This is my fourth time coming to Kenya. And as you can guess, some of the shock values have worn off by this time around. I know to expect the different culture, language, smells and driving laws. I have formed relationships with people here and get excited to hug their necks each year. And every time I have planned to return, I have been asked why - why go back? Why go back after I have already been here? My answer - the people. It's a simple answer, but it's one I could not give without an unconditional love through Christ that He first demonstrated. Romans 5:6 - 10 tells us that "while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person - though perhaps for a good person one would even dare to die - but God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since therefore, we have now been justified by His blood, much more shall we be saved by Him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by His life." We started our journey to Kenya with the focus that this trip was all about God no matter what. It sounds cliche and you might wonder what it means since most 'mission trips' are usually about God in some way. Personally, I have seen it in the intentional relationships being built with the people here. I think of a conversation that Kim and I had with Jackson today as he gave us fresh mangos from a tree at Mbewau. With a sincere heart, he told us that they may not have much, but they love us deeply and want to share the blessings that God has given them. How many of us could genuinely say the same thing to someone we have only been around for a few days every year? Things we take for granted in America can be huge over here. A few days ago, I had the privilege of presenting embroidered lab coats to the new doctor and lab tech at Maasai Corner. In his delight, the doctor exclaimed "Now I can be a lifelong physician!" A few hours later, we introduced the staff of Maasai Corner to whoopee cushions. After their initial shock, each staff member took ther turn running out to grab the next person to prank. It is things like this - lab coats, whoopee cushions, medical clinic, hut-to-hut, or even simple games and songs with the children - that demonstrate to me that we are all created by God and because He loved us, we can emulate His love towards one another in everything that we do. The first few verses of Romans 5 tell us that "since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through Him we have obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us." There is hope here. I see it, hear it and feel it as I walk through the campuses of Maasai Corner and Mbewau Academy. I see it in the boldness of our translators as they go hut-to-hut with us. I hear it in the worship songs on Sunday and in the classrooms as the children are taught about God and His provision for us. I feel it in the impact that Chris and Lisa are having as they work to build up the ministry of both schools. The hope I see here is not an earthly hope, but an eternal hope that only comes through God's love for us. And through that love, we can share in the hope the people have here. 1 John 4:19 - We love because God first loved us....Karen Sandifer
Yesterday, we went to witness hut-to-hut. The notion of doing this the first trip was terrifying, but it's a lot different now. I look forward to it and enjoy it. I went with a team of a translator, and 3 women, 2 of them had never done anything like this before. I was so proud of them as they shared their hearts with the villagers. After a couple of hours, we came to the home of a large family. All of the women were home with their children. There were roughly 10 women and children in all. As one of the women shared Christ with the women, I was handing out gum to the children. This proved to be very entertaining because while talking we could hear nothing but smacking coming from the kids. We talked for a while and a women got up and left the conversation. This was very frustrating to me and I said, "We spent two days, spent a lot of money, left our homes, and left our families, just to share this message with you. We want to see you again in Heaven. We believe this to be the most important message you will ever hear." At that time I looked to one of my partners and she was in tears as was I. I did notice that when the women saw our tears, they could tell our sincerity and they listened more intently. Praise God! The women said that they believed what we were sharing and said that they would be coming to church on Sunday. Only God knows their hearts. I hope to see them this Sunday and told them to come and sit next to me.
1 Corinthians 1:18
For the message of the cross is foolishness to those that are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God....Keith Mathews
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