Bridge Families - James127 Father

      Remember the days of the hold on a phone call. You know, you call an office or business and you get put on hold.  Nicer businesses would have music for you while you waited. The gist of the of the hold was you waited, willingly. The answer, whether positive or negative, was worth the wait.  We all have those moments we have to wait, for something.  The question for this morning, what are you waiting for?     During this  pandemic there have been a few times that we have all waited.  Whether in a line to buy toilet tissue, take a test, or get into a store.  All of us have spent more time than we are used to waiting.  The things we have waited for recently really have changed our perspective on what is important.  The heroes among us do not wear capes.  They teach, deliver mail/goods, stock shelves, work registers and keep working when everything else "shuts down".  Heroes impact our lives more now than ...

Paul was ship-wrecked. Paul was on house arrest. Paul went to prison. All of those "calamities" furthered the Gospel in ways Paul would not have dreamed. The Lord so often uses our "misery" to drive our ministry. Well, the truth is the Rosenbaums have experienced none, not one of the situations Paul found himself "stuck" in. We do find ourselves not at all where we were called to be. Doing things that are not what we were called to do. In many ways we have struggled with our current status. It is just flat out isn't what we expected to live out as we were called as a family to serve in Kenya. There are many factors that led up to making a choice to step back and reframe, refocus. It was immediately clear as we gained a bit of distance that the Lord was protecting us the entire time. He really does love all of us, you included, more than we can see or fathom. For now we focus on our quarantine skills, homeschool and pray with open hands that we stay in ...

Hi friends! Our crew has landed at a relative’s home that was vacant, but furnished, in the Kansas City area. Our children have been flexible and enjoyed the journey but need a steady home base. Yes, our time in Kenya was much shorter than we anticipated. Hearts were crushed at the reality that obtaining best practices in the Kenyan orphanage were not obtainable with the current structure. So many of you graciously gave monetarily to support the heart of God, convicted that children belong in families. Supporting a traditional orphanage, offering less than care, is not permissible. Our hearts continue to grieve separation from the friends and community we had already grown to love in Kenya. The vision of loving well is still fresh on our hearts and we are angry the enemy holds such a tight grasp. The babies are the ones to pay the price. We ask that during this time giving financial support be paused as you continue to pray for our next ministry steps.  Specifically, the givin...

Friends and Family, We have travelled back to the US for a time.  We were at the end of our Tourist visas in Kenya and our work permits were not progressing fast enough to allow us to remain in country.  We have been blessed by our family to have a place to land in the Kansas City area.  Our plan during this time is to get immigration paperwork moving ahead in Kenya. Additionally, we plan to really focus on a few of our children who were not adjusting to all the transitions within the last nine months.  We looked into many schools in the Nakuru area, but just never found the educational support they need.  A few of the older kids found connections during the school break in Kenya when all the neighbors were home, but those friends sadly went away to boarding school. Please continue to pray for His Cherished Ones, all the staff that are the hands and feet of Jesus.  Washing about 150 nappies (diapers) and outfits daily is no small task by itself.  T...

Hello from Nakuru, Kenya!          So many experiences and stories could be told, it's hard to know where to start. We all hear of "orphans" and have compassion in our hearts...but I want to SHOUT from the roof tops the need for families. These babies are precious and perfect. They are a gift. ANYONE would, and should, be honored to call one of these babies, son or daughter. Sadly, very few see these gifts. Orphanages around the world are full of gifts, not just here in Kenya. Our babies needs here at Haven of Hope are very well cared for, but nothing replaces a healthy family. The enemy has been super crafty in blinding the community and painting children as burdens or unworthy. My heart breaks for the babies and also for those that are blind to the need. The current government setup does legally require orphanages here in Kenya. The foster and adoption program is set up very differently than the USA program. A child with any known living family can ne...

Every week day morning includes time for the men to gather for Bible study & devotion.  We have a prepared study to go through together, discuss and pray for each other. Talk about an amazing time with a great group of men.  This morning the discussion got a little warmer than average, but the resulting debate was powerful.  How do we as men support each other well? How do we lift our brothers up and help them when they stumble? We laughed, we got very quiet at times, but we all know how to better lift each other up.  When we prayed for our coming time in Kenya moments like this were at the center of our prayers.  We are exited to get this time and many others yet to come. Subscribe to our Newsletter Support us by designation to "family ministry" here: Donate Now

In case you missed the "We touched down in Kenya" news. Here is a quick update. Our crew did rather amazing considering the hours of travel to arrive here. We may have "ugly" passed out in Zurich for an hour or so. The flight crew on the Swiss Air flight included an attendant who had been adopted and took the sweetest shine to our family. Took above and beyond care of all of us through the flight. Upon handing out the immigration papers to be filled out, the attendant suggested that I use counter in the galley for more room. Then he found additional flight crew to help fill out all the required documents. Talk about feeling loved and seeing the hand of the Lord go before us. Simply put, the forms they filled out were much more legible than those I filled out. Kenya immigrations and customs went incredibly smooth. Met friends in the parking lot who ventured to see us with a beautiful cake. We spent a short night in Nairobi then headed to Naku...