Love wastefully...

"As you press on for justice, be sure to move with dignity and discipline, using only the weapon of love."

- Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

It’s official; AT and I are currently on the coast in Malindi. The coast of Kenyan is a gorgeous place decorated with palm trees, coastal breezes, and laid-back culture. It has been a great experience so far meeting new people and being pushed out of our comfort zones at times. It has also been quite the rollercoaster experience so far: grappling with the different culture of the coast, heat and mosquitoes, and preaching at different churches. All of the difficulties aside, it has been a great learning experience that I think will prepare us well for everything we will do the final two and half months.

“Brother “Bear”nard (aka Bernard) & Mikindani”: As expected, AT and I arrived in the early hours of Monday morning (4 am) in Mombasa after a long, sleepless night on the bus. But, we were excited to be here. We were picked up by Bernard (pronounced “Bear”nard by himself) and taken to the home of a family in his church in Mikindani. Despite being exhausted and just wanting to sleep, AT and I toughed it through an hour and half of breakfast and meet and greet. Then we went to our lodgings in the hostel…and, passed out. The large fan spinning overhead at turbo speed was our saving grace from the heat and humidity the few days we were in Mikindani. The next few days were a whirlwind of travelling and meeting families/people in the town. It felt like AT and I were on a rollercoaster in the dark: never knowing what the next turn would be or when we would be thrown for a loop. It was quite the experience. Everywhere place we visited, Bernard asked us to pray over the people we met. Many times, the introductions were awkward; but, many times, we learned a lot of valuable information about the area. One day, a few hours before we headed to a different town, “Bear”nard informed us that we would be preaching to a group of pastors. Having not prepared anything to say, we were rushed to figure out what we would be speaking on. I was literally running over my thoughts up to the second I was called up. I introduced myself and AT to the crowd and told them briefly the work we were doing on the coast. Then I jumped right into a talk on Jesus’ call for us to be harvester’s in the harvest field. It actually went better then I ever imagined; I’m still can’t remember most of what I said, but I know I got an emphatic “Amen!” once or twice.

Another time, we talked with a group of children and mothers in a tiny village slum and preached at Bernard’s church. Each time, I spoke about enemy-love and Jesus’ difficult call for us to love wastefully and love those who don’t love us. By love wastefully, I mean loving in spite of others not returning that love; love that seems wasted, on the surface, but it is just an outpour and overflow of the immeasurable love Jesus shows us. You know, those hippy teachings of Jesus in the Bible haha. On top of that, I think I ate more rice and stew than I ever thought possible. Everywhere we went, we ate a meal with the family. It is traditional Kenyan culture, especially on the coast and rural areas, for a family to feed a visitor. Many times, even if the family isn’t well off, they will cook you a very nice meal. But, for some reason, rice and stew was the meal of choice everywhere we went…literally. That said, the rice and stew are pretty delicious, and I quite preferred that to and ugali (a cormeal type dough) or githeri (a mix of beans and maize).

“105 year old Kenyan and a blind preacher”: On the last day we were in Mikindani, we went to have yet another meal with a family. This time, however, we were met with a surprise as we walked back into this tiny village, we were greeted by a man who looked no older than 85 years old, only to find out that he was actually 105! On top of that, we ate dinner with a blind preacher. He was a really neat man. He had the entire bible in brail and was quite the jokester. Even though many times he made jokes in Swahili that I couldn’t always understand, I laughed quite a bit, because his laugh was so distinct. We had a delicious meal with his family. He had the cutest little girl, who had never seen an mzunguu before. She was hesitant to come close at first, but then she warmed up and had a great time giving me and AT high fives. Eventually, she let me pick her up and I would throw her in the air. I have never seen a bigger smile, and she had the cutest laugh. I don’t think she had ever been thrown in the air before. She was addicted! Every time I sat her down, she wanted back up. I obliged. So, I threw her in the air up until the point we had to leave.

“I drank Obama”: I know this sounds like a really ridiculous title…and, it is. But, there is a little story behind it. When we arrived in Malindi, AT and I went to a tiny African restaurant to eat. After perusing the menu for a while, I saw they had several fresh juices. Then, at the top of the juice list in bold letters, was something called “Obama Mix”. I immediatley laughed and then asked what the Obama mix was…I want one. The waitress laughed a little and informed me it was a mix of all of the juices together (Mango, passion, and orange). I enthusiastically replied that I would have to have that, and I would have to have it in a large. It was delicious, and it if the “Obama mix” is any indication of his presidency, it will be delicious, refreshing, and fruity.

“Malindi”: AT and I found a little one room apartment, about the size of closet, that we are living in. It has worked out pretty well so far, but we are going to continue looking for other possibilities. However, the town of Malindi is pleasant little beach town with some great Italian food, beaches, and last but not least churches. We have already met with several pastors (including a Pastor’s fellowship). Each person has been full of information about Malindi and the coast area. However, over and over again when we ask what the Church is doing to reach out to the Islamic community, the answer is always very little. And, when asked why, the answer is always lack of knowledge and know-how. There is a desperate need for love and grace towards the Islamic community on the coast, and a need for the Church to take part in this. Hopefully, as At and I spend more time here, we will find out more ways for the church to get involved in community building activities and ways to love and build relationships with the Islamic community. There are many needs in the Malindi community: poverty, infrastructure, education, and sex tourism.

“Sex tourism”: This has been a shocking and more prevalent side of Malindi’s dark underbelly that we never expected to encounter. Unfortunately, while Malindi has some delicious Italian food, many of the 2,000 Italians that live in the area are perpetrating another terrible and deplorable business: sex tourism. It has been going on for years now, and it has been very difficult to stop. In the basics, many older Italians, men and women, after being divorced, retired, or widowed will move down here because there money goes a lot further. However, it has been twisted into preying on the poor and young (some as young as 9 years old) in the area for sex. It is not uncommon to walk around town and see an older women or older man with a much younger Kenyan hand-in-hand or showing affection (not part of Kenyan culture at all). Additionally, one of the many ways that these people exploit the impoverished and young is to offer to pay for their school fees or food in return for sex. Sadly, this isn’t a difficult way to convince the poor, because of the desperate need for money for school and food. In fact, some poor families will even encourage the practice in order to bring home money for food. Many young Kenyans will hang out near the resorts or on the beach in order to solicit money in turn for sex. It has even sparked a pornography industry. It has really turned into a depraved business that has perpetuated poverty, sexually transmitted disease, and corruption. Little has done little or nothing to end this corruption, because it brings in a valuable tourism industry and money to the country. I tell you this, not to degrade Kenya in any way or point out its faults. Every country and person has faults. Rather, I tell you in order to expose a serious issue that is prevalent throughout many other countries in the world, and to call on the Church and others to act. I ask for your prayers and suggestions for solutions.

On a lighter note, Katie, Ryan, and Lindsey are here for a few days to visit. We had a great day yesterday showing them around town, drinking Obama mix, getting slightly (or a lot) burned at the beach, and eating some delicious dinner. They will be here for a few more days, and we are all looking forward to hanging out and spending some more time together. Also, keep AT, Katie, and me in your prayers as we will be continuing to follow God’s leading in the last few months. Lastly, we are excited to head to Ethiopia for two weeks as we have to leave the country to renew our visas.