Deuteronomy 6:6-7 goes on to say, “These commandments I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.”
What if we did what these verses instructed us to do? What if every day we loved the Lord Jesus with everything we are and talked about Him everywhere we went? We would really make an impact on our world, wouldn’t we?
This is what we aspire to do at Children of Hope. Our aunties and uncles model this kind of love and dependence on Jesus. Of course, it’s not done perfectly, that is what grace is all about, but it is done with pure hearts full of love for our children.
One of the most important things we can do for our kids is to support, guide, and direct them into this kind of dedication and commitment to Jesus. Daily devotion time is an important tool to accomplish this.
Believe it or not, our kids are the ones who lead and share during devotion time. Even the little ones can lead the singing and dancing and each day a different child – some older, some younger – shares what God has laid on their heart about a passage of Scripture. One of our aunties usually follows this sharing time with extra clarification about the passage and asks a few thought-provoking questions.
What the kids learn during devotion time follows them throughout the day. Haven’t you found that once you learn something new, you start to see that very thing taking shape all around you? So, if the lesson was on forgiveness, you can be pretty sure there will be many opportunities to practice forgiveness. Same with generosity, kindness, or sacrifice.
Worship is usually lead by a child, filled with songs about God, and there is also dancing – always dancing. It is a joyful time of celebrating who God is and acknowledging His goodness. It is certainly an inspirational way to start each day.
Click the link below for a peek into worship time in our Kikuyu home.
We are very grateful for the tender hearts of our children and their desire to not only learn about Jesus but share what they have learned with their siblings. We pray that these devotions will create in our children a curiosity about Jesus and the Bible – that they will choose to follow Him at a young age and rely on Him their whole lives.
Joseph Muhanda is married to Cynthia, and they are blessed to have five children – Elvis is their oldest at 25 who graduated from college last year with a medical internship. Their other children range in age from 23 to 16.
Uncle Joseph has been working as a cook, making delicious meals for our Kitalale home since 2011. He feels blessed to have been selected as part of our CoH team and thanks God for this job which is very close to his home.
“Uncle Joseph is an integral part of our team and is a natural leader. He has been amazing with the children, especially our jr. high and high school kids. Joseph is a wonderful father figure and role model to our children and is also a great team player. God bless you as you continue to serve our wonderful children.” ~ Uncle Abraham Kiboki
In Joseph’s Words:
My days are pretty long, starting at 3am preparing for breakfast and ending around 8pm when I have finished cleaning up and prepping for the next day. In between my duties as cook, I get the opportunity to mentor our children either by guiding and counseling them or by teaching them some culinary skills. It’s such a privilege to be able to do this.
There are two children that come to mind who have made a great impact on me. First, I am very close to Philip. He comes home to stay with my family and me over Christmas break and has truly become a part of my family. I guide him, counsel him, and enjoy watching him grow to be a kind, funny young man. Another child that has been a blessing to me is Grace. Watching her grow from a bright little girl in kindergarten to a thriving young woman in college, studying to be a nurse, is such a blessing. She is a good role model for the rest of the children.
When I am not busy working I relax by taking walks, watching TV, and spending time with my family.
What we are all about at CoH is providing hope to otherwise hopeless children by caring for their every need, loving and nurturing each child, and giving them high-quality education all the way through college.
I am so grateful for CoH. The wage I receive here has enabled me to educate all of my own children and provide for the other needs of my family. I have also been able to construct a beautiful home. I believe this is the best organization in Kenya.
~Thank you, Uncle Joseph, for your big smile, your happy heart, and your dedication to our children. They are being changed for the better because of your love and influence in their lives.
