I talked to Oliver this morning.

It is the first time I've talked to him by phone since leaving Kenya last May.

I had assumed that he was still in Kibera but didn't have a phone or was getting my updates from Albert and Oscar whom I talk to frequently.

I also assumed that he was part of the ministry team of boys that had formed over the last 6 months.

I assumed wrong.

 

Oliver is not in Kibera.

He is up-country (a Kenyan term for the different tribal villages and farming land around the country where most of the elderly still live)

with his Mum, brother and grandparents.

The family fled there when the killing first started.

Oliver's family was one of them but unlike most other families, Oliver's remains away from Kibera.

 

I asked him when the family plans to return home.

He told me that they wanted to get back to Kibera in February but they don't have the money for transportation.

Oliver is from a tribe that lives far from Kibera, and it takes a few days by bus to reach his grandparents.

He also told me that not only do they not have enough money to get back home, they often don't have enough money to eat.

His grandparents are too old to work and Oliver is only 13.

From what I understand, Oliver's father is working day and night and the whole family is living off his income.

His mother has a vegetable business in Kibera but here this kind of business is not so successful.

Oliver is sleeping on a single foam mattress I gave him last year... sharing it with his Mum and his brother.

 

He also told me about when they fled the city.

"One of my family members was killed."

I asked him who and he told me it was a man he called father.

I think it was his uncle, but it was someone very close to Oliver.

[the phone had horrible reception and we were cut off 4 times]

 

I asked him what he would like me to pray for and he said his school.

Because he is not in Kibera he is missing classes which will force Oliver to take grade 7 all over again.

He does not want to be held back and when he tells me this I can hear worry in his voice.

Oliver knows how important school is in relation to his future.

He also misses his friends and has not even been able to call them since December when he left.

 

I gave him the numbers for them and he was instantly upbeat.

He was excited to know that he would be able to talk to them for the first time in 4 months.

He says that he is thankful to God for the aid that has come.

He thanks God for the people praying for him and feels like he is not forgotten because of one phone call.

 

I wish I could do more than call him.

Being here renders me helpless in cases like these.

I can't even send money because there are no banks up country, no internet, nothing.

But things like this give us all a chance to see what God can do when we cannot do anything.

The only thing I can do for Oliver is pray for him and his family.

 

Will you join me in praying for this boy?

His spirits are low because some days he feels very alone and defeated.

I am pleased to inform you that this training was very different than any of the other scores of training camps I've been to at AIM.

By scores I mean 2 others but it seems like many more.

 

There were no walls to be climbed, no mountains to be hiked, no cabins/tents/ground to be slept on and no port-o-potties to be...well you know.

This training was for ambassador and real life team leaders.

And though I do not yet have a team or a co-leader, (I'm not leaving till September)

I got to hang out and learn with and from an awesome group of leaders and get a feel of what it will be like when I am actually close to leaving.

 

There are two highlights that are worth sharing.. in my opinion.

 

First... Healing

The sister of an AIM staffer is currently in hospital after a very close call followed by an amazing story of God's protection and healing.

On April 1st Laura Rock was admitted to ICU, unresponsive with a critically damaged liver.

For days her stats were not good.

There was concern about brain damage and the chances of getting a new liver in time were looking negative.

Laura's family rallied around her in prayer and people at AIM did the same.

Throughout training we would receive updates from Laura's family

and a few times a day we would stop what we were doing and pray together, in groups and alone for Laura's recovery.

The news was like a roller coaster, bad one day and good the next, then bad again.

We continued praying and before we knew it Laura's levels were stabilizing and all of a sudden there was a liver available.

She endured the long surgery and is currently recovering with her new liver.

She has been through a tremendous amount of stress and pain but she recognizes that she lucky to be alive and gives all the glory to God for this.

 

There was talk about Laura moving to Gainesville with her brother and sister-in-law when she has fully recovered.

I'm not sure if this is true or not but if it is...

All I can say is look out Laura...

there are dozens of people who are so excited to meet the girl they have been praying for from Detroit that was healed and is adored by God.

 

Second... Another answer to prayer

Since my return to the mission field was put on hold due to political uprising, murders, fires, looting and acts of unimaginable outrage over the election in Kenya last December, I had not really dealt with the fact that everything was so far removed from my control.

Some days I was clawing at it, hoping to grab onto something that I could understand but the reality was that it was always out of my control.

For a long time I could not contact my friends overseas, I was worried for them being in direct danger, I had no idea if or when I was going back and I didn't know what decisions were being made at AIM about the team that I was scheduled to lead.

All of this kind of kept piling on me and I kept pushing it down.

When I was at training the Lord spoke to me one night during a worship session.

I was in no mood to worship, I was angry and bitter, but He told me that it was time to leave that behind, to be free again.

I prayed with one of the leaders afterward and she reminded me that it's ok to be angry, that these things were out of my control and it was ok to be upset that it was taken away from me.

I knew I needed to deal with it, to grieve it and look forward.

Till then I was being stubborn, holding on to hurt.

That night I lay in bed and just admitted to God that I couldn't hold on to the bitterness anymore.

I told Him that I didn't like who I was allowing myself to become and that I needed a new vision for this road I was walking down.

I fell asleep mid prayer and had one of the best sleeps I'd had in months.

In the morning I felt new.

Without a word of a lie I felt like I had never been angry in the first place.

The Lord took that pain and replaced it with vision and excitement for a new chapter in my life.

Kenya is not over, it's just postponed.

And while I wait to return there are things here that God has set aside for me to do.

 

I praise Him for healing.

I praise Him for new beginnings.

I praise Him for the hope of a future and

I praise Him for loving me even when I am unlovable.

 

 

*maniacal giggle*

sometimes I think I'm pretty clever...

 

I MADE IT!

I conquered the 1700 km (1040 mile) trek - twice

from home to Atlanta/Gainesville, GA

and it wasn't so bad.

 

I don't know if I would do it again by myself, leisurely, but if it had to be repeated I could.

 

Here are some things that I observed.

 

First off... smells.

There are some very distinctive smells along the way and - as a way of keeping awake -

I jotted some down, on the back of my directions that kept getting me lost, to share with you all.

 

the molson brewery - smells surprisingly like freshly baked bread at 5 in the morning

the schnieders meat factory

fireplaces/wood stoves

skunk - I actually like the smell of skunk (this is funnier)

lumber

yogurt - I'm not sure why but that's what Sydney Ohio smells like

pine trees

 

urine - for like a km stretch... no, it wasn't me

various factory emissions

baked road kill

smoking car engine - again, not me

mushroom farm

freshly fertilised field

Nair - much like Ohio smelling like yogurt, I'm not sure why Tennessee smelled like Nair

 

Apart from the smells there were a few other things I noticed:

Kentucky and Tennessee are beautiful!

I didn't really have any expectations other than something like this and this in my head,

which I did see, but the rolling hills and towns hidden in valleys was a pleasant road trip view.

 

Also,

there is an alarming amount of roadkill along the I-75

I cannot speak about the rest of the country but I suspect the situation doesn't vary a whole lot.

I saw at least 6 dogs dead, 4 cats and dozens of other creatures.

The pets were the worst though... why are there so many pets killed on the road?

it's heart breaking.

is it the owners' fault or the motorists?

or maybe the cleanup crews are just really slow..?

 

I saw one cat along the road in Ontario but it was still alive, just taking a stroll..

keeping it's distance from the highway like good little kitties should

 

I met a very nice lady in Ohio on the drive down while seeking help on my third situation of being lost.

She noticed my AIM shirt and asked if I was a Christian.

We chatted for a few minutes about my purpose for coming down and she concluded with

"I'll be praying for you to have a safe journey."

To which I thought.. I'm definitely not in Ontario anymore, sad eh?

She was lovely though and had me follow her back to the highway.

 

I met a nice police officer in Kentucky as well.

He just happened to be pulling me over for my very first speeding ticket.

I'm not proud of it but it was a memorable part of the trip...

knowing he tagged me with his speed gun and then tailing me for a bit without his lights as I prayed he would misidentify me.

(my prayers weren't unanswered - they were answered with a kind of "you are not exempt from consequences" which was surprisingly calming)

I was a little ticked after the fact though.. mostly at myself and the car for being difficult to gage in m/ph.

 

What else...

Zaxby's is delicious

Long John Silvers is disgusting

Gas is cheaper in the states

Atlanta is very confusing to navigate around in contrast to Toronto - can you tell why?

Gainesville is even worse - each street keeping a name for like 2 blocks before it changes names again

Pollen is gross

 

That's about it for the trip folks

I will post some stuff on my actual stay in Georgia in a bit

but for now,

I'll leave you with Ohio's own... GIANT BIG JESUS