Recently I had the privilege to go on a mission trip to Kenya and travel with Dr. Mike Hyodo as part of the World Ministries International team. As with all nations, God loves the people of Kenya, and He has put His love in our hearts for them too.
As we visited many local church congregations throughout Kenya, the truth of Proverbs 16:9 kept coming to mind; “A man's heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.” During the course of touring different congregations, we could sense the spirit of God guiding Dr. Mike to establish relationships that would lead us to each new location. God opened the doors for us to be used by Him.
To cover some of the highlights of the trip, let me share with you a look at our itinerary.
On the first day, we traveled to a local congregation in Nanuki, Kenya. Dr. Mike had met with the area soccer team and shared a little about Jesus Christ. They asked him to be a sponsor for their team so they would have support to buy equipment they needed. He agreed and invited them to church. When they came to church, we shared the message of salvation with them and passed out the soccer equipment. Now, most of the soccer team is attending the Sunday service in their area.
At church we also picked up Bishop Steven Waweru, who is the head over the Foursquare churches in Kenya. It was a blessing to have him travel with us for most of my time in Kenya. We also visited a new school in Embu and prayed for the school.
It is such an encouragement for the kids and teachers to have other Christians from outside the country come and spend time with them. They were eager to know when we could return for another visit.
Before heading back to Nairobi, we stopped at one of Overseer Njagi’s churches in Embu to worship the Lord with them and to give a word of encouragement. They were an encouragement to us because they worshiped the Lord with great passion.
At Embu, more than any other place, the Holy Spirit impressed on my heart a deep love for the brothers and sisters. The building was full, only seating about 15-20 people. We went with Bishop Waweru along with the principal and a teacher from the school. The worship leaders worshiped God with passion and energy, and the anointing of the Holy Spirit was present. As we left, the love of God in me tugged on my heart when one brother said , “Please pray for us.”
Victory Hope School was located in the slum area, surrounded by dirt with the frequent smell of sewage. The tin building was hot and stuffy inside, yet the kids and teachers didn’t seem to notice. This is life in the slums. The people are raised in these conditions; they are accustomed to it; this is all they know. There was a lack of benches or desks and some children had to do their school work sitting on the floor. Text books were scarce, but with the few supplies they had, the school was doing a good job teaching the children. It was a blessing to see their faces and meet the teachers. Your support can help the school obtain the needed desks and textbooks! Contact Dr. Mike Hyodo at: mikehyodo@hotmail.com and let him know you want to contribute to the Victory Hope School.
Victory Hope School in Kiberia
After meeting these people, I know they would be very blessed and grateful to receive these essential supplies. We welcome you to come with us on a mission trip to Kenya and see what your giving has meant to them. Most of the people living in Kibera do not have any dental care. Our desire is to be able to provide dental care to as many of these people as possible.
At Kiboswa, we preached at an outdoor crusade and showed the movie, “Passion of the Christ.” There were so many people interested in watching the movie that viewing spots were scarce. Many people had probably not seen a major motion picture before. You could tell by the reactions on people’s faces, that many were being touched and introduced to the reality of what Jesus Christ did for them on the cross.
In Bungoma, we met with Apostle Julius Macheusi who told us about a past crusade in neighboring Uganda that was held in a Muslim populated area. Many Muslims were giving their lives to Jesus Christ, which angered some of the Muslims. On the 3rd night of the crusade, three Muslim men stole the pulpit and ransacked the stage. The rest of the crusade had to be cancelled. In the two or three years since that crusade, two of those men died and the other one went insane and is still in the mental institution. When some of the Muslim community saw this, they began asking Apostle Julius to come back to hold another crusade. Glory to God! Dr. Mike also met with a local doctor about starting a dental clinic in Bungoma.
In the south B slums we showed the “Passion of the Christ” movie again, with standing room only. A good number of people responded to the call to acknowledge their sin, repent, turn from sin, and trust in Jesus Christ for forgiveness of sin.
While on a visit to a slum area called South B, we encountered a pastor who was not in the right spirit and was attempting to cause division, by slandering another pastor and accusing him of something that wasn’t true. After trying to reason with the pastor and stop the slander, Dr. Mike had to forcefully tell the person that what he was saying was not true and it needed to stop. This is an example of how important it is that we not stand by and let slander or gossip take place, but rather that we confront it. Otherwise, it can cause great damage to a person and their reputation as well as negatively influence everyone who listens.
At Pentecostal Covenant Church they invited the disabled people from the community. There we gave money to buy 40 food packages of flour, sugar, and rice for the disabled people and dispensed them at the service. It was obvious this was not just about food to a lot of the disabled people, but some saw this as an affirmation of love. Faith without deeds is dead! Praise the Lord!
There are so many opportunities to minister and touch peoples lives through the ministry of benevolence. The impact of what it does to a persons heart to receive the truth of Jesus Christ and experience the life that Jesus desires each of his creation to have is noticeable. (John 10:10).
At the Mathare slum, we saw gang members brewing illegal ‘changaa’ alcohol. When gang members noticed me with the camera, some of them started yelling at us from the bottom of the hill. Since we were a distance away, they made no attempt to come up the hill. A couple of weeks earlier gang members killed one person in a fight over this alcohol. There are no police stations in the slum areas. If someone commits a crime such as stealing, they assemble their friends and neighbors to enforce justice on them. If it escalates to murder, the police will go in for a short period of time to restore order.
Marching Onward
By Dr. Mike Hyodo
As a pastor and missionary for World Ministries International, I have found that our seven months in Kenya has been full of irony. Where once my wife, Trisha, would say that she could never see herself in another country outside the US, especially Africa, we now find ourselves living in Nairobi, Kenya. Two months ago she said that she doesn’t want to leave!
In the midst of starting seven bible schools, preparing to build 12 dental clinics, preaching throughout the country, and visiting the poor in schools, slums, and orphanages - anyone could say that they have been busy doing the work of the Lord.
I have seen and done things that cannot be adequately explained on paper with words. One day I even had the opportunity to see the Kenyan President, Mwai Kibaki, and the ex-president, Daniel Moi, at a Rotary meeting in the Grand Regency hotel in Nairobi. Yet, probably the most significant thing that I have experienced in Kenya happened at this same location, but on the following day.
I was meeting a local pastor who is a beloved friend of our ministry. He wanted to meet with me at the hotel to tell me something important. He had shared some struggles with me previously and he wanted to let me know that during an earlier conversation, I had told him that I would “fight for him”.
Little did I know then that those three simple words were very instrumental for God to touch him in a most supernatural way. His mother died last summer and in the process of grief, he got stuck in depression. He had lost his energy and this last trial that he was going through was almost too much for him to bear.
His mother was the only person in his life that he felt would stick up for him. Now that she was gone, loneliness was growing and hope was dwindling. But when he heard that someone will “fight for him” it gave him hope, and the substance of his faith was rekindled. It was just the touch that he needed from God to snap him out of the heaviness that was upon him. “Mungu yu mwema” is Kiswahili for God is good (all the time).
We live at a critical time of history. God is sending judgment upon the nations. The prophetic Word of God is literally coming to pass. Yet, in the midst of doing His incredible work, the Lord is showing me that the reason why we are doing it is to “love your neighbor”.
Jesus Christ desires for us to be used as a conduit of His love. No matter how big or small the work is that He has called you to do, reach out and make a difference in the life that is in front of you. You don’t need to be in a third world country to do that. God bless you.
This building is being renovated to become a Christian medical center, in hopes of doing what Jesus demonstrated, caring for the poor, healing the sick, showing compassion to those in need, and reaching out to others.
When you are willing to let God use you to meet the needs of other people around you, whether it is physical needs or spiritual, people perceive that you genuinely care about them. Many times this will open up their hearts to receive the love that God has for them, in the form of granting forgiveness of their sins through Jesus Christ. We can show the love of God through caring for others needs and being willing to sacrifice our time and energy and finances to minister to them.
When we look beyond our needs to the needs of others, then God flows through us with his grace so that we can meet others needs with that same love, care and compassion that he gives so freely. Again Jesus said, “freely you have received freely give.” This happens as we are willing to get our focus off of ourselves and our problems and meet the need(s) of someone else. And the same grace that God gives us to meet someone else’s need(s) will be the same grace that ministers to us.
Establishing bible schools was one of the purposes we were meeting with people while I was there. In Webuye we spoke to the Webuye Pastor’s Fellowship about the bible school.
The bible school courses are through Beacon Institute of Ministry, an arm of Beacon University located in Columbus, Georgia. The pastors we met with were in agreement that the quality of teaching is very good. Beacon University flies in people from all over the world. Some have spent their lives learning about certain subjects and then they come and do a 10 hour teaching, along with a textbook and test. This makes for a very good way to grow in the Lord.
Finally, when in Kenya, I had to take a safari! So we did. We took a short safari and saw some beautiful animals, God’s creation is magnificent! - Sean Bradley
More Bible Schools and Dental Clinics
The WMI-Kenya bible school is located at the mission house in Nairobi where the courses are given. Housing is available there for mission teams as well as visiting pastors from the region. The bible school classes are given in DVD-format, with a book to read, syllabus for note-taking and in a diploma and certificate format.
On the property is a small outbuilding that will soon be remodeled into a dental clinic to serve the poor in the Kibera, South B, and Wilson airport slums. We are in the process of receiving an “Extension of User” permit from the Nairobi City Council to begin the remodeling. As the project will cost an estimated 2 million Kenya shillings (About $29,411), we ask for your support.
We are also starting another bible school campus and ministry office in the downtown Nairobi business area to serve working people and businessmen. The new partitioning will cost an additional 1.4 million Kenya shillings (About $20,588).
The Container has arrived in Kenya!
The container from Seattle has just arrived in Kenya with 13 dental chairs and three portable dental units. The work to build 12 dental clinics will begin soon, with the first two in South C and nearby the Mathare slums.
Helping the Poor
The outreach ministry at WMI has been busy donating clothing, food, sports equipment, eyeglasses, and money to the poor mostly through churches and schools such as the Smart Cathedral in the Kawangware slum, the Foursquare churches in Embu, Nanuyuki, and the Western Province, and the Mcedo School in the Mathare slum.
Ministry Training available through Distance Education
You may earn a diploma through a world-wide distance education program WMI offers through Beacon Institute of Ministry.
Each student will receive a syllabus, textbook, and a set of DVDs (or CDs) by mail for each course of study. All courses are taught in ten 50-minute classes.
- Affordable tuition fees.
- Choose your own classes according to your schedule.
- All courses earn 3 units.
- Courses are presented in six divisions of study:
- Old Testament
- New Testament
- Biblical Theology
- Practical Theology
- Historical Theology
- Christian Counseling
- Courses from all six divisions must be represented in a student’s Diploma of Theology 126 units (credits).
For information about these courses, call the office: (360) 629-5248
Mission Trip to Kenya
One of the best ways to get involved and to make a difference is to come here like Sean Bradley did. Although Sean was in Kenya for only two weeks, he has found that there is no knowledge or understanding quite like the experience. He discovered many of the facets in the jewel of WMI.
If you are interested in the next mission trip to Kenya, email Dr. Mike at: mikehyodo@hotmail.com or call (360) 629-5248.
© 2007 World Ministries International