Richard Chowning teaching in the village of Koyoxwe.

“Teach us to Pray…”

April 18, 1998

“Teach us to pray.” I am not kidding you, that is exactly what Emille, one of the older men at Koyoxwe, said to me at the end of the meeting on Friday. In sixteen years of church planting in Kenya we never heard such a request. Sure we taught about prayer, and how to pray. We modeled it. But no one ever asked us to teach them to pray. Koyoxwe is still a preaching point. There are no Christians here yet. They are eargerly learning what God has provided for those who are born again and continue to walk on the “road of life.” They are now convinced that the Creator, whom they thought was distant and detached, really wants to communicate with them.

So, on Sunday, Joseph prayed for the first time. He began with the Lord’s Prayer and then some special thanksgivings and requests. The rains are more than a month late. He asked God for rain. Later that evening the heavens openned and the Creator poured out his blessing of rain on Aplahoue. Praise His name.

Twice a week, an average of twenty adults attend these evangelistic meetings. I expect the first new births in May. Ask the Lord of the harvest to ripen their souls to obedience.

Thursday, we began a new preaching point at Dandjixwe. Last month, when visitors from Richland Hills (Tx) and Kingstone (Tn) were here, we drove though several villages in north Ajaland. We stopped at Dandjixwe and talked to a blacksmith. Within five minutes many people had gathered around us. While the villagers were laughing and posing for pictures, I sat down with the blacksmith and asked him if he would like me to return someday and give them a message from God. He said he would like that. This past week I decided to visit him again. Just as before, a large group of people gathered around and they enthusiastically asked me to return the following Thursday to begin to share the message. Just as I was leaving, a middle aged man said, “my village is six kilometers from here. When you finish here next week I would like you to come to my village and tell us.” Well it seems the Lord has definitly moved us into the stage of planting churches. Praise His name.

The story continues: