As I drove to Black Stump to begin my ‘Slum Survivor’ I wondered why I was leaving my comfy home, beautiful kids and my loving husband to live in a shack and have two meals a day with a group of strangers. When I told people I was going to do ‘Slum Survivor’ I got a few odd looks and some one said I must be crazy!

I wanted to do Slum Survivor with the aim of gaining a perspective on what living in a slum is like. The reason being is that at the end of the year we will move to Kenya to help a group of children who live in the Kibera Slum in terrible living conditions. We will live there for one year and we will help at a school that the children attend. The children are fed two meals a day at the school (usually their only meals) and most of the students parents have passed away (mainly due to HIV/Aids) and so now as orphans they live with another family. I therefore thought doing Slum Survivor might give me a small insight into the lives of these children which we will be helping.

Over the weekend I did learn these things and a few other lessons God had in mind for me. It was a very moving, at times emotional and thought provoking weekend for me.

I didn’t arrive until Saturday morning, and I wondered how people would feel about a ‘ring in’ who hadn’t done anything to help in constructing our shelters. But as soon as I arrived people crowded around introducing their selves and explaining what we where doing and welcoming me in. From then on the weekend was a blur of cooking meals, making bags, selling bags (without much luck), being cold, offering hospitality of Chai Tea and spending time with a great group of people.

And learn a bit about living in a slum I did. There are not many times in my life I finish breakfast and know I won’t eat again until dinner, go to bed really (really) cold, have to work to earn my food at the end of the day. It gave me a small glimpse of the desperation and hard work that millions of people endure each day of their lives and Jesus heart and love for them. It gave me a small glimpse of the struggles the children we will soon meet in Kenya. And I wondered how children survive living like this. It made me wonder how my heart wouldn’t break if my own children lived in these types of conditions.

God also taught me a few other lessons during the weekend. I think taking a step away from your normal surroundings helps you to analyse your life. In my case I was challenged to never wait until I fly to another country to begin life as a ‘missionary’ and loving others and loving God starts in our life style choices. I went to a few excellent workshops (anyone else go the Work Shops on Incarnational Ministry amongst the Urban Poor, Simple Living and God in the Everyday??? Amazing talks!). I heard a lot of things that challenged me to make my life more simple, more ‘green’, more hospitable, more healthy and more global. It made me think about what I put into my body, in terms of food, media and the items I buy for myself. For example, loving my neighbour overseas, also means consuming less of the worlds resources over here and choosing not to be caught up in the wave of ‘consumerism’.

So I have finished Slum Survivor with more empathy and a heart for those who struggle to survive, and a desire to make my life more simple. My prayer is that my life will change from the inside out, beginning now and which I hope will over flow into the lives of others especially in Kenya. I feel blessed, moved and challenged by the weekend I have just experienced, and I pray I will be a blessing to others.

Jacquie - Slum Survivor 07