First week in Kitale, Kenya 16th January 2010

Dear family, friends, and supporters of the Soul Edge Girls!

Welcome to the first of our updates for the 2010 Soul Edge program, and hello from Kitale, Kenya!

We arrived safely in Kitale a week ago and have quickly settled into our home, ‘the Factory,’ complete with beautiful garden, Dutch housemates, a few dogs, the odd cow wandering down the street and a very irritating but endearing pair of chickens.

Our first week in Kenya has been a lot of fun as we have continued to get to know each other as a team, adjust to the hot weather, slot into our soul edge schedule, begin serving different projects, and experience all things African! Our days begin with a run (which everyone seems to be enjoying, despite the early wake up call!) and are then filled with teaching sessions, worship and prayer times, reading, journaling, and then practically serving in the community. Teaching sessions this week have included walking with the Lord, prayer, the Holy Spirit, solitude and submission, healing, and touching the untouchables.

The places we are going to be serving are beginning to develop…we have spent some time this week at the Esther Home, a project for teenage mums and their babies, facing difficult circumstances. We spent some time helping them with a beading project, making bracelets and necklaces, as well as doing manual labour harvesting crops and then clearing land on their allotment site. We have helped with a kids club at ‘The Fireplace,’ the church which we attend here. In addition we have visited the Kipsongo slum, which is just outside of Kitale. Around 2,000 people live there in heartbreaking conditions and circumstances…it’s a tough place, but one where we believe Jesus would have walked. Alcohol and drug dependency are high, and many of the children are alcohol dependant as a result of being fed ‘busa,’ a highly potent alcoholic beverage, in place of food which their families cannot afford. We will be supporting a ministry at a school in slum, run by a pastor who used to be drug dealer there himself before becoming a Christian. Their vision is to break the cycle of alcohol dependency for the children by offering an alternative way to spend their day and food for them to eat. We will help in teaching lessons at the school, feeding the children over lunchtime, and then simply playing with them.

This coming week we will be continuing with sessions and engaging more with the ministries we will be working alongside, including the Esther Home ,The Fireplace, and the slum school. Please pray…

· That the Lord would continue to guide us as we serve ministries in and around Kitale
· That we would continue to be growing stronger as a team
· That we could continue to be challenged and changed by God through worship, prayer, and teaching session as we seek after His heart.
· For physical protection, that the team would stay healthy and safe.

To get our Phone numbers and address please email us directly at the soul edge girls email address:

soul.edge.girls@googlemail.com

With love,
The Soul Edge Girls 2010