Maasai Madness!

Reflections three months latter.

2005-10-28T18:38:00.000-04:00

Zach:

During my time in Olepolos I didn't think I would come back a different person. It didn’t seem like my values or priorities were shifting. But somehow, through all of those bush adventures, I came out changed. Maybe it was the bees that lived with me for a month, maybe it love that I saw in my host families. Or maybe it was Christ working in my life.

As I sit here three months later in the plush convenience of North America I can’t deny that my perspective on life has been broadened, and it has led me to narrow my priorities. Olepolos is an unusual classroom where Christ taught me a great deal on life. There are certain lessons which have followed me to America. The simple life, and especially the simple faith that I saw in the Maasai believers lingers with me. And subconsciously that simplicity has become a part of my life. It has caused the line between "needs" and "wants" to loose a great deal of it’s materialistic bias. I now see relationships as more important that tasks.

But most of all, I cannot shake the vision statement: “Every life transformed by Jesus Christ in Olepolos and beyond.” For three months I worked towards that goal in Olepolos. And now, three months latter, I wake up every day to find that I’m still working towards that goal, just in different ways and in a different place.

headin' out...

2005-07-12T04:48:00.000-04:00

going.... going.... gone.

Team Letter #14

2005-07-12T03:39:00.000-04:00

Recieving the blessings of our Maasai church
at a sending service for us.

ANGELA:
Hello to all! Our time here in Africa is coming to an end. Last week we all enjoyed evangelizing in the name of Jesus and witnessed people come to know the Lord. That was a great time, because we all worked together as a team in unity to share the word of the Lord. And after doing our part in sharing we watched as the Holy Spirit worked among us in revealing himself to the people. On our last Sunday at church the community threw a party for us . They gave us gifts and blessed our Maasai names. We are now enjoying the few days we have to rest and visit families, to have one more cup of shai and say our good-bye's. Olepolos is full of great memories for the four of us. We are leaving our home to go home. So when we leave that time will be full of bitter-sweetness. We all feel that the time God had us here for, is what he prepared us for, so whether leaving will be easy or hard, it is time. May God Have All The Glory!

SAM:
Well, this week has been full of surprises. We thought we'd be winding down. And, in reality, our assigned ministry here is done. But winding down would suggest that we slowed to a stop. Not true for us. This last week of evangelism, we found our niche as a team. We speed up for the final leg, we ended strong. No more awkward stares at eachother, no more waiting for someone else to talk, no more wishing we were off on our own. We finally learnedhow to compliment eachother, and how to really work as a team. It was fun, and it was powerfull!
As a team, we're all about the weary becoming strong - even when its a bush dog. This week we successfully turned a shy, scrawny little bush dog into our guard dog, and a good one at that. We named him D.O.G. (pronounced 'deOOOHgie') in honor of a hippy we met in PA.
So we've started saying our goodbyes. It's hard to believe we'll be leaving this place, this church, these people, this lifestyle. We're certainly not the same people we were when we dropped out of a taxi in the middle of the bush, and we are so indebted to Olepolos. We give God the glory for all the ways we've seen him move - in us, through us, and around us. Olepolos is a part of us now, and we're a part of them. And we are sure to take their vision, "every life transformed by Christ in Olepolos and beyond", with us to America in all we do. Meisisi Yesu!

PRAISES:
~ We are all healthy with no problems in living on our own.
~ God has given us much needed rest spiritually, physically and mentally.
~ God provided us with a friendly pet dog who we feed and enjoy playing with.

PRAYERS:
~ For every life transformed by Christ, in Olepolos & beyond
~ Good closure, meaningful goodbyes, safe travels
~ For God to prepare us to readjust to American culture

Team Letter #13

2005-07-05T03:50:00.000-04:00

Who needs a watch dog when you can have a guard zebra?

Zachary:
“Never Know”- It should be the team slogan. We never know what a day will bring, what people are saying, or sometimes, where we are going. But that’s ok…or at least I think so. Life happens and we scramble to cover for our unpreparedness.
We never know what kind of effect we will leave behind or what people think of us. Kenyans always answer in the positive, even if the answer is clearly negative.
“How was my sermon?” I ask.
“Very good”
Even if no one could follow my topic they would never tell me. And we never know what effects our message will have on the people we talk to. We evangelize and people accept Christ. But how will it change them? We will never know.
But all the same we keep doing and saying. And on a rare occasion you we will see something grow from a seed that we planted. For instance there is one family I visit to play with the kids. For an hour we will chase each other around. I’ll tickle them and they will steal my hat. It’s a lot of fun for me. But later I hear the result of my visit. The father has begun to tickle and chase his kids the way I did. I never knew I was being watched, or that people would follow my example and that was ok.
I was told “It’s not what you say, but who you are.” So maybe it is also true to say: You touch people not so much in the ways you intend to, but in the ways you never knew. We will leave in a week and a half and I doubt anyone will remember what we preached on. But I think they will remember us because we cared, and because they were touched by the love of Christ that they saw in us.

RuthAnn:
Hey everyone! Time is ticking away here in Kenya. Soon we will have to say goodbye to our friend's here, which means soon we will get to see our loved ones back home. For me it will be a bitter-sweet time. I am looking forward to coming home!
Things are going pretty good with the team. Last Wednesday, we moved to our final place. For the last two and a half weeks we are camping out in tents. We are also doing some of our own cooking(-=. The community is taking good care of us during this time. Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of this week, we have been invited to different houses for supper(-=.
Thursday, Angela got sick to the stomach. She has recovered, and is doing fine, and gradually getting her appetite back. We are all glad that she got over that. Praise the Lord!
Friday, two of us were going to go evangelising, but God knew what was best for us. David Shunkur ended up telling us just to stay back and rest up. He could tell we needed a day off. I was very greatful for that. I used that time to do some much needed laundry, and I also rested some.
Saturday, I (Ang was still a little sick) went to visit Turanda and Melanoi Sadera in their different boarding schools. Mama Sadera, her daughter Senkenoi, and their neighbor also went. We had fun being altogether.
Sunday was a relaxing day. After church we went to pastor Joseph's house (very long walk) for lunch. We played some UNO(-=.
Monday we all had a good, encouraging day of evangelising (for the most part). Three people came to know the Lord! It was cool to see the team work together during this time. Praise the Lord! God bless---Nenkai

Praises:
-Ang is over her stomach sickness
-Evangelism was encouraging on Monday
-We will soon get to see our loved ones(-=

Pray requests:
-Good health
-A sense of closure as we finish
-Perserverance

Team Letter #12

2005-06-28T04:07:00.000-04:00

Maasai backpack.

SAM:
Is it possible that we have less than three weeks left?!! Where has all the time gone?As I think about how we're only one day away from moving out of our last host home, I am shocked at how long 4 months once seemed. Its beginning to annoy me that time never asks my permission to pass. And that 'reality' doesn't come with "pause", "slow", or"rewind" buttons. This past week has hinted to us that our time here is winding down. Ever since coming back from Nairobi to get our passports renewed, it's seemed like we're in our final stretch. Lately we've been doing a lot of evangelism around the area, in Olepolos, Incoben (where Zac & I currently live), and beyond. It's been great to spend our days just meeting new people, all kinds of people, and talking with them about God. I'm still amazed at the interest Kenyans take in their guests, and I've been wondering if this kind of evangelism could ever be as effective and enjoyable in the states. This past Sunday, I preached at the Olepolos Community Church again. I taught on "O ti Auluo" -the part of the church's vision statement that refers to the world beyond Olepolos. It's strange that I'd be teaching them about this - people like David and Stanley Shunkur have taught me how sweet it really is to be spent for the spread of the gospel. So anyways, this week we move into tents, and we see if we can survive Maasailand on our own.

ANGELA:
This week has been a mixture of many things. We spent some time in Nairobi at the beginning of the week to renew our visa's for the small amount of time we'll be here. We also had the chance to catch up on what's playing in the theaters. Upon returning to Olepolos we went right into evangilising in Incoben, which is right across the river from Olepolos. My group had Ruth Ann and David Shunker (chairmen of Olepolos). God had arranged an appointment with us and the Chief, who apparently is never around when people evangilize in that area. We had several hours with him and in the end resulted in him wanting to plant a church with our help! God is definitly moving! I also was given the privillage to speak at a woman's seminar. I gave my testimony and spoke about prayer. The Holy Spirit was moving, because it went right in with everything else. The rest of the week God gave us more oppurtunities to minister to one another and those around us. Time here is quickly slipping by, but not without God moving, working and revealing himself to us and those we meet along the road. Our Father is so Faithful!

PRAISES:
~ We renewed our visa's with no problems
~ We are all healthy and being used by God
~ We are seeing and hearing of the fruit from our ministry here!

PRAYERS:
~ A strong team unity
~ Our adjustments to a new tent lifestyle
~ For God's Spirit to move in Olepolos & beyond

P.S.: We have no clue what happened to our pictures! Sorry, we hope all of you got to see them all before they just up and dissappeared for no reason whatsoever!

Team Letter #11

2005-06-18T04:40:00.000-04:00

Chillin' at Lake Victoria.

RuthAnn:
Dear family and friends,
How have all ya'll been doing? I hope good. Things are going good here in Kenya. Our days here are quickly winding down. We've been so busy traveling here and there. Here's an overview of our past week.
On Sunday, the team had a suprise Birthday party for me(-=. That was fun and relaxing. I appreciated it very much, and will never forget it. We went down to the river and had a picnic which consisted of PBJ sandwiches, cookies, chocolate, and pineapple quencher (a drink kind of like cool-aide). After lunch we went over to Jer and Jen Janzen's house and watched a movie(-=.
On Monday, we (the team and two other's) took our "adventerous" road trip (using public transportation(-=) to the YWAM base on Lake Victoria. Most of us were not quite sure what to expect from this trip. I was thinking it could be pretty busy, but it ended up to be a pretty relaxing week. That was nice, because the previous week was pretty stressful on some of us.
On Tuesday and Wednesday, we helped out at a local Christian school. Tuesday we held chapel for the children. On Wednesday we spent the morning helping out in different areas of need. They were short one cook, so Zack and Angela helped out in the kitchen. The school feeds the children twice a day. Sam and I did some tutoring, and we also helped a little in the garden.
On Thursday they took us on a fun, long boat ride on the lake (you could lable us as fried egg's(-=). It was beautiful. We got to see a lot of birds and some big monitor lizard's. That evening we went to a resort for supper. After we got back from that, we spent some time around a campfire praising God together---God bless

Zachary:
Rest; we all needed it and God seemed to know it. This past week at Lake Victoria was unbelievably refreshing. A week of toilets with lids, speaking English, and complete independence couldn’t have been better. But it wasn’t entirely a vacation, we stayed in tents, there were bugs, and we worked in a school for aids orphans several times. But it was really good for us.
Cultural stress is one of those things that you understand best right after you leave a culture. Being on a YWAM base was like being in a tiny North American bubble. It was a bubble that allowed us to see what was wearing us down, and gave us a chance to evaluate life.
Highlights from the week included scaring fish poachers with our motor boat, exploring islands filled with exotic birds, and playing guitar on the public bus. This next week we travel to Nairobi to renew our visa’s .

Prayers:
-The guys have a stressful home situation. Pray that we will have understanding.
-Continued health and safety.
-Continued energy and good spirits.

Praises:
-We had a relaxing week at the Lake.
-Our health is good.
-Our team is strong in unity

News Flash! Bugs party in Garbers bed.

2005-06-18T04:19:00.000-04:00

Lake Victoria- Mr. and Mrs. Bed Bug were convicted early Wensday of ulawfully occupying the bed of Zachary Garber. According to reports, they invited their friends into the bed and proceeded to party through the night. Sometime during the early morning hours some of the guests became rowdy and held a "bite Zachary" contest. By 7am Garber contacted authorities who evicted the Bugs and their guests. No charges were pressed but Garber promised to squish any of the Bugs who returned.

Masai Mara photos

2005-06-11T07:00:00.000-04:00

Here's some more photos we took at the Mara! And yes, the landrover made it out, all by itself. Enjoy!

Click on the thumbnail to view the larger picture.

Team Letter #10

2005-06-11T04:46:00.000-04:00

Rule #1: Never turn your back to the bush
(photo was NOT altered. Honestly!)

ANGELA:
Hello everyone! What a week in the Maasai Mara! It was filled with living in a traditional Maasai Manyatta, wild animals, the Lord's Holy Spirit moving as we had small church services together and just pure fellowship with Christians and non-Christians whom God was working in. The Manyatta is a small village with over 30 traditional houses in a large circle with a fencing around the houses made of branches and thorns. The cows would spend their mornings and nights in the center. Every morning and sometimes evening we would go out to see the animals. We saw; wildebeest, impala, Thompson's Gazelle, hyenas's, giraffe, zebra, more animals and of course the lions. The most awesome time for me was when we went to a very small and new church. From the beginning during worship you could feel the presence of the Lord there. Zach preached on loving the Lord with all your mind, heart and soul, and loving your neighbors. The Holy Spirit was definitely moving. After the service there was such unity. Several days later the same brothers in Christ came to our Manyatta to accompany us in a small service under a tree with the families of the Manyatta. Sam spoke that time. And in the end you could feel the same result with the Lord's presence in our midst. God moved in powerful ways. People came to know the Lord and we made new brother's and sister's in Christ. What an awesome time! In the beginning we were treated like tourists, because that's a high tourist area. In the end we left as fellow Maasai, whom God used to impact the people there forever. It's not how you begin, it's how you end!

SAM:
Sometimes I wonder if I make Africa sound too glorious when I write home. Actually, last weekend, I hated Africa. Honestly, I really hated it. I had gotten really sick. And I didn't feel like spending one more night in a Maasai bed, or ever, EVER, eating another Maasai meal! But new days bring new things (Lam 3:22-23), and by Tuesday I was loving this place again.
So we never know what each week will bring here. Last week was spent evangelizing in the Iltirben area, to self-labeled unbelievers who were actually Catholics (huh?), and to some who had never heard the gospel (what an awesome priveledge!). By the end of that we were drained & exhausted, but what an awesome way to be spent. This past brought the Maasai Mara, one of the most beautiful gamelands in the world. And it was wild!! At night we heard strange animals, and at day we walked over hippo tracks. Animals - you name it, we saw it! Elephants, lions... warthogs! Our biggest challenge this past week: convince people that we weren't just tourists. But Zachary & I were able to share a message at two different churches, and the time we shared with them was amazing! I've never seen so much genuine, spirit-influenced energy. And we were so blessed by them - I've never witnessed people so generous. They sacrificed their own home & beds for us, and they were constantly slaughtering animals for us to eat, and handing us all kinds of gifts. So this past week has been an unforgettable one. Man... the stories we have to tell!

PRAISES:
~ Zac is over what he had, & Sam is over what he had
~ Beautiful trip, we stayed safe among beasts
~ We are still making new friends, new connections

PRAYERS:
~ Health! Lately, most of us have struggled (currently, Ruth Ann's been having bad heartburn)
~ The church in Mara, to keep pushing forward & expanding
~ Evangelism & discipling at Lake Victoria next week

Team Letter #9

2005-05-31T04:20:00.000-04:00

Angela pauses for a quick photo with Singotei

Zachary
This week was flat out evangelism everyday. On good days we had translators who let us know what the conversations were about. On bad days they would talk with an individual in Maasai and then look at us and say “go ahead.” Those were awkward days at best, and I can’t say I look forward to them much.
I am finding that there are mixed perceptions of what a YES team is. We often get introduced as “evangelists from America.” It really surprised people when Sam said he had never preached. Perhaps our skills are slowly becoming apparent. We have never preached, evangelized door to door for a day, taught Sunday school, and we don’t know how to teach east African history. But we can all ride a bike and drive a car, useless though respected skills.
Two things happened this week that make me wonder if we are being indoctrinated by the Maasai culture. First, the girls invited us for supper and never mentioned a time. “African time” was assumed. Secondly, I was talking to the team and unknowingly pointed with my lips instead of my finger. All this said, don’t be surprised if we come back and accidentally do strange things like patting children on their heads while saying “soup-uh.” It’s a strange world we live in, and stranger yet the things we do in it.

RuthAnn
Supa oleng to my dear friends and family! I hope things are going well with all ya'll. Wow! Our team has already been here in Kenya for a little over two months now. Time is moving pretty fast. This coming month is really going to fly by, because there are evangelism trips planned for each week.
Last week on Thursday and Friday the team did some local door to door evangelism. We had translators help us. We do a lot of encouraging during these times, through reading Scriptures, sharing a word, and through praying.
Last Friday, our second host family(the Serone's) had the guy's over for supper. That was fun. I always enjoy when the whole team can be together. That evening for supper we had mashed potatoes, beef and carrots mixed, cooked cabbage, chapaties, avocadoes, and oranges. Wow! that was a fantastic meal.(-=
On Saturday, Ang and I went to Ololulunga with some of our first host family(Milanoi and Singotei Sedera). We went to see their brother Turanda, who is attending a boarding school. We ate lunch as soon as we got to town. We then finished our journey to the school, and had a fun time hanging out with Turanda and some of his friends. I went picture crazy that day, it was great.
Sunday, Sam gave a good sermon. Our Mama Serone translated for him. Ang got some good pictures of him in action. Later, after lunch, Ang and I did our laundry. That evening, we went to out first host family's house to hang out for a little while. That was enjoyable.
Yesterday(Monday), the team went to Ilterben to do some door to door evangelism. We will go there on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday also. Please keep us in your prayers. This week the team also moves to our third and last host family's, so please pray that the transaction will go smoothly. May God bless all of ya'll. Till next time---Ruth Ann(Nenkai)

Praises:
-It has rained again
-God is helping us with our evangelism
-Thank God for all of you, our supporters

Prayer requests:
-Safety as we travel to the Maasai Mara and Lake Victoria in coming weeks.
-Zachary has been chronically tired
-Softening of the hearts we evangelize

News Flash! Gangsters raid guys home.

2005-05-31T04:09:00.000-04:00

Maasai Land- During a recent evangelism trip the home of Zachary Garber and Samuel Parks, both from America was burglarized. While the contents of their room were largely untouched, a secret cache of cookies hidden beneath their bed was raided by the gangsters. The cookies valued at over 200 KSH had been a birthday present to the pair from some missionary girls.
“I’m saddened but not surprised” said Garber “We’ve lost some candies in the same way, but I thought the cookies were safe under the bed.” Parks was unavailable for comment, apparently practicing his stick throwing skills for the day. Authorities believe that the heist was an inside job, possibly involving community children. They are planning to clamp down on crime during sting operation to catch the thugs using Smarties and a mouse trap.

Team Letter #8

2005-05-24T04:46:00.000-04:00

SAM:
Let me tell you about Enemisi. Enemisi is a remote village near the border of Tanzania, miles from anything. It's on the outskirts of Maasailand, so culturally it’s diverse. The people are from a lot of different tribes, speaking a lot of different languages. Some of the people I met spoke 6 languages! And even though Christianity didn’t seem as widespread as in Olepolos, the Christian community was alive! It didn’t seem like they ever stopped praising, dancing, & singing; they went on well after we went to bed, and started well before we got up in the morning. Enemisi was our first major evangelism trip, from where we've just returned. They welcomed us in a way I could never explain. They were honored to have us, and we were honored to join in with God's work in their community. We were able to evangelize to almost 40 homes & families, and God moved in awesome way! God used us, and we had the priviledge of being his messengers and of witnessing people receive his word, some for the first time. And it had a powerful impact on us, as well.
And God kept bringing us to more new things. We were asked to give an impromptu message at a fellowship time, Angela really blessed people with a message at a baby blessing ceremony (they even named the baby after her!), and I got to give a sermon at a community rally. I had almost no time to prepare (look Ma – no notes!), but I was inspired, and I thank God. We were so blessed by Enemisi, much more than we were able to give. We even had some new Kenyan experiences – like hanging out with a family of curious monkeys, our first Maasai ceremony, and Maasai-style sour milk. Sour milk – its not what you’d expect! There's a wooden gourde full, that they shake until the chunks become small and even throughout. It looks, smells, and tastes like milk gone sour – with a smokey twist!! It has a distinct flavor, and I think I could come to like it!
God is good. Everything this weekend was new to us, everything was stretching, everything required that we abandon ourselves to God. This is what we came to do.

ANGELA:
Hello my family and friends! I am doing wonderful, things couldn't be better! This past Thursday was originally planned as a get together for burgers at the Janzons house to celebrate the completion of our language class, on Wednesday. Ruth Ann and I did some planning, had a surprise party for the guys, since Zach's b-day was on the 15th, Sam's on the 16th. We got them some steaks and let them enjoy the liberty of cooking them. Ruth Ann and I came early to bake a chocolate cake for them and prepare the house to have a party atmosphere. They're present - a box of cookies. We all ate VERY well that day!
Friday we left for our 6hr. journey to Enemisi for evangelism. That night we spent some time getting to know our brothers & sisters in Christ, who we were going to be spending the weekend with. Saturday the team split up and were put in groups. Including us, each group had someone from Olepolos, and someone from Enemisi that knew the area. Each group took off in a different direction. This was the first time all of us had been literally split up like that. (It was very good for us - we could depend on the Lord and learn for ourselves, instead of depending on each other.) My team went door-to-door and simply greeted the people and asked if we could pray with them. We were able to pray over many of the families, and some of them committed their lives to Christ, recommitted, and/or were encouraged in their walk. What an experience!
Later that night we took part in a baby blessing ceremony. The elders, our Olepolos group, and the Enemisi group we were with all attended. I was the speaker for the dedication service. That was really cool! I was able to speak the word of God to a group of pastors, brothers & sisters in Christ, the baby's parents, and Maasai elders. They also came together to name the child. They ended up naming the baby girl after me, calling her my Maasai name, Namunyak (blessing/the lucky one). What an honor!!
Sunday we went to a 4hr. church service. It was awesome! It was hard to leave Enemisi, because in that short time we had built some close relationships! We are going to spend the next few days evangelizing in Olepolos. I'm excited for what God is going to do during this time. God is so Good!

PRAISES:
~ a great evangelism trip!
~ changed lives in Enemisi, including our own!
~ new challenges, new growth!

PRAYERS:
~ Evangelism around Olepolos this week
~ continued growth, continued learning
~ Sam is preaching in church this Sunday

Team Letter #7

2005-05-17T07:05:00.000-04:00

classic picture of Ruth Ann, shoved into a Kenyan taxi.

ZACH:
It’s been a short week but with some interesting twists. I can’t seem to figure out why people here love us so much. Sam and I were walking down a trail and hear a little voice: “Ledama, Leshon, enda supa!” That little voice was greeting us by name in Maasai. The voice’s owner was a two year-old boy by a mud/dung home across the field. How did he know who we were?
This week also contained the unique celebrations of two birthdays. I preached on mine, and we tried a new restaurant on Sam’s. Gifts included a glow in the dark Frisbee and paper dolls for Sam. The paper dolls were intended to be passed on to our host sisters. So I got to overhear Sam as he awkwardly explained how he thought one would dress a paper doll.
The flies at our house have increased with the colder nights. Just for fun we put up a new fly strip and watched the flies get stuck. After 20 minuets we counted the casualties: 179. I think that is about 9 flies every minute. Can they reproduce that fast?
This morning Sam and I took the donkey to the river to get water. Actually, we followed the donkey. Water fetching is a routine task for the donkey, so we followed his cues and things went fine. It’s remarkable that one can learn how to haul water from something as dumb as a donkey.

RUTH ANN:
I hope all is going well with ya'll. Things are going good here in East Africa.
On Saturday, Angela and I went on a trip with our Papai from our first host family. We went to see his daughter, Sharon, who is attending a boarding school. All three of us took the taxi to Narok. This taxi ride was more comfortable this trip, than it has been in quite a while. Usually there are four people smooshed in the back seat, and one person in the passenger seat. This time there was just us three in the back, and one person in the passenger seat. When we got to Narok, we ate lunch. Papai paid for us. Angela was still real full from breakfast, so she was struggling to get her chips(fries) down. I came to the rescue, and helped her eat some of her's(-=. After lunch, we got a taxi to take us the rest of the way to the boarding school. Sharon was so glad to see us again. Papai spent most of the time in a school meeting. Angela and I had a good time visiting Sharon and some of her friends. We took Zach's camera with us, and got some good pictures of her. On the taxi ride back, we had some fun trying to take pictures of all three of us in the back seat. We had some laughs from that experience(-=.Sunday was pretty laid back. We went to church, and Zach gave a good sermon. Sunday was Zach's birthday, and Monday was Sam's, so Angela and I gave them each a banana while saying, "no cake, no ice-cream, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!"(that quote is a joke among all of us(-=)
Yesterday (Monday), we had language study, a team meeting, and Angela and I spent around two hours washing our clothes by hand. While we were doing our laundry, we were bothered by some honey bee's, one of which stung Angela behind the ear. No worries, we slapped some toothpaste on that wound, and that helped at the time. It is a little swollen now, but she will be fine.

PRAISES:
~ Good health
~ Zach's sermon went well
~ We are building relationships

PRAYERS:
~ that we would be motivated to take initiative
~ that our team would continue to be unified
~ our evangelism trip coming up this weekend

Team Letter #6

2005-05-13T07:05:00.000-04:00

ANGELA:
Hey Everyone! We just got back from our vacation spent in Mombassa. It was quite an experience. We drove to Nairobi with the Janzons, which was about three hours on Thursday. Friday night we left for Mombassa on a night bus. Eight hours of dark and bumps. Apparently we slept on all the smooth parts of the road, because we didn't seem to remember any flat areas that lacked bumps on our way back.
Once there we were exposed to the humidity and temperatures of around 80's-90's. We were told that the usual tempreture is much hotter. We relaxed, ate out at a cool resturant, watched movies in the theater, went swimming in a pool fool of salt water and we swam in the Indian Ocean. The sand was an off white and the water was clear. Believe it or not the water was as warm as bath water. Probably in the 80's at least. That was cool. Sam and I held some neat looking star fish. One was a little bigger than Sam's hand. It was green with orange dots on it. With some effort we convinced Ruth Ann to hold it. That was a really neat experience. We found a big swimming hole when the tide was low and we all were able to go snorkling. We ended up just swimming and having a good time because there really wasen't anything to look at except sand. We also had our share of beach boys following us around trying to sell us stuff.
When we got home the next day Ruth Ann and I went to our first house and had a great time with the family. I had the chance to give the children all the goodies I got for them. They were happy! Its good to be back in Olepolos!

SAM:
3:30 AM 5/07: How does this bus stay in one piece?! I'm not sure whether we're still on the "highway" or whether the driver decided to take the railroad instead! Maybe listening to some music will drown out the poorly pirated DVD of Mrs. Doubtfire they're showing, that skips with every crater we hit.
11:00 AM 5/07: First impression of Mombasa... not amazing. How do we have fun here - we can't swim in the ocean and there's no 'touristy' stuff in sight? Could it be that not sleeping during our night long 'bull-ride' has affected my mood?
7:30 PM 5/07: After a 30-min. taxi ride, I'd lost hope in the restaurant we were recommended. When do we get to the "nicer part of town"? Walking down the dark, shady path to "Yul's" didn't restore my hope. But then, the trees cleared and there it was, like a hidden paradise! A beautiful exotic beach-front eatery, complete with thatch roof, palm trees, and sparkling lights. In a moment, my skepticism of Mombasa lifted!
11:00 AM 5/08: Who knew the ocean could be this fun? Never thought I'd let a starfish crawl on me. What a blast to explore the coral reef with the team!!
6:00 PM 5/09: The North Beach of Mombasa (we'd only seen at night before) turns out to be one of the most beautiful places I've seen. There may be guys in our face trying to sell us seaweed bracelets, but nothing can spoil this stroll with the team!
6:15 AM 5/10: We'll leave in a few hours to go back, so I'm up early to watch the sunrise over the ocean. It's given me time to reflect. At first, this time seemed like a guilty pleasure, and I was critical and skeptical. Now, I can see just how and why God has blessed us. Stress had built up from trying to learn the language, finding our place in Olepolos, and being split up as a team. God has used this restful time to restore us, as ready individuals and as a united team. We are almost finishing preparing, we now know our expectations, and just before we jump into the "doing", we find ourselves blessed with a time of rejuvenation. God is good. And as the sun popped up over the ocean, God put this on my mind - "It is a new day, a new era." We are no longer just youthful learners, we are 'God's fellow workers', His trained harvesters. It's a new day, and its time to abandon ourselves to the unknown. Can't wait to be back in Olepolos!

PRAISES:
~ a safe journey, without a hitch!
~ the team was given rest & restored spirits
~ God's creation is beautiful!

PRAYERS:
~ Boldness and courage as we enter a new stage in Olepolos
~ Patience in our last 3 language classes
~ More vision for our purpose here

Team Letter #5

2005-05-03T05:46:00.000-04:00

Zach:
The sounds of Maasai women eating the news drifts through the dusk twilight to the rock I sit on. Another row of squares is gone from the calendar. Three of this week’s squares sent us to a neighboring area to “help with a seminar”. That can mean suffocating in a Land Rover with 14 other people as the women belt out rhythmic Maasai songs. Or it can mean powering a broken bicycle through the bush in the rain. Or it can mean perching on a horizontal fence post (aka church pew) for 3 hrs. Or it can mean preaching to a hundred people and two wet dogs through a translator. Whatever the “seminar” was, it was a blast!
The calendar square with “Sunday 1” in it told us to do a funny skit in church. White people demonstrating how to correctly and incorrectly kill lions is always a riot. Later that day the square decided that the guys would move to a new host home. We obeyed and now reside with David “chairman” Shunkur. Two single beds and a concrete floor couldn’t have looked better. We even do our “business” on a “sitter” instead of a “squatter”. So just when we have come to the land of milk and honey we have to prepare for vacation: several days at a guest house on the Indian Ocean. If this seems to good to be true, remind yourself that rice and beans do not become any more appetizing when accompanied by warm milk and a fly doing the back-stroke.

RuthAnn:
Hey!! How are all ya'll doing back in the states? I hope good. Wow!! A lot has happened since we last wrote a team letter. This past week has been pretty different from the other weeks. On Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, our team went to help at a Seminar for the first time. That was a learning experience. Angela and I taught "Sunday School" on Friday and Saturday. That went pretty good, considering that neither of us had any experience in teaching Sunday school. We had a translator. Each of those three days, the team got up front and sang some songs. On Saturday, Angela and I got up, and shared our testimonies. The Lord was faithful, and saw us through all the new things(-=. The other big thing that happened, was on this past Sunday, we moved to our new host families. For Angela and I, our move was kind of like culture shock(-=. We had been staying in a fairly simple mud/dung house. This new house we moved to is kind of like a "hotel". We miss our other family, but our new family is very nice too. I think we will be able to build a good relationship with our new "Mama" and sister. They have Angela and I staying in their guest house, which is very nice. It's not as fancy as the main house, which is good(-=.
Last evening, Angela and I went back to our first families place for supper. The children from that family, were headed back to school today(for three months). Two of them are going to boarding schools, so we won't get to see them but once or twice more. We had a very enjoyable evening, filled with laughter. That evening it rained real hard, so it was quite the adventure walking back to our new house with flip-flops on and a bunch of slippery mud(-=. We had a bunch of helpers though. Our first family walked us back and held our hands, to make sure we didn't fall. Angela and I and the family had many laughs on the way.
Well, I guess I will wrap up for now. One other thing before I sign out(-=. Kevin and Sharon Yoder(workers with EMM from Nairobi) came to Olepolos this past weekend. It was fun visiting with them, and Sharon brought the team some banana bread and chocolate chip cookies(-=. Wow that has been very tasty! I hope ya'll have a great day. Thanks for all the prayers. Until next time--God bless!

Prayer Requests:
-Language Study
-Our Travels to the coast
-A refreshing time while on vacation

Praises:
-Language study is almost over
-The seminar went well
-The guys don’t have to share a single bed

MAILING NOTICE

2005-04-23T04:53:00.000-04:00

On our prayer cards, our mailing address is given, but the town name is spelled wrong. It is actually spelled:
Ololulunga
So the full address is actually:
81 Ololulunga
Narok, Kenya
Mail sent to the address on the prayer card will still get here - we've already recieved lots of mail. Hearing from home has been such a blessing, and as a team, we ask that you would pour in the letters especially, but also the emails, postings. Thank you so much!

Romans 10:15

2005-04-23T04:47:00.000-04:00

“How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”

Team Letter #4

2005-04-23T04:05:00.000-04:00

SAM:
Well, God gave us 3 weeks of perfect health! As for this week, you might say we have gently settled in to reality. Each one of us felt the inevitable at different times this week, in different ways. Ruth Ann found some lose dirt and took a minor tumble, Zachary experienced that common new-to-africa symptom (if you can guess it), I picked up an African cold and experienced a sleepless night, Angela has had her share of frustrations with stomach reactions to food, and we’ve all had countless scrapes and cuts. Of course, no one really feels sorry for Zachary and I when we go exploring the bush in sandals and come back with banged up feet. Making up for lost time, this week we’ve all developed a closer and deeper relationship with our first aid bad (we call it our personal “MDS”). With its snoopy band-aids and peptol bismol, our long-ignored companion has been a daily source of healing, restoration, and encouragement. No worries, though – in all reality, we fully expected some struggles with our health here, and the minor things of this week haven’t been too much to handle. This week has certainly left us frustrated at times, but we’ve lifted our prayers about it, and some fasting, and it seems that God has restored our spirits. Within the team there are smiles, laughs, and, once again, pranks.
We are still learning, learning, learning. Learning the language, learning how to interact with people, learning about the spirituality and needs of Olepolos and beyond, and learning how we fit in to that. It’s a challenge to keep yourself open to God’s leading when everything is so foreign. We were able to help out and participate in a youth/young adult meeting yesterday. We played songs for them, and lead a small devotion. It was great to see how much of a blessing it was for them to hear a guitar! So while we’re still learning and preparing, we are finally starting to fade in to our ministry here. We are becoming part of the community, known and trusted.

ANGELA:
Supa everyone! Ruth Ann and I are well. This week has been very different from the others, filled with its up's and down's. Early in the week Ruth Ann and I taught the boy's, Toranda and Singate (Maasai names) the cup game. It consists of a series of claps and sounds made with the cups, all the while rotating the cups to create a cool pattern of sounds. They liked that a lot and insisted on playing it the next night. They even showed the shepard boy, Dan, how to play. We had a lot of fun interacting with the boys and just building our relationships. On Tuesday Ruth Ann spent some time done by the river by herself. Well, while she was journeying back to the house she took a little tumble. When she got back to the house she showed me her battle scars from the small 12" embankment that caused her to wipe out. She is doing just fine. She get's rather excited when given the chance to show off her minor bruises from the great "battle" she had down by the river. :^) Wednesday, while we were walking home from language study it was very windy and something flew into my left eye. That was very painful. Eventually whatever it was came out, but it left a small scratch that was not visible. I had Jen Janzon look at it (a seasoned nurse) and it appeared to be doing fine. At the same time I didn't feel the best. I was very tired with a small appetite. With prayer and some Tylenol, within two days I felt much better and my eye is doing great. Friday night there was a full moon which provided much light, so we stayed outside with the kid's for a while. We played some hand slapping games together while we all huddled around a small cooking stove to stay warm. (temp. 50-60 degrees F) Our relationship with the children our Mama and Papai is definitely growing, which is very encouraging. Its good to see God's love through them!

PRAISES:
~ God's provisions & protection in health & sickness
~ Healed bodies, restored spirits
~ Ministry opportunities

PRAYERS:
~ learning Maasai language
~ good health
~ healing in relationships between some youth & the community at Olepolos
~ more opportunities to be a blessing

Zachary giving a swing-making seminar.

Isaiah 18:2

2005-04-19T04:43:00.000-04:00

Go, swift messengers,
to a people tall and smooth-skinned,
to a people feared far and wide,
an aggressive nation of strange speech,
whose land is divided by rivers.

- ISAIAH 18:2 (NIV)

Keep the comment posts coming!

Team Letter #3

2005-04-16T04:18:00.000-04:00

Ruth Ann:
Supa (hi) everyone! Wow! We've been here for a little over two weeks now. We already have some funny stories and adventures to take back as memories, and I'm sure we will share them with you when we get back.This past week, the team has been getting to know the missionaries that are working here. They just got back from a vacation in South Africa. This evening they had the team over for supper. Wow! That was one good meal! The food that our host families serve is good, but western food is great. We had spaghetti, garlic bread, corn on the cob and fresh pineapple.We also had a full 4 classes of language study this week. We usually have a devotional at the beginning of each class. Starting this week each of us took a turn leading that devotion. It works well: four of us, and four classes. Every Tuesday the team takes what we call our ¨day of rest〃. The guys went to Narok (nice sized town) to look around and we went visiting with Jen (Missionary) visiting. There were several births that took place while they were away. We visited two family…s. I got to hold the babies at each house. I got doubly blessed, which is to say I got peed on twice! Oh, the memories! Yesterday (Thursday), Angela and I went to Ololulunga (very small town a mile away) to get our hair put in braids. It was painful, but I think we won…t have to brush or wash it for two weeks.Today was a beautiful day here in Olepolos. The sun was shinning and the sky was bright blue. After lunch, Angela and I went to the river to spend the afternoon. We read, chatted, and had a long quiet time.

Zachary:
It's hard to put life into a few paragraphs, so I thought I would use a string of descriptive short sentences.The sun comes up. A rooster crows in the hall. Cows loudly beg to be milked. It is 7am. Breakfast is buttered bread with tea. Don't ask for milk; it is always warm, thick, and sometimes a little chewy. It's nearly a mile to the church. A mile of mud, manure, and a slimy combination of both. Take a nap under a tree and you will be greeted by a wet bush dog who just wants to be your friend. Give him a handful of rice and he will live another day. Friendly faces come and go, their lips smiling incomprehensible words. So I preach with my life, because my words are only sounds. The white tooth smiles of 6-yearolds peak around corners as smoke from charcoal pits chokes the air. Warm coca-cola is a suripy sweet treat. ¨Go fast, Don't die!〃 I think it's the taxi driver's creed. With scruffy beards in this scrubby bush we watch the stars light up. The air cools, the dew settles. Another day is gone.

Praises:
-We are in good health-
We are adjusting to the culture well
-We have not seen any snakes yet!

Prayer requests:
-Language study
-Our relationships with the Maasai
-This Monday Zachary has a meeting with the outreach coordinator to plan the next 3months.

Team Letter #2

2005-04-12T03:42:00.000-04:00

ANGELA:
Supa Oleng?! (hello, espescially!) Things have been going very well here; we have been adapting to the food and climate with ease. Being that it is the rainyseason, it should be raining just about every day. God has been gracious to us, though, and has blessed us with several days of being exposed to the beautiful bright blue sky that stretches as far as you can see, with patches of clouds here and there. Ruth Ann and I are bonding more and more with our host family every day. We spend our evenings in the kitchen spending time with our Mama and her children, and usually our supper time and the rest of the evening in the living room with our Papai, Philix, and Collins. We always share about our day, and then usually our Samuel, our Papai, insists that we go over what we learned during our kiMaasai language class, helping us excersize what we already know, and even teaching us some new kiMaasai words.
The choo, a.k.a. the toilet, has been an interesting experience. Instead of having something to sit on, it is a 'squatty potty'! Its not bad - it didn't take us too long to get used to it. We even have the luxury of having toilet paper supplied for us! At night, Ruth Ann and I have the pleasure of experiencing high levels of paranoia while shining our flashlight on several large spiders and listening to interesting (but strange) noises, all while we are trying to do our business and restraining ourselves to not freak out!

SAM:
Enda Supa! Greetings from somewhere deep in the African bush! We are starting our 2nd week here in Kenya, and are still caught up in the excitement of a new place, a new culture, and new experiences. God has brought us to an awesome community, and even the less 'glorious' things of Maasailand (rainy season, mud, bathrooms, etc) still seem like an adventure. There is nothing on earth like a culturally-relevant Maasai church! Their worship is powerfully unique, and the way they mix worship and prayer is, well... hard to explain on paper! (but reeeeeally mooving!) I usually have no idea what they are sayin in the prayers, but they usually lead me to pray "God... what he said!!" It really gives you a fuller perspective to be able to join in lifting your voice in praise with people, without a clue of what they're saying.
So we are still in a stage of learning, of exploring, and of building relationships. We are focusing on being learners of their the culture andthe crazy language (kiMaasai = toughest. language. ever.) We are still exploring the bush, but also the towns and marketplaces, so we can adjust to the Maasai life. And we are building relationships wherever and whenever we can; through church, soccer, host families, & etc. We know that it will be a challenge to keep a feeling of team unity. Not only are the guys and girls a 30 min. walk apart, but we are having two different experiences, since men and women live completely different lives in Maasailand. We are seeing that different kinds of challenges and trails will come, but we can always rest and rejoice in what God is doing in Olepolos and in us.

PRAYERS:
~ learning the Maasai language
~ keeping team unity
~ adjusting to Maasai male/female roles and values

PRAISES:
~ so far - No sickness! No extreme culture shock!
~ We are bonding with our host families!
~ We are forging all kinds of friendships!

P.S. Please post your comments!

Team Letter #1

2005-04-05T06:48:00.000-04:00

Greetings!

THE TEAM SAYS:
We arrived in Nairobi last Monday and spent a day and a half at the Mennonite guest house. We are living with host families in pairs. The homes are not western, but very practical. Each pair has their own small room with a single bed. We have daily lessons in Maasai to increase our communication abilities. The food consists mainly of staples and Kenyan tea. Walking, flies, and friendly people are quickly becoming norms.

RuthAnn Says:
I have a very nice host family and am glad to have Angela with me. The little house we are staying at is on the side of a hill with a beautiful view. The house is a mud/dung structure with a tin roof. Every day we experience a "squatty potty"! Rain water and river water are a source of life for our family, washing, drinking, and everything comes from water. The cows that live next to us provide a nice cloud of flies which we combat with western "fly strips". The food and tea are wonderful and have yet to cause gastro-intestinal problems. :) I love the walking and enjoy seeing how the culture functions and am having a great time.

Zach Says:
I am quickly adapting to "African Time", perhaps to quickly. I really enjoy sitting in the shade doing nothing. In the afternoons I have joined a group of guys who play "football". I never knew a rough field and some poles in the ground could be considered a playing field.

Sam Says:
Even after spending months preparing, I still didn't know what to expect, but I must say-Kenya is AWESOME!! We've seen the incredible great rift valley, wild zebras and giraffes, rolling hills and valleys, river canyons the huge African sky, and more stars than you could imagine. We've spent our days getting lost in the African bush, and starting to build relationships, even during "public humiliation of Americans" which they call "soccer".

Angela Says:
We are bonding well with our host family. They mostly speak very simple English and are teaching us Maasai. RuthAnn and I spent time singing passionatly with the women in the kitchen. The next day they taught us how to sing in Maasai. I have begun to see results from the time I spend with God and in prayer. The team is unified and we are adjusting well.

Prayer Requests:
-Learning the languages
-Sensitivity to the Holy Spirit
-Learning to use our time well between relationships, language, ect..

Praises:
-Friendly people
-The food is agreeable
-Lush surroundings

Hello!

2005-03-18T12:42:00.000-05:00

Welcome to our blog! We would love to share with you about what God is doing among the Maasai of Kenya! Stay tuned!