Overheard

Overheard at lunch today (the speaker was talking about faith/church) - "It's really all about you, what you get out of it."

It struck me...I might have said the same thing not so long ago, but the more I get to know God, the bigger He gets and the smaller I become. It has become a topic of conversation lately in our house...why we go to church. (I read that the tween years are all about the "why." Man, I thought that was all done when she was 3!)

I think I know why NOT. The "why" is not...so I can see my friends...so I can wear my new dress...so I can be entertained by the worship service...so I can complain about how x, y or z should be.

The why is to worship Him. To know Him. To serve Him. To learn how He loves so that we can love others.

It's all about me? That seems to be a common illness in our society, but one that is easily remedied. Just ponder, for a moment, the awesomeness of our God, and then say it again. Out loud. It just sounds silly.

Needy

http://project82kenya.com/i-am-the-vine-you-are-the-branches/

Read my blog post about my experience in Kenya.

Exuberant

Greetings from the road to Lake Naivasha! Yesterday was our last day working in Molo. We began our day with a great devotion from Ryan from the book of John, where we are reminded that He has overcome the world. Although many things are not as they should be in this world, He is sovereign and His plan will be carried out. We are privileged to be a part of it, if we so choose.

We spent the morning at the Crest Academy and at Blessed Kids nursery school. We played with the little ones, sat in on upper level classes on Bible, English, math and Kaswahili. Then we accompanied the children to their fields to play. The English teacher told me it was good for the kids to get out and play so that they could return to their studies with "vigor." The teachers and Headmistress all kicked off their shoes and played ball and jumped rope with the girls while the boys played football/soccer. As we walked back to school, I asked the teacher if she would now be able to return to her classroom and teach with "vigor." :) At the preschool Harriet was blessed to "run into" her sponsored child's grandfather on the street in Molo, a city of 60,000 people!

Next, our team members were in for the sweet treat of a reunion with four Mt. Bethel international interns living in Kenya. We were able to eat lunch together at the House of Hope and catch up with what God has been doing in their lives.

The afternoon brought us 190 children, many of whom Gaylyn saw running to church, to attend vacation bible school. Grace shared the Gospel, we sang and made sun visors together. Next we handed out bibles to 40 students in 7th grade and up. What a joy to inscribe their names into their own bibles and pray over each one by name. We then served porridge, bananas and buttered bread to everyone in attendance, including several mommies with their babies in tow. Too soon, much too soon, it was time to say goodbye and send the children back to their homes. Mackenzie, who had done a toothbrush drive at her school, was able to give every child a new toothbrush on their way out. We hugged and cried and exchanged promises to pray for each other with the adults at the church who had helped and as many kids as we could grab hold of. Pastor Frances' wife, Grace, taught us to say God Bless You in Kaswahili and we tried to say it to every sweet face as they left us. We were exuberant as we went back into the church to clean up. A few kids hung around, Parker played the keyboard and Grace led us in song while everyone sang, hugged, danced and took pictures. We hated to leave.

Gaylyn led us in an incredible worship service in the retreat center's chapel after dinner. As Grace sang and played guitar we prayed for each other aloud and poured out our praise and thanksgiving for one another to God. It was a sweet time with our Jesus. This morning, Carey led us in communion with the Jesus' redemption of Peter, when He asked Peter "do you love me? Then feed my sheep." Carey reminded us that Christ always offers us a way back, even as we deny him, and He asks us to care for his children.

Pray today...
For the health of our team members...
For the strength and courage to bring this experience home in our hearts and continue to "feed his lambs" in whatever way He calls us to do For safe and " on time " travels back to the U.S. We are so anxious to see you again and hold you in our arms! Thank you, thank you for holding us up in prayer these past 10 days.

Kenya team 2011

Getting my Goat

Greetings from the Ukarima conference center in Molo, Kenya. We are gathered in front of a crackling fire after a delicious dinner, enjoying Grace's beautiful rendition of Blessed Be Your Name on the guitar. We are weary but blessed by what God did today. We started the day at the Crest school, where our House of Hope children attend school. It was such a pleasure to see them, grades preschool through 4th, pouring out of the school, looking so "smart" in their brown uniforms, ties and sweaters. We walked what we southerners call "a fur piece" to their P.E. Field, which doubled as a large cattle pasture. We played games, kicked around the football, and jumped rope.

Next we gathered at the Molo Revival Mission church, where the Project 82 feeding program takes place. Our team was able, through your donations, to purchase several goats and a couple of calves to provide milk and a small income for local men and women who have taken in orphans. We had the honor today of meeting the livestock recipients and deliver their animals to their homes. Unforgettable memories were made...one team was unable to get their "lazy calf" to walk farther than a mile. After they picked themselves up from the floor with laughing at the mazungas, our Kenyan friends Phoebe and Kennedy came to the rescue and were able to motivate the calf to finish her journey. A special recognition goes to Mackenzie, who sacrificed her water bottle in an effort to energize the lazy calf.

While this drama was unfolding on the side of the road, the rest of us walked our goats to their new homes. We were told it would be a 20 minute walk. Two and a half hours later and 1000 feet up in altitude, we finally made the last goat delivery. This is a typical walk for these women and kids every day to go to church or school, but we prayed our way through it step by step! The scenic views from the mountaintop were beautiful to behold...green farmland, pastures, trees, mountains in the distance and a gray blue rolling sky for as far as the eye could see. By the time we reached the last house, we were so thankful to be asked to sit and rest while the women served bread and chai tea. Ben said that this is one house he would have loved to have been invited to spend the night, and he wouldn't have even needed an Ambien to drop off to sleep.

After livestock delivery and covering in prayer, we ate lunch at the House of Hope. The women served a delicious meal of cooked cabbage, mashed potatoes mixed with banana, rice, stew, mangoes, and chicken (including the chicken's feet! Oh my!) which they raise on the property.

At 3:30, we met the children at the church for vacation bible school. Mackenzie led the lesson, we sang songs in English and Swahili and made two crafts. Afterward we served about 140 children chai and mandazi (similar to a doughnut). The children were incredibly sweet and attentive, and we were amazed at how calm and orderly the room was. We couldn't have pulled off something like that, with that many children, at home!

Finally, we loaded the House of Hope kiddos on the bus with us and took them home to Mama Jane. We had brought donations of Mt. Bethel Academy uniforms to give the kids. Every team member paired with a child and selected a pair of pants or a jumper, a long-sleeved shirt and a fleece jacket for them in their size. We had them try on their new outfit and made over them and took their pictures. They were so pleased and happy, and we told them that every time we see our Academy kids in their uniforms, we'll think of their faces and be anxious to be with them again.

What a full day! What blessings God showed us!

Please pray today.....
For continued health and strength and a renewal of our energies tonight For a day of deep connection and love between us and the Molo children tomorrow For every child in Project 82 in Kenya to be sponsored so that they may have food and an education For the House of Hope...that every child there may experience the love of God and a family. For the strength and courage of the women who are choosing to mother the motherless.

Good night,
Kenya Team 2011

Hello! How are you???

Greetings from the road to Molo! We are on our way to meet the rest of our team in Nakuru, consolidate ourselves and our luggage, and journey on to conduct vacation bible school in Molo.
Yesterday was a great day in Kwambekenya! Ben and Carey started the day at the KEG church finishing the pastor training. The rest of the group made our way to the school, where we were swarmed by the kids. After shaking innumerable hands and many "hello, how are yous?" we joined the nursery school kids, ages 3 and 4, for their porridge break in the grass. We sang Head, shoulders, knees and toes and Jesus Loves Me (much to our anti-singer Ryan's chagrin), and we painted their precious hands and made handprints and wrote "God made me. He knows my name." Then it was time for bubbles and Swahili lessons. They giggled uproariously at our pronunciation of their words. If you ever want to feel like a celebrity, come to a Kenyan school to blow bubbles.

We reunited the team as the ILI training was concluding. We had a certificate signing ceremony, then walked over to the medical center Mt. Bethel participated in building. There, members of the community gathered to witness the pastors receiving their certificates. The Kenyans sang to us and played drums. There was preaching, heartfelt testimonies of what the community has meant to us, and promises to see each other again someday. We joined hands and formed a wide circle, where Carey and a Kenyan pastor prayed for us. The sounds of the women saying "yes Lord" during the prayer, the feel of the chilly breeze on our cheeks, the smell of rain in the distant mountains and onions recently harvested, the sound of nearby cows and the undeniable presence of the Holy Spirit left an indelible impression on each of our hearts.

And suddenly it was time for good-bye. We hugged, cried, exchanged words of support and encouragement and promised to pray for one another. Little Sarah, who was Parker's constant companion for three days, didn't want to let go of his hand and began to pull him away, toward her house. Her teacher Marion said, "Let me intervene" and explained to Sarah that it was time to say farewell. I'm sure her sweet little face, surrounded by a red GAP hoodie, will be in his mind always when Parker remembers Kwambekenya.
Oh, and we saw an elephant!! Big day, big day.

Please pray today....
For safe travels to Molo
For a sweet reunion with the rest of our team For our continued health & strength
And please go ahead and start praying for our flights on Saturday night and especially for the one on Sunday morning, where we have to make a very tight connection in Amsterdam.

Abiding with Him in Kenya!

Greetings from the road to Kwambekenya! We are on our way to our final day in the community...tomorrow we'll move to Molo and reunite with the rest of the team, which has been in Segera. We hear that they are doing well and that Gaylyn attended a 3 a.m. birth on their first night there...we are all jealous and look forward to hearing their stories.

Yesterday was a busy day in Kwambekenya. Harriet taught an 8th grade English lesson, while Parker and Gayle worked with the preschool kids. Ryan worked with a Kenyan team of men and women to dig a trench, which will be used to erect a gate at the medical center. Erica attended the international leadership institute training being conducted by Carey and Ben for 27 pastors in the community and surrounding areas. They did a great job teaching about intimacy with Christ and having a passion for the harvest. The pastors were hungry for knowledge and expressed their gratitude many times for the opportunity to attend the training.

After a chai tea and chipati break and lunch, the training continued while the rest of the team went on home visits. We walked about four miles around the beautiful valley of the community and took in the pastoral views of farm land, mountains, sheep and cows, with 4 or 5 kids following along with Parker, (our very own Pied piper) and several members of the community who helped us carry our provisions and translated for us. We spent time visiting with folks, hearing their stories -and praying over them and their homes. They are pleased to have visitors come to their homes, and they are so gracious. One gentleman offered us potatoes from the pot he was boiling over an open fire inside his tiny hut built in the traditional way, with a grass roof, and sealed with years of mud and smoke. God put the words in Gayle's mouth as she spoke His unending compassion and love over their lives and into their particular, oftentimes painful, circumstances. We learned late in the day that our friend Marion has suffered great losses this year, and yet instead of us being the ones to offer her comfort, she blessed us by saying "joy comes in the morning." And it does.

For today, please pray that we have eyes to see and hearts to hear when we meet those whose beautiful smiles belie the pain inside.
Pray that the pastors would receive all that they need and want from Carey and Ben today.
Pray for our health and strength that we may carry out God's precious will in Kwambekenya today.
Pray for a sweet time of fellowship as we say goodbye to friends both old and new.

Kenya Team 2011

Sunday in Kenya!

Greetings and Happy Father's Day from Lake Naivasha, Kenya. It's late at night here after a fitful and restless night's sleep, replaying in our minds all that we saw, heard and felt in the Nairobi slums. So ....short and sweet will be our update, if it is even possible to put into words what we experienced today.

We traveled the bumpy and muddy roads to Kwambekenya today, where our team reunited with dear friends and brothers and sisters in Christ. Your messages, letters and greetings were relayed and received with joy. We were privileged to split off into small groups to accompany our friends to worship services throughout the community. Carey got to spend his father's day with his son Ryan, delivering a message of gratitude to the Glory Outreach Assembly congregation. My group attended Mary's church, where we were treated to songs, the recitation of scripture and the shy smiles and giggles of about 30 kids from the community. I was charmed by a little girl in pink who sat across from me, mimicking my crossed legs and bouncing foot...Mom, you know how hard it is for me to sit still in church!

Later, Phoebe and Gaylyn's group departed for Segera while Carey & Ben began their pastor training and the rest of us took a long (very long) walking tour around the community. Along the way, children joined us two or three at a time, content to hold our hands, marvel at our strange skin and hair and repeat our names. More and more joined in until we became something of an entourage, with maybe 20 or so kids following us. Back at our starting point, Parker and Gayle played a rousing game of duck duck goose while Harriet and I tried not to embarrass ourselves too much with our singing. They requested it, really! It was a sweet moment when several of the kids joined in with Jesus Loves Me. Before we left, Gayle got to see her sponsored child Julius and his brother Robert...what a sweet reunion as they ran toward each other with open arms and happy tears.

Tonight we were encouraged and touched by our "mail call" from home...Gayle said she felt like a camp counselor! We were grateful for your wonderful words.

Pray for us ...it rains even now which means a slippery and adventuresome ride to Kwambekenya tomorrow.
Pray for team Gaylyn in Segera tonight.

We love you all,
Kenya Team 2011