and carrot pineapple slaw.

Photo Gallery from the Party:

 

 

April 9, 2017 – Visit to the Miracle House Base Camp Farm:

We walked and prayed over Base Camp in the rain and mud.  It is an undeveloped property but has produced abundance of maize even when fields around them have had little so we know God’s blessing is on it. We prayed in supply for the full development of a school complex.

 

 

 

Tuesday, April 11 & 12, 2017:

Today was our first day of teaching! Everyone was so excited to see us, especially Mum Deanna and several older ones helped us get organized. (Thank you to those people who gave money for the purchase of the bibles given as gifts to the students during our teaching)

We had about 45 very eager students and staff. When we arrived the night before we found that the coordinator had not ordered chairs and had no parents lined up to cook and watch the seedlings while staff were in class. But this morning, he had everything in place and all went well.

We began teaching “InTENTional Living for an InTENTional Creation.” We taught about some of the things the devil traps us in: fear, lies, and offense. After each session, we sent them outside for Tent Time–alone time to talk with God about what we taught.

Tomorrow we will teach about pride and self. Then we will go into Part Two of our teaching “Getting Ready for Battle” through confession, purity, wholeness, obedience, having confidence in God who is greater than our enemy, and walking boldly in our authority. Pray God seals the truth in their hearts and their minds come into alignment with truth.

Note from Charleeda: “It is hard to describe how I felt as we taught today. I don’t know if I’ve ever had quite the same feeling as any teaching before. I just knew that it was EXACTLY what was needed and so empowering and equipping. It was life-giving and I knew they were getting it! One guard came to me afterwards thanking me and telling me how corrupted the church is because there’s so much witchcraft in it. One student came to me and said that our teaching, and how we are describing the need for what we are teaching, is the REALITY of what they see in the schools. We are empowering even the smallest and youngest to be a powerful army in this area and giving them the vision for it. It is truly amazing.”

After classes were over, we drove to the waterfall, prayed over a small bottle of oil and threw it into the river, breaking it on the rocks in the river. We prayed life into the river and blessing in it. Though it’s gushing, what you see is low season. The big rocks are usually covered in water. The area is gorgeous and this is only one set of waterfalls; there’s two others on both sides. If you look closely at the second picture, you can see one on the far left, then the gushing one just to its right and then on the far right on the edge of the picture is the third.

This is the river that flows into the town. We then drove through is high area over the city, found a spot that was private property but we were allowed to park and prayed over the city from high above at dusk.

Allan has the gift of evangelism so got the children singing songs about Jesus. Two men there were “not right” and he prayed with one. This area was really real and way back off rocky, rutted, dirt roads but some MH children walk from there to school every day. We teach today on weapons of warfare from Eph 6 and Rev. 12. Yesterday Allan and Pastor David gave an invitation of salvation and around 10 responded.

They had many sugar cane fields up on this mountain. We love you all. We told our students yesterday that over 200 were praying for them.

Photo Gallery from April 11 & 12, 2017:

 

 

 

April 13, 2017:

Today we taught them how to cast out demons and break curses. Allan and Pastor David told stories of experiences they had had with casting out demons, emphasizing that demons are real but we don’t have to be afraid of them. We had prayers written out in their books and all prayed together to break word curses over us. We listed different kinds of generational curses to help them identify them and then prayed a prayer together breaking them. We all felt so free and light afterwards!

The last part of the teaching was about higher level warfare that’s done over cities and regions, so we made it optional for only those who wanted to come after lunch. We were expecting a handful to come back for the optional teaching but the room was FULL with probably 35 of the 45 who had attended! We didn’t teach about how to do higher level warfare but explained it to them so they wouldn’t take on more than they should.

We ended with a special commissioning. Charleeda anointed their right ears, right thumbs, and right toes (like the OT priests were anointed) to hear the word of God, to do the works of God, and to walk in the ways of God. Then Deanna used a plastic sword we brought (for the word of God) to “knight” them with “I commission you in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.” It’s been a great 4 days of teaching. Tomorrow we do our first Passover. They are expecting up to 100.

 

 

 

April 14, 2017 – Celebrating the Passover Seder:

All 105 chairs were filled, plus at least 40 small children. (Note that the tablecloth is for Hannukah!!!! When Charleeda packed it, she thought it was a Passover cloth!) Of course, no one knew it wasn’t right. Our students were on one end and guests (parents and guardians) were on the other end with the table in between. The seedlings sat off to the left side in a shaded area.

It was supposed to start at 1:00 but at 1:15, only a handful was there. We started 45 min late. The hardest thing was distributing the communion cups full of juice. One cup was used for two of the four cups in the service. (Note all the spills)

For bitter herbs we used kale they were growing in a field beside MH and dipped it in salt water.
We brought matza from the US.

The most fun were the plagues. We used tomato juice for water to blood; plastic frogs for the kids, handkerchiefs to shield our heads from the hail (in the top left-hand corner of the picture below), light sticks for the darkness and band aids for the boils! Deanna lead them 9 times in a little song, “Pharaoh, Pharaoh, Oh, Bauna, let my people go.” And every time Charleeda said, “And Pharaoh said…” everyone shouted “NO”!

In the gallery, you can see one band-aid and most frogs are in their mouths. After it was over candy, stickers, and balloons were given. Everyone got a soda drink at the end. It was a brand new experience but it was clear that they understood the connection between the Exodus story and Jesus’ Last Supper and crucifixion. The Lamb of God, Our Deliverer, JESUS, was glorified amidst the fun of storytelling.

Photo Gallery of the Webuye Passover Celebration:

 

 

 

Sunday, April 16, 2017:

Last year a 17-yr-old MH orphan boy named Isaac suddenly died after being hospitalized with vomiting and diarrhea. Other “things” occurred that lent to suspicion that witchcraft was somehow involved. He lived not far from an area where witchcraft has a stronghold. Today, we went to visit his grandmother where Isaac was buried. It was in the hills above the city where we had been earlier. We drove on gutted roads, parked, then walked to the house.

We went to the grave by the house, sprinkled it with oil and the juice and bread of a communion cup and prayed, planting a tear- shaped rock on it. (See photo)

In this culture, at the time of the burial, when the coffin is placed in the grave, they open the casket and turn the body to lie on the left side, believing this will prevent further deaths in the family. Isaac’s body would not turn but when moved (on the 6th day after his death) tears came out of his eyes! Another indication that something unusual was happening. Four people–including this grandmother who raised Isaac and a younger cousin, 10, who is now the “head” of the house–were saved after Isaac’s death before the funeral!!

We then anointed the house inside and out with oil and prayed, barring death and anything evil from entering and posted an angel near the doorway outside. We also faced the hills opposite her house where community elders and witch doctors do rituals and broke up the network of evil over the region. There are annual rituals done in December, which was the time when Isaac died. We presented the quilt Judy S.–a woman God connected Deanna to–who made several for the kids, but we gave one to Isaac’s grandmother.

Afterwards, we returned to MH for a last visit with the staff and kids. Deanna worked with several leaders arranging for a water tank to be installed on the campus since the river is low because of drought and water supply is low, which is a project that needs funding (SPECIAL REQUEST FOR THIS NEED: $500)!

Photo Gallery from April 16, 2017:

April 16, 2017 Continued:

Today we traveled back through the area where the wild animals show up along the road. This time it was even better! We ate in a restaurant overlooking this beautiful lake and valley. Kenya really is a beautiful country.

 

 

Monday, April 17, 2017:

Our first objective Monday was to go to a high place in Nairobi and pray. We went to the International Conference Center that sits in the center of the Supreme Court, the Senate, and the presidential office. It is 127 floors high and then you walk two more floors up. The Lord gave us about an hour with no other people up there. It was an amazing anointed time of prayer.

If you look between the two slabs jutting out, you will see our white car parked under a green awning below. At the very top was a helicopter landing. We anointed it with oil, asked God to station an angel there, also praying for purity within the churches from witchcraft and prayed over the government, especially for peace during elections. Allan repented for Kenya. Because the network of evil was seen by one of our Intercessors as a network of triangles, we trampled on them, breaking up the network of witchcraft over Kenya. We prayed for rain as much of Kenya has been experiencing drought. As soon as we finished our prayers, people began to come up the stairs.

Today, Monday, was the last day of their Easter holiday. We had around 40 for Passover. One was a pastor (how Charleeda loves teaching pastors because they teach others!). “I learned something today,” he said. She gave him her teaching notes and all the leftover handouts and Deanna gave him over 100 communion cups we didn’t use.

One pastor in Webuye told us our Passover teaching was the clearest presentation of the gospel he had heard. Because the group was much smaller, when we came to the plague of frogs, we threw them out among the kids so we had quite an infestation of frogs! Afterwards, on our way to greet a MH university student, we drove through beautiful plantations of tea and coffee.

Photo Gallery from April 17, 2017:

 

 

 

Tuesday, April 18, 2017:

This is our second week of teaching. We only had around 30 in this class.

The adult staff are already saying how much the are learning, that they have never heard this kind of teaching before. “I have already been changed” one said as we ended the day. They are already asking us to come back and teach again.

This is the hotel we’re staying in here. Though they have big conferences here, right now we are their only guests! On these grounds (see photo), they erect tents for special events.

We had dinner last night at a mall and saw many Indian people. That must be the reason for so many Hindu temples in Nairobi. Note below the contrast between the wealth and poverty one sees here. This is a new massive mall that is in every way equal to one of ours. The car you see in the photos below with a trunk full of potatoes was parked at a local market.

Photo Gallery from April 18:

 

 

Wednesday, April 19, 2017

Once, again, today after class, two women told us, “You must come back and teach us again. It has touched our hearts so much.” Today we separated into two groups–men/boys and women/girls–and talked about sexual purity. At first the women were quiet so we did most of the talking but at the end, they began to open up, so we decided to get together while we ate lunch. Oh, the stories! For these women, when husbands are unfaithful, there are much fewer options than for women in the U.S.

When Deanna taught a lesson on how to fight the battle with SELF, she talked about believing in God and in His promises and gave out necklaces with a small charm on it that said BELIEVE. This lady, Grace, one of the teachers, wore it on her forehead the whole day. Theses were donated and were such a blessing!

We had Tent Time again when everyone was quiet and talked with God about what we had taught. We gave them handkerchiefs to use for temporary “tents.”

Deanna and Allan continue to deal with anything from teenage issues to legal issues, financial needs, the paying of school fees (kids go to different schools and the fees have to be paid at several different banks), preparation for planting at MH base camp, and hiring for three positions that need to be filled (guard, teacher, financial manager). We appreciate your prayers for all of this as it’s very time consuming and often complicated. We do PRAISE THE LORD that yesterday, we received a promise of funds to cover the water tank project!!! God is SO GOOD!!!!

Another project we’d love to fund is one Allan is working on. He has the opportunity to give Bibles to 300 pastors who don’t have Bibles. When he gives them, he wants to do some teaching for them as well. He still needs funds for 150 Bibles at about $7 each. If you are interested in giving for some or all, let us know and we’ll give you the information on how to donate directly through the Bible Society where Allan has an account.

Photo Gallery from April 19:

 

 

 

Friday, April 21, 2017

One of the meetings Deanna and Allan attended was with the landlord of the Limuru property, negotiating rent and repairs. MH has used this property for 5 years so with all the children running around, it is now requiring repair: new concrete slab for the deteriorated ground where the children play, new window panes, and repair of inside flooring and deteriorated outside walls.

You can give directly to MH online on the miracle-house.org designating it for Limuru repairs. We rejoice over those who God has blessed who can give so generously to cover ALL MH needs. Thank you for your donations!

We are also still short on being able to pay all the school fees. Here, almost all kids are boarded during high school. They are tested at grade 8 to determine if they can be placed in better schools, so the highest-ranking students qualify for the best schools. Of course, these schools cost more but give those students the best advantage. We are thankful that some of our MH students qualify for these better schools.

Photo Gallery from April 21:

 

 

 

Saturday, April 22, 2017

After our final class, yesterday (Friday), we went to the Maasai market that is only in town on Fridays and is located in a shaded parking lot of a mall. The Maasai are the most authentic ethnic tribe of Kenya. They wear colorful cloth draped around them (some made of wool) and jump up and down in their dances.

It was exhausting and overwhelming for Charleeda. You cannot ask what an item costs. You must select what you are interested in, put it on a “carpet” (which is just a piece of newspaper) then you go back and forth until vendor and customer decides on a price. They start very high, like $65 for an item that shouldn’t cost more than $4 so it’s a long process. After Charleeda tried two transactions by herself and didn’t get the best price, she decided to just tell Allan and Deanna what she wanted and let them do the pricing

Saturday is taking care of MH business for Allan and Deanna while Charleeda gets to stay at the apartment (yeah!) and oversee laundry (so nice to have a washing machine at the MH apartment).

A PTL is that someone responded immediately to our plea for Bibles for pastors who have none. Don’t know how many will be purchased of the 150 needed, but we’re so thankful!!!

A HUGE THANKSGIVING TO GOD! After more than 5 years of legal hassles, we obtained the title deed to our Base Camp property today!!!

We also delivered 13 bags of maize, 1 bag of beans, and 3 bags of charcoal by two donkey carts to Baby Centre as a tithe of MH’s harvest for 2016. We are so thankful because we had a bumper miracle crop when others had little. This is a neighboring ministry that takes in babies and tries to get them adopted by age four.

Photo Gallery from April 22:

 

 

 

Sunday, April 23, 2017

Today was fun day and we went on safari at a game park very close to the MH apartment. We really wanted to see lions but they didn’t show themselves. No elephants at this park, but did see rhinos very close to the road.
We drove all the way around the lake but did not have time to go all the way to the west. The land was very dry and the waterfall here was down to a trickle. We saw giraffe but only from a distance. The best part was the drama at baboon cliff. Because Deanna and Allan had been before and had an incident with them, we stayed in the car and watched what other people did outside their cars. One baboon grabbed a yogurt from a woman, spilled it over his leg and licked it off. Later, a tour bus drove up. The biggest baboon walked right up to it, jumped from the ground up to an open window (probably 8-10 feet high) with nothing to hang on to or climb up, got inside the bus, and grabbed a sack of food. He was chased out with a stick. Later we sat in the car right next to a mother and baby nursing while big brother picked things out of his fur.

Photo Gallery form April 23:

 

 

 

Monday, April 24, 2017

We fly out tonight at midnight. The day is really full with much business to attend to for Deanna and Allan. Yesterday and today they are interviewing for a financial manager.  We have one communion cup left and are wondering where we are to pray (need time!). We poured oil on the KICC building but not communion but we don’t know if we have time to go there today.

However, in yesterday’s paper one of the news items was “Kenya shines in New York show courtesy of unique buildings.” One is the KICC building! There’s so much more to all this than we have time to tell. We prayed there on Monday, and Wed-Fri there was a prophetic conference here that our Pastor David (who went with us to Webuye) attended. Almost everything prophesied for Kenya was what we prayed for with promises of good for Kenya, their president, and the church!

We stand amazed at all the Lord has done. This morning the Lord gave us Psalm 90:17–“And let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands for us…” Thank you for all your prayer support; this trip has “established” more than any of us know. Please continue to pray for our travel home and even into the next week as both of us have full schedules. (Charleeda will leave for Malawi on May 16 for another 3 week trip!) We love and appreciate you all!!!

 

Tuesday, April 25, 2017 – Final travel day and HOME!

Deanna and Charleeda are on their way back to the states today and send their blessings and great thanks for your prayers over their trip and their time over the next couple of weeks as they re-enter life back at home. Charleeda travels again in 3 weeks to Malawi, so please continue to pray over her. Thank you for your continued support and prayers for Miracle House, the staff and children in Kenya as well as the staff and volunteers here in the states. You are a vital part of what we do for Kenya.