Monday Morning from Kitale

Posted on May 11, 2009 by Carl

It has been an incredible weekend here in Kitale. Saturday afternoon, Pastor Adams and I went to the Kitale Museum, where we met Andrew a tour guide. He spent 2 hours with us and told me more about nature than I had ever learned in my life. More importantly though, Andrew saw Jesus and he opened his heart up to what I had to say.

Saturday was the most powerful movement of God I had ever witnessed in my life. I am still awestruck and my written words are not enough. I hope to have the video commentary posted for you.

Yesterday, I ended up speaking for nearly 6 hours to three different groups. We heard many great testimonies of healing and growth.

Today, I am meeting with a group of pastors for an informal time of sharing and prayer.

Tomorrow, I speak in the main prison in Kitale before leaving for Uganda where I will be for the remainder of this trip until my departure next Tuesday.

Monkey at my hotel

Praying with Andrew the tour guide

Ministering to the people on Saturday night

Ministering in prayer on Saturday night

Preaching on Sunday morning

All of my Africa updates are posted at www.tangle.com under carlso20

On the go in Kitale

Posted on May 9, 2009 by Carl

My availability to internet access has not been as good as I had hoped, but that’s ok. I am also realizing that high speed in Kitale is equivalent to my days of 33.6 kps dial up.

After 4 flights and a 7 hour van ride, I finally made it to Kitale last night. My first night in Nairobi was wonderful as I was met at the airport by Pastor Adams and several students. We enjoyed a wonderful meal of Indian food which was new for them. I had the privilege of staying at the Mennonite Guest House and met several missionaries while I was there. My neighbor was an Aggie.

The van ride to Kitale was painful and interesting. Painful, because 14 of us were scrunched into a van that is not much bigger than a mini-van. Interesting, because I got to take in the full beauty of this amazing country. I was also blessed to see some Zebras and baboons along the way.

I preached my first service last night. The service started at 9PM and ended around 11PM. I spoke on John 21. Three people came forward to make renewed commitments to the Lord.

I went to bed last night around midnight to the wonderful sounds of an African rain. I woke up this morning and was greeted by monkey’s on the roof of the main building. I am staying at the Kitale Club. I also had the privelege of being seranaded by a marching band.

This afternoon, I am leading the first pastor’s conference. I will again be preaching this evening. The first message has given everyone here a great expectation of things to come.

Pastor Adams is waiting for someone to give me a gizzard with my meal, as it is a sign of respect. He also said the children are glad I’m here, because someone will probably slaughter an animal for a feast in my honor.

I am making a video diary, but will not be able to upload those items in the forseeable future. May have to wait until I am back at Kenyatta aiport in Nairobi.

Continue to pray for the fires of renewal to sweep this land.

One more flight

Posted on May 7, 2009 by Carl

It is 9:30AM in Amsterdam. I just cleared security for my last flight to Nairobi. I should arrive there around 10PM. The flights have been packed, but fortunately the transatlantic flight was only 6 1/2 hours. The airport here in Amsterdam is very modern, and probably among my favorite airports in the world. The country side surrounding the airport is very lush and very green. The memorable part of coming through this airport is the regular public address messages that go like this: “Mr. Jones you are holding up the flight to Brussells. Please report immediately or we will remove your luggage.”

I’m hoping to sleep on this Nairobi flight. I didn’t sleep much at all on the transatlantic flight.

A Proper Send Off

Posted on May 5, 2009 by Carl

One of the things that I have done since I began travelling internationally is a time of prayer and commissioning before I leave. Tonight I was joined by a dozen or so of my closest prayer supporters. Several scripture passages were given to me during this time. They included Jeremiah 33:3 and Philippians 4:8-9 among others. The key theme of each passage and the words that were spoken to me was the Lord’s promise to be with me, His direction to follow Him in obedience and the promise of His Spirit working through me. A word was also given about a stubborn spirit in those I would be speaking to and the need to pray for open doors and effective doors.

The group then anointed my head with oil and spent 20 minutes laying hands upon me and praying for me as the Lord led. This was such a special time and their prayers echoed the longings of my soul. When it was finished one of the intercessors shared a vision she had while praying for me of Holy fire surrounding my entire person.

We ended our time by sharing a pan of brownies that Collin had baked this afternoon with the words “Goodbye Dad” written on the top.

2 Days and Counting

Posted on May 3, 2009 by Carl

It is hard to believe that in 2 days I will board a plane here in Corpus Christi and spend the next 24 hours making my way to Africa. This trip has me lit up with anticipation of all that God seeks to do in Kenya and Uganda, but more importantly in me. This is not my first mission trip overseas alone, but there is a difference this time. I have a greater awareness this go around of my full dependence upon God.

Those who pray for me and give regular counsel are all saying similar things. Each one reiterating the understanding that this trip is the Lord’s doorway into the next chapter of my ministry call and my walk with Him. The Lord has spent the last several months taking me through the process of complete surrender to Him. Every step of faith has been a practical exercise in drawing closer to Him.

The word the Lord has given me for this journey is “steadfastness.” I will be speaking to these Christian leaders about examples of standing firm…Moses, Joseph, Daniel and others. This word is also for me. The Lord has been teaching me how to stand firm, even when it seems nearly impossible.

When I return, we will be considering our next steps as a ministry. The Lord has been speaking to me about “mobility” in serving the body and we find ourselves through the transitions of life once again honed down to a core nucleus in our ministry. The Lord is at work, but He has not yet fully revealed His plan for Simplicity in the days to come.

Time alone with God

Posted on April 28, 2009 by Carl

Last September I started a retreat series called “Longing for His Presence.” The purpose of this series is to help a person build solid spiritual formation disciplines into their lives. Each retreat is 2 1/2 days in length and focuses on a few key disciplines. In the first retreat about 30% of the time is spent in silence and the remaining 70% is content. The second retreat is about 60% silence and solitude and 40% content. The third retreat is 90% silence and solitude and 10% content.

Today I completed the third retreat. My time in silence and solitude before the Lord was very refreshing. I found that my soul had grown somewhat parched and I needed a refreshing flood of the Lord’s presence. The theme for this retreat was John 15 and for me the key thought was “Abide in My rest.”

Over the past 2 1/2 days the Lord has reminded me of His great love, His all sufficient grace and His constant presence. He also helped me to see some things about myself more clearly. The greatest illumination came in the area of my expectancy. Over the past few years, the Lord has been preparing my heart for some exciting things. With these preparations came a sense of expectancy; however, over time I have allowed that sense of expectancy in some ways to become an expectation of how God should be moving and at what speed. This subtle shift creates an undesirable quality in my character…impatience. I found myself today asking the Lord to give me a new found joy in times of waiting.

The Lord also showed me that I struggle with wanting to see stability and structure in my circumstances, because I often view myself as unworthy to fulfill the call on my life. Humbling revelations about myself, yet they are very accurate. A fellow brother helped me to see this reality more clearly…he chuckled, because I was already doing the things I felt unworthy to be doing.

Tomorrow it will be one week until I leave for Kenya and Uganda. I still lack about $2,000 of covering my ground transportation, lodging and meals. I know the Lord will provide, even though those provisions are not realized yet. Living on the edge in faith and walking in complete trust are all apart of the journey He has me on.

Preparing for Kenya/Uganda

Posted on April 19, 2009 by Carl

I’ve been watching the clock tick by quickly and was finding myself wrestling with doubts about my upcoming trip to Africa. The Lord has spoken clearly on several occassions directing me to make this journey, but things didn’t seem to be coming together.

Today the Lord began to clear the path in front of me. This afternoon I was handed an envelope that covered my airfare to and from Nairobi. There was enough extra for me to get my anti-malaria pills and a yellow fever vaccination.

My wife and I both find ourselves eager to see how God provides the remaining resources for my in country travel.

I am also thrilled, because my partner pastor in Kenya asked if I had a spare laptop that he could use for the Bible college. It just so happens I have one that simply needs to have the power button fixed. I was so glad that I can meet that need for him.

Serve the Body

Posted on April 14, 2009 by Carl

Several weeks ago I was seeking the Lord for greater clarity for these days that I find myself in. Out of that time of searching came the words: “Serve the Body.” I understood this to mean that I needed to become a steadfast servant to the body of Christ.

Last night, I was having trouble getting to sleep, so I spent some time travelling down memory lane watching music performances from the 70’s and 80’s. Around 11PM, my email went off and I received a note from a woman in Houston. In this note, she told me about her father and two brothers who had started a church on the north side of Corpus Christi that, after four years, found itself struggling. She then asked if I could assist her dad in any way.

I responded back and asked her to have him call me. Within the hour, she had emailed back telling me that she was so excited she had called her dad and awakened him with the news of my willingness to help.

This evening I joined this man and his church for their Tuesday night service. It became clear to me that he is God’s chosen man for this work, but he feels inadequate and has continued to try to bring someone else in. Needless to say this coming Monday, he and I will begin going door to door in the neighborhood offering to minister to all who will receive in the precious name of Jesus.

She Chose the Streets

Posted on April 8, 2009 by Carl

After the ups and downs of spiritual and emotional battle with our house guest last night, I thought we had perhaps reached a turning point, but sadly I was wrong. When Carol went to see what she wanted for lunch, she found that our guest had packed up and left.

The hardest part of ministry has always been wanting more for people than they want for themselves. In the long run, the streets are familiar, in-spite of their inherant dangers. For our part, God let our family work together for the benefit of someone else. All we can do is be obedient and love others, what they do with that love still remains their choice.

In a very small way I understand what God must go through when He pours His love out on people and they still choose to walk away from Him.

Living in a War Zone

Posted on April 7, 2009 by Carl

We often forget that the lives we know are really in the middle of a battle zone for the soul. Jesus has already won the victory, but not everyone knows that and so the enemy does his best to lure, deceive and taunt. His lies are smooth, but they have destructive result.

Tonight was one of those nights in our home. Our house guest just wanted to stay in bed this evening, even though we were supposed to be at Organic Group. She became rebellious and defiant with Carol and would not speak to me. It was time for Carol and I to gird ourselves up and stand in the gap. The triggering mechanism was a lies of hopelessness and the need for comfort…”a cigarette sure would help, you can’t make it without them.”

For nearly an hour we spoke truth and prayed over our guest. At one point she told me she wanted to return to the street, because she couldn’t handle it anymore. After an exhausting exchange, love won out. The Lord once again broke through the lies and darkness, allowing our guest to see the truth of the love around her. She broke down in tears, having trouble understanding how people could love her enough to fight for her.

Of course the enemy wasn’t quite done yet. Our Organic Group host and her brother are both smokers. Bless his heart, he has a learning disability and in his charming, simple way he offered our guest a cigarette. She stood firm…battle #1 over and done. She then went to the kitchen to get more coffee and there on the counter was a pack of cigarettes. She began to tailspin once again. So we gathered around her, prayed and got beyond it. On the way home, she began to realize that she had been under the influence of a spirit that was not hers and she also recognized that she had been victorious.

Our guest doesn’t know much about God or Jesus, but He is showing her great things about His love for her. After our guest went to bed, I had to remind my wife that she too was victorious. We are both being stretched. This is not the ministry assignment we originally signed up for, but it is the one God has given us and for that we are grateful.

Journey To Simplicity