The year 2022 for us was a year of growth and expansion in our ministry. We started a number of ministries and saw God move in great ways. I want to take this time to look back on the year to show you what God has done and some of the directions He has led us.
In the first quarter of last year, I attempted a new ministry. I noticed that the men in our church didn’t have any amount of fellowship time. We started meeting every Thursday night for Bible study. God has used this time to grow the spiritual understanding of the men and to bring us closer as a group. Six faithful men now attend on a regular basis. Another outreach that we started early last year was a Youth Day. We meet monthly at the local police post and play soccer with the neighborhood children. Some will play other games, and Annabelle does a Sunday school with the small children. A number of these children have attended church from this neighborhood, and many of our church kids have an opportunity to get out and get some exercise.
Toward the end of the first quarter, we started a choir for a Resurrection Day special. We were happy to see a commitment from enough people to start the choir. God blessed the efforts of this group with a great service.
Near the end of 2021, God directed me to start looking for a permanent location for the church. We meet in two hotel conference rooms at the moment. We began searching for a long-term lease. In the end, this was very unproductive, as many landowners refuse to rent to churches. After that, I moved to seeing what might be available to buy. We looked at many plots and feel settled that God has shown us the one He has for us. At this time, we still lack the funds to purchase it, but we are trusting that God will work in hearts and His church will be built.
One of the great blessings this year was God using a man in our church to become my assistant. We have been able to go soul winning together several times a week and have been able to lead many to Christ. I have seen him grow immensely as a soul winner this year. He was also able to lead the church while my family and I were in the States for three months.
In April, God led us to start a teen group. We have a large group of teenagers who attend our church. Some are teenagers who come on their own; others come with their parents. They now have their own Sunday school class and teen activities.
In September, our family took a furlough. The main purpose was to update some of our supporting churches and to visit family. It was a blessing to be able to be in a few new churches as well. We were really encouraged by a number of our meetings and felt very loved by God’s people. One special blessing came at a new church when a young man with Type 1 diabetes noticed Annabelle’s monitor. He approached her at the end of the service and said, “I have one of those.” It really encouraged her to see someone else going through what she goes through. He also blessed her with some of his extra supplies, which helped get us through almost six months, praise the Lord. We had a great time with old and new friends, but in the end, we couldn’t wait to get home.
As the year came to a close, we wanted to give our church an opportunity to give back to God. However, giving does not come naturally for many Kenyans. We found a children’s home that is helping street children and were able to gift them 28 blankets, filling an obvious need.
We praise God for a great year and look forward to the doors He will open in the year ahead!
Corey McDonald