Back To Work

We had a beautiful drive up to Nanyuki this morning. You could see Mt. Kenya just about from the beginning of our journey. It takes us about 3 ½ hours to get from Nairobi to Nanyuki. I always make sure to thank the Lord for His protection after we arrive somewhere. Today He was busy. Many of the trucks here can barely make it up a hill. Because of that people are always trying to pass them. Four times today we rounded a bend in the road facing cars coming at us in our lane. It is kind of scary when you have no where to go. By the time we reached Nanyuki we had half a day left. We unloaded our stuff and began to paint. That was pretty exciting! The house is looking better and better. =)

Some Pictures Abigail and Anna Took

The game ranger we went with on our little walk.

There is a forest area in the National Park. We found a warthog family and followed them down the trail. =)

Nairobi National Park

After working since they have been here in Kenya I decided to treat my brother and sisters to a day in the Nairobi National Park. We entered the park at 6:00 in the morning. When you do you have the privilege of seeing some of the most beautiful sunrises God has ever made!

We had only been in the park 10 minutes when we came upon these guys. What a wonderful experience. They were only 2 feet away!

Andrew and Anna looking out at Leopard Lookout

A hippo footprint. We went on a little walk with a game ranger. These footprints were everywhere! We also enjoyed watching four hippos playing in the river.

The game ranger took this picture. =)

Working on the new house

Waterfall . . . Am I Dreaming?

This morning at 3:00 I woke up to what I thought was rain. As I laid there in bed I realized it didn’t really sound like rain. I got up thinking maybe one of the faucets in the bathroom was still on. As I reached my bathroom I woke up to the fact the sound was not coming from the bathroom, but from the hallway. Many of the houses here in Kenya have a water tank in the yard and then another one in the attic. We have a pump that we run to fill the attic tank from the tank in the yard. My house happens to be a two story duplex. I opened my door to a waterfall coming through the ceiling. My heart sunk at the sight. I woke my brother up and together we started flushing toilets running the showers trying to bring the water level down in the attic tank. We got it to slow down some. I sent him up into the attic with a flashlight. Somehow water from ground level was filling the tank in the attic two stories up without the pump running. An hour and a half later my brother was able to tie the float on the valve up, stop the tank from filling, and we fell back into our beds.

This morning I had planned on getting paint and supplies so that we can head back to Nanyuki to work on that house. Instead I will be spending my day trying to figure out how to fix the water tank problem in this house. A day never goes quite as you plan it, but God is still in control.

A New Home

Friday morning I went up to look for a house in Nanyuki. We had an enjoyable trip up there. It was a little crazy since they are working on widening the road in one area, but we got there safely. When we got to town we stopped by the Mt. Kenya Baptist School. It was so good to see some of the teachers I have worked with at the school. It had been a year since I had seen them. After saying hi and introducing my sisters and brother to them we started the house hunt. We looked at several houses, but none were right. When we headed back that evening to where we were staying I was a bit discouraged. Then one of the school bus drivers told us of a possible house just around the corner. We called the Landlord and set up a meeting for 10:00 the next morning. That evening two of the Kenyans I had just met earlier that day came over and we enjoyed a great game of Uno. Benson and Esther were very good players and turned out to be quite competitive. =)

The next morning we met the landlord at the house around the corner. It was a beautiful English cottage style home. Kenya was once a British colony and so it’s not rare to find English cottage style homes around the Nanyuki/Mt. Kenya area. We looked the house over and talked with the landlord about the amount of rent he was asking. It was perfect! The Lord has provided a house for me to move to in Nanyuki.

That Saturday afternoon we came back down to Nairobi and prepared for Sunday. Today we enjoyed another church service at Emmanuel Baptist Church. I had the privilege of filling in for one of the teachers. It was good to be back with my kids. Of course the class had grown and we had 15 in attendance.

Tomorrow we start getting the things we need to fix and paint the house. As soon as we get things gathered we will head back to Nanyuki to start working on the house. =)

Back Home in Kenya

Because of bad weather in London, our flight was delayed in leaving Dallas. Of course that made us late for our flight to Nairobi. The Lord was good and after standing in the London airport for four hours we ran to the last flight leaving for Nairobi. Two of my sisters and my brother were flying with me and plan on staying with me for two months here in Kenya. We arrived in Kenya early Friday morning. I had left my house and things taken care of and in good order. I came home to a dead battery in the car, flat tire, no working cell phone number, and the water disconnected. With the Lord’s help most of those things were fixed by the next day. Being a weekend the water had to wait till Monday.

Sunday we went to Emmanuel Baptist for Sunday school and church. It was so good to be back and to see everyone! The church has grown in number while I have been gone.

Monday morning we got up and headed to the water company to take care of getting the water reconnected. We were finished with paying by 8:30 that morning and that afternoon they were going to come out and connect it. For how things work in Kenya that was a miracle. =) The American Embassy was the next stop on the list. I now have them working on renewing my passport.

I have been home for almost a week now. Things are going well. Four days and hundreds of phone calls later we finally have running water in the house again. =) Praise the Lord!!!! The Lord is always in control. Tomorrow we will be driving up to Nanyuki to look at some houses that are for rent.

January Prayer Letter

Happy New Year!!! The Lord has given us a brand new year to serve Him in! I am on my way back to Kenya as you read this letter. Furlough ended well with a busy November filled with reporting to churches. I am happy to report that the Lord provided the money for new tires to go on my 1984 Land Cruiser. He also provided the money for shipping the 20’ container to Kenya. I can’t wait to be able to use the Bibles, hand out the clothes in the villages, and put to use all the other things in the container.

The Lord gave me a wonderful Christmas with my family. I enjoyed the Adult Christmas Program at my home church. The next week I had fun helping out with the Children’s Christmas Program. I gained some wonderful new ideas to put into use with the kids in Kenya when we do our Christmas programs there. I also enjoyed going one night with my church Christmas caroling. We went to shut ins, to those in a nursing home, and a retirement village. It brought joy to my heart as we shared with them the birth of Christ in song. Their faces lit up as we sang.

Please continue to pray that the Lord will guide me to just the house He wants me to have in Nanyuki. I have until February to be out of my house in Nairobi. With this move in mind, the Lord has blessed me with help from some very special people. My brother and two of my sisters are at this time on their way to Kenya with me. Once I find a house they will be helping me with the cleaning, repair work, and the moving of my stuff from Nairobi to Nanyuki. We will also be going out and doing ministry in the villages and orphanages. Then they will fly home in March. I can’t wait to write in my next prayer letter all that the Lord has done. We serve a big God! Thank you for your support!

PRAYER REQUEST

- The last $75 of additional support to be raised.

- Safety as I travel back to Kenya and the arrival of the container.

- Wisdom for decisions that need to be made and my move as I prepare to start my 2^nd term on the field.