Dear Brethren in Christ
Greetings to you from America where we have been for the last 6 weeks. It has been more than 2 months since we communicated with you in this way and we thought it good to let you know of our time away from Kenya and how the work is continuing in Kenya in our absence.
Leave
1. We spent the first 10 days in England visiting with the children and also ministering in 2 churches. The Lord graciously worked it so that we were able to complete the purchase of a house in Liverpool, into which Matthew has now moved.
2. On 7th June we travelled to the States, first of all to be in Elyria, Ohio, to be with Jonathan and family. We have been quite occupied with the 3 grandchildren and trying to make the old house habitable that they want to move into. It has been very difficult for Jonathan with the downturn of the economy as he works in house valuation/appraisal. In the midst of it the Lord has provided for them and enabled them to push on. We pray that we are a great encouragement to them.
3. From 17th June to 4th July we were privileged to make a tour of friends and churches in the eastern part of Pennsylvania. The visit included 7 churches and 5 days at a Family Conference, where we were much refreshed and encouraged by the brethren. It is humbling to be with brothers and sisters who delight to good in serving others. Especially encouraging was the strong prayerful support of the work of the Lord in which we are involved in Kenya.
4. I (Keith) am now on a second tour out to the west coast, while Priscilla remains with the family in Ohio. So far it has taken me to Chicago, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Seattle, Kennewick and Bend, and I shall finish up in California this weekend. Once again I have been shown overwhelming love. The high point was to meet with my dear brother Mohamed over the last weekend. He was saved in Nairobi in 1997 and with us in Trinity, eventually serving as a deacon, until he resettled in the States 2010. The Lord has been so gracious to him, giving him a church where he is welcomed into lives and homes, and giving him employment in an agency that deals with helping refugees in the first months of their resettlement in the States. He works with a Russian lady who made arrangements for me to preach in her church.
It was an unforgettable experience to look over the sea of faces, young and old (there were at least 500 present for the late afternoon service), to think of the suffering many of them must have undergone in the home country before the fall of communism. There were 3 rows of boys in the front one side and girls the other side and they sat through more than 2 hours of service respectfully. It made me realize why they meet together as an ethnic group using (mainly) the Ukrainian language. Although they call themselves a Pentecostal Church, the singing was so reverent, no clapping, no dancing. Of course I could not understand it. It was almost plaintive, a little like negro spirituals in mood, out of the crucible of suffering, now in a foreign land. It was a privilege to have a peep into the world of an immigrant community.
Kenya
Pastor Murungi has kept me fully informed of all that is going on in the church in Nairobi and nation-wide on a weekly basis. God has continued to bless them in the ministry of the word and in fellowship. On 2nd July there was a small ceremony in a café in town to relaunch our magazine, Grace & Truth, and the revamped website www.trinity.or.ke. Visitors continue to come on Sundays with many showing interest in membership. These are days of great opportunity. You may have heard of the famine in the horn of Africa, including north Kenya and therefore where the Rendille live. The Kenya Government have declared a state of emergency because of the continuing drought, and the area Chief (a Government appointee) has formally requested churches to help. If any of you would like to make contributions we
can make sure it reaches the needy.
Sudan
You will know that South Sudan became independent on 9th July. Please pray for David Awan Malek and the Trinity Baptist Church of Sudan in the general Malakal area. They are very much desirous of help in training of their leaders. God willing, I am hoping to visit them again at the beginning of 2012 and I am praying that someone will accompany me who can develop this good contact.
Thanksgiving and Prayer
1. The encouragement we are receiving in our travels to churches and friends.
2. Our last 2 weeks with Jonathan and family in Ohio.
3. The final month in UK until we return to Kenya 7th September, visits with Deborah and Matthew, and to various churches.
4. Pastor Murungi and the ministry in Nairobi.
5. The famine situation in Rendille.
6. The progress of the gospel in South Sudan.
We thank you again for your fellowship in the gospel.
Keith Underhill