Let no debt be Outstanding but the debt of Love

 

Dove medical team from Pennsylvania came for 4 days to do a mobile clinic in villages along the Tana River. I love doing crafts with kids with Grace and anyone else who wants to help. Righteous and Corinne joined us on the mat.

"Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent His one and only Son into the world that we might live through Him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and His love is made complete in us.

This is how we know that we live in Him and He in us: He has given us of His Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent His Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. 

God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

We love because He first loved us. Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And He has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister." 1 John 4: 7-21

We got to meet a family from Slovakia- who are seeking God's will about coming to serve Him in Kenya. We exchanged lots of stories about what God has done in our lives. It is only because of Him our paths have crossed and that is such a blessing.

It is hard to love people- for multiple reasons:
In our house we have been fighting off colds recently. Let me tell you that being all congested (not bring able to breathe out of your nose when trying to sleep at night) can make you be in a bad mood and we tend to "cut each other short" in conversations. We excuse ourselves of our meaness because we are"sleep deprived" and "not feeling well". 

Another reason it is hard for me to be loving is because of how hot I am. I have been admiring the winter wonderland pictures people in the States have been posting. We are living on the equator so this is our hottest time of year. Even after all the years of living here the heat still knocks the energy out of me and I find that I can more easily complain about sweating 24/7 than have loving words come out of my mouth.

 Now as challenging as it is to being loving to my family members it can seem nearly impossible to be loving to those outside of my house because of all the varied personalities that can simply rub me the wrong way. I can be intimidated by some and feel belittled by others which makes me want to put my guard up and avoid them at all cost. I can justify my actions because my feelings have been hurt instead of forgiving fast and loving in return.

Lastly we live a poverty stricken place. God has entrusted us with resources to be generous to those in need. As much as we have given there are always more requests that continue to come. In an expression of our humanity we can feel taken advantage of and empty. People do not seem grateful but entitled. When people are demanding an automatic response is to want nothing more to do with them. Enough is enough. 

In this picture you can see Jason, Amos, and Paul and 3 farm workers who come to discover what the Bible has to say for themselves. 

What I have been gleaning from the above scriptures is that my ability to love others can only come from my recognition of how much God loves me. As I read the Bible and remember the sacrifice of God the Father offering up His son (who had committed no sin)- for me- this motivates me to love others. God has given us the Holy Spirit to guide us through all the craziness in life- we don't have to figure things out on our own. I am so thankful for God loving me first, giving me a new life and as a result of this I am capable of love. This is not a 1 time realization that I can understand and move on from. Instead it's a daily acknowledgment and living out my faith because of it. We have gotten to visit with several believers coming from different parts of the world lately and it truly has spurred me on in my faith. (From South Carolina, from Slovakia, from Pennsylvania, from Denmark, and of course from Kenya). How important it is to show our love as believers living out what Jesus said to his disciples in John 13:34-35 

"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another ".

The girls get the table ready for Friday morning Bible study (and making funny poses while doing so).

Friday Bible studies are now part of the normal schedule. Not everyone is able to make it each week but it goes on regardless. This past Friday M!n! H@dj told a story about listening to Citizen radio (a Kenyan radio station) and the question was asked "Who baptized Jesus, Jonah or John?" A phone number was given for people to message in their answer. M!n! H@dj was excited to send in a text message with the right answer because he has been studying through the gospels. The radio guy ended up calling M!n! H@dj up and asked him his name and than exclaimed how surprising it was that M!n! H@dj  knew the right answer because of his Muslim name. We rejoice in this testimony. Just because someone is born into a Muslim family and grows up in a Muslim place doesn't mean that they cannot become a follower of Jesus and receive a new life. We still ask for prayers that these new believers will mature in their walk with the Lord and tell their families about who Jesus is- and transformation will happen in the entire village. 

Baked Apple Oatmeal and chai.