I left Kenya on the 16th and am now in Rwanda, working with a church called Gospel Center Church. More about that later. For now, I want to re-cap Kenya.
This is a long one but stick with me!
The month started with a debrief with the whole squad together in Nairobi, Kenya. This was a hard week for me for several reasons. I had a lot of logistics responsibilities, we added 2 new people to my team, there were sessions I was processing through, and I desperately wanted more of God and less of myself. By the end of the week, I was worn out. My body was tired but I was rejuvenated and knew that I am constantly walking in new freedom in the Lord. After the debrief took a couple days to rest with the squad leaders in Nairobi before meeting up with my team at our ministry location.
Team Jubilation: Me, Erin, Cody, Emily, Frank, Josh, Becca
We worked with Deliverance Church in Pipeline, Nakuru. We did evangelism in that area every afternoon. Many people already knew Christ and went to church. But there were several that I had the opportunity to pray with to receive Him. We saw the Lord work repeatedly as we shared the Gospel and people accepted.
My evangelism team, Team Awesome! Me, Titus, Gracy, Lydia, and Frank
There is one woman whose story sticks out to me:
A couple of my teammates shared the Gospel with Ann who accepted Christ that day. She came to church the next Sunday and shared her story. It was hard to hear because it was filled with pain and hardship. Her husband died a few years ago leaving her to provide for her 3 children. She was robbed recently, leaving her with about 200 shillings (the equivalent to $2). She had no way to make money and had lost all hope. She spent these last 200 shillings on poison and was planning to give it to herself and children the day my teammates went to talk to her. Instead, she found Jesus and in the 2 weeks since that happened, she is completely changed! You could see the joy of the Lord in her and she has a hope like she’s never had. Praise the Lord!
The dedicated members of the church who worked with us to share the Gospel
There were times this month when I was frustrated, feeling like this was the longest 11 months ever, and I was tired of being vulnerable and open with my team. But I also knew that however I handle those situations and feelings will be how they turn out. So I chose to handle them by taking time for myself when necessary and spending time in prayer. These times always refreshed me and I was able to keep a good perspective on things.
One of the biggest things that the Lord’s been teaching me has been to take action on what He lays on my heart. To listen to what the Spirit is saying in the moment and do it. To be concerned with the things that concern Him. I wrote about this in an earlier blog.
Some highlights from the month:
– Attracting crowds of children everywhere we went shouting “muzungus!!” (white people)
– Went on a safari. We saw: flamingoes, ostrich, warthogs, antelope, baboons, monkeys, zebras, giraffes, buffalo, and rhinos.
– Celebrated Thanksgiving. Frank and Erin pulled together a DELICIOUS American style Thanksgiving meal. We spent the day together playing games and hanging out.
– Dance parties every Sunday as we worshipped in church. I literally would feel like I had just been running because I was sweating so much. There is so much joy and passion in their worship!
– Shaved my head
-Spending time with “Mama” and “Papa” and their family, who we lived with: Isaac, Patrick, Agape, and Joshua. I love you guys and miss you already! Thanks for making our stay so enjoyable.
– Shopping in African markets
– Working with the youth at the church. Most were teenagers and met us at the church every single day to share the Gospel with us. Lydia, Gracy, Titus, Helen, Leah, Ann, and anyone who’s names I’m forgetting (sorry, there were so many of you!). You guys are awesome! Thanks for your dedication and commitment to following Christ. Keep it up!
So that wraps up month 5. It’s now onto month 6. This month we’ll be celebrating Christmas, New Year’s, and the halfway point of the trip on Christmas day.
Adios for now! (I know I’m not in a Spanish speaking country but my poor brain is going crazy trying to transition from one language to the next so I just say whatever language pops into my head)
