It’s crazy to believe I am actually in Africa…the feeling is still sinking in. As soon as we landed at the airport at Nairobi International, I knew I was here. It just felt different immediately and I knew I was in a new place. I am so excited to see how these next 3 months in Africa will unfold and what kinds of ministries we will be involved in. Currently, my team and I are in Nairobi, Kenya working with Pastor Joseph at a local church. We have so many things planned from door-to-door evangelism to going to local schools to music ministry and a lot more. I am excited to reach out to a totally different kind of community and see the challenges that we will face this month.
I think one of the biggest things I have
noticed is how Nairobi reminds me a lot of how things look back home in the
states when you look a lot closer. There are really nice parts of town where
everyone is dressed nice and things look a lot more western. There are also
parts of town that are very poor and people live in these slum areas (one of
the largest slums in Africa is in Nairobi, it is called Kibera). Although,
slums here look a lot different than poorer areas back home. One thing that is
also consistent is that there is always a need for Jesus everywhere I look.
People get lost in their own religious ways of doing things and do not realize
how important it is to have a relationship with Christ. It’s not just about
going to church or wearing the nicest clothes or having the nicest Bible…it’s
about knowing that Christ is your Lord and Savior and being born again (John
3:3-8).
I didn’t realize until I got to another
predominantly Christian country (the last one was 4 months ago in the
Philippines), that lukewarm Christianity exists everywhere. I think one of my
biggest prayers this month is that we really start to see a revival here in
Nairobi and see people walk more boldly in their faith. We are already starting
to see evidence of that and I can’t wait to see what else we get to experience
while we are here.
Things I would really appreciate prayer
for:
- Continued safety while we are in Africa for the next 3 months
- To be led by the Lord’s Spirit everyday
- Accelerated learning of the Swahili language (we will be using it for the next 3 months)
