Hello everyone!
A lot has happened since last we wrote, so I decided the best way to give you a taste would be to highlight the main events and say a little blurb about them.
EMM/MCC East Africa Retreat: Very relaxing and fun, except for the times when we were in charge of the kids programs. Brook had one girl who kicked, punched, and bit him and even tried to cut his hair on one occasion. I wasn't expecting to lead a group and Colin and I had to wing it. Other than that it was good to talk to the workers in the area and learn more about this place. We even got a talk on how to best deal with begging and other money issues from on of the workers.
Arriving in Songhor: 6-7 hours after we left the retreat we arrived in a little compound with lots of chickens, goats, and children running around, where the Agola men and their families have compounds, before leaving their father's home. We made two children cry because they were startled to see our white skin. The family here is very accommodating and also very fun and we find ourselves enjoying it here even though the conditions are by western standards fairly primitive.
Swahili Lessons: Tuna mwalimu mzuri. Yeye ni mwanamume mzee.
Trans: We have a good teacher. He is an old man (to call someone old in Kenya is a term of respect and wouldn't be considered an insult as it would be in the states).
Swahili lessons are going well, and we hope to be speaking it semi-fluently as soon as possible before going to Chepilat. I am doing noticeably better than the other guys – but we've been told that overall we're learning much faster than the previous teams, which is good.
Tunataka kusoma kuongea Kiswahili kizuri, na ninafikiri tunaweza, kama tukajaribu (We want to learn to speak good swahili, and I think we can, if we try).
Christmas in Kenya: It was a little strange to be in a place were there was practically no Christmas season – even in the home. It just kind of snuck up on us and then sort of sauntered away. We did go to church in the morning though.
Church in Sanghor: We were told church started at 10, but we ended up leaving the house at 10:40ish, and church started at 11. We gathered with the leaders in the back, and who was running which part of the service (translation, reading, prayer, organization, the sermon) were divied up. We weren't prepared, so they let us get off with reading the verse, but tomorrow we're expected to lead worship, and one of us might have to spontaneously preach a sermon too – you never know. The service was very long, with some good singing, and a few good sermons, and then an offering, part of which included auctioning off a chicken, a coca-cola bottle filled with honey, and a bunch of plantains. We ended by shaking everyone's hands and wishing everyone a Happy Christmas.
Saturday: We decided that we needed to climb the mountains next to Sanghor, so we rose at five to do so, lit by the stars above our heads. We got to the top about 45 minutes before sunrise, and were dazzled by God's creation with absolutely breathtaking views not just down to the village but in all four directions (around a cell phone tower that Safaricom had erected). After we came back down we spent the rest of the morning learning to wash our clothes by hand. As I had several open sores from climbing and Taylor developed blisters, the vigorous scrubbing and rinsing proved painful, but by the end, we had all resolved from here on to:
1. Be more economical with our clothes.
2. Buy sandals so we wouldn't have to wear socks so much (except Brook, who already knew this).
So, our time in Kenya has been very good so far. We've been getting acclimated, meeting people, and learning swahili, and we can't wait to finally get to Chepilat to settle down in two weeks!
Please continue to pray for us as we learn Swahili and figure out everything that we need to do.
God Bless you all,
Stefan
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Friday, December 12, 2008
The First Week In The Land Of Kenya
After we left the Guest House on Sunday, we traveled four hours to what will be our home town for the next few months. The ride over was...cool/interesting/differant/a learning experience. We got into a van that would be considered old and rundown by American/our standards, but compared to many of these motatu's it was very nice. When we got to downtown Nairobi, we were transferred to another motatu with for our trip to Chipolet. These vans are about the size of a normal minivan, but they have been refitted to hold 18 people (at least they have that many seats. more on that later). As is common with Kenyan culture, we didn't leave for about fifteen minutes as the driver, and doorman got the van ready and filled the van up with people.
The ride itself was very fast. We passed many vans, cars and trucks, but I can only remember one van passing us. The roads weren't as bad as I had expected, but some parts were dirt and gravel.
When we got to Chipolet, George showed us around. The elevation is high enough that the sun isn't super hot. Just about right. Everyone we talked to was glad to see us, and were very friendly. We got to talk to some of the store owners near our apartment, and say hello to some of the kids of the neighborhood. I was surprised when a lot of them spoke English. That will make learning Swahili harder, but communication with some of them easier. We got to see our apartment, see the church, and meet George's family too. On our walk out to the church, George told us that many people were killed in Chipolet about a year ago, and that the dirt road we were walking down was filled with many casualties. That was humbling to hear.
We spent the night there and left for Kisumu in the morning for a week long conference with the Kenya Mennonite Church leaders on inner healing after the violence that broke out after the elections last December. The ride over was in another motatu, but this time we counted 24 people at one point. I was very impressed with how efficient Kenyans can be *smile*.
At the gathering in Kisumu, we got to worship alongside our Kenyan brothers and sisters, eat with them, and build relationships with many people who will be trying to help their churches and communities recover from the conflict. The conversations with people here have been out of this world. One man I talked to was telling me about the best ways to show Gods love to his people. He also told me his story of God being faithful to him and his family, and also the things God has been doing through him.
Right now we are in Nairobi, resting up, and preparing for the East African Mennonite Retreat.
God has been good to us over the past week as we get settled into Kenyan culture. He keeps showing more of himself to us through these experiences.
Taylor
The ride itself was very fast. We passed many vans, cars and trucks, but I can only remember one van passing us. The roads weren't as bad as I had expected, but some parts were dirt and gravel.
When we got to Chipolet, George showed us around. The elevation is high enough that the sun isn't super hot. Just about right. Everyone we talked to was glad to see us, and were very friendly. We got to talk to some of the store owners near our apartment, and say hello to some of the kids of the neighborhood. I was surprised when a lot of them spoke English. That will make learning Swahili harder, but communication with some of them easier. We got to see our apartment, see the church, and meet George's family too. On our walk out to the church, George told us that many people were killed in Chipolet about a year ago, and that the dirt road we were walking down was filled with many casualties. That was humbling to hear.
We spent the night there and left for Kisumu in the morning for a week long conference with the Kenya Mennonite Church leaders on inner healing after the violence that broke out after the elections last December. The ride over was in another motatu, but this time we counted 24 people at one point. I was very impressed with how efficient Kenyans can be *smile*.
At the gathering in Kisumu, we got to worship alongside our Kenyan brothers and sisters, eat with them, and build relationships with many people who will be trying to help their churches and communities recover from the conflict. The conversations with people here have been out of this world. One man I talked to was telling me about the best ways to show Gods love to his people. He also told me his story of God being faithful to him and his family, and also the things God has been doing through him.
Right now we are in Nairobi, resting up, and preparing for the East African Mennonite Retreat.
God has been good to us over the past week as we get settled into Kenyan culture. He keeps showing more of himself to us through these experiences.
Taylor
Saturday, December 6, 2008
Journey to Nairobi
Well, day one in Kenya has commenced for us. We arrived here very early this morning, about 5:30 am local time, wide-eyed (for many reasons) and ready to just get off the plane and onto the ground. For those of you who aren't informed of our trip over it became an interesting adventure we weren't anticipating. As Brook wrote our last blog entry sitting in the airport at Harrisburg we were waiting on what we thought was a minor delay. Our minor delay went on into the 5 hour mark and we had no chance to make our international flight out of Washington D.C. We had two choices: wait a day and try again or take a different flight partner and go from Harrisburg to Philadelphia to Paris (which for the record, the airport resides in the middle of rural France) and after a nine hour layover to Nairobi. We chose the second option because we weren't thrilled of the idea of returning to HDC for 24 hours and sitting, thinking about our trip to come and then doing good-byes part 2. I tell you about our 36 hour trip not so you feel bad but just to share the "group bonding" experience we were able to have. I'm sure we don't all approach that with the same outlook but I chose and choose to laugh and move on. Enough said on that front...
As we exited the airport we were eagerly looking around the capital of our home for the next 5 months which was quickly interrupted by some also eager Kenyans who desired to load our bags for us. I, being somewhat unsuspecting of what was going on, thought they were friends to our contacts here in Nairobi but was suddenly corrected as the men who had finished loading our bags waited in expectation for their compensation. Ah... it finally connected to me. Welcome to Nairobi all! :) Other than that, we were able to meet George, the pastor of the church in Chipolet, and begin to get to know about him and the next 5 months. We have been impressed by our experience thus far and have been trying to take it all in but know we'll be learning the same names and answers to questions over as today we four reflect that of brain dead, walking zombies. Some chai and more sleep should do wonders. That's it for today.
All for his glory,
Colin
As we exited the airport we were eagerly looking around the capital of our home for the next 5 months which was quickly interrupted by some also eager Kenyans who desired to load our bags for us. I, being somewhat unsuspecting of what was going on, thought they were friends to our contacts here in Nairobi but was suddenly corrected as the men who had finished loading our bags waited in expectation for their compensation. Ah... it finally connected to me. Welcome to Nairobi all! :) Other than that, we were able to meet George, the pastor of the church in Chipolet, and begin to get to know about him and the next 5 months. We have been impressed by our experience thus far and have been trying to take it all in but know we'll be learning the same names and answers to questions over as today we four reflect that of brain dead, walking zombies. Some chai and more sleep should do wonders. That's it for today.
All for his glory,
Colin
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Its go time.
Exactly 85 days, 23 hours and 16 minutes after team Kenya first assembled at Mount Joy Mennonite church to be commissioned, we are finally on our way. We shed no tears, for everyone knows that real men don't cry*, but we all gave and recieved some pretty epic hugs before leaving the Harrisburg Discipleship Center, our home for the last 3 months. Having said goodbye to family, both relatives and our fellow YES trainees, we entered Harrisburg Int'l Airport full of anticipation and excitement for what God has planned for the next five months. For Taylor, Colin and I, this will be one of our first international flights so Stefan, the most veteran time-traveler of the team, will need to hold our hands and guide us through this whole traveling thing. Colin, the touchy-feely one of the group, took that a little too literally and got excited.*
For the next 24 hours, team Kenya will be in transit to Nairobi, from Harrisburg to Washington D.C.; then to Zurich, Switzerland and on to Nairobi. We'll be in the air for 17 hours total and we're all looking forward to the legendary airline food that everyone is always raving about, as well as the spacious on-board restroom facilities. Upon arrival, we will be picked up, Lord willing, by pastor George of Chipolet and Bishop Clyde Agola and taken to the beautiful Mennonite Guesthouse in the capitol city. Your continued prayers and support are greatly appreciated and feel free to send those Christmas cards and such to the address on our prayer cards. Hi Mom!
Peace & Laughter,
Brook
*just joshin' ya.
For the next 24 hours, team Kenya will be in transit to Nairobi, from Harrisburg to Washington D.C.; then to Zurich, Switzerland and on to Nairobi. We'll be in the air for 17 hours total and we're all looking forward to the legendary airline food that everyone is always raving about, as well as the spacious on-board restroom facilities. Upon arrival, we will be picked up, Lord willing, by pastor George of Chipolet and Bishop Clyde Agola and taken to the beautiful Mennonite Guesthouse in the capitol city. Your continued prayers and support are greatly appreciated and feel free to send those Christmas cards and such to the address on our prayer cards. Hi Mom!
Peace & Laughter,
Brook
*just joshin' ya.
Monday, December 1, 2008
Training
Hi everyone,
Stefan here. I'm writing this to give a better idea of what training looked like for those who don't know.
YES (Youth Evangelism Service) is a program run by Eastern Mennonite Missions, in which the participants spend about 3 months in Discipleship training at the Harrisburg Discipleship Center, then go on outreach for 6-8 months.
Training is mainly focused on growing us in our personal relationships with Christ, but also has elements of preparing us for missions, inter-cultural experiences, and the language of the culture we'll be going to.
This year there were 31 participants going to Kenya, Spain, North Africa, Honduras, Guatemala, China, and India.
Our training started with team leader training week, where all us team leaders got together and got to know each other and learned about leadership, which was really helpful. Probably the most intense part of this week was when we fasted one day, and then we had a silent retreat in the night - where we didn't talk to anyone but spent the time with God, and prayed for our teams and whatever was on our hearts. It's hard to be silent for 5 hours and be with God.
Then our team members arrived and we had commissioning, where family members, church members, and other relations gathered to meet the teams, and hear more about what they were doing, and to pray for them and release them to do God's will.
Training was good. Our team learned the basics of Swahili and how to learn how to live in cultures different than our own, and living with less than we were used to. We were given lots of time to be alone with God, and asked leading questions about how willing we were to let God be a part of everything. We had sessions every day with very wise people who were stronger Christians than we were, about topics like hospitality, the holy spirit, prayer, the father heart of God, forgiveness, joy, and many other topics. We had team times where we had fun and bonded, and we had team times where we read the bible and prayed and worshiped together. We went out on the streets to serve the community by doing yardwork, and prayer walks, and such, and we had ministry nights where we worshiped and ministry nights where we sat and listened to what God was telling us. It was a time where we all were stretched in our own personal ways. The goal for the training was not to have us all come out as cookie-cutter EMM workers, but to grow in Christ in a way that was personal to us, and a way that we could own.
It was a good time of growth, for me individually and as a team.
And now it's time to go to Kenya. We fly out on the 4th. Pray for us as we're over there. We're going somewhere that might not be the safest in the eyes of the world, but living in God's will is the safest place to be. It's also the most exciting.
Kwaheri (goodbye) and see you back in America sometime.
Stefan here. I'm writing this to give a better idea of what training looked like for those who don't know.
YES (Youth Evangelism Service) is a program run by Eastern Mennonite Missions, in which the participants spend about 3 months in Discipleship training at the Harrisburg Discipleship Center, then go on outreach for 6-8 months.
Training is mainly focused on growing us in our personal relationships with Christ, but also has elements of preparing us for missions, inter-cultural experiences, and the language of the culture we'll be going to.
This year there were 31 participants going to Kenya, Spain, North Africa, Honduras, Guatemala, China, and India.
Our training started with team leader training week, where all us team leaders got together and got to know each other and learned about leadership, which was really helpful. Probably the most intense part of this week was when we fasted one day, and then we had a silent retreat in the night - where we didn't talk to anyone but spent the time with God, and prayed for our teams and whatever was on our hearts. It's hard to be silent for 5 hours and be with God.
Then our team members arrived and we had commissioning, where family members, church members, and other relations gathered to meet the teams, and hear more about what they were doing, and to pray for them and release them to do God's will.
Training was good. Our team learned the basics of Swahili and how to learn how to live in cultures different than our own, and living with less than we were used to. We were given lots of time to be alone with God, and asked leading questions about how willing we were to let God be a part of everything. We had sessions every day with very wise people who were stronger Christians than we were, about topics like hospitality, the holy spirit, prayer, the father heart of God, forgiveness, joy, and many other topics. We had team times where we had fun and bonded, and we had team times where we read the bible and prayed and worshiped together. We went out on the streets to serve the community by doing yardwork, and prayer walks, and such, and we had ministry nights where we worshiped and ministry nights where we sat and listened to what God was telling us. It was a time where we all were stretched in our own personal ways. The goal for the training was not to have us all come out as cookie-cutter EMM workers, but to grow in Christ in a way that was personal to us, and a way that we could own.
It was a good time of growth, for me individually and as a team.
And now it's time to go to Kenya. We fly out on the 4th. Pray for us as we're over there. We're going somewhere that might not be the safest in the eyes of the world, but living in God's will is the safest place to be. It's also the most exciting.
Kwaheri (goodbye) and see you back in America sometime.
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