Jambo and Karibu ha pa Kenya (Greetings
and Welcome to Kenya)
When we arrived here we weren’t quite
sure what to expect, but I must say that Kenya has blown me away! As
soon as we arrived our contact (Bishop Emanuel) gave us all Kenyan
names and told us to call him dad and that we were his sons and
daughters for our stay. I was given the name Njoroge (Je rouge ay)
which means “calm, composed, and full of grace”. I am loving my
new Kenyan name and this place.
Im not sure how much Kenya loves me
though, the other day I wrote in my journal:
Dear Kenya,
Your mosquitos make me very sick, your
water makes my stomach boil, your sun hates my pale mzungu skin, your
unrelenting heat makes me melt…but yet, somehow…I am falling
madly in love with you and all of your children each and everyday! I
am addicted to your mystery, your joy, your love, and your
simplicity.
Ministry here this month has been by
far my favorite of this trip. We have been doing door to door
evangelism, visiting the sick in the hospitals and praying for them,
visiting schools and sharing the gospel with the kids, offering
counseling sessions at a clinic, and preaching at churches.
The first day we went out to do
Evangelism, I wasn’t quite sure how we would be received or how it
would go. I just knew that we needed God to go before us and prepare
the hearts and to give us favor. So my team prayed hard that morning
that god would show up, and He did! The very first house I went to
was of an old man that was a Muslim! I was sure that I would not be
able to get any where with him. But God is able, the holy spirit was
moving in me and through me to speak words of truth to him, and to
share the love of God with him, and reach his heart with the powerful
word of god. When I was done he I noticed he had a tear streaming
down his face. He said that he wanted to know more, and he wanted to
be loved like that. He got on his knees and accepted Christ right
there! Praise The Lord!
This reminded me that the Gospel, that
God’s word is POWERFUL! And I don’t need to jazz it up or try to
make it sound good…It is GOOD all on its own! There is power in the
Word! I give God all the glory and praise him for what he did that
day!
The rest of that day was filled with
sharing the gospel, my personal testimony, and encouragement with the
people we met, and in that God moved in a powerful way. We now have
MANY new brothers and sisters in Christ here in Kenya! Praise God for
what he is doing here.
I am thankful for the blessing God has
given me to be here…now! That God loves me so much that he pulled
me away from my old life, saved me, gives me grace, and has pulled me
away from a lifestyle of materialism, to come all the way around the
world, to experience his love in new ways each and every day. Falling
in love with God more and more each day.
I pray for all of you reading that you
would experience God’s love in a new way today! That you would see
his love manifest in your life, and that you are blessed!
I love you all!
Njoroge
(Ryan)
