As the World celebrated the inauguration of the new American president in Washington DC, we were in the LHM office in Kenya speaking with pastor Ngare giving us feedback and celebrating the planting of the newest Lutheran Congregation about 30 KM from where Barack Obama's Father was born.
The new congregation named KODULA LUTHERAN CHURCH is as unlikely a story as the story of Obama ascending the most powerful office in the World.
In October we had a Mission in Samanga area on the shores of Africa's largest fresh water lake, and the world's second largest after Lake Superior.
After the team left with a good report we received an appeal from a neighbouring area to also send a team there. The resources were not enough and so I sent two people only to conduct what we call a 'weekend challenge.' This involves open air Film Ministry and preaching.
The surprising thing is what God did in this unlikely event. In this small market centre called Kodula two very new events were coming to town for the first time. A music band had been invited to bring a disco dance. This was the very first time the small market had ever attracted such an event. there was excitement in the air. The second event was the open air film being presented by Lutheran Hour. To Isaac Ngala the team leader and Geoffrey Gunyali It looked like a case of bad timing from the start.
However as they say in show business, the show must go on.
Both events took off at the roughly the same time and the Gospel event was nearly drowned by the larger sound systems of the Dance. then as so often happens in the village dances fights started to erupt over , over girls, gate crashers and drunken guys. On the other side however there was a hushed silence first because of the awesomeness of cinema but mostly because Jesus was speaking dholuo.
When Jesus said 'Kwe obed kodu' Peace be with you,
The crowd was so mesmerized they all shouted back amen.
(By the way this is Obama's father's mother tongue. Maybe Americans should try greeting their new president this way and see if he learned anything from his grandmother when he visited her here.)
The stark difference between the chaos across at the dance and the peace at the Gospel meeting was a very dramatic setting showing light and darkness. Hope and futility.
One person who caught the difference and whose life was going to go through a very dramatic change was Thomas Okuthe. A former teacher in a Lutheran School, married to a Lutheran but from a stanch Seventh day Adventist family. Over time he had become disappointed with SDA legalism and had lost his faith altogether. The end result was that his wife also stopped going to church. There was no Lutheran Church close by and this also contributed.
In a very dramatic twist of events which only the Holy Spirit knows how, Thomas approached his father the next day and told him openly that he had left the SDA church and wanted to be a Lutheran. His father seeing the seriousness of his son asked to see the Lutheran pastor. At the end of the discussion he said if his son has found his faith again he could only rejoice and support.
He immedaitely took the pastor and offered land for the building of the Church. Only God can explain this. The SDA Church des not consider Sunday worshippers( as they call us) as Christians.
Today the entire Okuthe family is going through confirmation and baptism class and the congregation has 20 people, ten dechurched members and ten completely new believers.
To God be the Glory.
(Next mission Kogelo, Obama's village.Support it. The muslims there must hear the gospel.)
God less
John Maina
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