My Thanksgiving List

I'm thankful for a lot of things this Thanksgiving and not all of them have to do with Africa, but many of them do. This year, I've learned a lot about God, His Church, and those the Church cares about and does not.

I'm thankful for the fact that the Red Sox won a World Series while I was in Africa (as if they needed me around). I'm thankful that it rained in Zimbabwe this week. I'm thankful it rained in Zambia.

I'm thankful for a man named Gordin that is leading the Mtshabezi AIDS Project that cares for over 1,700 orphans in partnership with Forgotten Voices. I'm thankful for James and the 23 orphans his church looks out for at The Rock Church. I'm thankful for Fibion and the 43 kids there. I'm thankful for Pierre and his 700 farms, as well as all the miracles that occurred this year to make that possible. I'm thankful for Hazel and the Christian Leadership Resource Centre. I'm thankful for TCZ, Victor Nakah, and all those students that are being groomed to lead the African church forward.

I'm thankful for my good friend named Peterson, age 10, who is moving to be with his grandparents in January after a long time living by himself. I'm thankful he has been living with his sister for a few months and his main job has been being a kid. I'm thankful that he got to play the keyboard and show me his natural talent. I'm thankful he is doing well in school and I'm thankful he can run VERY fast.

I'm thankful for my new wife. Katie is the focus of my horizon. She makes the darkest days bright and gives life to the most mundane activities. She brings joy to all that know her and is the greatest gift from God that I could ever hope and wish for on earth. I am thankful that she inspires me, while also keeping me grounded.

I'm thankful for the over 300 individuals & families that have given to Forgotten Voices and I'm thankful for the 3 foundations that have also invested in our work. I'm thankful for the jobs they have and the way that their work allows them to provide for those in need on the other side of the world.

Today, I'm mostly thankful for our God, who has given us so many reasons to smile, to be thankful, and to rejoice. In Philippians 4, God tells us: "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything with prayer and petition, with THANKSGIVING, present your requests to God and let the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, guide your heart and mind in Christ Jesus." I am thankful for that verse, as it has sustained me through dark hours this year and has kept me calm on the raging seas.

I'm thankful that we are just beginning our journey together. I'm thankful for the patience God has with all of us on this road of life. I am SOOO excited to share this holiday with each and every one of you!

I'm thankful for the 50 volunteers that make Forgotten Voices run. They know who they are and I'm thankful for them. I'm thankful for our Board members, who keep us moving forward and inspire me every time we meet.

I'm thankful for new projects in Zambia and Zimbabwe that we know about and plan to fund in 2008. I'm thankful for the projects that we don't know about yet, but will meet in the next few months...by God's grace.

I'm thankful for ALL THE FOOD that I'm about to receive and I cooked almost NO PART OF IT! I'm thankful for my mom, my dad, my sisters, and my family...those that could come home and those that couldn't.

Finally - I'm thankful that God is a God who sees the needs of the poor and Has given you all a heart to respond to those needs. I'm thankful for each of you and I'm thankful that I have the awesome privilege of serving you and our God in this way! I am so thankful that I have the coolest job around!

With a warm spirit of THANKSGIVING,
Ryan

Albright Shout Out - More on Happiness

Students at Albright - Thanks for having me! I was thankful you let me be part of our your last day before Thanksgiving break! Thanks for your patience and genuine interest in the work of Forgotten Voices.

It is deeply encouraging to spend time with people that are interested in changing the world AND believe they can.

As a follow up to our conversation, I wanted to send along an article that a friend just passed on to me. It is directly related to our conversation about relative depravity and how we measure happiness as people.

You can check out the article by clicking here.

Thanks again and have a VERY happy Thanksgiving!

Adult Development Shout Out

To my friends in Eldon's Adult Development class:

Thanks for a rousing discussion this afternoon! I thoroughly enjoyed interacting with you. Thanks for sharing with me. It was cool to hear your hearts and to discuss ways we can move forward.

As promised, here is the link to the Psychology Research page. Feel free to email your completed work to Eldon and then send a paper to me.

Thanks again for your time, your passion, and your willingness to entertain my thoughts for an hour.

Blessings to you all as you go about your work in these final days of the semester! Happy Thanksgiving!

Happiness & Money

Later today I'm guest lecturing in an Adult Development/Psychology class that just finished discussing matters of wealth & retirement. This got me thinking about the topic in terms of Africa. Over and over, I find people in Zimbabwe unable to fathom what wealth is like in the USA. That may be a good thing. Yet, many people in southern Africa are wrestling with how to help the poor in their communities, while we in the West tend to lump all Africans as poor.

So - I did a little research online on a concept called "relative deprivation principle" (a complicated way to summarize the above) and learned a lot about how our minds adjust to wealth as we grow older and its impact on our happiness.

You may find some of this interesting. Here is just one link that I found helpful! I'd welcome your emails if you have other things to share that would help me understand this challenge better.

Happy Thursday!

Today's Reflection: Seminaries

I often hear about all the challenges in Africa and how nothing will work. I disagree! When I think about our future at Forgotten Voices, I first think of seminaries. African seminaries are the future of the African church. They are on the front lines of training pastors, assessing needs in the church, and responding to those needs in a Christ like manner.
e physical & spiritual needs of AIDS orphans in their communities.

At both TCZ (Zimbabwe) & TCCA (Zambia), we hope that our funding of positions to reach out to their graduates will accomplish 3 things: 1) a better understanding of the needs of graduates for the seminaries, specifically related to AIDS care; 2) better communication opportunities among the graduates themselves; and 3) a pipeline of new projects that Forgotten Voices can help resource in conjunction with the seminaries.

To fund these 2 efforts for Alumni Outreach and need identification, we anticipate needing about $15,000 for 2008. More specifics will appear as soon as we get firm cost projections.

Later this year, in my end of the year mailing, you'll hear from me on how we can better connect with seminaries. If you are interested in talking about this more before that mailing, please feel free to email me at RKeith@ForgottenVoices.org.

Thanks for investing in us! Thanks for believing in us! Together, in conjunction with the American church and African seminaries, we will help transform the lives of others.

Every prayer & every dollar mean so much to our team. Thank you!

Trip Reflections: The Rock Church

Friends, Over the past 3 weeks, I've had the good fortunate of traveling across Zambia & Zimbabwe meeting church leaders across all denominations, all doing unique work in AIDS orphan care. The trip's objectives were the following: 1) Discover potential project partners in Zambia; 2) Document the work of Forgotten Voices partners in Zimbabwe; 3) Improve communication channels between USA donors and African projects.

My reflections each day this week are related to the first 2 objectives of the trip, as I outline where we are going from here as an organization.

Today's reflection is on James, pastor of The Rock Church. Forgotten Voices partners with James' church at $1,000 right now, but we plan to increase that project to $2,000/year in 2008. Your gifts will go to this effort!

The Rock: Led by James Moyo, Age 26
With about 200 people calling the church home, this "small" rural church is having a big impact! While weekly attendance is closer to 60 people, many more consider the ministry of The Rock to have a direct impact on their lives.

The Rock is led by James, a 26 year old young man that became a Christian at the age of 18. He is a guy that wrestles all the time with what more he and his community can do to help orphans. He, too, is convicted constantly by James 1:27.

We currently work with The Rock by helping send 23 orphans to school and by helping provide funding for a house James is building by himself. The house will be used as his personal house (his first home since he was 15), a prayer place for the church, and a safe haven for orphans that are homeless. The house will have a permanent extra bedroom for kids that need a home temporarily until James can help locate a long-term option. All for less than $1,000 USD.

Below are photos of the house, along with photos of James. Here is a photo of the tent he is occupying while his home is being built.

Now - in 2008 - we'd like to continue helping the church grow its ministry to orphans by working with them to repair a well and construct a new one at a strategic location they've identified. These 2 water sources will be piped from the central water spot down to James' house, where the water will provide for a Farming God's Way garden that provides food for orphans in the community.

We plan to support The Rock at $2,000. Look for additional information on James, including a video interview in Spring 2008. If you'd like to give to this project, we ask you to make a donation at www.ForgottenVoices.org and list The Rock within the comments section.

Thanks for your interest in James, The Rock, and the ministry of Forgotten Voices.

I dream - Emotional Reflections on Africa

I dream of living a life that makes God smile. I dream of living a life that makes life easier for others. I dream of discovering where God is working and jumping in head first to join him (and for those of you know me, know that I can't dive!... but for God - I dream of being fearless - jumping first and fearing never).

I just returned from my 8th trip to Africa in the past 3 years. Since going on the first exploration trip in July 2004, my heart has seen many horrible things. I've held the hands of women clinging to life as they watch their children watching them die. I've held dying babies. I've watched people knowingly consume water unsafe to drink because there is no other option. I've felt the hands of people ravaged by HIV and TB, pleading with me to care for their families without knowing who I am.

In the same way, my heart has experienced beautiful things. I've watched a room full of 20 pregnant women since Jesus Loves Me. I've seen a nurse save the life of a new born baby. I've watched a man sacrifice everything he has so his kids can live another day, trusting that God will intervene on their behalf as the man dies from hunger. I've enjoyed many sunrises and have seen many galaxies under the African sky.

Here's the thing. Every time I come back, I feel like I beg you all to join me in the work of Forgotten Voices. You have responded in a way that humbles me and brings me to tears... I can't thank you enough. THANK YOU!

I am so moved by your generosity. Not a day goes by in Africa when I don't stop for a second and soak up the reality that together we are equipping local leaders in Africa to do what God has called them to do ... to meet the physical & spiritual needs of AIDS orphans in their communities. You all are doing that! I'm just the fortunate one that gets to go and make sure the work is continuing and that we are doing all we can to equip these communities to do what they believe God wants them to do.

Thank you. Part of why I go is to come back and dream with you about what's next for our ministry to the churches in Africa, working hard everyday.

So - here's my dream after this most recent trip to Africa. I had this dream over and over while I was there: both as I saw what I saw while awake and as I rested on a vast assortment of beds across Zambia & Zimbabwe at night.

I dream of the church people in America responding like God calls us to respond. To answer the needs of the poor, without delay. To give out of love, not guilt. To genuinely look ourselves in the mirror and know we are doing all we can for our God. To be a church that makes God rejoice and giggle.

Sounds great, right? But how???? One of the ways we can do that is to take action and search our own hearts...and listen to what God is asking us to do for Him, our world, and our families.

One of the crazy things I kept hearing on this trip is that pastors consider themselves rich. They are asking the same questions we are asking: "Am I doing enough? Can I do more?" That blows me away! But it makes sense. Then, when I'd visit with patients the churches were caring for, the people receiving would be asking how they can help their neighbors who have less than them! Amazing!

It affirms that God's calling on our life is not just for us alone, but it is for us.

I ran into a friend of mine yesterday. She was pouring out her heart to me about a book study she is in that is exploring the idea of Jesus returning tonight. After the conversation went on and on, one of the women stopped and said, "Why don't we just act like we know he's coming tonight? Let's not just treat this like an exercise in thought, but in action. What would we do differently if God was coming tonight? How would we live differently? What would we do?"

I hope to write more Tuesday afternoon as I think about this for my life and share with you.