For those that don't know, for those that even visit here,

I am back in Canada again and have been for just over a month now.

 

My departure was kind of sudden, however not surprising considering the year that I had.

I didn't leave on bad terms, far from it actually.

My heart was kicking and screaming at the airport waiting for the plane to rip me away from a place that I have grown to fondly refer to as 'home'.

It wasn't wise of me to ignore my departure date because of denial. It wasn't until my second plane landed in Toronto that it hit me

and the sadness that overwhelmed me continued to be a blanket for a few weeks after that.

 

And God let me grieve for a period of time.

He let me gripe about the uncertainty of my immediate future until I had vented enough to pull myself together and snap back into reality.

I was home.

My other home, like I said I have many homes.

However, my arrival was not accidental nor was it a punishment but it was God's way of bringing me to a place physically so that I get get to a new place spiritually while He dealt with me emotionally.

And I am thankful.

 

The last year has been challenging, but a glorious challenge. Even on the bad days, working for the Lord in Kenya makes me feel like I'm a puzzle piece that has found it's place. I am connected, I am stable, I am locked into place and God has created this amazing picture of the work He is doing, and has allowed me to be in that picture.

It's exhilarating, frustrating, enlightening and life giving all at the same time.

The good days far outweigh the bad and the smiles of people when they experience His greatness is my reward.

 

Even my challenges were trumped by God's grace and He saw me through every bump and snag along the way.

But then it was time to come back to the west... and I weakly obliged only to rediscover that His plans aren't spur of the moment alterations based on situation or circumstance.

They are divine steps along a path of togetherness that you can only experience if you agree to wear the shoes that God has made for you.

Who wouldn't want to walk with their creator? The one who knows all your inner secrets and exactly why you are the way you are.

Who wouldn't want to walk with the one who loves you despite all of that and cares about you so much that He would go as far as to give up His own life so your life would be saved.

It shames me to think that so often I struggle to say yes. That occasionally I will complain about these shoes he made me.

Imply that they are uncomfortable or that they aren't the right colour or that they are too big.... or worse, that they are too small.

 

Bottom line is that I know that I am home for a reason. And God has already been revealing that to me.

I love Kenya and I miss it dearly. The desire of my heart is to rejoin in what God is continuing to do in that country.

But I am choosing to wear these shoes. These shoes that He made specially for me. The ones that brought me to Canada and the ones that will take me back to Kenya. And I will wear them proudly and walk tall on this path because togetherness with God is my desire.

A desire that burns in me, sometimes more brightly than other times but it burns nevertheless and nothing, not even all of those fake beautiful shoes that are meant to distract me, will put this fire out.

 

My fire burns for Christ as His first burned for me.

I will praise Him all the days of my life.

after nearly 24 hours of transit (nearly flawless transit I should say)

I finally arrived in Nairobi around 9:30pm

I filled out the appropriate paper work, including a brand new swine flew form

stood in line for my visa - which is half what it used to cost - thank you Lord!

and descended the stairs to baggage check

 

man what a lot of bags!!!

after what seemed like forever, I recovered my bags and made my way to the arrivals gate where I was met by my roommate, my friend and my favourite taxi driver.

 

I was really happy to be back

they must have thought I was insane in the car,

or that British airways had started serving crack to it's passengers

but I was giddy with happiness to be back in this second home of mine.

 

since then I have thrown myself back into ministry.

A team arrives today and I've had a couple days to prepare their work locations for them

I've made 8 phone calls to ministry reps and had 5 meetings in the last 2 days

and I'm loving it

 

I need something to keep me warm

it's winter here

and despite what you might think, not all places in Africa are hot all year long.

Sure, Nairobi winter is about 15-20 degrees

but you have to account for the fact that the homes aren't heated here

my apartment is made out of concrete

and it's a steady 19 degrees celsius (66 fahrenheit) inside!!

i keep finding myself mentally playing with the thermostat

but I am destined to me chilled to the bone for a couple more months

 

but the next couple of weeks should keep me running around and warming me up

the team is here till the end of the month

and once they leave I have videos to work on

I'm excited already

Well it's that time again.

That time where everything is very confusing and nothing seems right side up...

 

You know, that time where you start to squirm but God gives you some perspective

and then when you finally open your eyes and start breathing you see that change is not scary

it's wonderful and exciting... ok, it's still scary!

 

Here is what is going on.

 

Not too long ago I found out that AIM is finding it difficult to continue sending teams to the Nairobi area.

I know I've talked about housing costs for me personally but AIM is also feeling the crunch and as a result my future here with them is uncertain.

It has been a challenging thing to think about for various reasons: moving on

and I'll admit it... I shut down any thoughts that arose of the situation for about a week

till I remembered that I'm supposed to be an adult and no one else is going to solve my problems for me.

No one but God... but thank goodness He calls us to act on our faith...

can you imagine how lazy I would be?

 

anyways..... ;)

 

down to the nitty gritty

I have been researching some other organizations that are working in Kenya and specifically the Nairobi area.

My priorities have been looking for canadian and international organizations

and as you probably all know, I love video production... so I've also been looking for any media ministry opportunities.

 

well, I'm praying this is where God wants me because I have found something amazing.

A brand new branch of African Inland Mission called On-Field Media

Their team is small, their office is 5 minutes from my apartment here in Nairobi and their focus is glorifying God through film, graphics, writing and web design.

not only that, but the canadian office is about 20 minutes from my mum's house

 

It all sounds too good and I am actively finding out more about them, even as I type this.

 

I'm not limiting myself however,

and will continue to look elsewhere until I have found my place and pray as I do

because I want to be sure that I am not just rushing into anything that I was not designed for.

I am certain that wherever God leads me will be the best and only place for me.

and I can't wait to find out where that is!

 

My time with Adventures in Missions has been great!

So great in fact that I don't want to leave Nairobi and I still feel called to full time missions.

Right now I need prayer for peace, trust in the Lord's timing and support.

 

If this is where I'm supposed to be, I'll need to start raising support all over again.

which is intimidating and exciting all at the same time.

 

I want to thank all my supporters... financial, prayer and encouraging...

I seriously would not be here without you

and I love love LOVE it here.

 

 

Africa! Africa! Africa!

Who gave you the name Africa?

Is it God, animal or man?

Why is it you are known as a 3rd world country or developing country,

not developed country!

 

Is it because of poverty, war, famine or flood?

Sudan and Somalia ever fighting among themselves,

no benefit they are gaining!

Children and women are always crying with agony in their camps.

Africa, who gave you the name?

 

Or is it because we have prostitutes

and that is why we are dying like chickens

with this killer disease known as HIV/AIDS.

Africa, who gave you the name?

 

Or is it because we lack land!

That is why we stay like elephants in groups.

Or is it we don't know how to build, that is why we stay in slums

like Kibera and Soweto.

Africa, who gave you the name?

 

Or is it because we lack education?

That is why we give birth in our early ages

and increase the population hence decreasing food.

Why are we giving birth like fish in the water?

Africa, who gave you the name?

 

Let's stand like Africans and join our hands together

to built our continent.

What we need is peace and love.

Let's live like a family.

Africa, who gave you the name?

 

 

Today was a good day!

 

I got news that Oliver had arrived in Nairobi while I was away in Othaya so I called up his neighbor and arranged a visit.

I haven't seen Oliver since spring of 2007, though I talk to him on the phone regularly, so I was anxious to finally see him again.

 

 

I got to the house mid morning and sat and sat and sat.

Four times, someone was sent to fetch him but still he wasn't coming.

It wasn't until I asked that I was told he refused to see me without showering first.

Kenyans love to be presentable...

 

He finally arrived and I was surprised to see that he is nearly as tall as me now.

15 years old and he is a handsome young man.

It took about 10 minutes for him to remember that he is indeed not shy and after the giggle subsided, the original Oliver finally emerged.

He started by asking many questions the way he does on the phone. We then talked about his writing and the newborn triplets back home.

 

He brought his book with him. I had asked him to bring his stories so that I could read them.

I will share one of his poems with you in the next entry.

 

We took some photos and he asked about Narnia.

I had sent him the first book of the Chronicles of Narnia and he finished it in about 4 days.

I mentioned that there was a movie made and he hadn't forgotten.

We will watch it together with the other boys on Monday.

 

Unfortunately I had to leave not long after but we walked back to the road together and said goodbye for the weekend.

 

It's good to see him. I'm praying that him living in the country is not hindering his education.

He has so much talent it's sad to think that it could go un-noticed, or even worse, get lost in a life spent in toil and struggle for survival.

We partner with a pre-school called Miracle and Victory Centre.

It is run by a good friend named Monica and she has been taking in small kids from the community who aren't schooled for 3 years now (since I was here last)

 

Lately the funding for the school has run out but Monica still does her best to provide education and one meal a day for these kids.

God has really been working in this place and we are praying for more finances, somehow.

 

Onto Teddy...

Teddy, or pastor Teddy as everyone calls him, is about 6 or 7 years old.

He has this larger than life personality and pushed his peers to use their manners while never being without his own.

He is gentle, unlike most of the fighters in that age group, and kind. He often shares his snacks with the other kids when he gets them.

 

Last week, on a Thursday, Teddy was burning up.

I brought him to the window to sit with me because there was a nice breeze coming through.

It was very evident that Teddy had a high fever.

Monica told me that he had had a fever the day before as well.

Regardless, Teddy was still encouraging the kids to share with each other and singing songs as he lounged on my lap.

 

Saturday I got a phone call from Monica.

She told me that on Friday she sent Teddy home because of his fever.

Teddy's mum told Monica that she couldn't afford to take him to the doctor so Teddy just stayed home.

Saturday morning Monica got some news that she was now relaying to me....

Teddy passed away.

 

Everyone was very shaken up by this, understandably.

No child should ever have to lose their life because of a doctors fee that would be equivalent to less than $4US.

I don't doubt for a minute that his mother really didn't have the money, but this price to pay is completely unfair.

Teddy is the second child to die in that pre-school in 3 months. The other girl, whom I did not know, I'm sure died from similar circumstances.

Poverty.

 

This place needs prayer.

Please remember people like Teddy in your prayers.

 

(I will try to find a picture of Teddy to post here.)

 

There has been a seriously long drought in Kenya.

The rainy season was supposed to start over a month ago and the land is so dry that the forests and mountains are catching on fire.

 

The drought affects everything here: crops, water consumption, flocks and herds, economy, real estate... you name it

 

When I got back from Uganda there was no water at our apartment

2 weeks went by, not a drop in the place.

At one point there was a faucet working on the ground floor so I filled up 4 buckets...

the toilet hadn't been flushed for three days.

 

we weren't prepared for this... silly white people.

my landlord's wife offered me one jerrycan of water.

and then one day last week the water came on in one tap for a few hours.

My roommate filled as many buckets as she could.

 

A few days ago it started raining... it now rains/pours pretty much every day which is awesome.

I just got a call from my roomate a few minutes ago, after 16 days we have full water back.

Even the shower is working.

 

Now it's time to get some serious cleaning done.

if you know me, you know I don't like things that fly

some small darting birds but mostly bugs... mosquitoes and house flies being the exception.

 

The other night I was watching a movie on my bed and something caught the corner of my eye.

I had the lights out so all I saw was this abnormally large shadow climbing up my curtains.

Nearly destroying my computer as I jumped out of bed towards the lights, I discovered a large quick moving insect that looked like a black roach with wings.

It jumped, I grabbed a shirt...

It flew at me, I screamed threw the shirt at it, missed and ran out of the room.

 

I knew it needed to die in order for me to re-gain my sanity and me being home alone knew that I had to be the one to do the killing.

I regained my composer, grabbed a flip-flop and waited for movement.

 

It flew around again and landed near my power bar on the floor but before I could even get a good look, let alone crush it, it flew again...

it hit the wall by my bed and then fell... past my pillow, to the floor, under my bed.... fantastic!

 

I sleep on a trundle... a bed that sits close to the floor with about 20cm of clearance underneath. I couldn't see anything.

I lifted up the mattress, nothing. I grabbed a stool from the other room to prop up the bed, nothing.

At the point my breathing is pathetically fast so I decide to shut the door (making sure that it would stay in there so it could be murdered) 

and wait for Michelle, my roommate to return home.

 

She finally came and we began a second search

I decided to remove my blankets and pillows to I could take the mattress out and as I lifted the mattress, a giant roach was just chillin on the under-side.

We both yelled and I dropped the mattress on my night table nearly breaking everything on it.

I got the mattress out and as we were looking for the beast -again- we found a smaller roach that met it's match with my flip-flop.

We found the big roach hiding in the ironing board and forced it out with an umbrella, 4 smacks with a shoe later, it was lying in a twitching mess on my floor.

 

 

I was finally calm, it was over, the giant roach could not torment me anymore.

I put my room back together and sat down on my bed to finish my movie.

 

Not 5 minutes later something hit me in the face and landed on my keyboard.

Screaming again, I ran for the lights. It was the original creature I was looking for... a cricket!

I didn't know crickets flew... but this one didn't fly for much longer. I destroyed it with a book.

 

Today, I'm buying some doom.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One thing that's not to fun about Kenya is that their tourist visa's only last for 3 months.

After 3 months you have to renew... which I've done...

but now I'm coming up to the end of another 3 months which means that re-newing can only be done by leaving the country.

 

I heard rumour of an East African visa which combines all countries in East Africa

and just to scare me a little I was told that I would have to leave East Africa all-together.

this would require a plane ride and lots more money than planned.

 

but THEN I found out that if I go to Uganda, they will issue me a Ugandan visa

and if while I'm in U my Kenyan visa expires, then when I re-enter the country I can get a brand new 3 month visa.

 

this is all very tricky and a bit of a hassle to be honest, but it's worth it for now to be able to live here.

 

So it looks like March 10th I will be getting on a bus to Uganda and returning to Kenya on the 13th.

Thankfully the round trip bus is only about $60USD and to enter Uganda is $30 and to get back into Kenya it's $50

 

....still MUCH cheaper than a plane ride.

there are many times when I experience something here that makes me grin ear to ear...

A phrase, a friend, a circumstance, an event, a joke, a moment, an absurd encounter, a miracle

they make me stop and often I think, "There is no other place I would rather be right now."

 

Kenya is full of surprises

but it's the daily moments that can seem so small that bring such joy.

little things like a conversation or the way the sky is always a bright blue and clouds are always fluffy

it's the feeling of being known as I walk down certain streets and the friendships that I never imagined I would make.

 

here are a few things that make it very easy to live in Kenya

 

1. Our landlord's wife, Pauline, is pregnant and on her way to the clinic for a checkup as I pass her on the stairs.

She punches me in the arm twice to which I reply, "Why are you beating me?"

she responds with a simple, "because I love you." then continues on her way.

 

2. Our friend Ronald drives a taxi and is always so willing to help us out whenever possible.

He took our van to the mechanic to get fixed and brought it back not only sounding better but completely clean, inside and out.

 

3. My friend mercy calls just to see how I'm doing and to pray with me.

 

4. Every Thursday myself and 4 friends meet to worship, pray and encourage each other.

We also meet during the week have dinner together and watch lost!

 

5. Cecilia, a neighbor of my friend will often help us with the cooking, and never gets angry when some of her mendazi's (triangular donuts) go missing.

A few times she has even had homemade pizza ready for our arrival.

 

6. The kiosk owner on the ground floor of our building knows that I use a lot of phone credit.

He has ordered the larger cards to have in stock just for when I need credit in a hurry.

 

7. Brenda and Abdul, who work at my favourite Indian restaurant, can complete my orders without me even telling them.

I like it mild and with fanta orange.

 

8. I've gotten free ice cream on occasion from Rendezvous.

Another place that is frequented by myself and my roommate because of the free wireless Internet.

 

9. The stars seem from Naivasha are absolutely gorgeous.

 

10. Driving home late and knowing where the speed bumps are. (trial and error got us there)

 

That's just a few things that I can think of at the moment.

but there are so many things that make me smile here

and so I am constantly thanking the Lord for bringing me to Kenya

Having no concept of time as of late.

I seem to be begging the clock to slow down…

Just today I realized that we have begun a new month… in fact, February snuck up on me without my noticing over a week ago.

 

There’s a new team in town, a 3 month team of 22 members and 3 leaders. It’s a lot of management but I find myself loving every minute of it.

Part of it is the freedom of not being a team leader.

I am able to complete my work and go home to my own house, a break from ministry which I hope not to take advantage of, but I am very very grateful.

 

One reason I didn’t know that February had come is because of the daily lists of things to accomplish…

Take the team here, have a couple of meetings,

take the team there, have some more meetings,

Take the team home then make 40 phone calls.

 

One day in particular I had 6 meetings and ended up being on foot in Kibera for 4 hours…

a wonderfully productive, yet scorching day.

The easiest way to describe my ministry is to say that everything that the team does in Kibera, I have scheduled and or set up.

They are part of 10 different ministries in Kibera,

all 10 of which I have contacts for and have to keep in touch with regularly.

This requires a lot of phone calls but even more walking because,

I’ve found that meeting in person is much more successful for translation of plans and vision.

 

So, let me tell you what the team will be involved with in the next 2 months.

 

-Ask The Lord prayer (ATL) – the entire team will venture into Kibera every week with no agenda but the Lord’s. they will pray for direction on where to go that day and undoubtedly experience God working in amazing ways.

 

-New Adventures Primary School – 12 of them will be tutoring students in English and math

 

-Miracle and Victory Centre – 5 of them will be helping teach, correct homework and cook lunch for about 50 pre-schoolers

 

-Women with HIV – 5 of them will be ministering and hopefully helping to improve the business plans of a group of widows with HIV who are doing everything they can to support their children

 

-Detention Centre – 12 will be visiting about 20 captured street boys twice a week to get to know them, invest in their lives and teach them practical/Biblical ways to deal with things they commonly experience, such as fear, anger, rejection etc.

 

-Kibera Community Youth Program – 5 will be working with the drama outreach team as well as teaching basic computer skills to young and old as well as helping professionalize admin work for this growing haven for Kibera’s youth.

 

-Bible study for men and women – 5 will be conducting a weekly bible study and home visit group to teach, learn from and get to know a handful of Kibera’s older generation.

 

-Alpha Bible study – 5 will be meeting weekly with a group of new believers/non-believers/former Muslims to discuss the basics of Christian faith and learn from their lives.

 

-Alpha Kenya – the entire team will be travelling with Alpha Kenya either in March or April to do a conference on the basics of Christianity.

 

That’s about it for now as far as ministry in Kibera goes-for this team. It’s sure to keep them busy but even more so, I’m sure God will use these ministries to challenge, strengthen and grow each of them.

I’m really excited for them to begin on Monday, and so thankful to God for making this set up incredibly easy.

Just a quick update...

 

We've been given the run-around.... again!

 

This is about the third time we've been given a move in date, the third time we've been shown a substitute apartment

and the third time we've been let down.

 

As of today we are back to the beginning with apartment hunting.

Michelle and I, being very frustrated, are finished with this current complex that has wasted over a month of our time in looking for accommodations.

 

Tomorrow morning we are going to look for a new place.

I don't know what to say other than we need prayers for this.

It's been a long tiring task and we are running out of time.

 

School starts back up on Monday (so Michelle has to be in Kibera 5 days a week)

and a new team is coming the end of January (so I need to be organizing ministry for them)

This is impossible for us to do with where we are staying currently.

Our friends' place is about an hour from the slum and we don't have a vehicle.

 

So please pray for us.... we need this to be settled soon.

I know God already has it worked out, but we need patience cause it's running thin.

This Christmas was a celebration of firsts for me.

 

It was my first Christmas...

-outside of Canada

-without buying gifts for everyone

-without receiving gifts from everyone

-without snow

-without family

-without a feast

-without decorations

 

yet, it is a Christmas that I can easily call the most meaningful for me.

 

For years I've been asking God to show me what Christmas is really about.

I know it's not just presents and fancy meals but it's difficult to look past all the glamour into the heart of it.

This year, having being stricken of all the rituals and false reasons for celebrating, I was left with God.

And he is more than enough to be left with.

 

I celebrated this year with 2 friends by staying in, watching movies, chatting and having our own worship service on the 25th.

It's hard to put into words but we shared a feeling of peace and excitement, brokenness and restoration, newness and unity and God was definately with us.

 

It's a Christmas I will chase after, celebrate every day and one I won't ever forget.