We have just completed the first conference in Lodwar. It is about the harshest area in Kenya. Hot, dirt roads, homes surrounded by dirt, slums of 5' x 5' lean to's in the dirt. Heat and dust characterize life here. Wikipedia says that Lodwar has one of the highest average temperatures in the world. Jan thru Dec, the average high never comes below 90 degrees. There is no respite from the heat. Most days after teaching or bouncing around in a 4x4 on a rutted dirt road to visit a remote church in the bush, I would be exhausted. Fortunately, we had air-conditioned rooms ( if the A/C did not break or power go out ) so we could pull the heat out of our bones. Shower water was never heated and you never wanted it to be.
In this inhospitable area, I met pastors with a burning, heartfelt desire to serve God and His people. Some of the most inviting men in the most uninviting surroundings. What a juxtaposition. It was a privilege and an honor to meet these men and to teach and encourage them from the scriptures. I met with some of the pastors and for many, the support that our team offered in instruction and personal counsel was something that was of of great joy and comfort to them. They sat for 12 hours in an un-air-conditioned room trying to get as much as they could. Not only were they taking in the teachings of Mike, Tim, Ben and myself, for their ministry and congregations they were taking home some well-needed personal encouragement. A pastor I met said that his congregation had been in despair and depression. He has women in their 20s with HIV facing death - very common in Africa. Part of his congregation were attacked in a cross-border attack from the northern border and mothers and fathers were speared to death and children left homeless (which the church took in until the government could take care of them). He said being there and seeing the blood everywhere greatly affected him. Hearing him talk, I realized these guys were on the front-lines with the gospel and saw things that I, Lord willing, would never see or experience. That I could have a small part in encouraging them was one of the most humbling things that I have been involved with. Lord willing, I will have the chance to see these men again.
God bless these pastors.