god still provides

 this story is a little late and still has so much more, but i wanted to get something i wrote a while back to you now.

 so many people throw the phrase around “trusting God to provide,” but do they really know what it means to fully trust in Him to supply everything? recently, I and a few friends (Joe bunting, david hepting, and matt patton) decided to travel by bicycle roughly 160 km with no money in our pockets, no extra clothes, no tent or blankets or pillows, no food, and only the water we were given by patrick, our contact (which was more than enough). we wanted to rely only on God to get us to our destination, Nakuru, provide us a place to sleep and food to eat.
 
the trip was 3 days and compact full of blessings and adventures. i will need to write about our journey in more than one blog. 
 
Day 1:


We attempted leaving around 8am, just after breakfast and morning prayer, and with complications just outside the compound we headed back inside to fix one of the bikes. By around 8:45-9:00am we set out for good. We didn’t get 5 or 6 km when I noticed my front tire was extremely low (almost to the point of flat). We stopped to air it up and wouldn’t you know the air pump we had was busted. We had a second cheaper pump that came with the bike with us so we pulled it out and wouldn’t you know it had a slight leak. No worries. We pumped the tire up and went on our way. We made it another 10 km or so and stopped to take a rest under a tree. A group a men were also resting nearby so we talked to them and told them about our journey and walk with God. They gave us some roasted peanuts to share for a snack. After checking the bikes and thanking the men for their generosity we set back out on the open road. It was extremely hilly and exhausting so we took numerous breaks to retain energy. But it didn’t take long to see it was necessary to stop and change my front bike tube that continuously leaked air. Bike tubes were items we did decide to bring considering the bikes’ conditions. A guy with a bike repair stand just off the road agreed to help change it so we gave him a new tube in exchange. We had two troubling pedals so not 20-30 minutes later we stopped because a group of young men motioned us to and they temporarily fixed the pedals and gave us 50 shillings to buy new screws to fix the pedals for good. Just up the hill someone fixed the pedals and accepted a new tire tube for his work. We rode a little longer and stopped for lunch. We were able to all eat from the 50 shillings we were given by the young man named Issac. By the way, 50 shillings is approx. 66 cents in the states. After lunch, we rode and rested more just before arriving in our to be place of rest for the night, Burnt Forest. A group of men were working with corn on the side of the road so we stopped to talk to them and they taught us how they sifted through all the corn to rid the bad corn. Fun fun. We went across the street looking for a truck that could take us the rest of the way to nakuru and everyone said they were already through for the day going that direction. We were exhausted. As we stood there asking for help a man told me to go across the street to a catholic church because they might be able to find us a place to sleep for the night. Another man came up and asked if he could buy us something to eat. So he bought us a loaf of bread and four milks. We then walked back across the street, heading for the church. we talked to a younger man named elvis and after speaking to the church father he invited us inside to rest. He made us tea and took our things to the rooms we would stay in that night. After the father showed up, dinner was served. Spaghetti, ugali, vegetables, beef, chicken, and fruit. Wow. Did God bless the socks off our feet or what? I even had my own room and my own bed that evening.

 
i want to recap this day and highlight all the ways God provided. 
Food: (1) Patrick bought us a 10 liter bottle of water for our journey (2) peanuts for a snack between breakfast and lunch
(3) 50 shillings from Issac which paid for our lunch in a nearby town (4) corn from the guys sifting through it for another snack
(5) loaf of bread and 4 individuals milks from James (6) the catholic church providing a massive dinner and tea (spaghetti, ugali, vegetables, beef, chicken, fruit)
 
Bike repairs: (1) being so close to our home to fix the first problem with the bike- a screw jabbing the the back tire on my bike
(2) our pump getting just enough air in the tire to keep it going. also, we were in front of a gas station so they let us use their tools to attempt fixing the other pump (3) the man who changed the tube on my bike in exchange for another bike tube (4) the group of young men who stopped us to talk and pray with us that fixed our pedals not working- which also paid to get them permanently fixed (5) and of course the shady air pump we had that gave my tire just enough air to get another 10 km each time
 
Lodging: (1) tons of shaded trees along the way to rest (2) a ditch with great shade for a light nap (too many people were talking to us and not letting us relax so we did not stay there long) (3) a place to sleep at the catholic church (3 rooms- 4 beds- inside bathrooms)
 
 
 
….. and this is where i stopped writing last month. this is only day 1! i will do my best to get the remaining 2 days posted as soon as i can. my computer is still acting up so if you could continue praying God will provide a way to fix it soon that would be awesome. thanks again for all your love and support. God bless.