October 6, 2010

Sometimes I simply cannot figure out how to begin the week’s prayer update and today has been especially frustrating! As usual, there is more running through my mind and heart than I can begin to put in a few paragraphs. There is also the constant difficulty of finding the right words to express our joys and concerns. Plus, this our spring time and our yard is filled with beautiful flowering Jacaranda trees and the worst culprit for me, our sweet smelling Yesterday/ Today/ Tomorrow bushes! I had to decide this morning between the worst of two evils – the inability to think due to not breathing properly or being senseless due to taking extra medicine! I just gave up and chose the second option!

Things have also been complicated today by the fact that I awoke very early thanks to our neighbourhood bird symphony! The birds were especially eager to awaken this morning and feast on the flying termites and other bugs that appeared during the night’s rain, a definite praise – which reminds me – when I finally succeed in writing this week’s prayer update, I have to brush-up the wings from a few of those termites that made it into the house last night!

I shouldn’t complain, I did sleep until almost 5! Jack is in Machakos, two hours east of our home in Nairobi, teaching Church Planting Methods at a Bible School and he called rather sleepy this morning – a rooster perched near his window began crowing at 3 AM and was still crowing when he headed to class!

So, please bear with me this week as I try to share what God has been teaching Jack and I about “Spiritual Growth in recent weeks. We’ve seen negative signs of Spiritual Growth as our local papers have reported the news of people groups turning to old ancestral ways of worship to deal with problems – areas that the recent census says are filled with Christians! We are heart-broken when we hear of churches split over jealousies and weaknesses.

We see positive signs as we hear reports of the revival of older churches and the beginning of new churches as Jack’s students teach their people what they learned in his Church Planting training sessions. We continue to praise God for the new church being planted by members of Parklands Baptist on the Mombasa Road. It is truly awesome to watch these well discipled young men and women in action as they obediently serve their Father.

My way of sharing what God has been teaching us is to share “Spiritual Growth and Chapati” - a new Prayer Nudge Photo Album. The pictures were taken during our recent visit to the Mombasa Baptist High School. My prayer is that these pictures and the story will strengthen your prayers for both those who have yet to hear and accept our Father’s love and salvation and for Kenyan Christians who must be bold ambassadors of their Savior! BERT YATES

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Spiritual Growth and Chapati - http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=318761&id=685050129&l=a9ec3b6944