Dear Friends, thanks again for your prayers. Neil’s plane touched down safely in Nairobi about 1:30 p.m. this afternoon Central Standard USA time (9:30 p.m. Eastern African Time in Nairobi). The SIM card in Neil’s phone from his last Kenya trip in October had about a minute of call time left which allowed Neil to let me know he had collected his luggage, made it through customs, and his friends Cosmas and Francis were waiting outside the airport. Neil will spend the night with Cosmas.
Neil sounded very tired, which is normal after 2 days of travel. He said it was an uneventful trip -- meaning it went smoothly. Praise God for ushering Neil through all the connections and checks for COVID, visa, passport, etc. He brought along 100 pounds in checked luggage plus about 30 pounds in his carryon bag containing books & supplies for the Medleys, and clothing and gifts for our friends in the churches out toward Lake Victoria in the Kissi District.
The map on this page is of the proposed Standard Guage Railway Network, which gives an idea of where Mombasa and the Kisii District are located. Mombasa is Kenya's major seaport on the Indian Ocean, and the Kisii District is all the way across Kenya to the west just south of Kisumu. Tomorrow morning Francis Owuor will accompany Neil as his interpreter as they drive Cosmas' car east toward the major seaport of Mombasa. They will minister in a church in a small village about 50 miles from Mombasa where it is very hot. The land is sandy much like Florida, because they are about 30 miles from the Indian Ocean. Neil hasn't been to the ocean, staying focused on ministry. This will be his 3rd trip to that village. Maybe they will take time one day to just drive close enough to see the ocean.
Neil is looking forward to visiting the village near the east coast. He loves developing relationships that are ongoing from year to year. Neil has been encouraged this year to minister in confidence for miracles, healing, and deliverance. We are also believing the Holy Spirit will be filling Neil with God’s grace and wisdom for teaching in the churches. God loves his church as the corporate body of Christ, but through the Holy Spirit, God ministers to each of us individually. Isn’t that great? So we are praying for those specially packaged teachings to be given to each precious soul in ways that they will be able to tuck them away in their hearts for later use throughout their lives as needed.
After a week near the Indian Ocean, Francis and Neil will cross Kenya heading west to the Kisii District which is a very long day of difficult driving. The Rift Valley road is said to be one of the most dangerous stretches of highway in the world. Neil says I worry too much, but I am hoping they are safer on the roads this year. Please pray that the rough roads will not cause mechanical breakdowns like they experienced last year and that they be kept safe from all the heavy traffic on the Rift Valley stretch. Francis now has a driver's license, so he can drive the car. In past years Francis' friend's night blindness added a little more excitement as he would steer into the oncoming traffic at night when blinded by the headlights. God is well able to keep them safe. Neil needs prayer also, because his doctor discovered arthritis in Neil’s shoulder that has been causing the pain that keeps Neil awake at night. You can also pray for me that I will sleep well as I lay my worries into God's hands for safe keeping.
Thank you again for your prayers. Your prayers are very effective. We appreciate them more than you may ever know. We can picture each of you tugging on Jesus’ hand to get His attention to the needs of the folks over in Kenya Neil is visiting. It’s a good thing that Jesus has such great big hands so there is always room for each of us to hold whenever we need Him close “at hand”.
Ruth Thielke
Home Correspondent