Weekend at Alara August 14-16, 2009

Weekend at Alara August 14-16, 2009

Friday August 14 was arrival day at the Alara Conference. We did not go this day as it was for checking in and registration.

Alara is Jared’s home village and it is about a 30-45 minute drive from Kisumu. At Alara is the Alara Church of Christ. The building also used for school. The first time we visited Alara the second building for school was still just framed. Today the mud walls are completed. The church is where the women slept and the other building is where the men slept. The youth slept in tents provided by the boy scouts. Temporary showers were set up with the reed mats as walls. A new water tank has been set up by Mama Florence’s house. A second clean water tank was brought in for the weekend. It will be moved to the location of Jared’s new house.

Tent tops were set up for the general meetings and the men met outside. The ladies met inside the church. We filled it up.

Saturday morning we got up early to make our way to the conference when we discovered our front tire was loosing its tread. We mad a call to Jared to let him know we were running late because we needed to replace a tire. So the adventure starts we got directions from a security guard at Nakumatt to a place to purchase a tire. We start out and John did know the area. Then Jared called back and said stay where you are I am sending someone to you. We pulled over and immediately about 6-8 Africans surrounded the car all pointing to our tire. We were motioning to them we knew and were waiting of course all of them wanted to fix it. We sat there with the car off and the windows up waiting for a familiar face. Two young men arrived and came to the car window that looked like they knew us.
We let the window down asking who sent them and when they said Jared we let them in the car. They showed us a tire place which was just about a block away and the new tire was purchased. We think this could be a regular activity given the roads we are on. God always supplies what we need. SO OFF WE GO TO ALARA
.
When we arrive they are waiting for us. No one is too bothered by the late arrival.

The ladies study starts and Tom interprets for me. The theme of the weekend is being a faithful Christian. I use the book of James and also the parable if the talents. It took two hours and not too many fell asleep. I am still getting use to the interpreter teaching time.
The ladies responded with a bit of prompting and so it was a good time. God is always faithful to lead the studies.

John hit the men hard with issues on women and how to treat them. I will let him write his own version of that.




After teaching times lunch was served and we thought so many were there that we might make an escape from lunch, but oh no they had prepared a special lunch just for us chicken (kuku) and greens. Not only that they expected us to eat in the house. John said he couldn’t do it after all he had taught but Eunice insisted. So we went in to eat and several joined us inside. The ugali was brown and they said sweet. It wasn’t sweet I can tell you that. Eunice insisted I taste it. I did.
The chicken was as usual.

After lunch the next set of teachings started. John had questions and answers in his group. I got to sit and listen as Grace and Rose taught. These ladies are officers in the Women’s group from all the churches.

We took pictures that Jared requested and then drove home.

Sunday: August 16

We are off early again but not too early we have been told breakfast was at 8:30 and services begin at 9. So we want to arrive at 9 or after. George called and they needed communion cups so we had to meet up with his children to get the cups. (Anyone that visits us please bring communion cups with you they reuse them far longer than they should) This is Africa and when we arrive after 9 they are taking breakfast bread and peanuts with tea. We are able to say we have eaten. The men are in a meeting and the ladies and just sitting. It was after 10 before it all started and then they gave each speaker a time limit. John stayed in his very well. We think I will start putting on sunglasses to let him know when to stop.

The Conference seemed to be a success for those attending and they felt recharged. There were about 150 people there. Rice and beans were served for lunch and everyone went home. At least 50 people requested we take them home. In the end Dino had us take 3 youth home from Ring road and the girls were thrilled to be in the car. I asked them, “How did you get chosen to ride in the car?” They said they didn’t know. They ask us if they were the first students to ride in our car. I said yes and they beamed with delight.

We now have an idea what a conference will be like in Kenya. The people love to go to these events. We have decided it is a break from the monotony of life. Next year they are planning a nation wide conference in June for women at Ring Road!

Pray for this event that funding will be provided and mattresses for the ladies to sleep on in the classrooms when they arrive. Pray for the speakers to be prepared with truth.

Pray also that those we teach learn to apply the word not just believe the word.
Pray we are able to communicate this message in all our teaching.