Len was busy emptying the kitchen cupboards, and a mountain of our cases and bags was piling up in the hallway. Gregory had been a bit vague about our leaving time for Nakuru. He arrived a little after 9am. We heard that the conference session was due to start at 2pm, they were expecting us around 1pm, and it was three hours' drive. So when we stopped off at Four Square and then headed over to Westlands Mall to exchange some more currency, I feared (rightly) that we'd cut it too fine. We hit the Nakuru Road at 11am, with Len driving, and couldn't afford to stop or let up along the way.
The road takes a descent onto the floor of the Rift Valley, and along the way we saw flocks of goats browsing by the roadside, zebras and a troop of baboons. The temperature climbed all the way: by the time we reached the church in Nakuru, it was the warmest we've had so far - around 26oC. Mount Olive sits in a tidy plot of land surrounded by maize fields and grazing animals.
Bishop Zechariah was pacing up and down and the band was ready to start. On the opening note my hearing aid battery died, and then the crash cymbal fell over exactly at a crescendo point in the music. The church had thoughtfully provided some sandwiches and tea, as we got straight into action on arrival.
The whole afternoon was scheduled for business and finance stuff, similar to our Saturday afternoon session in Nairobi; but we had no Hilary. Len ran through a brief introduction to Multiply, and said he'd noticed that the district was one of rich deep soil, and felt this applies spiritually, too.
We over-ran, but the sessions had been well received. After some waiting around we travelled to Bishop's and his wife Rebecca's home. It's quite large, and they'd offered to accommodate all the travelling party. But first a big dinner. Rev Charles from Christ Covenant Church was with us, and has a good appetite!
"Brother, I must talk through some nuts and bolts with you," Gregory announced to me - though everyone else was within ear-shot. "Tomorrow will be quite a stretch. We must leave Nakuru at 12pm to reach Kimilili by nightfall. Then Wednesday will be even more of a stretch, because we must make our way to Jinja, calling in at Cornelius's churches at Magodes. Then Thursday will be even busier - we have a leaders' session in Jinja, then we must travel to Kampala and arrange the two days' conference." "So we're finally getting into our stride," I smiled. We also discussed when the Nairobi brothers may leave Kampala in the minibus, while we stay on for flights back to UK on Tuesday.
Viv and I were sharing a room and I caught up with some stuff on my laptop til quite late. I'd seen him eyeing up the extensive security around the house (common to the other nearby properties). "Did you hear what happened?" he quizzed. "Their fifteen-year-old son was murdered just outside the front gate a month ago."
Brave people for not letting this quench their desire to open their hearts and home in hospitality.
The road takes a descent onto the floor of the Rift Valley, and along the way we saw flocks of goats browsing by the roadside, zebras and a troop of baboons. The temperature climbed all the way: by the time we reached the church in Nakuru, it was the warmest we've had so far - around 26oC. Mount Olive sits in a tidy plot of land surrounded by maize fields and grazing animals.
The whole afternoon was scheduled for business and finance stuff, similar to our Saturday afternoon session in Nairobi; but we had no Hilary. Len ran through a brief introduction to Multiply, and said he'd noticed that the district was one of rich deep soil, and felt this applies spiritually, too.
We over-ran, but the sessions had been well received. After some waiting around we travelled to Bishop's and his wife Rebecca's home. It's quite large, and they'd offered to accommodate all the travelling party. But first a big dinner. Rev Charles from Christ Covenant Church was with us, and has a good appetite!
"Brother, I must talk through some nuts and bolts with you," Gregory announced to me - though everyone else was within ear-shot. "Tomorrow will be quite a stretch. We must leave Nakuru at 12pm to reach Kimilili by nightfall. Then Wednesday will be even more of a stretch, because we must make our way to Jinja, calling in at Cornelius's churches at Magodes. Then Thursday will be even busier - we have a leaders' session in Jinja, then we must travel to Kampala and arrange the two days' conference." "So we're finally getting into our stride," I smiled. We also discussed when the Nairobi brothers may leave Kampala in the minibus, while we stay on for flights back to UK on Tuesday.
Viv and I were sharing a room and I caught up with some stuff on my laptop til quite late. I'd seen him eyeing up the extensive security around the house (common to the other nearby properties). "Did you hear what happened?" he quizzed. "Their fifteen-year-old son was murdered just outside the front gate a month ago."
Brave people for not letting this quench their desire to open their hearts and home in hospitality.
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