There is, as always, far too much to write about, so I'm especially grateful to Justin for recapping some of yesterday's events! I am sitting in my room at Ufungamano House (our lodging for this part of the trip, on the University of Nairobi campus) waiting for today's work to start, so I thought I would briefly add a few reflections to Justin's recap.

The morning Pastors’ session had a very diverse group of attendees, from senior pastors to young men and women to community leaders and teachers. Pastor David's words were very well-received, and we're looking forward to today when we can have more attendees and also more discussion to really address the Biblical questions people here have on their hearts and minds...and there are a lot of questions. It is truly incredible how hungry people in Kenya are for the Word of God, and how much they want to understand it. You could literally have church all day every day and the building would remain full. Of course in this case they got lunch out of the deal, but not a particularly nice lunch, and other than that there was no “catch” – people really are that excited to be taught God’s Word. And remember, this isn't a church building like the ones we have come to demand in order to be able to have an adequate church experience. It was a packed one-room church with terrible lighting, no A/C, and the smell of the slum surrounding it. The whole thing was incredibly humbling, encouraging, and challenging all at once, and also makes me a little bit sad to think about how dead most US churches are in comparison. I’ve been ruined by the African passion for God - both in their worship and in their eager study of the Word - and I hope and pray that God would continue to transfer that passion to me and to this team, and from there back to the church in New Mexico.

The afternoon session was equally well-attended and people were just as engaged, despite the vast majority being women with small children on their laps. The audience was radically different than what we're used to, and each day I believe we'll get better at communicating through our translators, and understanding what questions and interaction style resonates with the listeners, but in any case God’s Word was received by hundreds of people today and that was powerful. I can say that confidently because it seems people here really believe that when God’s Word is spoken they receive power. Not because the speaker was compelling or the message was especially relevant, but power because it's God's Word and that has power. And not in some abstract, ill-defined way, but real, true, life-giving power. If the topic and speaker are good, that’s a bonus, but they believe the very act of receiving the Word of God changes them. We Americans are so entitled, thinking the Word only has power if it is brought in a way that is tailored to be comfortable, exciting, or enjoyable to us. Lord I pray that You would humble us and give us a faith like our family here in Africa!

Kenya Update: 5/31/2012

The team still does not have internet access.  However, Angie called me (Justin) on the phone today with an update.

But first a verse ... 1 Timothy 3:16-17 -  All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
 
Today, the team split up for the first time.  David, Gerald and Zach went to lead the Pastor Training and Worldview conference, while Angie, Elise and Anneliese taught the kids.  Both projects were a big success.

Today, the girls taught each of the classes.  They were very pleased with the children's ability to memorize and understand the verses.  The children loved making salvation bracelets and really enjoy having Anneliese, Angie and Elise there.

Meanwhile, the men received an overwhelming response to the Pastor Training Conference.  Due to the amazing demand, Tom and his crew had to give out tickets.  There was simply not enough room for everyone at the center.  People crowded around the windows and benches were setup outside the doors.  Still people had to be turned away.  Those who were unable to attend the Pastor Training simply waited for the Worldview Conference in the afternoon.  The afternoon conference met the same type of response.  Everyone wanted to be at both conferences.  In total, 120 people packed into the center for each session. Tomorrow the team plans to hold the sessions on the roof of the building.  This will enable them to reach 200 people in each session.  Overall, the people were very receptive to the message.

The girls went to watch part of the Worldview Conference in the afternoon.  The attendees were so gracious.  They immediately cleared the front row for Angie, Elise and Anneliese.  However, the girls did not want to kick anyone out, so spent more time with the kids.

As for the team, Angie reports they are doing better than expected.  They are exhausted from the long day, but doing good.  When I spoke to her, it was almost 10:30 Kenya time and they had just arrived home.

Praise the Lord for the work that is being done.  The people are starving for the hope of the Gospel and the harvest is plentiful.

~ Justin

PS - Join with me in praising the Lord in song for his mighty works.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VUsC6EcJy3E

First day

First full day here almost over. We seemed to have managed jet lag by just skipping Monday night - we left Monday morning, sat in planes a very long time, arrived, slept, and woke up Wednesday. I guess we'll get that day back when we return home.
We met with the kids at the Center today. Many of them remembered Zach; a few claimed they knew Pastor David since they saw his photos on the posters for the crusade. The school is amazing - lots of kids, all dressed up, sitting jam-packed next to each other, learning pretty intensely. Play time was just as amazing - the kids are ready to play anything you can show. At one point I knelt down to be at their eye level to tak to them, and I immediately had a large audience of kids, all also kneeling down, wondering what game started with kneeling down but completely ready to give it a try. I held one high in the air, and then had a dozen or more hanging on my hands and asking me to do them next.
We also joined the Wed evening service. Zach, David, and I all spoke. It is quite different speaking with a translator - timing, tone of voice, etc. are all very different. It's still preaching the Bible, and sharing with brothers and sisters, so it was great.
We were walking through the city center (kind of like downtown), and a boy (maybe 15 or so) came up to Pastor Tom to beg. Tom wouldn't give him money, but asked him about his life, learned he lived on the street, and told him to come with us, that Tom would give him somewhere to stay and teach him to fish (fishers of men as Jesus told his disciples). The boy refused, but there are many at the center who came to Christ, and a much better life, that way.
I also was amazed at a similar effect at the kids lunch at the Center. 170 kids, orderly lined up, waiting to be served rice and beans for lunch, and getting served one at a time. Every one of them would be trying to live on the streets, or living with someone just a little older also trying to live on the streets. At the Center, though, they have school, adults who care for them, and a chance to learn about God. Even with that, though, I looked at all those kids, and realized that not a single one of them had a mom or dad that was just theirs, that they could run to when they were scared, or pray with at night. Even with the care at the Center, they are still alone. I had a hard time imaging that, but the gap between what they have, and what they would have been doomed to, was still a bright and glowing testimony to the good that Pastor Tom has started in Jesus's name here.
Apologies if this is a little rambling, I probably wrote too soon about escaping jetlag! Gerald.

Just flew over Ur of the Chaldees. Crazy that thousands of years ago the father of faith traversed those lands. We are all tired, but well. Spent the first leg watching movies and trying to sleep, while surrounded by a big group from a private school in Texas. E different nature of our trips was striking. We are now boarding for Nairobi. Thank you for continued prayers. We will post again as we can.

Who we are

Just a few hours from take-off now. Bags are packed (ok, mostly packed) and, ready or not, here we go! The team sorted and packed all the gifts and donated items together yesterday and spent time in prayer together today, and I am continually in awe of how blessed I am to be part of such a quality group of servants. Everyone on this team has the most important trait of a missionary, which is simply the willingness to GO, but in addition each member has unique experience and passions (Ephesians 4, anyone?) which I believe God will use to huge effect on this trip and afterwards.

The team (from left): Zach, Elise, Gerald, Angie, David, Anneliese

A little more about our team members:

Zach: hey, that's me! I'm leading the team and am all kinds of excited for this trip. I believe God has plans not only to do great work in Kenya, but to use this experience and our partnership to open people's eyes back in New Mexico to His power and love.

Elise: Recently graduated from Tulsa University with a degree in international business, and has lots of international experience in Latin America, as well as a passion to work with children. This is her second trip with Celebration and she'll be helping lead the kids program.

Gerald: An engineer-turned-lawyer-turned-executive in Albuquerque. He has been involved in the partnership for a while, including hosting Pastor Tom when he was in New Mexico in summer 2011. Gerald will be heading up the Worldview conference for church members in Nairobi and the village, and he and I are also actively working on ways to use business and micro-investing as a means to help people lift themselves out of poverty permanently.

Angie: Leader of Hydration2Others along with her husband Justin. She's also a mother of five children, one of whom was adopted last year from Ethiopia. The experience Angie had traveling to Ethiopia and learning about the problems with access to clean water there was what motivated her and Justin to start H2O. In addition to this site, you can read Angie's thoughts on the trip at the H2O blog.

David: Lead Pastor of Celebration Baptist Church in Rio Rancho, New Mexico. Through his leadership at Celebration, David has played a huge role in motivating people to get involved in the Kenya partnership. David has a doctorate in theological studies and will be leading a pastor's conference on the trip to train and encourage church leaders. For many of them this will be the first formal training they have ever received.

Anneliese: High school teacher in Bryan, Texas, and has also worked alongside local leadership to run an orphanage in Kathmandu, Nepal. Along with Angie and Elise, Anneliese will be working primarily with the kids. Follow her blog, Beautiful Feet, for another perspective on the trip.

Now to finish that packing...stay tuned...

Trip Schedule

Just 3 days now...tomorrow afternoon the team is getting together for a packing party to collect all the gifts, donations, and materials and somehow make them all - in addition to our clothing and personal items - fit into 10 suitcases!

In the meantime, several people have asked to know what we're doing over there and how they can pray for us. So for all our awesome prayer warriors, here are our general plans. We are so grateful for your prayers as they go with us along every step of this journey.

May 28-29: travel to Kenya, arriving in Nairobi the evening of the 29th.

May 30-June 4: in Nairobi. We'll be putting on a kids program at the Centre, and training/discipleship conferences for pastors and church members. In addition, we'll be holding a crusade in a slum named Kariobangi on June 2-3, and visiting and ministering to people in Korogocho door-to-door. We are praying hard for open hearts and minds at all of these events, and for God to speak through us all.

June 5: travel to the Village area in western Kenya.

June 6-11: in the Village. We'll be doing similar discipleship work with the kids, pastors, and church members, as well as evangelism. We will also have a chance to dedicate the 3 existing and in-progress Hydration2Others wells, and tell people what H2O is all about and why so many Christians in the US have felt called to help provide clean water for people a continent away. Pray that God's love and truth would find its way into hundreds of Kenyans' hearts through all of these ministries!

June 12: return to Nairobi.

June 13: say goodbye and depart Kenya.

June 14: arrive in Albuquerque.

That's the very short version of what we're doing. We'll share a lot more as we go along and, of course, God's plans are much better than ours - the truly exciting part of this blog will be sharing about those as He reveals them to us one step at a time. In the meantime, your prayers for the team as we make final preparations and travel are deeply appreciated, as well as prayer for peace for family members of the team as they say goodbye for a couple of weeks.

Blessings to you all!

Where we've come and where we're going

Welcome (or welcome back!) to the Mission Korogocho blog. We're now just four days away from sending our next and largest ever team to Kenya, and can't wait to share our experiences with you via this blog. We hope you'll visit often, share your thoughts and comments with us, and forward this blog on to your friends so they can get excited about the work going on in Kenya!

A lot has happened since we first met Pastor Tom in April of 2010. God has blessed the work in Kenya through the support and involvement of hundreds of people throughout the US, and many teams from New Mexico and elsewhere have gone to Kenya to serve. Although we've retained the "Mission Korogocho" blog title, our partnership with Pastor Tom and his work in Kenya has now gone far beyond the Korogocho slum where we started. The work now reaches people throughout northern Nairobi, as well as the rural Siaya district in the Nyanza province in southwestern Kenya. We are also involved in more different kinds of ministry than ever before including child sponsorship, clean water access, evangelism, discipleship of church members and leaders, and so on. Check out the "About the Mission" tab to learn more about some of these ministries and the partners involved.

Over the next few days we will share more about the team, our goals for the trip, and prayer requests. We believe God has amazing things in store for this trip and for His work in Kenya as it moves forward, and look forward to sharing with you the stories of what He has done and the lives that have changed!