Mission Trip to Kenya, Africa
Isaiah 6:8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”
Part 1- The JOY in the JOURNEY!
Blessed Beyond Belief
Travis and I had an amazing opportunity to travel to Kenya, Africa on a mission trip with Oakland Baptist Church from September 4-14, 2024. No one returns from a mission trip the same as when they left. Lives on both sides of the world were forever changed and all the Glory belongs to the Lord. It is amazing to see Him work and to be used in unimaginable ways. The words in this post can NEVER express the joy in my heart.
Remember, my blog is more of a journal for me to never forget the adventures and memories of our walk through life together. Some just look at the pictures, some read all my thoughts, but hopefully everyone will be blessed by what the Lord did on this trip.
Eat, Fellowship, Fly……..REPEAT
From airport food to seat buddies, God was in it. We left Oakland at 8:30 a..m., ate lunch in the Memphis airport at 11:00 a.m, and flew out around 12:30. Next stop is Boston.
REPEAT
More travel, more food, a little work (by Travis) and gearing up with compression socks for the 2 long flights ahead. In total, I think it took us 24 hours from first flight out of Memphis, Tennessee to last landing in Nairobi, Africa.
Next stop is Paris, France. Nasty plane food and weird sleeping styles, led up to yummy Macaroons and Lays potato chips.
A MUST READ
As we were getting ready to board the plane in Paris, I discovered two things. One, Travis was ready for another nap, and two, this precious young lady named Grace. I observed her hugging her dad goodbye and joining the security line to go to Nairobi, Kenya by herself. Seeing tears in her eyes, I couldn’t resist striking up a conversation with her.
Such an Inspiration
Those of you who are on the fence about serving on a mission trip need to hear her story. She has just graduated from high school in Louisiana. She is traveling to Africa to serve at a Women’s Home for a month by herself. Her dad flew with her as far as Paris. We talked, exchanged contact information, and prayed together as we boarded the plane. She was waiting on me as we exited the plane 8+ hours later and walked through security with our group. Her contact person was waiting on her as we exited the terminal. After exchanging quick hugs she was off. I have emailed her since arriving back home and can’t wait to hear about her FIRST trip out of the country and her FIRST mission trip to serve when she gets home. Now THAT is inspiration!!
We Are Here
Fancy, quick stay in Nairobi on Friday night before a big breakfast and starting the journey toward Bomet, Kenya on Saturday morning.
GOD had a plan and MARTIN followed it!
God and Martin got us all crammed into this van and safely to our destination. Martin was our driver all week. He is a Christian man that owns a company called Klein Safari’s. He looked a little doubtful when he saw all our luggage, but he managed to fit it AND US all in like a puzzle, one piece/person at a time. No wiggle room anywhere for this 4+ hour trip to Bomet.
Random pictures between Nairobi and Bomet
Everyone was loaded up and we were driving off at 8:30 a.m. The roads are quite bumpy and they control the speed mainly with very large speed bumps across the roads and a few other ways that I have pictured below. We traveled 4+ hours to our destination in Bomet, where we would stay for the duration of our trip. These are random pictures I was able to get from the back seat of a moving, bumpy ride.
Considered a National Monument
The Mai Mahiu Italian Church is a small Catholic church in Kenya’s Rift Valley. It only has 6 pews. Built in 1942 by Italian prisoners of war, the church is located on two acres of land registered under the Italian government.
We had the chance to drive into, through and across the Great Rift Valley!
https://www.expertafrica.com/kenya/rift-valley
Brevan Hotel in Bomet, Kenya.
The playground equipment reminded me of what the the Corinth park had when I was young.
I LOVE STAIRS….REALLY I do!
We stayed on the 3rd floor. However, in Africa there is a ground floor, then 1st, 2nd, 3rd. Technically it was the 4th floor for us. I randomly counted two groups of stairs, and interestingly, one side of the hotel had more stairs than the other.
Settle in. Unpack. Move. Settle in. Unpack. Move. Settle in. Unpack. Move…And do it again!
Travis tried to convince the ladies that he would carry his luggage up the stairs. Not sure they spoke English but they didn’t listen to him either way. Travis and I stayed in this room all week. I think everyone else had to move at least once, or twice, or three times due to either lack of water or lights. They moved Ray between our arrival and finishing dinner. He didn’t know until he walked into an empty room. That was the quickest he went down the stairs all week.
Meeting John Bett
Our team met with Pastor John Bett after dinner. He explained our week of ministry, goals, and strategy. John is our contact/local pastor for this trip. His love of the Lord and for the people in the villages we will visit is so clear to see and hear. So excited to meet our translator and get started on PART 2 (IMPORTANT PART ) of the trip tomorrow.
