He is Risen!

Pole sana, hatujaandika kwa wiki wawili! Sorry that we haven’t updated our blog in two weeks! But here we are, getting back into the routine of things after several trips (both business and pleasure), and enjoying Kenya now more than ever.

First on a more serious note, I went back to the States a few weeks ago as my Grandad passed away after a long battle with cancer. I didn’t know if I would be able to go home or not, and I am so glad that it worked out so that I was able to be together with my family to mourn and remember him together. Thank you to so many of you who have been praying for my family through all of this.

Now I have been back in Kenya for two weeks, and we have been staying so busy. The day after I flew in we hopped on a train with our friends Tyler and Lydia for an overnight ride to the coastal town of Mombasa. We met up with some other missionary friends of ours, and the 17 of us stayed together in a beach cottage for a few days as our Easter break. We spent a lot of time swimming, snorkeling, sailing, fishing, eating and relaxing. Oh, and we went for a camel ride on the beach! The trip was a lot of fun and it provided a beautiful and relaxing break to our regular work schedule.

When we returned from Mombasa we jumped right back into work, meetings, and trainings. Now that the have started, the farmers have all planted and now have more time to meet for the business trainings that we are doing. So Michael and I have started teaching the Plan a Better Business (PBB) course and we love it so far.

It has been so much fun to team teach this course, to “ongea pamoja” (discuss together) with the farmers, and to learn together about business and marketing. One of our favorite parts about the training so far is that everyone really gets into the skits that they all perform. We split the group up and assign them different scenarios to perform, and it really has been amazing to see the issues that they raise and the talent they use to express different things, like punctuality at meetings, consistent saving, or the necessity of good book keeping. There are six lessons in the PBB course, and five new groups that are taking the course, so we will be staying very busy in the coming months traveling to and meeting with each group for each lesson.

A huge plug for Kenya for both Michael and me is the ease with which we can make weekend trips to interesting places. This past weekend we went with Karis and Abby, Tyler and Lydia, and two other friends, Stephen and Loui, to Lake Naivasha (the second time for us) to camp on the lake and to hike the "senile volcano,” Mt. Longonot. I’m pretty sure we all under-estimated the difficulty of the hike, but despite the aches, pains and blisters we’re experiencing now, it really was so much fun. 

It took us about 5 hours to climb up, to hike the entire rim, and to hike back down, but quite literally at every step I was overwhelmed by the captivating views and astounding scenery.We were exhausted and covered in dust and dirt when we finished, but after some tasty snacks and many “coke baridi sana” (cold cokes), we were able to make the two hour drive back to Nairobi.

One of our favorite events so far that we’ve had in Kenya happened last week. Michael and I were honored to host our first annual Easter Feast in our home. We took out the bits of furniture we usually have in the main room, set up mattresses and big pillows for seats, and placed a blanket on the floor as our table. Michael organized and led the program, and everyone contributed food to the feast. It was such a rich and worshipful evening with friends from Kenya, India, England and the States sitting in a room together rejoicing in and celebrating the resurrection of our Lord, King Jesus. All aspects about the feast—the music, the Scripture and literature readings, the food, and the prayers—helped all of us to remember and celebrate Jesus’ victory over sin and death in a very powerful way. At one point during the service we proclaimed together, “Jesus is Lord,” and then from that truth we spoke about the things that are not Lord. Caesar is not Lord, Jesus is Lord. My success is not Lord, Jesus is Lord. My country is not Lord, Jesus is Lord. I am not Lord, Jesus is Lord.

May we remember and celebrate Jesus’ Lordship not just one day out of the year, but every day of our lives. God has been teaching us that we can and should celebrate the victory of the resurrection by living every day in the freedom and peace that comes through Jesus. He calls himself our Brother, and He lets us participate in His work of bringing His kingdom.

“The Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come!’ And let him who hears say, ‘Come!’ Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life. He who testifies to these things says, ‘Yes, I am coming soon.’ Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.” (Revelation 22:17&20)

Much love,

Rebecca