Around 1am on Monday, November 3, a fire broke out in the Hocus
Market area of the Kibera slums. The
fire consumed hundreds of businesses.
That so many buildings were affected is not surprising, as the
businesses are crammed together in close quarters and are primarily made of
wood. The St. Martha’s Ministry building
was among the affected shops. It burned
completely to the ground. It was a total loss.
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| 22 Burned Sewing Machines |
This week, I had the opportunity to join the ladies of St.
Martha’s in their weekly Bible study, the first they’ve had since the
fire. They met to talk about their
experiences with the fire and share what God has been speaking to them over the
last week. I was humbled to be in their
midst and want to share a few of their words to encourage you.
Caroline:
“I
was so down about the fire. I heard
about it in the middle of the night when Margaret came to my door. We couldn’t go to the area until the early
morning, but when I saw it, I became so down.
I lost everything to do with my business in the fire. I lost my machine (sewing) and all of my
inventory. I lost all of my items I had been making in preparation for
Christmas. I lost everything. I even lost my spiritual heart.
When
I first came to St. Martha’s, I was so down like this. I had lost my husband and I felt like I just
wanted to die. After this fire, I felt
like that and even more so because I felt like I had been fooled by God.
I
walked away from the burning and cried for two hours straight. Then I went home to my children and they were
asking me so many questions. I didn’t
have any answers for them so I took my Bible and left for some time.
I
began reading in Psalm 107 and I felt as if God were speaking to me over and
over again about how He provides in every circumstance and that nothing is
impossible for Him. So I’m choosing to
put my hope in the Lord.”
Evalyne:
“I
was at the hospital when I heard about the fire. As soon as I left, I went to the market and
saw the destruction. For some time, I couldn’t even speak.
When
I went home, my children were asking me so many questions. I told them our ministry is burned, and we
have nothing.
I
had no strength in me, but I took my Bible and I read of Job and his trials and
how he felt in suffering. He was
faithful to God through his struggles, and in the end, God lifted him up. I am choosing to be faithful.”
Jacqueline:
“All
of the week before the fire, I kept feeling fear, like something was going to
happen. This fire was it. I have felt very bad since the fire. We are ok walking around during the day, but
we cry a lot at night.
Though
we have nothing, we are alive and walking, so we are thankful. God will be God, and He is the one who is
wiping our tears.”
Eunice:
“When
I heard of the fire, it was in the middle of the night. I did not sleep the rest of the night but was
up worrying and praying. When we finally
reached Hocus Market in the morning, I couldn’t even cry. I was in shock. We began searching for anything that remained
in the ashes and found nothing. We found
the big box where we keep our supplies and we opened the lid. Fire came out of the box as soon as it was
opened. That is when everything hit me.
I broke down in tears and cried and cried and cried.
Later,
when I returned home, I picked up my Bible and God reminded me of 1 John
4:7-11. This passage talks about God’s
love. I asked myself, “What is God’s
greatest gift to me? His love.
Everything that we have lost is not as important as God’s love. We will
never lose His love.”
These are just a few of the many stories shared. And yep, I
cried through every one. These women
literally live on what they earn day to day.
When they told their children they had nothing, it was not an
exaggeration. Each of them talked of sadness, crying, despair, and pain, and
then every one of them said they
reached for their Bibles. I love this
about these precious ladies! I love
their deep faith, determination, and hope.
I LOVE that God spoke to each of them differently and yet the same. It was an awesome picture for me of God being
with us and sustaining us through suffering.
They ended their time singing this chorus over and over and
over:
He has done so much for us that we cannot tell it.
We feel the same…
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| St. Martha's property in preparation for rebuilding... |
Thank you to so many of you who chipped in to help the
St. Martha’s widows in their time of crisis.
Their physical needs have been provided for through December and there
is enough money to re-build their workshop!
If you’d still like to contribute, we’re still collecting money for the
replacement of sewing machines and inventory.
Please send any donations to Inspire 180. Inspire 180 works directly with the HIV
Widows of St. Martha’s Ministry.
Go to:
