A Taste for travel

I would love to report the first taste of travelling was a local cusine made by a friendly stranger in the side of the street who couldn't help but allow a friendly 'mzungu' to taste what she was making BUT unfortunately my first taste of travelling was the previous nights dinner  :( The excitement, the heat, the heat and did I mention the HEAT got the better of me! You would think 2 years of living in Manguzi would have perpared me for the humidity and heat! So there I was in Legho 'hotel' where of the five rooms 1 room had a working aircon (shotgun!) 1 room a working toilet and 1 room a working shower  and 1 room a hardworking network of fleas waiting to attach 1 unsuspecting team members legs/whole body and sleeping bag! God is so good, the next morning I woke up as good as new and ready to go!

So Dar es Salam was arocky start but we were all on time for 5am 16 hour bus roller coaster ride to Naibobi!

Karibu Kenya! 

Treated like royalty in an 8 bedroom house in the Ngong hills our 2 lovely hosts welcomed us and made us feel right at home! 

After a networking meeting with members of the community who are in farming, business and ministry, who came together for a Boulder foundation networking meeting, the food team headed out to the local market with a local Kenyan lady to show us the ropes! 

I went with an idea of a meal plan (the dietician in me) haha we quickly took that as a very rough idea and had loads of fun buying things we had never seen before nevermind cooked for 16 people on a R15 per person per day budget! 

Some foods we discovered-

Scuma wiki (kale) - what a pleasent surprise Kenyans staple diet is based on one of the most nutritious greens :)

Green grams- a cross between lentils and beans and their major source of fibre and plant protien 

Chaptis- similar to a roti, best eaten fresh, crunchy with salt while shopping between live chickens and ducks, second hand clothes and hessian sacks of grains and legumes of course! 

We were so blessed with the hospitality of the Kenyan people , inviting us into their homes, being to open and interested in what we were doing. The concept of missionaries was not unknown to a normal Kenyan on the street or In a matatu often decorated with 'Jesus died for you' stickers playing christian music. 

We also had a small taste if hospital ministry where God showed me that just because you see a sick person you do not have to pray for them to get healed but rather to listen to God's heart for that person... after all he is the one who knows them and knows what they need! My expectation of the day at the hospital was to maybe cheer up a nurse and potentially use my dietetics skills to help out somewhere but what God had planned was of course SO much better! 

That day is a day I will never forget! It first time that I had the awesome privelegde of praying with someone to give their life to Jesus and accept the Holy Spirit in their heart. I honsetly was sceptial of evangelism when I first started in training but now that I see what it is really all about, it makes me come alive and so excited!

I sat next to a mom and we were simply getting to know eachother and then we read ephesians 1 out of the bible beside her bed and when we got to the end she wanted to give her life to Jesus and accept the Holy spirit into her heart. It was so unexpected but God really took us both by the hand as we prayed. It was such a humbling and awesome moment knowing that I really didn't have anything to do with it, it was not my plan or agenda and not my glory either. I was graciously allowed to be a small part of God' s plan for this young women's life and I am so grateful and enouraged because of it.

We helped out at Harvest school for the week doing work in the play ground, washing walls (or as I like to say massage love into the walls) and doing bible study, life skills and fun activities with the children and teachers. We also launched a prayer room at Joy and Anja's house which is already full of testimonies of God's presence, goodness and provision. 

After 10 days it was time for a taste of the sea air in kalifi! 

All 3 teams joined up for a week of debrief and final send off. Kalifi was full of surprises and very interesting people for example a UK doctor (who used to work in Manguzi) studying a new feed for malnourished children at the local hospital.. you can imagine how long we chatted for! A local lady showed a few of us how to make our own chapatis and another local lady cooked traditional food for us the whole week giving us all a lovely break :)  I realised all these key people were 'people of peace' just like those we met in our Luke 10 jouney and that in every situation I should aknowledge them as people of peace, serve and encourage them, not only when I am looking for them or need something.

Finally we are heading for Brasil and the rest of our South American journey! I am bursting with excitement to see how, when and where God is going to use us! 

Thank you for all your support and prayers!

Ciao Amiogos