Hello everyone! This is officially my first post in Kenya and I am so excited to be here and tell you all about it! I have actually been in Kenya for about a week and a half but only at my hosts house for a week as of Friday the 18th. Before my team got the Butere to meet up with our host, the whole squad stayed in Nairobi for two days to learn some of the culture and spend some time with our individual teams. I am in a team with Kira, Ashley, Emily, Judah and Ana who is our squad leader. We arrived to Butere on September 11th at around 5pm and took Bota Bota’s to our hosts house. A Bota Bota is basically a small motorcycle and is also known as a Piki Piki. I personally really like riding on them but I know that for some they can be a bit scary. Especially when you round a tight corner and there is a vehicle coming right at you so you have to go off into the ditch. This did happen to me and Ashley on September 16th, but we are both okay and honestly look back at it and laugh now. Now let’s get back on track and take you all throughout this first week here in Butere.

Our first two days were Sabbath days so we got to spend our time with the Lord, the kids, and each other. On Saturday we all went for a walk, played ball with the kids, got to know each other better and we all spent some time with the Lord. Kira, Ashley and I all showered in the rain that night as well. On Sunday we got to experiance our first Kenyan church service. There was a lot of dancing and it was longer than I am personally used to, but it was also a lot of fun and you could tell the Lord was in that place. I helped give snacks to the kids and we took a few pictures with them. At the end of adult service my team got up to the front and introduced ourselves to the congregation. Ana then gave a testimony and Emily gave the word, after that the team went back home and we got to spend the rest of the day resting. Monday we started our ministry work which started out fairly light as we mainly worked around the house, Emily and I also went to an ATM to get some cash. Tuesday we went to a home church and Ashley gave the word there. We took pictures with everyone and then we got a picture of Judah sticking out over one of the bathroom doors as he is 6’6”. It was quite funny to see. That night we started giving testimonies so our two leaders Ana and Kira went first. On Wednesday we did some house to house evangelism and we got to encourage and pray over many people. We also got to see three people get saved while evangelizing. At the end we went to a school and said hi to the kids and then prayed over the school and one of the classrooms as they will be hosting a church there soon. We then went to one of the church members house, her name is Mama Mary, and had lunch then we headed back home. That night Ashley gave her testimony and then we played some card games. On Thursday we did more house evangelism, but this time we only encouraged and prayed over people, no one was saved this day but many people got prayed over. We then went to Mama Mary’s sister’s house to have lunch and pray over the new house they are building. After this Ana and I went into town to get water and a couple snacks for herself as she had been fasting and was wanting some snacks to break her fast with. I shared my testimony this night and after words we played some card games. On Friday we did some farm work and got water. I worked on AIM stuff as I am treasurer and then we all got to rest for the rest of the day. Saturday is our adventure day so we headed to town once we all got up and had breakfast. The first thing we did in town was go to a dress store so the girls could get fitted for dresses and Judah and I got fitted for shirts. We also talked to a guy named Isaac who is trying to get a base for Ignite One For Christ International here in Butere. This ministry is youth focused and Isaac seems to be really on fire for the Lord and wants to see the youth come to the Lord. He has had connections with YWAM and some other organizations that I had not heard of before. After that we went to the supermarket to get snacks and some supplies for the team. After the store we went to a cafe for some lunch and had some great food there. We then went back home and rested for the remainder of the day. During this time Judah and Emily gave their testimonies and I got to talk to my family for about 45 minutes. I also spent the day preparing for the sermon that I was to give for service on Sunday. Come back next week to hear about how that went and what the Lord put on my heart to talk about.

Now for some generic information and for fun. As I mentioned earlier I am treasurer for my team so most days I do run into town to go to the store or plug in our devices to let them charge but those typically are not very exciting. I have also been reading a Psalm every night for Judah and the first couple nights we were all up for a while laughing at Judah and I as we were sympathy coughing for each other if one of us started to cough. We also gave Judah the nickname of Twiga as that is giraffe in Swahili.

My team’s name is Olive Branch (OB). The picture that you all can see starting from the left is Pastor John (host), Kira (OB), Ashley (OB), Judah (OB), Mama Mary (church member), Mama Jessica (church member), Emily (OB), Trenton (OB) and Ana (OB).

I hope to be able to post every week but as we do not have much service at our host home it will be hard to do so. Please be praying that we would stay in the word and would put the Lord first in all things. Please be praying for health as there have been a couple days where someone was not feeling well. Pray for the hearts of those we go to minister to too be softened and ready to accept Jesus as Lord. Pray for the rest of my squad as some have been feeling sick and been under some tough spiritual attacks. Please also pray for the squads that are out on the field right now as well as they have also been hit with some sickness and spiritual warfare. I love you all and I am so thankful to have everyone behind me every step of the way. I know God hears your prayers and I know that they work so please just keep praying for us even if I don’t give any specifics on what to pray about. I love you all and am excited to tell you all about the next week when I can!

Trenton Hilty