Now faith is…

the assurance of things hoped for the conviction of things not seen. He 11:1

James is like many orphaned Kenyans who lost his parents and one brother to curable diseases. As the oldest child James put the weight of the family on his shoulders and has carried it faithfully for many years. He has not carried it alone. God has heard his prayers and provided one job after another to help James work his way through college. Trained as a teacher, James loves helping children learn. After working all week teaching school, he volunteers his weekend time to serve in a local orphanage.

Here are a few comments from James in a recent letter;

"Thanks alot for being a good friend to me. I appreciate so much that
you are ready to pray with me especially a time like this. Sometimes
life takes different directions not expected. The impact of this is so
great and sometimes we feel lonely. God will never leave His people
even in times of hardship. I'm glad I have a Bible in my house to
remind me that."

"I think going back to the upcountry will make my life even hard!! I
provide the entire family with everything from the money I earn. If I
leave and go, it means I will need to get another source of income
there in the upcountry. The only option to do that is to work in the
farm till the crops are ready to harvest. There is only one season
there. Farmers plant at the beginning of the year and harvest during
the last two months of the year. Life will be difficult. I have
decided not to go but look another job elsewhere."

Today James is a young man with a vision. He believes he can make a difference in the lives of orphans and is praying about running a school for orphans someday. I am honored when James introduces me as his best friend. James and I meet to talk and pray as we take faith steps to care for orphans

….together.

Zipporah

Just had to share this photo of Zipporah. Isn't she a doll? She is
one of many abandoned infants that are available for adoption. She
lives in a home for orphans, but we are blessed to provide foster care
for her on weekends. We all love this little one, but she and John
have really hit it off. She giggles and loves to be kissed on those
chubby little cheeks. Please join us in praying for a loving "forever"
family to adopt her. We'll be sharing more pictures of Zipporah and
other children who are available for adoption as God places them on
our path and in our hearts.


Love to my friends and family.. Melody

Now faith is…

the assurance of things hoped for the conviction of things not seen. He 11:1

Our family was living in a nice house surrounded by rock walls patrolled by guards 24/7. We were safe but not sound. God was leading us to a difficult place in our relationship with Rafiki leadership. Private discussions were not going well. I sensed that God may be preparing us to take new steps of faith, trusting Him for the unseen. I shared with my children that we may soon leave our secure home, and that I had no idea where we would live next. We needed to pray together. The next day my youngest son, John, approached me with a big smile on his face and with a look of certainty in his eyes. “Dad, we should go find a house tomorrow after church. Then we could move in next week.” He had prayed and now he was sure. I mustered all the self-control I could to bite my tongue as the words crashed against the back of my front teeth, “that’s impossible!”. Instead I said, “sure, let’s give it a try”. Keep in mind that I had no idea how to find property for rent in Nairobi. “For rent” signs are not posted, real estate agents do not work on Sunday and there were just too many details involved that John did not understand. Mel and the girls wisely let John and I go alone for our search. As we left church, we “just happened” to see a teacher from John’s school walking to lunch. Teacher Jay accepted a ride from us and “just happened” to mention there may be a rent house available nearby. We drove by the house and found nobody home. After taking Jay to his lunch spot, we drove back to the house and “just happened” to meet the residents who were new owners of the house. It was no longer available for rent but the owner was sure the house next door was available. As we got in our car to leave a guard “just happened” to come down the street and offered to open the gate so we could walk around the outside of the vacant house. He took our phone number and offered to have the owner call us next day. By Tuesday our family had toured the house and made a decision. On Saturday we moved into our new house in a neighborhood appropriately named “Whispers’. I missed God’s whisper, but John heard it loud and clear. Our family is taking bigger steps of faith… together.

Now faith is…

the assurance of things hoped for the conviction of things not seen. He 11:1

Jombo was raised in a godly home. Over the years he lost both parents and a brother to (curable) diseases. He prayed hard and worked hard to get a high school education and God provided vocational training after high school. Faithful, hard working, well trained Jombo found it difficult to stay employed in Kenya’s small country towns. After marrying he moved with his new wife to the big city of Nairobi hoping to find long term work. They lived on glasses of water (boiled to get the brown out) for many weeks. Finally Jombo was offered a place to “volunteer”. He worked two weeks for free. After proving that he was worthy, he was offered “minimum wage” of 250 shillings/day ($3.84). Today Jombo has earned several raises and more importantly he has learned much. He has a vision to care for orphans. Jombo and I are meeting weekly to pray. Soon we believe God will give us the courage to step out and start a new work. Soon we we will travel to Jombo’s homeland to invite church leaders to help start this new work. Many children are loosing hope BUT GOD is about to extend His hand to save a few more in Jombos homeland. Jombo and I are asking God to help us take faith steps…together.

Now faith is…

the assurance of things hoped for the conviction of things not seen. He 11:1

My friend Kennedy was hungry, very hungry. He had not eaten in many days. As he made another long journey home after looking for work and finding none, he fell on his face. Beside the road, face in the dust he thought this was his time to die. He lifted his head to beg for help. “God, he prayed, if you are there please provide food for me today, right now, in this place”. He struggled to his feet and walked to a nearby bush. Under the bush he found a dozen fresh eggs, gathered them in his shirt and exchanged them for a meal at a nearby grocery store. Today Kennedy is a college graduate running his own small business in Nairobi. Today hope is alive in Kennedy’s heart and home. He and his wife are expecting baby number two and he is praying for God to grow his small business to keep up with the needs of his growing family. God has provided a friendship with Kennedy and we are taking steps of faith… together.

Our visit to the Nest

After a dusty, bumpy drive up country we arrived at the Nest. This orphan home provides care for 80 highrisk children in a remote area. We had heard so much about this place by many in our school community. A new friend here took us for our first visit. This is what we found when we entered the compound. There was so much joy in the children's faces. The children were gathered with their caregivers for their outside play time. They greeted us with welcome songs. Loved it!!!


Melody and Claire with young ones. Because of the ratio of caregivers to children and the abuse these children have experienced these children need so much touch and affection.Many children are offered to families in our area for foster care before adoption. We hope to invite others to come and offer loving arms to these precious ones.


John is trying out the bunk bed ladder. All the girls who live here sleep in these two large bunk beds. Toddlers sleep in the cribs along the wall. Can you imagine around 40 girls sleeping in this room. WOW
Lewis and a little one. They want to be held up high the entire time...

God calls us to Go Nearer

With somewhat heavy hearts, we want to let you know of a transition for our family. This weekend we moved out of our Rafiki village. This was not an easy decision, but one agonized over with much prayer and wise counsel from those close to us. While it seems sudden, it comes after weeks of private discussions with Rafiki leadership and concerns we have had. We are very sad to leave these children and the mamas who care for them but we trust that God is in control and He is committed to work all things for good as we all submit to Him.

With your prayers and support we will move forward as Go Near Ministry – Kenya outpost. God led us to start this non-profit organization two years ago with a mission to be advocates for orphans at home and abroad. Founding board members David Watson and Terrence Zeurlein(sp) along with Flip Whitner will oversee our efforts. A strong advisory team of Lee and Karen Smith, Bill and Linda O’Donnell, Nick and Dana Adams, Jack and Carolyn Ciak, Darryl and Leslie Harpool will give leadership and manage communications from our home base. A Kenya advisory board is forming now and will be announced soon.

God calls us to come closer, and in faith, we have. Our passion has grown stronger than ever and we are exhilarated by new opportunities He is presenting here in Kenya. We will fill you in on these opportunities in the days to come as we launch, “Go Near, Kenya!”

God’s word is our guiding light as we step out, again, in faith.

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. Heb. 11:1

He is calling us to take even bigger steps of faith trusting him as we go even nearer to the needs that surround us. And let us assure you that He is more than able. We have learned to take Mt 6:33 literally as we seek His will first, trust God that all our needs will be met …and more. Join us in expecting great things from our mighty God who is committed to care for His precious orphans and widows.

As God leads you, please direct your tax-deductible donations;

GO NEAR MINISTRY
LEWIS & MELODY TAYLOR
17200 CHENAL PARKWAY STE 300
PMB 227
LITTLE ROCK AR 72223

Our email remains the same, as does our passion for orphans.