July 10, 2008

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

In I Kings 19 we read the story of God visiting Elijah. If you remember the story, you know that Elijah experienced a "great and strong wind", an earthquake, and fire. The Bible says the Lord was not in the wind, the earthquake, or the fire, but visited Elijah with a "still, small voice." Well, I sure hope God visits His people even in the whirlwind, when the earth is quaking, and when there are multiple fires to put out, because that's where we currently find ourselves.

Since the last week of language school, life has been a whirlwind of activity - preparing to leave Tanzania, the trip through Nairobi and then on to Kitale, learning where things are and how they work in Kitale, learning to drive, visiting the churches and meeting the people, moving out on our own and learning to live and take care of ourselves in Africa. While I know that God visited Elijah in a still, small voice, I also know He has been with us through the wind, earthquake, and fire. We have had some difficulties and we don't have a clue what we're doing yet and everything is new to us. It's like I've been reborn and I have to learn everything anew, from driving to talking and from shopping to eating (better make sure you filter that water, wash those fruits and vegetables in chemicals, and cook that meat properly).

On top of all I've said above, we have the task of trying to know our new culture and how the Kenyan people think. I'm just beginning to understand the vast differences between American and African thought patterns. I'll give you two examples. First, I'm currently reading a book entitled African Friends and Money Matters. About a third of the way through the book I took it in frustration to Julie and said, "I don't know if I can read this book." The book tries to describe how Africans think about and use money. It is so vastly different from the way I think about and use money that it seems absolutely and completely backwards. However, reading the book has made me question some of the money practices in our own culture and has shown me that in many ways, the African way of using money is more Biblical than mine, especially in their generosity towards friends and those in need and their refusal to hoard and amass possessions. Second, I was in a meeting with Mike and the Kenyan pastors and the subject of canvassing the areas around the churches was brought up. In the States, when you canvass an area and nobody is at home at a particular house, you simply leave some information about your church and a gospel tract at the door for them to read later. This usually doesn't cause any problems (unless someone wants to be belligerent). However, the Kenyan pastors informed us that leaving information at a house where nobody was currently at home was a bad idea. Why? Because the people will be suspicious of you and the church, will associate you with other organizations and groups, combine your information with others, and ultimately could accuse you of devil worship. This obviously is a problem. It all sounds crazy to me and probably you as well, but they all agreed this is true.

God has so much to teach us "newbie" missionaries. We want so much to reach these people with the love and gospel of Jesus Christ. We want to see many of them saved and joyful in Jesus Christ and churches organized. It still seems an impossible task and apart from the working of God's Holy Spirit, it is. However, you know what Jesus said: "with God all things are possible". Please continue to pray with us that God would be pleased to do these things in East Africa, even through our weaknesses. May God's peace and joy be with you.

For the glory of God in East Africa,

Roger and Julie Tate (and Emily, Amy & Josiah)