One lady's story.

I have decided that when I write about the ladies in our group, I will refer to all of them as Esther. I will pray that name on them so that they become strong and faithful.

Today's Esther came to the meeting last Wednesday. When she arrived, her hair was a wreck, her clothes were dirty and she had her young son with her. She left her 10 year old at home looking for some kind of work.

As Esther began to talk, she told the story of abuse and abandonment from childhood. When she was twelve she was beaten severely and ran away from home. She ran to the forest. There she found some people who gave her food and a place to stay. Not an unfamiliar story here. But guess what, she was really a slave. She was twelve, could not read or write and was at the mercy of these people.

She ran away and was "helped" by a man who took her further into the forest where she was going to be raped. Another man came along and helped her get to the road.

The details of her life are still being shared. When she came on Wednesday, she was brought by a friend from her neighborhood ( we are pretty sure the friend is a prostitute. ) You see the "christians" in her neighborhood and others decided she needed to be beaten because she did not take her 10 year old to school. But this girl  ( she is 26) has been on her own most of her life. Where is she to get the $25 it will cost for fees ( both of her children will need to start in nursery school which is not free) plus uniforms for both ( another $30 each.) So let's calculate, two children times say $60  . That is TWICE what she might earn in a month.  Where is her hope? How do we help her? Can you feel the love of Christ when you see know way out?

Well... as usual, the Lord works powerfully. When she returned to her home that day, a lady had left her phone number  and asked her to call. Esther was afraid I am sure because she had basically run away from a mob.  But one lady in that neighborhood stepped up and gave $25 for getting the children started and then they would "go from there."

So, at church this morning, I was feeling lethargic. I did not quite frankly feel like struggling to get what I could from our service since it is in Swahili and sometimes Kikuyu. I just did not want to try. I wanted to be anywhere else.

And then , the time came for visitors to stand and introduce themselves. And there was Esther. She introduced herself and then sat down. I looked at my friend Esther ( the co-leader of this group) and we raised our hands to heaven to thank God for sending Esther there.

And then another odd thing happened. We often have guests in the church. Usually, they just greet the church and sit down. But Baba Jane ( the eldest elder of the church) called the ladies up  and as we sang a great Kikuyu song ( don't know the words, but the songs are ALWAYS full of life )  the entire church came and shook their hands and welcomed them. THIS NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE. What a welcome our new friend Esther found at our church today. And she came to give thanks for the lady who was helping with her school fees. The joy I felt in all that happened today filled my heart.

And then, I found that our dear friend Sam was preaching today. That meant he would preach in English and Swahili and I was thrilled.

Thank you Lord for surprises - even though I should not be surprised.