During the past month it is becoming clear to me that there is an increasing need for hope. Not just here in Africa, but everywhere. We all need hope. Without hope, what are we living for? What are we working for each day? And why would we go to bed planning to get up again the next day? I think it is because we all have a hope for a brighter tomorrow. Deep down inside we believe that we will experience joy, love and peace in the future. I don't know what is driving your life at present, but I do think that if you didn't have any hope, you would probably give up.
I am full of hope because I believe that in every situation lives can be improved. This is in spite of the fact that some of the things that I see on a daily basis and some of the lives that I encounter every day seem, at first glance, to be without hope. It could be easy to feel hopeless when speaking with people who have experienced loss, brokenness and devastation, or with children who have never received love from their families.
But I am full of hope, because I believe that God hasn't given up on this world, and doesn't plan to. My work here would be in vain without the hope to which I have been called and the belief that people can be made whole, can receive new life and can be changed. I am driven by the conviction that the unexpected can happen and that what the world may say is impossible, can be possible.
Resurrection is something that the "world" would declare is impossible. I don't think so. Resurrection gives me hope.
There are times when I find myself becoming cynical. I know that talking about hope and resurrection when we can see evidence of such suffering makes some people feel very cynical. Sometimes I wonder where the world is headed - will we see the world being healed of its brokenness and pain? My convictions and beliefs say "yes" but sometimes my thoughts and feelings say "no."
When thinking about the example of Kenya, the land in which I am living, we now see a country that has been battling since January with tribal violence, on the edge of civil war, and is currently, in my opinion, being run by men overly concerned with their own glory, power and wealth, rather than the needs of the people. Can the lives of the Kenyan people be changed? In another two years there will be re-elections - will people react by repeating a violent response if again their vote counts for nothing? My head may struggle to see hope, but my convictions disagree. I am convinced of the fact that real, pure, naked and fragile hope for a brighter tomorrow is a better way to live and this is the way that I have chosen to live.
Last week I visited an older people's nursing home in Mombasa that helped me to put this hope into reality.
Since there are six Mission Care Homes in the UK for older people, I was interested to see how older people are cared for here in Kenya. Having been to hospitals in Kenya and other developing nations I was apprehensive as to what I might see on this visit. Knowing that those who cannot act for themselves, such as children and older people, are often the most oppressed in any society, I will admit to having a moment of cynicism when preparing for this visit. But what I was to see was undeniable hope for those who in other circumstances would be alone, living in suffering, or even passed away.
The Sisters of the Poor Nursing Home cares for over fifty residents from impoverished backgrounds, who do not have families to care for them. The residents are cared for regardless of faith or tribal backgrounds. The staff strive for excellence in providing care that breaks social and cultural boundaries, in a country where older people in particular are often just forgotten. Mission Care knows the difficult situations faced by older people in the UK, and does its best to serve men and women in the final years of the lives to give them a quality of life beyond usual expectations. I was pleased to see that the Sisters of the Poor Home here in Kenya was built on the same principles and values as the Mission Care Homes in the UK. Considering the vast difference in resources, the Kenyan home is doing a wonderful job.
Looking at the bigger picture however, it is clear that care for the elderly in Kenya is grim. The Sisters of the Poor home is the only care home for older people in the whole of Mombasa, which is the second largest city in Kenya. Deep within my soul I hope for a brighter tomorrow for the thousands of other older men and women who require the sort of care that the home provides...To know more about having hope in resurrection, listen to "Boasting will abound" by Rob Bell, a podcast from Mars Hill Bible Church downloadable for free from itunes.
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