Following the Footsteps

hello,

yesterday (saturday) was a great day for me. My cousin was graduating. he graduated with a Bachelors degree in Theology. actually, he is following my footsteps as i graduated from the same seminary 6 years ago.

i marvel at the mercies of the Lord that helped him graduate since each year about two thousand $ was needed for his education needs. actually he had to stop his studies for a while as he could have graduated last year. i thank God for His grace, enabling me to help where i could in this venture. our parents were not able but with God all things were possible. the last five years has been a marathon for him and for myself as we spent long times in prayer; hoping that he could graduate this year.

his last semester we had to live together so that the cost for boarding could be cut off. but as usual,it was hard. friends who could help were few. But God remained true and Bernard graduated yesterday. the future now is clear. we look forward to the time when he will go to graduate school and get an MTH. but for now he is going to minister to the Muslim folks, as that is the passion in his heart. Pray for him. (Proverbs 16:9 A man's mind plans his way, but the LORD directs his steps.)

in the other pictures are folks from home, his mother, and our grandmother, as well. in one picture is the sister of my friend Kennedy. Kennedy and i graduated together 6years ago and he sent his sister to study here too. she is going to Wesley seminary in Mississippi this September, God willing. otherwise enjoy the rest of the pictures.

Living to Serve

this is a story of Mr. Koech. he has been serving for over 40 years in the college i attended...he came here while he was young and now he is old. he is about 70 years of age.

he rides home in his bicycle and has little to show for the toil and hard work that he has had over the last 40 years...but he is happy to have served here.

he told me of a number of missionaries that he worked with. some of their kids are now doctors, pilots, and many other things...he played with them and cuddled them... and now they are far away...

my thoughts are that ....service in its true sense demands a lot of dedication and love for it.........this is what has made Koech to serve here for the last 40 years..... without regret.....and he is still ready to serve even more.....

I love his charisma, his attitude to work ....and his being able to read and write at his advanced age..without the aid of spectacles. he rarely goes to hospital though Koech is nearing about 70 plus years now....and he still rides his bike home.....Praise be to God.

in the other picture u see me admiring a car that was about to be dedicated to its owner. this is mitsubishi 4x4. it looks good for africa where roads are sometimes impassable.

i hope u enjoyed this moving story....otherwise have a great week.

Because He lives......
Jonah

Feed the Hungry

hello everyone,

this month has been a very busy one for me. we have been involved in visiting homes that have been affected by the post election violence. we feel that the people have not really healed from the political situation that happened here.

we pray that the government will come in and help the situation with the people who have been affected by the violence and especially thru a joint venture to address the dire food issue in this country.

we are experiencing a very high inflation rate of 31%; making food very expensive. crop failures also seem imminent in this country and that will likely mean more food price increases. please pray for continued rain so that the food prices of crop foods can be contained.

here are some of the pictures taken of recent corn distribution to needy orphans and caretakers earlier this month. if you can help feed the people, please let me know. otherwise we value your prayers for this ministry and give all praise to God for what He has done and continues to do. May the Lord bless and keep you and your loved ones.


Update: July 16, 2008
Pastor Jonah reports that regular rains have returned to the Kericho area...Praise God as this will help to contain the already escalating food costs in the country. Thank you for your prayers for the nation of Kenya.

Women of Faith

hello everyone,

this week in my calender of prayer i've been thinking about great women. ..who have almost single handedly focussed on God and went to the mission fields far from home to minister to unknown people.

the two i've been thinking about most are divinah and debbie...the two gals are in the pictures posted here. in the first picture is debbie, a nurse and divinah who was a college mate of mine. these women both went out to minister to people in southern sudan near juba. they have been there for close to a year now.

the way they went there was a surprise..since our church did not have any links to the southern sudanese church...though our cultures are almost the same....(pastoralist). please continue to pray for them as they minister to the medical and spiritual needs of these people.....i am told they are working with an organisation there.... but your prayers are really needed for their safety and for the strength, diligence and and charisma to be able to work in the harsh conditions there.

the other picture is the one of the first licensed woman minister here in kenya; a lady in our church denomination. it was an exciting moment when this took place a few weeks ago and of course there was a celebration for her licensing a week ago.

what great strides these ladies are making for the Kingdom of God. we look forward to having more women taking charge of our political and spiritual needs in the future.....even here in Africa.....



enjoy the pics...
God bless,

Jonah

Comment: As I was uploading Pastor Jonah's newest blog entry about these great Kenyan women of faith on the mission field, the Holy Spirit brought to mind the great gospel song of grace and outreach, "Throw out the Life Line". This song was written by Edwin Ufford in the late 1880s. Here is a video of Mahalia Jackson (late great gospel songstress)singing this wonderful hymn. May it bless you richly and encourage you to pray for the safety and support required for those on the mission fields, near and far. Matthew 9:37 King James Version (KJV) Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few.
- Sis PJ

The Cat That Did

hello everyone,

this a great (short) story......a story of a mother cat who saved her young ones from a burning house. i promised to blog this story when i blogged about Simba the dog some time ago.

the kittens were about 3 weeks old when they were rescued from a burning house by their mother.....the kittens sustained some injuries in the fire.

in the pic below you can see that one of them has two ears that do not respond normally......i was trying to get good focus on those ears in my camera...
i guess when these ones grow up they will appreciate their mother for saving their lives.....

I am grateful to the one who lives in us,

have a great day!

God bless
Jonah

Back from Rwanda

hello, i hope you are doing great! i have had a busy 10 days traveling and attending a conference. i was able to attend to a conference in kigali, rwanda for about 6 days. the sixth day actually was a visit to the city and the memorial center, where the remains of the genocide has been put aside for historical purposes. the visit to this site is scary, for those who are light hearted. this was my 4th visit to this place and so i was a bit hardened [prepared].

the greatest question that most folks need to ask ourselves is where were we in 1994? that [question] came back and forth in the conference. Brian Mclaren encouraged us to ask ourselves what we can do now in rebuilding the lost glory of neighborliness in our society...since what happens in your backyard, it ripples far and wide and the society needs to come to terms with that.

the conference was awesome. we had so many people from diverse backgrounds, some of them highly educated. sometimes u could feel out of place in front of all the phd's and masters degrees, but we were all serving our creator in one way or another. i face this reality when i presented a case for the post elections violence in kenya and what the church did. it was a frightening moment to answer for the whole country .....but i was glad to get God's inspiration to be able to present the case that was agreed to by the folks from home and there in Rwanda. The painful truth was that the church was divided, and we had little or no training on conflict management. Thank God we could pray.

The hardest part of the journey was travelling as we took the whole 2 days to arrive home. it was so tiring, i had to rest for a day or two so that i could continue with my normal duties again.
thanks alot for your prayers......

Because He lives
Jonah
p.s. enjoy the pics. there was a report about the american indians as well.....it was so nice.

Some needs met

Dear Saints,

A quick word to thank you all for prayers and for recent contributions for food. We praise our heavenly Father for his goodness.

Brother Thomas was able to buy 2800 Kenyan shillings worth of corn to distribute amongst 8 households of orphans. It cost him 300 Kenyan shillings to transport it from Kericho to the village. Pastor Jonah will also be able to put the $50. contribution from brother, Dan in USA to good use....The children and the overseers thank you so much!!!

Brother Thomas also reported that a family of 7 requires the following bedding: two mattresses, several sets of sheets and some warmer blankets. Brother Thomas has no email so if you can help, please let Pastor Jonah know.

We seek your prayers on this and other orphan and Internally Displaced Person needs as well.

Love and blessings. Because He lives!!
Sis PJ

Cooking with Jiko Stoves

Editor's Note: This blog entry was originally posted on April 12, 2008 and is being reposted to ensure the widest readership. If you would like to support this Jiko project or any other project described in this blog site (see sidebar), Pastor Jonah would love to hear from you at kericho120@yahoo.com God bless, sister Penny Joy

hello saints,

for the last few days i have met this woman who makes cooking pots or Jiko as we call it here (jiko is swahili for "stove"). this whole item is used for cooking instead of three stones, that most people use. i was really tempted to have this available in every home and am delighted, soon i will start with our own family. i so much wish and pray that this can spread to all the people in the community and my village. if you feel led to give toward this project, please contact me at the email on the sidebar.

Project Cost for making, delivering and installing one Jiko Stove:
Jiko (pot) Ksh.600
Cement 850
Bricks (20) = 300
Transport= 1000
Labor = 1000
Total: 3750 Kenyan Shillings or $61.00 US
Right now in Kenya the US dollar is worth about 58-60 shillings per dollar.

Most forests in Africa have been depleted ....and now the rain has become scarce, as people rely heavily on firewood from the forest. This is about 95% of the people living here in Kenya....as electricity reaches less than 10% of the population. (even me - am not connected..lol).

here in Kenya, only 1 million people have electricity attached to their homes,out of 34 million people. please pray that this firewood saving jiko can reach many homes and save our forest ....it uses less firewood. the experts talk about ...80% saving...on firewood. the jiko stove not only helps to save our depleting forests but is also more healthy for the women who do the cooking (and the children sitting with them) as they do not have to breathe in all the smoke.

have a great day
because He lives
Jonah

Editor's Note: On a pressing matter, I want to advise the readers that due to the inflation caused by political discord, the food prices for average Kenyans have now now tripled. many of the caretaker families and their caretakers are in desperate situations. We ask you to pray and to do what you can to feed even one child as this is good in the eyes of God. May God touch your hearts and bless you so you may be a blessing.

Reconciliation & Forgiveness

[Photo caption: Dr. Celestine, front, red shirt]

hello,

this past week has been really great...we have been bonding...with our friends from other communities and building peace from within. this was made possible through a meeting that over 16 denominations & and other opinion leaders were invited to...to think together about the future of our country. i was among those who were invited.

after the meeting, we felt like we were renewed afresh and that FORGIVENESS and RECONCILIATION was a must before the next step was made. we were taught that, forgiveness in itself was not understanding nor tolerating, but it was some kind of imaginative thought of letting go...of what happened and hoping for the best in the future thru God's help.

our main facilitator was Dr. Celestine

Musekura, who is the President of Africa leadership and reconciliation Ministries (ALARM). He is a graduate from Dallas Seminary ..but most of all....he is a 'graduate' of 'forgiveness' as he lost his own father to their [tribe's] rival communities....back in 1997,

after the genocide of 1994 in Rwanda. he told us he had forgiven those who killed his father, and that was fresh thoughts for us. at the end of the week, we felt that we needed to greet each other, and start the long way of foregiveness again....indeed it was a touching week.

Dr. Celestine has been tranversing the country teaching about forgiveness. i hope we 'catch' this and grab it [the vision] for ourselves. as we need this ....right now after the post-election violence. i felt really relieved......when i saw him fly out of Kisumu Airport to Nairobi on the way to another country. we need these kind of men ....the Most at now...

have a great day

God Bless

Peace, Jonah

What If?

Hello friends,

This is a quick note to introduce you to a wonderful praise singer from North Carolina, by the name of Kathy Duke. I do not know Ms. Duke personally but came across her amazing CD on CDBaby about a year ago. I was very moved by her song "What if" and wanted to share it with you but it never seemed to be the appropriate time. Recently, as I thought about the post-election violence in Kenya and the hardships suffered by the people in small villages in and around Kericho, this song came to mind and the timing seems to be right to share it with you now. As you listen to the words of this anointed song, I pray you would be moved to ask yourself "What If?", in relation to the orphan children of Kericho Village.

About 8 of the households with orphans, are headed by the orphans without any adult caretaker to help them. The other 30+ households are headed by women and couples. Since December 2007, these families have all been hit very hard by the soaring food costs in Kenya and inflation in general. The overseers of the missions have also been hard pressed to provide counselling and support for daily needs though they have a great amount of faith and pray that God's people will understand the need and be moved by the spirit of God to do his will....that of caring for the widows and the orphans.

It is heartbreaking to know about the suffering in Kenya when you know that the children are wondering who will help them and if God really cares for them? My heart is also heavy for the overseers and the enormous burden they face as they assist the orphans and their families with limited resources. God promises us that the "righteous will never be forsaken, nor his seed begging for bread". In North America, where we have opportunity to work and earn our daily bread, this verse is easier to comprehend than it is to starving people across the world,when their hands, though willing, seldom find adequate work to pay for their daily bread.

Think of the impact that your gift can make for the Kingdom of God and what your practical assistance will mean to an orphan, a widow, a poor family and the overseers. All of them need to know that God's people around the world love them. Your gift can communicate the love, grace and mercy of our Heavenly Father to the children and their families and pastors. You really can make a difference in the life of one person, one child, one family, one household. May God bless and guide you as you pray and as you listen to "What If". May the wonderful voice of Kathy Duke, fill you will the love and mercy of God.

Because He lives,
Sis PJ