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Here is an update from Rev. Dennis Meeker of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Kenya. Thank you all for your ongoing prayers and support. ~Rachel

Springs of Life Lutheran Church Kibera is celebrating peace in Kenya. We really thank God for this change in the aftermath of much chaos. Your prayers are no small thing and we so much appreciate the fact that we are united with you in Christ Jesus our Lord. With many challenges before us we can only ask that you continue to pray that God will provide what we need to sustain us and move us forward in the rebuilding process.

We have been trying to do the little we can in the interim period as politicians are now headed the right direction for the betterment of the country. Water and electricity have been restored. Temporary fence has been put up to enclose the compound from the public. As of yesterday the main gate foundation is being dug. This is God's work as many never thought this could happen so soon. Opposition from those who depend on the water they retrieve from our plot really was an obstacle but God has changed attitudes to agree to our security and also we agree to make water available to those that depend on it so much. A permanent stone fence with razor blade wire topped with electric fence is top priority as a proposal has been submitted to World Relief Human Care of LCMS St. Louis for assistance. Please pray that God may open the avenues for this security to be realized. It is crucial to the rebuilding process. In fact rebuilding would not be practical without a permanent fence.

We have put temporary roofing on two rooms of the parsonage so the Pastor has an office and also some storage for necessities. The church roof has been temporarily repaired and new glass fixed in the big window above the altar. This will keep us dry when the rainy season begins. The Nursery School has over 30 children .Vision Africa has set a feeding program for our nursery school children. Thanks be to God. The restrooms at the school were least damaged and are being renovated with gifts from our friends at Scripture Mission. This is very important to pass inspection and keep the school open. The water tower is about finished with a 5,000 liter tank. Many fittings were stolen or broken, yet a plan is in place to replace and repair everything.

Plans are being put in place to temporarily replace the roofing of three classrooms and kitchen at the school. This includes widows, doors, electricity, plumbing, power washing, and painting. This will allow some normality for the children and give us time to plan well and fund raise for rebuilding the school as it was before the fire or even better. The love of Christ abides forever.

Yours in Christ,

Rev. Dennis Meeker

    I wanted to give a big shout out to A Year Remains.  If you haven't had a chance to hear them, what are you waiting for?  Actually, as Luke put it, only 6 monthr remain, so don't miss out on their next gig.

April 4th you can catch them at the Underground Cafe in Roseville!

Thank you to everybody that helped out tonight.  Great music, a good message and worship time.  We'll be doing it again in two weeks with Michael Willoughby leading the music.  We open at 5 and run through until around 8.  Feel free to come hang out, worship God, build relationships and enjoy a cup of Joe.

-Adam

    It looks like lots of people are fighting this flu bug, including myself.

So for Mike, Jennifer, and anyone else, we pray for healing.

We pray for Jay's trip and safety.

We pray for my friend Mary's son Ricardo, who is going through a foreclosure.

We pray for Eric and I as we approach a possible kidney match.

We pray for the Maguires - FamilyLife Missionaries

We pray for Monty Buck, another missionary in Russia.

We are also praying for the following minitries at church:

Plant a Seed
Preschool
Kairos
Lutheran High School
LOV-U
Sunday School
Candles
Lighthouses
deaf ministry
Alternative Pregnancy Resource Center
Search and Rescue
Prime Timers
Sports
LWML
Prime Timer
Guatemala
Ukraine
Sunday Morning/ Hospitality

If you have a prayer request, please either comment below or send me a message.  We can post it on here or keep it private.

Thank you.

Adam

    I was taking a walk with my son today from the movies.  We had enjoyed the Spiderwick Chronicles and a cup of hot tea at Starbucks.  As we began our trip towards home, there were two Mormon Missionairies heading torwards us.  I started to not make eye contact with them.  The wind was blowing and it was cold, plus, Brendan and I just wanted to go on.  But that didn't happen.  The leader of the two missionairies stopped right before us.  We said our generic hellos, I tried to play dumb.  "Oh, so you guys are missionairies?  What kind?"  (I knew the answer long ahead of time.  I was just acting on impulse.)  There's a lot I was tempted to say, having grown up in Utah for most of my childhood life.  And I started to feel those angry issues of my past popping up.  But something stopped me from going there.  I explained to the missionary that I didn't have my Bible on me and before we started to discuss things, I would need to have my Bible.

    So, it occured to me, invite these guys to Kairos. And from my lips, the invitation came immediately without a chance to think it through.  Invite two Mormon Missionairies to Kairos?  Am I nuts?  And my fear of the invitation begin to kick in.  But then, who am I to say who should be invited to the feast?

Pastor Jay shared an interesting perspective on last Sunday's message.  He asked us the following questions, our answers are the responses.

"Are you ready?"  NO

"Are you willing?"  NOT REALLY

Jesus says, "Come anyway."

And so we will.

Kairos.  It's a Greek word meaning a defined period for an event, a fixed time. 

At the perfect kairos, God came into the world in the flesh on that first Christmas day.  At the kairos set from the beginning of creation, Jesus went to a cross to fulfill His purpose in coming to the earth.  At the kairos held in the mind and heart of God, His Spirit was breathed upon this earth that all people throughout the world and ages may know that the Kingdom of God is near.  And at the kairos yet to be revealed, Jesus will return to complete what was begun with the cross and empty tomb.

Get the idea? Kairos is not an accident, but a time of purpose.  In a culture where so much of life appears random, where time seems dominated by chance and by chaos, there is another truth.  It is kairos—God's time.  We run our lives by the clock and calendar—God operates within them by kairos. 

As we come to know God as He has revealed Himself to this world, we start to see the kairos moments—divine appointments—that He has set for each of us.  As he speaks to us through faith, life is no longer just a string of unassociated events but a mosaic of divine purpose.

If you haven't had the opportunity to step back and look at your life a little differently lately, maybe it's about time.  If you've had a longing to see something deeper in this world, maybe it's about time.  If you're open to the possibility of God breaking into your closed universe and showing you His signature on His creation, maybe it's about time.

Maybe it's about kairos.

" After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God.  "The Kairos has come," he said. "The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!"  (Mark 1:14-15)

Peace, 

Pastor jay

Our next Kairos evening will be February 23rd from 5 until around 7-8.  Come and hang out in this coffeehouse setting.