Kisumu Yoder's: A Clean Heart...

"A clean home is nice, but a clean heart is better."

"The proof of spiritual maturity is not how pure you are but awareness of your impurity. That very awareness opens the door to grace." Philip Yancey

"It is safe to tell the pure in heart that they shall see God, for only the pure in heart want to. C.S. Lewis

The last number of week the girls and I have been cleaning, organizing, and getting rid of anything we don't need. This house desperately needed a good cleaning and I'm enjoying the feeling of an organized house even though I know it won't stay this way very long. It reminds me of the importance of keeping our hearts maintained as well. A clean heart is far more important than a clean house. In the end it will determine our destiny. I hope I can keep my priorities where they belong!

We're enjoying lovely weather in Kisumu. It's been a bit chilly at times but I think it's wonderful! We could use a bit of rain again but we're so thankful that the rains lasted as long as they did! Some folks appear to be getting a good harvest but others not so much because of flooding.

JoeAllens have returned to America for furlough and are currently in Georgia spending time with his family. We miss them here but look forward to joining them on the other side of the pond in a few weeks. The children especially miss Tiffany and Elliot! Joseph and Becky Hostetler and Rhoda Wengerd have also returned home for a number of weeks. It's good to have Gerold's lively family back in Kisumu! :) . And we're very much enjoying Ivan Peachey's family as well as Jason and Cynthia Beachy and family! Both of them have done so well in just picking up the reins and moving ahead as though not much time has passed since they lived here! :) .

On Sunday a week ago we were at Ahero. We are always glad when it's our turn to go there. One bad thing is that the church house seems to be infested with mosquitoes. Thankfully I had some repellant with me and we were able to ward them off. We were also a bit distracted during the service by a bat hanging from the ceiling and sometimes sliding down a beam and looking like it could fall any minute. Wayne announced that day that there was unanimous support to move ahead with commissioning a new Pastor. Wayne hopes to move ahead with it soon after our furlough. On the way home from Ahero we stopped at Rabuor a bit to drop something off for Bishop Thomas. While visiting with the ladies outside I noticed Helen had a very nice pink dress on that was unusual fabric for here. I commented on it and she told me that it was a dress that belonged to Sarah (Sarna) Esh. Sarah gave the dress to Helen before she died and then Helen took it all apart and cut it to her own pattern. It turned out beautifully and I could tell that the dress is special to her!

The week was a busy one! Wayne had a number of meetings to attend. I feel badly for him with the stress caused by allegations against Bishop Eric. Ivan has been a blessing and support to Wayne though and has attended different meetings with him. Things don't look good and even though we still don't know for SURE that the accusations are true, it's very obvious that something must be done to bring rest to the churches at Kasongo and Ombeyi. So pray earnestly for wisdom for the Pastor's as they work with the issue. This coming weekend looks "BIG" to Wayne as he needs to meet with the two churches on Sunday morning to make some statements. From there we are scheduled to go to Oroba for at least part of the service to cover for Joseph and Becky.

On Wednesday morning Jason Beachys arrived at the compound! The girls and I made a simple lunch for them. It's so good to have them around again! Soon after their arrival Jason said he wanted his "marching orders." :) And I was amazed that they had enough energy left after their long flights to attend Bible study at Lela that afternoon!! The Lela folks knew they were coming soon but didn't expect to see them that day. They were VERY happy to see them! :)

My week was full with cleaning and organizing. I also needed to prepare for the clothing sales coming up in the near future. It was a big relief to get everything sorted and into totes for our 4 different sale days. The girls also tackled a project that was interesting but time consuming! The Ahero church sign was taken away by the Kenya Highway Authority a while back because they said it was too close to the road. After some time Wayne was able to pick it up at an office in Kisumu but the thing was in dire need of repainting so he designed a new sign and our girls painted it, with the help of Kaylita. It was a great feeling to have that done! That evening we met at Ivans for Prayer meeting and they served us some yummy homemade ice cream with different toppings afterwards!

Our children sure are enjoying the privilege of having more children/youth on the compound! They've been playing spike ball on the lane quite often in the evening and there have been some impromptu's as well... such as a BIG water fight that ended up including almost all the children and youth on the compound! :) . They had great fun! I love to see our children making memories like that! Kore was here for supper that evening and we invited Stacy too.

On Saturday we enjoyed having Ivan's family and Stacy here for supper and the eve. Pizza was on the menu as usual.

Last Sunday found us at Rabuor where Wayne was asked to preach a message at their family seminar. Pastor Tobias from Ahero preached a message as well. It was a good morning and we enjoyed hearing the choir sing as usual!

The Pastor's had a special lunch at Java House on Monday. Joseph so kindly gave money before he left to treat all the Pastors to a meal. The meeting ended up lasting most of the day again... as it did last Monday!

On Tuesday Gerold, James, and Jake flew to Nairobi in the morning, got their work permits verified, and then flew back to Kisumu in the afternoon. Please continue to pray for Brian's situation. John Zook has reapplied for the permit so we continue waiting to see whether it will be approved.

On Wednesday Wayne and I and Clarissa and Vanessa bounced our way to Kajulu for the annual clothing sale. Things went well and it never got very hectic since the people arrived at different times and the check-out line never got very full. It was a good day and we stayed for most of the Bible study as well. I always enjoy watching the ladies having a good time helping each other try on their new dresses and I love the way the younger ones look out for the old mamas!

On Thursday Clarissa and I drove to the Specialists Hospital where our Asian dentist is located to have some work done on our teeth. Things went well and I was glad to have that over with! Wayne and Ivan spent all day at a meeting with Kasongo and Ombeyi members. Days like that are stressful!

We're gearing up for a time of refreshing in Mombasa next week! Tony's plan to be there as well as Kore (part of the time). We plan to take the train from Nairobi to Mombasa and then the following week our flight leaves from Nairobi and on across the waters!! Opake Yesu!! :) Hoping to see some of you there!! Blessings, Wayne and Clara