Is It Possible?

Wow, I can't believe we are heading for home tomorrow! We have spent the last 2 days in Eldoret, a city of about 1one million in Western Kenya. Eldoret is most known for its runners. Most of the long distance runners from Kenya come from this region.
We have had a great time in Eldoret full of many ups and downs. I love seeing what God is doing through our kids in Kenya. Hundreds of kids now have a home in heaven because of our kids and hundreds (maybe thousands) more have been encouraged, counseled, and prayed for.
Just as cool is seeing how God is using this trip to transform our kids. Every night we get together and share about our day and it is so good to sit and hear the stories of what God is doing in the lives of OUR kids. It may be the best part of my day.
We have a big student rally today in Eldoret, a couple of school visits tomorrow in Nairobi, then we hop on a plane and head for home. Not sure how I really feel about that.

One of the Best Stories From Kenya Ever!

Wow what a day! Everyone is doing great here in Kenya and loving every minute! Gosh I don’t want to even think about coming home on Sunday! (No offense parents! ) I am such a mess right now because I just had the opportunity tonight to meet the beautiful 9 year old girl, Grace, who I sponsor here in Kenya. But I will tell about that later.
We started the day by waking up at 5:30 am this morning to go on our safari! It was such an early morning for everyone! But we went to the Nairobi National Park for our safari which is so beautiful! Even though I went on the same safari last year, it is always amazing to see God’s beautiful creation! We saw giraffes, zebras, warthogs, a lion in a tree, a hippopotamus, a white rhino, wildebeests, and buffalo! It was amazing and everyone took so many awesome pictures! I myself probably took around 300…but that doesn’t even compare to my 600 last year! At the end we were able to go to a gorgeous overlook to take pictures! Beautiful as always! It was great for us to just relax and have fun after many long days of ministering.
After the safari, we went on to visit a mixed high school (both girls and boys) that was pretty close in the area. The majority of the students who attended that school were slum kids from Kibera, but it was so amazing as always to see their love for God radiate from their faces and also their singing. Mrs. Vivian spoke there and she did awesome as always- letting God speak through her as she ministered to about 150 students. We had a great time talking to those students afterward and also leading many of them to Christ for the first time in my life.
I had a great day and had so much fun- but I was totally anxious ALL day because I had set up with World Vision to meet and eat dinner with my sponsored child, Grace Wangari, who is 9 years old. I started sponsoring her in December and was so excited that she lived near Nairobi. I had written to her 2 times prior to this and had also received a picture and letter from her. She was supposed to show up at 6pm to the Grace House. But of course TIA (this is Africa) and they didn’t show up until 6:45…I was freaking out! But finally their van pulled up…and out walked the most BEAUTFIUL Kenyan girl I have ever seen in my whole life- she had the cutest dress on. We began to walk towards each other and she just could not stop smiling. I was in shock that this was actually happening. She was so smart and polite as she began to meet everyone. We walked next door to the Yaya Center to eat dinner. Her mother also came with her and could not express how happy and thankful she was for me. Grace and I could not stop smiling as we took tons of pictures together! Also everyone videoed almost every moment we had together and I am so thankful. She sang songs, said hi to my family, and recited Bible verses. I gave her a book bag of all kinds of stuff- school supplies, toiletries, and clothes. She was so joyful and thankful for everything. Saying goodbye was probably one of the hardest things I have done in my life. She would not stop holding my hand and we could not stop saying goodbye and ‘Nakupenda!’ (I love you). I will never EVER forget this moment and as I began to walk inside I began to cry….tears of happiness but also of sadness just knowing that she lives so far away. I am determined to meet her many times again and she was so happy. We both decided that we would be sisters….as I have one older brother and she has 2 older brothers- both of us never receiving a sister. I miss her so much already and just can’t believe I was able to experience that. I cannot stop thinking about her and picturing her smiling face, and I know for a fact that she is thinking the same about me at this moment also.

The Abundant Life

Hey everybody! Today was a good day. We started off by going to St. Teresa’s “B” School, where Natalie gave her testimony, which by the way was so good and so heartfelt, and my mom ministered. My mom’s message was also amazing and spirit led; originally no one responded to the alter call but Joseph, a Source of Light minister, came up after and sort of helped give them the final push they needed. While I was talking to three girls about their relationship with Christ another girl approached me. She first asked me about our spiritual experience in Kenya so far. I explained to her how I was first impressed with how much joy these Kenyans possessed in spite of all their misfortunes and horrible situations. Then I explained how Jesus had just moved through and used the group to bring so many people to Christ, including around 10 Muslims. She responded by telling me how she had considered suicide, but she had realized how much Christ loved her so she decided not to. I was so blessed to know that she had come to the realization of God’s love for her. I felt led by God to show her John 10:10-“Satan comes to steal, kill, and destroy; but God comes to give life and give it more abundantly.” While I was sharing this with her I was thinking it was pointless because I was left with the impression that suicide was a problem further in her past. But as I was talking with my mom about the whole situation, she asked how I knew that it wasn’t something she had just dealt with during our presentation; I honestly had no answer and it was very possible that this was a recent issue. Hearing this made me feel so happy that I was open to God and read her that scripture.
I have just been so impressed with how God has rested His Spirit on the entire group and how He has used us mightily. I am honored that He has chosen me to impact the lives of these Kenyans and am expecting bigger and greater things to happen as the week goes on.

I can't believe I have the opportunity to do this!

Hey Family and friends! Today has been one of my favorite days in Kenya out of my three trips that I’ve taken! The Lord truly used EVERY member of our team today each in a unique important way. Today was the first day of our school visits-which is what we spent so much time practicing for back home. The first school we went to was an all girl’s school where I had the responsibility of speaking. I was pretty well prepared so I wasn’t feeling nervous until we walked into the room. All the sudden I allowed the Devil to enter in and instantly discourage me. I became so nervous and just wanted to tell Mike that there was no way I could do this and maybe Ms. Jo should speak. The service began with worship, then our music, and our skit. Then it became time for me to step on stage and deliver the word God laid on my heart. After I prayed the Holy Spirit COMPLETELY took over. I no longer felt anxious, worried, and scared. At the end of my talk I gave all the girls the opportunity to raise their hands if they wanted Christ to come into their lives. Close to 30 girls walked outside to pray with all the Landmark students. My favorite part of the day was walking outside seeing groups crowded around each and every one of my friends hearing the word of God and accepting it into their lives, all because I was obedient to the call Christ placed in my life. Tonight at share time I shared this moment of my day through tears of joy. Today I experienced a moment that I feel was a glimpse into my future and the plan God has for my life. It was a moment where I thought, “Wow! I can’t believe I have the opportunity to do this. I can’t believe I was chosen.” I pray that feeling will never leave when I am walking in the will of God.
Thank you so much for your prayers because we are experiencing so many wonderful blessings. All of your children will have countless stories to tell you when they get home! Continue to keep us in your prayers!

The Big Rally

Greetings from Kenya!! Today was our first official day working with the Source of Light team and just so happened to be one of the most important days of the trip! Today was the Source of Light rally at Nairobi Baptist Church…total attendance=3500 students. Pretty impressive!
So we were all kind of nervous and hoping everything works out, and praise the Lord it did!! We arrived at the Source of Light office at 9am and walked over to the church around 9:45am. The rally began at 10:00 and lasted until 5pm! Approximately 15 schools were represented and each gave a performance (ie: singing, dancing). It was definitely a cultural experience.
Students in Kenya are not afraid of singing and performing in public. This is very different from students in the U.S. The passion that Kenyan’s have for worship is exhilarating. We are all so very encouraged and uplifted from the worship and speakers we witnessed today.
Also, my Kenyan friend (Bilha) travelled 6 hours to come see me at the rally today! We met in Mombasa last year and have kept in touch via phone/facebook. She is a very dear friend of mine; I was so excited to see her for the second time and spend most of the day with her. Prayers were definitely answered today.
At our share time tonight, we talked about how encouraging it is to spend time with our Kenyan friends. Ben Mwangi, who we met through Sarah Gravitt and also last year in Kenya, spent the day with us as well. He is amazing  Ben grew up in the third largest slum of Kenya and by the grace of God got plugged in with Compassion. This ministry changed his life and helped him out of poverty. Since then he has graduated from university and went back to his childhood slum to teach physics and Arabic (one of the 17 languages he is fluent in..crazy!) His story is such an inspiration and is part of the reason I sponsored a child through Compassion.
Our team is doing great! Lainie is scheduled to arrive tomorrow and we are all just so pumped up! Please continue to pray that the Holy Spirit will fill us and give us the words to speak. I can’t believe we’re missing the snow back home…and Oz burned down!!
Asante Sana!! (thank you!!)
Hillary

The Maasai

Kenya is a nation of tribes; there are more than 40 tribes in the nation of Kenya. One of the most recognized is the Maasai tribe. The Maasai are the Mennonites of Kenya. Most of them still wear the traditional dress of their ancestors long ago and practice many of the same customs. Spotting Maasai on the streets is relatively easy; there traditional dress is called a Shúkà, made up of three sheets (usually red) with one worn over each shoulder and the third over the top of the other two. They also pierce and stretch their earlobes. Their lives are centered around cattle and a man’s wealth is determined by how many cattle he has. Maasai tradition says that God gave all the cattle on the earth to the Maasai so cattle rustling from other tribes is considered taking back what is right fully yours. This has been a very difficult time for the Maasai due to the drought. Many of their cattle are dying and the Maasai people are really suffering.

I have seen many Maasai during my travels through Kenya but never had the opportunity to speak with any of them until now. I had the privilege of traveling to Maasai Land this week to talk to some Maasai pastors. Of all the things I have ever done in Kenya, this may top the list. One of the pastors I met was a man named Simon. When I asked him how old he was he said 69 or 70, I don’t think he knew for sure. He had just become a pastor a few years ago and when I asked him how long he planned on pastoring, he told me he promised God he would preach the Gospel until he died. One of the traditions I had heard about concerning Maasai boys was that in order to prove themselves a man, they had to kill a lion with a spear. Because of all the national parks in the country this is not done anymore, but when I asked Simon about it, sure enough, when we was a boy, he killed a lion!

The cool thing about the Maasai is that many of them are coming to Christ. Their struggles with Christianity remind me a lot of the early church in Acts. The first Christians were Jews and when the Jews became followers of Christ, many of them struggled with what part the Law played in their walk with God and whether they still had to keep the Law and if so what parts. With the Maasai, it’s the same thing. They still practice things like polygamy and female circumcision, but because they are a fierce warrior people, when they become Christians, they become fierce advocates for Jesus Christ.

Please pray for the Maasai people as they struggle with day to day survival and wrestle with their faith.

The Battle for Ethiopia

Ethiopia has a population of about 80 million. Of that, roughly 40% is Muslim and only about 15% is Evangelical Christian. Not only that, but Ethiopia is surrounded on three sides by Muslim nations; there’s Somalia and Djibouti to the east, Eritrea to the north, and Sudan to the west. It’s my sense that, if left unchecked, it’s just a matter of time before Ethiopia becomes a Muslim nation like her neighbors.

To stem the tide of this Muslim pressure on Ethiopia, I believe a two-fold strategy is necessary. First, we need to be working on making more followers of Jesus Christ. The Spirit of God seems to be working in Ethiopia and many many people are coming to Christ. However, evangelism by itself is not the answer. While we need more followers of Jesus Christ, we also need better followers. We need Christians in Ethiopia that understand God’s word and are able to apply it to their daily lives.

Go into any Christian bookstore in the U.S. and you will be overwhelmed by the number of Bible study materials available, not so in Ethiopia. Chances are your pastor has some kind of seminary training, again, not always the case in Ethiopia. Most of our churches have Sunday school or small group ministries to help people grow in their faith, once again not always the case in Ethiopia. The result is that most Christians in Ethiopia have a rudimentary understanding of God’s Word and are susceptible to all kinds of false teaching. Yet, I run in to man and women all the time who understand the importance and need for discipleship in their churches yet are struggling to find sound affordable materials to disciple their members.

That’s why I love what Source of Light East Africa is doing in Ethiopia. We are currently printing Bible study materials in three major languages in Ethiopia for people of all ages and all levels of spiritual maturity. And because we print all our materials in Ethiopia, we are able to print them for pennies.

Just this past week, I had an opportunity to speak to a group of associate pastors in Ethiopia. The response is always the same, “We love your materials! How can we get them for our church?” So, while our ministry is relatively young, we are introducing our materials to church leaders all over Ethiopia. This gives me great hope that not only will we win the battle for Ethiopia, but that Ethiopia will become a stronghold for Christianity in the region.

Where have all the Christians gone?

Now, I’m not much of a talker on airplanes. In fact you guys that are talkers really get on my nerves. I prefer to pull out my iPod or bury myself in a good novel. I hear guys talk about how they pray God will give them opportunities to share their faith with people on the plane. I pray God will put me around people who don’t want to talk and that will just leave me alone.
So as I was minding my own business reading my book, I noticed the guy next to me was reading a Christian book. His name was Corey and turns out he was a pastor in Turkey. Corey’s parents were immigrants from Turkey but Corey was raised in the U.S. Sometime in his late 20’s, Corey felt the call to go to Turkey and start a church. So he (and his father) left the “good life” of the U.S. and went to Turkey to start churches.
Turkey has a population of about 80 million, mostly Muslim, and only about 100,000 are Christians. As we continued to talk about the church in Turkey, Corey shared with me that he had been arrested about a dozen times over the ten years he had been pastoring in Turkey. But his passion for the people of Turkey did not seem to be dampened in the least.
As he pulled out his laptop and started sharing pictures of several of the church plants, it was kind of like a proud parent pulling out pictures of their children. The really cool thing to me was the cities these church plants were in. He showed me a church plant in Ephesus, yes, that’s the same Ephesus that Paul wrote the book of Ephesians to. He also showed me a church plant in Laodicea, a city mentioned in the book of Revelation. I didn’t even know those places existed anymore much less that they were in Turkey.
Makes me wonder, how does the center of the Christian faith 2000 years ago become a place where it’s even hard to find Christians?