Wedding in the Village, December 2008

the unique climate that is found in kericho and it environs make so many come back home (from abroad) for ceremonies like weddings, etc.




above and below are some photos of the tea fields and hills around kericho, kenya, east africa.



it is quite beautiful.

recently, some people came from as far as japan to grace the occasion of a wedding. the bridegroom works in the united states and the bride was residing in Kenya.

many people applauded the parents of the two for taking care of the their son and daughter until they were ready to get married. i was not left out of this wedding as i am a distant relative to the bridegroom. i was happy to have been invited to join this happy occasion. in fact, i loved it!

enjoy the rest of the slideshow of wedding photos.

it has been a busy year in 2008! i pray you have a wonderful and blessed 2009!

God bless,
Pastor Jonah

Village Kids have Fun Time in 2008!

hello friends,

kids are always left out of the Christmas schedules here in Kenya, but this year we had great plans to see that the kids played and enjoyed themselves! for some of them it was their first time to play in the 'so called swimming pool.




i loved watching them! it was lots of fun and i also enjoyed seeing them dance and get to know new friends.



enjoy these pictures as they are a true picture of what many kids around the world do. we are grateful to one of the hotels in the city (where i live) which brought these items and charged a small fee for its use. we are also grateful to God for helping this to happen.



Jonah

Prayer Request

Kids start back to school in January and will need funds for school fees as well as for school books at the higher grade levels. Check the link below for the school books needed by the secondary four class 4 and 5 and pray the needs can be met. To help you calculate the cost of items, one (1) Kenyan Shilling is roughly equal to 60 cents. The exchange rate has fluctuated wildly in the last year and so we expect this rate to fluctuate up and down a few cents over the foreseeable future.

http://www.kenyaliteraturebureau.com/Scripts/prodList.asp?idcategory=36&curPage=2&sortField=sortorder" target=

Christmas in the Village 2008 - Kericho, Kenya, East Africa

hello,

i hope u had a wonderful Christmas. most people spent their Christmas with family; others in the church, still others visiting new places, etc.

here in Kenya, most people spent their time with family, and the next thing when you spend your time like that, what comes to mind often is the food that is most needed as families converge. it is always a challenge for village folks to afford this and we had to chip in and help a few families deal with this need.

we bought each family sugar, rice, wheat flour, oil , salt, etc. this was a complete Christmas party for a family of ten kids. i was so excited to see them happy and enjoying the fellowship and the food together. in most of these pictures in the slideshow, u will see the packaging [of the food] going on. we had to buy everything in bulk so that the prices could come down. we had a great Christmas and i look forward to 'jumping' into the next year on january 1st, 2009.



let's keep praying for ISRAEL to stop this war on terror. i just wish there was a way they get the hamas militants without injuring the kids and the innocent.

God Bless
Jonah

Boys are now Men

hello,

it was pomp and colour, after the boys who had been separated from their mothers to stay with their fathers for a month came out from seclusion. in seclusion (during Kalenjin initiation and circumcision rites) the boys learned life skills that will steer them during their adult lives.

it was a great joy to see them looking rested, happy, and really, very handsome. we (church leaders) have been praying with them and it is my prayer that what they learn during their seclusion will be enough for to help them move ahead in the teen years.

the boys are now 'Morans' and are expected to guard the community (this was how things were many years ago anyway). we taught them God's Word and were happy to see them ready to accept Christ a few days before they came out of seclusion.

have a great day and enjoy the pics.

Kalenjin Circumcision & Initiation

hello,

the month of December is always like our summer here in Kericho, Kenya, as the rains stop for a few weeks.the month of December has also become a time for a long time now, that my people group,(the Kalenjin) were involved in circumcision of the boys. I'm told that in some other countries,circumcision is done when the baby boys are 8 days old or so. in our communities, we circumcise when the boys are between 10-12 years and they are also given lots [of teaching] of life lessons.



as a church we have used the ritual time of circumcision to "meet the people where they are. in our nearby communities we have over 100 boys and we hope we can reach all of them for Christ before they graduate after 30 days of seclusion in the bush.
u can read more about circumcision in the following. i was reading through some of them myself and these articles give the pros and cons concerning circumcision. just know that true circumcision is that of the HEART.

enjoy reading
http://www.kalenjin.net/newsite/content/view/678/234/
http://www.cirp.org/pages/cultural/glass2/
http://www.kenyarunners.com/pages/167371/index.htm


God bless.
Jonah
Note: For some reason the first link does not appear to be working at the moment. I'm leaving it up as it was working when the post was uploaded and hopefully will become active again. The other links appear to be working fine.

JESUS CALLS THE CHILDREN (& Pastor Jonah Calls the Children's Writers)

hello friends,

it is always a great joy to see young ones coming to the saving knowledge of Christ through Vacation Bible school (VBS). this week alone we were able to reach about 100 boys and gals in the village through VBS.

in VBS we have games, songs, colouring, making puzzles and memorizing scriptures. this year our theme was God's LOVE

we divide the students into three levels:
-beginners - those in kindergarten
-lower - involves those in lower grades
-upper - those in upper grades.

we do this every vacation (when the term end's and the kids are free, like this month of December ). what a joy to see so many of them committing to serving God even in these last days.

on another matter, i will need your prayers and volunteerism (am sorry i can't pay u). i am greatly involved in writing and editing children's books. if u are gifted in writing simple children's stories, let me know (kericho120@yahoo.com). u will not need to travel over to africa (though u are most welcome). the internet is a great help.

Thinking Globally

hello friends,

it such a great joy to think globally.

in the photo slide show u will see me posing with some of the gifts that were given to our church through our bishop. i hope u enjoy the pics.



please note that wherever you live, your country is in this picture. we will surely continue to pray for each country to enjoy the peace that He (God) alone can give. it will be our joy to do so.

God Bless
Jonah

Jiko Jiko Jiko Jiko Jiko

hello friends,

please pray. we are getting nearer to our tenth jiko. though we are halfway now as five jikos are now being used. what a joy this is.

i pray that we might continue to trust in Him the more. thanks a lot for those who have contributed to this and those who will in the near future.

Notes: In the slideshow above you will see the built up area of mud and bricks which is the new stove and counter area for cooking. You will also see a woman I call "Mama Jiko" holding the "jiko" pot. Mama Jiko makes these pots. These are mini ovens and placed over the holes in the built up stove so that food can be cooked more efficiently, with less smoke and with less wood.

Ordination

hello friends,

what a joy it is to qualify for ordination in your church. it is the same for these friends and their families, who after serving faithfully in the church have been able to be ordained. most of them have served more than 20 -30yrs in church leadership and it was a great challenge for them to accept this call to serve even more.

it was also a great day for me to see friends who have mentored me over the years getting to the top and i was really excited. some of them have given me opportunities to serve with them in their churches. what a joy this was.

i was also privileged to introduce myself to new friends that i made that day. it was truly a great day for me.

enjoy the pictures



Jonah

1000 Kenyan Leaders - Part Three

hello friends,

this is the 3rd report of the recent leadership conference held in kericho.

the graduation night was very crowded both with people and with the program. those who attended were issued with certificates of attendance. there were farewell ceremonies for the conference goers as well as our teachers. we sang songs and received the final blessings in terms of the word of God.

our final Word was clear.

"Move with haste......and reach Samaria and Judea and to the ends of the world..."

i believe this is the same message i have for you.

look out, reach out to your friends...pray with them. the Lord is coming soon. have a great day and enjoy the pictures.



Pastor Jonah