Celebrations and Preparations

June 7-June 12

I cannot believe that three has passed by but it has and there was so much that happened. I will try to hit the highlights and put in a lot of pictures. The first of the 516 Missions teams has come and gone leaving behind one intern and two new missionaries. We are so excited to have Mary Mickler with us this summer as our intern and Clayton and Lindsey Howell are now on the ground in Africa.
    I had a whirl wind trip to Nairobi the beginning of the month to pick up Lydia’s new passport. I flew to Nairobi took a taxi to get the passport and flew back to Malindi all in one long day. Crazy but it was better using one day rather then driving and staying in Nairobi and using three days to accomplish the task.
    The Land Rover is now in another shop here in Malindi and still is not fixed. I do not want to write much about it because it causes my blood pressure to go up. Kleopus' buddy was not able to fix the Land Rover and really just goofed it up more. I know Kleopus felt bad but I told him that all he could do was walk away from the job and let me take it somewhere else. It has been some where else now for almost two weeks and still is not done I am at a loss as to what to say or do with the Land Rover please pray for the Land Rover and for us to find a good mechanic that can get the job done and done right. We had to do the entire 516 team trip without the Land Rover and it all was fine but…Blah!
    We celebrated Josiah’s 13th birthday on June 8 and my 38th birthday on June 7th. It is hard to believe Josiah is officially a teenager!

 We also took Sadie out for a special dinner before the team arrived to celebrate her time with us. The kids all gave her letters and Kenya made her a scrapbook with all her pictures from the trip. It was a nice dinner and good time with Sadie.

    There was a lot of time and effort invested by Kenya, Sadie, and I on preparing for the first 516 teams arrival. There was cleaning, planning, and repairing in anticipation of their arrival. I also had a meeting to settle our location for the second 516 team in Singuaya at the Garashi secondary school. We have been formally welcomed by the school.

    The rest of the time really was spent with the first 516 Team working and visiting with all seven of the churches. This was a launch for me back into the field and we had a great time and stayed super busy. The team arrived on Friday morning June 20 after getting stuck in Nairobi for the night. Josiah and I had gone to Mombasa on Thursday to pick the team up but ended up in a hotel room until Friday morning. Once we picked up the group there was no looking back we jumped right into work.

Land Rover Woes

Another week has zoomed by and we are getting close to the summer rush and team additions. There is so much going on the rest of the year,  I anticipate God is going to do a great work through everyone involved. Clayton and Lindsey will be arriving in a week along with Mary Mickler, our intern for the summer and two other 516 mission trippers. The Vickers family will arrive on July 2 and the second 516 missions team with Ashley Johnston on July 10 so we are busy planning and preparing for everyone’s arrival.

            This week there was much done in the office. We had the normal reports, finances, and correspondence along with the summer planning. I was able to put together my calendar for the next two months. I do not want to miss Bible Institute classes so I want to be sure and put them in our open spaces now, so that we can continue with our studies and not have gaps when we do not meet.  I also looked over schedules and itineraries for the interns and summer teams. Making calls and preparing the churches for the teams is a big task. Kenya takes care of all the housing and food things with the groups so that is a huge help.

            The Land Rover refurbishing project has proven to be a big task and so far unsuccessful. Kleopus has been overseeing the work done on it and taking to the various fundis. The engine has been overhauled, interior redone, and the exterior repainted. It looks sharp but some of the repairs were not done right so I spent a full day this week working on it with Josiah to try and sort out some issues. Oh they also painted our trailer to match the Land Rover! I thought everything was good to go until I drove to Gede today and it overheated and DIED on me again. 

            I was very disappointed to say the least but I did not allow it to get to me. I called Kenya and Kleopus to come. I was able to find one issue that attributed to the problem but I am still not sure if it is the main problem or not. I left it once again with Kleopus. Please pray for the Land Rover to be fixed and to run well. We depend on it. I was trying to go to Timboni today to visit with Daniel and Juma to talk about the church in Jimba and about Juma’s future plans. I guess the Lord had other plans.

      

            There are several projects around the house here that need attention and one of them was our garage. I spent one full day trying to get the garage all in order. What I tend to do with the garage is run in and get what I need done at that moment then run out leaving small messes until the messes are so big I can not find anything I need and I am forced to do something about all the little messes. In this instant every tool was out of place and stuff was just strung out everywhere from me just go go going. Anyhow the garage is now in working order and ready for the summer rush. We will actually be able to find tools that we will need and use the garage.

            I ran to Miritini to have classes on Friday this past week but we ended up just talking and doing some planning. I did do an hour and half of teaching because the guys all had work that they need to go to in the afternoon. It was a very productive and good time of fellowship. We are planning to be in Bokole to do some teaching and put a roof on while the 516 Missions team 1 is here. We will also spend a day teaching and fellowshiping with the Miritini church.

            Big news this week is that the Malindi church called Nicholas as pastor and Ricklynn as his assistant. This is a huge step for the church and huge relief for me. This will now enable me to visit all the other churches to encourage them and to focus on being a missionary not a missionary and pastor. It has been a good year with Malindi but the price has been steep. Pray for me as I get back in the field with the other churches we are working with, as well as wisdom as to where to begin new works. Initially I plan to spend a few months encouraging and reconnecting with our other six churches. I also want to focus on the Bible Institute because it is the key to raising up leadership. There are several areas north of Malindi that I believe we could begin working in the near future. Pray for the Malindi church and Nicholas as they move forward. Also pray again for wisdom as we strengthen the churches and preach the Gospel in new areas. I believe that the first 516 missions team will be the spring board to launch me back into the field as we visit all the churches with the first team and do teaching and visit face to face. 

      Kleopus came by this evening and apparently when we had the overheating in Singuaya we blew the Head Gasket. The overheating in Singuaya was because the Fundi put super glue on the engine to cover a hole in the water system which did not hold...Obviously.  Kleopus feels  terrible because he recommended the fundi and a small mistake has become a big problem. I assured him that I knew he was trying to help and that we were together. The bottom line is the we need  a new head gasket and the head needs to be checked to be sure it is not warped or damaged. I guess I am not supposed to go to Singuaya this weekend. Again pray for the Land Rover to be repaired properly and quickly.       

     Rickylynn and Mama Esther had their baby today! They have a a healthy baby boy, Bradley Mjanja.  Apparently last night while Ricklynn was here at work Mama Esther was in labor but Ricklynn's phone was not working. This morning when it was time to leave he saw all the messages on his phone and he ran straight home. As you can imagine Mama Esther was not happy, but there was no time to fuss and they went straight to the hospital. Kenya, Sadie, and mama Cedrick went to see the baby this evening.  Kenya said he is big and has a lot of hair. I am so excited for Ricklynn that he has a son now. 

            Let me share a few personal matters. First of all I did my two year lab work from the kidney donation and everything came back good. I think health wise I am doing great. I have put on about 25 pounds in the past six months and am working out regularly which helps with dealing with stress. Kenya and the kids are all doing well. Kenya has irregular blood pressure and had to adjust her medicines this month because she has been working out which caused her to have to reduce one of the meds, a good thing, but she has to watch it so she doesn't have migraines again. The kids all finished school up for the year and were super excited. Sadie did an amazing job this semester. We are going to miss her so much when she goes back to the states with the first 516 missions team. 

Our families back in the states seemed to be stable at the moment. My brother got married this past weekend and we are super excited for him. I was not able to be there for the wedding but we were able to send a nice gift. 

            This weekend Josiah will be 13 years old. We will have our first teenager in the house. Please pray for Josiah, he is doing well, but he is really longing for friendship. This last year Josiah lost Richard who was his best friend and up until now he really does not have any guy friends. He and I have really been bonding and I am so happy about that. He has been helping work around the house and we work out together but I understand it is not the same as having boys his age. He has asked me several times this week to check his email because he is hoping some of his friends he emails with will tell him happy birthday. So far no one has written and it just pains me in the gut, not because of the kids not writing, they are kids, just the longing that Josiah has. I know the Lord will give Josiah grace, but as a parent it is tugging at my heart I want Josiah to be happy… Kenya and I say this all the time but the gut sigh and heart pain knowing that Josiah has emotional cravings that are being unmet make it all too true, that we are in a new phase of life. One thing that is certain in life is change. Through living on the other side of the world from home in a third world culture it takes another twist.  Pray for our kids and for Kenya and I that we will have wisdom. The summers are always good because the kids love the visitors but… it also means saying a lot of good-byes. Blah… just typing and sharing… Did I mention we do not have water again… anyhow Good times! 

          

May 2014 Monthly Report

“Our vision is to be a ministry of eternal significance that impacts the cause of Christ through

 the advancement and multiplication of His churches.”

May 2014

Nairobi Trip

     We went to Nairobi the end of April and the beginning of May for about a week. We were able to renew Lydia’s passport, which was about to expire. We also went in search of a new vehicle. Our old van has been good but after six years on these roads it was time for a replacement. We purchased a “New”  2006 Nissan Caravan. “New” here means it is a fresh import from Japan and has not been run on the local roads. We are very excited about the new vehicle.

         We were also able to visit with Ernie and Cissy Hopper (Granny and Babu) before they left to go on furlough. We had several meals and outings with Ernie and Cissy while we were in town. It was so good to catch up and to just be together. The Hoppers have been so influential on how we do ministry and how we live here in Kenya. They helped lay a foundation for living and thriving, and we love them so much. 

 

 

  While we were in Nairobi we took some time to show Sadie a few of the sites since it was her first trip to Nairobi. We went to the Rift Valley, the first tea farm in Kenya, the Elephant orphanage, and of course little India. We also made sure to eat at Kentucky Fried Chicken and Subway.  In my opinion two of the best reasons to visit Nairobi now! 

  We had a pretty good trip and accomplished a lot in a short period of time. We also enjoyed the cool weather and break from the heat of the coast. When we returned to the coast the rains had come bringing cooler temps so it was a nice transition.

 

Bible Institute

          I was able to meet with the Malindi and Gede students in the Bible Institute this past month for classes on Missions. We used one of the videos from the ABA media project for one day of classes. John Wanyonyi, missionary to South Sudan, was the instructor, and he did a great job teaching. I taught the second day introducing the Pauline Cycle of Indigenous church planting. The classes went very well, and the men are excited about the continuation of the lessons.

         I was able also to meet with the students in Singuaya and Miritini; but we mainly talked about scheduling, and I answered questions that some of the men had. In Singuaya the questions centered around marriage and in Miritini around missions. The meetings were both good. 

 

Ladies Seminar

   Kenya taught a ladies seminar in Singuaya this month on marriage and the wife’s role in the home. The ladies were so excited that Kenya and Sadie came.  The trip getting to them and the entire day was a bit crazy with breakdowns, spoiled food, and stuck vehicles; but at the end of the day everyone was blessed. The ladies in Singuaya have a sincere desire to learn, and Kenya was so encouraged and burdened when the classes were over. 

 

James Taylor PO Box 811 Malindi, Kenya 80200

Phone 011-254-713289014 missionarytaylor@gmail.com

 

Taylor Tribe

     This month was a bit less hectic even with a trip to Nairobi in the mix.  The trip to Nairobi was bitter sweet.  Nairobi is nice for the cooler weather, restaurants, and most of all visiting Ernie and Cissy.  But the traffic is killer.  Every time we wanted to go somewhere it was 2 hours in the car minimum.  That doesn’t make for happy and content children.  Nonetheless we were able to enjoy visiting with Granny and Babu, who took the kids to a really cool place similar to Chuck E. Cheese.  Cissy usually does an Easter egg hunt for the kids, but this year we didn’t make it; and since they were leaving she had to pack up all her stuff.  Usually she saves her change and puts it in their Easter eggs, but this year she just divided it into bags for each of the kids to spend at the Fun Games Center.  We not only visited and had a good time with the Hoppers, but Cissy also sent us home with about 10 boxes of goodies from her pantry.  It was like Christmas.  They have been so good to us, and we truly treasure their friendship.  They will be home on furlough for the next year. Ernie and Cissy have been faithfully serving the Lord in Kenya for almost 30 years.  If you get the chance to host them while they are home, you won’t be disappointed.  Cissy is one of the best storytellers I know, and she has invaluable experience and knowledge of life on the mission field.  And Ernie has got some stories to make even the toughest stomach churn, the hardest heart tear up, and can even get in a little prank or two while he’s at it.  I thank the Lord for their example of longevity and faithfulness. 

            James and I celebrated our 16^th wedding anniversary this month as well.  I think back to junior high, twenty something years ago, when my parents first took notice of James.  Although at the time I was not a fan, they loved him and would say, “Oh we can see it now, Preacher James and his singing wife Kenya.”  Who knew my parents were prophets.  I’m thankful they took notice, and eventually I did too.  I couldn’t ask for a more godly man of integrity. 

            I had a really good time teaching the ladies in Singuaya this month.  They have been asking me to come for a long time, and now that I am free from homeschooling I was able to prepare for some classes.  The whole day was really a mess, except for the teachings.  The car broke down 3 times, and the food was nearly spoiled by the time we get there.  Not to mention, the 50 lbs. of rice I cooked was not thoroughly cooked.  By the time we made it to the church it was time for lunch.  The ladies were so gracious.  They said the lentils were only starting to spoil and the rice was fine.  They would just eat it and thank the Lord for it.  So we did.  At the end of the day all we could do was laugh at the atrocities and praise the Lord for the most important part--the teaching of God’s Word.  The food was bad, the car broke down, but Thank God for His unfailing Word!

            The kids are doing well finishing up school.  They have had some friends over from the church a couple of times.  And they found a new pet in the yard.  So the newest member of the pet family is Rango, the chameleon.  They have had tons of fun with him.  

            Now that I type all this out I realize we have had quite a month.  And in all of it I am overwhelmed at God’s goodness.  He truly is so good to us!  Thanks for reading and praying!