It has been a month since I last posted, and what a month!! Trip to Kenya and on to England. Visits with friends and strangers and spiritual food to feast upon. Stolen stuff that is irreplaceable and little worry about it at all. (Where is THAT serenity coming from?) The zebras are contented - so should I be. Thank you Lord.

On our trip twe were fserved food to eat that would have fed an entire Coambodial village. And that was a difficult part of being in Nairobi and environs - we (eight of us from Great Commission Fellowship in Wilmore) were treated like Royalty and given stuff and taken places where we felt privileged and did not wish to be so honored. We are just Americans who are blessed beyond words and pampered as though we 'deserved' it. Our mission was with Armstrong and Rhoda Cheggeh who are the lead pastors of a denomination in Kenya. Our job: to be at the annual Convention for the Pastors of the churches in Kenya who belong to Fountain of Life Churches. The convention was in a large rural girls' boarding school. Two hundred plus pastors and wives and assorted came to the conference and were fed/watered/prayed for and taught. It was incredible the ministry that went on. In a dusty dry arid desert location with few amenities. You should try it one day. I loved it. Except the potty. Nuff said.

One of the hardest things: accepting hospitality. How does one find the courage to serve 'guests' with the food that the children would have liked to have eaten. What is the cultural mandate that says that the fat cat americans deserve to be given the cream of the crop and more besides? Apparently it is the Kenyan culture, and we certainly felt obligated to eat the food set in front of us and bite our tongues and NOT tell our hosts to give the foods to the poor. Isn't it odd? We showed our gratitude with many thank yous and promises of prayers, and were able to bring some monetary gifts that maybe eased the pain for some of the tribal areas in the form of maize and beans, and three bikes for pastors. There is famine in northern Kenya - no measurable rain for 4 years, and crop failure after failure. Children dying from insufficient food. Oh my!

The most wonderful part of the trip was the spiritual conversion of the young man, Eddy.(Below: Second from the right back row) He was the bus driver hired along with the 15 seater, and his work with our group was to drive us hither and yon. Mostly yon. And sometimes with a broken clutch!! Our delight and enthusiasm, our lack of complaining, (I believe) helped Eddy to see that Americans WITH Christ are different from any other tourists. He said "It is because of YOU that I became a Christian!" That is what he said. He was raised by 3 sibling brothers and no parents, and never set foot in a school. We are glad that the Pastor in Nairobi has agreed to be his mentor and bring Eddy into a discipleship relationship. GO Eddy!! The photo is the DAY of his conversion. The man kneeling on the left is the American who preached at that service and led Eddy into a meaningful relationship with Jesus. Eddy had been a Muslim until this picture/day.

The zebras at the top are some of the animals we saw on the Safari that was arranged for us. Eddy drove us through the acres of the Maasai Mara park and found animals for us to oogle at and take photos of. How is one NOT amazed at the variety and massiveness of the flora and fauna? Eddy knew a Maasai at one of the villages and took us to see the extended family. Ooohhh. Ask me about THAT!! It was a National Geographic experience.Here is the picture you have all been waiting for: Phoebe, her young man and his parents, Helen and Colin. "Loooovvvely people" as the Brits would say. We had a delightful lunch and walk around a picturesque British Village - with churhc and river and all. Quaint bridge super panoramic views.

Since coming back to Wilmore I have felt that the event overseas was a kind of watershed for me. Some stuff is "Pre-Kenya" and now it is post. New stuff and new vision. What of? Not sure yet, but new. And exciting. And filled with usefulness. And ministry with you. Be blessed.