Over the past month, God has been showing me so many things. Some of what He's teaching me has taken the whole month to make me accept and understand. One such lesson is the meaning of "mission" and what it really means to be doing mission work. For my entire life, I've understood missions to be solely going and preaching the gospel to people. This is our command from scripture but I had a skewed view of how we are to carry out the command. I've come to realize that missions is also about going and loving people, that they may know the love Christ through our love for them and investing in their lives. Spending time with the people here, especially the children, I'm learning the importance of investing in people's lives, establishing relationships with them and sharing Christ with them while also relating to them personally and on a deeper level. We see in scripture that Jesus spent time with people, meeting them where they were and truly loving them. He stepped outside of the social norms of the culture and changed people's lives. And I'm a witness to how that love is changing hearts and lives here in Kenya. God's love is what this world needs. And I feel so blessed and priviledged to be called to share that love with these people.
I've noticed that here in Kenya, the gospel is common knowledge to most people. They have a basic understanding of Christ's death, burial, and resurrection and the salvation He has provided for all mankind. Students even learn about Christian values and principles in a " " class in public schools. But even with this knowledge of the gospel, there are so many lost people who are willfully rejecting Jesus Christ. It's heartbreaking to meet so many young people who have been drawn away from the truth by the flesh. In speaking with some of them, I see that they have all of the head knowledge, but it hasn't become real to them. Many, maybe even most, kids grow up in the church but are drawn away once they reach high school. And there seems to be a mindset that church is for old people and is just boring for young people. Some are pushed away from the church by being hurt or feeling unwanted or rejected for something they've done. This breaks my heart because this is not the love of Christ. I'm praying that there will be a revival in the youth of Kenya and hearts and lives would be changed! There is so much potential here.
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