Witnessing Faith and working hard

Sunday June 13, 2010
This past Friday officially kicked off our separate home-stays. Thus,
Brandon, Kathy, Sanetta, and I are all staying in different homes now.
We're pretty spread out, but we can communicate via phone. Everyone
is doing well. Tomorrow, I will pass off the computer to a teammate
(I think it's Brandon's turn to have it) so I thought I would give
another update while I currently have the opportunity.

Friday was a great day! I went with Winnie, the Umoja-Chulaimbo
Administrative Assistant to her school's Education Prize Program Day.
This is the day that all the students and teachers in the school come
together for inspirational speeches, presentations, and an award
ceremony. Winnie, an Umoja scholar who finished secondary school last
year, was given an award for receiving a high score on the
country-wide secondary school exam (all students take this exam to
qualify for university). Winnie has had some family hardships over
the past year – so her achievement is really something to make one
proud…and I was proud! I was so honored to attend this program as her
guest! Winnie has a way of warming your soul and making a special
place in your heart.

I concluded Friday in song. I was told when I arrived to the Kisumu
area that "The song is a way of life in Kenya." I've found that to be
110% true. Friday night I taught Margaret and Chris (Margaret's
nephew) two English songs after dinner: "Open the Eyes of My Heart"
and "Sanctuary." They loved them both – and I loved how their accents
gave the songs a new twist. We sang Sanctuary through (although it's
short) probably 60 times, AT LEAST. It was such a great hour of
worship. Our eyes were sagging due to exhaustion from the day, but we
kept singing. They also started to teach me a song in Luo (I now know
it after another day of practice). The final hours of the day at
Margaret's house are some of my favorite memories that I will take
home from Kenya.

Now on to today (I'll catch you up on Saturday via time journal posted
at end of blog).

Let me start by saying that the church service I attended was four
hours and 45 minutes long. If I ever become a preacher and I go over
the "one hour mark" and hear people complain I will tell them this
story.
I went to HTCA for worship (Holy Trinity Church of Africa). Today was
a special day for their church; all of the HTCA church members from
across the area came to help raise money for an HTCA church that is
currently meeting outdoors with just a tin roof for protection. The
church pews consist of borrowing primary school desks which are
constructed from 2x6 wood planks (making your seat only 2x6 wide).
And, hanging above the pulpit area is an old canvas to protect the
preacher from the sun (no tin there). I was asked to give a word of
encouragement to the people (but, I was told on Friday that if I
should be asked I should have a sermon ready just in case). Luckily,
I only had to speak for about 5 minutes.

This is roughly what I said after an introduction was made by Winnie
and Margaret about Umoja and all that the project has done/is doing
(so I didn't repeat that); my message was translated by the assistant
pastor...[After I finished speaking the congregation sang the song in
Luo that Margaret has taught me over the past two nights. I was able
to worship and sing with this congregation in their mother tongue!]

"As a student in seminary from Duke University, I am here to learn
about how to partner with others in ministry. The other interns and I
visited a school where Umoja is currently working in partnership to
provide a school lunch program for those in need. The head teacher
said Umoja was a miracle. However, it is not just us that should be
praised – the congregations here, like HTCA have partnered together.
Also, the program would not be available without the guardians. Above
all, the one who deserves praise is GOD. And, we serve a powerful
God! When I was packing for this trip, I was told that in my suitcase
I could bring my clothes. I could bring my toothbrush. I could bring
my shoes. BUT, I didn't need to bring God. I didn't need to bring
God, because GOD IS HERE. The same God I worship in America is the
SAME GOD WE ARE WORSHIPPING HERE THIS MORNING. This week I've seen
some powerful storms. These storms remind me of story – the story of
Jesus calming the storm! Our Lord and Savior is powerful enough to
calm rushing waves and violent winds – that is who we worship here
this morning. I did not have to bring God here with me because God,
the Father of Jesus who died on a cross for our sins – is here,
working in Kenya. I have seen our powerful God working in Kenya.
Have you? I saw God working in Kenya last week as a group of 15-20
men helped push a stuck truck out the mud. The community that came
together to help that one individual driver..that's a miracle! I have
seen and heard women of this area meeting together and raising funds
from this neighborhood for a water project…that's a miracle! God is
HERE! I went to a local school's Education program and saw seven
students awarded for high KCSE scores [country-wide exam] -- Three
girls and four boys excelled from that school. GOD IS HERE! I have
seen miracles here. I know that God is working in this place. I did
not bring God here in my suitcase – but you have shown me God through
your actions. And our God is powerful…RIGHT? That is why Paul tells
us in his letter to Romans, "If God is for us who can be against
us?... [I read Romans 8:31-32]. So this morning, as I was asked to
give you a word of encouragement, I stand here and tell you to have
faith. Have faith because God is HERE – God is working here."

…God was and is working here. The congregation this morning raised
about 38,000shillings for the church building project (that's over 500
USD). To truly know how great of offering this is, you must know that
those who didn't have money, donated crops (tomatoes, onions, sugar
cane, and even a few eggs to be auctioned off at the church service).
Everyone gave something – as much as they were able. They gave to
support a sister church. I was blessed to witness such faithful
people this morning.

Day after day, I am truly amazed at the faith of the people.

*Ellen Daniels-Howell told the four interns at our final meeting in
Kisumu, Kenya that we should empty ourselves and learn from the people
here in Kenya. At this meeting, she told us we didn't need to bring
God, that God is here. THANKS ELLEN for wonderful words of wisdom
that I adopted for my "5-minutes of encouragement"

Time Log Journal
Saturday – June 12
8am- Breakfast – a hearty breakfast because "Saturday is a day of
work, and you don't know when you'll have a rest to take lunch" –says
Margaret my host. Breakfast was buttered bread, scrambled eggs, and
mandaizes with tea.
9am-worked on sermon ideas in case I'm called to preach on Sunday. I
chose not to use the Internet for any aids since my fellow interns in
Kenya are also thinking of sermon ideas and do not have Internet
access right now. Come O Holy Spirit, come.
10am- Walked to Winnie's. She said if I wasn't busy I could help her
with laundry.
10:20am- Arrived at Winnies and went straight to work; we pulled water
for washing from the well. Hello bicep muscles!
10:30am- started washing clothes (we washed her family's clothes from
the past 2 weeks). Washing clothes, I learned, is 5-bucket
process…First, you scrub in the first bucket with bar soap. Scrub in
the second with powder soap. Wring out and scrub again in the third.
Wring out again and scrub in the fourth. And do a final wring out and
soak in "clothes conditioner" (aka fabric softener) in the fifth.
Then, wring out and hang on the line.
12:30ish- break from clothes to make lunch. Winnie taught me how to
make fire for cooking.
1:30pm- ate lunch -- learned how to eat with the "natural fork" (aka your hand).
1:45pm – went back to washing.
2:45pm – after a total of three hours washing, we're done. I might
add, that the buckets/tubs sit on the ground. Thus, throughout this
process, you bend at the waste to lean over and scrub.
4:30pm – return to Margaret's. Her nephew is working on peeling beans
in the back yard. With all my heart, I want to help him. However, my
body is telling me that after bending over and washing clothes all day
that I must sit down for now. Help me Lord, give me strength.
--I'll never admit it to Winnie because I just wanted to keep up with
her (and I didn't want to give American's a bad name)…but I actually
got a blister on my hand from wringing out clothes so much! Haha. It
was hard, but fun. Of course, we sang praise songs as we cleaned
(truly, this is a place of song!).
5pm- phone call with my parents. YAY for familar voices.
Then, worked on sermon ideas again.
9:30pm- dinner (they eat LATE here). Dinner was steamed (?) greens,
Ugali, and sweet potatoes