Missions to Urban poor

Seminar Date: 1st January 2015

Location: JKUAT College

Facilitator: Francis Odhiambo

Contents

About poverty in Kenya

About the urban poor

Steps to consider

Our Story

Summary

Discussion plus Q & A

About poverty in Kenya

About 1% of Kenyans are considered rich or upper class

(total household income of shs500,000 and above)

About 6% of Kenyans considered middle class (shs40,000

to 500,000)

About 93% of Kenyans considered lower class and poor

◦ 43% make up working poor (sh10,000 – 40,000)

◦ 40% make up under employed, working only 2-3 days a week

◦ 10% make up destitute poor who are jobless and starving

Data according to survey conducted in 2014 by a leading

research company

About the Urban Poor

Between a third to a half of urban population in Kenya

live in poverty.

Nairobi alone has approx 2 million slum dwellers

Most of the poor live in rural areas but this is expected

to change in next 10 years with the current trend of

urbanization of poverty or the poor moving to urban

The rural poor believe they can make it in the urban

setting. An urban move is also viewed positively by the

rural even though few succeed

About the Urban Poor

The informal settlements are densely populated

Many unemployed or underemployed especially youth

and women

Lots of illegal activities just to survive or support family

including commercial sex work/stealing/corruption

Most are casual labourers, messengers, watchmen,

clerks, commercial sex workers etc

Neighbourhoods greatly distressed with many

vulnerabilities of health, pregnancies, alcohol & drugs

About the Urban Poor Housing made of temporary materials e.g. mad, iron sheets or

timber

Owners of structures have quasi legal rights or no rights at all.

Most households occupy a single room

Water , sanitation, drainages, sewer systems non existent

Challenges accessing good medical care

Majority drop out of school in mid secondary hence low skills

level (others talented but poverty has made them struggle

even to have dreams)

Electricity not readily available but there are many illegal

connections

About the Urban Poor Summary points

Life in the slums is a struggle

Poverty percentages in the country are very high and growing,

with most choosing the urban setting as a new place to settle

Despite their situation, their need for the gospel is real

God commanded us to remember the poor in Galatians 2:10

Leviticus 23:22 also reminds us to remember the poor

Deuteronomy 15:11 I command you to be open handed

towards the poor, there will always be poor in the land

Proverbs 19:17 If you are kind to the poor you are lending to

the lord

Steps to consider

Research on the community

◦ All slums are different; Have intention to learn;

◦ What are the stories of the community

Story 1: Pregnant girl who could not take up education bursary

Story 2: Commercial sex worker whose survival fear overrides

disease and dignity fears

Slums upgrade beneficiaries who revert back to slums

◦ Record what the stories represent; new insights and

actions e.g. Poverty; vulnerability; lack of education;

churches; medical care; no employment; housing and

sanitation

Steps to consider

Re read the scriptures

◦Take questions from the context to the

scriptures

Retelling their story

◦The individuals should have a new story of

transformation

◦Their stories shared are more powerful

than your inspirational stories

Steps to consider

Incarnation

◦ This is a deliberate choice to identify with poor. Desire

to enter for Christ’s sake into struggles of community

and be one of them

◦ Jesus took the form of servant and was revealed in

human flesh (Philippians 2:5-8)

◦ Christ’s incarnation is a model for Christian mission

◦ Jesus identified with the poor and oppressed

◦ To what level are you willing/able to incarnate into the

urban poor community to share the gospel?

Steps to consider Incarnation

◦ Requires presence in a community; You are incarnational when

you communicate gospel from within the realities of a given

context

◦ If doing church plants

Base Church building in the community rather than invite / shuttle

people outside of community

◦ If doing a short term project

Link to a local church/group for continuity

◦ Some churches recommend an urban plunge ( a week in the

slums living as they live wholly) for their interns.

◦ Consider a pastor from within community than imported

Steps to consider

Incarnation has some dangers though

◦ Careful not to be viewed as a messianic

figure

◦ Tremendous suffering can overwhelm you

and bring despair to you

◦ You can also experience a crisis of faith.

Story told of missionary who could not believe

such poverty existed when they visited and their

faith faltered

Steps to consider

Incarnation importance

◦To be able to communicate

Who God is

Where God is today

What does God require of us here and

now in our circumstance

Steps to consider Social Analysis

◦ What has the church or you learnt from the community

through their stories and your incarnation

◦ Historical issues (how did kibera come about?) this helps as

you develop you ministry actions

◦ Identify the societal divisions you recognised. They will

impact your ministry so do not ignoring them (race

/religion /ethnicity/gender)

◦ What are the structures and values identified e.g. Education,

politics, business, church, cultural. What are the major ones

influencing the situation or your ministry work. This can be

dynamic from season to season

Steps to consider Take context back to scripture and listen ...

◦ Spend time with God on best way to do ministry in view of

what you have learnt

◦ Trust Him to use and guide you on how He would like to

use you in the context...It is His work you are just joining

Him (read Experiencing God)

◦ Assess your spiritual gifts, they could be clear indicators

how you can be involved

◦ Be careful not to use all your energy to jump in yet God

has been waiting for you to ask how best should you go

about it

Steps to consider

Going it alone?

◦ Careful that you do not take a competition approach

with other workers of God

◦ For short term projects work with a local church or

mission group who can provide continuity

◦ Collaborate with other like minded organisations/

churches or individuals for certain ministry work

◦ Be the local outfit for the local and international

organisations that do not have enough grass root

knowledge or interest to implement

Our Story

We have three health clinic based in Riruta, Woodley

and Olympic in Kibera

Over the years we observed a trend that clearly

showed a cycle of poverty among the families that

visited our clinics

The challenges faced by parents 10 years ago are the

same for their children as they become parents

The cycle is expected to repeat itself through the next

generation; unless we do something

Our Story

We decided to focus on the areas of medical care;

employment opportunities generation; spiritual

nourishment

Above areas would holistically improve the well being

of our target group

Income would free them from dependency; church

would give them hope through Christ; and medical

care would provide a sound health for any economic

activity

Our Story We have set up a HUB for the youth called YES HUB. Here they

come to fellowship with other, build their life skills and get jobs

and jobs trainings:

◦ Step 1: Incubation: A 10 week/session relationship building and getting

to know them

◦ Joint fellowship & discipleship conducted

◦ Work based life skills trainings conducted

◦ Step 2 Assignment: Youth are attached to jobs based on their

competencies and vacancies

◦ Some jobs are through companies we have set up e.g. Commercial

cleaning through YES Sparkles; Day care stewards ; nurse aids for the

palliative care business among others

Our Story Step 3 Mentorship:

The youth are assigned mentors

◦ Help challenge them to new thinking

◦ Hold them accountable and reinforce the learning

◦ To walk with them into a new thinking of it is possible

Step 4 Graduation:

The youth are encouraged to

◦ Start own businesses with our support and connections

◦ Develop career paths through new jobs

◦ To provide pool of new discipleship resources

Summary Research the community

Incarnation or some form of... & walk alongside; build relationships

Provide a hand up and not a hand out. Empowered and self

sustainable (not easy). Are solutions theirs or yours?

Beware of despair & be cautions with your expectations .

◦ Example of 2 churches planted in Kibera and Rongai by the same mother

church. Two years later Rongai has 800peple while kibera has 50people.

Careful not to compare, the journeys are different

◦ What you view as success may come long after you are gone

You may need God to work on you first before you work on the

mission to the poor.

Be careful to direct them to Christ, you are not the saviour, He is and

the transformation is His.

Thank You!