House Guests

In the last few weeks, we have had an unusually high number of houseguests. Here are a few of them...

Matthew McBride has a different approach to critters than I do... he wants to catch and keep them. I'm all for exterminating. Currently there is a crab in a box, 2 snakes in a cooler (see below), a scorpion in an old ice cream container, and a small tarantula in tuperware.

I stumbled upon this intruder my first night completely alone in the McBride's house... no guard, no Matthew, no one! I did what any sensible girl would do - called Papa! I'm pleased to report that he is now dead.

I was on the other side of the screened in door looking out when this guy jumped on it. Surprise!

Most recent find- just a couple of house snakes. Can someone explain to me why we have "house snakes"? It seems as if whoever named them thought it was appropriate for snakes to be in the house.

These little frogs are a daily issue. They secrete a nice, poisonous slime on their skin so if you touch them, wash your hands quickly. They come in constantly... fortunately, they are frog mutants who can't seem to hop... they creep along like Golum in Lord of the Rings.

Not pictured: a large crab that showed up in the office.

Mary Mole was my Swahili teacher in Kenya. She’s a dignified and gregarious woman who speaks her mind and works hard. She also has AIDS. Her husband died 7 years ago from AIDS and she was diagnosed shortly afterwards. After spending months in the hospital, she began to improve due to anti-retro viral treatment. She has four children, the youngest of whom is 13 (Sarah - pictured to the left with Mary), all of whom know her status and are loving, loyal and supportive of her. In the spring of this year she decided to make her status known to her boss so that she would have the opportunity to minister to others with AIDS. Her boss, the headmaster at a church-affiliated high school, began to make life miserable for her until finally Mary asked for a transfer.
Mary’s life story is exile. Her mother was kicked out of the house with her and Mary’s sister because she was pregnant out of wedlock. When Mary married a man from another tribe and when her husband died of AIDS, her in-laws refused their responsibility to her and chased her away. Since she had married outside of her tribe, she has always had a hard time among her own tribe. During the election violence she was harassed and robbed simply because her married name was of another ethnic group. And most recently she was practically forced to leave her job at the school. Now she is teaching at another school where her boss has tried to have her fired due to having AIDS. Praise God that the board of the school refused to have her fired on such illegitimate grounds.
I had been in touch with Mary and knew that she had been transferred to a village school a few miles away. So when I went to Kenya to visit, I found out the school she worked at from her cousin and got a "bush taxi" to the school on a cold and rainy day in the mountains of Western Kenya. I wasn’t sure if I would find her and she doesn’t have a cell phone (it was stolen by her sons’ classmates during the post-election violence) so I was anxious as I sloshed through mud and pouring rain to the school compound. The look of surprise on her face is something I will never forget!
I sat with Mary for hours in her new home, so far away from any support system or family. We caught up on life and she told me how she was battling depression, discouragement, and stigma along with AIDS. But her faith in God shook me to the core. As we talked together she shared scripture with me, specific promises of God that she was clinging to. She praised the Lord for His faithfulness to her. And then she said something that I’ll never forget. She told me that she was blessed to have AIDS because it made her appreciate each gift of God in a new way every day. She has learned to treasure God deeply and to delight in Him and that has given her a joy that no one person can take. What a challenge and encouragement she is to me. Please pray with me for Mary! She needs encouragement, love, support and community. Pray for her children as well that they will find Christ to be their security as their mother has.

A Brief Update

Surprise! This is a new post!

I came to Kenya last week to go to a Chalmers' training and decided it would be a good time to visit old friends. I had the amazing opportunity to meet up with Anna Garriott who was a classmate in Community Development at Covenant and who is currently working in West Africa doing very similar work to me. It's been very encouraging to spend time with her, to bounce ideas off of each other, to discuss our experiences and challenges, to pray together and just to know that the struggles that we go through are, in fact, quite normal. (Above picture - Anna and I doing a little shopping in Kibera, Nairobi. For more pictures, click on the link to my albums).

Looking Toward the Land of the Living

My room mates and I in Nairobi: Rose and Daisy

It's been a while... what can I say? I have been living the life of a nomad and cannot seem to stay in one place (with a decent internet connection) long enough to update this! I have finally semi-settled into a new home and felt it was a good time to write a little update. I've also added new pictures to my online photo album.

The phrase for “to encourage” in Swahili is “kutia moyo” - literally “to place a heart”. I think that is appropriate in that I often feel as if my heart has been fully replaced when I truly am encouraged. God has greatly encouraged my heart in the month since I last wrote to you.

I traveled to Litein in early December to say goodbye to my friends there before moving to my new location. I had a wonderful time visiting with friends and seeing what God has done in their lives. God blessed me greatly by showering his love upon me through people there. Kenyans are naturally hospitable and friendly, but Liteinians were particularly kind to me. Several women took me into their homes as if I were their own child—they even called themselves my mothers! I learned what it means to serve others, even strangers.

During my 39 hours on a bus through East Africa in a week and a half, I saw some of the most beautiful scenery I could imagine: Masaai shepherds with their herds of cows and goats in places that look as close to wilderness as you can imagine, the towering peak of Kilimanjaro barely visible above the clouds, rolling hills of palm trees and small farms, and African vendors in bright clothes selling their handicrafts though bus windows. God’s creation is but a small yet astounding glimpse of His glory.

I was at my extended team’s prayer meeting on Monday and had the opportunity to hear about the many types of ministry that people are doing here. Some of those ministries are narrating Bible stories to non-believers, working with Asian families and youth, teaching at schools, and church planting. Praying with missionaries that have been in East Africa as salt and light was a both humbling and inspiring.

Finally, in the dark hours of loneliness and doubt that accompany moving to a new place, God has brought me the encouragement of His Word. At times it is through the reading of the Word, other times through a dear friend speaking God’s promises, and still other times it has been through the Holy Spirit’s reminders of the Word. The following verses have brought much hope and light to my heart in the past days:

“I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living!

Wait for the LORD;

be strong, and let your heart take courage;

wait for the LORD!”

- Psalm 27:13-14

I have come to East Africa to help to begin some community development work alongside of what the team here is already doing. For the next few months I will be laying the ground work for this by continuing my Kiswahili learning, building relationships, and learning the culture. At this point I have a “scrape by” knowledge of Kiswahili and can have decent small-talk conversations. I make great mistakes like saying that I am going to abuse a person with a letter instead of sending a letter to a person. Or blurting out the equivalent of “I’m fine” instead of “how are you?” In spite of my absurdities, I am really enjoying Kiswahili and get excited when I can understand phrases that I never thought I could. The problem is that often I don’t realize I understood it until I’ve walked away saying “sorry, I don’t understand”. Hmmm, I’ll have to work on this some more!

vendors selling their goods to
travelers through bus windows

I said a teary goodbye to my brother Owen today and will take a bus back to Litein on Monday morning. I had a wonderful time with him and am greatly encouraged by the time we shared together. Some highlights:

- We visited a Compassion International (Owen works for them) project where the sponsored kids come each Saturday to worship together, study God's Word and eat nutritious food. The project we visited was at Kampala Baptist Church. I sat in on a health class for 16 year-olds and was so impressed with the volunteer teacher, Abraham, who taught it. As he taught them about preventable diseases he interacted with them in a way that showed he valued each child and his role as a teacher in their lives. One of the girls in the class was the youngest of 9 children in her family and was from Rwanda. Her entire family, with the exception of her mother, were killed in the genocide. I was greatly encouraged as I watched her interact with other kids and worship the Lord in song and dance.

- Owen took time each day to pray with me and reminded me of the importance of fellowship with believers. I certainly have many Christian friends in Litein, but it often takes time to build relationships that foster accountability and mutual building up. I am challenged to go back to Litein and to be more intentional in my relationships there.

- We had the great blessing of eating dinner on a boat on Lake Victoria under a beautiful full moon. God's creation glorifies Him but people are specially created in His image to glorify Him on a different level than other aspects. As Owen told me: "One day the moon and Lake Victoria will be no more, but every person will exist forever either in eternal glory or eternal anguish".

I continue to need your prayers!

- Language school or teacher for Kiswahili, probably in Nairobi because I have a place to stay there.

- Direction and wisdom in making future plans. I am also trying to make Christmas plans with my boyfriend, Michael and would appreciate your prayers for that!

- Patience and trust in God's timing. It is very difficult to be in limbo (at least, it feels like I'm in limbo, really God is perfectly in control of all things) and I struggle to be content where God has me right now.

Thank you all for your encouraging emails and for your prayers and financial support. I have been blessed by your service and pray that God's grace will dwell richly in your lives.

On Safari

First, I apologize for not keeping this blog current. I cannot use the internet in Litein without great expense. I am now in Kampala, Uganda visiting my brother Owen, who is here on business with Compassion International. I've spent the past week visiting community development programs in Nakuru, Kenya and have been greatly challenged and encouraged. One of the programs was at the city dump where 120 families live in either caves or makeshift houses just on the edge of the site. Kenyans from a local church have been ministering to the children there by providing counseling, shelter and meals. Later I visited a Kenyan friend, Josephine, who has a ministry to orphans and their caregivers. I had the oportunity to "preach" to their fellowship meeting and thought about Jesus' reaction to the poor and hurting.
Jesus was close to "the least of these" - fisherman, lepers, tax collectors, and even the promiscuous. The suffering that he saw in this world led him to compassion and then to action. I am greatly encouraged to see the Kenyan church caring for the poor and suffering within her. Please pray with me for the Kenyan Christians in their ministries.
I will be spending a few days in Kampala and then returning to Litien to wrap up my time there. I have applied for a resident permit to my new destination country and may wait up to 4 months for that to be processed. PRAY THAT I WILL GET THE PERMIT IN A MONTH!! I am excited to begin working in my new location in East Africa and struggle to remain patient. God is teaching me what it means to wait on Him and that His plans are better than my plans. I'd appreciate prayers for trust in the Lord. As I wait for my permit, I will try to go to language school in Kenya so that I am prepared for work when I arrive in my new city.
God has greatly blessed my time here thus far and I much appreciate (and need!) your prayers

Julian in NYC

As I write this update I am watching the local news in New York City: a steam pipe exploded in midtown Manhattan on Lexington and 41st street leaving a 3-lane wide hole in the street.
This story caught my attention, not only because it was an explosion in the middle of the street, but this past Saturday I was walking a block away from that street with Michael Pepper. We were walking towards the U.N. headquarters when Michael pointed out a pizza joint advertising “99 cent slices.” As we walked by and discussed how the pizza must not taste very good because it was so cheap, a voice from the door step spoke to us. “That’s a deal you can’t beat!” We stopped and turned around to see an elderly man sitting on the steps. Michael approached him agreeing that a deal like that looked too good to be true. The elderly man insisted that we find out for ourselves why it was an unbeatable deal for the best pizza in the city. We introduced ourselves to Julian. He was in his 50’s and had immigrated to New York City from Haiti over 20 years ago.
Michael began to pull out his wallet to pay for the slice of pizza. Julian drew a wad of cash from his shirt looking Michael straight in the eyes and telling him to “be nice” and let him pay. We sat down as Julian brought us the slice of pizza. He began to share with us about his life and where he was living. The apartment building above the pizza shop was his home, provided by the small pension he receives from the government because of his disability. Julian has diabetes and it has taken its toll on his body. He removed his shoes to reveal to us his feet without toes. The gaping hole, he said, was to be covered with a skin graft on Monday. Because of this disability he is unable to work so he sits outside the pizza shop panhandling for change everyday. What set Julian apart was his outlook towards his life.
Julian spoke to us about the troubles he had faced while trying to make it in the big city. His diabetes had forced his toes to be removed; he had been hit by a car and shattered his leg. The law suit for his leg was taking years as he was trying to receive some sort of compensation for the accident. He sat, everyday, across from the Chrysler building, a 6 billion dollar enterprise in 60 stories of steel. It was irony at its best. Each passer by, some most likely multi-millionaires, he would simply smile and greet them. He never shook a cup, he did not hold a sign that asked for what he was to ashamed to say in words. Julian simply sat and smiled. As we ate and talked, a young woman walked by and handed him a dollar. Julian commented that she did this everyday for him and he thanked her graciously. Just a short 2 minutes later another woman walked by asking him for a dollar so she could buy some lunch at the pizza shop. Julian gave her the dollar still in his hand from moments earlier.
What struck us about Julian was his gracious way of life. Julian told us that in order for ends to meet, he has to sit on that doorstep and wait for people to give him money. But Julian NEVER asked us for money, he simply wanted to talk. This is the beauty of ministry. On a street better known for its wealthy elite, an elderly Haitian is hoping to encourage people by living generously when he has so little. Julian’s only request of us was that we would call him to check on him after his surgery. He continuously thanked us for stopping and listening, and encouraged us to do this more often.
Paul Miller writes in his book “Love Walked Among Us” that the principle foundation of Jesus’ physical ministry was that he stopped and looked on the people with compassion. This type of ministry seems wrong. We are often caught up in the formalities. What if Julian did not belong to a Church? What if Julian did not even know Jesus? Not to say these questions are not important (we pursued these questions with him because they are important) but we often are too quick to ask, rather than listen. We sat and did our best to have compassion on Julian. We did our best to listen to his story and ache with him when the injustice of a debilitating disease had taken over his feet. We did our best to encourage him through prayer. We walked away from that door step feeling like we had done more than just met a guy on the streets. It felt like we had made a friend, someone we could continue to seek and love. Someone we could continue to learn from, someone we could see a new way of living life graciously.
Trying to follow Jesus’ way of ministry is impossible. It takes time, it takes giving some of yourself away (sometimes to people who will take it and run). But Jesus has called us to die to ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Him. It would have been easier to keep walking down the street. But something inside of us saw Jesus walking down this street, his eyes filled with tears, looking at a man who had nearly lost his feet. I ask God to give me the grace to learn how to stop, how to listen and how to have compassion. I ask for it not when I get to Kenya but even now in New York City.