Ken and Robert and their mission to Shimba Hills

Getting Started

At 7:30am, Robert and I set off for our mission to Shimba Hills, a place where we had never been before.  Katana prayed for us as we left.  When we arrived at the buss station, we realized that buses to the place were scarce.  So we took a motorcycle taxi, and by 9:00 am we were in Shimba Hills. 

We stopped at the main trading center.  As we walked along a young man offered us a ride in his private car and  gave us a brief overview of the place. This ride increased our confidence and helped us better understand the place where we were ministering.  He dropped us at Mkelekeleni center, a location which is surrounded by the Digo community who are predominantly Muslims.

Outreach

We sat outside a shop.  We were welcome there by five men who were on a business meeting.  Despite most of these men being Muslims they showed much interest in our mission and even began to advise us went further advising us on how we could succeed through door to door witnessing and open air meetings.

When these men embarked on their meeting Robert took a walk across the street and there he met two ladies who were selling foodstuffs. He shared with them the gospel for about a half an hour and the two became the first fruits of the mission.  It happed so fast at a time and a place that we did not expect though the two had Christian background.  The harvest propelled us into more steps and actions We had to bid bye to our first hosts so we excused ourselves in their meeting and prayed  with them. They were so grateful for the prayers.  They had faith that the business project they were planning to undertake would be successful because of the prayers

We decided to go back to the main trading center at Shimba Hills so that that we could get place to keep our bags which were dragging us. Before we left the center we encountered an old man who was in pain as a result of a wound on his leg. We prayed with him and he testified that the pain had  reduced.  He shared with us about other problems he was facing in his family. We encouraged him and at the end he gave his life to Christ.

As Robert continued encouraging the old man, Ken joined with some youths in a game of drough (A common game in form of a chase.) By this time most of the people knew that we are preachers and address us as pastors. They informed us on where to get a public address system just in case we were to hold an open air meeting. For this to take place we would need a permit from a local authority. Fortunately two assistant chiefs (area administrators) were in a restaurant across the street. One of the youths volunteered to take us and introduce us to them.

The chiefs were very much welcoming but were a bit reluctant to allow us to operate in the area.   One of them advised us, “For the safety and security purposes, why can’t you go some kilometers ahead into Christians’ villagers?  This is an Islamic stronghold and we would not want to see any commotion.”

We  insisted that our mission was to speak to the Muslims and that we would only preach the gospel and peace.  They changed their mind and encouraged us to stay and preach the word. They assured us of our safety and gave us their cell phone number in case we needed their assistance.

One of the chiefs even requested us to visit his family because they needed prayers.  We promised to do so. 

We got a guest room in trading center at a very fair price. We rested for an hour.  At two at two we took a lunch and started witnessing. Several people gave their hearts to the Lord.  We went to an Islamic area.   In the first homestead we met Omari and his wife. They received us well and allow us to pray with them. Then Omari escorted us to the next home. There was another old man who was eager to listen to the message. He shared with us what he was going through. He had problems with jiggers which affected both of his feet.  He received Christ and we prayed with him for healing.  He took our contacts and promised to introduce us to his working mates who are bounded in alcoholism.

Robert praying for a new believer

This old man also led us to the next homestead. There we met another hospitable Muslim man. He shared with us about the family and financial challenges he had as he was expecting his child to join secondary school next year and he had no saving to cater for his school fees. We prayed with his family. He was so grateful and gave us fruits to take with us.

Ken speaking to a man about Jesus

From there we crossed to the other side of the where we met a lady and her children.  She opened her heart and told us how she was desperate to receive back Christ as she had been a Christian in the past, but was pressured to become a Muslim when she got married.   She told us:  “We have talked with my husband of late and he too has been considering converting to Christianity. I wish he was here so you could speak with him.”   We prayed with her. 

We continued preaching the gospel Saturday and Sunday.  In the end, we saw quite a number of people give their hearts to the Lord.   We tried to organize a Sunday morning meeting for the new converts, but it didn’t succeed.  Starting a church there will require more time and effort than we were able to give on only a three day mission. 

On one occasion we were walking through the Islamic area (a place we had taken to calling the “cousins” zone) we passed by a Muslim lady who was selling mangoes. We looked at each other silently agreed to buy the mangoes and get some time to share the gospel. So when one of us was busying selecting mangoes the other was sharing the word. The lady became very attentive. At the end when we asked if we could pray with her to receive Christ she nodded in affirmation.   So we prayed with her. 

A Miracle

The lady who is seated was nearly deaf.  She experienced healing when we prayed for her

On another occasion we met a group of ladies, and they welcomed us to pray for them.  One of the young ladies had a serious hearing problem.  She could only hear sounds when you shouted at her.  We prayed for her ears to be opened.  Afterwards, she was able to hear a normal conversation.   We thanked the Lord for this miracle. 

All in all, the mission was a success.   Many people heard the word of God, and quite a number decided to follow Jesus.  We thank God for what he did during this mission.