His Work Among the Luo People Of Kenya Go ... and make disciples of all nations Matthew 28:19
September 1, 1992

Fraley's Chapel Church of Christ
c/o  Jeff  Young
Rt. #2 Box 421
Corinth,  Mississippi 38834

Dear fellow-workers for Him.

Hello from the good ole USA!   By the time you get this newsletter. we will be walking
on home soil, Lord willing.  And we'll soon be bringing hearty greetings your way, and
lots of other exciting-things to share with you.  August has been a month of sharing
good-byes with Christians in South Nyanza.  Everyone wanted us to visit one more time
before taking our report to the brethren in the United States.  That would be near
impossible to do under normal circumstances what with 50 churches spread over '?000
square miles.  But we were also hindered by the need to get moved to our house in
Rongo, which will put us right in the heart of Luo land when we return here after our
visit to you.  Everything has been moved from Kisii town (by the way. our postal
address will be the same), and stored in the house in Rongo.  Suitcases have been
packed.  We attended the big South Nyanza yearly meeting for the church.  In Nairobi,
exit and reentry permits were obtained while I (Stacy) made a quick trip to the Abedere
Mountains and spoke at our annual Mission Ladies Retreat. and then we were off.

On September 6th at 3:J0 am (yep, that's the middle of the night our plane took off
for Amsterdam, Holland.  We are so blessed.  September is one of the most beautiful
months of the year to visit the Netherlands and we have been doubly blessed to be
passing through at this time, for 1992 is the year of the World Horticulture Exhibition
and we were able to visit there while in Holland.  This exhibition is organized only
once every 10 years.  What better way to be reminded of the wonder of God, than to see
acre upon acre of the gift of growth with which He has so richly blessed us?  We may
bore you with all the pictures we took when we see you.  On September 8th, we continued
our journey from Holland to Toronto, Canada, and then quickly on to Ontario, Canada
where we were met by Barry's parents.

There is lots of adjusting for us to do.  It's been four years since Barry has worn a
tie or I've worn pantyhose.  And we're afraid Kit will embarrass us when you see him
eating with his fingers or hear him speaking broken English.  It took me three months
during our last furlough to get up enough courage to ask what a  couch potato  was.

 I've not yet pinpointed the new phrases for this furlough!  What will we enjoy?  Barry
 is undoubtedly enjoying wide, smooth roads, that are wonderfully uncluttered.  Where do
 you keep all the cows, goats, sheep, chickens and pedestrians anyway?  I am enjoying
 peaches.  Almost forgot what they taste like after four years.  And I'm enjoying going
 to the grocery and just looking at all the big, clean vegetables.  They almost don't
 look real here.  Kit is enjoying his grandparents.  I'm afraid to take him to Walmart
 for fear I won't be able to control him. Ha!  What will we miss?  Singing in Luo,
 sleeping in a mud house, eating kuon and sukuma wiki (corn meal mush and greens), not
 having to worry about how we look or what we wear, but most of all we'll miss our Luo
 brothers and sisters in Christ as we have missed you.  Missionaries live a double life .
 We are Americans but we are not actually a part of your culture (I have yet to hear a
 speech given by President Bush and he's already running for his second term of
 office.), and we live in Kenya but we are not entirely a part of that culture either.
 This feeling is so strong during a furlough visit.  If we seem strange to you, please
 forgive us and bear with us.  We're learning our native culture all over again and Kit
 is learning it for the first time.  There is an advantage to the ambivalence of being a
 missionary.  We are forced to depend on Him.  That's a wonderful feeling and an
 immeasurable blessing.

 We have several furlough goals that we want to share with you so you can be praying
 with us.  What is it we need to do and to get from this visit in the States?

       1.   We need to get reacquainted with you.  We need to share in your work for Him
            for awhile.  And we want to know and pray for Your struggles.

       2.   We need to share our work and struggles with you so that you can know how to
            pray for us.

       3.   We need to be fed.  For four years we have been feeding others.  Our own
            spirits need revived so that we begin another four years of feeding others.
            The greatest blessing of furlough will be to be a student and a listener for
            awhile, while others refill us with His words.

       4.   We want to strengthen the flame that you carry in your hearts for the Luo
            people, so that we both can continue together in this work. and His word can
            fill Luo hearts.

 So. . . we'll be seeing you soon and we are praying for you in the meantime.  God
  Bless.
 

     Love in Him,
 
 

    Barry, Stacy, and Kit