Dickson Masindano orchestrated a magnificent 10 year anniversary for Buckner Kenya at the BCC in Nairobi. He planned for a Master of Ceremonies, lots of music in African style, full of praise and worship.
Dickson took care to introduce the special guests. Let me share with you some of the comments of the guest speakers that stood out to me. (Keep in mind that there were about 300 children and another 200 adults in attendance. The children sat still, quietly, and attentively during the presentations of about ten different speeches. It was a blessing to witness this kind of discipline and respect from children as young as 3 and as old as 18). Dickson set the stage of the celebration with a heart full of love and thanks for all that God has done under his leadership.
Her Excellency, Madam Pauline Kalonzo, 2nd Lady of Kenya (Wife of the Vice President) was on hand to share in the celebration and share some comments. She commended the work of Buckner in Kenya, the Buckner Kenya Staff, and for the Kenya Baptist Convention for their excellent work, perseverance, and vision. She called for spreading Buckner work across other cities in Kenya and challenged the crowd to replicate the work of Buckner so that other children and families would be blessed by this work. At the end of the speech she quoted Mahatma Ghandi, but clarified by saying: “I am a follower of Jesus and a Baptist,” as a point of reference for her comments. We were amazed that she was so willing to be so transparent with her faith.
Pastor David Keatu, member of the BCC Board of Directors told the story of how the BCC work got started. I was particularly impressed by his comments. He told how the pastors and officers of the Kenya Baptist Convention (in the late 1990s) representing about 3,000 Kenyan Baptist churches, decided to secure and convey 13.5 acres of land for use to serve vulnerable children and orphans as a Kingdom ministry. After much deliberation, the officers of the Kenyan Baptist Convention (KBC) agreed to this action. Pastor David Keatu was among the leaders during this time of decision. The land was given to the KBC by the Kenyan Government as long as it would be used to serve under-served children and orphans. This is a fascinating story of the pastors, churches, and the convention of churches deciding to put the needs of the least of these before their interests. Ten years later, we see the wisdom of this decision with over 440,000 children, orphans, and families being served.
What fascinated me the most of this story was the fact that Pastor Keatu already had the site plan of the 13.5 acres with details of where buildings would be constructed and services that would be offered before the land was secured. Now, that is faith!
The Southern Baptist Convention’s International Mission Board operated the BCC from 1994 until 2002 when Buckner assumed responsibility for the operations under the leadership of Dr. Ken Hall, CEO of Buckner. Later, Canadian Baptists, the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship as well as countless Texas Baptist Churches and other like-minded churches and volunteers came together to add to the story. The story of the BCC is a story of pastors, individuals, volunteers, churches, and denominational groups working together in an unselfish way to do Kingdom work. It is a legacy of faith that God continues to bless.
Click here to view more photos from our Buckner Kenya 10th Anniversary Trip
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