Where was I? Oh yeah...flat tires. That was the most "excitement" in the flights there at Gatab. Well, maybe not. I flew on Saturday the 5th down to Olerai to evacuate a family from Bomet to Nairobi. As I landed I could see their police escort drive off...things in Western Kenya have not been good (they are calming down now. Many thanks to all of you for your prayers! Please, keep praying for peace, real peace, for Kenya.)
But, excitement aside, it's deeply satisfying to fly here, whether in Gatab or more generally for AIM Air throughout east Africa. The airplane makes it possible to save lives, and to get missionaries to places to touch lives. Flying from Gatab is particularly rewarding, though. The airplane there is a lifeline for the northern district mission stations, providing transport for fresh produce, or for a medical evacuation.
Life in Gatab is very like life on a farm...there's always something that needs doing. The house needs maintenance, the neighbor needs help with a project, the airstrip needs maintenance ... I spent a fair bit of time helping John Woodworth with some of his projects. Alex went a little further up the hill and helped the Heidorns build their house. Susan stayed busy with running our house. There are some new challenges there. First being electricity. The house runs from a bank of 8 batteries recharged by solar panels and a small windmill. The windmill has the advantage of keeping a charge going all night (the wind blows hard most nights there). I got rather obsessive about turning off lights. The batteries are old, over 7 years most of them, and none will show a charge using a hydrometer. The electric load is light, the biggest draw being the refrigerator. But, if a light is left on the fridge may not be running in the morning.
Susan is looking at how to shop for long term...the missionaries up at Gatab typically shop for 2-3 months at a time, since it's a 2+ day drive over what passes for roads here to get to Nairobi and the grocery store.
I haven't said much about church in Gatab yet. That bears a few words. Church the first week was a bit puzzling...the songs are all in swahili or maasai (samburu is nearly the same, the two tribes are closely related). The prayers and sermon are in swahili and a translator gives them in samburu also. The service is long...2 1/2 hours on average. When you walk an hour or so to get to church there's no hurry to go home. Plus it's the social highlight of the week. I'm not sure how deeply the teachings of the church affect people in their daily lives. The other missionaries in Gatab say that they've had an uphill struggle to make church more than a social event. There is some change, slow, but the idea of discipleship, of living what you say you believe, is starting to catch.
Then, of course, there was the Christmas pageant. Herod was my favorite character, swaggering in wearing a gold lame shirt. Mary and Joseph bickered, the wisemen fought and argued...but the story was told. And indeed, in some ways it brought the story to life even with the laughter. These were real people 2000 years ago, warts and all. The Bible says Mary was a good woman, true, but nowhere does it say she was perfect. Doubtless she and Joseph argued. Likewise the wise men, however wise, must have had their differences. And they all, as we did that day (Christmas day) came together to glorify God.
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