Kenya: Week 4

More play by play of what we are doing in Africa:

Monday: I so enjoyed almost a whole day of reading.....Peace Child by Don Richardson (definitely a recommendation). Our evening was followed up with tacos, ice cream, and a time of meeting and prayer with our hosts. Then another night of Zumba!

Tuesday: Kaleb went to two meetings during the day with our host. I went with our host's wife and daughter to N's house for a birthday party. N is part of the ESL class, but because today was her birthday, ESL was moved to today, and we partied instead of studied ha! N invited many of her Pakistani women friends to the party, so I know our host's wife was especially encouraged to meet some new women to reach out to in the future. These women dress so beautifully in bright colored silky clothing, lots of jewelry and heavy makeup. I was excited to be able to wear a traditional outfit as they do (minus the jewelry and makeup). N made a traditional African meal, Buriani, a goat and rice mixture. It was really good! The party continued with dancing, cake and presents. Pray that through continued relationship building with these ladies, there may be opportunities to present the gospel and a willingness from the ladies to listen.

Wednesday: Secured our tickets for a game park outing we have planned next week and more yummy Buriani for lunch, this time chicken instead of goat. It rained nearly all day here, so we enjoyed afternoon naps.

Thursday: Did a little shopping in a local market, then got henna on my hand. It tells the story of Mathew 7: 13-14: "Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and easy that leads to destruction, and those that enter by it are  many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few." I have been practicing sharing the scripture with my testimony, but have not actually used it in sharing with a non-believer yet. That evening, we were invited to another couple's house for tacos and games. This couple is also here serving long term with their family, but in a different context. We were also joined by several other single workers for a time of fellowship and hearing of their different ministries. It was neat to hear of the different ministries they have and the way the Lord is working among Kenyans and cousins.

Friday: Meeting with another local pastor that just moved to this area. He previously lived in another town near here where he focused solely on cousin outreach. He is now living in our area in the part of town where we previously did door to door evangelism. He is living among these cousins and would be a great partner in reaching them. It was encouraging to hear of his previous ministry in the nearby town and also of his goal here. It was encouraging to hear him speak of 'reaching out to the lost sheep' as 'we are already in the pen'.  God acknowledged how they were unified  and 'nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them'. Pastor encouraged us to unite together for the purpose of reaching cousins here. Kaleb was supposed to meet with the two Bible school students again this afternoon to teach sermon preparation; however, those plans fell through. Since we only have two weeks left, pray that more encounters with these guys would be available.

Saturday: The main event on Saturday was a meeting of the "Come Back Home team". This is a team of people from different churches in the area who have a heart for reaching out to cousins. They plan outreaches to cousin communities and ways they can train other believers in ministering to cousins. They have set a goal for the year of sharing with 2,500 cousins. They are about half way to that goal. They also work together to do follow up with those they have shared with and plan to send mission teams to strategic cousin areas that desperately need the gospel. This meeting was extremely encouraging.

There are many other conversations and meetings that we are getting to be a part of in which we are getting a personal look at what God is doing in this part of the world. Some of which we cannot share online for the security of those who are sharing and those who are coming to faith. It is amazing to see what God is doing among people groups who have been so hostile to the gospel for so long. However, it is also disappointing at times to hear of how much more ministry could be taking place if it were not for a lack of funds and budget cuts being made. The Lord is truly working in our hearts and giving us the desire to lead churches in the states to give to the ministry that is taking place among the unreached people groups in this part of the world. It is one thing to hear about the needs back home but it is even more convicting to see what more could be taking place if there was money to do it. The good news is there is money to do it, but those with the money must be willing to give it for it to happen. We pray the Lord would work in your heart as he is working in ours. The Lamb must receive the reward for his suffering and we have the marvelous privilege of being a part of that. Let us not squander this marvelous opportunity.