Tree Planting

Dedicating the 12 acres of land on December 8th

with a tree planting ceremony.

Solomon - one happy man
to be another step closer to a children's home!


Pastor Mark Kraybill digging ...



Eunice and Bob Gehman checking depth ...



Becky Jones and Pastor Mark planting ...



Solomon watering ...

Now pray with us ... for God to make the trees grow -
and that together with his help and blessings,
we can make a Children's Home 'grow.'

Sikukuu njema ya Krismasi

("Merry Christmas" in Swahili)

Christmas in Kenya is a time for social gatherings and food. Visitors will stop at the homes of friends and family, and food is served to everyone. Christmas dinner is likely to be fish or nyama choma. Goat or beef is used for nyama choma, although goat is considered a greater delicacy. Vegetables, fruit, and chapattis are often served with chutney.

Serve a meal with some or all Kenyan food and pray for the hurting children in Kenya.

Yogurt Chutney

Ingredients

• 1½ cups yogurt
• 2 Tablespoons mint, finely chopped
• 1 Tablespoon coriander
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon sugar
• Hot pepper flakes, to taste

Procedure

1. Mix all of the ingredients together in a mixing bowl.
2. Chill.
3. Serve as a condiment for meats and vegetables.

Nyama Choma

Ingredients

• 3 pounds beef short ribs or spare ribs
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Procedure

1. Season the ribs with salt and pepper.
2. Grill on a gas or charcoal grill over medium-high heat for 1 hour. Alternatively, roast in the oven at 300°F for 1½ to 2 hours. The meat should be dry and chewy.

Serves 4 to 6.

Na azaliwe ndani yako
("May the Lord be born within you this Christmas")

Dedicating the Land

Hope and urgency fills the Living Love Ministries Board as they talk about the plans to build a home for hurting children. One key part of everyone’s conversation is thankfulness to God for the newly purchased twelve acres of land and a desire to give honor where honor is due. Looking to the Bible for direction, we see that many of the people of faith mentioned in Hebrews 11 honored God by building altars to Him after receiving land. Here’s an example from Abraham’s life ...

The LORD appeared to Abram and said, "To your children, I will give this land." So he built an altar there to the LORD. From there he went on toward the hills east of Bethel ... There he built an altar to the LORD and called on the name of the LORD. Genesis 12: 7-8

In our time, building an altar sounds strange, but scholars of the Bible tell us that building an altar was an outward expression of honor and of dedicating the land to God. By dedicating land to God, we are acknowledging who God is and honoring him with gratitude. So, on December 8th, Pastor Mark Kraybill, Bob Gehman and Becky Jones from the US Board traveled to Kenya to join the Kenyan Board at a dedication for the new land. Along with a time of prayer, trees were planted as a symbol of peace and hope for the future.

Will you help LLM provide hope for Kenya’s hurting children? Lord willing, the building will begin in early 2009. God has blessed LLM with a matching grant of $50,000, so all donations from now to December 31, 2008 will be doubled. (up to 50,000)

May peace and joy fill this Christmas season for you!
Janet Oberholtzer - for the Living Love Board