Rumuruti Day 3
Rumuriti Day 3…
Today was a true Kenyan day of ministry…the planned teaching did happen, but not as we thought it would be. Kenyan time was the name of the game today.
After breakfast we had a late start, it was scheduled that way from the beginning so it didn’t come as a surprise. But once we arrived you could see the disappointment in the face of the Kilgoris pastor. Ezekiel came to me shortly after arrival to discuss the obvious. No one was there. Pastor John of Rumuruti had overlooked a very important fact of market day in Rumuruti. With a culture that is consisting of farmers and ranchers (loosely using that term), market day could not be skipped. Remember the poverty here is intense and to skip a opportunity to sell a few head of livestock could be the difference between eating or going hungry this next week. With no refrigeration the slaughter of a animal for your own food is a very uneconomic choice. It is much more productive to deal at market for items in trade and gain the entire value of the animal. The market day overlook created an issue with the attendance and with the plans of man, but maybe that was the problem.
We continued anyway…not how we planned, but in the way that God allowed. Men abandoned the church because it was almost entirely a female presence to begin with. While Rachel and Becky took the group of women and began to share God’s word with them. Listening and encouraging them in areas of life that are difficult for the Massai in this struggle between tradition of culture and the freedom of Christ being offered through the much needed discipleship. I was not in the meeting but I’ve heard testimony of a few of the struggles, I can tell you for certain that the FGM culture was a main topic, that these women are ready to fight against it, that they need God to intervene in a big way if the curse is to be broken. Things were dark but there seems to be light breaking through in a big way. Simply knowing that someone has your back on the topic could be a turning point for the boldness of these ladies to aid in fighting this battle.
We men all grabbed our chairs and took too the shade of a euphorbia tree. We opened with a prayer and then began to find out what questions the men and pastors had to ask. They wanted to know about unity, they wanted to discuss FGM, they wanted to seek any advice that we could offer. As a group we were all feeling the weight of the issues and were able to encourage one another. The pastors from Kenya joined our team and spoke into their lives, encouraging them that they knew of places that had battled this already in the past and they shared testimony of God delivering their own community from these practices.
It certainly didn’t go as imagined today, but I have faith that God worked it out to be even better than I could have ever imagined.
After taking lunch we went back out to the open air crusade in the heart of Rumuruti Town. Music and dancing went on for a considerable time to draw a crowd and finally it was cut off to allow the testimonies and gospel. Becky was up to share her testimony and did a great job, she spoke truth, shared some scripture, and personal testimony. Robert Grimes then got to speak and share testimony, he shared stories of his own personal salvation and it was a blessing for the crowds that were nearby. Reggie wrapped up the crusade with more truth and the gospel, providing yet another wonderful perspective to speak to the very soul of those listening so intently to each word he was speaking. The three of them all boldly, and with much diversity, showing a true image of the love of Christ for all to hear, presenting such a wonderful invitation for the people in the crowds to respond. Upon the conclusion of the messages music would start back up and the celebration was to continue. This part of the Kenyan culture escapes my understanding, as many times as I have been here, and as many times as I have seen this take place, the style of worship they break into so immediately after a serious message confuses the western mindset I carry with me as I go. It seems to me to be disruptive to the work to be done, they however, manage to communicate in the perceived chaos and connect ministry leaders to those who need prayer and counsel while simultaneously starting a conga line through the streets. It is quite a thing to witness…the sounds, smells, and emotion make for an unforgettable experience.
We have finished our day now, we have had our evening meal, and it is time to go and find rest after a long day. This day didn’t go as expected from the beginning, but it went. This day still allowed us the hard conversations with church leaders and pastors concerning the evil practices consuming the traditions and enslaving the young women of the Laikapia region. The day didn’t allow us to see the fruit that we might have hoped, but we were certainly able to cultivate some new ground and drop a lot of seeds into the tillage. We can hope and pray they are obedient to God’s word, and we can stay in contact and return if the opportunity is presented to further disciple the wonderful people in this place.
We knew coming here there were a lot of unknowns, overall the changes made were minor, the work done was toward the goals we had, and the harvest was plentiful. Pray for our last morning of teaching time. We will all be sharing a charge to the church, and reading from the word of God to encourage the believers here. Then we are to start our long journey home. A game drive for the team members new to Kenya, and then a quick trip the the airport will be in our near future.
I’m happy to be here, but once we leave this place I’ll be ready to be home with the travel behind us. Please continue to pray for our trip and for those who are left here to fight the good fight. We all need all the help from God that we can get.
Today was a true Kenyan day of ministry…the planned teaching did happen, but not as we thought it would be. Kenyan time was the name of the game today.
After breakfast we had a late start, it was scheduled that way from the beginning so it didn’t come as a surprise. But once we arrived you could see the disappointment in the face of the Kilgoris pastor. Ezekiel came to me shortly after arrival to discuss the obvious. No one was there. Pastor John of Rumuruti had overlooked a very important fact of market day in Rumuruti. With a culture that is consisting of farmers and ranchers (loosely using that term), market day could not be skipped. Remember the poverty here is intense and to skip a opportunity to sell a few head of livestock could be the difference between eating or going hungry this next week. With no refrigeration the slaughter of a animal for your own food is a very uneconomic choice. It is much more productive to deal at market for items in trade and gain the entire value of the animal. The market day overlook created an issue with the attendance and with the plans of man, but maybe that was the problem.
We continued anyway…not how we planned, but in the way that God allowed. Men abandoned the church because it was almost entirely a female presence to begin with. While Rachel and Becky took the group of women and began to share God’s word with them. Listening and encouraging them in areas of life that are difficult for the Massai in this struggle between tradition of culture and the freedom of Christ being offered through the much needed discipleship. I was not in the meeting but I’ve heard testimony of a few of the struggles, I can tell you for certain that the FGM culture was a main topic, that these women are ready to fight against it, that they need God to intervene in a big way if the curse is to be broken. Things were dark but there seems to be light breaking through in a big way. Simply knowing that someone has your back on the topic could be a turning point for the boldness of these ladies to aid in fighting this battle.
We men all grabbed our chairs and took too the shade of a euphorbia tree. We opened with a prayer and then began to find out what questions the men and pastors had to ask. They wanted to know about unity, they wanted to discuss FGM, they wanted to seek any advice that we could offer. As a group we were all feeling the weight of the issues and were able to encourage one another. The pastors from Kenya joined our team and spoke into their lives, encouraging them that they knew of places that had battled this already in the past and they shared testimony of God delivering their own community from these practices.
It certainly didn’t go as imagined today, but I have faith that God worked it out to be even better than I could have ever imagined.
After taking lunch we went back out to the open air crusade in the heart of Rumuruti Town. Music and dancing went on for a considerable time to draw a crowd and finally it was cut off to allow the testimonies and gospel. Becky was up to share her testimony and did a great job, she spoke truth, shared some scripture, and personal testimony. Robert Grimes then got to speak and share testimony, he shared stories of his own personal salvation and it was a blessing for the crowds that were nearby. Reggie wrapped up the crusade with more truth and the gospel, providing yet another wonderful perspective to speak to the very soul of those listening so intently to each word he was speaking. The three of them all boldly, and with much diversity, showing a true image of the love of Christ for all to hear, presenting such a wonderful invitation for the people in the crowds to respond. Upon the conclusion of the messages music would start back up and the celebration was to continue. This part of the Kenyan culture escapes my understanding, as many times as I have been here, and as many times as I have seen this take place, the style of worship they break into so immediately after a serious message confuses the western mindset I carry with me as I go. It seems to me to be disruptive to the work to be done, they however, manage to communicate in the perceived chaos and connect ministry leaders to those who need prayer and counsel while simultaneously starting a conga line through the streets. It is quite a thing to witness…the sounds, smells, and emotion make for an unforgettable experience.
We have finished our day now, we have had our evening meal, and it is time to go and find rest after a long day. This day didn’t go as expected from the beginning, but it went. This day still allowed us the hard conversations with church leaders and pastors concerning the evil practices consuming the traditions and enslaving the young women of the Laikapia region. The day didn’t allow us to see the fruit that we might have hoped, but we were certainly able to cultivate some new ground and drop a lot of seeds into the tillage. We can hope and pray they are obedient to God’s word, and we can stay in contact and return if the opportunity is presented to further disciple the wonderful people in this place.
We knew coming here there were a lot of unknowns, overall the changes made were minor, the work done was toward the goals we had, and the harvest was plentiful. Pray for our last morning of teaching time. We will all be sharing a charge to the church, and reading from the word of God to encourage the believers here. Then we are to start our long journey home. A game drive for the team members new to Kenya, and then a quick trip the the airport will be in our near future.
I’m happy to be here, but once we leave this place I’ll be ready to be home with the travel behind us. Please continue to pray for our trip and for those who are left here to fight the good fight. We all need all the help from God that we can get.
Posted in Africa2026