We are Home!

Kenya 2012 was a wonderful experience.  We saw God work when everything else wasn't going the way it was planned.  Eight months of planning and preparing and plans changed almost daily.

Monday, we suprised Mbewau with a final visit!  I asked Joseph the headmaster, to let us spend our last spare hours playing with the kids. All 190 children were released from their classes and the games were on.  There where soccer games being played, kids being pushed in swings and lots of children being loved on.

Little Emanuel walked up to Kim and raised his hands for her to pick him up, he layed his head on her shoulder and sang himself to sleep.  Courtney and Karen had multiple children hanging off them, Medina chatted with a group of kids for a long time and all of the guys played soccer with about 50 little boys. I found Imna, Kelvin and Morgan and carried them around on my back and shoulders for most of the morning. It was so great to just hang out with the kids.

My favorite memory of this trip to Kenya is seeing my Kenyan friends that are faithfully serving Christ every day in a very natural and organic way, no big screens, no stage lights, no sound systems, no padded pews and no air conditioning.  Everyone should experience a worship service in Kenya!

Thank you Chris and Lisa for following God's call on your life.  Because of that faithfullness many Kenyans lives have been forever changed. I am so very thankful that God has allowed me to see His hand at work in Kenya!  After a month or so we will start making plans for Kenya 2013.

God Bless!!!
David

Saying Goodbye.

Today we go to Mbewau to spend a little more time with the children and say our final goodbyes.  Our time here in Kenya has flown bye.  Every day has brought a new adventure and new challenges for the team and Kim and I as team leaders.  I learn to be more flexible every year and adapt to what happens because TIA, this is Africa.  Losing our co-leaders at DFW due to passport issues was a huge shock.  Several flight delays changed our plans in London and by the time we got to Mombasa we were all beat.  It has rained a lot here this year and we have had to adjust our plans for that too.

Going to Maasai Corner for the first time was awesome.  Last year it was the "Church under the mango tree." Now it is a thriving, growing and exciting place worship Christ and serve with fellow believers. As we returned yesterday for our last church service in Kenya much had been accomplished in a week and the place was even more beautiful.  God has great things planned for Maasai Corner and I know that many lives will be changed for Christ there.

Mbewau is a little piece of Heaven here on Earth.  There are several new ministries there that are pointing everything on that campus to Christ.  The sports ministries is 3 nights a week, water ministry is open every day, a small store sells goods to people and helps support the ministry there as a whole and a new mens vocational training program is about to start up in the next few months.  Men will come and learn wood working, welding, etc.

God has really blessed the Moore's ministries here in Kenya.  They face new challenges every day!  Please keep them in your prayers as they serve Christ here in Kenya.  Thank you Hallmark for all of your love, prayers and support for our missions trips to Kenya.  Great things have been accomplished here for Christ and even greater things will come in the future!

If all our flights are on time we will be home at 1:25pm Tuesday!
God Bless!
David Hayes

To sacrifice means it will cost me something to give it.

What a blessing to be in Kenya!  My life will forever be changed.  God is so good to allow me to see and enjoy the beauty of his creation.  I have seen magnificent sunrises and sunsets.  The ocean is so beautiful and has provided such a peaceful place to spend time alone with the Lord.  We have been on Safari and seen many of the wonderful animals here in Africa.  The monkeys have even tried to join us for breakfast each morning at our hotel.  They are very good at stealing food right off your plate.

  The people here are so gracious, kind, and loving.  I have truly been blessed by seeing old friends again and meeting new ones.  It always amazes me when I go on mission trips that I can travel across the world  and speak a different language than many of those I meet and still have an instant bond with them.  That bond that ties us together is our Lord Jesus Christ and our love for Him. One of my favorite times in Kenya is worship.  The people here worship with their whole body and heart.  Their voices blend together to make such a joyful and beautiful sound unto the Lord.  

  The children in Kenya are so precious to me.  Their sweet faces are the first thing that I see when I think of Kenya.  They are forever imprinted in my mind and on my heart.  They have so little and yet they seem so happy.  We in America have much and never seem content.  We always seem to want more.  How I pray that I learn a lesson from the people in Kenya.  I am asking myself as I think of going back home, “What do I give to the Lord and the people that God has put in my path?  Do I give to them from my surplus and what is convenient to give or do I sacrifice to give to them?”  To sacrifice means it will cost me something to give it.  I don’t often give sacrificially.  Lord, help me do that for you and for the people you place in my life.  Please ask yourself too what you have given this past year that cost you something.  The people here in Kenya are in such need.  Will you be willing to sacrifice for them in the coming year?  I pray that I will.

  Three years ago I came to the school at Mbewau when it was first being built.  It is amazing what God has done in that time.  The school and grounds are absolutely beautiful and very well run and cared for.  They even have a flushing potty now!!!!  YEA!  On this past Saturday, we had planned to do hut to hut evangelism and have crafts and games with the kids in the afternoon.  However, it rained all day, so we enjoyed fun and fellowship inside with the adults who were there.  I spent most of the morning with Joyce trying to learn to make chapati which is a favorite food to many of us.  They are similar to tortillas, but are fried and have lots of oil on them which is why they taste so good.  Joyce said she would pray that I will make them well for my husband when I get home, but I think it will take many, many prayers.

  Today we went back to Maasai Corner where Real4Christ has begun another new ministry.  Last year, worship services were held under a mango tree and now a new worship center and medical clinic are almost completed.  We shared a special time of worship today and last Sunday in the new center.  Flushing potties are almost complete at Maasai Corner also.  Another big YEA!!!  The ladies tried to teach Sabine and I to carry a bucket on our heads today without much luck, but the Kenyan ladies got lots of laughs from it.

  God has richly blessed Real4Christ ministries in both places.  Our team will be heading home tomorrow and it seems like we just got here.  We said good-bye to our friends at Mbewau and Maasai with heavy hearts and many tears.  I have been so blessed by knowing and working with the Hallmark team this year.  They are a very special group to me even though they are a little crazy (or a lot crazy) and  I am so thankful they allowed me to join them on this trip.  I only regret that Donald and Stacy were not able to come with us for they have been missed very much.  I also regret not getting Chris Moore back for wanting to fill my 4 days late luggage with trash and hide my clothes.  Thank goodness for Lisa!!!!


Medina Gribble

If you have been involved in mission giving you owe it to yourself to go.

6-24-12 Sunday, our 11th full day in Kenya. Today we arose early with plans to depart for a return trip to Maasai Corner Ministries on the south coast. We made good time getting to the ferry and crossing the river.  We were able to stop at the Tsunami Garden Cafe for a cup of chai and pastries.  Arriving at Maasai Corner we were able to witness all of the work that had taken place since last Sunday, June 17th.  New gates at the entrance, cross steeple on top of the church, handrails on the steps of the church and clinic and read stain on the plastered walls of the church and clinic.

Pastor Chondo preached his message from Genesis 15 and 17.  Two men stood and read the Holy Scriptures when requested, I was so blessed by the boldness of these brothers.  We were blessed in songs by children’s, teenager’s and adult choirs prior to the message. I didn’t understand the their language(swahili) but did get the message at invitation time.  Afterwards we all formed a line and greeted each other developing a line down the wall, across the room to the other wall until we connected with the first person that formed a circle.  Joining hands we had closing prayer.

Following that we spent time fellowshipping and saying our final good byes, picture taking and etc.  On our way back to Mombasa we stopped for lunch at one of Missionary Chris’ approved safe places to eat.  About 5:30 we stopped at Nakumatt(shopping center) for ice cream and shortly afterwards on to Neptune Beach resort(our residence while here in Mombasa).  Even though we sleep at a resort there hasn’t been to relax on or near the beach.  It’s been go-go daily.  We came to share the Good News, to share time with the children in the classrooms and playground and be a blessing to adult brothers and sisters. 

Let me say we have been so blessed to be born in America and enjoying its wealth. If you have been involved in mission giving you owe it to yourself to go see what God’s workers are doing in a distant land.  This is my third journey and I wish to thank each of you my brothers and sisters.  May God richly bless you!

In His Service,

Cliff Williamson

This trip has truly been amazing.

It’s amazing what the Holy Spirit can reveal to you when you allow it to take reign of your heart.  My prayer leading up to this trip was just that; to break down the walls around my heart and let God reveal himself to me in a new way.  This trip has been nothing short of amazing. The fellowship, laughter, traveling, serving, ministering, being ministered to, and so much more have been so fulfilling.  The biggest thing God has revealed to me here is Hope in Him.  In the US, we have so much to put our hope in to such as money, fame, status, materialism, etc.  Most people here around Mombasa are in a constant state of survival.  The only thing they have to put true hope in is Jesus Christ.  I’m ashamed that it took me coming half way across the world to see that.  As soon as I stepped onto Massai Corner, I felt the presence of the Holy Spirit just tugging on my heart.  This is where I got to experience my first church service outside of the Americanized services I am used to attending.  From the beginning of the first praise and worship song, tears just began to fall down my face.  The only thing I could do was cry out to God to forgive me for not giving him the praise he deserves.  These people, my brothers and sisters in Christ, praise, sing and cry out to Jesus with their whole hearts.  I felt a supernatural unity with these people singing, praying, shouting, dancing, and crying out to our Lord and Savior.  That service was really a pivotal moment in this trip for me.  Chris Moore asked if we would like to baptize a few folks after service.  WOW!  I felt so unworthy to do this, but I jumped on the opportunity.  What a HUGE blessing to baptize my brothers and sisters in Christ for my first time deep in the heart of Kenya!!!!  I definitely miss my wife and two daughters back home, but before I left, Mabrey agreed to let me give the same love to the school children here as I give to her.  Before leaving, I asked Mabrey if I could give the African children a bunch of hugs.  She replied, “YES! And kisses too Dada!”  She is such a sweetheart like her Mommy!  The first hug I received from a child just melted my heart.  These beautiful children just love to hug you, rub your arms, look and laugh at the pictures you take of them, and just to simply show them love.  Something that will remain vivid in my mind and heart was something I experienced after playing soccer a couple of times with the boys.  I will never forget one in particular boy named Yehfro (I know I am misspelling his name but it is pronounced yeff-row).  He is a very shy boy, but a phenomenal soccer player.  We had tons of fun playing soccer together.  Every time he or I scored, he was the first to come give me a high five and a smile.  It was almost as he was seeking approval from me.  Little does he know that I was on the verge of tears just in amazement at what a blessing this was to me.  He wasn’t sure of my name, so he finally came up and asked me my name.  I told him and he repeated it; “Wheat-ney.”  As we were all packed on the bus ready to leave, the windows were cracked as all the kids were waving and shouting “Bye.”  I was looking forward and heard someone say “Wheat-ney.”  I looked down from my cracked window to see Yehfro standing with his hand reached out as far as he could to touch my hand one last time.  That moment in time was such a huge blessing to my heart.  Through these children I have witnessed the work of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of them and the staff. 

            The dental services we have been able to provide throughout this trip has been a huge learning experience, great success, and again a blessing to me.  We have been able to provide hygiene education and multiple extractions.  I have been so humbled at the serving hearts of my team who really have no dental experience.  Every single person has stepped up and helped in some way.  The kids and adults we treated were unbelievably well behaved and cooperative!!!  I was also impressed at the amount of kids that had healthy teeth and gums.  I KNOW this is because of the work Chris and Lisa have done to provide these children with nutrition and proper medical care.  The dental portion of the trip has really been icing on the cake compared to the other things we have been able to experience. 

            I could write another 20 pages about my experiences, and what else God has shown me so far through this trip, but I will just mention a couple more things.  I was sad that I would experience my birthday away from my family, but I received an unforgettable birthday today.  Having 200 school children from Kenya sing “Happy Birthday” to me was something that I will never forget.  I feel so unworthy of how much I have been blessed on this trip, but so grateful for what God has allowed me to experience here in Kenya with a handful of very special people.

            This trip was a spur of the moment thing for me, but I know things don’t happen by coincidence.  The bible tells us that all good things come from God.  I feel this trip has exposed me to certain things for certain reasons, prepared me for the team I will lead here next year, and placed people in my life that I have learned so much from.  I will leave Kenya with some specific burdens in my heart, focus on what really is important on this side of Heaven, and total amazement of what is outside of the little bubble in which I live.  I pray the Holy Spirit would guide each day of my life, and that I would follow.  The good thing is we still have 3 more days here!!!!! J

Whitney Gomez

Wow!  Where to begin… This trip has truly been amazing.  When I kissed my beautiful wife and 2 sons goodbye, I had no idea what I was getting into.  From the very beginning, God has kicked down the door to my heart and changed my outlook entirely.  What a privilege and an honor to travel to Mombasa, Kenya and to be so loved and accepted.  I had the misconception that I would be a great blessing to the people I encountered.  The exact and total opposite has happened.  From Massai Corner to Mbweau, I have been blown away by the compassion and sincerity pouring from the kids and staff.  These beautiful people have exposed me to the true meaning of selfless love, and unconditional compassion.  Both of these powerful ministries are true pieces of heaven.  Through the humble and serving lives of Chris and Lisa Moore, God has developed and organized a powerful ministry that is growing His Kingdom by leaps and bounds.   Though there is lots going on such as; dental clinics and education, baptism services and unified worship services, crafts and teacher enhancement sessions, fellowship and music, nursing clinics and soccer games, God truly shows his face when we love others like He has loved us.  A simple hug and an “I love you” lights up the faces of these amazing children.  Thank you Father for these children and how they have taught me volumes about your heart.

There are so many people behind the scenes who allow experiences like this to manifest, but quickly I want to thank some key people for making this trip possible.  I want to thank God for calling unworthy people like myself to the greatest work on the planet. I want to thank Whitney Gomez for bringing me along for the ride and making this a possibility, you are such a cool guy and great friend.  Big hugs and kisses go out to my perfect bride of 7 years and our 2 wild and crazy boys for letting me go and holding down the fort while I’m gone.  I’m grateful to Chris and Lisa Moore for their footwork which has made this trip a huge success.  David and Kim have been awesome leaders and for their organization and hearts I’m extremely thankful.  To the gang back home at Fellowship, thank you for doing what you do and for allowing the freedom to experience this trip.

In a nutshell, God is doing wonderful things in Kenya and to be allowed to see it and experience it brings me goosebumps.  This trip has opened my eyes to the need, shattered the veneer of Americanized religion from around my heart, and has given me a fresh and determined burden for those in need.  Yes there is a gigantic need of love, provision, and the truth about Jesus in this country. It is so refreshing and encouraging to see God work through organizations like Real4Christ ministries.  To see this kind of progress is a breath of fresh air.  God you never cease to amaze me. 

 In His Service,  Chris Hopper

Safari

We had a great time on safari. The Internet is still very slow. I am posting this from my phone. The next 2 days we will be ministering at Mbewau Academy. Pray that we see many lives changed for Christ.

God bless!!!

The time of my life!

We arrived at Maasai Corner and got the grand tour which was nothing short of incredible. The whole facility was constructed with mostly concrete and either steel roofs or weaved thatching. The detail was amazing in some areas while I could see some from America would turn up their nose to other details. For example, the shelves were all concrete and not level. These were purely functional and did well for what it was intended while not aesthetically pleasing. The concrete floors, however, were high quality even for standards back home. They were dusty and hidden from the construction but when wiped with a wet cloth, they revealed beautifully colored and polished concrete floors. The locals also spent three of those months hand digging a 110 foot well—looked like a good four stories down or so! I have to say I respect their hard work and am impressed with the construction skills they have. 

Church itself was good but I think I experienced quite a bit of culture shock through the service. The music was well done and I could tell everyone enjoyed the worship but everything was in Swahili. It was a blast to watch the kids dancing to the music and Courtney even got up on stage and danced along with the music pastor. The sermon was done by Chris Hopper with the local pastor translating at his side which was about the only thing I could really understand. 20-30 people were baptized after the service in the new baptism tank as well now that it was completed.

Then we moved into the newly built clinic right away where we used the facility for its intended use for the very first time. I was told the builders worked until 2am the night before just so we had running water for the day. This consisted of one sink, an American style toilet and the beginnings of a shower stall fed by the newly erected campus water tower. The first thing I noticed was that the waiting room consisted of benches around a mango tree I found it amusing to ponder how affronted patients at home would be if they had to receive care in these conditions. We opened the clinic after church service which by the end of service had approximately 100-200 people waiting to be treated! Keep in mind they had to walk for miles to get here and we only had three caregivers: Whitney, a dentist, and Lisa and I, both of us nurses. Whitney and his help are all-stars by the way; they were cruising through patients all the while fully gowned in the heat and no a/c. Even with the speed they were going they had to devise a sort of triage for their patients because the need for dental work was just too great. 

We weren’t with out our own challenges. Lisa pointed out that the local doctors in Kenya generally do not actually practice and instead “oversee” an average of 12 or so national clinics. She shared countless horror stories about the care these people received but it really hit home with a particular patient seen that day. This one poor man of about 40 years had received care at a state hospital for some blood in his urine. For some reason, the doctor chose to insert a suprapubic catheter into his bladder for this problem. This is a highly invasive surgical procedure. While I don’t know the specifics of his initial symptoms, this seems like overkill to me and wildly unnecessary specifically for a man that very likely cannot return to the hospital at his leisure. To make matters worse, the catheter site was now infected as was his urine. With further questioning we found out he has had it in since February and had no idea when he needed to follow up or even why he had it done in the first place. I wanted to take it out right away but didn’t know how to safely do this. The only thing we could do was give him the strongest antibiotics available and send him back to the very clinic it was inserted to have it removed immediately. I felt terrible and really helpless at that point having to send him back to the place that did this to him. I fear he still might not follow up for removal and medical care.

The government is very corrupt here and do not seem care about the health of their people at all. Going through the usual channels for local nursing certification is rife with crooked people expecting kickbacks. One official attempted to make Lisa pay $13,000 dollars in order to receive her local RN license. She refused of course since she could at least still work as a guest. While this was with restrictions and more limited, it is better than nothing. 

Available medicines are so scarce I don’t know how she manages to care for the people at all. There are no local FDA regulations like in the states, so the dose concentrations vary widely at the local pharmacy aka “chemist’ and not reliable. I was worried about running into a true medical emergency since we only had a half dozen vials of IM Decadron for “those that are really hurting” to quote Lisa and a couple of packages of antibiotics. Antibiotic supplies were available in very limited variety and volume, namely Cipro, Zithromax, and Flagyl. We did also have a decent supply of worm medication from America which was good because we were handing it out like it was candy to our patients. No lacerations or abscesses yet, thank God. I get nervous about the thought of having to stitch up or cut into a person in this environment.

We got to see 47 patients in about 3 hours when all was said and done. The rest had to go home which I felt terrible about. I’m certain people would riot at home if we had to do this at the ER. Over all it went well with the majority of patients just needing medication for STDs, ear infections, and general aches and pains. 

All in all, I’ve been having the time of my life.
Chris Thames.

Faith, Hope, and Love

It is absolutely awesome to be in Kenya once again!  This is my second time visiting and although the initial cultural shock from last year has worn off, my excitement to be here has grown.  Monday it was so precious to see the kids at Injili again and have them remember us from last year.  We had the opportunity to spend time with each classroom teaching Bibles stories, leading songs, and making balloon animals.  After helping feed lunch to the younger kids, we had the opportunity to sit down and have lunch with the high school students and tour the high school that we attended the dedication for last year.  God has done awesome things on that campus in a year!  Later that night as we were headed to dinner, our medical team members were called over to help a man that had suffered a gash to his leg.  As it turned out, the man they were assisting was the same man that designed our black, red, and green Swahili bracelets that we had gotten in time for last year’s trip.  We didn’t realize this until tonight at dinner when he stopped to chat and noticed we were wearing the "special" bracelets!  If you haven’t seen the bracelet, let me describe it briefly.  It has the following words printed in white letters on the corresponding background color:

Black – TUMAINI (Hope) – We are to be voices of the hope we have through Jesus Christ
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!  According to His great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.  - 1 Peter 1:3
In your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect  -1 Peter 3:15 

Red – UPENDO (Love) – We are to live in love for others with the same kind of love Christ has demonstrated toward us
Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children.  And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.  -Ephesians 5:1,2

Green – IMANI (Faith) – We are to grow in our faith
Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.  Let all that you do be done in love. - 1 Corinthians 16:13,14

Tuesday the ladies in our group headed over to Lisa Moore’s home to attend her weekly Bible Study where we studied Esther with some other missionary ladies and women leaders at a local church.  It was so cool to see everyone from different backgrounds and nationalities coming together (in Kenya!) under the unity of Christ.  While we were enjoying a ladies day, the men headed over to Mbewau Academy to provide some dental health checks and training for the kids and staff and then play sports with the kids.  (The kids won the soccer game.  Surprise, surprise!)  We joined back up later in the afternoon to head over to Haller Park, an animal reserve with all kinds of animals you can see up close and feed.  I can now officially say I have palm-fed a giraffe and monkeys!

As we head into the second week of our trip, I am so thankful that God has allowed me to be a part of what He is doing in Kenya.  Please pray that our team would continue to love the people we interact with as He loves them and give of ourselves unconditionally.  

1 Peter 3:8 – Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind.

-Karen Sandifer

SLOOOOOOW Internet!

The hotel has been having server problems and we have not been able to get on the internet.

Monday was a great day! We spent the day with the Bechtel's and the children of the Injilli(Gospel in swahili) Center.  The center has 8 classes.  We were able to tell them Bible stories, make balloon animals and sing lots of songs with them.

We ate lunch with the young adults from the Valarie McMillan Memorial High School.  Many of then have wonderful stories of being saved since coming to the school.  These students are being prepared for university.  They are studying geography, bio chemistry, biology, mathmatics, government, english and Bible.

Courtney and Kim ate lunch with a young lady that wants to start a business to serve the less fortunate and give them jobs.  They will make purses, blankets, jewelry and other things to sell at market.  She asked Kim what were some of the hardships she faced in starting her photography business and Kim asked her the same question.  The young lady told them that it was a great sacrifice for her to be at the high school.  The family only at poridge and lunch each day, she eats at school, so that they can save the money for her school fees.

Everyone is happy and healthy.  We are so thankful to be here in Kenya.  Please continue to pray for us as we continue this journey that God has lead us to.

Today, the girls are going to spend some time with several missionary wives and they guys are doing sports and some dental work at Mbewau.  Tomorrow and Thursday we will be on Safari.  Kim will be posting pics on face book as much as the internet will allow.

God Bless!
David
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.3256283010242.2127776.1362103851&type=3&l=52c6903f6b

Reaching the lost!

       After the second trip to Kanya, I was expecting the third trip to be a little boring and predictable.  Wow, was I wrong.  I've noticed so much this trip that I didn't before.  I met a young 12 year old boy yesterday named Ason.  Ason comes to the grounds of Massai Corner to play and visit with friends.  He came up to me and says, " Uncle!  Uncle!  (he thinks this means sir), may I have this ball.  I told him that the ball belonged to the church and that he was more than welcome to come to the church and play.  And then I asked him if he ever came to church.  He told me that he was not allowed to because he was Muslim.  I went through the gospel with him and could see in his appearance that he was distressed to the point of almost crying.  He stated that no matter what, he would never become a christian.  Only God knows his heart and I'm hopeful that Ason will respond to the gospel. 

      After that experience, I was frustrated.   A short time later, a translator and I went hut to hut to witness.   We met a couple of Muslim boys (Mohammad and Ali) on a motorcycle.  Again they seemed upset and verbatim the one in front stated."My entire family is Muslim.  I will never be able to become a Christian."  I told him to seriously think about what I shared with him and he said that he would.  At this point, I'm ready to give up.  We went ahead a stopped at a couple of mud huts where some woman were working with their children.  While teaching them the bad news (All fall short of the perfection of God's standards and deserve God's wrath, one of the older women started to argue back and forth with me because guess what....she was a Muslim!  She kept going back and forth with argument and I would respond with an answer and eventually she said something that the translator did not translate.  I said, "Joel, what did she say."  He told me,"She said that she believes that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and she believes that he is the only way of salvation.  All 3 woman said that the trusted Jesus Christ was the messiah.  I was shocked!  Our God is amazing!  To put a cherry on that story, I found out that this was the family of Muhammad and Ali.  

      I thank God for that experience.  I am so ready to go and share the Gospel with everyone. 

Maasai Corner Worship!

Wow! What an incredible day at Massai Corner! God is so good and He is definitely at work here in Kenya! Today I am reminded of the verses in Psalm 96: 1-3 that say, “Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth. Sing to the Lord, praise His name; proclaim his salvation day after day. Declare His glory among the nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples.” This morning, we did just that! What an amazing experience to worship with the Kenyan people. It is so amazing that these beautiful people worship the same God we do and we get to worship Him together here in both Swahili and English, but of one spirit. We sang and we danced and we celebrated God’s salvation and His love for us!

Chris Hopper brought the word in church this morning and talked about Saul the bad guy to Paul the good guy. Medina, Karen and myself got to worship with the children in Children’s church. Medina taught a lesson about God creating each and every child and loving them unconditionally.

Right after church we got to be a part of the first baptisms at Massai Corner! Over 30 people were baptized and Chris Hopper, Whitney, and Keith all got to baptize several people with Pastor Chondo! It was amazing to see those guys serving in that way. I love the way they do baptisms in Kenya! They sing the entire time and cheer as each person is raised in the newness of life! What a beautiful service.

After church we opened the dental and medical clinics to the public and many were treated. We also got to play with the children painting faces and playing games all afternoon.

I am so blessed to be in Kenya again this year. God never ceases to amaze me! Please pray that we can continue to be God’s hands and feet while we are here! Please pray that He will give us His heart to love these people and that we will “always be ready to give a reason for the hope that is in us! (1 Peter 3:15)”

Courtney Shwadlenak 

KENYA Day 1

Today we spent the day at Maasai Corner.  It rained for several hours.  We finally got to go hut to hut witnessing and saw 10 people accept Christ as their Savior.  After that the heavens cleared and it was a beautiful day.  The dentist saw about 10 patients and pulled a bunch of teeth. The medical team saw about 20 patients for aches, pains and sinus issues.  

The volleyball nets were set up and so SERIOUS volleyball was played for a coupe of hours.  Balloons were shaped and fashioned into dogs, hat and other crazy shapes.  There are a lot of little girls running the hills with painted finger nails tonight.  

God has really blessed the work at Maasai Corner. Last year was just a piece of property where a church was starting.  Today it was alive and happy! 

Great things are happening and it is exciting to get to be a part of it!
God Bless!
David

We are here!!!

We have made it to Kenya and it was a very trying journey!  As some of you may have seen, the Burrell's had passport issues and did not make it on the flights.  We had several delays that tried our patience but we are happy to be here.  Tomorrow we go to Maasai Corner for 2 days. Our team will be doing dentistry, medical and community outreach while there.  We will post stories and pics Sunday if possible.

Team Hallmark

June 13-26, Team Hallmark will be making its fourth trip to Kenya.  The last three years we have had some amazing trips and we trust God that this one will be the best yet.  We have had three training sessions, several team gatherings and met yesterday to pack our ministry bags.  We are counting down the hours until we load up on the bus and head to the airport.

Please pray for our team as we follow God's call to visit Kenya and spread the Good News to many that have never heard the name of Jesus!

What an experience!

From the moment God placed the missions trip on my heart, I was excited to see what He was going to do.  The preparation was fast paced and at times very challenging.  I have learned that the most difficult things done for 
God often lead to seeing His greatness in action.  After much time in the air, we arrived and went to work.  The trip home was exciting as well.  With delayed flights and sprinting through the airport like a scene in a movie, we boarded our last flight and I took a deep breath.  The drive home was easy and seeing family and friends meet us at the church was 
a welcomed sight.  We learned many lessons and have many stories to tell.  Our team was able to lead 26 Africans to Christ during our stay in Kenya.  The one and only God, which I serve, has no boundaries, knows no limits, and never runs out of love.  The question He asks us is, " Who will go for me?" Thank you church, for allowing our team to answer, "Here am I, send me."

Eric Aultman 
Youth Pastor