On my way home

I'm on my final leg home on Northwest Airlines flight 41 from Amsterdam to Minneapolis. I was flashing through my digital photos to trigger my memories of this trip and people from behind me came up the aisle to share their Africa experiences. Some were on safari (one group for 17 days in tents!); others had some combination of missions and safari. One Evangelical Free Church of America pastor said he brought a group of 21 from his church to experience a short term mission trip. Another man from New York City told me he was doing an AIDS documentary and was transcribing his journal. A woman from Jackson Hole told me that she had started coming to Africa with her husband 10 years ago out of her interest in nature. Over the years she has become good friends with the Vice President of Kenya and was here scouting out several safari camps as a part of new business she has begun at the request of some of her friends who would like to go to Africa with her.

On Friday, January 20th, I gave the final exam to my students. They did well; all A's and B's. I left the campus of ICM around 3:30 p.m. with Kibii and Esther Maiyo. Esther made Kathy and me beautifully embroidered shirts at my request and gave them to me (for a small price). I think Kathy will really like this.

They dropped me at Aero Kenya in Eldoret and I flew to Nairobi where I was taken by taxi to the Mayfield House, a reasonable place for missionaries to stay near Daystar University.

I was up and out early on Saturday, January 21 winging my way with Kenya Airways to an airstrip in the bush taking me to the Mara Safari Club just west of the Masai Mara for a two night stay. I chose this place because Arthur and Molly Rouner and their team would be there the January 20-22 providing an overlap of a day. It felt good to be with them again.

I quickly learned that Kristen Rouner had a 20 year friendship with the manager, Munene Ngotho. He is a deeply committed Christian man who pastors his staff as much as he manages it. He has chapel everyday at 1:00 p.m. For those employees who may be interested. I was invited to come both Saturday and Sunday. On Saturday, Kristen and Arthur Rouner each spoke in the chapel and on Sunday, I was asked to speak for 10 minutes. It was a real privilege to share a message with these folks who were serving among us each day at this five-star resort. Arthur had shared how their service modeled what Jesus taught us all regarding the importance of being a servant of others in the name of Christ.

Kristen's message focused on the Emmaus Road experience from the Gospel of Luke. She shared how Christians from any place in the world can come together and recognize our kinship in Christ because the resurrected Lord is in our midst. Just as the disciples said their hearts burned within them as the Lord opened the Scriptures about his own death and resurrection in this resurrection appearance, my heart was deeply moved with the personal stories Kristen and Arthur shared.

The chapel service is held in a small tin roofed building in the middle of a cinder block village that houses all the employees who work at the Mara Safari Club. As they come in for this 30 minute worship during their lunch break, the sound of their singing fills this area of the camp with a boisterous joyful sound. I spoke on Luke 10:1-9 about Jesus' pattern for discipleship in the Gospel of Luke. The pattern is simple:
1. Jesus did the ministry and the disciples watched.
2. The disciples did the ministry and Jesus watched.
3. The disciples did the ministry.

Luke 10 is the story of the sending of the 72 disciples to prepare the way for Jesus in every town and village where he was about to go. He sent them out in pairs and gave them four specific instructions. These were:
1. Greet them with the peace of God.
2. Stay in the home you are invited into, eat with them and don't move around from house to house.
3. Heal those who are sick.
4. Tell them the kingdom of God has come near you.

This is a pattern that is good for all of us. A word of blessing opens many doors. Getting to know someone on their home turf by eating together has us taking an interest in those things which interest them. Praying for their healing means we have a sense after listening of the needs, challenges and concerns in their lives and we are willing to ask God to do something about these issues. Only after a significant focus on the needs and interests of those people we meet can we say, "The kingdom of God has come near you!" In other words this element of sharing a simple witness comes only after we have earned the right to be heard as we used to say in Young Life.

One piece I focused on was the fact that Jesus did not send them out alone, but in pairs. I encouraged them to form prayer partnerships as they serve on the staff of the Mara Safari Club. Munene said to those gathered (About 40) that he would like to get this started.

The real test of a message is never found the moment after you speak it, but in the days afterward. For the next 24 hours I had staff who heard the talk come up to me and talk about the message. While I was no longer with the Rouner team during that time, I was never alone. I had new friends among the staff coming up to me with smiles for the remainder of my stay talking with me about this simple message. Munene and I had a meal together and he had me over to his home to watch Manchester United play Liverpool in football (soccer). I was served at each meal by John who was at the chapel service. My room was cared for by another attendee, Naphtali. I had a long conversation with Clement.

In addition to all of this, I had Ahmed Muhammad driving me on safari twice each day, first with the Rouner team and then with a couple from the Czech Republic and family from Poland. I have lots of photos of the wildlife at the base of the Gerandi Hills outside the Masai Mara Game Reserve. Here is a partial list of the animals I saw:

Lions (male, female and cubs)
Cheetah
Giraffes (male, female and calves)
Buffalo (male, female and calves)
Elephants (male, female and babies)
Rhinoceros (White Rhinos)
Hippopotami
Baboons
Warthogs
Mongoose
Topi
Thompson Gazelle
Grand Gazelle
Hyena
Impala
Secretary Birds
Ox Picker Birds
Weaver Birds
Flover Birds

This was a great way to end this trip in appreciation of God's great creation.

I spent the last 36 hours with my friends Greg and Deb Snell in Nairobi. There was another group arriving at the Snell's as I prepared to leave. This was a group of women who had come to lead several women's retreats for pastors' wives in Kenya and the Congo. Two women from the group, Judy Waschele and Marylaine Phillips, were from Colonial Church. Others were there from Wooddale Church of Eden Prairie and a church in Bakersfield, CA along with several women from ICM in Kitale and Mt. Elgon.

As the women headed off for their conference on Tuesday, January 24, Greg and I headed off for the golf course. Greg took me to the oldest course in Kenya which is in Nairobi. For the second time on this trip, Greg took some humorous pride in beating me. I hadn't realized this, but Greg said he had never beaten me when we had played in the past. On this trip, he beat me soundly both times we played. Maybe there is something to this home country advantage!

When we went to pick up the women at their conference, I bumped into Steven Maori, the Kenya Country Director for ICM and he told me that they would like to have me come back and teach again. I guess the students enjoyed our time together as much as I did. I caught my flight at 11:30 p.m. from Nairobi to Amsterdam which brings us full circle to this final leg home.

It's now 9:59 a.m. and after this 19 day journey of faith, service and discovery, I will be home in two hours. I'm looking forward to seeing Kathy, Katie, Drew and Ayden!