On Easter weekend, the churches in the Mara (the place we called home for 6 years), celebrated both the resurrection of our Lord and the opening of a place of worship for the believers at Mara Rianta. This event was especially exciting to the Christians in this area since they met under a tree or at a local school for many years. This body of believers had long wanted a house of worship to call together the community without concern for the weather or school activities.
Suzie and I want to thank you for your prayers for our well-being and fruitfulness in ministry. We believe God has answered your prayers as we have gone about our lives and ministries unhampered by recent travel advisories and British Airways cancellation of flights to Kenya.
We are currently hosting four summer interns through CMF's REACH program. Each intern discussed with their parents the State Dept warnings versus the fact that life is going on quite normally here. We were glad that they all decided to continue with their summer plans. They are:
- Lea Creekmur (23) a recent pre-med graduate of Eastern Illinois University.
- Ana Moreno (20) a pre-med student at Williamette University.
- Leslie Singleton (21) a nursing student at Georgia Tech.
- Amy Morris (21) a recent nursing graduate of Indiana Wesleyan University.
Suzie just returned from a two-week orientation tour of our bush clinics with the interns. They now have a period where they will work alongside the national nurses who run the clinics. They are currently staying at our main clinic facility in Ewaso Ngiro. Please pray that this summer will provide them with valuable insight into the plans our Lord has for their lives.
Suzie and Rebekah are joining with teammates Joe Cluff, Connie & Josiah Crum, and Dori & Leslie Cazier to climb Mt Kenya next weekend. Rebekah wanted to take on the challenge as a rite of passage into her teen years. Why does Safari Suz climb the mountain? (if you said, "because it is there," sorry!) -- because of the birds, of course!! Some birds can only be found at the higher elevations so Suzie will be looking for rare birds... and hopefully giving occasional attention to her footing as well! Please pray for a safe & successful trip for all involved as they enjoy a family outing while the kids are on their summer break.
In July, around 100 people are scheduled to gather along the Kenya coast for a conference. Missionaries from various places in Africa are planning to participate in this bi-annual event. It has been some years since Kenya hosted this conference. Our main speaker is Chris DeWelt, Director of Missions, Ozark Christian College. Chris's church, College Heights Christian Church, is providing a team to lead worship and minister to our youth. Please pray that this will be a time of encouragement and 'building up' of God's servants in Africa.
For those of you who sent Lauren a card to celebrate her 10th birthday at the end of May, please accept our heartfelt thanks! Lauren received over 50 individual cards and another 50 prepared by the Power House gang at Franklin Christian Church and a high school class at David Lipscomb Campus School where our girls attend during our furloughs. Lauren was really delighted for the reminder that she has many people who care about her back in the USA.
One of my least favorite roles as a missionary is fund raising. With most of our churches involved in building programs, I did very little "asking" during our last furlough or in the past two years. Now, we need your help.
Our most immediate need involves the breakdown of our clinic vehicle. We recently received a repair bill of $3,000 including replacement of the entire rear axle & differential (housing & all). With a new clinic ambulance costing $35,000 fully equipped, we hope these repairs will keep us until furlough when we can raise the necessary funds to replace our older, well-worn clinic truck.
Secondly, we have one major project remaining to complete our clinic system in Narok District. As important as clinic buildings are, we also must provide adequate housing for the Maasai nurses who provide Christ-like care to those in need 24/7. The first house we need to construct will provide for our clinic administrator, John Sankok, and his family. John & Grace are both nurses in CMF clinics since before Suzie and I came to Kenya. Their family has grown with three children, and they are currently sandwiched into temporary housing -- half of a modest duplex with only two-bedrooms.
Please challenge your Sunday School Class, Bible Study Group, VBS, or Missions Ministry to consider making a gift toward these needs. I told Suzie I'd rather work the night shift of a Stop N' Go over furlough than ask for more funds... but she encouraged me to make these needs known.
Thank you for your prayers and partnership in ministry to the Maasai,
, Rebekah & Lauren
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