Africa Expedition 2025
Howdy from George…
George thinks howdy is official Texan language, so he likes to use it for us…of course with his accent its doesn’t sound very authentic.
We had a very, good, successful day of ministry. We started the morning late, as usual, but were able to go do a bit of door to door evangelism. While I might not say it was as productive as we might have hoped, it brought about a much needed opportunity to address some issues we had been wrestling with all week.
We have to be carful not to attempt to change culture for the sake of our preference, but we also have to encourage the church to push back against culture that creates lazy christianity. Finding that balance can be difficult at times. We are so very different than our Kenyan brothers and sisters that it seems it might be easier to just try and tell them to do it exactly like we do in America. That is not the answer…but we need to do it in a way that imitates Christ. Sinful parts of cultural norms do need to be changed, and that is exactly what we were able to address today.
After the door to door we were able to do teaching sessions with the church leadership. There might be more problem with cell phone distraction in Kenya than any place I’ve seen to date. There were some very difficult moments as we had been forced to take the opportunity to try and explain why things that had become so normal for their Kenyan ministry, was probably harming the goal that was trying to be achieved. Brian, Robert, and Chip were all able to share with the men and had so many great things to say. There was some immediate response’s to the message and there was also visible fruit by the end of the day. Change was happening in the lives of the pastors and leadership during those sessions.
Rachel, April And Faith were in a women’s session where they also spoke on the topic of stewardship. Specifically they spoke about motherhood and the fleeing moments that they actually get with the children before they are gone. Emotions were running high as they finished up their session and they established the bittersweet necessity of the children growing up. It is one of our most precious areas of stewardship to raise our kids well.
Lunch and then VBS
What can I say other than a big ol’ Kenyan…..WOW
We started on time and it was executed all throughout in near perfect timing. Of course the American team was set up and ready, but with out the translators and helpers it would be a disaster. With some pretty serious correction from Ezekiel, his leaders all made their way to their spots with no time to spare. As the kids exited the church for their stations the Kenyan team sluggishly oozed into place as if it might go unnoticed it was past time for them to be there. However it wasn’t two minutes before they were fully engaged. I couldn’t be more proud of the preparation that went into this VBS…crafts of functioning slingshots are in homes all throughout Kilgoris tonight, and glass panes may be in high demand soon, as Chip and Uriah expertly taught them how to use their newly created toy. It was, however, Rachel and April who helped them build the slings across the yard. They completely destroyed Goliath, the hand painted giant we brought from Texas for that very purpose. Faith might have been sad to see her hard work destroyed, but she knew it was worth the enjoyment had by all who got to shoot at him. From there Robert and Brian got them some snacks and they got to hear the gospel. Eventually the Kenyans were almost doing it all in that snack station as Robert and Brian encouraged them to step up and serve not just watch and help. Faith and Mr Felix kept the pages turning as they handled the Bible lesson in the big church sanctuary. David killed Goliath at least four time this afternoon. Faith had never taught four lessons before back to back, she has a new found experience for how draining teaching can be, and how hard it is to keep forty, four and five year olds engaged in a lesson. I attempted to teach the kids a song about David my father sang to me as a boy as I helped Faith a little when she struggled to fill the time, but it was to no good outcome, they couldn’t learn the words.
I could write all night about the days events, and it still wouldn’t do justice to truly describing the day we got to experience. Two Hundred plus kids at a Kenyan VBS with only four stations and eight Americans…you can imagine. It was however very organized and not nearly as chaotic as you might think. Teaching church leaders and encouraging them to look more like Christ. Going into the homes of people so hospitable It shames us Americans and humbles us to see what they sacrifice to follow Jesus in their world. Yes, it was a good day!
I think I’ll sleep well tonight, and I bet the others do as well.
Goodnight friends,
Todd Crabtree
George thinks howdy is official Texan language, so he likes to use it for us…of course with his accent its doesn’t sound very authentic.
We had a very, good, successful day of ministry. We started the morning late, as usual, but were able to go do a bit of door to door evangelism. While I might not say it was as productive as we might have hoped, it brought about a much needed opportunity to address some issues we had been wrestling with all week.
We have to be carful not to attempt to change culture for the sake of our preference, but we also have to encourage the church to push back against culture that creates lazy christianity. Finding that balance can be difficult at times. We are so very different than our Kenyan brothers and sisters that it seems it might be easier to just try and tell them to do it exactly like we do in America. That is not the answer…but we need to do it in a way that imitates Christ. Sinful parts of cultural norms do need to be changed, and that is exactly what we were able to address today.
After the door to door we were able to do teaching sessions with the church leadership. There might be more problem with cell phone distraction in Kenya than any place I’ve seen to date. There were some very difficult moments as we had been forced to take the opportunity to try and explain why things that had become so normal for their Kenyan ministry, was probably harming the goal that was trying to be achieved. Brian, Robert, and Chip were all able to share with the men and had so many great things to say. There was some immediate response’s to the message and there was also visible fruit by the end of the day. Change was happening in the lives of the pastors and leadership during those sessions.
Rachel, April And Faith were in a women’s session where they also spoke on the topic of stewardship. Specifically they spoke about motherhood and the fleeing moments that they actually get with the children before they are gone. Emotions were running high as they finished up their session and they established the bittersweet necessity of the children growing up. It is one of our most precious areas of stewardship to raise our kids well.
Lunch and then VBS
What can I say other than a big ol’ Kenyan…..WOW
We started on time and it was executed all throughout in near perfect timing. Of course the American team was set up and ready, but with out the translators and helpers it would be a disaster. With some pretty serious correction from Ezekiel, his leaders all made their way to their spots with no time to spare. As the kids exited the church for their stations the Kenyan team sluggishly oozed into place as if it might go unnoticed it was past time for them to be there. However it wasn’t two minutes before they were fully engaged. I couldn’t be more proud of the preparation that went into this VBS…crafts of functioning slingshots are in homes all throughout Kilgoris tonight, and glass panes may be in high demand soon, as Chip and Uriah expertly taught them how to use their newly created toy. It was, however, Rachel and April who helped them build the slings across the yard. They completely destroyed Goliath, the hand painted giant we brought from Texas for that very purpose. Faith might have been sad to see her hard work destroyed, but she knew it was worth the enjoyment had by all who got to shoot at him. From there Robert and Brian got them some snacks and they got to hear the gospel. Eventually the Kenyans were almost doing it all in that snack station as Robert and Brian encouraged them to step up and serve not just watch and help. Faith and Mr Felix kept the pages turning as they handled the Bible lesson in the big church sanctuary. David killed Goliath at least four time this afternoon. Faith had never taught four lessons before back to back, she has a new found experience for how draining teaching can be, and how hard it is to keep forty, four and five year olds engaged in a lesson. I attempted to teach the kids a song about David my father sang to me as a boy as I helped Faith a little when she struggled to fill the time, but it was to no good outcome, they couldn’t learn the words.
I could write all night about the days events, and it still wouldn’t do justice to truly describing the day we got to experience. Two Hundred plus kids at a Kenyan VBS with only four stations and eight Americans…you can imagine. It was however very organized and not nearly as chaotic as you might think. Teaching church leaders and encouraging them to look more like Christ. Going into the homes of people so hospitable It shames us Americans and humbles us to see what they sacrifice to follow Jesus in their world. Yes, it was a good day!
I think I’ll sleep well tonight, and I bet the others do as well.
Goodnight friends,
Todd Crabtree
Posted in Africa Updates