Mosquito bites in Kenya feel a lot different than mosquito bites back home. I’m not talking about the itch of course, rather it’s the horror of thinking this little insect may have just injected me with malaria. I should know as two of them woke me up last night flying around inside my mosquito net. To make matters worse, after executing them both with a hand clap, a streak of blood appeared on my right hand, my blood I presume. Mosquitos back in the states are mildly annoying, they hold no power over us. Mosquitos here in Kenya carry within their tiny frames the power of death.
It might be a stretch, but I could say the same thing about my experience with faith here in Kenya. We have faith in God in the U.S.A., but faith here is on a whole other level. It’s faith that contains the power of life and death. The faith of a Christian back home is mildly irritating to the forces of darkness, the faith I have seen in the people of Kenya has the power to shake the gates of hell. It has too, because many of them are walking through the valley of the shadow of death and were it not for their immense faith, it would swallow them whole.
Yesterday, I had the opportunity to preach at the Kimbo PEFA Church. It’s located in a poor neighborhood some 10 miles outside of Nairobi. Pastor James Wesonga graciously welcomed me to share even though he had never met me before. I spoke on the theme of encouragement. I reminded the people of Kimbo church that God is an encouraging God who is always ready and willing to give strength to those who need it. I was overwhelmed by the response I received. I must have talked to a hundred people today who shared with me about the difficulties they are facing. From severe health problems, to crumbling marriages, to challenging financial conditions every one of them were in desperate situations. It was all they could do to put their trust in God and find the courage to press on. They thanked me for encouraging them with the words I spoke on Sunday morning, but their lives were more of an encouragement to me than words could ever be. Tomorrow we start medical camps in Kimbo. Excited to see what’s next!
