Back to School and Oh Goly Ugali

August 7-19

    It has been over two weeks since I have written and I do apologize for the delay. We have been very busy and I have been either in the office or out many days well past dark so the update has taken a back seat several times. There have been lots of great things happening. One very exciting thing was that I had a Zoom meeting with Ryan and Ben and Anne Fisher about the work here in Kenya. Anne came over this year with first 516 missions team and had lots of questions while she was here about missions and the work here. When she returned to the states she and Ben contacted us via email with some very direct questions about the work here. They are seeking the Lord and his direction for their family and they believe that God may be calling them to come along side of us here in Kenya to help specifically with discipleship, ladies training, and Sunday school programs.
    During our zoom meeting we discussed a little bit more in detail about their background and how God has been dealing with them. They are a sweet couple and have three children. The end result of all our conversations is that they will be making a survey trip the end of December and first part of January. Please pray for them as they seek God’s will for their lives. We are super excited about just the possibility of them joining us. No matter if the Fishers come to Kenya ultimately or not it is exciting to see them being sensitive to the Lord and willing to explore the possibilities. I know the Lord has great plans for this family. They are already serving with Aaron Johnson in the Washington, PA church plant and are serving on the local level. Perhaps God is going to use them globally now as well.

    I spent some time this month on our team website trying to make it reflect the current ministry and the future. There are now three families and Ashely here on the field and the Vickers who are here for an internship. We want to use the website as an avenue for all the families to share their ministries and all that God is doing through them. It is an exciting time for East Kenya Missions, God is moving and we want to be in sync with him every step of the way. If you have never been to our website you can Google East Kenya Missions or here is the address http://eastkenyamissions.com/ . From the Website you can see the pages of all the missionaries laboring to reach the Coast and beyond for Christ.
    Web designing proved to be a bit more complicated than I thought. Mrs. Paula Gathings has been helping us keep the site up to date and after working on the site a little I now realize what a blessing it is to have her look after it. I wanted to pull my hair out (if I had any) after the first hour of working on it. Anyhow I think the effort was worth it and we will continue to improve as time goes on.
    We had a couple of meeting with James and Karate about our trip to the Masai that we had planned. We had to cancel the trip with the Land Rover going down but we still helped James and Karate make the trip so they could see their families. It was a bit disappointing but I know the Lord had a plan and we filled the time in with plenty of other work.
    There was a pretty big back to school Bash on the 9th. It was an end of summer start of school party. We had games, snacks, a cook out and lots of fun! The sack races were a highlight second only to the pie the teacher in the face! Our kids and the Vickers kids seemed to have a good time playing the games and all of us adults got in on the action as well.

 

    Brother Mike and I made a trip out to Gandini on the 10th to see the Gandini Landmark Baptist Church. The church numbers are down compared to the past but they were meeting and by the end of services there were a few people present. Brother Mike preached and did a good job. We had a brief meeting after services to talk about how the church was doing and to encourage them. After we finished Mike and I went back to Mzee Philips and spent the rest of the day visiting and waiting for lunch. When one of the kids came in with a live chicken and Jonathan went out with it and a knife we knew we were going to be staying for a while. We really had a good time just sitting and talking. We even took a walk down to see Mzee Philip’s fields that were ready for harvest. Praise the Lord the folks in Gandini and Singuaya will get a good harvest this year!
    A highlight of the day was Mike shoving his hand down into the molten lava hot ugali and then trying to fling it off. He described it as Napalm on his fingers. Everyone had a little laugh once Mike recovered. We did not get home until nearly eight but it was a good day in the village. I spoke with Alfonse on the way home a little about his plans to meet with the church in the middle of the week about starting a work in Mjomboni. I was feeling pretty good about the day until I heard about some things that happened in Malindi. There were several small things that all together raised a little concern. I eventually just had to set it aside to pick it back up on Tuesday when I was back in the office.

    I did get the chance to meet with Nicholas about the things that were of concern on Sunday. I went to the Thursday night Bible study in Malindi, where they asked me to teach, and met with Nicholas afterwards. We met for a good two hours before I headed home. I was very happy with the spirit my concerns were met with and I think it was a big help to Nicholas. A lot of his problems are just inexperience and fear of making a mistake. It was a good and productive meeting.
    Mike, Christy, and their children are all doing well. Christy and the kids are doing home school for the first time ever but they seem to be surviving. It is a good opportunity for them during their internship to experience what home school will be like since here in Malindi that is really the only viable option. Christy chose to teach her children herself rather than put them with our children and Ashley. This was and is a big step for her. Please pray for Christy and the kids as they experience all the “joys” of home schooling.
    Kenya and I have had several opportunities to speak with Mike and Christy about various things as they continue to work through their calling. They are both trying hard and seeking the Lord. It has been a great joy to work with them so far. We are trying hard to share our experiences and anything that we have been taught along the way. Three hours of Language classes twice a week have been added on for Mike and Christy as well as one hour for their kids. This is another aspect of experiencing life here on the field. Everyone is trying hard and it is encouraging to see them using what they are learning.
    Mike, Christy, Ashley, Kenya, and I continue to meet every morning before school starts for prayer and to listen and discuss a book we are reading. It is a great way to start the day together and the teaching we are getting is awesome. We all miss Clayton and Lindsey but we are staying in touch with them while they are in language school. 
    We had Bible Institute classes on Saturday the 16th which requires some study time. I had brother Mike start us off with a lesson in the morning then we went right into our study on the Pauline Cycle. It was such a good day of studying. The men were getting it and getting excited about the future. I spent time while we were studying to cast vision a little as well of what the future could look like. It was just a great day of class. We ended by going right into Bible study with the Malindi church. I finished up some lessons that I have been teaching on Security of the believer.
    Elly came in from Miritini to attend classes with us as well as to talk with the Malindi church about Beatrice and James Wedding. Beatrice was a member of Malindi but she moved to Mazeras and she started attending the church in Miritini. I baptized her back in 2009 along with her sister who still attends our church when she is not off at college in Nairobi. Beatrice’s wedding planning has been going on for some time and the church in Malindi is working together with the church in Miritini to do the wedding. I have been working with Elly and Brother Walter Matete in Nairobi on the marriage certificate details. Everything is coming together and it was good for Elly to come in for class and to meet with the church about the details of the wedding.
    In the middle of this past week I had a quite lengthy conversation with Alfonse about Magangani and Mjomboni. Pray for Alfonse and the church in Magangani. They really have a great opportunity but Alfonse still is dragging his feet a little. I am trying to be patient and gently encourage Alfonse as he shares his heart. I need wisdom as we are getting close to a second generation of churches to start from the existing churches. It is exciting and I want to help the current churches and pastors as they step out. Pray for Mjomboni I really believe Alfonse will do a great work there.
    We attended services this week here in Malindi so we could fellowship with Elly. Geofry asked me to teach Sunday School so I started a new section in our discipleship material. Elly preached the morning message and did a great job. There were a slew pot of Masai in the services. One of the regular visiting Masai brought three new Masai men to the service. There were also several other visitors in the service. God has blessed the Malindi church with a multi tribal congregation. Pray for Nicholas as he and Ricklynn lead the church. They are doing great job. Oh and there was a baptism this week!

    I saved the best for last, well maybe not the best news but it is up there. The Land Rover is fixed! It is running like a dream! A thirty-five hundred dollar dream but whose counting…It has a completely new overhauled engine. New pistons, new rings, new rocker arms, new Turbo charger, new clutch, new pressure plate, new BLAHH… We have pretty much replaced all the major components over the past few months. The steering box is new and the fuel pump is new. The only thing that has not been replaced is the gearbox. Anyhow the important thing is that it is running smoothly and hopefully this work will take it through for several more years until we can raise the funds to replace it. We estimate it to take about 35,000 greenbacks to get a newer Land Rover. Until we can afford a newer one we have the next best thing, a rebuilt one. Please pray that the rebuild will hold up. The breakdowns have interrupted much work and many trips we have had planned.

   

Prayer for Burn

 Prayer Request

     Please pray for Juma’s daughter Neema she fell on Sunday into the fire and got seriously burned. They have taken her to the doctor and are treating her. She was burned on her knee and upper thigh. It looks super painful and she is so little. Pray for Mercy and Juma as they tend to these wounds. My heart breaks for them as I can only imagine her screaming when they have to clean and dress them.

July Report 2014

“Our vision is to be a ministry of eternal significance that impacts the cause of Christ through the advancement and multiplication of His churches.”

516 Missions Team 2

         We had an awesome time with the second 516 Missions team while God did amazing things. The team was reduced in number as a result of questions concerning security, but I think it only strengthened the resolve of those who came. With the team that came in, plus those of us on the ground, our team was 26 strong, not counting the nationals that labored with us. This team was unified and energized when they hit the ground running. 

Malindi Canvasing

       The team spent their first weekend with us working at First LBC, Malindi. Our ground team and the church members were able to distribute 4000 Swahili John and Romans stuffed with tracts and an invitation to the church.  It was awesome to see the teams going out in every direction, joyfully armed with the gospel. After working together we all enjoyed a meal provided by the church and had worship services with preaching to top the day off. On Sunday morning we were able to attend the worship service and see some fruit from our efforts.

Basketball Camp/Revival  

We spent four nights in the village at the Singuaya LBC. During the day we put on a basketball camp at Garashi Secondary School and held revival meetings every night at the church.  Teaching basketball skills and the rules of the game was fun but our primary goals were spiritual. Every student went through the Bible station and heard a clear presentation of the gospel. They also heard the gospel at the various drill stations through the colored bracelets that illustrated the gospel. Last but not least every student received a Swahili Bible and English New Testament. At the Camp we had 54 accept Jesus as Savior!

Every evening after Basketball Camp, we would hold revival meetings at the church. We had singing and two messages each night. We closed out the revival meeting with a showing of the Jesus film in Giriama, the local language. There were 40 people saved after the cinema! All the names of those saved were given to the Singuaya church, so they can follow up and continue to help the new believers. God did an amazing work in Singuaya!  

Vickers Family and Ashley Johnston

On the Ground

   The Vickers family arrived this month for a 4-month internship as the next step in preparations to be in Kenya full time. Please pray for them as they serve in this capacity. Missionary Helper Ashley Johnston also arrived this month and will be with us for the next year teaching our children and ministering with us.

James Taylor PO Box 811 Malindi, Kenya 80200

Phone 011-254-713289014 missionarytaylor@gmail.com

 

TAYLOR TRIBE 

We managed to cram a lot into this month.  In the midst of preparations we squeezed in a Fourth of July celebration with our friends from Mombasa, built the kids a clubhouse, and the ladies of Malindi went to Mama Esther’s house for an African baby shower.  The July 4^th cookout was a nice break before the group came.  The kids saved their allowance to buy materials for an African style clubhouse.  We had fun building it together.  And the baby shower was fun as usual with singing, scripture, sodas, and sweet fellowship.  I really wasn’t trying to alliterate that, but it works. 

The team was amazing.  Like James said, they had such a unity of heart, their time with us flowed smoothly.  When they left I felt more refreshed than exhausted.  During the camp my station was with the ladies of Singuaya preparing food.  They didn’t need a translator this year in the Bible station because the school uses English.  The ladies of the church are a true joy to be around.  They are eager to learn the word of God and have a heart to serve others.  On Wednesday night Abigail and Lydia came down with high fevers, so by midmorning on Thursday the kids and I were packing up our things to head back to Malindi.  We left James and the team in the hands of the well capable ladies of the church.  By the time we got to Malindi, Josiah, Abigail, and Lydia all 3 had fevers of 103 and 104.  They had really bad respiratory infections but after some antibiotics they were on the mend.  We hated to leave everyone, but it gave us time to get the houses back in order and prepare to receive the team after their week in the village. 

            We are excited to have the Vickers join us for four months.  The kids are super excited to have some friends to play with.  Mary was the quietest intern we have had so far.  She is a very sweet gal.  We really enjoyed having her.  I can’t explain how excited I am to have another teacher and this time for a whole year.  Ashley has great plans.  We have already been having fun getting things in the schoolroom ready.  Lindsey has just been an awesome addition to the team.  I love how easy going she is.  The kids have already fallen in love with her.  Samuel even said so himself.  The night before they left for language school, I had the kids say goodbye.  Samuel gave her a hug, then came to me and said, “Would you just tell her I love her?”  I asked, “Now?”  And he said, “No, in the morning when she leaves.”  It was the sweetest thing. 

            This month has just been good and encouraging and we are overflowing.

            Thanks for reading and praying!      

 

Cha-Ching

July 30-August 6

    It has been a busy week. The last week of the month and/or the first week of the month there is necessary time spent working on monthly reports and finances. This month has been particularly busy with helping everyone get their reports put together. Clayton, Mike, and Ashley all had mission and finance reports to write. I spent several hours working with everyone this week formatting and sorting out categories. It has been a lot of fun and a lot of work but it is great when everyone gets out a report that looks good and represents their ministries well.
    Mike, Christy and their children are doing great with their internship. They are very helpful and are starting to get into a little bit of a flow of daily life. We meet daily to discuss the day’s events and spend some time listening to and discussing books. Kenya and I are very grateful for the opportunity to share in the beginnings of their ministry and to try and help them. Mike has done some awesome projects already and continues to build and fabricate things that we need. He even taught SS this week when we attended services at Magangani. Pray for Christy and the kids as they are preparing this month for their first time to do Home School. It is a lot of pressure since it’s all new.
    We have heard a few times from Clayton and Lindsey and they are doing great in Language school. Although Lindsey was a little sick, she is doing better. Clayton said they took their first test and he felt like they did well. Please continue to pray for them as they study. We are so excited for Clayton and Lindsey both for this chance to be together and grow in the culture as well as closer together. Clayton said that almost no one in town speaks English so they are being emerged in Swahili! I have to admit we miss them already. We had gotten used them being next door but we will see them soon for the International Missionary retreat the end of this month.
    Ashley continues to work on getting things ready for school as the kids’ summer begins to dwindle away. They are all having a great time playing but at the same time there is some excitement about starting up, even though they would never admit it. Ashely and Kenya have completely reorganized and redone the school room. We plan to have a big back to school party at the end of this week.

    We went to Bible study in Malindi on Saturday this week again because I will probably not get another chance to be with them for a couple months, at least on Saturday. Mike and I sat down this week and I put together our schedule for the next two months.  It is pretty busy especially on the weekends. The Bible study was really good I answered a question that was asked last week and it took our entire time. We were asked about Moses seeing the glory of God and if it was possible to see God and live. The questions were really good and I spent a few hours studying this week to prepare an answer. We all had a great time learning together, there was a really good turn out. Kenya had Bible study with the ladies and taught them how to make Corn cakes on a griddle.

    Thursday Mike and I spent most of the day in the Gede area visiting Juma, Daniel, and Alfonse. Juma asked us to come by and visit with him to talk about his future and the church in Magangani. It was a good visit. We got to see his new little one. she is so cute and round. We also spent a few hours with Daniel just talking and visiting with his family. We received word that Alfonse was sick so we passed by his place to check on him and to pray for him. We planned to go to church in Magangani to see how the church is doing and to give them a chance to share any concerns.    

    When we went to church on Sunday at Magangani it was a little disheartening because Alfonse texted and said that he was not going be at church. Then when we got to church we found out that several members were sick and that one of the church members was killed the day before. All of that of course affected the attendance and put a damper on meeting with the church after services. I did speak to some of the men about Alfonse’s plans to to start a work in Mjomboni and for them to discuss it as a church to make plans for the future if Alfonse does go to Mjomboni. Brother Mike taught Sunday School and I preached the morning message. It was a good service.After service we passed by Alfonse’s to pray with him again and share with him how the services went.
    We had planned to be in Ole Tuktuk, Masai country,  this week visiting James’ family and Karate’s family but…. the Land Rover…that is all I have to say these days to get a twitch in my eye. Yes the Land Rover is in the shop again. This time it is at our normal shop and is getting a complete engine overhaul. They opened the engine up because it was making an awful racket that ended up being a broken rocker arm (not good). I told Fritz at the shop just do it…what ever it needs we just need it running. He said they would do it for as cheap as they could. I went by the shop yesterday and they gave me the prognosis. Complete overhaul of the engine and a new clutch and pressure plate. chaa $$ ching $$

    The good news is that after this job we will have a new Engine and Clutch. We have already of recent put on a new Fuel Pump and a new steering box the only thing that we have not put on new is a gear box. I need to put new tires on it when we get it back from the over haul so pretty much it will be a new vehicle. We need to start raising funds to for a new Land Rover. This one should be fine for a little while with all the money and work that has been put into it but it is still going to have problems that older vehicles have. A 2011 Land Rover that has been newly imported and not driven on the Kenyan roads yet would cost about $35,000 any newer would only add to that cost. Please pray with us about this need. In order to get to places we currently minister and especially places that we would like to minister a tough 4x4 that is dependable is a must.
    We rescheduled the trip to the Masai for next week after we get the Land Rover back. Pray for this trip because we will be meeting James’ family and sharing the gospel with them. We plan to show the Jesus film in Masai language to James’ and Karate’s family. Please pray for the Ole Tuktuk area that God will raise up Masai men that will establish churches and preach the gospel. We have the privilege here in the Malindi church to minister to a large group of Masai from the Ole Tuktuk area.
    Friday night family night we had Muppets night!  The kids and the ladies all put on puppet shows and the kids bought items from the Yo Mama’s Munchie Mart concession stand. Then we watched the newest Muppet movie. It was a fun evening. Then on Saturday we celebrated Kenya’s 35th birthday and there was a little fire hazard with all the flames.  : )