EXPLOITST h i s i s a f l a g s h i p o n l i n e n e w s l e t t e r

o f t h e W e s t K e n y a U n i o n C o n f e r e n c e o f t h e S e v e n t h - d a y A d v e n t i s t s

M A Y

2 0 2 0

MINISTRYBEYONDCOVID-19 p. 03

IS THE LORDYOUR

SHEPHERD?

W K U . A D V E N T I S T . O R G

STAND YOURGROUND p. 04

p. 06

EDITORIAL

COVID-19 has hit hard. The world is reeling at itsblows. Governments have been hit hard, economiesare crumpling. The church is not left without its shareof blows. The wisdom of the wise has beenconfounded. 1 Corinthians 1:19 says, “For it is written: ‘Iwill destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence ofthe intelligent I will frustrate’.” Many people aretongue-tied. This is the time when the wise keepsilent. We thank God for our caring leaders who have beenthinking about us and praying for us. They have doneeverything possible to make us still enjoy worshipthrough media, Zoom, online platforms and any othermethods of technology. They have made it possible forus to worship our God in returning tithes and offeringsthrough CFMS. Prayers are being conducted viaFacebook and YouTube. Glory be to God. In this edition of the WKUC Newsletter, Our leadersare not only casting vision on the way forward andgiving direction, but they are also passing messages ofhope and encouragement during these trying times.Kudos to all our conference presidents being led byour Union President Dr. Samuel Misiani for theirtimely messages.

B Y P H I L I P G A I

I would also like to take this opportunity tointroduce our new Editor Knollyne Gai who has joinedus from January 2020, from Africa Herald PublishingHouse. She brings a wealth of experience havingserved as an editorial assistant at Everlasting GospelPublishing Association with its headquarters in Seoul, 

W e s t K e n y a U n i o n C o n f e r e n c eO f f i c e r s

P r e s i d e n t

S a m u e l M i s i a n i

E x e c u t i v e S e c r e t a r y J a p h e t h O c h o r o k o d i

T r e a s u r e r D a v i d S a n d e

E x e c u t i v e P u b l i s h e r P h i l i p G a i

E d i t o r

K n o l l y n e G a i

E d i t o r i a l A s s i s t a n t s T i t u s M u n j a l u

J o s e p h i n e O y u c h o

L a y o u t a n d d e s i g n   S t e p h a n i e A y a y o

C i r c u l a t i o n  

Z i p p o r a h A w i n o

C o r r e s p o n d e n t s

R a n e n C o n f e r e n c e   J o h n O b u n g a

L a k e V i c t o r i a F i e l d  

B e n a r d O k o t h

K e n y a L a k e C o n f e r e n c e Y u d a h O p a p a

C e n t r a l N y a n z a C o n f e r e n c e  

V i n c e n t O n u n g a

N o r t h W e s t K e n y a C o n f e r e n c e E l i j a h M a k h a n u

G r e a t e r R i f t V a l l e y C o n f e r e n c e  

E d w a r d L i m o

We also want to move from a quarterlyNewsletter to a monthly Newsletter. Very soonI will be introducing to you our new radio teamat West Kenya Union Conference.

In as much as we are hit hard by COVID-19,we will not give up or look back. By the graceof God, we will surge on by faith. We believe,the Lord will give us victory at last.Until then, Aluta Continua!

A P R I L - M A Y 2 0 2 0 V O L 2 | I S S U E 1

WKUC EXPLOITS PAGE 02

Our quarterly newsletter also takes on anew name and from henceforth will go by thetitle “Exploits”. With our focus  on Mission andparticularly discipleship, we hope to present toyou real exploits for mission in the comingmonths.

Korea, Assistant Editor at East Central AfricaDivision Publishing Association, AssistantEditor at East Central Africa Division,communication department and Editor inChief at Africa Herald Publishing House. Weare looking forward to a good team spirit as weforge forward.

MINISTRY

BEYOND COVID-19

According to management gurus, one of the keyfactors in strategic management of an organization isenvironmental scanning.  This aspect of managemententails how the internal and external factors affect thesuccess of an organization. Covid-19 has created avolatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA)environment worldwide for nations and organizations,including the Seventh-day Adventist church.Resources are at stake and methods have changed.

B Y S A M U E L M I S I A N I

The Church is God’s agency for salvation andtransformation of the world into disciples of Jesus Christ. The Church is a community of faith that shares in the grace of God and growstogether into the likeness of Christ.Due to therecent developments, the church is not leftbehind.

M A Y 2 0 2 0 V O L 2 | I S S U E 1

God had prepared the Church to move tothis digital domain and be able to ministerand worship through giving anywhere,anytime.  Nothing takes God by surprise. It’stime for the frontline pastors, lay preachersand church members to embrace technology,be proactive and change with the changingtimes.  It is not about changing our missionor our message, but our methods andstrategies.

WKUC EXPLOITS PAGE 03

The pandemic has put the Church at avantage point because we have the answer:The everlasting gospel of the Kingdom of Godthat will culminate into a new world withoutdisease and death. Only Christ, will provide alasting solution to the disease for only He hasovercome death and brought life andimmortality to light according to the gospel(2 Timothy 1:10).

One might even say that God has shifted how wesee the world. Due to the current situation, we mustrespond to the new context in our ministry to theworld. Covid-19 pandemic has changed how the worlddoes business.  The whole world has migrated to thedigital platform overnight. Conferences, seminars,consultations and education are being conducted viaZoom, Webinar, TEAMS and the like. How does theChurch respond to this new situation?

Church operations are now being conductedonline as much as possible. For example, theGeneral Conference Executive Committeewas conducted via Zoom.  The East CentralAfrica Division, midyear Committee tookplace on Zoom. West Kenya UnionConference (WKUC) mid-year meetings wason Zoom etc. The way we do business in theChurch has changed.  We are conductingprayer meetings on Zoom and receivingSabbath programs via Hope Channel Kenyaand different social media platforms, eitherbeing streamed live or prerecorded.   Before COVID-19 struck, in WKUC we hadjust completed the membership datamanagement on the ACMS platform andthe Church Finance Management System(CFMS).

STAND YOUR

GROUND

B Y B E N S O N O G A Y O

Like Habakkuk, we should continue praisingGod despite COVID-19 pandemic or any otherunfortunate circumstance that we should face.Our joy should not depend on the physicalblessings but on the salvation that comes fromGod. We should trust God even during the mostdifficult times. God still expects us to trust Him,praise Him, and adore Him for He is the solutionto all our problems.

Despite the questions Habakkuk hadconcerning the evils taking place during his time,he concluded his oracle with positive words(Habakkuk 3: 17-19) “Even though the fig treeshave no fruit and no grapes grow on the vine,even though the olive crop fails and the fieldsproduce no corn, even though the sheep all die

M A Y 2 0 2 0 V O L 2 | I S S U E 1

The time has come for reformation and when itbegins, the spirit of prayer will actuate every believer,and will banish from the church the spirit of discordand strife.—Testimonies for the Church vol.8 p251

I call upon every reader of this article to take thismessage prayerfully and allow the Lord to lead in yourministry, so that you know and have courage to do itfor the glory of God.

Church leaders must now have an online prayerministry, online bible study and online discipleshiptrainings. There are too many voices online withcontradicting messages. Ministers and elders must riseto the occasion through prayer and total consecration.The pandemic calls for a revival like never before.  As ithas been said; “A revival of true godliness among us isthe greatest and most urgent of all our needs. To seekthis should be our first work.” —The Review and Herald,March 22, 1887.

and the cattle stalls are empty, I will still be joyfuland glad because the Lord God is my savior. Thesovereign Lord gives me strength, He makes mesure-footed as a deer, and keeps me safe on themountains.”

The Sove re ignLord g i ves meSt rength , Hemakes me

sure - f oo ted asa deer , and

keeps me sa feon the

mounta in s .

The Bible records that the children of Israelupon leaving Egypt met the Red Sea. According tothem, there was no way out. Behind them, theEgyptian soldiers pursued and in front there wasthe Red Sea. There were no escape routes neitherto the left nor to the right. They cried out for helpfrom God.

As a minister of the gospel, I wish to convey myheartfelt condolence to the people who have lost theirloved ones due to COVID-19. I reiterate what the PrimeMinister of Italy said in his statement, “with theknowledge and wealth that we have acquired, we areonly left with our heads and hands lifted up for God tosave”

Moses the Servant of God encouraged themsaying, “Don’t be afraid! Stand your ground, andyou will see what the Lord will do to save you.”(Exodus 14:13) And finally, God saved them byproviding a passage through the sea on dry land.As we face this pandemic of Covid-19, we neednot be afraid, but wait upon God who will save us.

WKUC EXPLOITS PAGE 04

LOVE DURING

COVID 19B Y S A M S O N O K W A C H

BE FAITHFUL

Quite frankly, these are worrying moments for theworld, our country Kenya and the church of God. TheCoronavirus pandemic continues to spread and affectlives all over the world. One of the strategies adoptedworldwide to help contain the spread of the virus isavoiding public gatherings or being in crowded placesamong others.  In 2 Timothy 2:2, 5, 6, Paul encourages the youngTimothy and us saying, “And the things that you haveheard…commit them to faithful men who shall befaithful to teach others. Similarly, anyone whocompetes as an athlete does not receive the victor’scrown except by competing according to the rules”.  I hope that church members will continue to followthe laid rules of health and very soon, our God will healand restore our land.

B Y C H R I S T O P H E R M I S O I

Paul says, be choosy and be intentional. You willreap what you sow. In the meantime, we mustencourage members to “find reliable people who willcontinue to teach others and spread the gospel even indifficult times and invest in them”. 

M A Y 2 0 2 0 V O L 2 | I S S U E 1

Be of goodcourage,

and do notfear.

WKUC EXPLOITS PAGE 05

This is a trying period, but I want toencourage us to be of good courage, andnever fear. Psalm 56:3, 4, says, “When I amafraid, I put my trust in You. In God,whose word I praise—in God, I trust andam not afraid.” I have faith in God, and will continue topray that you be of good courage and thatyour faith remain strong.

Our commitment to God should bestrengthened by telling people to staysafe. We should teach the members totake precaution as they serve their God intruth and spirit. We need to speak wordsof encouragement and comfort to those indistress. We must also extend a helping hand tothose in dire physical needs. We need toempathize with those who are affected inone way or the other, including those whohave lost their loved ones. We must let theworld know that God does not slumbereven in times like this. It will come to pass.

Do you want to make adifference in the world?Do you want to knowwhere to start? Godalready sent His only sonJesus Christ to show usgreat love (John 3:16). Hedid not have to sacrificeHis son, but He did itbecause He is love (1 John 4:8). If you want tochange the world, expresslove even if it’s difficult, lovewhen it’s painful, lovewithout hesitation.

Express love God’s way. Share and spread messages oflove during this pandemic period. Our messages of hopeand love will give people a reason to believe that God stillcares for them despite the COVID-19 pandemic.

IS THE LORD

YOUR

SHEPHERD?

Psalms 23 is the most referenced and recited of allthe Psalms. —THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD. Itillustrates the daily experience of a Christian in hisjourney with God. David wrote it from the reflectionsof distressing circumstances that he underwent, andfrom which the Lord safely carried him through. Hisrelationship with the Lord did not begin at the time ofdistress, but way back.  There must have been times that he was in want,but because the Lord was his Shepherd, his want wasmet. There may have been times when he wasthoroughly demoralized, but the Lord cheered him up.He must have constantly faced life threateningconditions, but the Lord was always with him to givehim courage. He also experienced being filled with theabundance of the providence of the Lord.

B Y J O H N O J U N G ' A

FEAR NOT!

The world has been dragged into uncharted waters by COVID-19. Peopleare afraid and uncertain of what tomorrow holds. The sound of hunger, thesmell of death and the tell tales of misery are all around us. Is there any rayof hope in the current darkness that threatens to engulf our livelihood? Thefirm assurance from the throne of the Almighty God is - Yes! There is hope.  The sound of hope is calling amidst the terror and fear wrought by theCorona Virus. True christians are able to hear that sound because they arecalm in the face of the storm. The sound of hope is rising from the writtenword of God.

B Y B E R R I N G N G O R E

Let us neither forget how the Lord has led us inthe past through hard times, nor what His promiseshold for us.  “Do not fear, for I am with you; Do notanxiously look about you, for I am your God. I willstrengthen you, surely I will help you, and surely Iwill uphold you with My righteous right hand.”Isaiah 41:10. May the Lord be our fortress and refuge duringthis pandemic and beyond.

M A Y 2 0 2 0 V O L 2 | I S S U E 1

Even though Iwalk through the

valley of theshadow of death,

I will fear no evil

WKUC EXPLOITS PAGE 06

We also identify with the same conditions in life.The big question is, “Is the Lord your Shepherd?”  Thewhole world may be in want right now, a lot that ishappening around us demoralizes us. Ourcircumstances, especially during this pandemic areliterally “a valley of the shadow of death”— yet if theLord be our Shepherd, we will fear no evil for He iswith us in everything.

This is a service brought to you by the Adventist Media Centre- West Kenya Union Conference Standard rates apply.

THE LORD IS ON

THE THRONE:FEAR

NOT

Many people are wondering where the world isgoing. Great nations with high levels of medicalfacilities, qualified doctors, scientists andresearchers are all looking at COVID-19 with awe.The situation as it is, can only be handled by God. T

B Y S A M W E L M B A Y I

M A Y 2 0 2 0 V O L 2 | I S S U E 1

The Psalmist says, we should lift up our eyes to the hills and ask, “From whence comes my help? My help comes from the LORD, Who made heaven and earth(Psalm 121:1, 2). It is only God who has the answer to this unclear situation. During this pandemic, let us look unto the Lord for help because the He is our keeper; The Lord is ourshade at our right hand. The Lord our God is our salvation (Jeremiah 3:23). True healing of our land canonly come from the Lord Almighty.  As we sanitize and wash our hands, let us sanitize our hearts throughthe blood of the Lamb that was slain before the foundation of the world. Let us return to the Lord that wemay be restored and healed completely as individuals and as a church.

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