This month, my team and I are living in an apartment in
Lang’ata, a suburb of Nairobi that overlooks Kibera slums. We are working with
Deliverance Church of Lang’ata, which is about a 10-minute walk from where we
are living. On Monday, we started
our ministry here in Kenya with an 8K hike up and down 6 of the Ngong Hills.
The word “hills” is not all that impressive; so let me describe them for you.
After climbing up steep sides of the “hills” we were able to see the Great Rift
Valley on one side with its patchwork of farmland and all the clusters of
suburbs of Nairobi on the other side. It was breathtaking, not just the climb,
but also the view.
Along the way, I was able to begin to build relationshipswith the youth of the church, who range in age from 17 to about 26. When we
reached the top, I was asked to speak on the topic of purity. Back in New
Zealand, I read a quote that was very fitting for this message. When you choose
the road of purity, “you have chosen the roughest road, but it goes straight to
the hilltops”(Passion & Purity 113). As our tired legs rested on top of the 6th Ngong Hill, I
believe the metaphor sank in among the youth. After I finished sharing Bible verses and personal stories,
George, one of the youth leaders opened a discussion. The topic was “why have
your past relationships ended and why have you been dumped”. It was interesting
to find universals, as well and culturally unique aspects, of the dating world.
Questions were raised for discussion and views were expressed, and the youth
were able to learn from one another.
