PRUMC 2009 Kenya Team

“Because of His kindness you have been saved through trusting Christ … It is God himself who has made us what we are and given us new lives from Christ Jesus; and long ages ago He planned that we should spend these lives in helping others.”  (Ephesians 2:8-10, LB)

Stacy’s Post

Today is a very exciting day for us all! We will be PRUMC’s first mission team to go and do God’s work in Kenya. Our team is so blessed to have such a wonderful church supporting us!…..I have received so many kind notes, calls and emails form members of our church giving support for our team.

Well, all the packing and planning is almost complete….I think I have packed enough to stay a month! We will have plenty of time to really get to know each other later today as we travel for more than 16 hours on the airplane to Kenya. I am so excited about meeting our new friends in Kenya (especially the children) and hope that we will be a blessing to the people we meet.

Caroline’s Post

I feel so fortunate to have the opportunity to travel to Kenya and represent our church on this mission trip.  Many months of preparation have gone into this trip, and I cannot believe it is merely days away!  I have been praying that God will open our hearts and the hearts of those we will minister to.  While we hope to physically help these people improve their lives, our team has accepted that the most important focus of our trip should be to build relationships with the people of Nakuru.  I am thankful to all who have supported our endeavor in various ways from gifts of kindness to prayers – it is amazing to think of how many people will be praying for us back in Atlanta.  Just 4 more days til the adventure begins!

Erica’s Post

Hello, everyone-

I, too, feel blessed and lucky to have the opportunity to travel to Kenya. I am so thankful to our wonderful church for all of the support, prayers and love that we have received.  

I am always excited to travel to a new place. How wonderful to be able to do so in such a meaningful way! I am hopeful that we will build new relationships with the people of Nakuru that will last well into the future.

We look forward to sharing our journey with those who are staying here at home! Thank you for continuing to keep us in your thoughts!

Glenn’s Post

First of all, I want to say that I feel extremely blessed to be able to have this wonderful opportunity to travel to the continent of Africa and Kenya in particular.  I’ve always been fascinated with people and cultures that are different from ours, and can’t wait to set foot in Nairobi.  I also realize how lucky I am to be in a position where I can interact with people half a world away.  I think the most interesting thing in preparing for this trip so far is seeing the reaction and the expression on peoples face when I tell them I am going to Kenya for two weeks.  Most people have a look of amazement, some have a look of genuine interest, while others have a look of “why would you ever want to go there” on their faces.  I also find it interesting that the majority of people (including my mother and father) can’t point out where Kenya is on a map of Africa even though they have most certainly heard of Kenya.  Don’t feel ashamed, I didn’t know exactly where it was until I started researching and learning more about this trip. 

As March 5th approaches, I get more and more anxious about the trip.  I think this is a good thing though.  I’ve always tried to reach outside my comfort zone, because in my opinion, this is the only way we grow as people.  All in all, I’m extremely excitedfor this opportunity to grow, to share our gifts and talents with the people of Kenya, and for the Kenyan people to share their gifts and talents with us.

Fun Facts 2/16

Fun & Interesting Facts about Kenya
*The official name of Kenyais the ‘Republic of Kenya’.

*Kenya has been named after Mount Kenya, a very significant landmark in the country.

*English and Kiswahili are the official languages of Kenya. Apart from that, a number of indigenous languages are spoken here.

*Majority of the people in Kenya are Protestants, followed by Roman Catholics, indigenous believers and Muslims.

*The ethnic groups in Kenya include Kikuyu, Luhya, Luo, Kalenjin, Kamba Kisii, Meru and other Africans and non-Africans.

KiKuyu Women in Traditional Dress

 

 

*The currency of Kenya is Kenyan shilling.

*The capital of Kenya is Nairobi.

 

Nairobi Skyline

*Kenya gained independence from the United Kingdom in December 1963.

 

*Kenya is the regional hub for trade and finance in East Africa.

*Kenyan railway system comprises of 2,085 km of one meter gauge single track.

*Kenya’s main port is situated at Mombasa, an island that boasts of being home to the deepest natural harbor in Africa.

*Some of the oldest known palaeontological records of the history of mankind on earth have been found in Kenya.

*Mount Kenya is the largest mountain in Kenya and the second highest mountain in Africa.

*The main cities of Kenya include Nairobi (the capital), Mombassa, Kisumu, Eldorte and Nakuru.

*The Great Rift Valley of Kenya was formed twenty million years ago, by splitting of the earth’s crust.

Hello Kenya Team from Alice and Mary Beth

Hi Team Members,

We received this prayer today from Julie Gohring staff with PRUMC and wanted to share it with everyone.

“We at PRUMC are proud to have you represent us in Africa please know that you are on our daily prayer list and are sent with much love and blessings as you go about your day.  Thank you for doing such good work!

We are so looking forward to this trip and getting to know everyone.

Cheers!   Mary Beth and Alice

Chip’s Post

I thank God and PRUMC for this chance to represent our faith community in Kenya. I worked in a mission hospital in Liberia during the spring of 71 and it was one of the most meaningful experiences of my life. I have always wanted to go back, and give of my talents to the African community. We are expected to bond with and give of ourselves to our Kenyan community. I cannot wait to go.

Chip

Scott’s Message

Greetings to all the team members on the 2009 Kenya PRUMC team!

I want to first thank each one of you for answering the call that God has given you to be part of the first PRUMC mission team to Kenya.  Although we will be venturing into a new environment together, we will have the benefit of being accompanied by the Holy Spirit and each other. 

I am so excited about the team that is now forming.  It is made up of a diverse mix of experiences, ages, skill sets, creative ideas and gifts which will come in handy as we plan and serve in Kenya.  I have been fortunate to have met individually with each of you prior to our first team meeting  and believe God has pulled a phenomenal group of 18 to serve His calling next March.

My overall “ask” as we prepare for our trip has two parts.  First, I ask that we consider building relationships as our #1 priority for the trip: relationships with Rev. Josam, his congregation, the people in Nakuru, the people of Kenya, and withone another.  While we will probably build great things with our hands, I hope that we will consider “relationship building” to be our highest calling.  Second, I ask that each of us approach this trip with a perspective of “flexibility”.  We will certainly do our fair share of preparation and planning before the trip, but once we board the plane we should be mentally prepared to adapt to whatever the airlines, the country, the weather, the construction foreman and Rev. Josam ask from us each day.  The only thing that is certain is that we will experience change and will need to adjust to the circumstances that we encounter.

Finally, I want to reserve my spot at Ken’s game table in the evenings in Nakuru.  I’ll bring the saltines, Ken!

Jenny’s Post

Hi, everyone — Review the Ephesians scripture on page 1: 

“Because of His kindness you have been saved through trusting Christ … It is God himself who has made us what we are and given us new lives from Christ Jesus; and long ages ago He planned that we should spend these lives in helping others.”  (Ephesians 2:8-10, LB)

How amazing is it that we are saved and that our life’s mission is to help others?  More, how amazing is it that we can?!  I feel so blessed to be able to visit our brothers and sisters in Kenya, and pray that what we do there will truly help the village of Nakuru.  My prayer for all of us is that we clearly see God’s will and share in the joy of fulfilling it.  I am thankful to launch our endeavor together, and look forward to all we have ahead of us.

Blessings to you — Jenny

Ken’s Post 12-14

Hello PRUMC Kenya mission team!  Let me start off by saying that I think we have a great, diverse, group of people that will be used to make a difference in lives very soon.  My hope is that we not only make a difference in the lives we touch, help & meet in Kenya but that we also make a difference in each other’s lives and the lives we meet after Kenya.  I hope that each of us experience something that we never forget, something that we carry with us the rest of our lives, something that makes us better people and in turn makes the people we witness to, and meet every day, enjoy life a little better and makes the world a little richer. 

I am excited about getting to know each of you and I’m excited about the different personalities, backgrounds & perspectives that we will all bring to Kenya.  From the last meeting we had you all seem like a great group of people and as long as Chat gets to see a giraffe I think we will all enjoy this experience! 

On a last note:  I want to make sure we have plenty of cards for games at night, I’m bringing a travel scrabble (so Stacy make sure I’m sitting by someone that likes to play scrabble for the plane ride), and I plan to bring plenty of pistachios for our card games at night!  Oh yeah…I think I’m going to bring sardines and canned smoked oysters for those occassions that I want to indulge in the finer foods!!  If someone could bring the saltines that would be awesome…I’ll share my sardines and oysters!