My other blog

It feels odd, almost unatural, but from now on I will be posting on my regular blog. I love this blog, and it feels very sad to shut it down for a while. Hopefully I can keep up the writing on my other blog.

I must say that there will be a lack of interesting stories to tell now that I am back home, but I will try my hardest to make it worth spending any time on.

You can get to my personal blog by clicking here. ENJOY

Home

I am sorry that this is my first post in two weeks.  This will probably be my last post on this blog for a while, considering that I am done with my time in Kenya for a while.  I am mostly posting this to tell you all that I am home safe, and very happy.  Thank you so much for reading my blog, and having an interest in my journey in Kenya.  

If you see me around I would love to talk to you about my trip.  I hope to see all of you soon, so that I can thank you in person

Peace in Christ,

Chris 

Saying goodbye

It is always hard to say goodbye. It has been especially hard for me to think about saying goodbye to Kenya for a while. I know that it is going to be so difficult to say goodbye to the kids and amazing friends that I have met here. Although that is true, I think that the hardest thing to say goodbye to is this chapter in my life. When I left for Kenya in July I ended that chapter of my life, in fact I feel like I ended a volume of my life, and once I got here I began the first chapter on the next volume. I know that this “volume” of my life is going to be very different then the rest of my life, and closing the first chapter to move onto the next, very uncertain one, is scary. All my life I have hated change, and for me to move here was hard enough, but now having to get ready to pack up and move on again leaves a pit in my stomach. I know that all I can do is prayerfully move on, and have faith in the LORD.

Tonight we went over to the Oasis girl’s house, the last time for me, so that we could enjoy a nice dinner with the girls and their “mama”. I know I have already expressed my love for these girls, but I could never tell you enough how happy, and refreshed these girls make me. Every one of them has a smile that lights up the room, and makes me want to make them laugh for eternity. There is nothing in my life that brings me more joy then laughter, and that is so true when I am with these girls. This was Andrews first time at an Oasis house for dinner, and as always he dove right in, and made an immediate connection with the girls. I am so excited for Andrew to make his life here in Kitale for a while; he is going to do so much good for the children and people of this town.

This is what I look like after a day in Kitale.

Teach me...

Considering that I am leaving my life here in Kenya soon I have been thinking a lot about the future. Now to say that I have been thinking about the future is the broadest statement that I could possibly make, so to narrow it down for you, I have mostly been thinking about my future in Kenya. I know that this will not be the last time that I am in Kenya, in fact I have been asking God whether or not he wants me to spend more time here, and I am getting a firm…well to be honest I am not sure. If I had my choice I know that I will be back, and I am almost positive that the LORD will direct me back here, but I really don’t know. I realize that some people who are reading this are so appalled thinking that I may never come back, but I can almost assure you that my life in Kenya is not over, all I am saying is that I don’t really know how things will pan out.

Today at Oasis I was teaching a little math to the kids. I am not exactly a math wiz by any standard, but I can handle a little conversion of fractions into decimals, especially when their denominator is 100 (see what I did there). As my lesson went on I realized why teachers do what they do, even If they get stiffed financially. There is a joy in having a child understand something that he didn’t before, a joy that you can’t really get from doing anything else in life. I am not some amazing teacher, in fact I think most of the time I may misinform the children, but today one of the students really understood something that he hadn’t before, all because of my explanation. So now I understand why teachers put up with bratty students, absurd parents, overbearing administration, terrible wages and sometimes ridicules standards. So I dedicate this blog post to anyone who has ever tried to teach a child something that they didn’t understand before (like that dedication actually means anything, but hey).

Visitor...

There is something about having a visitor come and stay with you for a while that makes everything new and refreshing. This morning at three I picked Andrew up at the bus station in town. In Reality I went there at three, and the bus didn’t get in until 5, so I sat on a curb in the cold, dark African night waiting for my friend to arrive. Anyways, having him here makes everything so new because I get to share in all of his feelings as he experiences life in Kenya for the first time. I want to just tell him everything that I have learned and observed over the past four months but I know that I just have to let him experience it, just like I did.




In my life I have been learning that it is important to be renewed in everything that I do on a daily basis. As I have stated before, my mind is an ever-constant thought heap, which makes things become dull quicker then they should. Sometimes (more like most of the time) I take for granted the opportunity that God has given me here, and watching Andrew experience all of it makes me remember that this was a call from God, and not just a whim decision.

Today we went to Oasis like usual on Tuesdays, and, like usual, I had a great time. I love these kids so much, and I have felt for the first time, that they do generally care about me as well, which feels good.

Time is winding down for me here in Kenya, and the more I think about the more my emotions spiral out of control. I can’t wait to see everyone I love back home and move on to the next chapter of God’s plan for me, but I can’t help but think about how much Kitale has become my home. I was in my room today and I thought to myself, “I am moving soon.” Now it may not sound like much, but at that moment the difference between the words leaving and moving really struck me. I am not just “leaving” Kenya I am actually “moving” away from my life that God has created here.

For know I pray that God would give me a new perspective everyday, and renew me in everything that I do. I pray that the Lord would continue to guide me and that he would reveal himself to me in everyone that I meet. But most of all I pray that God would have his hand over the suffering, giving the peace and revealing his love to them.