Listening to: Marchin’ On by One Republic
Current Health Update: Slight cough, high morale, averaging 8 hours of sleep
Current Location: Kimilili, 50 miles outside of the Ugandan Border
Wow! This is going to be a mish mash blog to catch everyone up to speed. I have about 5 blogs and 2 episodes I’d love to post but due to the lack of electricity and internet, I can only post this for now!
We have been whisked away for the past week to a different location! We are staying with Bishop Titus! Man on man has this week been BUSY! But busy in a good way! We walk A LOT!
We are staying in his large mud/brick house. The running water is non existant and I haven’t showered since….. well I can’t remember! My feet are red from the dirt, covered in blisters and sores and tan lines, errr I think they are tan lines? But you can’t really tell because of the dirt. Gotta love it!
This morning I rode a boda-boda to the church instead of walking. For a mere 18 US cents I managed to take a little bicycle with a padded seat all the way to town. I pray and rebuke all accidents as we ride along in the busy, brightly colored streets. All the while trying to itch the mosquito bites that are on me. Also, praying for no malaria!
We took the kids back in Kitale last week to a strange zoo. It had all these animals that were deformed. But! It was fun because the kids in the orphanage don’t get out much so it was a big day for them! We sang Waka Waka all the way there and it made my heart smile. I got to lay in the field watching them play with my teammate Tom! I also managed to get on the teeter totter with about 15 of them! That was fun.
Sunrises are amazing here, I get to sit up in my bunk this week and watch them every morning. At night before we go to bed the Bishop asks us all funny questions about America, including but not limited to how much the men pay for their brides.
But our days have been filled with hut to hut ministry. This is one of those things about mission work that just break your heart. Going to a prostitute and disease ridden part of the city where children run naked, lots of people are very much drunk, and going inside a literal mud hut and grasping their hands to pray for them… are hard. You leave feeling a little… well, honestly, you leave feeling thankful God brought you into America. It’s hard. This is the part of this adventure that doesn’t feel good. It leaves you just feeling like you need to cling to God. Or actually, it makes me angry if I’m going to be blunt. I get real angry sometimes at why this is going on when I live on the other side of the globe and I never have to worry about this stuff.
Anyways, we also went to the hospital. It looks like a horror movie. Is that too blunt to say? Some times there are 5 people in ONE bed I have heard. But I prayed over children who were severely burned because they had probably fallen into an open fire because that’s how they do all of their cooking.
We also did a police station visitation. That was an eye opener. We visited the suspects in the cells. Women had their TODDLERS in the CELL WITH THEM! This was quite alarming to me. But…. this is Africa.
What does the food situation look like?
Rice, beans, tomato sauce, chipote….some times Ugali which is like a corn meal mash. Surprisingly, we’re doing alright with it! Not nearly as bad as they made it seem in training camp. Actually, none of the food we have had on the Race has been as bad as training camp… just a heads up for you future racers 🙂
God is still good.
Oh, and we had an update on where our ministry is located for next month. Drum roll please…. it’s near the Serengetti!!!!!!
Oh, and I met a baboon up close and personal. He tugged on my shirt and slapped my camera. And, I got to preach at a Kenyan Service where I indeed got to say “Praise God” and everyone shouted Amen. True highlight thus far! And also dashing home in the sweet African rain! Africans worship very differently here. P90X has got nothing on these people. We danced for a straight hour!! I’m not talking just swaying, I’m talking hard core jumping, leaping, singing, arms flailing!
Sorry for the long and wordy update but I figured a long wordy one was better than no update at all!
Great updates are coming up next Saturday when we have adequate internet! I can’t wait to upload all of my photos for all of you! God is truly moving and working here, it’s really crazy how you can find Jesus in the unlikeliest of places! Ministry is very much heart breaking but knowing these people are very much alive, joyful, and that God is here is such an encouragement! There is hope here in Kenya. The Holy Spirit is here. We pray a lot, we rebuke a lot, we try to show God’s love to these people. God has plans for these people, I KNOW IT!
God Bless!
PS
As I’m writing this with my headphones in my teammate Emily just came to tell me that they slaughtered a chicken a mere 10 feet away from me and I managed to miss it because of the music! PRAISE GOD!
