School Opening

Well, the big day is all over! It went really well – the Lord gave help and strength and over-ruled in each detail. We were there about 8 am and last-minute preparations were still being made at 10:30, well past the time when it was supposed to start! Thankfully, Mr. Moi was running on Kenyan time, and his helicopter didn’t touch down on the school football field until everything was ready. The school kids were all gathered to sing a welcome for him, and some of the women from the school and church also gathered to sing. Mr. Moi and Dr. McClelland, who was the other “guest of honour”, unveiled two plaques at the front of the main building, and declared the school officially open. Then they had a quick tour of the school, and came up to the other side of the campus (the school has 9 acres, and a road runs through the middle of it) for the service itself. Dr. McClelland preached really well, some of the school kids sang, the wazungu (white people) sang, various presentations were made, and Mr. Moi spoke briefly. The meeting probably lasted about 2 ½ hours, and then we all had some lunch. There were probably about 2000 people there, and when we left the school at 4pm, folks were still in line to get fed!
The traditional dancers did get in after all! Jonny and I had gone up to the top compound to watch the helicopter landing and the first part of the ceremony, and when we came back to where the meeting was held, there were probably a couple of hundred Pokots in their respective groups and costumes – inside the gate! They didn’t cause too much stir though – they stood quietly for most of the meeting, and then towards the end, they began “dancing”. It was mostly just hopping straight up in the air, and back down again while they shook their spears. They had big necklaces of beads or something around their necks which made noise, and they shouted now and again. The funny part was, Mr. Moi left the compound by a different route anyway, so they didn’t even get to dance for him!
We all went to the Kitale Club for a dinner last night – the group of visitors, the missionaries, and as many Kenyan ministers and elders as possible. A few of us got a swim before dinner, which felt SO good after all the heat and dust of the day! Then after dinner, all the visitors were presented with gifts, Rev. Kendagor made a speech, and Dr. Woods brought a word of testimony. Rev. Kendagor mentioned a couple of things about the future of the church that need to be prayed about. One was the need for a more accurate translation of the Scriptures into Swahili, and for accurate translations to be made into all the tribal languages. The trouble seems to be that some if not all of the Bible Societies that are working in Kenya (and I have no idea how many there are – maybe only one!) are not accurate or faithful in their translation work. So the choice for the church leaders is either to give their people an unfaithful translation in their mother tongue, or none at all! Pray that faithful men and women will be raised up, whether in the BCFC or another solid church or organisation, who have the necessary skills and knowledge to translate.
Tomorrow, all the visitors are splitting up into 5 or 6 groups; in each area, people from the churches nearby will gather in one central location, and one of the visiting ministers will be preaching. These big meetings are called “humojas”. Some of them go on for a few hours! Keep it all in prayer, please.