Street Boys

Part of our ministry in Africa was loving on the street boys of Ambo. These are boys ranging in age from about 9 to 20 years old. They live on the streets, shine shoes to make money for food, wear the same clothes most every day, and have no family, no education, no home. We had the privilege of spending time with them and trying (albeit imperfectly) to show Christ's love in a physical way. In their town they are considered 'untouchables'. They are generally not looked at, acknowledged, spoken to or touched. Literally. Not even touched. We brought them into the compound and loved them, talked to them, and touched them. I think I can speak for my whole team and say that out of the different kids we ministered to while we were there, the street boys were our favorite.

These boys were just on our hearts, the whole time we were there. I don't know how else to explain it. The last day we spent with them was one of the best. Through generous donations of friends and family back home, our team was able to give each boy 2 shirts, a pair of pants, underwear, socks and shoes. This was a huge, huge deal. Some of these boys had pants that were shredded, holes everywhere, some had shirts that were too small and filthy, and some didn't have any shoes at all. It was a great honor to be able to hand them a shirt and see their face light up with a huge smile. To see them walk out the door and put their new pants on right away. To watch them slip shoes onto feet that were previously bare and caked in mud. To be a part of it was such a blessing!

To top off that experience, our team ended up pooling our resources from home, donations people had give us, etc. and we were able to gather almost $2,000...and pay for 50 street boys to go to school this year. Amazing. These boys are going to receive an education for an entire year for less than $40 each. And some of them will end up going to school in the classrooms where we taught them English. :-)

It was a great way to end our trip...we didn't just help them for a day while we were there, but we did what we could to help them even when we were gone. Please pray for these boys. And pray that God would continue to grow the ministry that has started in the town of Ambo for them.

We taught them a song while we were there, it's by Israel Houghton called "Not Forgotten". These boys sang along with us, and I pray that all of us would know the truth of these words, no matter what circumstance you're facing right now...

I am not forgotten
I am not forgotten
I am not forgotten...
God knows my name.