Today was wonderful – some of us woke up a little early to read outside as the sun rose over the Rift Valley. It was a little cold, and I read a Psalm that proclaimed the glory of God and it brought me to worshipful prayer. There was a lot of rustling in the trees, and I soon found out that monkeys (or baboons) run rampant around Kijabe, and one was even bold enough to cross the lawn to the tree in front of me.
I had heard that monkeys were aggressive, so I cautiously made my way back inside and finished my reading there. We did a morning devotional as a team, and then headed to Isaac & Esther’s house for breakfast. After unpacking the supply bags that our team had brought them, we headed down to Maai Maihu to meet up with the other Kenyans at Rift Valley Fellowship. A little boy named Peter sat beside me – he had the most innocent eyes and a sweet smile, and he politely answered “Yes” to everything that I asked him. I began to show him my pictures from America and he was fascinated – he later told one of the adults (in Swahili) that he wanted to go on a stroll with his friend (me) later that evening, and that he wanted to come visit me in America. I laughed and said I would love for him to come visit me.
We organized into teams of seven or eight and got to know each other better as we fellowshipped and prayed with one another. We then walked to a lunch spot and Peter came with us. He ate a big plate of food and asked for a Coca Cola – he probably didn’t understand what we were talking about at lunch, and was completely captivated by the TV the entire time. Peter is so cute that almost everyone with a camera took pictures of him all day long. Toward the end of his meal, Peter’s eyes flooded with tears – at first we thought that his eyes might be watering from watching the TV so intently (almost without blinking!), but we later realized that his little heart was full of gratitude for the day and for the meal, and he told Esther later that he did not expect to eat dinner when he got home that night.
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| Peter |
After lunch we organized into groups of four and walked around a new part of town for about an hour and a half. We stopped and prayed with several people, and were able to share the love of Christ and the hope that we have in Him. Several people said that they were Christian, and Rift Valley Fellowship generously offered them audio-Bibles if they did not have one. As we walked along, children from the surrounding area flocked to us – we seemed to pick up a handful of them every time we stopped to talk with someone. I saw a sweet, meek little girl smiled at me and I felt lead to ask her if I could pray for her. I asked her if she wanted prayer for anything, and she replied, with a big smile - “Yes, I need new blood.” I prayed for her healing and hope that God has healed her today.
We met several people who seemed interested in joining us at Rift Valley Fellowship on Sunday, which was very encouraging. We did open-air evangelism in a new spot since our former location was occupied by a fundraising event. This new area seemed less visible, yet people still gathered to hear the worship music and our testimonies. Children gathered all around us to play with us, and we all had a great time.
I prayed that God would give me the opportunity to share my testimony if He wanted me to today, and sure enough Esther asked me to do it. I was nervous beforehand, and asked the Holy Spirit to speak through me and to give me peace and confidence. And He did!! I had a wonderful peace up there as I was speaking, and Esther translated my testimony into Swahili for the bystanders. I was grateful to see them listening, and am hopeful that the Holy Spirit helped me to share my testimony in a way that explained the Gospel and glorified my God.
Nellie gave me a sweet hug after I was finished, and I sat down next to an elderly woman named Veronica. She pulled out a card from one of the Kenya hospitals and pointed to numbers written on it (probably a blood cell count). I am not sure of what sickness she has, but I prayed over her for healing and for God to bless her with His nearness, and she smile. Pastor Isaac shared an encouragement in Swahili and we headed home.
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| Veronica |
After dinner, we gathered to share stories from the day and to pray. Hayley mentioned that she saw Peter heading home after the open-air evangelism with a sad look on his face, so she pulled him aside to ask him what was wrong and tears began to stream down his face. Hayley said that he had fear in his eyes, and really did not seem to want to go home. Esther later confirmed that she had had a conversation with Peter earlier that day, and he said that his mother was a prostitute – he had seen terrible things, and Isaac told us that a lot of men abuse the prostitutes and sometimes even their children. Many young children have seen and experienced such terrible things, and they are defenseless to stop them.
We ended the night in prayer, and are hopeful and are excited for tomorrow’s service at Rift Valley Fellowship!
Goodnight!!
Blessings & Love,
Lauren
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