Update – From Gil Harder – Kenya, Africa

Dated: 11/24/2009

Dear Partners In The Gospel:

Greetings from your Missionary Ambassador in Kenya!

It is with THANKSGIVING and JOY that I write to you in Jesus Name. It is becoming more obvious to me each day that this is the Lord’s ministry of “Healing & Hope.” No one else could arrange for the “Divine Appointments” which Jesus arranges each day. No one else opens doors and hearts, eyes and ears, cities and nations but the King of Glory Himself. So open up you Ancient Doors. Open wide you Gates … that the King of Glory may come in!

Very few Christians in Africa have Bibles. This is a sad and terrible fact. From my surveys and experience in Africa for the past eight years, I would say less than 15% of the believers in churches own a Bible. How then can they grow and obey the Lord’s Prayer: “Give us this Day our daily bread?” They can’t. Even the bellman at my hotel who had a decent wage paying job, did not have his own Bible. He carried my bags up 3 flights of stairs on his back. By the time we got to my room, it was clear that Samuel was a Christian young man. When he discovered I was a missionary, he immediately asked me, do you have a bible for me? I questioned him as to why he could afford to eat bread and yet did not have the bread of life himself. Samuel then poured out his sad story. Orphaned, abandoned, abused, cursed by his relatives and tribal witchdoctor, living on the streets of Nairobi, and trying to take care of his little orphan sister and brother to feed them … leaves nothing from his $4/Day salary for anything extra like clothes, shoes, school fees, books, or even a bible. I didn’t have a bible with me that he could read because was from Cote D’Voir (The Ivory Coast) and could only read French and speak English. So there we were, in my hotel room on the third floor. We prayed together for “Bread From Heaven” for Samuel. Then I noticed on the bureau … a Gideons Hotel Bible. Much good it would do Samuel in English. However, upon opening it, it was an interlinear English/French Bible!? Who could have known? God provides everything we need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus ~ Phil.4:19. Aggrey and I are now purchasing supplies and Swahili Bibles for the next phase of our mission on the Kenya Coast.

THANK YOU FOR PRAYING FOR DIVINE APPOINTMENTS & GOD’S PROVISION!

Aggrey Graduated from the Nairobi Bible College with honors and his Bible Degree. It was a grand occaision which was also shared by his roomate and good friend David Randa Bunde who also graduated and is now serving as an assistant Pastor in the Korogocho Slum outside of Nairobi. It was also a reunion with Pastor Peter and Margaret of the All Nations Church in Dandora. After the graduation celebration, we went to the Mamba Village where we took a ride on a camel named “Brahma.” This was the tallest camel I have ever seen. It would have taken a 12 foot ladder just reach his back, but of course, Brahma knelt down on the ground and first Aggrey and then Susan Nyambura took a ride through the Mamba Village. The Mamba Village is also a Crocidile Farm along with various sorts of African wildlife like Giraffe, Ostrichs, and exotic birds and animals. The Village is arranged like the continent of Africa, with signs painted at the entrance of each section saying: Nigeria, Egypt, Morocco, Congo, Mozambique, et cetera. Brahma the Camel gave these two Kenyans a great ride throughout Africa so to speak. Then Brahma knelt down and I mounted him. When he stood up, I was almost above the tree line in the village. The view was magnificent. He started walking and then suddenly reared up on his back legs and bellowing loudly. Now I was twice as high as before and hanging on to the wooden saddle for dear life. The Camel’s owner was now pulling on his halter with a rope and beating him with a cane. Brahma paid no attention and kept on bucking and bellowing. It was a short and wild ride for me. I held on until the owner and village helpers surrounded Brahma and pulled him (and me) back down to the ground. Brahma continued to talk very loudly and spitting. Pastor Thomas Momanyi observed the situation and said, “Brother Gil, it is obvious that Brahma the Camel was very willing to give the the two Kenyans a ride throughout all of Africa here today in this village. However, when the camel discovered that you were a Missionary from America, he revolted because he thought you were going to make him walk all the way back to America!?”

Kitengela, just one hour South of Nairobi, in the Rift Valley in Massai Land is where the Jesus Ambassadors Church and Gil Harder Academy are located. We arrived together with Pastor Thomas Momanyi for a “Pre-Christmas Celebration” with all the children and teachers at school. Everyone recieved a gift. The highlights were the “Beannie Babies” and “Africa Hope” buttons! We delivered additional parts of the Betty Lukens Flanelgraph which we brought over last year to the school for their “Story Board” as they call the flannelgraph. We then taught and celebrated the “Christmas Story” all together ~ Everyone participated! After several days of teaching, and preaching at the church on Sunday, we departed and went to visit Caroline Sarah Agwoma and her “Africa Hope” ministries in Dandora.

Dandora Slum is home to one of the largest dumps in the world. Nairobi trucks all of it’s garbage to Dandora where the vultures are so big they call them the “Dandora Ostriches.” Pastor Thomas, Aggrey, and myself met with Caroline Sarah and Susan at her small home in Dandora. We refreshed them in the Lord materially and spiritually and prayed over their lives and ministry here with the widows and orphans in Dandora. Caroline is now ministering to over 50 young Kenyan orphan boys and girls who live on and around the dump. She also ministers to 10-15 widows most of whom are HIV positive. Caroline does not have enough money to even afford lamp oil for her small lantern to light the darkness in her 8′X14′ home. But out of her poverty, has welled up rich generocity, so that she is ministering “Healing & Hope” to all of these orphans and widows!? How does she do it? She doesn’t … God does. We sat in the dark and listened as Caroline gave glory to God and told us about how she is able to provide HIV retrovial drugs for all of her widows each week and meals for the orphans each week by God’s grace. However, there are some times that there just is no food. Then the children scrounge for good at the dump with the vultures or beg for food from person to person and house to house.

Caroline then recounted for us the recent story of Esther. Esther is nine years old and one of Carolines “Africa Hope” children. For several weeks last month, there was not much food for the children, so Esther went begging. In the process of begging for food, someone took advantage of this orphan, an Esther was raped in Dandora. Caroline called for Aggrey who came and helped. They took Esther to the hospital for treatment, testing, and care. Thankfully, at this point she has not contracted any STD’s but of course the trauma is overwhelming. Caroline cried and cried as she recounted Esthers story and felt so responsible for this tradgedy saying that if only she had provided the food, Esther would not have been begging.

We all reassurred her of God’s care and providence and prayed together for the provision of more “Africa Hope” in Jesus Name. I blessed Caroline once again for the fact that she herself, as a minister of Jesus Christ is “Africa Hope.” One of Carolines prominent features in her home and ministry is of course: “The Gospel Handgrenades ~ Evangecubes” She leads all of these orphans and widows to Christ and trains them to witness by using the “Evangecubes” in her ministry. So we replennished her supplies, blessed her in Jesus Name, and walked out into the hot night air of Danora weeping and rejoicing at the same time.

Tonight, Aggrey and I board a bus for Mombassa and Lamu on the Indian Ocean. My time is now up in this cybercafe and the speed of this machine is slower than the trickles of sweat pouring down my face. So, I end this report with this request:

PLEASE PRAY FOR: CAROLINE SARAH AND AFRICA HOPE MINISTRIES IN DANDORA. PLEASE ALSO PRAY FOR AGGREY AND MYSELF AS HEAD FOR MOMBASSA (EVEN HOTTER) JOURNEYS MERCIES OF COURSE, BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY: WE ARE GOING TO CONDUCT A BIBLE CONFERENCE AND EVANGELISTIC CRUSADES ON THE ISLAND OF LAMU AND THE SURROUNDING ISLANDS. THE ENTIRE SOMALIAN AND KENYAN COASTLINE IS A MUSLIM STRONGHOLD. ONE OF THE ISLANDS AROUND LAMU IS FARSA WHICH IS THE HOME OF THE ALKAIDA TERRORISTS. IT IS THE BIRTHPLACE AND STONGHOLD OF AL KABOB AND ALKAIDA. THEREFORE, I ASK THAT YOU PRAY FOR THE LORD JESUS TO OPEN WIDE THE GATES OF THESE CITIES AND ISLANDS, HEARTS AND SOULS, TO RECEIVE THE KING OF GLORY!

THANK YOU FOR SENDING “AFRICA HOPE” IN JESUS NAME!

YOUR PARTNERS IN THE GOSPEL ~ II CORINTHIANS 2:14
GIL HARDER, THOMAS & MARY MOMANYI, AGGREY JUMA, JAMES & CHOICE
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P.S. I have relayed your greetings to your African Brothers & Sisters whom you have come to know. Please also receive their greetings and gratitude for sending healing and help in Jesus Name! Because of Jesus, have a BLESSED THANKSGIVING!