As I run this charity drive for books, toys, clothes and household stuff to encourage teen moms in Nairobi and empower children in Nyinyira, Nandi, I am reminded of my needy moment decades back.
In that particular year, I had gone through a tough transition in life from backslidden state a year before to giving my life back to God. I lost everything I had and had to start life from “factory settings”. I was so broke that I feared I had also lost myself.
But one thing I had, my fire and passion for God. Three years after giving my life back to God, I was back to ministering to women. I was brought up ministering from a young age and had 5 years of lost-in-the-world (story for another day). So on this day, I was invited to minster to a group of considerably wealthy and influential women. When I met the host in her house, she had to find some clothes and shoes for me, flat-iron my hair, a bit of makeup – touched me up a bit. There was no way the women were going to listen to me otherwise even though the power of God was oozing out of me.
I don’t blame the women or the host who invited me for wanting to make me over. I had previously acquired for myself a turquoise trouser suit that I wore so much for years, that one of my lecturers thought it was my job uniform. It looked like scrubs, you know the uniform for the medics. I forgive you D.O. This is because I had lost all my clothes and belongings in the transition. But God had promised me compensation.
I did minister to the women and the power of God flowed through me in a mightier way than I had even thought. I am highly prophetic and someone got healed of athritis, another conceived after years of trying, another got clarity to change careers and pursue purpose… When I laid my hand on the women, God moved. So much happened that night.
A few days or weeks after that night (it’s a while back, the details are a bit hazy), I received this amazing package. It had used but decent clothes and shoes from the women. When I looked at the labels, most were from Woolworths and the likes. And the shoes were by Clarks – I wore them for 2 straight years everyday without them wearing off. The quality, the comfort, yani, these are shoes-people (digressing). I did an experiment and went to Woolworths at Yaya Centre. The minute I walked in they recognized their clothes and I had 3 attendants rush to assist me. I browsed their stuff and found most of what I was wearing was over Kes 8,000 per item. It was possible I was wearing Kes 40,000 at that time which was a lot of money over a decade ago and even today. As they showed me what else to add to my expensive wear, I was laughing in my heart, leveled to the floor. Had they known that I had walked to Yaya from South C, Mombasa Road because I did not have bus fare, they would have continued with their work I wasn’t going to buy anything!
All that was digression, my point is, leaving Woolworths Yaya that day my head was lifted up. God used these women and their expensive clothes and shoes to inject life into my dying confidence and self-esteem. The power of God I was carrying needed the right expression through good esteem. I did minister to women, pastors, business people, married couples and other groups for years from that time to date.
Today, I could wear a dress for Kes 300 or not and it does not matter. I have gained confidence in God’s calling for me and my purpose. Sometimes I go to the supermarket with a Kabambe phone and enjoy the confusion in the cashiers as they try to size me in life – why is she buying cheese from such a phone? Other times I take my usual smart phone. It no longer matters!
But back then, the new (used) clothes and shoes mattered to get me to where God needed me to be to minister to His people.
My point is, what you have not used in 3-6 months, you do not need it. But it will most certainly be an answer to prayer for someone else. Not just for their immediate use but also for what it will communicate to them – that God loves and cares for them so much that He put them in the hearts of strangers to meet their needs. The physical items are a small portion of the entire transaction – the emotional, mental and spiritual impact is far much stronger…
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