The Work Camps

On our last day of evangelism we headed out to the tea plantations yet again. However, this time, we visited a different area–the actual tea plantations. The previous days we had just been walking through private fields, but now we visited the work camps. In the Nandi Hills there are enormous tea plantations owned by tea factories and they have large housing units where some of their African workers live.

After asking permission to enter, we spent hours and didn’t even reach all 3 of the camps. In one camp, we visited with around 50 people; among them, I only found one very small bible. It was very sad for me seeing how many of them had given up on God, how many of them had never heard the gospel, and how many of them went to church, but had no understanding of God’s Word. We spent a lot of time encouraging people, praying, leading people to Christ, and answering tough questions.

There was one little widow in particular whom I will never forget. She told me “I have had every preacher in town pray over me but God hasn’t healed me…now I don’t go to church. I don’t know why God has not healed me.” After about 20 minutes of discussing with her the promises of scripture and not looking to pastors for powers, she was in tears as my African friend Sharlene and I prayed for her. It amazes me how far a little bit of truth and compassion can go. After this, we went next door and her neighbors accepted Christ for the first time.

Like the rest of the Nandi Hills, this place is very beautiful on the outside, and the white people who run these factories have put more than adequate money into their housing projects. Some Africans described living in this neighborhood as if it is an honor, but the people who live there are in need of some spiritual encouragement and I am praying over who to speak with and what to do for them.

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By the second day of our trip, we were quite well seasoned at sharing the gospel and praying for people. We would walk, pray, walk, share, walk, encourage…until we found ourselves miles away from camp and needing to head home.

These people come from a much different culture than ours. They are very open about their problems and the sin in their life compared to us. We would walk past houses and people would come after us saying “I know why you are here! You are praying with people. Don’t pass my house; stop and pray for me too!” Then we would go inside, and within two minutes we would know every problem they had and every failed relationship they needed to reconcile.

There was one little women who’s husband was an alcoholic. She said she was saved, but that her husband was not. She wanted us to pray for them and said it was a struggle day in and day out at their home because of constant fighting and bickering. As everyone was praying over her, I prayed for Wilson, her husband, that somehow we might run into him. About 20 minutes later, we ran into a man on the road named Wilson. He said he didn’t go to church and had never accepted Christ. After the men in my group had counseled him for a half hour and answered his questions, he accepted Christ as Savior, and then we prayed for him. I never went back to see if it was her husband or not, but I still pray for her.

1st Day in the Hills

Pictured to the left is a Christian man and his family whom we visited on our first hike. I told him I wanted a picture with him so I could share his request for prayer with my church back home. He told us to pray that his people would be delivered from their Alcoholism. He informed us that most of the poverty we would see is due to men who drink everything they make while leaving their families starving and hopeless. I would say that his life is a testimony that a man who walks with the Lord and abstains from being a drunkard can provide for his family. His family eats, his children are clothed, and they have a roof over their head.

As we continued hiking, I saw houses where God was not present, and I saw houses where he was present, and it became very evident to me that the promises of God stand firm. Exodus 20:5-6 says “You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand [generations] of those who love me and keep my commandments.”

Below is an example of this verse in action.  This picture is of a wonderful mama I had the privilege of meeting. She is very old and has been blessed with a long life (life expectancy here is around 50 years). Not only this, but because she chose to follow Jesus Christ, her daughter was raised in the Lord, and now her daughter knows the Lord, married wisely, and has children whom all respect her and are being raised in Christ. It is awesome to see generational blessings in action. This family may be poor, but there is much love, joy and peace in their lives.

Seeing the Lord at Work

This week in the Nandi Hills was absolutely amazing. Thank you for your prayers. Sorry I was unable to update my blog while I was there. I will spend the next few days recapping on our trip, but my internet is acting up so please be patient with me.

The Nandi Hills are a place where God’s majesty is evident through His creation everywhere you search. From rolling hills of lime green tea plantations to patches of rain forest full of colobus monkeys, it is easy to find yourself pausing in amazement. However, despite all the beauty, there is much pain. My heart breaks when I look into these hills and see such beauty among such turmoil. Alcoholism, political violence, oppression, and poverty are everywhere. The people work hardest early in the morning dew which dampens the tea leafs–adding to their weight. According to one of my Nandi friends, they are payed around 6 cents for every Kg they pick, so weight is everything. I would liken life here to a days labor for a days food.

Broken and impoverished, these people are more open to the love of Christ than anything I have ever experienced. I did not cross a single person unwilling to accept Jesus Christ as savior, and those who knew Him were eager for prayer. We had many pastors with us this week from Nandi, and I must say they truly know that the riches of Christ are more than the riches of the world.


Leaving for Nandi Hills

I will be going with a group down into the Nandi hills this week, and I ask that you keep us in your prayers. Please pray that God would guide us, keep us safe, and work through us as we minister towards these people.

A few days ago I learned from one of my colleagues (a Kenyan missionary who lived in India for 10 years) that my friends from San Angelo and I will actually be visiting the village he grew up in. It is amazing how small this world can be! He was very excited to hear that we were going to share the gospel with his people.

In the mean time, I have spent two days packing for the next week. My bag could not be any fuller and I still have a large box of medicine I will be taking with me. Oh, how I wish I wasn’t an over-packer. Good news is, I am healthy and my strength has returned.

Praise God for Healing

Sorry for not posting any updates this past week.

I was very ill all of last week after receiving a positive malaria test and ended up at Aga Khan Hospital in Nairobi. Thankfully, one of my Kenyan friends offered to meet me in Nairobi and took very good care of me.  I went to a specialist at Aga Khan later in the week and they confirmed that my malaria test was negative, and I had no need for antiparasitic chemotherapy. (I nearly died and then went crazy the last time they treated me for malaria, so it was a relief not taking those drugs again).  Supposedly all I had was a virus that causes horrible joint pain, uncontrollable muscle spasms, shaking, weakness, irritability, low blood pressure and nausea. It was a very odd experience indeed, but praise God, it is gone!

In the mean time, please pray for Kitale. I have had three confirmations since I returned home that we are experiencing the beginning of a three month food shortage. In anticipation of Kenyan Elections, and rumors of upcoming genocide, all grocery stores in town are letting their shelves go bare because they don’t want to be looted. Imagine going to Walmart and finding nothing on the shelves for months because Walmart anticipates violence in your town. I don’t know how serious of a deal this will be, but please pray for the people. We produce a good portion of our own food, but when there are already kids starving in your town, this only makes things look worse. The saddest part of all this is that Kitale actually has a reputation of being peaceful in the midst of clashes.

 

Making New Friends while Saying Goodbye to Others

Today I said goodbye to my company. They have begun their 40 hour journey home. However, as they leave, I will have the pleasure of building friendships and relationships with those that they leave behind. After Lisa and I spoke at the women’s conference, the church  asked me to come and lead a bible study for the women! What we preached was well received! Please pray that this opportunity becomes a reality and that these women would come and learn. It was such a joy visiting this church, meeting these women, praying over them, and watching as many of them were baptized. I will testify that, from what I have seen over the past week, this church has a lot of fruit, and I hope to disciple some of the growing number of women there.

Below is a picture of the watering hole where many of the new believers were baptized. All I can say is it takes a great leap of faith and courage to be baptized in this water. Not very often do you hear a pastor pray over the water before baptizing people in it. The prayer was that it would be sanctified (purified) from all parasites and life threatening diseases.

You can see the men on the right with the donkey cart fetching water while everyone is being baptized.

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  • Sharing God's Love in East Africa