Headed Home

Monday morning, we drove about an hour from Kigali to Muhanga where we had a follow up meeting for churches that had previously been trained to start CR. There were 16 churches coming to learn more about CR.  Several churches gave reports of what they were doing and how they were progressing.  We reviewed the Large Group meeting format then demonstrated a meeting for them with Jean Baptiste teaching the lesson on Forgiveness.  Six churches committed to developing a strong CR ministry.  Moses and Jean Baptiste will visit them in a few weeks to see how they are progressing.

We drove about 2 hours to Karongi district and checked into Bethany hotel at Lake Kivu.  The next morning we went held a follow up meeting with churches previously trained in CR.  Twelve churches were represented, some gave reports of their progress. We reviewed the Large Group meeting format and demonstrated a meeting with Jean Baptiste teaching the lesson of Denial. Seven churches committed to following the training for their CR ministry.  Moses and Jean Baptise will visit them to see how they are progressing.  We drove back to Kigali in the late afternoon.

We had a meeting at the PEACE office to talk about CR and Orphan care.  There are 33 orphanages in Rwanda that will be closed by the end of 2014. We discussed various ways of using CR for the families receiving the children and The Landing for the youth and Celebration Station for the children so the orphans can find healing as well. It looks like The Landing will translate culturally, Celebration Station will need further review to see is it is relevant to the children of Rwanda.  They will get estimates to translate the materials to Kinyarwanda and we will proceed from there.

Today we had a meeting at the PEACE office with the key leaders overseeing the Purpose Driven activities in Rwanda.  We developed a good plan for CR and possibly The Landing 

Pray for travel mercies as I depart Kigali this evening, have a quick stop in Entebbe, Uganda then fly on to Amsterdam.  After a 4 hour layover, I have a non-stop flight to Los Angeles. Pray for good rest, leg room and an uneventlful journey home. Pray for the churches of Rwanda as they go forward with CR. Pray for the churches and prisons of Kenya and their CR ministries.

Sunday Night in Kigali Rwanda

The last few days have been so packed so I have some catching up to do.  The Internet connection was very slow in Kitale Kenya so even getting emails has been a challenge.  So here goes….

Tuesday

We went to Kitale prisons, where CR first began in Kenya in 2005.  First we visited the CR group at the Main prison for men. The chaplains that lead the CR ministry were all transferred to other prisons in the last year but it was great to see that the inmates carried it forward and are now leading the group. One man of the original group that we trained in 2005 was still there.  They had a graduation of 20 men who have completed a step study group. What an honor it was to present these men with their certificates for completing a step study.  It was heartwarming to hear their testimonies of forgiveness and transformation. They had a very nice graduation program and it was great to see all that God is doing there in that prison. It bought back so many memories of going into that prison for the first time and to recognize all that God has done in the prisons throughout Kenya with CR since then, something only God could do.

We visited the women’s prison.  We had a nice program with them too, the choir sang so beautifully and I even got to join a tribal dance with them.  The inmate that was leading their CR group was transferred to another prison in Nairobi, maybe she can help lead CR there J.  As God arranged it, a chaplain from Kakamega women’s prison who has gone through CR was transferred to Kitale women recently so she will take over leading the step study group that is going.

There is new staff at both the men and women’s prisons so we spent some time training them on CR and how to lead step study groups and for the men to hold the large group meetings.

Wednesday

We drove about an hour northeast of Kitale to Kapenguria Prison.  It’s a remote area with rolling hills and farm land with tall maize all around, a very peaceful place.  One of the chaplains from Kitale was transferred there and had begun teaching CR large group lessons. We met with several officials and had a CR training, some had been through seminars previously.  They are ready to move ahead on a larger scale and will be starting step study groups soon.  We spent some time with the inmates encouraging them and introducing the step study groups. They are very eager to get started.

Thursday

I went around Kitale connecting with friend.  I also visited some churches and heard testimonies of lives that have been transformed through CR. One day at a time, one life at a time.  I enjoyed taking my kids shoe shopping in town.

Friday

I rested in the morning and began to pack and prepare to leave for Rwanda tomorrow. In the afternoon I spent time with my kids, playing games and just enjoying being together.

Saturday

I left Kitale at 5:30 am for 1 ½ hour drive to Eldoret by taxi to catch a 45 minute flight to Nairobi.  I changed planes then flew to Kigali, Rwanda via Bujumbura, Burundi. I was met by Moses at the PEACE office and got settled in at Iris Guest House.  I had a relaxing afternoon and evening.

Sunday

This morning I attended church at Prayer Palace with Moses and Bonita. The senior pastor is someone I met during my second trip to Rwanda.  It was good to see him again.  The service was lively with great worship with songs and dancing and a very inspiring message.  This afternoon I had a chance to rest and to get prepared for the next few days when we will have seminars in Muhanga and Karongi districts then meetings back in Kigali.  I also had time to catch up on the blog.

Please pray for travel mercies as Moses, Jean Baptiste and I travel about an hour to Muhanga Monday morning, have a seminar then drive on to Karongi (about another 2 hours) where we will spend the night. Pray for the seminars that we will have for churches that have started CR in Muhanga (Monday) and also in Karongi (Tuesday). Pray for wisdom on how best to help them take the next steps with their ministries. Pray for travel mercies as we drive back to Kigali on Tuesday evening after the second seminar.

Monday Night Catching Up

I've been traveling around quite a bit the last few days. There is so much to catch up on so here goes. I tried to upload some photos but the connection is too slow.

Friday

We left Kakamega early in the morning and drove through the rolling hills of sugar cane fields of Western Kenya to Busia Prison which is walking distance to Uganda (even for a mzungu). We visited with the officers that attended the CR introduction meeting held earlier this year then we trained them so they could start CR step study groups. They were so appreciative of the visit and are looking forward to starting their first CR group. 

We drove on to Bungoma to visit their prison.  Several of their officials had attended the same CR introduction meeting earlier this year.  In anticipation of our visit they assembled a good group for us to train to start step study groups. The “in charge” attended the whole seminar and was very eager to get started.

It began raining so hard as we were leaving Bungoma, we even had to pull over and wait a while because we could not see to drive.  It let up and we drove on to Kitale, reaching town just as it was getting dark.  I had a nice reunion with my friend Margaret who I am staying with then got some much needed rest.

Saturday

I had no scheduled meetings for the day for the first since being in Kenya. I had a late afternoon flight from Kitale to Nairobi for some scheduled meetings on Sunday.  I spent the morning with my 4 kids and we had a great time together.  I was finally able to reach the airline to confirm my flight to Nairobi (no one answered the phone the first few times I called) and they informed me that my flight was canceled and they were busing us to Eldoret (a 2 hour drive) to take a flight from there.  The bus was leaving in 10 minutes! Fortunately I was packed so they rushed me to town to catch the ride.  It’s a good thing I was able to reach them, otherwise I would have not been able to get to Nairobi for my meetings. So I arrived back in Nairobi.

Sunday

I attended church service at ICC (International Christian Centre) in Nairobi. They attended a seminar 2 years ago and have started a CR ministry.  After church I had lunch with the senior pastor, his wife, the associate pastor and his wife who is the head of the healing ministries. We had some great discussions about how to grow CR and reach more people.  They are very committed to CR and have a very good strategic plan for growing their ministry.  It’s exciting to see what God is doing in their church.

Monday

I got up very early and flew back to Eldoret.  My friend Rose from Prison Headquarters, Margaret and my 4 kids made the 2 hour drive from Kitale to meet my 8 am arriving flight. We went to Eldoret Women’s prison for 2 reasons. One, the mother of my kids is an inmate there. The only time they get to see her is when I am here and take them.  We had a great reunion with Nolega (their mom).  The other reason is to do some CR training.  We spent time with the staff visiting then held a training for some staff members to restart CR. The majority of inmates that had gone through it before have been released.  We trained some new staff how to start step study groups. Then we drove back to Kitale.

Please pray for energy for me, I’ve been going non-stop since arriving here. Pray for open doors for the meetings that God wants to happen during my time in Kitale this week. I have some plans, now we’ll see what God plans are.  Pray for my mother-in-law who is not doing well.

Thursday Evening

We completed our 4-day seminar today with great excitement about starting Celebrate Recovery from the 50+ people representing the 4 churches and 4 prisons in attendance.  We planned to take a nice group photo at the end but the rains came, again.  And we lost power, again.  It has rained so much here but it has not damped the enthusiasm for CR. It will be exciting to watch as 2 men’s prisons, 1 women’s prison and the largest boy’s prison begin this ministry that will change so many lives and bring healing to so many.



Closing prayer in a Step Study group




The leaders and co-leaders for 4 prisons.



Tomorrow (Friday) we travel to other parts of Western Kenya to visit more prisons then we drive on to Kitale where we will be tomorrow evening.

Thanks for your prayers for Moses, he is feeling much better now. Pray for travel mercies as we drive across Western Kenya.

Tuesday in Kakamega

Sunday the church service was great and they announced the launch of their CR ministry at Deliverance Church Kitengela. Some friends took me to the airport for my flight to Kisumu. My flight was delayed an hour but that was no problem. Bishop Moses from ICM Kitale drove to Kisumu (normally a 4 hour drive) to meet me but there was a traffic jam in Kakamega where he could only drive 1 kilometer in 3 hours because of a street revival. It gave me a chance to have a cup of chai and relax a bit.  He finally arrived to pick me then we drove the 2 hours back to Kakamega in the rain.

Monday we had the first day of our CR seminar held at Shikusa Prisons. We are meeting at the largest boys prison in Kenya with about 500 boys age 15-18.  The prisons are very supportive of CR and someone from the department of rehabilitation at headquarters in Nairobi came and is attending the whole week.  Rose had attended the seminar we had in March and is helping teach. Overall the response is very good.

We limited the seminar to 50 people to attend and it is very full.  There is a good mix of mostly prison officers and staff with some local churches. For the prison there are officers from spiritual welfare and the spiritual leaders for Protestants, Catholic, Seven Day Adventist and Muslims along with guards and other staff. They are enjoying the class and are asking very good questions.

Last night we planned to go to a local restaurant for dinner but it began raining…..and raining….and raining. Not like a California rain, but very hard rain. Then the electricity went out. Fortunately they have a restaurant at our hotel with a generator for the kitchen and dining area.  After the rain let up some we went there for dinner, the generator even went out a couple of times.  The electricity was on and off, mostly off, for the evening all around Kakamega.  It was funny because I had given homework to answer questions in lesson 2 called Powerless.  We were all powerless last night so we had fun with that today.

Please pray for quick healing for Bishop Moses as he was diagnosed with malaria today and has begun taking medication for it. Pray for open hearts toward CR and seeing a way forward for those attending the seminar. Pray for wisdom for me as I continue the training. 

Saturday

I spent the morning visiting the Athi River Prison Celebrate Recovery ministry. The second group had completed a step study group and today was their graduation. The whole prison yard was invited to the ceremony. A representative from prison headquarters attended along with the CR leaders from Deliverance Church Kitengela located nearby.

The 25 graduates were distinguished by their beautiful bright blue choir robes which they wore proudly.  There was great singing and then a skit performed by some of the men in CR about a man who struggled with anger. He was imprisoned because of fighting then continued to have problems inside because of his anger.  Someone invited him to CR and it transformed his life. It was very creative and funny while capturing the essence of what CR is all about. They sang a song that they wrote about the 8 principles of CR. I was privileged to present their certificates of completion of a step study. The 3 hour ceremony was really nice and many are excited to join the next group.  It was a pretty amazing experience.

Later I met with the CR leaders from DC Kitengela.  They have been meeting as a leadership team and familiarizing themselves with the materials as they planned how to begin.  They will launch the Large Group meeting and Open Share groups next Sunday. They will have their meetings on Sunday afternoons. We had some great discussions about how to launch and they are excited to begin it church wide.

I had afternoon chai at the home of one of the CR leaders from DC. Carolyne and I met the last time I was here and she has been driving me around. It was great to spend time with her and her family again.

Praise report – I had great sleep last night so thanks for your prayers. Pray for Deliverance Church as they launch their CR. Pray for Athi River as they start their third step study group. Pray for travel mercies as I fly to Kisumu Sunday afternoon after attending church. Bishop Moses will meet me at the airport then we will drive to Kakamega for the 4-day seminar that begins Monday morning.