The Goat Story

“I’ve got three goats.”

This was the reply of a Masai pastor here in Kenya when GMF’s Kenyan national leader, Joe Michael Kamau, asked him what he had in terms of resources to plant a new church. Joe Michael was talking with the pastor about planting a new church among the Masai people in a rural area of Kenya.

Joe Michael asked him about the preparation he had done for a church-planting campaign. The Masai pastor replied that he had people from his church who were willing to do the evangelism and follow-up discipleship, and he had a man who could pastor the new work, but he was concerned that he didn’t have the resources to host the 16 people Joe Michael was bringing from Nairobi to help conduct the church-planting campaign. The pastor asked Joe Michael how much money he would contribute the campaign to cover the costs for hosting and feeding the workers. Joe Michael returned the question back to him, “What resources do you have for this campaign?” That’s when the Masai pastor told him he had three goats. Joe Michael told him to focus on what the Lord had given him, not what he lacked.

Later as the time for the campaign approached, Joe Michael and the Masai pastor spoke again. The pastor had secured two more goats, totally five for this campaign. He sold two, using those funds to buy wheat to make bread. He found a place for the workers to sleep, and he slaughtered two more goats for meat for the campaigners to eat. He used a plot of land he owned to start the new church on, and on their final campaign meeting day, he slaughtered the fifth goat for a celebratory feast for the workers and the new believers.

Hallelujonga indeed.

I heard this story at lunch today with Joe Michael. There are 65 people attending that “goat church” today. Amazing what happens when we use what the Lord has given us rather than focusing on what we desire.

“Go; behold, I send you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. Carry no money belt, no bag, no shoes;”

 Jesus (Luke 10:3-4)

The Office
We met with a dapper Kenyan attorney today in a quiet office, tucked away from the center of busy Nairobi under large trees and surrounded by blooming hibiscuses. The attorney is guiding GMF through the process of registering as a foreign registered company in Kenya. Apparently Kenyan intelligence has to check out us thoroughly before granting the registration. Then Joe Michael can get the office up and rolling and begin to receive shipments of Evangecubes for distribution throughout the country. The investigators vet these applications for groups using the registration as fronts to funnel money and goods into the country illegally. Please pray for the registration to go smoothly and quickly. This will jumpstart the next level of work for GMF here in Kenya.

Joe Michael is an impressive figure. I’m glad he’s a part of GMF. He appears to be an impassioned man for planting churches, evangelism, and expanding the Lord’s kingdom in Kenya and East Africa in general. Here’s a link to see him.

After lunch we met with the organization that is translating our church-planting training material into Swahili. I thought their approach to translating a document was impressive. First, they have three linguists translate the document individually. Then those three compare, contrast and argue until they’re satisfied the document is translated properly. Pray the Lord will use this training tool in a powerful, multiplicative way in Kenya for years to come.

Random Notes
Shortly before our plane landed last night, Kenya experienced an earthquake. There was no evidence that we saw from the quake; however, apparently a tall building downtown shows cracks now and there was a follow-up tremor today.

High of 75, low of 57. Suffering for Jesus I tell you, suffering.

Pray
For the registration
For the First Steps translation
For Joe Michael Kamau, our Kenya national leader
For our work in Rwanda that begins tomorrow. We particularly need your prayers regarding establishing the right national leadership in that country. Pray also for Curtis, Mike and Steve as they conduct several days worth of trainings in church planting and Evangecube usage.