October 31, 2012

What is your life like? What is different? What is the same? We have been asked these questions many times since coming to East Africa. With the aid of notes shared on Facebook this past week, plus added comments in brackets, I will share a few answers!

Thursday: WOW moment! In '78 we thought our big adjustment would be to African life. WRONG! It was to living in a recent British colony! But as I prepared dinner last night, I realized that that making Yorkshire Pudding is now as 'normal' as making biscuits - the Southern bread, not British cookie! (Another recent WOW moment: While watching a Cricket Match on TV, I realized that I actually now prefer cricket over baseball!)

Friday: I say, "I need a perk," and walk out of the room housing my desk. Jack says: "What is that pecking in your 'office'?" God had sent a 'perk'! Great assurance of His constant care! (This happened as I completed last week’s update. The perk was two beautiful yellow birds playing at the window beside my desk.)

Saturday: I could skip the burning incense in the businesses owned by those of other faiths, but spotting their altars (corners/ decorated boxes housing their favoured gods) always leaves me challenged. Do they see me expressing my love and adoration for my God? (Viewing one of the altars, a silver box with doors mounted on a wall, while out shopping, I noted someone’s favorite mug and a roll of toilet paper atop the box. My first reaction, “Is this a gift to their god or simply an available but strange ledge for storage?” Then my critical thoughts switched to “What about my life shows disrespect to my God?”)

Sunday: What cannot be seen in this (above) photo: The brand new Mercedes Benz car which had just passed the donkey cart and our vehicle, an old, but very reliable Rav. Great reminder of the contrasts found in Africa, contrasts requiring lots of prayer and action!

Monday: (Three photos with the following comments.) 1/As we went to bed last night, I noticed a flurry of flying termites outside the bedroom window and as expected the side-walk was 'snowed under' this morning with wings! 2/A mat left to dry after heavy rains on Saturday night provided a great picnic spot for all the squawking birds which appeared this morning! 3/Not the greatest photo, but one busy parent sharing the termite feast!

Tuesday: Turned on the TV this morning before breakfast - can't remember when we last did that! Praying for safety and calm for all our family and friends as they deal with Sandy. (At least one of our kids, Jessie, did lose electricity, but she was excited! A good friend’s flight was rerouted due to the storm and the diversion took her to the airport a few miles from Jessie! Vajini also grew up in Africa, so the lack of electricity was ‘life as usual’!)

Wednesday: (Today’s Prayer Nudge from East Africa) Spotted yesterday in an East African grocery store. A missionary’s reaction: Never seen this in our part of the world AND it is on the shelf at the right time, not around another ‘holiday’ which usually happens! (Next thoughts shared in comments: Thanks to TV/DVD’s and travel, people are learning of others' special days. Another tool Believers can use! The shop owners and those of other faiths love to discuss American culture, which can easily lead to more important discussions!)

Hope you enjoyed this view of our lives and that it helps you pray for us. My specific need this week is for guidance as I seek better ways to share what God is doing in our part of the world via the internet. Pray for Jack as he seeks God’s direction in how to best encourage and strengthen the Baptist work in Kenya. BERT
--- --- --- --- ---
As of today, I am once again posting daily Prayer Nudges, which can be found at http://easternafrica2012prayernudges.blogspot.com/

October 27 Nudge

Still taking a break from posting daily Nudges from East Africa, but they will return this week! But I will share what I posted today on Facebook with this photo that I took last week in my favorite shopping centre in Nairobi, Diamond Plaza.  In this shopping area, which some have called Little India, a Muslim prayer room, as well as a Hindu prayer room is located. There is no Christian prayer room, though both always lead me to a bit of muti-tasking - a shopping/prayer walk! The items in the photo were for sale during a special Muslim holiday.
--- --- --- --- ---
I could skip the burning incense in the businesses owned by those of other faiths, but spotting their altars (corners/ decorated boxes housing their favoured gods) always leaves me challenged. Do they see me expressing my love and adoration for my God?

October 24, 2012

No new tricks today, so hopefully this update will be completed in record time!  I can’t decide which photos to share this week, so I am posting three groups of photos:  ‘Window and door’ views taken during last month’s trip to western Kenya; kids who captured my heart during that trip; and photos taken yesterday morning in our yard!  Now for bits of our lives since last week’s update…

Wednesday bedtime: Still no electricity – not a great welcome for our upstairs neighbours who have been researching Unreached Peoples in South Sudan most of this year. After two days of difficult and dangerous road travel and one day of flying, they arrived home to flashlights, candles, and a local fast-food meal welcome.  One of the first things they unpacked was the solar lamps they used in South Sudan – unfortunately they couldn't bring their solar shower, so there were no hot baths in either of our apartments tonight!

Thursday evening (8 PM):  After 30 hours – Electricity!!!  Good news:  Hot showers tonight.  Bad news:  Some things were damaged when multiple transformers blew/re-blew in our neighbourhood yesterday; thankfully no major appliances or computers, but three things on my desk are fried!

Friday morning:  Took the volt-guard (photo in last week’s update) to the repairman.  Decided to give up on the transformer, an added ‘protector’ which transformed the local 240 current to 110 for my computer and desk items! It has blown its last time!  Also accepted it was time to evaluate/ examine/ restructure what and how I do my ‘job’, so I'm taking a ten day break from most of my regular work, including posting daily nudges.

Friday noon:  Jack returns home excited after a meeting with the Moderator of the Baptist Convention of Kenya and says over and over, “God is working!” One time refers to our concern for a Bible School in eastern Kenya.  We had debated/ prayed often about what we could do to help resurrect the Bible School.  Turns out the youth pastor at the Moderator’s church is from this area and their church is ready to respond – God is showing us again how to be ‘encouragers and strengtheners’ as others respond to His call for workers in His harvest field. 

Saturday afternoon:  The Frangipani tree beside our house is blooming.  How can something that smells so good make me so sick? Good day to watch a cricket match on television.  Realized once again that we now prefer this game over baseball!

Sunday morning:  Remembered that a marathon is today and the city centre is for runners only, so we attend Parklands Baptist Church rather than our church on the other side of the city. We remembered wrong – Church announcement: The marathon is next Sunday!

We laugh as a boy leads the church in prayer as the  kids head to Sunday School:  "May our teachers have courage for teaching us today." We did not laugh as all worshippers are ‘checked’ before entering the sanctuary or while watching armed guards police the church grounds for bad guys throwing home-made bombs!  Also learned of a new prayer group at church:  Warriors praying for peace before, during and after Kenya’s upcoming presidential elections (March 4, 2013). Another “God is working” moment as we leave church:  A man approached Jack asking for advice about another of our discussion/ prayer concerns – pretty sure this man is the one God is leading to ‘deal with’ a concern that affects local churches.

Monday afternoon:  I finally realized this morning why I've felt yucky for several weeks – the new malaria medicine we've taken since our trip last month to western Kenya!  I feel better already knowing the cause and that we took the last dose yesterday! Jack spent the morning writing a proposal which is his response to another of our concerns and he has already received good feedback.

Tuesday morning:  After a phone call with a Nairobi pastor, Jack shares another “God is working” moment:  The pastor wants information on how his church can reach an Unreached People in northern Kenya, a People Group that our missionaries lack resources to work among.

I will stop now, but not before saying:  THANK YOU for praying for us as we work in Kenya!  God is answering your and our prayers!   BERT