Mission at Kanyawanga Boys' Secondary School

On Saturday, July 14th, 2007 the CML team visited the last school scheduled in the July Rongo Mission week. The CML team went to Kanyawanga Boys' High School for an afternoon of sweet fellowship. It was a beautiful afternoon and we knew soon after seeing the smiling faces of the young boys that God would move in a beautiful way.

After the School's Christian Union Patron Mr. Francis Ojwang officially graced the meeting, Brother William Ochieng facilitated a brief introduction of the team members which included a group from the Missions and Outreach department of NPC Buruburu.

Pastor Maurice Omondi and his lovely wife, Ann Omondi (pictured here) ministered to the team and the boys with fabulous praise and worship. It is always uplifting to hear them sing praises to our God. Pastor Omondi was also the Master of Ceremony for the afternoon and we thank him for the wonderful job.

The boys at Kanyawanga were so handsome and very engergetic. They were so excited to worship and share in fellowship with the team. It is assuring to watch young boys so eager to hear from the Lord.

Sister Amani Muhonja shared a passionate teaching on Life Purpose. Amani stressed to the boys the importance of discovering who they are and why they were created. She read scripture from Psalm 139:13, 14, "For you created my inmost being; you knit me in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well." (NIV) Wow!! Some of the students were probably hearing this for the first time and others were being reassured. How wonderful it is to know we were "fearfully and wonderfully made"! Sister Amani also shared from Isaiah 46: 10 and Jeremiah 1:5. In Jeremiah 1:5, the word of God tells us; "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations." (NIV). Sister Amani explained to the boys that each of them were created with a purpose and a reason. God has big plans for each of them.

Brother Daniel Khisa (pictured here) ministered to the boys on Self-Esteem. Daniel read scripture from Genesis 1:26,27, "Then God said, 'Let us make human beings in our image, to be like ourselves. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground.' So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them." Daniel shared with the students that God created humans in the image of God. He explained how humans are designed with physical, emotional, social, and spiritual aspects. With passion, Daniel taught what self-esteem is, what self-esteem is not, and how we should all view themselves correctly. The boys eagerly listened as the Spirit of God spoke intimately to each of their hearts.

Sister Tishona Smith (pictured here) shared a brief testimony about how she discovered the purpose that God had planned for her life. She expressed to the boys how important it is to know that God has a plan and a purpose for each of them. The purpose will not be discovered or identified until they accept Christ as their personal Savior.

After the students heard a few teachings, Pastor Omondi lead them in prayer to receive Christ. An invitation was given for the boys to step forward and come to the front for prayer. Slowly boys came forward one by one. Soon the total number of students had grown from a few to over a hundred. Pastor Omondi asked the students to kneel as they prayed to be born again.

The afternoon came to a conclusion with a brief Open Forum and a lengthier one-on-one Counseling Session. The students were all eager to speak to the team members. Many of the boys wanted to share about several of the issues and challenges that they are faced with on a daily basis. Some of these difficult issues included sex, HIV/AIDS, self-esteem, peer pressure, and their studies. Because of time constraints, Brother William Ochieng had a brief session aside with a large group of students with challenges relating to how to improve their academic performance.

The one-on-one Counseling is always a blessing for the team members and for the students. The team knows and trusts that the Lord has big plans for the students at Kanyawanga. CML is looking forward to joining the Kanyawanga students again in prayer and in ministr on the 16th September 2007 as scheduled. It is always powerful to watch the Holy Spirit work in a mighty way breaking strongholds and leading the students to the Lord Jesus Christ.

Mission at Owiro Akoko Girls' High School on 12th July 2007

On July 12, 2007 the CML mission team visited Owiro Akoko Girls' High School in Awendo for the first time. We were greeted and welcomed as though we had been friends for a lifetime.

The girls at Owiro Akoko were beautiful! Their smiles revealed energetic and expectant faces. After a sharing a meal with the teaching staff, the team came into the Dining Hall joining the young students as they made sweet melodies unto the Lord with their voices. The teaching staff including the Principal Mrs. Nelly Odongo were in attendance. Daniel Khisa (pictured above) led us in a lovely time of praise and worship. The girls loved the song, "give me a J...give me an E...give me a S...give me an U...give me a S"- JESUS.

Sister Amani Muhonja was the Master of Ceremony for the day. She always does a fabulous job and she is very much appreciated.

Following the time of Praise and Worship, Brother William Ochieng introduced the mission team which was a partnership between CML and Missions and Outreach department of NPC Buruburu. Sister Amani then introduced Pastor Margaret Mwenga the minister of God's Word for the first session.

Pastor Margaret delivered a teaching on Self-esteem. She began her teaching by sharing from the Word of God in Genesis 1:26,27, "...vs 27, "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them." (NIV). The girls were educated on what self- esteem is, what self-esteem is not, and the aspects of a human being including the physical, emotional, social, and spiritual make-up. The issue of self-esteem is a challenge with young people. We thank God for the timely message that was spoken through His willing vessel.

Sister Denise Davenport ministered to the young girls on sexual purity and HIV/AIDS. These are all serious and relevant topics to the girls. Sister Denise was able to relate these issues to the message from Pastor Margaret. She passed along the key point: KAP. K- Knowledge, the young girls must first KNOW who they are. A- Attitude, the students must know what they believe in and have a positive ATTITUDE about how much they are worth to the Lord. P- Practice, after the girls are aware of who they are and how much they are worth, it is important for them to PRACTICE what they believe.

The young girls enjoyed hearing from Sister Denise and eagerly copied notes for future reference.

Pastor Margaret closed the session by leading the girls in prayer. Several of the students made decisions to receive Christ as their Lord and Savior and others recommitted their lives to the Lord. We thank God for what He did in the lives of those girls.

Before proceeding to the Open Forum, we had a moving session by the principal Mrs. Odongo who took time to emphasize certain key issues from the main sessions. We were all blessed by her simple and practical way of addressing the challanges. An Open Forum is a time for the students to ask the team any question that they might have concerning the issues and challenges that they face and the team then responds from a biblical perspective. Because time was running short we had a limited Open Forum and asked the students to have a time of one-on-one counseling. This time of counseling is always a blessing to both the students and the team members. We are able to listen, share, and pray for the students individually.

Once again the team was blessed to be able to fellowship and experience the grace of God with the students and the teaching staff Owiro Akoko . We look forward to future ministry at Owiro Akoko Girls' High School.

Mission at Dede Girls' High School on 11th July

On Wednesday, July 11, 2007, God provided an open door for the members of CML to minister to the girls at Dede High School. On behalf of the Christian Union, Mrs. Karen Muma who heads the school's Counseling department welcomed all of the members with open arms.

In this mission, the CML partnered with a team from the Missions and Oureach department of NPC Buruburu. As the day's Master of ceremony, Sister Amani Muhonja began by introducing the Mission team.

The girls were so excited to share their presentations with their peers and with the CML team. The presentations at Dede were mostly poems and narratives. The team was blessed by one student in particular who shared a creative and expressive narrative concerning relationships and HIV/AIDS.

A powerful teaching of the afternoon was delivered by Sister Margaret Mwenga. Pastor Margaret shared with the girls about Self-esteem. The message covered what self-esteem is, what self-esteem is not and the make-up of human beings including physical, emotional, social, and spiritual aspects. The Word of God was shared from Genesis 1:26,27, " Then God said, 'Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.' So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them."(NIV)

After the message, Pastor Margaret led the young girls in a prayer to receive Christ. Many girls at Dede made the decision to follow Christ that day.

The CML team enjoys ushering in the Presence of the Lord with a few praise and worship melodies. All are blessed as the students also lift their voices to praise our Heavenly Father.

A message was shared by Sister Denise Davenport educating the young girls on sexual purity and protecting themselves from HIV/AIDS. She read Scripture from Song of Songs 3:5, "...Do not arouse or awaken love until it so desires." (NIV). Sister Denise shared that it is important for young girls not to "arouse" their sexual desires until inside the godly marriage covenant.

It soon began to rain and the meeting in the open air under the beatiful trees came to and end. The mission team were ushered into the the staff room as the students dispersed for supper. The team enjoyed a fabulous dinner provided by the school. After dinner, the students were invited to join the team for a one-on-one counseling session. Many of the girls accepted the invitation and came seeking guidance and advice on a variety of issues and challenges including HIV/AIDS, relationships, peer pressure, self-esteem, among others. The Spirit was ministering in a great way. Both the team and the students were blessed. We trust that God will continue to manifest His Presence at Dede Girls' High School.

Mission at Kanga Boys' High School 8th July 2007

On July 8, 2007 the Christian Mission to Learners team in partnership with the Missions and Outreach department from Nairobi Pentecostal Church BuruBuru began their exciting week of missions in Rongo at Kanga High School.

The mission to Kanga began with a networking between William Ochieng and Mr. Samuel Kaunda the principal of the school. William had attended Kanga High School during 1988-1989 and Mr. Kaunda was his teacher. He never imagined that God would have led him and the CML team back there 19 years later for a powerful day of ministry.

The day began with introductions by Mrs. Obwanda, the Christian Union (CU)patron and William Ochieng (pictured above). Peter Paiyinetto one of the Kanga students', CU officials did a fabulous job as the master of ceremonies (MC) for the day.

It was a beautiful day and one could see the fingerprints of God among His creations, including the huge canopy of trees under which we enjoyed precious fellowship.

During the day, there was an oppourtunity for the boys to minister to the team as well as their fellow students. The presentations from the students included songs by both individuals and groups. As you can see from the photo, the boys themselves enjoyed and got ministered to even as they presented.



















Sister Denise Davenport shared with the students on the importance of sexual purity. Sister Denise read scripture from 1 Thessalonians 4:3-4, "It is God's will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable..."(NIV). Her teaching was immediately followed by by a session on HIV/AIDS education conducted by a team from the Rongo VCT Centre. They shared an important concept: K.A.P. K- Knowledge, A- Attitude, and P- Practice. The young men at the school listened intently and prepared for questions to ask during the Open Forum session.

Sister Elizabeth Kinyanjui (pictured here) ministered on Peer Pressure. Her teaching based on Proverbs 3:1-11 was a blessing to both the adults and the youthful students.

Following that was a message from Sister Amani Muhonja. Amani delivered a message from the Lord concerning Purpose and Self-esteem tying it into the previous message concerning peer pressure. She read scriptures from Romans 12:1,2, Colossians 1:16-17, Psalm 139 and Acts 13:36.










After the Lord had spoken through His faithful servants, Sister Margaret Mwenga lead the students in prayer. Two young men made decisions to accept Christ as their personal Savior and several others sought forgiveness for either having influenced their peers negatively or having been influenced negatively by their peers in the past. The Spirit of the Lord was moving at Kanga. We thank Him for the time of fellowship that was shared at Kanga High School and look forward to further ministry in the future.

Tishona visits schools in Kitere

Tishona Smith from the U.S.A. came to Kenya on June 9th, 2007 to minister with Christian Mission to Learners. Sister Tishona is a special education teacher in her home state of Kentucky. She teaches Middle School, classes 6,7, and 8.

Shortly after her arrival to Kenya, she left with Brother William Ochieng to visit his home in Kitere, located in the Rongo Division in the Nyanza Province. While there, Sister Tishona volunteered her time to visit a few of the local schools.

During the week of June 25th-29th, Tishona visited Kitere Primary School. While there, she assisted in the Nursery class and Class 1. She aided the teachers in marking and helping the students with their assignments. Tishona was also able to share with Class 8 about where she was from and a little about the culture from which she comes. The students were so eager to learn about America. They asked several questions and enjoyed the time Tishona was able to share with them. She was also able to make a list of ideas for the teachers to help them with students who have special needs and learning concerns.

After visiting Kitere Primary, Tishona traveled to Koyier Primary School in Sakwa. Tishona was able to stay with William's sister, Susan Adhiambo, who is a teacher at Koyier Primary School. During the week of July 2nd- 6th, Tishona accompanied Susan to her classes. She was able to help with marking for classes 1,2,3, and 6. Both Tishona and the students had a great time during her brief visit.

Tishona was in Kitere a little over a month and also briefly visited the newly started Oasis Nursery School at the Kitere Glory Assembly Church premises. She was able to give some time to help the teachers with marking and with the students. The CML team was also able to buy the students pencils, exercise books, erasers, and teachers' materials that will aid in planning lessons.

On Sunday, June 24, Tishona and William visited the Moi Institute of Technology(MIT). They were invited to the Christian Union meeting. Tishona was asked to share a teaching. It was a joyous time of fellowship during which Tishona shared a brief message on being the fragrance of Christ. She read scripture from 2 Corinthians 2:14-16, "...Now he uses us to spread the knowledge of Christ everywhere, like a sweet perfume. Our lives are a Christ-like fragrance rising up to God. But this fragrance is perceived differently by those who are being saved and by those who are perishing. To those who are perishing, we are a dreadful smell of death and doom. But to those who are being saved, we are a life-giving perfume. And who is adequate for such as task as this?" Both William and Tishona enjoyed their time of fellowship with the brothers and sisters in Christ at Moi Institute of Technology.

Christian Mission to Learners appreciates all the schools welcoming them so warmly in ministry and look forward to volunteering and serving with them again in the future.