Pray with Kenya, December 4, 2022

Lectionary Selection Isaiah 11:1-10

Prayers for Kenya

Pray for the Cradle of Humanity, the people of Turkana, in the land of Turkan.
Pray for the resources to improve the education rate of young women and bring about equity for young women Turkana.
Pray for the young men and women, as they work to find solutions in the land of Turkan.
Pray that the OAIC finds the resources for the University students to take provisions to their various communities as they travel back home during the Christmas break.

Mission Stewardship Moment from Kenya

“Rock-a-bye baby on the tree top when the wind blows the cradle will rock. When the bough breaks, the cradle will fall. And down will come baby cradle and all.”

I cannot believe this is a song I use to sing to my nieces, nephews and even my own children as I rocked them to sleep in my arms. I am guilty of mindlessly doing this without even giving thought or interrogating the words of the lullaby. Perhaps I sung the lullaby because the tune sounded good, or this is a song everyone sings to babies! As strange as it may seem, I could not get this lullaby out of my head during a recent Organization of African Instituted Churches (OAIC) staff meeting. We were reflecting on the Global climate Summit which just took place last month in Egypt (COP 27). This yearly gathering brings together world leaders, government officials and civil society groups. This song was stuck in my head because while this meeting was taking place, the winds were blowing the land of Turkan, causing a dust storm, because of drought in the Horn of Africa.

The bough breaks in Turkana. Anthropologists refer to this region of Kenya as the cradle of humanity. Turkana is located in Northern Kenya and boasts the largest desert and alkaline lake in the world. The bough has broken in the land where the oldest complete record of human ancestry can be traced back 27 million years. It is a rich land with fossils that are 100 million years old. The bough has broken in the most spice-rich land that produces the aromatic Frankincense and Myrrh. These spices have learned to survive in an environment with little water.

Climate Change is having a devastating impact on the cradle of humanity where the people of Turkan and their livestock are dying from starvation. According to the New Humanitarian: “The region has been hit by drought, insecurity, poor or no harvests, high malnutrition rates, water scarcity and high food prices. Children and the elderly needed relief food to survive in all three districts – Turkana East, Turkana Central and Turkana South.”

What is the forecast for the cradle of humanity? The cradle has been rocked; the bough broken but this is not the end of the narrative. There is hope for the people in the land of Turkan in the young men and women of Turkana region whose goals are to finish University so that they can go back and work to develop their community. Like the prophesy of Isiah which reminds us that the broken bough will take root and grow a new tree. As the fateful community across the world actions are “Akimorikina.” “Akimorikina” is a Turkana word meaning as human beings we work and act together. Isaiah’s prophetic forecast was that our sight and hearing will be transformed when the Spirt of God is upon us. When our sight and hearing is transformed our behavior is different and improved. The branch will bear fruit, this spiritually metabolically transformations relationships enabling us to work for justice, peace, and righteousness for all of God’s people.

Prayer and Mission Moment by Phyllis Byrd

Mission Partners in Kenya

More about Kenya

Global Ministries Mission Co-worker in Kenya:
Phyllis Byrd serves with the Organization of Africa Instituted Churches (OAIC) in Kenya. Her appointment is made possible by gifts to Disciples Mission Fund, Our Church’s Wider Mission, and your special gifts.
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