A Flexibly Expansive Vision

The first few days here in Kenya have been so much more amazing than I expected. There is so much potential and opportunity here in the community of Kibera, and so little time. I really wish I had planned 2 months here.. there’s so much to do!

Adjusting back to Kenyan culture – bucket showers, never-ending chai tea, eating with my hands, Kenyan time (always late), spending hours just sitting and chatting, finding my way through the maze of sewage-filled paths in Kibera, hand-washing clothes, cramming into a matatu (public transportation van) and swerving through crowded streets (full of people), walking and holding hands with another man – has all been quick and easy.

It’s been so inspiring to meet youth that were in their teens when I visited them 4 years ago, and seeing them in their 20’s now all grown up and doing amazing things with their lives.

Since being here, I’ve had to be super flexible. Not in that things are going wrong. But more in that things are so much bigger than I had dreamed. I’ve had to be flexible in my vision, allowing it to expand with the opportunities present. I think that’s the core of creativity. You set a vision, but that vision has to be flexibly expansive. Though the dream must never be compromised, it’s boundaries have to stretch and grow.

It’s a very encouraging and welcoming reminder that this is God’s mission, not mine. He’s already been working in this community long before I first arrived, He’s been here while I was away, and He’ll continue to be here long after I am gone. I just get to be here to see it unfold.