The Good News

Wow...this has been an experience of a lifetime! This could very well be my last post. Today Nathan and I are heading to a Mausai village out by Narok to work in Ewaso Ngiro Clinic for the next three weeks. I am unaware of what the internet situation will be like...it will probably be very limited at most. I want summarize my journey thus far and what I have learned from my experiences.

What I know about Kenya: this country is very poor, the standards of living here are incomparable to anything I have witnessed in the US, the diseases I have treated are rare or nonexistent in the US, the resources are limited, the country is covered by garbage, Nairobi is overpopulated, sewage runs through the streets of the slums. What I have also witnessed are: beautiful countryside’s filled with tea-fields, wildlife in its very own habitat, children who smile no matter what their day brings even if it is death, a country that welcomes anyone and everyone, families who spend a day’s worth of wages to buy you a coke, worship and praise to God that is not confined to a time limit. I have fallen in love with a country that is, to put it mildly, very different from the USA.

I have no doubt that this journey is all part of God's plan to prepare me for something more. My faith in God has grown tremendously throughout this process. Some may question or blame God for the conditions that Kenya faces. But this is not God's plan. The struggles faced by Kenya's culture and society are dilemmas created by man. Kenya is able to face these daily struggles with an open heart thanks to God! I have never witnessed such faith, worship, and love for God as I have since my time in Kenya. I want to love God like that! I found myself beginning to question why such reliance on God is not found in the US. We are blessed abundantly and have so much to praise God for in the US...why don't we?

Looking at his disciples, he said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. Blessed are you when men hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their fathers treated the prophets. But woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort. Woe to you who are well fed now, for you will go hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep. Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for that is how their fathers treated the false prophets.” Luke 6:20-26

I have determined that the answer to my question is that we don't "need" God in the US. Hear me out. Yes, of course I believe that everyone "needs" Jesus in their life, but how do we depend on our Lord daily? We know where our food is coming from tomorrow, we know where we are sleeping tonight, we have the opportunity to pursue a higher education, when we are sick we seek medical assistance. I have found that each of my days in the US is centered around my schedule...what is next on my list. This is a common theme in the US. List and plans are not bad things, but in what way was my life dependent upon God? I love God so very much, but did I ever really rely on Him? In the US we are taught to rely on no one, but ourselves...what a flawed concept! We should be taught to rely on no one, but God!! In Kenya reliance upon God is a must to get through the day. The Kenyan's depend on God to provide their next meal, to provide them with good health, safety, and security. What if we lived that way in the US!?! What if we left everything throughout our day in God's hands...how different would your life be perceived? Since my journey began a little over a month ago, I made a personal goal to not use my planner while I was in Kenya. I wanted to be free of my plans so that I could live each day out in God's plan. I have found a freedom in relying on God's strength! In the US I find myself only looking to God for the big decisions in life...the daily ones I can take care of myself...I don't need any help...no thank you. It is the daily reliance upon God that strengthens our faith! I don't want to live a single day on this Earth without giving it fully to God!! I want Him to make every decision in my life so that I can live more in His image! I want to look more and more like Jesus every time I look in the mirror! Kenya has ignited a new passion for my love of Jesus! I am excited to see how this passion carries over to my life in the US. I do admit, I fear this desire leaving me when I return to the states...it is so easy to fall into what you surround yourself with. I can only pray that I continue to surrender all of my days to Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior! I challenge others to live this way as well...live as the Kenyans do! Surrender your worries, your plans, your everyday to God! I hope and pray that God uses my experiences in Kenya to touch others. I wish everyone was as fortunate as I have been in getting to experience such an amazing society!

I leave you with a question to ponder. Who is it you feel the most remorseful for? The Kenyans for what they must endure on this Earth, or the Americans for what they will have to endure for eternity? I love the USA, but I wonder with all the resources we have at our disposal, what a tremendous difference we could make in this world if we would just let God use us!?! God is doing amazing things in the churches of the US, let us continue to grow in Jesus and spread the good news!

"Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned." Mark 16:15-16