November

2020
There has been much
stress with
announcements of school
restarting, then not
restarting... and then yes!
It is restarting!  As
parents scramble for
school funds they have
also been busy preparing
for what is seen as the
most important event in
the lives of their
children, and it has
nothing to do with
school.   

More important for the Kuria is not that 2020 has been a year of COVID, but that it is a
year for circumcision.

WHY WOULD YOU NOT WANT MY

GRANDCHILDREN TO BE
REMEMBERED

Our identity, who we believe we are, is core

to how we live our lives.  It affects every
decision we make.  Two eternity impacting
questions are; 

WHO AM I?      WHO DO I BELONG TO?  

Circumcision is all about identity.  For decades aid

organizations and movements within the Church
have worked hard to communicate all of the
physical and psychological harm that comes from
the practice of female circumcision.  
Governments have outlawed it, “safe homes” are set up for those wanting to escape from
it, and thousands of dollars and much effort goes into attempting to eradicate this
practice.  And yet…  all of these efforts at times seem to be making such a very small
dent in this practice amongst the Kuria people, a ritual that is at the heart of so many
cultures.  

 Because at the heart is the

driving human desire in all of us
for IDENTITY.  
We all long to belong, to know we have
value, that we’ve been ‘approved of’ by those
that matter in our lives.  Teens and younger
ones in every culture long to be seen as
adults, and most of all to know they
BELONG.  



Circumcision is a deeply spiritual rite of
passage.  Each year the spiritual elders
practice divination ceremonies, offering up
sacrifices and consulting with the spirit world
they believe leads them.  They then wait,  looking for a sign to determine if this is indeed the
year.  If it is, the preparations begin for the next ‘age set’ to be brought through the ceremony
that ushers them into adulthood, into “personhood”.



 A Kuria child does not just become an adult in they eyes of their culture after circumcision;

the belief is that they fully step into being a person, with their own identity.  With this new
identity they will now exist into eternity- spiritually influencing future generations.  



An uncircumcised child will literally be buried outside of the compound because
they never fully achieved personhood.  It is believed they will cease to 'exist' and the
memory of who they were will die also.



Once circumcised, a new name is given, and the initiated will for the remainder of their
lives have a belonging to the age set with which they are circumcised.  



 Feasts given for the new initiates.  Dressed in new finery and symbols of having gone through
the ritual, they parade throughout the community for weeks with their age sets,   It is believed
to be the most important event in the life of a Kuria boy or girl.  After the ritual of
circumcision, they now fully belong.  
Two thousand years ago, Jesus told a story about a father and his two sons.  It’s about the
choices that each of these sons made and in the midst of those choices, the father’s shockingly
steadfast love for each of them.  

In this familiar story, the youngest son turns from the father in a demanding, arrogant fashion. 
Despising his relationship with the father, he goes his own way.  Only when he meets with
despair does he return, but he returns with a repentant heart.  And his return is not to the anger
of the father, but to his expectant father’s embrace!  



 “My son was dead! He is now alive!”, the father joyfully announces, and a new ring is placed on his son’s
finger, marking his restored identity as the Beloved; a symbol to everyone who sees it, “I BELONG to
someone, I am my Father’s!”  

 The past three months, the teens have had a windfall of extra time to study God’s Word together, and they have
been oh so eager!  Studying the story of the “Prodigal”, step by step they have reviewed all they have been
learning from the Garden to the Cross.  Who is this Father God?  What is He like?  Why am I here?  What is sin
and what is repentance? 

 Their hunger to understand at a deeper level and embrace the Truth of the Gospel has been so encouraging.  
 “What does it mean to receive what Jesus did on the Cross, so that we, having also turned and gone our own
way might come back to the Father’s embrace?”   

No more striving! No more, “Do this and do that and MAYBE you will meet the bar.”  No, our Father welcomes
us fully back as HIS OWN when we come to Jesus!  

Our identity becomes that of

the BELOVED, fully purchased
by the blood of Jesus!  

Our NAME is written into the

BOOK of LIFE, and our
eternal existence is secured.  

This message is revolutionary to

a group of young girls wanting
desperately to BELONG, to be
ACCEPTED, and to know they
are VALUED in a culture that can
sometimes value them so little.

 During this COVID 19 season,

there have been many decisions
of turning in Faith to Jesus and
choosing to FOLLOW HIM! 
We and the Tisinye Team are
REJOICING! 

We rejoice and
        

we covet your
prayers for them!  
THIS, not circumcision, is truly the most important event in their lives; discovering their
Identity in Jesus not in the norms of their culture.  For these precious young believers the
battle ahead of them is huge.  In a culture where so few are following after Jesus, these
girls need your prayers.  

For many, the temptation to walk the path of circumcision, like thousands before them is
enormous.  Pressure comes from parents, grandparents, an entire community and their own peer
group.  Even daughters coming from ‘believing homes’ can have pressure from a parent who
has yet to come into full understanding themselves of our IDENTITY being in Jesus, not the
norms of our culture, and many are coming from homes of non believers.  



Will you join us in praying for these teens?  For the boys, the practice is not illegal, but the
ceremony is just as much from the enemy.  Girls as young as eight will participate.  

 We are hopeful to soon be sending updates on many of the prayer requests mentioned in our
last letter.  We wanted to get this pressing prayer alert to you asap.  



We're so thankful for you!  

Paul and Stephanie 



As we continue to equip and encourage the Tisinye team to reach the wider community, we are
also stepping into more equipping, encouraging and walking alongside of Kenya National Staff to
reach areas in just as much need of being set free from darkness and stepping into the LIGHT
of a new identity in Christ Jesus.  We are blessed to partner with these godly men and women.



As our budget needs increase, would you consider joining our ministry partner team?  You can
reach us at pjsawhitney@yahoo.com with questions or see below. We're so thankful for you!  



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