You are currently browsing the daily archive for January 28th, 2008.
I don’t like to make my posts too terribly long. I don’t like to read really long posts on blogs so I try to keep them short for you. This post goes along with the previous post about Chris in Eldoret.
Another coworker and friend, Alida, lives and works outside of Eldoret in Plateau. Alida left Plateau for Christmas break Dec. 22 and was planning to be gone only about 10 days or so and here it is Jan. 23 and she flew back to Eldoret this morning. She is glad to be ‘home.’
She is an RN and does community health. Her work plans are changing as a lot of the area around her has been turned upside down. Her village is OK though. However, due to the current situation, she has been asked to help plan medical camps if it is determined they are needed and can be effectively carried out in the region.
Pray for people to love and let go of prejudices and biases based on tribe.
Pray for mental and spiritual healing for everyone who has seen and experienced so much.
Pray that Alida’s bicycle helmet will arrive shortly so that she will be safer as she is able to get out and experience one of her favorite stress-relievers – bicycling.
If you are interested in contacting Alida or I you can get details here of one way to do that. Click on KENYA at the bottom of that page.
I have a coworker named Chris. He works in relief up in the Mt. Elgon region of Western Kenya, near Uganda. He isn’t in our office much usually but when he is he uses the office next to mine. He is such a wonderful man and I thank God for him. He is a man of God and many refer to him as Pastor as he speaks the truth and gives sermons often (sometimes in church, sometimes not).
Chris lived in India for six years. He refers to himself as the “father of all foreigners” even though he is only in his 30’s I’m sure. When Chris was young his family hosted a Peace Corps (pronounced with the ‘ps’ here) and the young man stayed in Chris’s room. Chris thanks God for that opportunity to broaden his knowledge of the world and has taken it upon himself to reach out to all foreigners. Now his children are as comfortable with wazungu (‘white people’) as he was as a child.
Chris is a joy and I had the fortune of spending time with his wife and two children while he was stuck upcountry during the post-election violence. Terry is a gem, too.
Chris flew to Eldoret early Tuesday morning to see where the relief work stood that we were already doing with IDPs (internally displaced people) in the Mt. Elgon region as well as what was needed and what we could do with all the new IDPs in the Eldoret region. You may recognize the town of Eldoret as it has been in the news a lot as a place where there has been a lot of violence. I was there in November and it wasn’t all sunshine and roses then, it’s worse now, much, much worse.
Chris is working with other local organizations both here and in Eldoret to make our efforts go further and reach those who are most in need. Here in Nairobi they are reaching out to provide food and some hygiene items to over 1000 households from the Kibera slum in conjunction with other organizations.
Please pray for Chris as he has a heart of gold, that he may not be hardened by what he sees. Pray for the safety of his family while he is coming and going from Nairobi to Eldoret. Pray for Chris’s safety as we surveys what CRWRC can do to best help his fellow Kenyans. Pray that Kenyans will rise up to help one another.
Please pray that this ‘father of all foreigners’ will help those around him learn to love and forgive, as our heavenly father has done for us.
I have been perusing blogs a lot the last two days. I’m looking for two main things.
-
to gain more perspective on the situation in Kenya
-
to catch up with family and friends
This is an interesting post I found via one on Kenya.
The point that keeps coming back to me (OK, so I only read the post about 15 minutes ago, but it is good.) is the following:
It turns out our minds are full of racist stereotypes, even among the most saintly people.
I couldn’t sleep a couple of nights ago and kept thinking and I realized that I sometimes think in blogs. It was so strange. I was thinking in blog format. I finally had to get up and write down my blog thoughts so that I could write them for you, because I knew that you wouldn’t want to miss them, so sit back and enjoy?
My church in MN is kicking off Mission Emphasis Week on Sunday Feb. 3, 2008. Worship starts at 10:30 and should last about 90 minutes for this special service. There will be some great speakers, including me!
While I will not be there in person, we are going to do a live skype interview during worship and it should be a lot of fun. After worship there is a light lunch with the director of CRWRC-US and you are welcome to partake.
If you have questions or need directions to Calvary Christian Reformed Church in Edina, MN please contact the church. There is a link to them on the blogroll under ‘my minni church’ or you can call them at (952) 831-6264 or you can find directions here.
The following Sunday there will be a table set up with things from Kenya and some photos and video I have sent, I’m not sure if that will be set up on the 3rd as well or not. I hope you can make it and want to hear all about it if you do.
