WHATEVER WE ASK GOD FOR, BELIEVING IN JESUS..............

TODAY, IN KENYA, a Call has gone out to all Kenyans.     A Call TO PRAY, and to ask God to cover us all with His Protection and Healing; that Corona 19 will pass over us without hurt or harm!
SOME are saying that it is a waste of time; that God is outside of the problem, and it is pure myth to believe in Him, or that He can deliver anyone, let alone a Nation, from the ravages of a Virus like C19. 
Another has sneered at the idea saying God will not hear.      BUT the Bible clearly  tells us of those who, believing in His Word and Written Promises, stood up and PROCLAIMED their Faith, and saw the clear evidence that God not only heard their prayer, but ANSWERED them;    and these were men and women who stood entirely alone, on their own, in prayer, yet God, hearing them, was moved to Action - even on behalf of a whole Nation.
YESTERDAY, Kenya Government stated that currently only SEVEN cases of C19 had been confirmed, and NONE of them had died.       ALL cases that have risen in excess of the seven have proved to be Negative.       BUT the people are mostly believing for the worst, and there is a great deal of panic and apprehension in the Country.     The Government is acutely aroused and taking as much preventive action as they can.    All Schools, Colleges and Universities are shut, and all gatherings of more than 100 have been closed down, across the board, including sport fixtures.   AND a great deal more.    TODAY we, Testimony Faith Homes have become 'self isolated' - on the advice of our local Social Services Department     Only the Children in the Homes, their houseparents, and me and Esther are residential here, and unable to go in and out except for food needs.    No Visitors are allowed.      All day to day staff who come in to work daily, have now been laid off, and told to go home to be with their families, although we shall still keep them employed and pay their salaries.      We are told this might continue indefinitely - perhaps  to Christmas and beyond.     BUT does it have to?     If we ALL pray, then surely God  will hear and intervene, and deliver us from all our fears?   IF WE BELIEVE.
WE have individually and together been praying since the Outbreak began.     We believe God HAS heard our prayers.       SO why call the Nation to Pray today?   To   teach and remind us all that we all NEED to have God not only with us, but IN us, as we recognise our weakness without Him, and confess it, and cast all our trust in HIM alone to see us through ALL .      KENYA is looking to God.

Opposite is an arstist's impression of what Elijah the Prophet may have looked like.  A  countryman from the country, a shepherd, unknown, poor, unlearned - but a man who believed in and trusted in God.     He talked to this God, and God talked back.    And Elijah, an ordinary commoner, and a diamond in the rough, was ready to put his whole life on the line for God.       When he, rough and ready in his working clothes, travel stained and perhaps even dirty, burst into the Palace of  Ahab, King and Ruler of Israel, and unannounced,  rudely told this King as he sat in his throne,  -  ' There shall not be dew nor rain these years except by my word (my prayer)'    he showed his courage and the power of his convictions toward God.   The land was already dry and parched, rain having already ceased to fall for some months.
He then turned and left the Palace, and could not be found.    The furious and apprehensive King searched for him everywhere in anger, and perhaps fear.      But Elijah was not afraid nor fearful, and trusted in God completely.      A powerful man?   No, a man like each of US, full of human faults and failings, BUT he trusted in God, and in His Mercy.       JAMES, the brother of Christ, in his Letter chapter 5v17-18 suggests that if Elijah, a man just like any of us, could speak for  God and see God back up his words, then so can ANY one of us, with  similar simple faith - faith that with God nothing is impossible.

It is good to pray and fellowship together and to encourage each other in the things of God, but we do not need to wait for two three, or even a crowd in order to stand before God, and  share the burdens of our heart with him, whether relative to our very selves, or even for the world at large - and even for our Nation.       We do need individual, solitary, MEN and WOMEN to stand in the GAP left in our society by faithlessness and apostasy.         Don't wait to be perfect, be bold and courageous and having admitted your sins be a ready WITNESS for God in your home, job, locality, and Nation.     If ONE of us that are called by the Name of Jesus can do such Wonders, how much MORE can be achieved when we join all together, with united voices and our Faith.      Let us Go To It, nothing fearing for we shall not be alone but with God, and His Host surrounding us and backing up our Witness.

Meanwhile we STAND.     Our local Supermarket remains with all its shelves well supplied, and little current evidence of panic buying, at least for the moment.     We know of course that our initial experience of C19s has until now been slight, but that this in no way assures us  that it has gone away.  We are not standing proudly, but  many ARE believing confidently, that God Will intervene.           Brother and Sisters we also pray for you, and for rest of our suffering and buffetted world and we pray that many more will come to trust the living God, and so find peace and safety that can only be truly known when we have come to KNOW Him personally,  for ourselves.

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THIS snug and cuddly little bundle had just been born six years ago on the17th March 2014.    She was named Abigail, and is the daughter of our adopted daughter Helen.    This year Helen moved from Nairobi where she had been teaching and joined Testimony Nursery School, with Abigail joining Grade 1 of the Primary School.      And so, of course just this week she became the memorable age of SIX, and just for a day became a princess and the focus of interest.     She managed to have a party with some of her friends from the Homes, even though her class mates had mostly gone home from the School which had just closed the day before.    Abigail is a bright and intelligent child and regretfully managed to find a way to wrap her grandparents round her little finger.     But she is delightful to be with, and a great joy and blessing to us two oldies.      We realise just how much we had missed seeing our other four grand-children living in England grow up.   Although these days, unless families all live together, it seems that the speed and fullness of life can still  make you miss seeing much.     Daryl's children, Jesse, and Becky, both seemed to be adults before we realised what had happened.    But his  youngest, Jeremy and Ericka, are still at home with him, and we see them a little from time to time.     Life just seems to have become so full of activities.

Helen and Abigail live normally about three kilometers away, and come to school every day,

However, now with all the upheaval and new Regulations that have come in with C29 we think they may stay with us until things return to normal, and at least until the School opens once more.     At least here she has the other children of her age to play with, and that will help Helen not to be too alone and away from family and friends that are here with us.

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OUR HEARTS ARE WITH YOU ALL, and of course with all those we do not know, who are also living in turmoil and pain.      We see the documentation of it all on SKY news every day, and we are often caught up in it all.      We see the awfulness of what is happening in Italy, and its effect of it upon all those other places that C19 has suddenly arisen is more than frightening.    We feel the effect of it and also have had to consider how much our way of life here may have to change.   Income has dropped, but so far we have managed.    We have no power or influence over income; we never have had.   We share our needs as always, just with our Father in Heaven.      He has always seen us through the many un-foreseen events that have tended to challenge our safety.    We are quite confident that this event, though larger than anything we have come against before, will not prevent God from making sure we will be safe.      We are still together, even when a year ago we thought the Kenya  government might scatter us all to wind.      We will stay together and STAND and SEE the Salvation of God upon Kenya and upon ourselves here in Testimony.     Only Pray for us, and Praise God for His Mercy and Provision toward us.     Thus shall WE also come forth singing!!!.

God Bless you all continually.     We have you all in mind, and our prayer and companionship in Jesus is for ever keeping you  in our thoughts and in our hearts.     What a great wonder that He loves us all so  much, and  never tires.

Our love day by day wings its way to you always in JESUS Name

John, Esther, Daryl and all at Testimony Faith Homes.