From a history of church planting, leadership training, and spiritual development that began three decades ago, churches formed along the north coast of Kenya. One of these was near the Arabuko-Sokoke Forest in Mihongohi Chenda (Nine Poles).
The Mihongohi Chenda Church of Christ started under a tree in 1991. As it grew and matured, leaders of this church began thinking about how they would be a light in their rural community. After prayers and brainstorming sessions with other church leaders in the area, the Mahenzo Church Development Initiative was born. Seeking to show God’s love to the community, different outreaches developed from the initiative as they worked to meet various needs in the community.
Mahenzo Today
Mahenzo is a multi-faceted mission now branching out into different rural areas around Malindi, concentrating on five basic causes:
Education and Vulnerable Children
Health
Food Security
Women's Empowerment
Spiritual Direction
Partnered with Monterey Church of Christ in Lubbock, Texas, Mahenzo seeks to demonstrate God’s love within communities so that they themselves become involved in producing the fruit of His kingdom.
Christian Relief Fund's Vice-President Bobby Moore visited Mahenzo Mission Educational Centre (MMEC) this summer and suggested that it become a designated CRF school. In order to discuss that possibility and understand more of what that would involve, Jim and Phyllis Beck took a trip from Lubbock to Amarillo, Texas, in December to present Wavizi's and Mahenzo's questions. They met with Milton Jones, the President/CEO of CRF as well as Emily Bell, who is in charge of Child Placement for Kenya.
The main detail that Milton and Emily explained was concerning secondary students. CRF will offer any of Wavizi's students who successfully complete the KCPE (Kenya Ceritificate of Primary Education) Examination the opportunity to take CRF sponsorship to MMEC. Wavizi's students are spread out among various schools in the Malindi subcounty area. Combining more Wavizi secondary students at one location will allow them to work with these students more closely. This arrangement shows CRF's shared values with MMEC as well as confidence in their competence in education.
In front of CRF's model structure representing the type of home many of their sponsored students live in across the globe is Kenya's sponsorship child-placement administrator Emily Bell.
Information for potential CRF sponsors who would like to sponsor a student at MMEC:
Emily works with students all over Kenya. She coordinates sponsorships through local Kenyan directors. She has come up with a system on CRF's website, https://christianrelieffund.org/location/africa, to help a potential sponsor recognize students from Malindi and even, specifically, MMEC (Mahenzo Mission Educational Centre). Pictures and a few details for each child are available on this site.
Note these letters at the beginning of their CRF identification number ("K" represents Kenya.):
KMZ indicates a primary student who is at Mahenzo.
KMZS indicates a secondary student at Mahenzo.
KMD currently indicates a child in Malindi in any other school.
All of the new students appearing with these letters in their identification number are to be under the administration of Wavizi in Malindi once a sponsor is in place.
Sponsoring students' education is said to be one of the most effective ways to contribute to their potential success in overcoming poverty. Its effects reach beyond the individuals to their families and into their communities in the present and into future generations.
With a visit from Monterey Church of Christ's Senior Minister, an elder and their wives, different groups gathered to learn and share time in Bible study and discussions. Barry and Debbie Stephens and Gary and Lori House came to share love and wisdom as they, in turn, received love and wisdom from the various groups that came together for spiritual leadership trainings.
The first was a group of church leaders and preachers who met at Mahenzo Mission Educational Centre's (MMEC's) conference centre for two days of study and mutual encouragement. The focus of this meeting was on the kind of leadership that Jesus demonstrated and how it contrasts to the kind of leadership more commonly recognized in our world today. Preachers and others who serve in different ways in churches from throughout Malindi's region and beyond attended and shared ideas and experiences.
Small groups of leaders spend time together in applying principles and scriptures.
Because of the number of young leaders associated with Uzima and Mahenzo's work, another day was set aside to meet specifically with this group. A few other interested individuals joined them. Most had also attended the meeting at MMEC.
Barry leads discussions with young leaders.
Over the last six years, a group of couples has been meeting each year to discuss godly marriages so this group came together again, hosted by the American visitors. This year's discussions focused on mutual love and respect and communication.
Those who met together for the day at the marriage conference at Sea View Lodge.
As an extension of Nairobi Great Commission School, Uzima offers Advanced and Basic Certificates in Bible and Mission. Advanced classes are for leaders who have completed secondary school and choose to do the training. The basic level is for leaders who were not able to finish their secondary education but later in life develop an interest in seriously pursuing Bible courses. These classes are normally held in Malindi at Uzima during the school holidays--April, August and December--in two-week intensive courses. In order to receive the certificate, the student must complete twenty lessons, including the core courses of Old and New Testament Surveys, the Life and Teachings of Christ, Hermeneutics, the book of Acts, and Homiletics.
Three area leaders, Harrison Gona Kigunda, Francis Bajila Baris and Eric Ruwa Hare, recently finished their course work. They travelled to Nairobi Great Commission School for their graduation ceremony in November 2018. In January, one of these men, Eric, together with another, Kheri Mramba Mweni, enrolled onsite at Nairobi Great Commission School for a broader and deeper two-year full-time diploma course in Bible and Mission. The knowledge received by all of these trainings allows men and women to better lead in area churches and the opportunity to share what they learn with Christians in their home areas.
Moses Otieni Rawago teaches a block course for Uzima's NGCS extension school.
Jim Beck and Matthias Charo lead a class in August at Uzima.
Christine Hadija, who completed the course of study in Bible and Mission, teaches some of the women at Uzima. Learning is thus passed on to the broader community.
Christian Relief Fund's Vice-President Bobby Moore visited Mahenzo Mission Educational Centre (MMEC) this summer and suggested that it become a designated CRF school. In order to discuss that possibility and understand more of what that would involve, Jim and Phyllis Beck took a trip from Lubbock to Amarillo, Texas, in December to present Wavizi's and Mahenzo's questions. They met with Milton Jones, the President/CEO of CRF as well as Emily Bell, who is in charge of Child Placement for Kenya.
The main detail that Milton and Emily explained was concerning secondary students. CRF will offer any of Wavizi's students who successfully complete the KCPE (Kenya Ceritificate of Primary Education) Examination the opportunity to take CRF sponsorship to MMEC. Wavizi's students are spread out among various schools in the Malindi subcounty area. Combining more Wavizi secondary students at one location will allow them to work with these students more closely. This arrangement shows CRF's shared values with MMEC as well as confidence in their competence in education.
In front of CRF's model structure representing the type of home many of their sponsored students live in across the globe is Kenya's sponsorship child-placement administrator Emily Bell.
Information for potential CRF sponsors who would like to sponsor a student at MMEC:
Emily works with students all over Kenya. She coordinates sponsorships through local Kenyan directors. She has come up with a system on CRF's website, https://christianrelieffund.org/location/africa, to help a potential sponsor recognize students from Malindi and even, specifically, MMEC (Mahenzo Mission Educational Centre). Pictures and a few details for each child are available on this site.
Note these letters at the beginning of their CRF identification number ("K" represents Kenya.):
KMZ indicates a primary student who is at Mahenzo.
KMZS indicates a secondary student at Mahenzo.
KMD currently indicates a child in Malindi in any other school.
All of the new students appearing with these letters in their identification number are to be under the administration of Wavizi in Malindi once a sponsor is in place.
Sponsoring students' education is said to be one of the most effective ways to contribute to their potential success in overcoming poverty. Its effects reach beyond the individuals to their families and into their communities in the present and into future generations.
With a visit from Monterey Church of Christ's Senior Minister, an elder and their wives, different groups gathered to learn and share time in Bible study and discussions. Barry and Debbie Stephens and Gary and Lori House came to share love and wisdom as they, in turn, received love and wisdom from the various groups that came together for spiritual leadership trainings.
The first was a group of church leaders and preachers who met at Mahenzo Mission Educational Centre's (MMEC's) conference centre for two days of study and mutual encouragement. The focus of this meeting was on the kind of leadership that Jesus demonstrated and how it contrasts to the kind of leadership more commonly recognized in our world today. Preachers and others who serve in different ways in churches from throughout Malindi's region and beyond attended and shared ideas and experiences.
Small groups of leaders spend time together in applying principles and scriptures.
Because of the number of young leaders associated with Uzima and Mahenzo's work, another day was set aside to meet specifically with this group. A few other interested individuals joined them. Most had also attended the meeting at MMEC.
Barry leads discussions with young leaders.
Over the last six years, a group of couples has been meeting each year to discuss godly marriages so this group came together again, hosted by the American visitors. This year's discussions focused on mutual love and respect and communication.
Those who met together for the day at the marriage conference at Sea View Lodge.
