Sunday at Ugunja

Things have been very busy here over the last few weeks and as a result I have not written as much as I have wanted about how we are getting on. Let me now go back to our time in Kenya.

I was really looking forward to worshipping with brother George and the brethren at Ugunja. While I had been in that area in June, I had not been able to see many of the brethren.

The congregation there meets at 7.00 am. George told us the reason for this was that the brethren did not want to wait to worship, they wanted to worship God as soon as they could on Sunday morning.

It took us a hour to drive to the church, maybe due to my slow driving, or may be due to the rough roads. But it meant that we were a bit later than we had planned.

This did not seem to be a problem, however. While they were waiting, the brethren were singing songs and praying to the Lord. When we had got there, very quickly they organised themselves and the worship service started.

Even though they only had one song book, the song service went very well - everyone singing from memory. Delmer was then invited to teach us. We were taught very well from James chapter one. The brethren were very interested in the lesson, showing great interest.

Mike was then asked to teach a lesson on the Lord's Supper before officiating over it. I then was asked to teach on the collection. So the brethren got 3 lessons that day - and the looked very happy with it.

Before we left, the brethren wanted to give us some refreshments. So someone went and got some sodas for us. They are some very hospitable people there.

Afterwards brother George invited us to his house where his wife Jacqueline had made some lunch for us. We were able to get to talk to each other more and Jacqueline and Anne became fast friends.

Kisumu, Kenya

We have been out of internet access for the last couple of days and there are a lot of things I want to share will you all. Lord willing, I will, but first let me tell you about today.

For the last few days we have been in the Ugunja area of Western Kenya with Delmer Lee and Mike Criswell. We have been working with Brother George Odhiambo. We have had a very good visit and achieved a lot.

We left this morning and headed to the city of Kisumu, the third largest city in Kenya. We were going to meet Mark Masese, a man whom I had heard about from Brother Paul Nichols. It seems that Mark had contacted David Risener through his web site. David had passed on this contact to Bro. Paul and Paul had been studying with Mark through the internet and sending him tracks through the mail.

We were very pleased to meet Paul and his friend and co-worker, Inocent, today. I had booked rooms at the wonderfully named Kisumu Beach Resort. It is a rather tired looking place that once would have been very nice, but Lake Vitoria had got clogged with water weed and the industrial area had encroach the area.

We get settled in here and then set off to meet Mark at the bus station. George Odhiambo had come with us from Ugunja and was a great help. 

We had a wonderful study with Mark and Inocent. From the studies Mark had with Bro. Paul, he knew about faithful worship and understood the concept of worshipping in spirit and truth (John 4:24). We then started studying baptism. It is clear that Mark had been studying this topic too. And it was not too long before he said he needed to be baptised.

Bro. Goeorge baptised him in Lake Victoria, having first cleared a way though the water weeds. We were so pleased to witness the new birth of a new brother in Christ.  Mark has told us he will go home and teach all the other members of the church he has been leading - teaching them the truth of the gospel.

Please pray for brother Mark and this brand new work in the Western province of  Kenya.