Back in LR

Tuesday, Sept. 14th

Wow, how did it get to be Tuesday already? My body is still trying to figure out exactly what day it is and what time it is. The sun has it’s schedule all messed up, wait a minute, I’m the one with the schedule all messed up. I returned back to Little Rock on Saturday a little after 3:00pm which made my trip from when Leonard dropped me off at Kisumu to my touchdown at LR a little over 30 hours. I think on the flight from London to Chicago we missed the US and just circled the globe again and came back around to it, it seemed like it anyway. When I checked in at Nairobi the agent told me that he had secured bulkhead seats for both of the 8+ hour flights and I’m thinking to myself “yeah, this is great!”. Not sure if something was lost in translation or he couldn’t read or what but I did not get bulkhead seats but instead got the sardine seats! My knees are still bruised from the people in front of me reclining right into my knees. I missed my connection in Chicago because the London flight was late getting in (you thought I was kidding about circling the globe…..) so that’s why I didn’t arrive into LR when I was scheduled to. But I must say that American Airlines really went out of their way to try and get me on my original flight into LR. When it was obvious that I would not make it they booked me on a United flight that got me into LR about an hour and a half later than I originally planned, but I WAS HOME! As I looked back over the trip I realized even more just how God had worked on this trip, He is faithful! With over 120 giving their lives to Christ and many, many other decisions by people to serve the Lord it was a trip that was well worth the hard work and temporary discomfort that I may have had to endure. I also know that there were a lot of good seeds that were planted in very fertile soil in the people and especially the leadership that is in Bungoma and Musakasa. I am not hoping, I am instead expecting to hear many stories of how God is working and pouring out his spirit on these people and that they are making a difference in lives of the people. There are so many traditions that are being broken in this area that it was unbelievable and I can’t even begin to start listing them but it was exciting to see walls being broken down and new paths being cut out from a previously unknown way. God is doing NEW things in these people and in this part of Africa and they are very hungry for Him and for His ways! I want to once again say “Thank You” to everyone who supported me on this trip. If it was money or if it was prayers it doesn’t matter, thank you for what you did. The bottom line is that lives have been changed because of the trip and it’s all due to you. God has reached down to the people in these places that many might consider obscure but He knows each and every one of them by name and He loves them. He called us to take His word to them and to help the Godly men and women that are there working to spread the good news of Jesus. Through your prayers and financial support we were able to do just that. We were faithful to the call that we received and He has blessed us because of it and I know that He will continue to bless all of you for your participation because I am continuing to ask Him to do just that. I will be sending more info over the next few days as I start to get my mind back and can assimilate all the information that I have gathered. I just wanted to say thank you and tell you how much I appreciate all of you for your help. I love you guys very much!

Last Full Day in Bungoma

Thursday, September 09, 2010, 8:00pm Bungoma Time

Today was technological review day I guess you could say.  Leonard and I spent most of the day going over the ins and outs of the new laptop that I’m leaving him.  We’ve set up folders for pictures that we’ve been downloading throughout the stay and organized them.  I’ve shown him how to run the anti-virus programs that we loaded onto the computer and even the differences in the new Word program.  Then we got the projector out and went through all the different hook-ups on it along with converters and adapters.  The audio setups that would work in different situations and we even set it all up and watched Louie Gigglio’s Indescribable on the garage wall.  We have watched several of the Rob Bell Nooma films and discussed  them.  I put a bunch of them on Leonard’s computer so he can show them to other people.  While we were working Sammy the Master Chef brought us Fish-N-Chips for lunch.  Now this is not the same Fish-N-Chips that you might get at Long John Silver’s.  I’ve included a picture in the new album so you can see what I got.  It was good!  I’ve also included some pictures of Sammy’s kitchen here at the Bishop’s house.  Let’s just say the next time we go camping I’m gonna call Sammy and see if he’s available.  So anyway, we finished the afternoon with the technology education and then walked over to Leonard’s home which is about a 15 minute walk away.  We had tea, of course, and then we just sat and visited a little bit since I have been actually staying here at the Bishop’s home.  I have gotten to see Leonard’s family but it’s always been at church functions and not really had a chance to just visit with Celestine and the kids.  So I spent some time with them and we all had prayer before I left, so cool!  Then on the way back we stopped by Pastor Tobias’ home and visited with him a little bit and then took the walk home.  So now I have started the process of packing for the return trip that starts tomorrow about noon Bungoma time (4:00am your time).  We will drive to Kisumu which is a few hours away and that’s where I’ll catch my first flight which is to Nairobi.  I’ll write more tomorrow from the airport in Kisumu, we are taking the laptop and Leonard’s modem actually works anywhere in Kenya.  So I’ll be posting again tomorrow but it will be from Kisumu.  By the way, Kisumu is the home of Obama’s grandfather and father.  They are very proud of him there, maybe they would like to have him?  Oh well, we can always dream!  Keep up the prayers that I can make all the connections over the next two days.  I’m concerned about the Chicago connection because I actually have to claim my bag and go through Customs and then put my bag through another security checkpoint just like I walked in from outside the airport and I have to do it all and make it to my next plane in just over an hour!  Might be a problem.  Anyway, I’m headed home tomorrow and I should arrive sometime Saturday afternoon if all goes according to plan, God’s plan.  Love you guys!

Thursday’s Blog…..God is Good! All the Time!

Wednesday, September 8, 2010, 6:30pm Bungoma Time

Well today’s agenda might not seem as “exciting” as the last 12 days or so but it was very fruitful at the end of the day.  I got to sleep in a little bit this morning and that was a welcome thing after the schedule we have maintained since I have been here.  Today is actually the first day since I have arrived that I have not been up and going and out of the house and on a schedule.  Today I did not leave Bishop Ogara’s home but instead got some rest and Leonard came over around 10:00 and we sat and reviewed the last week and a half and all the things that God has done here in Bungoma and Musakasa and all the villages in between!  God has showered us with His blessings everywhere we have been and we have seen the hand of the Lord work in many ways.  He has exceeded our expectations as only He could do and we know that all the glory goes to Him and Him alone.  We had originally planned on being in the village today and were going to do some ministering but one of the things I have learned while here in Kenya is that most things do not go as we plan them, you have to learn to trust the Lord for everyday decisions.  So instead we made use of the time together today to review and make sure that we are both on the same page so we will know how to pray more specifically for them.  I also had to get a picture of Leonard in his Razorback shirt that I brought him, it’s on FB.  It took me a few minutes to explain the whole Razorback thing but I think he finally got it.  We also did some video stuff that we had planned on so it was a good day.  Just to sit and visit with him is so encouraging, he has the gift of encouragement and he is very good at it!  It’s been really amazing all the things that Lord has showed me since I’ve been here.  Some things from back home that need to happen as well as things that are going on here.  God is definitely moving in His people and I’m grateful for the truths that He is showing me while I am here in Kenya.  I realized that I haven’t talked much about Bishop Ogara and I need to because he and his family are really special people.  He is the Bishop of Endtimes Harvest Discipleship Center in Bungoma and they have over 70 branch churches around the area and in Uganda.  Yes, that is 70 branch churches and he oversees them all.  He has 9 children!  Two are away at school right now and the rest are around the house.  They all chip in and work very hard around here to make sure that everything gets done.  It’s truly a family effort and it’s really cool to see it in action!  I have really enjoyed my visits with the Bishop as we have learned each other’s hearts about the ministry and just talk about the Lord and how He works.  Siritanyi is also under the Endtimes church so he oversees that as well and he is doing a great job with those kids.  The Bishop is a very forward thinking man with many great ideas for God’s people and to take care of the children at Siritanyi.  He has been very gracious to give me a room to sleep in and to feed me, and boy do they feed me!  As I am writing this blog Esther (Essie) is bringing us our evening Chi (tea) with our toast and jam.  The tea is very good, it’s a mix of African tea, skim milk, cinnamon and then of course, sugar.  You get a pretty good little energy buzz off of it.  We will have supper around 9:00.  Right now Sammy (one of the older boys) is out back cooking, I call him a master chef!  His fried chicken is great!  Anyway, the day has been great and we are laying down ground work for the next step!  Thank you for the prayers, please keep them going until I return.  Pray that God would continue to show His will and His truths!  Love you guys!

Last Day at Musakasa

Tuesday, September 07, 2010, 8:00pm Bungoma Time

Today was a day of wrap-up in the village of Musakasa.  Leonard and I traveled to the village and met with the other four Pastors and we spent several hours just talking about church, how God is working in His church and what the future might hold for this great church here in the village.  We discussed several ideas for the future that involved a foundation for the new building that they need to build very soon.  This past Sunday Pastor Muchanga told us that because of the crusade last week they had more people than the building could hold.  People had to stand outside the building and listen to the  message  because they couldn’t get another person in the existing building.  That’s a good problem to have.  They have decided that they would use a couple of large tarps to make a roof for shade and that they would have services outside to accommodate all the people that are showing up.  This is an immediate fix to the problem but the new building is the long-term fix.  They are getting some estimates on the building being built in phases.  They want the foundation and the roof built on some pillars first so they can use the building and then add the walls and finishing as they can.  I think it’s a very good plan and it will happen on God’s time.  Another idea they had was to try and save enough money to drill a “boar hole”.  This is the term they use for a well.  They have the plan that if they drill a well then the community will have access to good water because right now they have to bring water from another well that is several miles away.  The other part is that they can get approved by the government and they could charge a very small amount of money for the water that the community uses and put that money back towards the church.  So it would help the community with fresh water and it would be a way to make a little bit of money for the church as well.  The five of the men that I met with have a servant’s heart and they want to be used by the Lord and I know that He is going to bless this work here in Musakasa, he already has.  It was a good time of fellowship together and we ended it with some prayer together in the church.  After our meeting we all to Brother Godwin’s home which was beautiful.  It is very, very far off the beaten path but it’s what we would liken to a nursery.  Every plant on his property is there on purpose and it’s very beautiful, a relaxing environment to say the least.  He has several palm trees planted there but not the type of palms you  might think, these are different.  I have included pictures in the FaceBook album “Garden”.  After leaving Godwin’s we stopped by and I said my good-bye’s to Leonard’s dad and mum and family.  They are very sweet people and I have enjoyed getting to know them.  From there we went by Pastor Muchanga’s and he served us lunch which was very good.  I got to say good-bye to all of them and tell them what a blessing it has been to be a part of their lives and to get to see the great works that they are doing for the Lord.  I know that Arise & Shine Academy will continue to grow and train up children in the knowledge of the Lord.  It looked as though it was going to rain again so we hurried on back to Bungoma where we dropped of chairs we had been using all week back to Pastor Pascal at his home and then on to Bishop Ogara’s.  It was a long day but a good day and I think it was very profitable for the future and the life of this great work that’s going on here.  Keep praying as we have more things to wrap up in the next few days before I begin my long journey back home on Friday.  Love you guys!

Uganda Adventure

Monday, September 06, 2010, 7:40pm Bungoma Time

Well today was an experience!  Today was to be a little bit of rest to follow up the last 8 days of going hard.   Today Bishop Ogara and Leonard took me to Webuye Falls which is a natural set of falls about an hour away.  I have included pictures in the FB album called “Webuye”.  It is really a beautiful place and not what you might imagine to find in Africa.  The water comes from Mt. Elgon which is not far away and it flows all year long.  The amount of water changes with the rainy season but right now they say it is about the middle of where it flows.  After seeing it I can’t really imagine what it might be like if the amount of water were a lot more than this.  Getting there was a chore and we did some serious “off-roading” all while the Bishop ate on his roasted corn on the cob.  Yeah, we stopped by the roadside for a snack of roasted corn on the cob which is a normal snack for everyone around here.  There will be women set up all over the place with a little fire and they are fanning the fire to roast the corn and people stop and buy it.  It’s kind of tough compared to what we think of when we say corn on the cob.  So we are bouncing down this rock road and my kidneys are already in my back pocket because of the roads all week long and the Bishop is just cool and calm and grabs his corn off the dashboard and takes a bite and then throws it back up there, Hakuna Matata (no worries).  We headed back and decided to go the border town of Malamba to exchange some currency that I had brought.  Leonard had told me that we could get a better exchange rate for real US Dollars than doing a transfer.  So far we have found that the banks down here will not accept any bill printed earlier than 2000 and if it has the slightest tear in it anywhere they will not accept it at all.  So the Bishop has a friend over in Malamba which is a moneychanger and we went over to convert the bit of money I had left.  When we got over there we found out that they too did not really want the older bills so the exchange rate was very poor but we took it because I can’t get a transfer to go through from here.  Oyvay! So on the way I told the Bishop that I had only applied for a single entry visa into Kenya because I did not think I would be crossing the border and he said ok.  The next thing I know we are crossing the border into Uganda on foot.  Little did I know that if you give the guard at the border 5,000 Ugandan Shillings he will let you back into Kenya without a visa!  But it wasn’t a bribe, we just wanted to buy him lunch.  By the way, that’s about $3 US.  Nice to know my life is worth a whole 3 bucks!  So we went into Uganda and walked around the border town for a while and then the Bishop decided we would stop and have lunch at a restaurant that he knew.  He travels through here frequently since they have several church plants in Uganda so he is very familiar with the people, thank you Jesus!  So we sat down and he ordered for us and all I understood was “mixed” which meant bring us a little bit of everything.  He asked if I wanted fish and I said no that I would prefer beef for this meal.  By the time they brought is a bottled water and a soda the food was right behind it.  I have include a picture in the FB album so you can see.  I had fresh avocado, smashed bananas and yams, rice, irish potatoes, boiled yam and kasava (root) along with my beef stew (their term).  After we had washed our hands outside we dug in.  This was only the beginning of the adventure.  Afterwards the Bishop decided he wanted to go to the local market and buy some fresh bananas because they are much cheaper here than in Bungoma.  Walking around inside the local market was very different experience and after we  had gotten our bananas (and I stepped on a rusty nail that went into my foot slightly…..glad I got that tetnus shot before I left) he decided we take a “shortcut” to get back to the main road and back to the border.  So we cut through where families were living and believe me I got some looks!  My spider senses were on overload as I always tried to keep up with who was behind us and where was my exit at any given point, a practice that I have always had when in an unfamiliar surrounding but this was different.  I didn’t have a clue where I would go because everywhere that I looked it was the same and I didn’t have a clue which direction the main street was because we had twisted and turned so many times.  I was hoping that the Bishop did!  What seemed like an eternity later we popped out on the main drag and headed back to the border where we “bought” my freedom with the 5,000 Ugandan Shillings that the Bishop had exchanged with Kenyan Shillings in town.  Oh yeah, lunch for all three of us along with bottled water and  a soda cost almost $8 US Dollars.  And we thought our economy was bad.  I can honestly say that the trip into Uganda and to the local market there was the only time on this whole trip that I felt really uncomfortable but God was faithful and gave us safe passage.  The hour drive home included passing through two police checkpoints, both of which the Bishop just drove right through.  I asked  him if the stops were for the commercial rigs only which is usually the case here and he said no.  When I asked  him why we didn’t stop he said he never stops unless someone tells him to……..ok.  So we made it back home and it was a long day of adventures.  Tomorrow I head to Musakasa with Leonard as we meet with the other three Pastors to talk about the church and to also pursue the foundation of the new building.  We have masonary guy that is giving us an estimate.  Keep up the prayers, love you guys!

Day 2 Endtimes Harvest Discipleship Center

Sunday, September 05, 2010, 5:00pm Bungoma Time

We have had a great day in the Lord here at Endtimes Harvest Discipleship Center.  We had around 100 people this morning including the children from Siritanyi since this is their home church.  It was really exciting to see all of them walking around with their new bibles that I had given them on Monday.  They were very proud of them and it was good to see that they had the word of the Lord in their hands learning to become skilled warriors for Christ.  The service here begins at 9:00 with the praise and worship music that runs until about 10:30 as people come in all during that time.  Then there is a short welcome and some more singing for another 30-45 minutes.  After that it’s time for the message from the speaker and today that was me.  I wanted to share with them about the spirit of fear and the role that it played in their lives and the life of the church.  I used the passage in Matthew 14 where the disciples were out in the lake and the storm came up.  I showed them how fear caused the disciples to be afraid of the situation which was the storm and also how they were afraid of the solution when it appeared which was  Jesus walking to them on the water.  What a tough spot for anybody but we’ve all been there.  After talking for a while I simply asked them what they would do if they had no fear and whatever that response was then that is what the spirit of fear is robbing them of right now.  I especially relayed it to the mission of the church because Bishop Ogara has shared with me his vision of “taking the city of Bungoma for Christ”.  I challenged them to not let the spirit of fear stop them from fulfilling that vision.  There are over 400,000 people in this immediate area, I think that the vision is a good one!  People received the message well and said that they were encouraged.  Thank you Lord!  At the end of the time together the Bishop asked everyone that wanted to receive prayer to come forward and that I would pray over them.  There were about 20 or so and it was a privilege to be able to pray for these people.  Then to dismiss he called all the students up to the front, tomorrow the schools start here and so there was about 50 students and they all lined up across the front and then he asked me to voice a prayer for them as they start school.  It was a really good service and I know the Lord moved in a great way.  After everyone dismissed we told the women to stick around that we had a special session for them that would be led by Pastor Tommy’s wife.  There were 34 women who stayed to watch the video of Jamie teaching out of Philippians plus a bunch of the younger girls stayed and wanted to watch.  I would say there was probably 20 of them so there was over 50 all together.  Leonard interpreted and as I sat and watched I could tell that the women were really tuned in and listening to what was being said.  They were all very happy when it was over and very appreciative.  It has really been a good day here in Bungoma.  Last night I had something new for dinner.  Boiled sweet potatoes with a peanut sauce along with some cooked beef, it was very unique.  This morning something funny happened that I have to tell you about.  Last night when I went to bed I had asked the Bishop what time we needed to leave and he replied between 9:00 and 9:30.  So this morning “Mamaa” (that is the term which you call any woman with children here) came and knocked on my door and said my bath water was ready (I know what you’re thinking but that’s for another story, it’s not what you think) so I looked at my watch and it was 6:15.  I thought wow we are getting an early start today but ok, whatever (by the way I have learned in Swahili that “Sowa” means “whatever”).  So I got my bath, shaved and brushed my teeth and while I was getting dressed they were sitting my breakfast out (scrambled eggs, bacon and toast!) and I came out and was eating and I noticed that everyone else was completely ready and got the feeling that they were waiting on me which is unusual because I have made it a point to be ready so that nobody would have to wait on me.  Anyway, I looked at my watch and it was 6:15 and I couldn’t figure out why everybody was ready.  Then it clicked, yeah, what you just thought of…….my watch had quit and when I turned around and looked at the clock it was a few minutes after 9:00!  The Bishop saw me looking and told me not to worry because I had time, I hurried anyway.  For those of you who know me I have to know what time it is because everything is associated with time for me.  But as I was at church this morning I caught myself looking for my watch and then I heard the Lord say “why don’t you enjoy just being here and quit worrying about what time it is, you’re on  MY time anyway and I’ll tell you when it’s time to do something else.”  So I didn’t look for time the rest of the day until we were back at home.  Lesson learned!  But tomorrow I get to try and find someone in Bungoma who can open a dive watch and replace the battery, or I will go the rest of the week without a watch……we’ll see what the Lord decides.  It’s the little things that get you.  Please continue to pray as we are not yet done with the work that the Lord has sent me here for.  Love you guys!  How ‘bout them Hogs, 44-3!

Day 1 at Endtimes Harvest

Saturday, September 04, 2010, 5:00pm Bungoma Time

Just finished the day at Endtimes Harvest Discipleship where Bishop Ogara is the Pastor.  Today we had a leadership seminar and there was about 30 people in attendance.  We had our first session this morning and then we took a short break and it was on to the second session.  After a little teaching about Jewish traditions we broke for lunch and had some fellowship together over cuckoo and chips (actually French-fries but they refer to them as chips) and then a jelly sandwich to chase it all down with the hot tea.  I don’t think I’ve mentioned that they have hot tea several times a day here.  It’s the British influence from when the British came over and took over Africa.  I’m really enjoying the tea though.  So after a good lunch it was time to meet with just the men.  We had about 18 in there and it was fun.  I don’t every use notes on these talks I just get up and start talking about what I’ve learned over the years.  I always enjoy these talks and usually when I’m done I’ll open it up to questions and it’s amazing the questions that come up.  I’m not going to say what they are but they are always good questions that just deal with real life situations.  We went for about an hour and half just talking about the role of men and specifically the role of men in marriage and the church.  Afterwards we walked home from the church and it was interesting to be able to walk the streets and see some more of the city.  Bungoma actually has over 400,000 people in it which makes it larger than Little Rock’s population and yet the square area is much, much smaller.  There are crowds wherever you go here.  Some tonight is some down time and prep for tomorrow which is teaching tomorrow morning at Endtimes and then after my message the women are wanting to set up the projector and watch the message from Jamie so we’re going to do that.  I know that they will really enjoy it.  I have some studying to do so I’m getting the blog done a little early and with hopes of getting to bed before 11:00pm.  Thanks for all the prayers!

Arise & Shine School

Friday, September 03, 2010, 8:00pm Bungoma Time

Before I get going I need to tell you that last night’s Open-Air Crusade had another 20 or so that gave their lives to Christ.  I’m not sure what the count is but I ‘m thankful for every single one of them!  Today was a little slower pace but it was still very full of ministering to the people here.  We went to Arise & Shine Christian School in Natima which is the school we have been praying for since it started last year.  Pastor Ferdinand Muchanga is the Director of the School and is doing a wonderful job.  He is an administrator with the public school system so he has the credentials to start the school and has the government’s blessings.  His wife is a teacher and administrator in the school and his son is involved along with 7 other teachers.  They now have 125 students in the school!  This is the only Christian school for many miles and the children are doing great.  They test out several levels ahead of the public schools already.  I got to address the teachers first and I just wanted to encourage them and remind them of the great responsibility they have as teachers and especially at a school that is based upon teaching Christian values.  They all have a heart for the children and that was evident just by visiting with them.  After spending a while with the teachers we went outside and the kids were all in place and ready to go.  Some of the kids were not here because school officially starts on Monday, but the ones that were here were excited.  Director Muchanga talked about the changes that the school has undergone in the short time that it has been a school and the plans for the future as well.  Several of the parents were there and a couple even stood up and testified at how important the school is and how well their children are doing in the school.  After the report the children stood up and sang a song and recited some memorization that they had prepared, it was very cool.  Then I got to stand and address the teachers, the parents and the students.  I just reminded them God loves them very much and that He has a plan for their lives.  They are already experiencing the favor of the Lord because they are attending a great Christian school with teachers that love them and pray for them.  Then we had yet another great lunch and I was stuffed once again.  I have forgotten to mention some of the other great things that they eat here.  Part of lunch the last few days has been what I thought was mashed potatoes but it turns out it was actually sweet potatoes and bananas mashed together.  Fresh bananas are usually on the menu as well and some are small and they are “sweet bananas” while they also have the bigger ones like what we are used to.  Oh yeah, the grow Avocadoes here so they have them fresh off the trees.  Alex reminded me that also here on the side of the road you will see people grilling and ear of corn over a small fire to sell for a snack.  Bishop Ogara gave me one the other night and it actually wasn’t too bad.  When you drive around you see many people especially children who are chewing on the sugar cane that grows here.  Leonard has told me that when there is no food that they will chew on these sugar canes to get them through the day.  I’ve included some more pictures that show some more uses of the bicycles that you see around town.  It was a good day and tomorrow is going to be great as well.  The Lord is working here and we need to keep praying for these people, they are counting on us.  On to the afternoon meeting at  Musakasa with all the youth.  When we arrived there were already a bunch of them gathered in the church and ready to go. We ended up with about 25 or 30 youth and some adults as well.  I just tried to encourage them and assured them that I knew they were in a tough place being a youth in today’s world.  When I started challenging them to live their lives for Christ I reminded them that the next generation of pastors and worship leaders would come out of this group.  When I asked who was going to fill those roles a bunch of them raised their hands and said they would be, that was cool to see from a bunch of youth.  They listened very well and heard everything that I was saying.  I know that the Lord has great plans for this group of young people because I’ve already seen them working all week during the seminar and at the church service.  This church is going to have a lot of strong leaders for Christ and I’m excited about their future.  I had to say my goodbye’s to them as I won’t see them again before I leave.  I assured them that we would lift them in prayer and keep up with their growth.  Love you guys!

Day 3 Musakasa Seminar

Thursday, September 02, 2010, 8:00pm Bungoma  Time

I don’t even know where to start with this blog.  I guess before I get too far I need to tell you that last night after we left the Open-Air Crusade that over 20 people gave their hearts to Christ, add 20 more to the count!  Now  about today.   We had a day that will impact this church and this area for a long time to come in my opinion.  I had some fun and taught about Jewish customs in the first session and how they can help us unlock some of the scriptures.  I taught about the Mezuzah and where it came from, then I went on to the Priestly Blessing in Numbers and how we are the priests now and we should be blessing each other.  Pastor Ferdinand Muchanga stood up and said he has a degree in Theology and he never had a class on Jewish customs and how they help to open up some things in scripture but he will now start to study them.  I just enjoyed teaching this stuff and had so much fun and the Lord was working.  Then the second session I taught on the Lord’s Supper and traced it back to the Feast of Passover and showed them how Jesus was the Passover sacrifice for us.  Then we passed out the juice and the unleavened bread that I had brought and we had the first communion for the Church of All Nations in Musakasa AND all the visiting pastors that were present joined in and it was truly a picture of ONE body under Christ with a common purpose of winning the lost for Christ.  When it came time to actually start handing out the elements people started filing in the building and it was standing room only elbow to elbow and you could not have gotten another person in there if you had to.  I thought about them coming in late and asked Leonard about it and he said that they had been outside listening to the teachings.  I forgot that they had two huge speakers outside that were pumping the teachings and the music all over the village.  Leonard told me that they have had people as far away as 10-15 miles tell them that they can hear the music and the teachings when they are having church, WOW!  It’s a good thing I didn’t know that before I started teaching!  Then another lunch cooked by the women of the village!   Yesterday I mentioned that there were Pastors that had been coming the last two days, well today was no different as some were back and some more new ones showed up because they had heard about what was going on.  I could tell the Pastors in the crowd because when I started teaching on the Jewish customs and the Lord’s Supper they were all writing like crazy trying to take notes.  I was visiting with Leonard on the way back tonight and he thinks that we have had over 35 Pastors show up throughout the week to attend the seminar.  They are coming from all over up to 40 minutes away.  We have one Pastor that has been here all three days and each day he has brought someone new with him.  We adjusted our schedule and used the third session today for a Pastor’s meeting.  I got to address them and encourage them to work together to take the land for Christ.  They all agreed that they were going to start a Pastor’s fellowship and that they would get together monthly and pray for each other and work together.  This will be huge if they survive!  I say that because I warned them that the enemy will not go down easy and he will fight them every step of the way but they can prevail if they trust Christ and submit to each other as servants of the Most High God!  We left while the Crusade for tonight was still going on but they had a great attendance again tonight and I look forward to hearing tomorrow about more souls saved tonight.  Tomorrow I head to the Arise & Shine Christian School where I will address the kids and the parents and then tomorrow afternoon I meet with the youth at Musakasa.  Please continue to pray for the journey, God is receiving all the glory and names are being added to the Book of Life because of the prayers of His people!  I love you guys!

Day 2 Musakasa Seminar

Wednesday, Sept 1^st,  10:30pm Bungoma Time

Wow, what a day.  The seminar at Musakasa is surpassing all expectations.  Today we had about 40 people in our first two sessions where I taught about Jesus and the Samaritan woman and then in the second one about Peter walking on the water and how the spirit of fear can cost you everything.  What’s amazing is that Leonard sent out invitations to other Pastors a few weeks ago and invited them to this leadership seminar.  This is something that is not normal for the area because churches don’t really want to fellowship with other churches for whatever reason, sounds a lot like the US, huh?  Anyway, yesterday we had 13 other pastors show up form area churches.  We all had lunch together and talked and they all agreed that they needed to work together instead of following the traditions of not fellowshipping together.  They said they wanted to start a Pastor’s fellowship and join together to win the village of Musakasa and beyond for the Lord.  This wasn’t even part of the  plan, well I mean our plan but it was obviously God’s!  And then today about 10 more showed up because the pastors that were there yesterday had contacted them and said you have to come hear this mzungu (white guy) and what he is saying about all of us working together.  So today we had lunch with them and asked them about joining a fellowship.  They were all in agreements and we decided that tomorrow we are going to set aside time for the pastors to meet and I will get to address them about working together.  What’s amazing is that some of these pastors got the word and came from villages up to 40 minutes away.  After another great lunch (I may be the only person to come to Africa and GAIN 25 pounds) we had the ladies session.  As is usually the case, Jamie stole the show.  The word got out yesterday that today the women would have their own session today and that Pastor Tommy’s wife would be teaching it and that’s all we told them. So today when it was time to start the women’s session women showed up from all over the village.  Women that had never been to the church before but they heard about the women who was going to be speaking.  The church is 12′ x 22′ and when we started the film there was almost 80 women in there!  It was packed and the guys were standing at the door and looking into the windows to see what was going on.  Pastor Barasa interpreted and he had a ball, he inserted his own little  mini-sermons when he would stop to translate what was said.  At the end of the film he asked all the women to bow their heads and talked about salvation, when he asked if there were any women there who had never been born again there was about 10 that raised their hands and he led them in the sinner’s prayer. 10!   Bishop Ogara’s wife watched it when we got back and told her about it and now she wants to show it Saturday at the leadership meeting that I’m doing at EndTimes.  More souls won for Christ!  We had to leave before the Open-Air crusade was over tonight so we don’t know what went on tonight, it could be more.  I just finished dinner which included fried Arrow roots, yes that is a tree root.  It actually wasn’t too bad once you get past what it is.  Along with Ugali and cuckoo stew it was a good meal.  I’m loading pictures to FaceBook of just miscellaneous stuff that I have taken.   More to come tomorrow!  Love you guys, keep up the prayers!