A Little Delayed

As most of you have noticed we're way behind on posting notes.  Between the lack of internet and some minor illness we've been put on hold.  I'll try to catch up as many as I can on Sunday but please know we are safe and waiting in Minneapolis for our final flight to YYC.  I doubt any of us will want to go anywhere soon once this is done!

lisa

Angels in Mwingi

It was already getting dark Friday as we headed out on our usual jaunt to the Cafe Kazuri for dinner.  As normal, I somehow ended up leading the charge and walking beside me was a mother and her young child.  I waved, the kid stared.  I waved again, the mom smiled and the child stretched out his hand.  I stretched out my hand…and he grabbed it.  He held on tight and we walked for most of a block with me on one side and his mom on the other.  His mother seemed to think it was amusing as could be and behind me I heard a chorus of ohs and ahs from the rest of the team but for me it was like holding a little angel's hand.  We stared at each other the whole time, enamoured with each other as we walked and when we came to the shop his mother was stopping at he didn't want to let go, neither did I.  You know that warm gushy feeling you get when something perfect happens…I had THAT all night, and I still get it when I think of it. 

The first night we walked down that alley I was apprehensive and constantly on guard.  I didn't ever think any of those people would trust us and generally the kids seemed scared of us.  Yet in five short nights we'd gone from that to some little munchkin holding on for dear life.  It's a testament to how wrong first impressions can be.

Now if only I could figure out how to smuggle him home.

lisa

Nzeluni

We spent four days working in Nzeluni to help with the building of a weir.  Basically we carried rocks, big heavy rocks, a lot of them, for quite a distance.  The great thing about carrying rocks is that it gives you time to talk.  At first most of us talked to each other about where we were and what we saw but within hours we were talking to the kids who started carrying rocks with us.  They were young kids, about four to ten years old at first but they would carry rocks that seemed half their size and they would run, fast, up and down the river bed to show off how great they were at this rock carrying.  By the afternoon of the first full day there were teenagers who started to carry rocks with us and most of them knew at least a little english, some of them knew a lot.  We talked to them for the next few days about their lives in Kenya, our lives in Canada and most importantly the differences between the two.

While we were carrying rocks a group of the ladies from the community took care of making tea and the lunches we had every day.  For a large part of the time we were walking past them every couple minutes and we slowly got to know them too even though few of them knew English.  On the third day Janet hurt her back and it was decided that she should rest for a while and from then on she spent her time with these cooking ladies.  There was allllllways laughter coming from that group as we passed.  They really enjoyed her company and especially teaching her new words which she diligently wrote down in her book.  I think if we had stayed for three weeks she would have been fluent in KiKamba!

Our experiences in Nzeluni were very different from what we saw in Mitiboni in 2008.  By staying at the work site to share lunch with everyone else there we gained their trust and laughter a lot sooner than we did in Mitiboni.  As well the number of people who had at least a general understanding of english really helped us to build relationships and understand each other and the huge differences in culture that exist.  I don't for a second want to degrade how much we all enjoyed Mitiboni but I think it's fair to say that nearly everyone who was on their second trip really felt a deeper and more fulfilling relationship to the people of Nzeluni.  I'm sure that our confidence and ease in the culture helped in all this and I'm excited to see what this could mean in terms of our next trip to Kenya.

lisa

Devotional - Saturday, August 21st

Excerpt from: Seeing What is Sacred (Gire 2006)



Pages 10 -11


The Sacredness of Our Neighbor


Books in a way are sacraments that make the communion between an author and a reader possible. The white paper and black ink are the means through which one heart is revealed to another. But the paper and the words are merely the elements of the sacrament. What is sacred is the heart that writes the book and the heart that sits in silent communion to take and read what has been written.


The words that are read are small, waferlike things. But sometimes, on some page, God humbles himself to come through some of those words and touch the reader’s heart. It is not the words that are sacred but God who is sacred . . . and the person to whom he comes.


In a sermon C.S. Lewis once said that next to the Blessed Sacrament our neighbour is the holiest thing presented to our senses. Most of us though, are oblivious to that holiness except at rare moments . . .


“The awe that we sense or ought to sense when standing in the presence of a human being is a moment of intuition for the likeness of God which is concealed in his essence”, wrote the Jewish scholar Abraham Heschel. “Not only man, even inanimate things stand in relation to the Creator. The secret of every being is the divine care and concern that are invested in it. Something sacred is at stake in every event.”


Something sacred.


At stake.


In every event.


A sobering thought, if it’s true. And if it’s true, it changes everything. Every moment of our day, every day of our life. Every dinner with the family, every breakfast with a stranger.

Devotional - Friday, August 20th

Excerpt from: Out of Solitude (Nouwen, 1974)



Pages 31-32


Out of His solitude Jesus reached out his caring hand to the people in need. In the lonely place his care grew strong and mature. And from there he entered into a healing closeness with his fellow human beings.


Jesus indeed cared. Being pragmatists we say: “That is obvious: he fed the hungry, made the blind see, the deaf hear, the crippled walk and the dead live. He indeed cared.” But by being surprised by all the remarkable things he did, we forget that Jesus did not give food to the many without having received some loaves and fishes from a stranger in the crowd; that he did not return the boy of Nain to his widowed mother without having felt her sorrow, that he did not raise Lazarus from the grave without tears and a sigh of distress that came straight from the heart. What we see, and like to see, is cure and change. But what we do not see and do not want to see is care, the participation in the pain, the solidarity in suffering, the sharing in the experience of brokenness. And still, cure without care is as dehumanizing as a gift given with a cold heart.

Mama Boss Lady

While we were in Nzeluni helping with the build there was a group of ladies who cooked for us everyday.  One lady in particular was always in charge and was the only person I saw who could get the kids to stand in a line while we handed out stickers or candy or anything else for that matter.  Because of this I took to calling her Mama Boss Lady and she seemed to enjoy it immensely.

On the last day as we were talking about what the team's plans were I mentioned we were headed back to Machakos.  To my amazement she told me she had been born in Machakos and had met her husband in Nairobi and then moved to Nzeluni.  She hasn't left Nzeluni since and my best guess would tell me that's at least thirty years ago.

I know that in Canada you wouldn't think twice about meeting someone in a town 2-6 hours away that grew up in your hometown.   In Kenya, where we met a town full of kids who likely had never seen a white person before last week it's down right amazing.  It was a great reminder of the connections that surround us even when we aren't expecting them.

lisa

Tattoos in Kenya

Two years ago when we came to Kenya Eric and I were both told to keep our tattoos hidden as generally they were taboo.  This time, Titus (a young man we all befriended) had us explain our Thai tattoos and told us he's looking to get one soon too.  It's not just North America that's changing by leaps and bounds because of television and the internet.

lisa

The Great White African Gorilla

From the moment we first walked into the work site everyone was enamoured with Eric.  At first it was his beard.  There were questions upon questions about his beard and more than one person reached out to touch it just to know what it was like.  Beautiful was the word most commonly used to describe it.  I had no idea Kenyans loved beards so much!

This lasted for a while but by the second or third day they had forgotten the beard and instead were amazed at his strength.  Eric consistently carried some of the biggest rocks and he worked as long and as hard as anyone else there.  But on the forth day he did the impossible.  

Our main job as a team was to move the rocks that the men were breaking from the river bed up to the actual weir site.  By day two or three we had pretty much depleted the main stash and they were now working on breaking rocks that took a lot more 'convincing'.  Breaking rocks in Kenya means you get a giant sledge hammer and a group of guys and basically just start pounding away.  Needless to say I can't fathom how they kept going for five days.

When the men first moved to the harder rocks they spent about an hour working on one huge rock in the middle of the river bed.  They pounded on it with all their might and they all took turns but none of them could get even a hint of a crack let alone get a piece to break off.

By the forth day of carrying rocks Eric decided he should try out the breaking instead and helped them finish a number of pieces before heading off to find more.  The rock he chose was the one they had worked on for an hour with no luck.  Despite many warnings and certainly some questioning looks he started in on it and amazingly had a nice crack forming within minutes.  Twenty minutes later he'd broken off a huge chunk and put down the sledge off for a break.  The men all sat down for a break and started talking in KiSwahili and eventually broke into laughter while staring at Eric.

"What?"  he said.

Eventually it came out that they had decided he must be stronger than any man in Africa as he had broken the rock that none of them could.  His response was that he must be strong like an African Gorilla.  And so was born The Great White African Gorilla.  Hairy and strong…yup it suits him.

Kamba Names

On our last day of work during the 2008 trip we all received Kamba names.  It's safe to say we are all as proud of them as we are of our family names and we share them with everyone we meet here.  It puts a HUGE smile on the face of any Kamba to find out that we have Kamba names and generally it begins a conversation about the number of people in the room whom also have that name and of course the meanings of them.

Because neither Janice nor Colleen had been here on the last trip they were still in need of this honour and thankfully Judy (the ABC Development Director) didn't keep them waiting too long.

Janice has been named Mwendae meaning the one who is loved.  This is also the female version of Eric's name and I contend that must mean that I am very good at showing my love for them as I'm the common denominator in that equation…neither of them are convinced.  Either way anyone who knows Janice will agree this is the perfect name for her

Colleen has been given the name Mutethya meaning the one who comes to the rescue.  I find this poignant given her job at the church and the fact I think she regularly comes to the rescue of a lot of us in that role.

It really amazes me that someone can know any of us for such a short period of time and yet find names that are so perfect.  I suppose the Kamba must have a gift for this.  We should all be so lucky to understand others so well so fast.

lisa

Mwingi

Monday morning we took a drive from Machakos to Mwingi.  It was supposed to be five or six hours long but thankfully some recent road improvements cut it down to two hours.  This was especially a blessing for me as I awoke feeling as if 'Ralph' was knocking on the door and soon I'd have to answer.  I downed a couple Gravol and settled into the back seat for what I hoped would be a long and uneventful sleep.  Apparently it worked well as by the time I came to we were half an hour outside Mwingi.

Mwingi is a truck stop and it happens to be busy enough that there's now a town there too.  Generally it's full of transients, people looking for a score of some sort and Somali's.  This is a very different experience for us and immediately upon our arrival we could tell it was a different place and quite frankly I think it half shocked and scared some of us.  However, having been here for a little while now I think it's safe to say we feel safe where we are and during our walk for dinner tonight we enjoyed relating to the kids on the street.

After setting up the accommodations we headed to the work site (about 30 minutes away).  We spent time meeting and talking to the people we'll be with for the next week.  As always that was a huge pleasure.  After a quick meal most of us pitched in to help get things started.  It was good to finally 'get to work'.

I on the other hand took the time to sit down with Carlos Mutinda.  We talked for about 45 minutes and both of us learned a lot.  I'll try and tell you more about that later.

This week will be exhausting for most of us and we've all decided that we'll work towards getting to know at least one person who's story we can bring home to tell you.  Start looking forward to them now, these are amazing people.


lisa

Cameras

It doesn't matter where you are in the world, little kids love cameras.  They love to watch you take pictures.  They love to see the pictures.  And more than anything they love to see the pictures you take of them.  Nothing creates a crowd faster than a camera or video camera!

Well ok, maybe candy.

lisa

UPDATES

OK, we finally have a little internet so here come all the blogs we've written along the way.  They will post every couple hours.


lisa

Devotional, Thursday, August 19th

Job 1:21 (New International Version)



NAKED I CAME FROM MY MOTHER’S WOMB,
AND NAKED I WILL DEPART.
THE LORD GAVE AND THE LORD HAS TAKEN AWAY;
MAY THE NAME OF THE LORD BE PRAISED.


Job was a man who honoured God; he had been blessed by God. Satan took away the evidence of that blessing but the presence and caring of God remained. God allowed Satan to intervene in Job’s life. Job questioned God. He called out to God. He demanded an audience with God for answers and confirmation that he was blameless. Job’s wife and friends confronted him. People from his community who had respected him now scorned him.


Job admitted his sin and confirmed his belief in God. God answered Job “out of the storm”; Job’s life was in turmoil. God responded to Job with questions which Job could not answer. Although Job loved God he could not see God’s perspective. God showed Job that God was in control. Job acknowledges, “My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you.” Job called out to God until he heard God’s answers.


Job’s story challenges me to acknowledge God’s provision. Throughout my life change has been constant. Life has not proceeded according to plan. The plan has changed many times, and likely will again. God loves me. He has directed me and provided for me and helped me to learn. But still, when change is upon me I struggle to meet it with confidence. Instead of calling on God to lead me I resist the change. Instead of relying on God’s strength I feel inadequate and overwhelmed. God has prepared me and challenges me to step forward. I am responsible to use the skills He has given and the strength He provides.


This opportunity to travel to Kenya is a gift from God. God has supplied the resources to allow me to see the beauties of the world and His provision in the lives of people I will meet. I will be challenged to learn new things and contribute the skills the Lord has taught me.


Will I understand “the bigger picture” that God sees? I may not. But I can be sure that God loves me and will meet my needs as I ask Him. Open my eyes, Lord, to see You. Open my mouth, Lord, to praise you. Let me learn through this experience, to use the gifts and skills you have given me to embrace change in my life, “for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.” Philippians 2:13 NIV.


Janice Evans

More thoughts

Tomatoes, passion fruit - truly mind boggling compared to last time. The dedication of the pump was very moving. Janet Mutanu

The hope that the water showed was so extrodinary to see so wonderful. It was so lovely to see the green. Stew

It was my first time at mitaboni. I was encouraged to see all the green growth caused by the weir being built. Colleen

It was great to return to mitaboni and see the transformation from brown and dead to green and alive. It was the best day so far. Glenn

During our time with the bishop today he asked what he and the church should learn from our experiences. He is wanting to learn how to be a better leader. Janice

Water of life. Frogs in the lake, beautiful water lilies, gardens waiting to be harvested and clean water for drinking. A beautiful site. Lynn

An encouragement to hear and see today the value and importance of our physical presence here in Kenya, building and strengthening relationships with our brothers and sisters. A God breathed day. Sara
Sent wirelessly from my BlackBerry device on the Bell network.
Envoyé sans fil par mon terminal mobile BlackBerry sur le réseau de Bell.

Our thoughts from Mitaboni

There was water at the weir! It was also green. There were banana trees (with almost ready bananas) and papayas and tomatoes and passion fruit. There were lily pads and frogs in the water. A place teeming with life - living water. - Darren

Today the color of hope was green. I felt that there was a new passion for why we pour our time and energy in. Eric.

Water is EPIC! Lisa

I was oficially blown away, it was far more then u could ask or imagine. Dave

I was so speechless when I was walking down the hill and saw the most beautiful water that wasn't there before. We need to care more about the water we have. *Paul*

Remarkable how much difference some water can make. Weir full, waterlilies growing, banana trees, kale
Sent wirelessly from my BlackBerry device on the Bell network.
Envoyé sans fil par mon terminal mobile BlackBerry sur le réseau de Bell.

Our thoughts from Mitaboni

There was water at the weir! It was also green. There were banana trees (with almost ready bananas) and papayas and tomatoes and passion fruit. There were lily pads and frogs in the water. A place teeming with life - living water. - Darren

Today the color of hope was green. I felt that there was a new passion for why we pour our time and energy in. Eric.

Water is EPIC! Lisa

I was oficially blown away, it was far more then u could ask or imagine. Dave

I was so speechless when I was walking down the hill and saw the most beautiful water that wasn't there before. We need to care more about the water we have. *Paul*

Remarkable how much difference some water can make. Weir full, waterlilies growing, banana trees, kale
Sent wirelessly from my BlackBerry device on the Bell network.
Envoyé sans fil par mon terminal mobile BlackBerry sur le réseau de Bell.

Devotional - Tuesday, August 17th

Unity in the Body of Christ



Ephesians 4 (New International Version)


1As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope when you were called— 5one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.


11It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.


29Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. 30And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32Be kind and compassionate to one another forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.


God put us here for a reason, to be a part of the Body of Christ. He brought each one of us to Kenya for a specific reason and those whom we’ve left at home are there for a specific reason as well. We each have jobs that he’s intended us for. That job might be as simple as saying thank you to someone who’s made us a meal and touching their heart. Or, it could mean teaching a sermon to touch many hearts.


Each of the people we meet while we’re on this journey has a purpose in our lives as well as in the Body of Christ. Although we might not see it at the time all of these people will touch us and it’s our responsibility as part of the Body of Christ to be open and accepting of that touch. Some of the things we see and experience will make us feel uneasy or afraid or confused but there is something important to glean from all of it. Don’t shy away from those things but rather go towards them and face them with the knowledge that God is here to protect and love you and you are here to show that same faith and love to others.


Most of all remember that we are ALL part of the ONE Body of Christ believing in “5one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.”


Lisa Milton

To Mitaboni

We are heading to Mitaboni this morning. This is the location where we helped prepare the site and started building the water tanks in 2008. We are looking forward to seeing the completed water tanks and the pump house.

Members of our team will be offering prayers and speaking at the dedication ceremony. We look forward to this time of celebration.


Sent wirelessly from my BlackBerry device on the Bell network.
Envoyé sans fil par mon terminal mobile BlackBerry sur le réseau de Bell.

Devotional - Wednesday, August 18th

Ruth 1: 16-17



When I began to think about writing this devotion, I turned to Eugene Peterson’s, The Message, to read his introduction to the book of Ruth. Following is my summary of his thoughts, which I wanted to share with you as a part of my devotion. This book of Ruth, a story about two widows and a farmer, is found in the Bible between the historic beginning of the Hebrew people with some well known stars – Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph and Moses and the subsequent stories of spiritual formation starring characters such as Hannah, Samuel, David, Saul and Solomon. In the middle of these great fathers and mothers of the faith comes Ruth. She seems to be an unimpressive and unimportant character. She was a foreigner, not born into the faith, a poor, powerless widow. How could Ruth have any place in God’s story? As we read to the end of the book of Ruth, we discover that she is absolutely crucial for God’s story of redemption and salvation to be complete, for Ruth was the great-grandmother of David and a foremother of Jesus. How often do we feel that our lives are inconsequential, that we are only ordinary people who have little significance? Regardless of what we feel, each of us is “irreplaceable in the full telling of God’s story. We count – every last one of us – and what we do counts.” (The Message, p. 449).


What made Ruth significant? What made her life count? The two verses, Ruth 1: 16-17, provide an excellent glimpse into the character of Ruth and I believe answer those questions.


Don’t urge me to leave you or turn back from you.
You have something that I want – a faith for myself.
Where you go, I will go.
I will follow you to a place and a land I know nothing about. I will have hope.
Where you stay, I will stay.
I will be committed and live with you and your people who may even be hostile to me, a foreigner.
Your people will be my people.
I will become one of your people, observing the laws of your God.
Your God will be my God.
I will worship your God in spirit and in truth.
Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried.
I will be faithful, love you and stay with you until the end.

What made Ruth irreplaceable in God’s story? She became a woman of faith. She pursued the faith of Naomi and made it her own. She lived in relationship with God, following his ways, observing his laws. She had hope despite her circumstances. She lived out a life of love and commitment.

Commitment, Faith, Hope, Love.




Heavenly Father, Help us to live lives of commitment, faith, hope and love. We may never know the impact that we will have on the people around us. Despite that, use us and what we do, imperfect as we are, in your unfolding story of redemption and salvation. Amen.


Lynn Martin

Devotional - Monday, August 16th

Robbing God



Malachi 3:6-12


Are we robbing God? Are we bringing our tithes and offerings to Him? Are we bringing the ‘full’ or ‘whole’ tithe? If not we are robbing God.


Malachi is talking to a people who have abandoned and ignored God. They have not only abandoned God but also His children; the widows, the orphans, the foreigners, and those who work for wages. This lack of giving is a symptom of something much bigger. They have turned their backs on God and gone their own way and this arrogance has caused them to ignore their neighbour.


This is an interesting passage to consider while we are in Kenya (when you’re reading this we’ll be in Kenya). We are among a people who give even though they have few possessions. They share a meal with us, even killing their chicken or goat, while they survive on a protein deficient daily diet. Their chicken or goat is like the widow’s mite that Jesus described in Luke 21:1-4. Jesus said that the widow with her two pennies gave more of what she had than the rich man who gave out of his plenty.


I think that the time, members of the Altadore family have spent among the El Salvadorans and the Kenyans, has influenced us. Observing their lives and their character has rubbed off on us. It has made us a more giving family of believers. We respond to the need we see in the world around us. We love to share our time and gifts with His children where ever they are in the world.


The passage ends with the promise “We will be blessed” if we obey. In ‘The Message’ Eugene Peterson translates this to we will be called the “Happiest Nation”. It’s interesting that we’re here with the Kenyan people who give and share willingly. They are a happy people, smiling in spite of the many challenges they face each day. With these smiling faces the Kenyans must be part of the “Happiest Nation”. Being here among them allows this to rub off on us and we like others before us bring this back to our church family at Altadore.


Prayer:


May we be as generous as our Kenyan hosts.
May we bring the full tithe into God’s store house.
Grant us the willingness to obey, to look after
the widows, the orphans, the foreigners, and the workers.
May we become a “Happiest Nation”.


Amen


Glenn Malcolm