Week 1

This week has been filled with hardship and laughter, tears and joy. The challenges that come with living with a host family in a completely foreign country are great, but the blessings are even greater. I think it is safe to say that my host family are some of the kindest and most generous people I have ever met. I am so thankful.

This week we have spent several days doing home visits and prayer meetings in the "manatas". These are the living quarters for many of the Samburu. They are mud dwellings with the roof made out of sticks. Most are very small, yet I went in one yesterday that even had a couch. Preaching to the Samburu women has been one of the most challenging parts of my time here, because the language barrier is so great. Most of what I say has to be translated to Swahili, and then into Samburu. But these women are so joyful. Their eyes light up as they sing worship songs, and they are quick to offer Chai after the service.

We have also made home visits, preached at several churches, and taught bible lessons at a preschool and children's home in the area. Volunteering to pass out trachoma immunizations was one of my favorite ministries so far. Another favorite of mine has been spending time with the girls at a boarding school in the area. We have tried to visit them almost every day, and build relationships with these girls. Many of them have been rescued from harsh home environments, so the school is a chance for them to get an education and pursue their own dreams.

I brought Phase 10, the card game, to Kenya. Let's just say I am not sure my host family will ever be the same. We play for a few hours almost every night. Pastor and Mamma always try to cheat, and my Kenyan brother always ends up winning. But it has been a fun way to spend time with the family.

I was told before I left Nairobi that "the God of Tennessee is the God of Africa". And this one statement has left me so encouraged. The same God who called me here is the one who reigns here as well. What a privilege it is to see Him at work miles and miles from home.

Feed My Starving Children

While teaching at a preschool this morning, I came across a bag of rice, soy beans, and flax. I looked down at the package and what do you know-it was from the organization Feed My Starving Children. Back in December, I joined many other Belmont students as we packed bags for this organization. What a privilege it was to see where, the actual place, that the work of the organization is sent. Over the past week I have felt so useless here. I cannot communicate with most of the kids or adults here, so I have been very frustrated. How can I share the love of Christ when I cannot even speak the language? Yet, finding these bags was a powerful reminder that the seeds I had planted all the way back in December were producing fruit, and feeding many children each day. So, that is the same hope I am clinging to for the next three weeks. I may never see the fruit of my time here in Maralal, but I trust that seeds planted in good soil will eventually grow.

Shakira, Zebras, and Showers

After traveling almost 11 hours, we finally made it to Maralal. It is safe to say that this town really is in the middle of nowhere, or somewhere, as our director would say. I experienced many firsts yesterday, so I thought I would make a list.

1. first time being called shakira
2. first time crossing the equator, in Kenya
3. first time traveling 7 hours on a dirt road, and stopping twice because we were totally stuck in the mud
4. first time seeing a wild zebra
5. first time taking a shower with a bucket of water
6. first time in Maralal

As you can see, there were many firsts for me yesterday. While it was very overwhelming, I realized that I am beginning three weeks of "firsts". I would be lying if I said I wasn't terrified, because each new experience has been a stretch for me. But, I am so excited to see what God has to teach me in the process.

I'd encourage you today, where ever you find yourself, to go and experience a first. I think what you will find is that God will meet you exactly where you are.
Sending love from Maralal!

Maralal

Yesterday we recieved our ministry assignments. This is where I will be living for the next three weeks. I will be spending my time in Maralal, a small town about a days drive from Nairobi. My ministry partner, Catherine, one of the global project Kenyan students, and I will be working with Pastor Moses and his wife Mama Unis.

While in Maralal, I will visit a hospital, several schools, and a home for children with disabilities. At all of these places we will be building relationships and sharing with them the hope of Christ. We will also be preaching at a church a few Sundays. One of the most important parts of this assignment is that we will be working with the Samburu women. The Samburu tribe is the most traditional tribe in Kenya. They are a sub-group of the Massai, and are nomads and herders. They are most known for their tradition of female circumcision. Because of this we will have incredibly unique opportunities to minister to women who are victims of abuse, and share with them the healing love of Christ. While I am very overwhelmed by the magnitude of this assignment, I am also excited that God has chosen me to help love on these women in His name.

There will be many challenges in the next few weeks. Please be praying for a positive relationship with my host family, and that I would have courage and boldness to try new things (especially food!) and to proclaim the name of Christ. My heart is already so heavy for the women I will meet. Please pray that Catherine and I could powerfully share the love of Christ with these women!
Excited to share what God will do!

Janet

"Be open, this is about God." In the midst of a 2 hour preparation for leaving for our ministry assignments, (we will be doing minstry for 3 weeks in cities throughout Kenya with one other student from our team) these words were said. After an overwhelming amount of information about cultural sensitivity, do's and don'ts on just about every topic, this was how the conversation ended. See, I am learning that I really had no idea what I was getting myself into when I signed up for this trip. I did not sign up for the typical missions trip, living with a team and doing ministry during the day. No, I signed up for a global project, which means living with a Kenyan family for a month, learning the Kenyan culture and living it.

The Kenyan culture is very conservative, and very different from Tennessee. Here, looking into someone's eyes can be a big sign of disrespect. Letting your knees show is also very inappropriate, and tops should cover near to the collar bone. While dress is only one small part of the puzzle, communication is another challenge. In Kenya, the term beat around the bush is perfected. Friends are not direct with each other, and are very non-confrontational. So, there are certain topics that are just not discussed here. Learning to shake hands as I walk down the dirt road has been exciting, and here the measure of an effective day could be how many hands you have shook.

In my weakness, I am terrified that I will make some cultural blunder, one that will break trust between me and my new Kenyan friends. My personality is very opposite a lot of the culture here, so learning to be a little more conservative and not speak straightforwardly has been interesting! All to say, some days I feel like I am walking on glass, a thin layer that could shatter at any minute.

Two termites landed in my hair tonight, and nearly threw me over the edge. With a possible case of bed bugs as well, I was on the verge of tears. I know, I know, its Africa... but I still wasn't exactly prepared for that! But, as those thoughts came, this one sentence came as well. Be open, be open, this is about God. There is a freedom that comes when I choose to take that to heart. I have to let all of Africa, the good and the bad, to easy and the hard, permeate my heart.

In two days, I will leave to live with a Kenyan family for a month. Why me? How? Can I even do it? These are the questions that keep running through my head. Hearing stories from past trip students gives me the hint that roughing and toughing it will be an understatement for the next few weeks. But, when I come back to this phrase, I am reminded my purpose in being here. And I am so quickly humbled. Was this not Moses' exact cry in Exodus 3:1-12, the exact Sunday school lesson I taught earlier this morning? Was he not saying why me Lord? I am not ready nor equipped! Are you sure you have chosen the right person? As I find myself asking these questions, I remember that it is never my power in the first place that brought me here, and it is not my power now that will sustain me. Teaching this lesson in front of 30 ten to twelve year olds, all beautiful kids who have been orphaned, neglected, and abandoned, I am humbled. Moses felt so inadequate, yet he chose to be obedient, and his obedience changed in turn changed the course of history forever. His call, like mine this morning with my Sunday school class, was just to go.

So today, I am going to make a new choice. Being around 95 destitute kids teaches you something. It makes you look at the world just a little bit differently. As Janet- my new 15 year old friend from the Nairobi Children's Centre-and I sang I was met with these eyes, that had refused to give up, refused to be defeated by her circumstances. Before I left she handed me a note from her precious notebook that said this....
The greatest joy...giving
The greatest problem to overcome...fear
The most powerful force in life... love
The world's most incredible computer...the brain
The two most power filled words..."I can"
The most beautiful attire...a smile
The most powerful channel of communication...a prayer
The most contagious spirit... enthusiasm

Be blessed. Sending love from Kenya.
-Jenny