Dying to Live!

I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone.  But its death will produce many new kernels—a plentiful harvest of new lives.  John 12:24 (NLT)

Ken treated our new neighbours at the shop outside our compound to soda and sweets.

 Agnes, the shop owner standing with me, sells mangoes, various roots, and tasty termites.

The portion of Kakamega in which we live is called “Shimalavandu,” which literally translates as “place of death.”  We understand it was given that name in part because of the many accidents that occur in the area.  Yet it seems like a strange name for a place that is bursting with life.  Energetic roosters wake us each morning, and even before the sun is up, the roads are filled with activity.  Children walk to school.  Beautiful kites (large bird of preys) fly overhead.  Men steer their cattle around women who carry bundles of goods on their heads as they walk to the market for another day of business.  In short, there’s a lot going on in Shimalavandu.

There’s also a lot going on in the Army here.  During our first Board meeting, for example, we approved the opening of two new corps, one of which is located at the Kakuma Refugee Camp near the Sudanese border.  It's growing rapidly, with more than 270 in attendance on a normal Sunday.  In the same meeting, however, we also declined corps status to three outposts, even though they all have more than 150 soldiers each, own their land, and have built their own buildings.  They simply aren’t big enough yet! 

We also see a great deal of life in the view from our kitchen window.   In addition to the rolling green hills, you can see the top of the banana tree that grows in our little shamba (farm plot).  While Ken and I haven’t really attempted to grow anything yet, Ken is very proud of his recent crop of sweet bananas.

I suppose that, in the last analysis, Shimalavandu is a good name for our compound.   The ten officer families and twenty-five cadets who live here have given up their lives to Christ.  In scriptural terms, they have put themselves to death, and in so doing, have found abundant life in Him – a life that Ken and I are privileged to witness every day.