His Work Among the Luo People Of Kenya Go ... and make disciples of all nations Matthew 28:19
October 1, 1988

Fraley's Chapel Church of Christ
c/o Jim Brown
Rt. #8 Box 29A
Corinth, Mississippi  38834

Dear friends,

     It's so good to be able to say "Greetings from Kenya" again!  We
returned home safely after several long plane flights and are finally
getting settled in our own home again.  I didn't think it was so hard
to say good-bye to all of our friends and family when we were in the
States, but after getting on the plane, I discovered just how much I
already miss all of you.  Especially because Kit is growing so fast
and doing so many new things.  I want so badly to share him with you.
    There is so much about Kenya that I had forgotten about.  These
last months I thought I had a very clear picture of life in Kenya in
my mind, until we drove into good old Kisii town.  I had forgotten
that to drive fifty yards in Kisii entails at least ten jarring halts
due to jaywalking pedestrians, animals, or speed bumps. I had
forgotten about the wall to wall humanity, and wall to wall dirt, and
about the children who run to greet us as we drive by, and the
children who congregate at our front gate in an effort to study the
odd ways of the white man.  I had forgotten that it takes at least one
hour to make a simple transaction at the bank, and the grocer s
shelves looked so bare!  And I had forgotten just how beautiful the
bird calls are as they wake me up each morning.  In short, we are
having a lot of readjusting to do.
    We returned to find that some bad and some good things had
happened in our absence.  South Nyanza has had so much rain in the
last few months that many have lost their crops and there is much
hunger among the Luo's.  We are already getting many requests for help
with food until they can get another crop planted and raised.  We get
so many requests for help for different things, and many times we are
forced to say no to their pleas.  But hunger is one thing we cannot
say no to!  So we will try as best we can to get some grain to each of
the 33 churches in South Nyanza to help them out through this diffi-
cult.  If you would like to help, send your donation to Fraley's Chapel
and mark it, "food for the Luo's".  Thank you.
   On the bright side, the church in Kenya is moving forward and
continues to show growth.  We have been very encouraged by some of the
things we have heard about since returning.  We have much work cut out
for us.  Barry plans to begin by calling a meeting of teachers and
preachers from all the churches in S. Nyanza to share ideas, goals,
and dreams for the future of the Lords work in this area.  Please keep
this meeting in your prayers.
    We heard of one incident in particular that really encouraged us,
and I would like to share it with you in hopes of uplifting your faith
a notch this week.  One day, not long ago, the man who guards the
house next to ours in Kisii town started out to journey to his home
place for a  weekend off.  He was riding in a public transportation
vehicle when the vehicle was involved in an accident.  The man was
unhurt, but afraid to go on to his home or to return to his little
guard house in Kisii because he feared that bad luck was upon him and
he did not want to carry the bad luck into either of his homes:
Traditional beliefs require that he make an animal sacrifice to
appease the gods before the bad luck would go away.  So the man
returned to Kisii and asked his wife to go to the market and purchase
a chicken for the sacrificial ceremony.  She refused, pointing out to
him that he had some Bibles in his house and if he read them, he would
know that there is no need for an animal sacrifice.  At first he was
angry with her.  Perhaps he was angry because she would not do as she
was told, or perhaps because she forced him  to face his lack of
faith.  At any rate, after some thought, he decided to call on Simeon,
the man who was guarding our house a strong Christian and worker for
our Lord.  Apparently the man was impressed by Simeon's faith, so he
asked Simeon to come and pray for him in his house.  I wonder. . . did
the man think Simeon had some special power?  Or, did he see a faith
in Simeon that he wished he had himself?  The important thing is that
the problem was solved without leaning on traditional beliefs and
superstitions.  And the impressive thing is how the power of the faith
in Christ Jesus can help us all to overcome!  We hope some day to
convert that man.  Keep us in your prayers, as we keep you in ours.
Until next month.. . Oriti (May He Guard You)!

For Christ,
 
 
 

Barry, Stacy and Kit