Sunday, Sunday

Last week raced past! I so appreciated the hand of the Lord in it. From Saturday when we drove back from Nairobi, until Thursday afternoon there were a million things to do. We loved having the Tuttles with us. They are a great couple. We delighted in showing them around and finding Homa Bay ourselves for the first time. We were pleased that the road toward Kitale has been repaved and is a good road. When we showed the Tuttles the way to Kitale, we enjoyed a tailgate picnic in the back yard of the Misihku branch with the Beechers. On the way back home we saw the shambas tilled and planted now that the rains have come. . I enjoyed teaching the Self Employment Workshop for two days with Susan Kanga and we celebrated our graduation. And of course, we needed to take time to prepare to teach Institute. It is always a treat. We didn’t get everything done that we wanted, but we got the important ones done. The miracle was that I didn’t feel stressed out. I felt that I was prepared for the classes and they went well. E. Fox made a great dent in the preparations for our seminary “Armor of God” activity. And I finished up classes on Thursday feeling well satisfied with all the things we’d done. We began to plot out the remainder of our time here and actually have about 10 days that are not scheduled. On Friday with a seemingly manageable list of things and a space of time to do them, I felt stress and tension creeping in. It made me realize how great the blessing was from the Lord that earlier in the week I was calm and stress free. We have been going through bookshelves and the filing cabinet to clear out our paperwork and leave what is needed. We are trying to write an “Area Book” that will help when a new couple moves in. Friday we had George here painting the Primary Room and Jackie cleaning our house and we left them at the church and went out to visit Morrice the guard and his family. They live about 10 km out of town and he rides his bike to work guarding the church every night. He's been a very good guard. We learn all the local events through him-- what's happening. What it means. What it may lead to. I guess the Fish Mamas were tired of their trade being interfered with due to roads being blocked and resolved the problem on their own. AH. Woman Strength!

We had a baptism on Saturday that was very nice. Here is Memory and her uncle Eliud who baptized her. And there were two investigators there as well.

I decided to go native for the baptism, and got a lot of complements on how "smart" and "African" I looked. I donno. The head scarf is always hot to wear. But the dress may replace my toucan one.

We both spoke in Sacrament today and we had a good attendance today. And in Branch Counsel concern was expressed by many about how to reach those who are not coming. I think that as the leaders and members have the desire and focus, they will find success in bringing back the lost sheep. My counsel was not to ask: “What’s keeping you away from church?” (which focuses on the negative,) but rather, “What will it take to come back to church?” (Which focuses in a positive direction.) After church we met with several new investigators and with those preparing to go to the temple. We discussed luggage. On Saturday we’d bought some duffel bags so they could carry things in something more than a polythin bag. They need to finalize their transport to Nairobi. With the family and a single sister from Nariobi, a couple from Kitale, and our 3 families and one single sister we will have 24 people to help get to the temple. It's still like herding cats... but at least I have some experience in that now.

For the past 10 days we have been struggling with our internet provider and have had to rely on a remote modem that doesn't do large files, to include allowing us to Skype. Really we would like to talk with you...