2009 Kenya Calendars are Ready!

Our 2009 original Kenya calendars and notecards are now available!

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Remember, profits contribute to the needs of single mothers, widows, their children, orphans, and the hungry and destitute of Kenya.

After each mission trip to the remote northwest outback of Lodwar, Kenya, missioners of SERV Ministries International enjoy a well-earned rest at the Maasai Mara. It is there that the Dickersons took the photographs found in the 2009 Calendar.

In buying one of the products shown on the shop page, you are contributing to the needs of single mothers, widows, their children, orphans, and the hungry and destitute of Kenya, where 500 children die each day of disease, starvation, and severe neglect.

In Christ's service,

Don and Laura Dickerson
DickersonMissions.com

Dispatches from Nairobi Kenya

Dispatches from Nairobi Kenya

Greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who has not
forsaken his mercy and love for us all, as we continue to proclaim his
surpassing works to one another and to the world He so loves.

For the joy and peace since return from furlough; for every good result we
can observe in lives here in Kenya and for your unwavering support to our
Ministry, we continue to thank God.

The Dickersons continue supporting orphans, widows, single mothers and
stressed women pastors through Turning Point Ministries (a project of SERV
Ministries International) and all the generous donations they brought back
from the States. They brought back TNIV bibles, NIrV bibles, fabric for
dresses, 350 pounds of second-hand clothing and shoes, second-hand
computers for the office, Experiencing God bible study books, a
scholarship to beauty school, as well as financial support for the
Dickersons and the women in their ministry. People committed and
re-committed to pray for the Dickersons and the women and children in
Turning Point. Lives are being transformed and these women are shining
Christ's light in the world. Praise God!

Girls like Miriam and Carolyn who had no hope of ever joining High School
after years of abandonment are now in school and working hard.

"I always yearned for a better life away from the streets of Nairobi but
nothing surrounding my life at that time indicated such a possibility.
Thanks to God, I am not only in school but with loving parents, Don and
Laura, fond brothers, Drew and Zack plus a tender sister, Carolyn. I hope
that one day I shall treat someone with love the way mum and dad (Laura
and Don) have treated me." Miriam.

"I am happy to be part of a family that loves God and for secondary
education. I now see hope ahead; not gloom and misery like I used to. I
want to work hard. I would like to demonstrate Christ's love to those who
feel hopeless and rejected and the lost.' Carolyn.

Don and Laura have arranged day-schooling for the girls (instead of being
boarded like most Kenyan children) hoping to raise their grades through
helping with class work and homework. They have been tutoring and
motivating them in the evenings - hopefully they will have improved enough
to be able to resume boarding come January. And they are doing great!

More passionate and effective

We greatly appreciate our American brothers and sisters in helping to
support a number of women pastors through our ministry. They are now able
to serve God more passionately and effectively.

Reverend Margaret
Reverend Margaret, one of the women ministers, pastors a congregation at
Nairobi's Kayole slums, called Glory to God Ministries. Rev. Margaret and
Laura were among the teachers at a 3-day women's conference in August,
when Laura felt the Lord leading her to pay the rent for Rev Margaret's
church for six months, even before knowing how much the rent is. She found
out that the church was three months in arrears. The debt was paid as well
as the next three months! This was a prayer answered to the church since
they were praying and trusting God for provision.

Turning Point and SERV Ministries are encouraged to see such trained
pastors who preach Christ in the slums where many pastors tend to avoid
due to the financial reality on the ground. It's difficult for a church in
the slum to get financial independence because the members rarely have
anything to spare.

Rev. Margaret is now teaching her congregation without stress from hall
payment arrears. One month rent is only $20. We know someone could pay an
entire year's rent.

Pastor Mercy
Mercy Muthoni, a minister working with Laura in Wednesday's fellowships,
was once in a similar predicament, three months behind in house rent.

But when she was about to be kicked out of her apartment, Laura arrived
with good news. Some American brothers and sisters had bought all the
jewelry she had given the Dickersons prior to their recent visit to the
U.S. She not only managed to pay the house rent but save enough to buy a
gas cooker, no longer having to cook with fire wood outside her house.

And despite her tribulations, Mercy is always encouraging the women who
meet at Kadija's for fellowship; forever assuring them of how much God
loves them despite loads of trouble. Experiencing God Bible study has made
this Wednesday fellowship very interesting indeed.

Wednesday Women's Fellowship and Bibles
Thanks for the women's group in Cartersville, Georgia that has adopted our
Wednesday fellowship! Every woman has a copy of Experiencing God manual
and a fabric to fit a dress! A group of pastors from seven different
churches were also given two manuals which they are using together every
Friday. They describe the experience as life transforming.

The women at Saint John United Methodist church in Florida who donated
many bibles for their Kenyan brethren did a noble thing; they have been
very helpful especially because the TNIV is gender accurate and the NIrV
is easier English, especially for young readers and others for whom
English is not their mother tongue. Laura gives the TNIV to pastors during
conferences and the NIrV to individuals who hope to improve their English.
Recently, she gave one to a friend who closes her vegetable stall on
Sundays to attend church, unlike many of her colleagues in the market
place.

Prophet Elizabeth
Still on victories for women, Elizabeth, a missionary from Uganda, has
been able to sponsor her missions to Congo and Rwanda after selling her
quilts to the Dickersons. The Dickersons then sold them in the USA, with
all the profit going to Elizabeth. She hand makes each item, buying
special batik cloth from a single mother in Uganda. She sells the items as
part of her tent making. She has left more quilts and embroidered items
with the Dickersons, which they hope to sell to Americans. She's raising
money for her next mission to Mauritius, an island off the coast of
Madagascar (which is off the coast of Kenya).

Widows and Single Mothers

Kadija
Also doing great are widow Kadija's four children who are receiving school
fees, food and shelter through Turning Point Ministries. Abraham enters
high school in January with the requirement of 80,000ksh (1143 US$) for
first term admission and school supplies. We still have no sponsor for
him, so please consider helping! The youngest two are yet to join school
while her eldest son is looking for a job.

The 350 pounds of clothing and shoes from Trinity on the Hill UMC in
Georgia went to open Kadija's second-hand clothing business. She was
ecstatic! And because these clothes were from America, she has so many
customers. Currently, the customers come to her home to purchase items, or
Kadija carries a few items along the street, hoping to attract passers-by.
With her success, she's even helping other Borana single mothers in her
area with food and clothing. The Lord Jesus has multiplied this blessing!

Laura mentioned that Kadija couldn't read or write while in the USA, so a
member of Trinity on the Hill UMC ordered a CD from Faith Comes By
Hearing, an organization that records Scripture. He was able to get
several copies in the Borana language and Turning Point passed them to
Kadija and her Borana friends. Kadija was so excited; she stayed up all
night long listening to the entire New Testament!

Pauline
Pauline, a single mother with a two-year-old child, dreamed of styling and
braiding hair. So Trinity on the Hill UMC donated a scholarship to Talent
Beauty School. In four months, she'll have a certificate and a way to feed
herself and her child.

House of Hope, an orphanage in the desert

The most dramatic change in the SERV House of Hope revolves around a young
girl called Topos that the orphanage is taking care of in Lodwar alongside
ten other children.

She is mentally disabled and was unable to walk when SERV adopted her from
the hands of an ailing grandmother. The grandmother was unable to feed
herself and Topos at the same time for life there is survival for the
fittest. There is nothing extra to take care of those considered weak in
this land of endurance. But thanks to God, today Topos is walking around
by her self and smiles back when you call her. She even motioned with her
hands that she was hungry!

And for this purpose, the House of Hope was birthed in Lodwar; to put
smiles of Christ's love on orphans and the neighboring community.

Laura was recently on a three-day mission to the House of Hope alongside
Amanda Smith (a Mission Society missionary and pediatric nurse) and Jackie
Brantley (Director of Gifts on a Mission, a project affiliated with SERV
Ministries International). They taught about healthy living and how germs
spread through hands. They also trained the staff on mentoring the
children as well as how to recognize signs of stress in themselves. Jobs
like these can have a high burn-out rate.

Don, as part of a SERV team that will include Executive Director Steve
Kasha and Board Director, Lee Johnson, will be traveling to Lodwar at the
end of October to present the House of Hope's registration papers and do
more training.

These things the Lord has brought to pass and in Him we trust and serve
together in unity. God bless you.

In Christ's service,

Don and Laura Dickerson

"Dear children, hide in this thicket,                            There may yet be some hope'                                                                     By Amos Mirera   T hrough the darkness comes this whisper from the widow to two daughters and five sons on one of the darkest nights in Nairobi since Mau Mau. The eight are homeless targets of a predominant tribe driving out minorities from Karinde.  In this January 2008, politicians are hiring youth for three dollars each to threaten, burn, and kill innocents such as the widow Kadija Gal Gal and her family. It is for these few pieces of silver and the sake of political greed that Nairobi and the rest of Kenya begin to burn and bleed.   This threat leaves the Gal Gal family without shelter and further compounds the grief of the widow whose husband Hussein was murdered just two years before. Here in the thicket she comforts her children with whispers that Christ will protect them even as all hell breaks loose. Understandably, she is unable to assure her four little ones, who weep uncontrollably as her three adolescents fight back tears of their own.   Each of the seven knows mama has only words of love and hope to give them; they can't blame her for the pain they are experiencing or lack of school fees, food, medication or safety. They know how selflessly she loves them.   Yet how much can one ask of an illiterate widow already rejected by friends, relatives, and now, on this night, even by those she thought her neighbors? How much can the shoulders of a grieving woman withstand, whose very best casual labor yields two dollars a day?   But because of the Father to the fatherless and the Defender of widows, this little faith of Kadija, like the sparse oil of the Shunammite widow, proves sufficient. They survive this night to obtain sanctuary at the Dickersons.   After five months of rest and recovery, the Gal Gal family move to a transitional accommodation where the Dickersons pay their food and rent and most school fees until Kadija can accumulate enough clothing clients to achieve independence, the hall mark of Turning Point Ministries.   Kadija continues to grow in the Lord; in her understanding of the word as well as God's ways. She gives here special thanks for the audio DVD recently donated by Bob Sweat of Trinity on the Hill United Methodist Church of Augusta, Georgia. It answers a prayer for Kadija since it has the whole bible in Borana, the only language she can clearly understand.   We also praise God for every one who donates clothes for her business. It is such a blessing! From her proceeds, she is now able to pay the bus fare to school for her children as well as new clothes and school uniforms. From her savings, a concept that is new to her, she now even has a bed!   She is still learning about tithing 10%, saving 10% and using the remaining 80% to cover her living expenses. Her son Abraham enters high school next year with the requirement of 80,000ksh (1143 US$) for first term admission and school fees. But his mother is encouraging him to work hard with the chorus of her new song of victory, "The Lord has everything and He is part of my family…, because of him, my seven children and I have not been consumed. In this eternal shade of God shall we rest all our lives.' Glory to God.

"Dear children, hide in this thicket,                            There may yet be some hope'                                                                     By Amos Mirera   T hrough the darkness comes this whisper from the widow to two daughters and five sons on one of the darkest nights in Nairobi since Mau Mau. The eight are homeless targets of a predominant tribe driving out minorities from Karinde.  In this January 2008, politicians are hiring youth for three dollars each to threaten, burn, and kill innocents such as the widow Kadija Gal Gal and her family. It is for these few pieces of silver and the sake of political greed that Nairobi and the rest of Kenya begin to burn and bleed.   This threat leaves the Gal Gal family without shelter and further compounds the grief of the widow whose husband Hussein was murdered just two years before. Here in the thicket she comforts her children with whispers that Christ will protect them even as all hell breaks loose. Understandably, she is unable to assure her four little ones, who weep uncontrollably as her three adolescents fight back tears of their own.   Each of the seven knows mama has only words of love and hope to give them; they can't blame her for the pain they are experiencing or lack of school fees, food, medication or safety. They know how selflessly she loves them.   Yet how much can one ask of an illiterate widow already rejected by friends, relatives, and now, on this night, even by those she thought her neighbors? How much can the shoulders of a grieving woman withstand, whose very best casual labor yields two dollars a day?   But because of the Father to the fatherless and the Defender of widows, this little faith of Kadija, like the sparse oil of the Shunammite widow, proves sufficient. They survive this night to obtain sanctuary at the Dickersons.   After five months of rest and recovery, the Gal Gal family move to a transitional accommodation where the Dickersons pay their food and rent and most school fees until Kadija can accumulate enough clothing clients to achieve independence, the hall mark of Turning Point Ministries.   Kadija continues to grow in the Lord; in her understanding of the word as well as God's ways. She gives here special thanks for the audio DVD recently donated by Bob Sweat of Trinity on the Hill United Methodist Church of Augusta, Georgia. It answers a prayer for Kadija since it has the whole bible in Borana, the only language she can clearly understand.   We also praise God for every one who donates clothes for her business. It is such a blessing! From her proceeds, she is now able to pay the bus fare to school for her children as well as new clothes and school uniforms. From her savings, a concept that is new to her, she now even has a bed!   She is still learning about tithing 10%, saving 10% and using the remaining 80% to cover her living expenses. Her son Abraham enters high school next year with the requirement of 80,000ksh (1143 US$) for first term admission and school fees. But his mother is encouraging him to work hard with the chorus of her new song of victory, "The Lord has everything and He is part of my family…, because of him, my seven children and I have not been consumed. In this eternal shade of God shall we rest all our lives.' Glory to God.

A Voice Of Hope Through The Shadows Of Terror                                   By Amos Mirera   T his write-up aspires to encourage as well as thank you, estimable friend and supporter of the Dickerson missions for being part of a cause that has continued to give God's people every good reason to celebrate their purpose in Christ.   When we see smiles of hope from those who previously preferred death to life, we see the plan of God and feel strengthened to move on, praising him for every victory He gives us on the way.   Consider the story of Judy Wanjiru, one of the adults receiving help through the Dickersons ministry.   After ten years of rejection and misery, God has turned her life into a testimony that epitomizes miraculous restoration.   The cruel hand of death took her parents away when she was barely 15, leaving her with siblings who considered her a liability owing to poor state of health.   After being diagnosed with a heart-related condition at the age of 11 and the loss of her parents, Judy's elder sister was her only sympathizer.   But her champion would unfortunately succumb to pneumonia, further traumatizing a girl who was already grappling with the prospect of a future without her parents.   With no one to help her, Judy decided to take a chance by leaving Nairobi; but she soon had a brush with death in a tragic road accident.   She consequently remained in a hospital bed for six months where as she recollects, no one came to visit.   "I felt completely forsaken and had even begun to wonder whether God really existed. But there was a still voice of hope in every shadow of fear I encountered…declaring that my Redeemer lives and that He knew me just as much as He knew what I was going through and that He had a good plan for my life." Recalls Wanjiru.     The voice, though like a drop of water in a scorching desert, kept Judy away from the thought of suicide.   After discharge from hospital in 2002, she crawled around looking for Orphanages with such names as Home of Care, House of Mercy, Haven of Love, hoping to get help since she was almost an invalid.   But from one so-called Christian home to another, Judy suffered rejection and abuse, until she had to seek help from a chief, who though not a practicing Christian, proved more humane than most of her Christian brethren.   The chief sheltered her in a vehicle wreckage in his compound until a Good Samaritan linked her with the Dickersons in mid 2007.    Looking tied and tattered, Judy took the first step into the place that would be instrumental in turning her life around.   In this place, the Lord had some nutritious food for her, a place of rest, medicine, a word of encouragement and above all, a peaceful atmosphere.   As restoration began, Judy began shedding layers of impediments, revealing a beautiful woman who has been preserved through grace to proclaim the name of the Lord at such a time as this.   A few days after the Dickersons return from furlough last month, Judy had a midnight experience that broke the last strap of impediment.   "This night, I felt an overwhelming presence of God and a voice telling me to trust him for healing. Soon I felt like something heavy was being lifted from my shoulders, an experience that was so refreshing. Since then, my life has not been the same again. I am completely healed."   Since the miraculous healing, Judy has been doing jobs that she could previously not do and has not taken any medicine, unlike before, when she had to use them on daily basis.   The change is also evident in the way she has been grooming herself in the wake of the new dawn.   Before, she loved her old tattered clothes with the same passion she hated herself; all because of the society that first hated her. It had deceived her into believing that a life without pain was meant for others but not her.   That she was born on a bad day to live a bad life. But the lord has given her a cause to smile and encourage others with her testimony…   "The waves of death were all around me. A destroying flood swept over me…I cried to my God….He reached down from heaven. He took hold of me and lifted me out of deep waters."2nd Samuel 22.   She is now seeking God's direction about the next step as she continues to stay with the missionaries. May the name of the Lord be glorified; He began this good work and will carry it on until it is complete.   God bless you.