He stood on the sidewalk.
Cars raced just inches from his bare feet.
Rush hour in Mumbai.
From this little triangle of concrete in India, this five-year-old boy had one job: He aimed for that crucial 15 to 20 seconds where a car would stop at an intersection. Hopefully, they would be impressed enough to give him money.
He had a little coin jar.
Bare chested. Bare feet.
Just a pair of shorts.
And dirt all over his body.
He had a little beanie on his head. There was a string attached to a ball that he would swing out with these incredibly acrobatic swings, dips, and jumps.
He would stand on his head.
He would walk on his hands.
He would all kind of things to impress people.
He impressed me.
But what absolutely threw me down and broke my heart that day was knowing how many hours — day after day — week after week – that little boy had to stand on that corner.
And knowing that he would never enter the doors of a church.
In that period of just a few minutes God broke my heart around a new reality: in order for Awana to reach the children who God had called us to reach we were going to have to reach them outside the doors of the church. I just silently asked God to show us show us how we could reach those kids.
You have to be careful what you pray for because immediately new opportunities came to us.
Immediately on the heels of that experience in Mumbai, we were being asked how we could work in Kibera — a slum outside Nairobi, Kenya with a total population of over a million, many of whom are children under the age of 18.
We’re working with local leaders to build Hope Centers in places where we previously would have never thought about working. We’re seeing Awana being taken into leper colonies, brothels, and communities that previously have had no gospel witness.
We’re enjoying being surprised by God.
We’re seeing things we’ve never seen before.
God is writing a story we would’ve never thought to write.
But one we’re very glad to read.
We want to share some of that story with you. Below is a picture of where God has been working recently. We’re so excited to have you along for the ride!
If you’d like to be a part of where God is working, join our 60in60 Campaign. Thanks again for your partnership and support!
We’re so grateful for you!
