April 29, 2009

More medical tests (a weird one for Bert and an uncomfortable one for Jack); dealing with a difficult issue (not solved, but...); meetings (including one with a friend who is covering my work during my absence – a true praise!); cleaning muddy shoes (a praise/continued prayer item as it rained heavily for two days, but has stopped once again!); staying home more than usual as we awaited news from the States (which finally came Friday when Isabella arrived – Thanks for praying, Mom Jenny, Dad and baby are all doing great – pictures will be sent of her in our arms!), collecting a new African shirt for Jack and dress for Bert (and no, they aren’t just for our Stateside Leave show-and-tell sessions, we wear them in Kenya!); Jack answering umpteen phone calls and replying, “No, it is too late. I can’t do it this week, call me in September!”; preparing our home for use by other missionaries during our absence; eating weird meals as we clean out the fridge/cupboard – these are just a few of the things that kept us busy this past week. Today includes sending this prayer update (Bert), collecting our airline tickets (Jack), placing all the items stacked around the house into our suitcases, eating more odd meals, and trying to stay sane!

As always, the devil tries extra hard to discourage us as we prepare for a leave, but your prayers got us through last week! Yes, we are eager to arrive in the States for four months, but we are also eager to return to new opportunities of involvement in our Father’s work in East Africa. As many of you know, the IMB is in the midst of a re-organization. We learned yesterday that Jack will be continuing with his assignment as a trainer with the Church Planting Movement. There will be some changes, but most are based on adjustments as the needs of the established Baptist work changes. Those above us are still deciding how to handle prayer advocacy in our new set-up, so I will not know my assignment until later. I love working full-time as a prayer advocate and would enjoy continuing to develop this position, but I am confident that I will find plenty to do. Pray for patience as I wait.

It may be two weeks before I sent the next update as we greet family (including meeting our granddaughter and an important woman in our son’s life – she has already passed the sibling test, the most important test in our family), unpack suitcases (the packing/unpacking is the part I hate most about being a missionary), and set up internet, etc. Do pray for safety as we begin traveling tomorrow (Thursday around mid-night) and strength as we get settled. Pray also for wisdom and sensitivity to God’s will as we set our schedule for family and friends/work/rest during our short stay. We definitely want it to be God’s plan for our time. Pray also that we will clearly share how God is at work in East Africa and how others can join us in the harvest!

Thank you once again for being our prayer supporters. We definitely depend upon your involvement in God’s work in East Africa! Bert Yates

April 21, 2009

A few minutes ago as we returned from yet another step in our pre-leave physicals, I made two decisions: First to write our update a day early as there is another test in the morning. The second decision: When my current cell phone dies, I must upgrade to a camera phone. This is not a vanity issue or a desire for newer technology – it is my desire to share incredible scenes from our daily lives that cannot be fully shared with words. But as my otherwise adequate cell phone is camera-less, I will rely upon words to share today’s bit of life in Africa.

As we drove past our regional office on a winding well-used city road, we realized that the expected pot-holed road had just been repaved. THEN we came around a curve and spotted an expected scene with an unexpected twist: Ahead was a flagman alerting drivers of the road crew/equipment ahead. At the head of the line awaiting the all-clear flag to use the open lane . . . . . was two young Maasai men with their herd of scrawny cows and sheep – not on a truck, but on foot searching for green pastures or a slaughter house!! As they took the entire open lane, we had to follow patiently behind the herd when we were allowed to move. As we’ve often said: Life in Kenya comes with problems, but we cannot honestly ever say, “We are bored!”

Things became drier after I wrote last week, but we have had heavy rains the last two nights and other parts of the country are reporting rains. Weather experts predict that although there is flooding in western Kenya, this will be the 5th failed rainy season and the number of Kenyans starving will rise above the current 10 million.* So through May, please continue praying that the rains will be adequate and farmers and herders will make the required profits to support their families. Pray also that food will be available/affordable to all Kenyans – not just the bodies of flying ants, a free delicacy that is a highlight of the rainy season for many!

Thank you for praying for last week’s AGM (Annual General Meeting) of the Baptist Convention of Kenya. The meetings went well and the leaders and churches are growing in their desire and ability to share our Saviour’s Good News. Continue praying for Jack as he relates to our leaders and pastors – pray that he will be wise in knowing when/how to speak/act and when to “take a backseat.” Pray for me also as I make the needed decisions/plans related to my work during our four month stateside assignment (furlough). Jack and I are eager for the opportunities to share how God is at work in Kenya and enlist your support, yet we need a true break from the stresses of Kenya. I especially need wisdom in how to balance enlisting prayer support and getting a needed time of refreshment!

Thank you for praying for our daughter Jenny, our Mom-to-be. After a test tomorrow, the doctor will decide whether to speed up the little one’s arrival. Pray for wise decisions by the doctor and for good health for Mom, baby and Daddy Aaron. Pray also for good communication with the grandparents-to-be who will be in the States in less than two weeks! Bert Yates
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* Omba4Kenya: “Poor Rains to Persist” – http://omba4kenya.blogspot.com/2009/04/poor-rains-to-persist.html

April 15, 2009

It’s another beautiful sunny day in Nairobi, which is good, but not good as the needed rains are still “a-comin’ and a-goin’”. Please continue praying that the rains will be adequate and farmers and herders will make the required profits to support their families. Pray also that food will available/affordable to all Kenyans.

The Alabama, the ship carrying relief food, did arrive safely at the port in Mombasa, so now prayers are needed for speedy clearance and delivery of the containers on the ship. Continued prayer is also needed for relief agencies and Kenya’s government leaders as they meet the short and long term needs of the hungry in Kenya. Pray that Christians will be strong and able ambassadors of our Father’s love and salvation as we seek His guidance in responding to the needs.

To be honest, we did pray for clear skies during lunch on Sunday. One of our personal ministries has always been to help other missionaries, especially new families, have a touch of their American culture on holidays. Our guests this past Sunday were: the three other IMB missionaries in Kenya with over 25 years of service; one of our adult missionary kids, Robin Curp Stow, who serves in Kenya with her husband and four kids; as well as a newly appointed couple who arrived in Kenya with their five kids on Good Friday. With nine kids hoping to find Easter eggs, you can understand why we were thankful for clear skies during the hunt for 250+ eggs! And yes, we are still missing a few eggs – Uncle Jack, Uncle Gene R, and Aunt Janet McDowell hid a few a little too well!

It is AGM (Annual General Meeting) time for the Baptist Convention of Kenya, so today Jack is at the first of three days of meetings. Pray for good meetings that strengthen and encourage our Baptist leaders and churches. Pray that a true revival will begin in our churches that will lead to a renewed desire to share our Saviour’s Good News. Pray for Jack as he relates to our leaders and pastors – pray that he will be wise in knowing when to speak/act and when to “take a backseat.”

Our daughter Jenny, our mom-to-be, was told yesterday that her doctor may help our first grandchild arrive next week rather than hoping for the expected after May 1st arrival – the day we arrive for our four month leave! Our prayer request is first for a safe delivery for Mom and baby; our and Jenny’s second request is that the little one will be patient and have a May rather than April birth date!

Do continue praying for Jack and me as we prepare for leave. There is always much to be done to be away from our work/home – from packing our suitcases to working with those who will cover our work, to adding a better lock – which is being done at this very moment – on the door of the bedroom which is my office and will be the store-room for some personal items during our leave. Pray for us also as we plan our time in the States – we truly want it to be God’s plan for us. Bert Yates
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For a view of Easter Sunday in Samburu Land, go to: http://omba4kenya.blogspot.com/2009/04/praising-god-on-easter-sunday-in.html

Baptists Awaiting Relief Food on the Alabama

“Somali pirates attempt to hijack a container ship, the Alabama, carrying relief food to Kenya’s port of Mombasa.” When I first heard this news, I did take a moment to pray, but then I moved on. To be honest, ships being hijacked by citizens of our northern neighbour, Somalia – a poverty stricken country in total turmoil – is a daily occurrence in our part of the world. It did catch my attention that the ship was carrying relief food and that the crew were Americans.

I now know that I should have prayed with more nguvu (en/gue/vue, Swahili for strength). Do you remember praising God in February* for dehydrated food that Baptists distributed in Ukambani, one of the areas where thousands are hungry? This food was shipped by SERV Ministries International, a Christian organization that receives emergency dehydrated food from USAID and ships it in containers that can hold up to 1 million meals** to Kenya. In the following e-mail, Shem Okello, the Associate in our Volunteer Office and an officer of the Baptist Convention of Kenya, shares the additional need for prayer for this ship: “I got a call from the Shipping line Maersk Kenya Limited informing me that the vessel, the Alabama, that was carrying the two containers of Serve Food that we had anticipated to take to the hunger stricken regions has been hijacked. Please pray for the Crew and that they will release the Vessel so that the food can be taken to the people who need it most.”

Please do join Shem and others in praying for safety for the captain who we now know has risked his life to save his crew. Pray for the negotiators who are seeking solutions in handling this problem. Pray for peace and progress in Somalia that will lead to her people not resorting to hijacking ships. Pray also that when the ship arrives, hopefully this weekend, the relief food can be unloaded quickly and without any hassle, including payments of bribes and high custom charges. Pray for those planning and carrying out the distribution of food so that the food will get “to the people who need it most.”

Rains have come to parts of Kenya, but rather than reducing the need for prayer, it increases the need to pray for those needing food. In Nairobi, we are having only limited rain, but there are reports of flooding in other places, which leads to new problems including increased illnesses and the inability to access and deliver relief food. So … PRAY WITH NGUVU! Bert Yates
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* http://omba4kenya.blogspot.com/2009/02/famine-leading-to-frustration-hope-and.html
** http://www.servintl.org/where-we-serve/kenya/kenya-feeding-program


This also appears at Omba4Kenya/Pray for Kenya - http://omba4kenya.blogspot.com/

April 8, 2009

A-comin’ and A-goin’ – This describes our current much-prayed-for rainy season. Rather than the needed daily heavy rains, the rains come for a few days and go. Jack and I grew up in farming communities, but living on the equator with seasons defined by rainy/dry seasons rather than hot/cold times, leads to a unique focus on rain. The survival of many Kenyans is totally dependent upon raising good crops or their animals receiving proper nourishment during the rainy seasons (long rains/March-May; short rains/October-November). Please pray that the rains will be adequate this season and farmers and herders will make the required profits to support their families. Pray also that food will available/affordable to the many Kenyans who live in the cities, especially the slums, where they cannot grow food.

Continue praying for requests in last week’s update: Pray that relief agencies and Kenya’s government leaders will find the best ways to meet the short and long term needs of the hungry in Kenya. Pray that Christians, including our IMB missionaries and the Baptist churches of Kenya, will be strong and able ambassadors of our Father’s love and salvation as we seek His guidance in responding to the needs. (Some of today’s pictures were taken during a Baptist feeding project to the Samburu People. For that story go to: http://omba4kenya.blogspot.com/2009/04/winnowing-remains-praying-for-samburu.html )

Now for happier news which I sent this week to CompassionNet* of Jack’s discovery when he and one of our pastors, Samson Kisia, took food to a tented IDP camp we spotted recently in the Rift Valley: “I met today with members of possibly the fastest growing church in Kenya!” … Pipeline Baptist Church (area named for the pipeline carrying petrol across Kenya) was begun earlier this year on land purchased by IDPs – Internally Displaced People, those displaced after Kenya’s post election chaos in early 2008. The government offered families money to restart their lives and resettle. A group of 1,000 families pooled their funds and purchased a farm in the Rift – each family’s share is the amount of land needed to pitch the tent they brought from camp. One man among the group is a different kind of IDP –an Internally Displaced Pastor. As the group settled in their new home, the Baptist pastor began a church for the new town of 6,500 people!

Praise God for the hope expressed by the people in this new settlement. Praise God for how those with some income are sharing with other families so that all will have a little food. Pray especially for the pastor of Pipeline Baptist Church as he seeks to minister to these people who are still greiving their losses and rebuilding their lives. Pray also that when the rains come, those in tents will not face increased misery and poor health. Thanks for praying with us, Bert Yates
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* CompassionNet - http://www.imb.org/main/pray/prayerrequests/todaysprayer.asp

April 1, 2009

Our greatest praise and answer to prayer this week: It has rained the last three nights. Don’t stop praying – the rain needs to continue daily for weeks and be widespread over Kenya. Pray also for the other causes of hunger in Kenya. A report from USAID and others, says that of the 10 million starving Kenyans, one fourth are hungry due to the drought. Another four million hungry persons live in the slums of Nairobi and Mombasa, many unemployed since last year’s chaos. HIV/Aids leads to an additional two million hungry people as breadwinners are too sick/weak or have died and cannot support themselves and their families. The last group listed in the report are the thousands of Kenyans still displaced after last year’s turmoil.

Please join us in praying that relief agencies and Kenyan’s government leaders will find the best ways to meet the short and long term needs of these people. Pray especially that Christians, including our IMB missionaries and the Baptist churches of Kenya, will be strong and able ambassadors of our Father’s love and salvation as we seek His guidance in responding to the needs.

Another praise/answer to your prayers is how God guides me as I write prayer updates. It is truly amazing how when I will feel led to write a certain prayer item, the needed information appears. Last week, I knew a new prayer request for the drought/famine was needed. On Saturday, a local newspaper article sent me to the above research. With a busy week ahead, I planned to write the update on Sunday afternoon, BUT at the Sunday morning worship service, I learned of a gospel concert planned later in the day. While talking with one of the planners, a young man who has just begun full-time ministry, I knew I should attend the concert simply to show that Jack and I supported his work. I returned home, had lunch and almost finished writing the prayer update and arrived an hour late at the concert – but it was on African time and was just beginning. I quickly knew that God was providing the perfect pictures and story to illustrate the needed prayer update - including the story of rain during the opening prayers for the concert! **

I spotted another source of praise at the concert. A little girl in the parking lot was obviously not from a wealthy home, yet she was playing happily – not with purchased toys, but “found” ones. She was pushing an empty box with a broken stick and occasionally spraying water from an old/trashed detergent bottle. My praise: This little girl was dreaming and imagining, searching for joy – an important part of bringing change which is too often missing in Kenya.

Jack’s greatest praise this week is a good one-year report on his rebuilt shoulder. During a quick trip to see the surgeon in South Africa, he was told: “Everything is A-OK.” We continue to praise God for the great care we receive as IMB missionaries – thanks to gifts to the Lottie Moon Offering and the Cooperative Programme.

Continue to pray for patience and strength as we prepare for our state-side assignment, May through mid-September. Pray for our children also: John as he becomes a self-employed carpenter; Jenny and Aaron as they await the birth of their first child and Aaron seeks full-time employment; and Jessie as she completes her senior thesis this week and other completions before graduation from Wake Forest University in mid-May. We do need and depend upon your prayers! Bert Yates
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* “The Kenya Food Security Update” – www.kenyafoodsecurity.org/mod.php?topic=38
** For more few pictures from concert, go to: http://omba4kenya.blogspot.com/2009/03/well-beyond-rain-failure.html ; To receive the Omba4Kenya/Pray for Kenya Updates, simply send me a note and I will gladly add you to the e-mail prayer list for Kenya and the work of other missionaries.