Missions Blog

We participated in two church services today, one in English and one in Swahili. At both services, we were introduced, and Matthew gave greetings from our team and church. Jonathan gave a wonderful sermon at both services. Matthew also gave his testimony. 

In between services, we all participated in classes:  Matthew, John, and Cody spoke in the men's group about leading their families and the challenges of work/life balance. Ellie and Matthew visited the young adult group to share about their faith and answer questions. And John and Cody visited the youth group, giving their testimonies and emphasizing that Jesus is the only way. Karen, Tiffany, and Cindy spoke in the women's group, encouraging them as they walk with the Lord and disciple their children. Karen and Tiffany also made gospel bracelets in the older children's class, while Cindy taught Bible stories in the younger class.

After the church services, we headed back to AIC Joy for a celebration of their first year as a congregation. Many people from both congregations came together to praise God and pray together. There was a lot of singing and dancing performed by various groups from the church. John and Cody shared their testimonies, and our team performed a song for them.

Our team participated in an evangelistic crusade today. We piled in a bus with church workers, teachers, and students, and drove around neighborhoods, stopping to pass out tracts and invite people to a  "crusade" at AIC Joy (a campus of AIC Zion). Many people talked to us and even attended the event because they were curious about the wzungu (white people) from America. The youth sang songs and danced, and our team members shared Bible stories, testimonies, and a gospel presentation. Everyone was invited back for church services tomorrow. 

Maasailand was our special destination today! Words fail to describe the people, homes, and land, so we are including many pictures that we hope will speak thousands of words.

We took a three-hour drive into the Kenyan highlands to visit the Maasai families and homes of ten students from the Lion of Judah school. This agrarian community warmly welcomed us, wearing their best traditional clothing and jewelry, and giving hugs and handshakes to us all. We were happy to see that the students had been brought there as well, and they introduced us to their parents. Much picture-taking followed!

They showed us their homes, which are made of cattle dung and sticks with poles to support them. The homes are low and dark with a door to keep out hyenas. There was a small alcove to cook over a fire, and another alcove to sleep in. Donkeys are used to carry large containers to gather water outside as there is no indoor plumbing or bathroom.

Family groups have houses arranged together within thick hedges of thorn bushes. These fences also create pens for their animals, which keep out hyenas, cheetahs, leopards, wild dogs, and lions.

Next, we walked to the  Maasai church in that community - a congregation of over 200 people who gather from up to 15 miles away.  The Maasai families, who had skipped their market day to be with us, joined our team in singing, dancing, and exchanging greetings from our church families. Jonathan shared a message of encouragement with them based on Paul's greeting to the Ephesians. They gifted all of us with hand-beaded jewelry as a gesture of their gratitude and hospitality. John even received a traditional cloak from one of the men. They were so happy that we visited their community and stated that they knew we had come because of our love for them. They thanked us for the help The Bible Chapel gave them during a season of drought in which they lost all their cattle and livelihood. We prayed together to thank God for His goodness to all of us. We then headed home after prayers and photos and many heartfelt goodbyes. 

We enjoyed another day with students at AIC Zion School. In addition to teaching classes, playing soccer/volleyball/hand rhyming games, and talking with children, we had other opportunities to serve. Jonathan and Matthew met with a group of pastors from various AIC churches. They discussed common issues in church ministry, answered questions about how we do ministry in our churches in the U.S., and gave encouragement to them as fellow believers.

Cody, Tiffany, Karen, and Cindy met with teachers from the school to learn from each other about teaching practices and concerns. At the end of the day, we attended the mid-week service at AIC Zion church. John shared a message of encouragement, and Jonathan prayed for the church's needs. Worshipping together through song, prayer, and scripture, allowed us to be together in our common faith, a body of Christ.

We visited some of the students' homes in the Methare slum and shared the gospel with those families and their neighbors. The homes are built back to back out of corrugated metal, on dirt roads littered with garbage, and with no sewage. They are generally a small room for the whole family to live in. One family we visited kept telling us what a blessing it was that we came to see them and how we were the first people from the U.S. to ever visit their home.

We prayed with each family for specific needs, such as finding a better job, trying to care for their parents, finding and paying for medications, paying for shoes and school supplies, wanting their children to do well in school, and for their children to leave the slums. Team members also spent time in the classrooms teaching various subjects, and playing with children during free time.