Greetings From Tigoni!
We are doing well and praising God for many wonderful things over the last two weeks! A HUGE praise is that we received our crate that traveled all across the world. Not only was it amazing to get some things from home that we had packed and diapers :) but our church body put surprises all throughout it! It was so incredible and such a blessing. We felt so loved. Thank you to everyone who added something. WOW!
Another praise is that we both passed our second test this last week! Matt got a 98%! It feels good to have another test down and to know what we need to work on and what we know well. Our midterm is in two weeks and we have 20 lessons to cover, so please pray that we have alert minds and that we would glorify God on the written test April 8 and the oral test April 9th. :)
We also were so blessed with a beautiful tour of a nearby tea farm. The same family has owned it since the early 1900's and it was so incredible to learn about the tea industry here, the influence of it on the people, the process of making tea and the history of several British families. It was a nice break from our studies and a blessing to learn in a different way including a beautiful setting and wonderful food! :)
The Lord has blessed us with sweet opportunities to minister in Kiswahili and we are seeing the Kenyan church here come alongside us in our small opportunities so we praise the Lord for that.
Please also pray for our upcoming trip to Kisumu April 10th through the 15th or 16th. Please pray for safe travels on the road for Matt, in the air for KG and Peg, for the house hunt, protection from Malaria and great opportunties to minister the Gospel and love of Jesus Christ especially over the Resurrection season!
God bless you all and thank you for your prayers!!!
Peg for The P3
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
A Kenyan Wedding
Last Saturday I was privileged to participate in a Kenyan wedding. It all started because our teacher, Peter, who is also a local pastor here, asked Jacob & myself if we would be willing/available to drive the wedding party from their house to the church. Customarily the bride and her side of the wedding party get ready at a certain house and then they have a number of cars that will pick them and the family up to drive them to the church. The cars are all decorated with ribbon and some with flowers and they drive in a slow fashion with their e-lights on letting others know that we are all a part of this wedding procession.
So, as it turns out, our car was chosen to be the bearer of the bride (and 9 other people - mostly kids though). So on Saturday morning, after our guard had finished giving the car a thorough cleaning,(that was such a blessing) Pastor Peter showed up with the best man and another friend of the bride to decorate all the cars at our place (a total of 4). The Korean family who is learning English first and then Kiswahili came to experience a Kenyan wedding with their whole family. Everyone was supposed to arrive at 9:30 but as is common here in Kenya the wedding people came at 10:30. As you can see in the pictures, our car was beautifully decorated, it's very common to use ribbion on all of the cars.
I was a bit nervous about the big responsibility of carrying the Bride; the most precious cargo of the wedding. We left our house at about 11am (the wedding was supposed to start at 10:30 - we were definitely all on African time) and we made our way to the bride's house (about 20-25min away). When we arrived, my driving skills where put to a test as I had to back up through a gate into a courtyard of a small house which was crammed full with about 100-150 people (at least half of which were children).
So, here I am in this "monster truck" that has a pretty big lift and big tires (which are practically necessary with the roads as they are here in Kenya) and I have to navigate through a sea of kids and people (that are difficult to see due to the height of the car) so as to get as close to the front door of this house as possible (the least amount of dirt contact for the bride). So as I'm pulling up there are group of women who are singing and dancing in a circle and their song is calling for the bride to come out.
Meanwhile the family inside was using delay tactics (such as, demanding the groom pay more dowry) to keep the bride from coming out. This is very common here in Kenya as it is a way to show the Bride's worth and value but this brother was really causing some grief and delaying the process of getting the Bride to the car. Eventually the group of singing mamas get word of what room the bride is in and rush in (no stopping them) and pick up the bride in her dress and rush her out and plop her in my car. (It was quite a sight... especially as they had asked me to be stationed in a small room just inside the house where the commotion was all happening to capture what I could on my camera.) Needless to say, as I didn't know what was going on, but was witnessing what seemed rather horrific to have this young girl scooped up and rushed out (they even dropped her on accident in the room that I was in as they were trying to get her outside past those using the delay tactics) and placed in my car.
Once she was situated, we thought we were in the clear and ready to head off to the wedding, but lo and behold, the mother of the bride turned up missing (another delay tactic we were told), so Pastor Peter and another guy went to go look for them in their car, meanwhile I was sitting in my car all ready to go with the bride, the best man (her brother I think), his wife, and 5-6 small kids crammed in the back seat (praise the Lord for a big car). We were told to wait until they returned, and so we sat there for another 10 minutes while kids are standing all around the car asking me questions... "How are you?" "Where are you from?" and a myriad of other questions that were in Kiswahili and I didn't want to take the time to figure out. Eventually we were on our way to the church, where we met up with all the guests and those who were on the grooms side.
We were all welcomed with Praise Songs pouring out of the church, and soon the same women who sang to draw the bride out of her house now sang to draw the bride out of the car. The singing continued all the way until the bride made it into the church (about 10-15min longer)... and once they were all inside it seemed to quiet down for a bit... then the songs continued. About that time (2pm) as the wedding was supposed to start around 10:30, Jacob and I hadn't eaten anything since breakfast and had been told we could leave if we needed/wanted to, which although we wanted to stay and watch the rest of the festivities, the church seemed over crowded as it was, and it being a rather hot day we opted to go home and relax (Jacob also needed to spend more time preparing for his sermon the next day, and the P3 had plans to travel into Nairobi later that afternoon as well).
So all in all, it was a very exciting time to witness, and one I won't easily forget. I learned much more about the Kenyan culture (Luhya to be specific) and was blessed that the car that God provided for us could be used to bless the people here. (One last side note, the main reason for our involvement in the first place was that the bride and groom couldn't afford the "big hoopla" that is desired for a wedding celebration, and when they had decided to do something small and simple, others rallied around them to support them and throw them a big wedding... hence their pastor, Peter, asking us to be used in the wedding caravan procession. What an honor).
- Matt for the P3
So, as it turns out, our car was chosen to be the bearer of the bride (and 9 other people - mostly kids though). So on Saturday morning, after our guard had finished giving the car a thorough cleaning,(that was such a blessing) Pastor Peter showed up with the best man and another friend of the bride to decorate all the cars at our place (a total of 4). The Korean family who is learning English first and then Kiswahili came to experience a Kenyan wedding with their whole family. Everyone was supposed to arrive at 9:30 but as is common here in Kenya the wedding people came at 10:30. As you can see in the pictures, our car was beautifully decorated, it's very common to use ribbion on all of the cars.
I was a bit nervous about the big responsibility of carrying the Bride; the most precious cargo of the wedding. We left our house at about 11am (the wedding was supposed to start at 10:30 - we were definitely all on African time) and we made our way to the bride's house (about 20-25min away). When we arrived, my driving skills where put to a test as I had to back up through a gate into a courtyard of a small house which was crammed full with about 100-150 people (at least half of which were children).
So, here I am in this "monster truck" that has a pretty big lift and big tires (which are practically necessary with the roads as they are here in Kenya) and I have to navigate through a sea of kids and people (that are difficult to see due to the height of the car) so as to get as close to the front door of this house as possible (the least amount of dirt contact for the bride). So as I'm pulling up there are group of women who are singing and dancing in a circle and their song is calling for the bride to come out.
Meanwhile the family inside was using delay tactics (such as, demanding the groom pay more dowry) to keep the bride from coming out. This is very common here in Kenya as it is a way to show the Bride's worth and value but this brother was really causing some grief and delaying the process of getting the Bride to the car. Eventually the group of singing mamas get word of what room the bride is in and rush in (no stopping them) and pick up the bride in her dress and rush her out and plop her in my car. (It was quite a sight... especially as they had asked me to be stationed in a small room just inside the house where the commotion was all happening to capture what I could on my camera.) Needless to say, as I didn't know what was going on, but was witnessing what seemed rather horrific to have this young girl scooped up and rushed out (they even dropped her on accident in the room that I was in as they were trying to get her outside past those using the delay tactics) and placed in my car.
Once she was situated, we thought we were in the clear and ready to head off to the wedding, but lo and behold, the mother of the bride turned up missing (another delay tactic we were told), so Pastor Peter and another guy went to go look for them in their car, meanwhile I was sitting in my car all ready to go with the bride, the best man (her brother I think), his wife, and 5-6 small kids crammed in the back seat (praise the Lord for a big car). We were told to wait until they returned, and so we sat there for another 10 minutes while kids are standing all around the car asking me questions... "How are you?" "Where are you from?" and a myriad of other questions that were in Kiswahili and I didn't want to take the time to figure out. Eventually we were on our way to the church, where we met up with all the guests and those who were on the grooms side.
We were all welcomed with Praise Songs pouring out of the church, and soon the same women who sang to draw the bride out of her house now sang to draw the bride out of the car. The singing continued all the way until the bride made it into the church (about 10-15min longer)... and once they were all inside it seemed to quiet down for a bit... then the songs continued. About that time (2pm) as the wedding was supposed to start around 10:30, Jacob and I hadn't eaten anything since breakfast and had been told we could leave if we needed/wanted to, which although we wanted to stay and watch the rest of the festivities, the church seemed over crowded as it was, and it being a rather hot day we opted to go home and relax (Jacob also needed to spend more time preparing for his sermon the next day, and the P3 had plans to travel into Nairobi later that afternoon as well).
So all in all, it was a very exciting time to witness, and one I won't easily forget. I learned much more about the Kenyan culture (Luhya to be specific) and was blessed that the car that God provided for us could be used to bless the people here. (One last side note, the main reason for our involvement in the first place was that the bride and groom couldn't afford the "big hoopla" that is desired for a wedding celebration, and when they had decided to do something small and simple, others rallied around them to support them and throw them a big wedding... hence their pastor, Peter, asking us to be used in the wedding caravan procession. What an honor).
- Matt for the P3
Projects for The Lord
Well we have had quite the projects for school lately. Our two most recent ones were to write out our testimonies in Kiswahili and then share them with songs at a local church, and to lead the devotional time at school together as a couple on Monday. Our God is so incredibly faithful and we confess we are grateful they are completed. J We’d love to share about our Sunday and fun experience at the local church we visited. It was our teacher’s Pastor Petero a.k.a. Petie (as KG calls him) church and fellowship. The drive there was beautiful! It was about 20 minutes from our home and up in the tea farms. It was a small building with lots of chairs set out and a lovely podium in the front. They also had a sound system set up and a keyboard.
There were two hours of worship and introductions where each different tribe in the church shared about themselves and then shared a song or two. It is common here to share an introduction when visiting a church but this Sunday was a cultural Sunday at the church and so every tribe in attendance shared. (Including the American tribe.) J We both thought we were going to pass out about the second hour in because we were warm, and we both felt yucky….lightheaded, stomach issues and probably some nerves. KG couldn’t stand how loud the music was and the keyboard guy was pretty keyboard happy so he put music to everyone’s songs and it blasted in the small building. KG only wanted to be outside, so we were wondering how we would even share and how it would all happen, but GOD is so faithful!!! We were called up and we both shared our introductions telling who we were and a little about ourselves. (Where we are from, what tribe, where we stay, what we are doing….etc.) Kenya Grace even said “Jambo to everyone in the microphone, which the people loved! And they LOVE her name. The people at churches always applaud when we share her name. J
We were able to share “Thank you for the Blood” (Thank you PT! That song is ministering to people all over the world. They loved it!) The keyboard guy tried to put a jingle to it, but Matt kindly said (in Kiswahili) that we didn’t need any music. J Kenya Grace stayed right up in front with us and only pulled the mic cords a few times. She had fun looking at the kids through the hole in the podium as they had gathered on the floor in the aisle. J We sang another Shoreline song in Kiswahili. J It was a blessing but at one point I (Peg) looked down and KG was half naked. She had taken her dress off and had it hanging around her waist. She was just looking at everyone and rubbing her belly. :0 I gently kneeled down while holding up the purple, puffy, microphone and managed to get her arms back into the spaghetti straps and got it pulled up. I wasn’t sure how the people would feel and it seemed distracting and I also wasn’t sure how far she would go. J Ha! She made it till the end of the song but wanted up at the very end. So we are praising God that she did so well.
Matt shared his testimony beautifully while KG sat with mommy and ate her beloved Gerber puffs, saved for just the right day. J When Matt introduced me to come up and share my testimony I left KG sitting perfectly on her chair (big person chair) eating her puffs. Somehow between me getting to the mic and Matt heading towards her she managed to fall off the chair and let out a huge cry!!! Praise the Lord it was short lived especially since Matt took her outside, so again we are so thankful for that. It really was a blessing to share and I think our teacher was happy. We were able to stay for the message and KG was so good! She shared all her snacks with a little boy who in turn shared with another little boy who looked very hungry. She kept saying, “toto!” to get his attention for another puff or raisin which is so cute because child in Kiswahili is mtoto. Matt told me later that towards the end she started calling him “friend.” The children loved her and all wanted to touch her when she outside. They would run up and touch her arm and then run away. Of course she didn’t like that too much but she didn’t put up much of a fuss. I also have to add that diaper changes at churches like this one are such a show. All the kids run to the car and while I change her “poopy” diaper on the seat of the car, they all strain to see and some even try to push in. That gets a little wearing on mommy but I know they can’t help their curiosity. J Wazungu (white people) are so interesting and different. J
We are praising the Lord for such a wonderful time and for KG making it till 1:30. It was a good 3 hour service and she did so well. J We also praise God for a beautiful morning of praise and worship through song and prayer all in Kiswahili. His grace is sufficient! Thank you for all your prayers! Our god is mighty! Mungu ni mkuu!
Peg for The P3
There were two hours of worship and introductions where each different tribe in the church shared about themselves and then shared a song or two. It is common here to share an introduction when visiting a church but this Sunday was a cultural Sunday at the church and so every tribe in attendance shared. (Including the American tribe.) J We both thought we were going to pass out about the second hour in because we were warm, and we both felt yucky….lightheaded, stomach issues and probably some nerves. KG couldn’t stand how loud the music was and the keyboard guy was pretty keyboard happy so he put music to everyone’s songs and it blasted in the small building. KG only wanted to be outside, so we were wondering how we would even share and how it would all happen, but GOD is so faithful!!! We were called up and we both shared our introductions telling who we were and a little about ourselves. (Where we are from, what tribe, where we stay, what we are doing….etc.) Kenya Grace even said “Jambo to everyone in the microphone, which the people loved! And they LOVE her name. The people at churches always applaud when we share her name. J
We were able to share “Thank you for the Blood” (Thank you PT! That song is ministering to people all over the world. They loved it!) The keyboard guy tried to put a jingle to it, but Matt kindly said (in Kiswahili) that we didn’t need any music. J Kenya Grace stayed right up in front with us and only pulled the mic cords a few times. She had fun looking at the kids through the hole in the podium as they had gathered on the floor in the aisle. J We sang another Shoreline song in Kiswahili. J It was a blessing but at one point I (Peg) looked down and KG was half naked. She had taken her dress off and had it hanging around her waist. She was just looking at everyone and rubbing her belly. :0 I gently kneeled down while holding up the purple, puffy, microphone and managed to get her arms back into the spaghetti straps and got it pulled up. I wasn’t sure how the people would feel and it seemed distracting and I also wasn’t sure how far she would go. J Ha! She made it till the end of the song but wanted up at the very end. So we are praising God that she did so well.
Matt shared his testimony beautifully while KG sat with mommy and ate her beloved Gerber puffs, saved for just the right day. J When Matt introduced me to come up and share my testimony I left KG sitting perfectly on her chair (big person chair) eating her puffs. Somehow between me getting to the mic and Matt heading towards her she managed to fall off the chair and let out a huge cry!!! Praise the Lord it was short lived especially since Matt took her outside, so again we are so thankful for that. It really was a blessing to share and I think our teacher was happy. We were able to stay for the message and KG was so good! She shared all her snacks with a little boy who in turn shared with another little boy who looked very hungry. She kept saying, “toto!” to get his attention for another puff or raisin which is so cute because child in Kiswahili is mtoto. Matt told me later that towards the end she started calling him “friend.” The children loved her and all wanted to touch her when she outside. They would run up and touch her arm and then run away. Of course she didn’t like that too much but she didn’t put up much of a fuss. I also have to add that diaper changes at churches like this one are such a show. All the kids run to the car and while I change her “poopy” diaper on the seat of the car, they all strain to see and some even try to push in. That gets a little wearing on mommy but I know they can’t help their curiosity. J Wazungu (white people) are so interesting and different. J
We are praising the Lord for such a wonderful time and for KG making it till 1:30. It was a good 3 hour service and she did so well. J We also praise God for a beautiful morning of praise and worship through song and prayer all in Kiswahili. His grace is sufficient! Thank you for all your prayers! Our god is mighty! Mungu ni mkuu!
Peg for The P3
Friday, March 6, 2009
Last Week
Well, this week in Kenya was an interesting one but a little more on the challenging side with Joyce’s sister passing away and a few tensions arising in the area. God continues to be so gracious and faithful and MIGHTY and we are so thankful that today as we write, our area seems to be functioning normally with not as much fear on the streets. We are still cautioned to avoid certain areas and use wisdom when traveling because of a certain sect (gang) that is threatening to return to the streets after retreating for awhile. And a praise is that Mama Kenya Grace (that’s me) got to spend a whole day with Kenya Grace and loved every minute. Because Joyce couldn’t be with us one day, Kenya Grace even came to class with us for an hour. She repeated Kiswahili vocabulary or at least a portion or two of the words and our teacher loved that. :)
I wanted to share a little about last week. One of the conversant here at the school had invited us to her home to meet her family and enjoy some fruit and tea. On Tuesday I drove her home so we would know how to find her place and on Wednesday the P3 went to her family’s home for a lovely visit. Her family lives in a three story, small apartment building. The building is known by it’s two water tanks. They lived on the third floor and have a great view of the surrounding area. Their door is a solid, blue metal door with a large lock. As we entered their home (that reminded us of our Prefumo home in a way) we were welcomed by the Mama, Baba (father) the conversant Lilian and her brother. Their living room which was also their dinning room was so lovely and so clean. They invited us to sit down and we immediately got to use our Kiswahili. Though they speak English as well, they knew we were learning Kiswahili and wanted us to use it. At one point the Baba said to the Mama, “Don’t speak to them in English. Use Kiswahili!” So she did. Then a little while later the Baba was speaking to us in English and the Mama came in the room and went over to him and in a very Kenyan Mama way told him he better be speaking Kiswahili to us. It was really funny.
They served us bananas, fresh squeezed mango juice which Matt loves, tea, coffee, coco, and KG’s favorite mandaze! (They are like a doughnut.) She must have eaten 4! She was so happy and such a charmer. She spoke Kiswahili to them, was very content in their home, loved playing games with the brother and the fact that she was eating the mandaze up was much loved by the Mama. In fact Kenya Grace kept asking, “One more?” with her little index finger up and both the Mama and Baba said, “Let her have it.” I finally had to explain in careful words that she had been constipated and if she ate anymore it would cause her to be that way again. :0 They understood and I was so grateful but KG managed to snag one on our way out and take a bite into immediately, so we took one for the road. (That one didn’t make it in KG’s tummy but elsewhere.)
We had very sweet fellowship and they were so encouraging about us going to Kisumu. They are believers who go to the Baptist church here in our area and they recognize the need for Biblical teaching and correction of doctrine. They also had good advise about things for Kenya Grace in Kisumu. They did share at the end the need for their daughter to have enough fees to return to school in Uganda and were hoping her job at the language school would be enough. We were able to pray for them, thank God for their beautiful hospitality and ask Him to provide for their needs. It was such a nice visit and we feel so grateful to have had the opportunity to practice our Kiswahili and fellowship with a local family.
And a very Happy Birthday to Peg's dad who is 70 March 6, 2009. :) We love you!
I wanted to share a little about last week. One of the conversant here at the school had invited us to her home to meet her family and enjoy some fruit and tea. On Tuesday I drove her home so we would know how to find her place and on Wednesday the P3 went to her family’s home for a lovely visit. Her family lives in a three story, small apartment building. The building is known by it’s two water tanks. They lived on the third floor and have a great view of the surrounding area. Their door is a solid, blue metal door with a large lock. As we entered their home (that reminded us of our Prefumo home in a way) we were welcomed by the Mama, Baba (father) the conversant Lilian and her brother. Their living room which was also their dinning room was so lovely and so clean. They invited us to sit down and we immediately got to use our Kiswahili. Though they speak English as well, they knew we were learning Kiswahili and wanted us to use it. At one point the Baba said to the Mama, “Don’t speak to them in English. Use Kiswahili!” So she did. Then a little while later the Baba was speaking to us in English and the Mama came in the room and went over to him and in a very Kenyan Mama way told him he better be speaking Kiswahili to us. It was really funny.
They served us bananas, fresh squeezed mango juice which Matt loves, tea, coffee, coco, and KG’s favorite mandaze! (They are like a doughnut.) She must have eaten 4! She was so happy and such a charmer. She spoke Kiswahili to them, was very content in their home, loved playing games with the brother and the fact that she was eating the mandaze up was much loved by the Mama. In fact Kenya Grace kept asking, “One more?” with her little index finger up and both the Mama and Baba said, “Let her have it.” I finally had to explain in careful words that she had been constipated and if she ate anymore it would cause her to be that way again. :0 They understood and I was so grateful but KG managed to snag one on our way out and take a bite into immediately, so we took one for the road. (That one didn’t make it in KG’s tummy but elsewhere.)
We had very sweet fellowship and they were so encouraging about us going to Kisumu. They are believers who go to the Baptist church here in our area and they recognize the need for Biblical teaching and correction of doctrine. They also had good advise about things for Kenya Grace in Kisumu. They did share at the end the need for their daughter to have enough fees to return to school in Uganda and were hoping her job at the language school would be enough. We were able to pray for them, thank God for their beautiful hospitality and ask Him to provide for their needs. It was such a nice visit and we feel so grateful to have had the opportunity to practice our Kiswahili and fellowship with a local family.
And a very Happy Birthday to Peg's dad who is 70 March 6, 2009. :) We love you!
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The girls excited about a box!