Rain, Rain and more Rain

Flooded doorway into the learning center

Roadway to learning center and what we call a paved road

     This past week has been ridiculous with all the rain!  It does not matter where I go everything reminds me of the constant patter of rain.  In the morning I am typically trying to decide if I should wear my gum boots for the day because of the previous evening's rain.  (Gum boots are the Kenyan name for rain boots . . . my best guess as to why they are called gum boots is due to the sticky, gummy consistency of the mud in these parts).    Every day for the past week I have trudged through gobs of black mud or puddles of water on every trail that I walk.  The bottom of every pair of jeans or slacks that I have are covered in dark mud.  When I arrive to my classroom, there is typically water all over the floor because, not only did it rain all night, but I also have a nice leak in my roof (as do most of the rooms at the learning center).  The rain usually begins again in the late evening so depending on when I head back to the boy's place, I could be walking back in the rain.  Once there, i can't play basketball because the concrete court is covered in rain and is a hazard to play on.  My bedroom is threatening to begin leaking as I watch dark patches appear on the wall every night as the rain resumes.  And then, as it begins to darken, these four winged bugs appear and fly all over the countryside, sometimes reminding me of what the plague of locust must have looked like.  And later that evening there is a chorus of frogs that are melodious and diverse in their song and cacophonous in their sound and as always combined with that familiar patter of rain on the roof.  The onslaught of rain is so continuous during this long rainy season that I feel like every night I should go to sleep listening to Toto's "Africa".

More flooded, muddy roads

     This diatribe about the rain and mud in Africa is not meant to be a complaint about my plight in Kenya.  Instead, I want to see it as another way that God is fulfilling His love and faithfulness to all nations.  Up to this point in time in my stay at MITS, the Nairobi area has been pretty dry.  But the long rains have brought out the beauty and the greenery (and my longing for pavement and drainage systems) of the Kamulu area.  But more importantly it brings out the life giving ability of the land.  The crops and farms are beginning to flourish with small green heads of plants breaking the soil as God's beautiful rain encourages them to grow.  Smiles are abundant everywhere you look, despite the muddy, impassable roads and lakes of water covering the trails, because people know the abundant harvest is coming.  God is bringing life to this dry and weary land and helping to ease the suffering of many.

More flooded, muddy roads

     This life giving love of God is evident in other ways in this amazing country.  Recently, we just had an election that shut down the country for a week because of the fear of violence.  Five years ago the election ended in rampant fraud, political abuse and horrific violence.  So you can imagine that as this election rolled around many Kenyans were in fear for their lives and the political process.  Thankfully, because of much prayer and a people who want to follow the will of God, the election went off without any major problems and little violence.  God is bringing His love and promises to a country that wants His Word.  He is changing the lives of many Kenyans because they are turning their face to Him and seeking His will for their lives.  God is bringing up tender green shoots of faithfulness in their lives as they soak up His life giving water (His Word) in the dry and thirsty patches of their life.  God is moving in this country and moving in this ministry as we work in these street kids' lives.

     The Psalmist writes these words to describe how our hearts should be:

"As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.  When can I go and meet with God?"              (Psalm 42:1-2).

Flooded entryway into the learning center

Do you pant after God?  Do you desire him to bring rain into your life?  Is God raising up faithfulness in your life?  Is He giving you new opportunities to serve, to love and to bring life to your Christian walk?  Maybe you feel dry and weary . . . I can promise you  that you have a God who desires to unite His story with your story and bring abundant life and harvest in your work!  Pray this week for God's rain (reign) in your life as you seek for Him to abundantly water those dry patches in your life!

What my boots look like after a day in the mud