The first 96!!!

I have now been in Kenya for 4 days, so I call this the first 96!!! I’m not going to lie, the trip over was a killer. Two days of traveling with time changes and spending an entire day in an airport full of people you don’t know, can’t communicate with, and are looking at you strangely isn’t exactly the most fun I could have. And I have to admit, mentally I thought like the Israelites. Back and forth between trusting in God’s providence and complaining that things weren’t going according to my plans. But then conviction set in and I realized what I was doing, and now I can see how the whole time God’s plans were so much better anyways. With that being said, I arrived in Nairobi.
I was meet by two guys named Billy and David. They took me around the city, and they were so welcoming. I had the opportunity to go in the slums, and I can’t tell you how revelational that was. I want you to imagine your house filled with what’s in your garbage can right now. Now divide your house into doll size areas, and times the amount of trash built up around it, and you can also add factors of running sewage, walls and rooftops made of mud or tin, and not even having the bare necessities. It is something I cannot get my head around, but this is what 70% of the population of Nairobi lives in. I am boggled by how we let ourselves get this greedy. It is just an unfathomable thing. But what I was also taken aback by was the life that was still happening in this place. People smiling, laughing, greeting me and one another with pleasure and respect. SO often we put a price one what a good life is; we put an expectation on what success should look like and what really living means. But I just have to say that the people I met there may be on unbelievable times, things we can’t even imagine, but they are still living. They are still alive, and I for one am changed by meeting them.
Well, after Nairobi I made it to Kisumu, and to keep with the theme, it has been AMAZING!!! I am staying with a woman named Ann, and she has two children- Chris and Catius. They have been so hospitable. They regard me as family and treat me as the most honored guest!!! I have also met the people I am working with- Peter, Robert, Presca and Mary. I have only known them for a short time, but already I love them so much! They truly are incredible people with an unquenchable passion. They embody love, hope and FUN in every single aspect of who they are and what they do. They have been so kind and graciously welcoming that even though I am an obvious outsider (a white American girl) I never notice I am different. It has been a true sense of radical hospitality. My prayer is that they feel the same about me. Even in my not know what’s going on, I hope my meager attempts of kindness and authenticity shine through. Things are well though. But of course I can always use prayer. Please pray I become a fast learner. I want to know what’s proper in this culture, and I want to be able to express my gratitude and love for all they have done for me. So prayers for that please! Prayers of thanksgiving for God’s overwhelming sense of providence and preparing a place for me here and getting me here safely. Prayers for God having a kingdom that is bigger and more glorious than anything we can imagine. And then prayers for me to learn fast. That I will have the ability to learn language quickly and take on this culture in a way that overflows with love and kindness. That I will and am returning the hospitality that they are showing me.
Well, internet is a little harder to come by, but I am working on it. However with that being said, I might not get to blog every week. SO please be patient, and I will keep you updated as often as possible. Thanks. I love you guys and miss you all!!