The potential outweighs the poverty that you see all around you.
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| District Directors Obed, Victor & Stanley |
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| Mud Church with a tin roof - a humble beginning |
On the way home from my second mission trip to Kenya in February, 2018, Kent Coates and I started to talk about what we had just experienced from the past couple of weeks. We saw some pretty phenomenal things.
The first thing we observed was Kenyan's don't have a lot but they don't need a lot. They are very happy people in the midst of the poverty you see there. But if you are an apostle you don't see the poverty you see the potential.
The second thing God showed us was that everywhere we went there were humble beginnings. Mike and Pat Heiser, who have been ministering in Kenya for fifteen years, like working in the villages and so do Kent and I. Most of the churches were built with sticks, homemade bricks, and tin roofs. I was reminded of where some of the most significant revivals started, in stables not in stadiums.
Revivals which last start in humble beginnings. Jesus was born in a stable, the Azusa street rival in California started in a horse barn, and many of the Bible schools I helped to start have been in very humble beginnings, Russia, England, and many others.
The third thing which became obvious was the hunger for God's Word. I saw one student who was writing down notes and taking a video at the same time. He didn't want to miss anything. The students were so hungry for the Word.
The last thing we saw was the Pastors of all the churches we visited wanted a school in their churches. One Pastor in a small village told us, "When we have church on Sunday a few people come, but when we have a Bible school many more come."
These observations, coupled with Mike's vision for Kenya, gave us a vision for a second step to the school: training the graduates, there are over 1,000 of them, to go further than just their diploma. Training doesn't stop with graduation, it's only the beginning.
I discussed with Mike and Pat the need to train more leaders like the Regional Directors. All the leaders are going to have to reproduce themselves several times. It's not about us, it's about Kenyan's winning Kenya. They have a culture, just like every other country I have been in. What fits in their culture? After I returned home, I began to develop a leadership manual based on the School of Tryannus, in Acts 19.
The next step for Kenya is raising up leaders from the graduates they have; helping the graduates write their Acts 29 chapter. I saw the hunger in their eyes, I heard how much they love God and want to seek Him. Matthew 6:33 comes to mind, "Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you."
Mike and Pat have asked Kent and me to come back in February/March of 2019 to help them train leaders and graduates in order to begin more Bible schools. Kenya's future is so bright they will have to wear sunglasses to look at it. Can't wait to see what God is going to do in 2019.
If you would like to be part of what God is doing in Kenya you can partner with God and us through prayer and/or financially. We now have a donate button on our blog, or you can send a donation to us at Acts 29 Ministry, P.O. Box 228, Glenwood, Iowa 51534. God is doing some awesome things in Kenya!
The first thing we observed was Kenyan's don't have a lot but they don't need a lot. They are very happy people in the midst of the poverty you see there. But if you are an apostle you don't see the poverty you see the potential.
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| We saw many Kenyan Churches like the one above. |
Revivals which last start in humble beginnings. Jesus was born in a stable, the Azusa street rival in California started in a horse barn, and many of the Bible schools I helped to start have been in very humble beginnings, Russia, England, and many others.
 |
| A Bible Study with many hungry students. Notice the one by the window. |
The third thing which became obvious was the hunger for God's Word. I saw one student who was writing down notes and taking a video at the same time. He didn't want to miss anything. The students were so hungry for the Word.
The last thing we saw was the Pastors of all the churches we visited wanted a school in their churches. One Pastor in a small village told us, "When we have church on Sunday a few people come, but when we have a Bible school many more come."
These observations, coupled with Mike's vision for Kenya, gave us a vision for a second step to the school: training the graduates, there are over 1,000 of them, to go further than just their diploma. Training doesn't stop with graduation, it's only the beginning.
I discussed with Mike and Pat the need to train more leaders like the Regional Directors. All the leaders are going to have to reproduce themselves several times. It's not about us, it's about Kenyan's winning Kenya. They have a culture, just like every other country I have been in. What fits in their culture? After I returned home, I began to develop a leadership manual based on the School of Tryannus, in Acts 19.
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| Bible School Students in Meru. This is where the school started over ten-years ago. Over 1,000 graduates from these schools |
Mike and Pat have asked Kent and me to come back in February/March of 2019 to help them train leaders and graduates in order to begin more Bible schools. Kenya's future is so bright they will have to wear sunglasses to look at it. Can't wait to see what God is going to do in 2019.
If you would like to be part of what God is doing in Kenya you can partner with God and us through prayer and/or financially. We now have a donate button on our blog, or you can send a donation to us at Acts 29 Ministry, P.O. Box 228, Glenwood, Iowa 51534. God is doing some awesome things in Kenya!
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