The main event of the day was attending Parklands Baptist Church in Nairobi. Parklands is a megachurch with an attendance of about 4000 split across two services. The church service was a mix between a familiar atmosphere and a distinctly Kenyan twist. All of the songs were ones we knew, so that was familiar, but we also had to stand up to be greeted by the entire church, which was certainly not familiar. They even sang to us, and the ushers came and shook all of our hands. We also appeared on the “jumbotron” at the front of the sanctuary.

One other difference was that the prayers during the service were really, really long. He might have prayed for 30 minutes. However, the prayer was very thoughtful. We appreciated how they prayed specifically for their county, for their continent, and were even intentional about praying for other countries in the world by name. The prayers also reflected the emphasis of African Christianity on God’s power. If you want to see a recording of the service, you can follow the link here and select the Jan 19th service: https://parklandsbaptist.org/series/sermons/

I (Miriam) finally got my Java House coffee. I think it was even better than the coffee I just had in Rwanda. Kenya coffee truly is the best in the world. 

Tomorrow we will be heading to Masai Mara, which is the game park where we will see lots of animals. We will be leaving early in the morning, and so we are signing off for the night.

by Miriam and Hannah

P.S. We will have limited wifi on safari, so if you don’t hear from us don’t be alarmed. We just might be seeing lions, tigers, and bears OH MY!!!!

P.P.S. Miriam says there are no tigers or bears in Africa.

P.P.P.S. The stuffed mastodon in the picture is named Perry, and he also likes Java House coffee. 

P.P.P.P.S. We really are going to bed now!

Editor’s note: As the bloggers mentioned, we’re leaving for safari tomorrow morning. Cell and internet connections may be very limited because of our remote location, so we may not be able to post on the blog, call or e-mail. We’re fine, though, and we’ll try to post when we get back. Just wanted to let you know why you might not hear from us for a couple days.