Because of the Kenyan elections on Monday, we decided it
would be smart to fly out a week early and avoid any possible post-election
violence. So here is a recap of the trip. I will divide it into three sections just
in case you want to pick and choose which sections you read. The first section
will be about what we did, then how God worked in my heart, and finally I’ll
write about some random stuff.
The whole goal of our trip was to bless and encourage Martin
and his ministry in whatever way possible, and to also be obedient to whatever
else we felt God calling us to do. We spent a week building a water tank for an
orphan school in the village which was kinda fun. It got to be pretty brutal at
times with the heat and nowhere to go for shade, but it was so great to see the
kids’ excitement every day when we showed up. We also helped out at a
sports/kids camp for a week. This was pretty unorganized, but it ended up working
out well because the kids were super content and didn’t really seem to care
what we did. We ended up playing games, doing some exercise drills, and also
reading some Bible stories. Jay, Chris, and I would joke that we had to watch
out for becoming prideful because all the kids treated us like celebritie.
Lastly, we spent a lot of time going around and visiting Martin’s house
churches in Kenya and Uganda. This part of the trip was definitely my favorite
as I love being able to (or at least trying to) encourage others. So we got to
spend a lot of time sharing meals with the churches, praying over them, and
speaking verses and words of encouragement into their lives. I always felt like
I was more encouraged than they were when I left because I was so amazed by
their faith and their contentment in the midst of their struggles and poverty.
We also got to treat Martin to a night at a lodge in Sipi Falls in Uganda which
was super refreshing for all of us!
I felt like God did a lot of work in my heart this past
month, but I would say the two main things he reminded me of were his grace and
my dependency on him. There were a lot of struggles for me during the trip,
most of which were very small things, but God really used them to show me (in a
loving way) what a schmuck I can be at times. And through this, he really
brought me to the realization that I never have and never will do anything to earn my salvation, but that it is only by
his grace that I’m saved. As I started to realize this, I was just overwhelmed
with joy and peace because I couldn’t understand why in the heck God would ever
choose me to follow him. I struggle with so many things and fail in so many
areas, yet he chose to show his grace and mercy to me! It just rocks my mind.
Some of my struggles on the trip included not having control over most
situations like being able to run, eat, or even go to the bathroom whenever I wanted,
feeling unsafe at times, and just feeling helpless to make any difference in
the world after seeing so much poverty and pain. God used this to remind me
again of my complete dependency and need for him every single day. I felt like
I was also reminded of John 15:5 which really simplifies following Christ in
saying that all we need to do is remain in Christ and will we bear fruit for
his kingdom. That’s definitely encouraging!
Some quick random notes:
- -The village we stayed at had an elevation of 6,200
feet which made running pretty brutal this past month. We even spent two days
at a village in Uganda which was at just over 10,000 feet. Both of my runs
there were close to the most miserable of my life.
- -We had two layovers in Dubai, one on the way out
and one on the way back. Both times we tried to go up the world’s tallest
building, Burj Khalifa, but both times we failed. We had reservations at the bar
on the 122nd floor at midnight on Monday, but sadly we did not meet
the dress code so we were turned away. Even though it was disappointing, it was
so fun to walk around Dubai. It’s definitely the most unique city I’ve ever
been to.
- -I realized I am intensely claustrophobic. Taxi
rides in Kenya consist of packing as many people as possible into a small 15
passenger van. The most we ever had was 24 at one point. We also had a 3 hour
ride with 22 people. During that ride I was crunched into the back and my legs
fell asleep within the first 2 minutes. It was also extremely hot and it smelled,
so it was only by God’s grace that I didn’t have a panic attack.
- -After a month of not having any sugar in my food,
I had a pretty intense sugar craving when I got back to the States. So when I got
to the airport in New York last night my dinner consisted of a chocolate chip
cookie, a sugar cookie, a snickers bar, and a chocolate covered brownie. I’m so
thankful that God gave us taste buds!
