This past month (September) we were in Lodwar, Kenya, a small desert town in the middle of nowhere. The roads were terrible on our 10 hour bus ride in. The bumpiness of the drive allowed for no sleep and caused the bun on the top of my head to slowly wiggle its way down to the nape of my neck in about 5 minutes. Even so, I felt blessed to be there. We got to see people of the Turkana tribes walking around. They are the tribespeople who wear beads stacked around their necks, which causes them to elongate, and is also a sign of beauty. We got to go into villages where people live in grass huts and have no electricity. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to stay in any huts, but we were so blessed by our contacts here, Pastor Juma and his wife Phanis of Deliverance Church in Lodwar. It seemed like Pastor and his wife, and the church body that helped out, bent over backwards for us out of pure African hospitality.
our team with Pastor Juma (far right) and wife Phanis
Turkana tribes people grass hut that the tribes people live in
This month we did evangelism ministry, reaching out to different people in different villages and ending our week long endeavors with a showing of the “Jesus” film (a film based on the gospel of Luke and translated into many languages.) Ministry this month was very tough for me, mostly because preaching the gospel as soon as I have met someone is not a strength I have, I tend to get lost in my words and very forgetful. God was definitely with me when I brought Him beside me and I found the words to share, telling about my story and where God has taken me. It was amazing being in a place where a few hundred people professed Christ. The community of Deliverance Church is a church of evangelism and we can trust they will continue to follow up with the community.
we were guest speakers at the local school
my team mate Jessie at the local prison at a village outside of Lodwar
We also got to see Lake Turkana this month. The largest desert lake in the world! We drove across the desert in trucks for an hour or so, seeing villages and their people and camels. Then we came to a sand paradise, a beautiful oasis in the desert, where flamingos hung out by the lakeside. We got to teach some of the Kenyans how to swim, which was really fun and challenging for some; we were able to teach some of them to float, but it was definitely a seemingly impossible task for others.
on the shore of Lake Turkana
The ride back from Lake Turkana was magnificent! I got to ride in the back of a pick up through the desert, seeing termite hills, more camels, Turkana tribe people walking back to their grass huts, and the sunset. Scenery is something I feel connects me to God. I can see His power, glory, His beauty in nature. It’s a gift God gives us, the beautiful gift of Creation that we get to experience all around the world, and, everything in it is different. Everywhere you go, you are blessed with another picture God has painted just for you to enjoy! There are so many different things of beauty we get to see on this journey, from people in different nations and the people we get to build relationships with in each country, to landscapes, to our own journeys and growth, as well as our team and squad mates that are taking this journey with us. God paints a picture for us wherever we go, and He is also painting each of our pictures as we embark on our own journey each day.
such a desolate, yet beautiful area of Kenya
