HBC Day 3

Today's HBC went great.  Our attendance was up again to over 130.  Pray for us as the numbers are becoming a challenge for our small team and limited meeting space.  But we are excited that so many children are coming to learn more about our Savior.

Our theme today was "I can trust God, He makes me brave."  We used the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to teach the children about God's faithfulness to give us the courage to do what is right, no matter what.  So much is changing for these children. Their once small rural communities are experiencing rapid growth and change as road improvements bring more traffic and commerce.  These changes bring many good things but also many things that could have a negative impact as well.  Thank you for your continued prayers for these children as they are learning to follow the Lord in all things.

One of the highlights of every day is snack time.  Most of these children come from poor families that struggle to carve out a life here.  So snack time is a great moment for them as they fill their hungry stomaches.  Each day, each child gets a large mug of juice and a huge sweet roll.  We are working with a local bakery to provide the rolls and the kids love them.  It's great to see the smiles of joy as the kids devour their snacks.  It is a joy for us to be able to provide something so simple yet so appreeciated.

We have two more days to go.  Pray for energy and strength as we finish well.

HBC Day 2

Day 2 of the HBC is in the books and it was a tremendous day.   Our numbers grew today with a total of 100 children between the two sites.  Our theme was taken from 1 Thesselonians 5:17, "Pray with out ceasing."  We taught the children the verse as "Never Stop Praying", encouraging them to make prayer a part of their life every day and to never  stop communicating with God.

The children taught our team a new game today.  It is a form of dodgeball involving one ball  and people standing in circle.   We all had so much fun playing and hearing the children laugh with joy.

One of the challenges for both the churches we are working with is that their congregations are young in both age and faith.  While the future looks bright, the present is challenging as a great deal of discipleship and growth is needed.  There are some wonderful leaders that are working hard but they need help.  We are priviledged to come alongside these churches this week to serve, but we know the needs are much greater than we can offer in a weeks time.  Be in prayer for the continued growth of these churches.  Pray the Lord will bring along some mature believers that are passionate about what the Lord is doing in this place.

We are excited for Day 3 tomorrow.  Our theme is "I can trust God, He makes me brave".  We will use the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, to communicate the truth that God is trustworthy and will give us the courage to do what is right, no matter what.   These children are growiing up in a rapidly chaging culture where many of the things that they were taught are being challenged.  This will be a very relevant message of 3 young men that took a stand for the Lord in the midst of a culture that did not value their beliefs.

Holiday Bible Club begins...

And we are off!  HBC began today and it was a blast.  We had about 75 children between the two sites today, with the morning HBC in Makuyu being the large group.  Very rarely does everything go exactly as planned during cross-cultural ministry  and today was no exception.  Our team handled everything with joyous flexibility and the HBC went very smoothly.

We taught the story of David and Goliath today, teaching the children that God can and will help them because of His great love for them.  Our memory verse for today was Psalm 121:2, "My help comes from the Lord". The children are great memorizers and now  have a new part of God's Word hidden in their hearts.  Some of our team members acted out the story as it was being told, to the great  delight of all the children. Watching Reyn play the role of Goliath brought lots of laughter from the children and our team members as well.

Our Kenyan team members are phenomenal.  They are such a great help and blessing.  It is wonderful to work in partnership with these wonderful believers.

Tomorrow's theme is "Never Stop Praying"  focusing on 1 Thesselonians 5:17.  We want the children to understand that prayer is bigger than asking, it is communicating with God and hearing His voice in our lives.

Speaking of prayer, pray that all of our team members get good sleep tonight.  We still trying to adjust and several of us have had a difficult time getting adequate rest.  God is our strength and our provision.

Praise the Lord

Clap your hands, all peoples!...Shout to God with loud songs of joy! Sing praises to God, sing praises! Sing praises to our King, sing praises! For God is the King of all the earth; sing praises with a psalm! God reigns over the nations; God sits on his holy throne.
(Psalm 47:1, 6-8 ESV)

Today our team did just what Psalm 47 says.  We praised the Lord, even during the moments when we did not understand the words being spoken.  Part of our team spent the morning in worship with Lifespring Baptist Church in Kenol.  The most exciting part of the service was hen a man named George trusted Christ as his Savior.  The other part of the team spent the morning at New Hope Baptist Church in Makuyu.  Theyhad a great morning filled with enthusiastic and authentic worship.

After lunch we traveled to visit Pastor Mwauru's parents.  They are both in their 80s and leading a church that meets in their home.  The shared tea with us, a Kenyan tradition, and hosted us in their home.  They are precious servants of the Lord and it was a joy to spend some time with them.

The HBC begins tomorrow morning.  We are excited for what the Lord is going to do.  Please continue to pray for us as we serve.  The Lord will be glorified as we share His Word and proclaim His name.

Getting Ready

Today was an easy day of travel. We left the busy city and headed into the countryside. It was fascinating to see the noticable change from modern Nairobi to the small villages that make up the majority of the country.

This afternoon gave us some time to prepare for the Holiday Bible Club that will begin on Monday. Pray for the team as we share God's great love with the children.

Late this afternoon we traveled to one of the local churches and spent time playing with kids from the local community. We played soccer. Taught them to throw a frisbee and an American football. Most importantly we showed them the love of Jesus. All of these children will be attending the HBC this week. Each one is precious to our Lord and important in His kingdom. Pray for them as we let them know that, to us and to God, Each One Matters.

Day of Rest...sort of

Today was designed  to be a day of rest, allowing our team a little jet-lag recovery.   We did have a fun day,  but a rather long day.  We visited the elephant  orphanage in Nairobi.  Baby elephants are very cute.  We visited the Kazuri Beads factory, a fair-trade company that employs many Kenyan men and women and pays them a fair wage for making beads, jewelry, and pottery.  It was great to see fair-trade in action...Kazuri is doing things right.  And we did a little souvinier shopping  at the local Masai  Market.

I shared with the team tonight that I am excited at their presence in Kenya because of what it represents for the local churches here.  This partnership started almost 3 years ago, as little more than a dream and an email.  Hope for the Hungry's desire was to connect God's people with God's work in the world.   After two initial visits from Hope staff, more emails, and a God-ordained lunch meeting, a partnership has begun to develop.  The long-term  goal is partnership for the glory of God, the stregthening of His church, and the growth of His Kingdom.  It is a joy to see God's people working together toward His purpose.

Thank you for your prayers.  Tomorrow we will travel to our ministry site and begin preparation for the HBC.  We will have a chance to spend some time with some of the local youth and children tomorrow afternoon.   Please continue your prayers for us and for the people that will hear God's Word this week.

Arrival

I have arrived safely in Kenya and have  even had a little time to rest this afternoon.   I will be departing shortly  to pick-up the rest of the team  from the airport.

This is an exciting week coming up as we prepare for Vacation Bible School (side note: it is called Holiday Bible Club or HBC here).  The HBC will allow us to share the story of Jesus with childen from 2 communities while working alongside volunteers from 2 different local churches.

Pray for our team over the next couple of weeks.  Pray for safety as we travel.   Pray for our Kenyan partners and team members as we serve and encourage them.  Pray for the children that will attend the HBC next week.  Since our time here last year, both churches have grown in numbers and in spiritual maturity.   I am excited to see what the Lord will continue to do.

Most importantly, pray for the connection that is forming between the two local churches here and the church from Texas.  Pray that the Lord will  continue to strengthen theeir hearts for one another.  Pray that the Lord will make the partnership possibilities clear and achievable.  It is a joy to be a part of connecting God's people with God's work in the world.   We appreciate your support and prayers.