Jenny Nygaard - Missionary to Kenya - Updates
April 14,2012
Dear Family and Friends,
Praise the Lord I have arrived safely back in the states! Both flights went well with no problems, although I did spend a good portion of my time in France trying to find my gate. I arrived back in Minnesota on Wednesday and have spent the last couple days catching up with my family and some friends in the area. Tomorrow I will be sharing a little at my church here in Minnesota about what I did in Kenya.
Being back in the states has been interesting. Everything seems weird and slightly off. I'm starting to get used to it again, but it has taken a couple days. Thank you again to everyone for all of your prayers throughout my internship. The Lord has taught me so much through this experience, and I've seen Him work in amazing ways over the past three months. I am sad to have left Kenya, but I feel that one day I will probably be back in that area again. I have already received a few calls and e-mails from the friends I left behind and I hope to stay in touch with them.
If there are any in the Dubuque area that would like to know more about my trip to Kenya I will be sharing at Emmaus' Student Missionary Fellowship on Monday, April 23rd at 6:30
Please pray for me as I readjust to the culture here again, and the food. Also please pray that I will have wisdom in the upcoming weeks, as I will be finishing my schooling this May and I have many decisions to make. Thank you all once again, I feel incredible blessed to have had so much support on this adventure God has led me on.
Blessings in Christ,
Jen
April 8,2012
Dear Family and Friends,
Please forgive the brevity of this update, as I do not have much time right now. These last couple weeks have again been crazy, I don't even know where the time has gone. Beka and I left Nairobi on Sunday night with a plan to stop in Kakamega, pack more things and then head to Lodwar. Well what we didn't plan on was our shuttle breaking down on the way causing a four hour delay. We made it to Kakamega safely at around 4 in the morning though. What I didn't plan on was getting sick on the way there. So Beka left for Lodwar on Monday as planned and I stayed home and rested for a couple days before joining her there.
Lodwar is in the middle of nowhere around the base of the Sahara desert. It was super hot. It was over 100 degrees everyday we were there! So an american team was also there from Idaho. They were helping to put in a well for the church. So in Lodwar we, put in a well, distributed food, did medical, worked with a lot of children, and encouraged the believers there. It was a long week, but very profitable.
I cannot believe that it is almost time for me to return back to the states. I will be flying home on the 10th. I do not know where the time has gone, but I do know that it wasn't wasted. I'm very torn right now because part of me wants to go home and see my family, but the other part of me does not want to leave this beautiful country! The Lord has taught me so much through this experience, and I've been so blessed by the people I have met here. I pray that one day I will be able to return.
Prayer:
-Please pray for safety as first we travel to Nairobi, and then as I fly back to the states.
-Please pray that the camps Beka will be putting on next week will go well and that many kids will get saved
-Please pray for the believers in Lodwar, that they will use their new well as a way to reach more people.
I hope everyone has a blessed and happy Easter!!!
In Him,
Jen
Dear Family and Friends,
Praise the Lord I have arrived safely back in the states! Both flights went well with no problems, although I did spend a good portion of my time in France trying to find my gate. I arrived back in Minnesota on Wednesday and have spent the last couple days catching up with my family and some friends in the area. Tomorrow I will be sharing a little at my church here in Minnesota about what I did in Kenya.
Being back in the states has been interesting. Everything seems weird and slightly off. I'm starting to get used to it again, but it has taken a couple days. Thank you again to everyone for all of your prayers throughout my internship. The Lord has taught me so much through this experience, and I've seen Him work in amazing ways over the past three months. I am sad to have left Kenya, but I feel that one day I will probably be back in that area again. I have already received a few calls and e-mails from the friends I left behind and I hope to stay in touch with them.
If there are any in the Dubuque area that would like to know more about my trip to Kenya I will be sharing at Emmaus' Student Missionary Fellowship on Monday, April 23rd at 6:30
Please pray for me as I readjust to the culture here again, and the food. Also please pray that I will have wisdom in the upcoming weeks, as I will be finishing my schooling this May and I have many decisions to make. Thank you all once again, I feel incredible blessed to have had so much support on this adventure God has led me on.
Blessings in Christ,
Jen
April 8,2012
Dear Family and Friends,
Please forgive the brevity of this update, as I do not have much time right now. These last couple weeks have again been crazy, I don't even know where the time has gone. Beka and I left Nairobi on Sunday night with a plan to stop in Kakamega, pack more things and then head to Lodwar. Well what we didn't plan on was our shuttle breaking down on the way causing a four hour delay. We made it to Kakamega safely at around 4 in the morning though. What I didn't plan on was getting sick on the way there. So Beka left for Lodwar on Monday as planned and I stayed home and rested for a couple days before joining her there.
Lodwar is in the middle of nowhere around the base of the Sahara desert. It was super hot. It was over 100 degrees everyday we were there! So an american team was also there from Idaho. They were helping to put in a well for the church. So in Lodwar we, put in a well, distributed food, did medical, worked with a lot of children, and encouraged the believers there. It was a long week, but very profitable.
I cannot believe that it is almost time for me to return back to the states. I will be flying home on the 10th. I do not know where the time has gone, but I do know that it wasn't wasted. I'm very torn right now because part of me wants to go home and see my family, but the other part of me does not want to leave this beautiful country! The Lord has taught me so much through this experience, and I've been so blessed by the people I have met here. I pray that one day I will be able to return.
Prayer:
-Please pray for safety as first we travel to Nairobi, and then as I fly back to the states.
-Please pray that the camps Beka will be putting on next week will go well and that many kids will get saved
-Please pray for the believers in Lodwar, that they will use their new well as a way to reach more people.
I hope everyone has a blessed and happy Easter!!!
In Him,
Jen
March 28, 2012Dear Family and Friends,
This last week has been pretty crazy as lots of unexpected things have come up. My last two weeks here are shaping up to be pretty busy.
Last Wednesday Beka and I got a chance to go to the women's Bible study. I got an opportunity to share, so I shared on Col 1:13-14 on how God was the only one powerful enough to rescue us from the kingdom of darkness, and we could not have done it ourselves. It went well, and after Bible study I experienced .......More.....
Pictures Click Here to View......
March 18, 2012 Dear family and friends,
I am now safely back in Kakamega after a lot of traveling and activity. Thank you everyone for all of your prayers. Praise that the car did not break down, and that we didn't get in any accidents!
After leaving Mombasa, we returned to Beka's sisters home where the MI team was still working. The roof was completed, but they found many other projects to keep them busy. I got put to work as well painting a newly constructed see-saw. It's ironic wherever I go I end up painting. This time was better then the last time I painted and all the paint stayed off of me and in the can! More.....
Pictures Click Here to View....
I am now safely back in Kakamega after a lot of traveling and activity. Thank you everyone for all of your prayers. Praise that the car did not break down, and that we didn't get in any accidents!
After leaving Mombasa, we returned to Beka's sisters home where the MI team was still working. The roof was completed, but they found many other projects to keep them busy. I got put to work as well painting a newly constructed see-saw. It's ironic wherever I go I end up painting. This time was better then the last time I painted and all the paint stayed off of me and in the can! More.....
Pictures Click Here to View....
March 6, 2012 Dear Family and Friends,
This past week has been very adventurous. So we ended up having the dates wrong for when the Michigan team would arrive, so we were there early. This resulted in a few down days. Because of the way it worked out with my schedule I was able to spend a day with my friend from school, Taryn, who is also interning in Kenya. It was a good experience and allowed me the challenge of navigating Nariobi transportation and streets by myself. I also got to experience some Indian culture as the missionaries she is staying with are Indian More.......
Pictures Click Here to View........
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February 27, 2012 Dear Family and Friends,
This past week i learned that being sick in a foreign country is not a fun thing. After arriving back from Uganda, I ended up getting food poisoning and spent most of Sunday night on the bathroom floor. The bad news was everyone in the family ended up sick that night too, but that also meant that I didn't have anything more serious like malaria or typhoid. More......
Pictures! Click Here to View......
February 19, 2012
Dear Family and Friends,
I hope all is well in the states! The sun continues to shine here in Kenya, and there is no snow in sight :) I have just arrived back from a very busy week in Uganda where Beka and I worked with kids at a Bible conference. This last week started with visiting another new church in Butari. This church ..More..
Pictures! Click Here to View...
Dear Family and Friends,
I hope all is well in the states! The sun continues to shine here in Kenya, and there is no snow in sight :) I have just arrived back from a very busy week in Uganda where Beka and I worked with kids at a Bible conference. This last week started with visiting another new church in Butari. This church ..More..
Pictures! Click Here to View...
February 9, 2012 - LetterDear Family and Friends,
Planes, trains, and automobiles for transportation...in Kenya it's buses, motorbikes, and walking to get from here to there, but more on that later.
A lot has happened since the last time I've written I'm not sure where to start. The Sunday school training that took place on the 28th went well. It was fun to watch a room full of adults learn the motions and sing children's songs! While Beka was teaching I was visiting and playing with the children that go to school there. They were on break and I took a picture of them. After which I was mobbed by children wanting to see themselves on the camera. They all circled around me yelling "mimi" which means "me, me" as they tried to grab the camera. Once that settled down I convinced one of the older kids to write down a couple of simple Swahili phrases I could use. So I learn "Anitwa nini?" which is "What is your name?" and also "Una miaka gape?" How old are you?" So I went around the rest of the day finding children and saying "Anitwa nini?" I got laughed at a lot, but it was fun. More.........
Pictures from Kenya...click here
Planes, trains, and automobiles for transportation...in Kenya it's buses, motorbikes, and walking to get from here to there, but more on that later.
A lot has happened since the last time I've written I'm not sure where to start. The Sunday school training that took place on the 28th went well. It was fun to watch a room full of adults learn the motions and sing children's songs! While Beka was teaching I was visiting and playing with the children that go to school there. They were on break and I took a picture of them. After which I was mobbed by children wanting to see themselves on the camera. They all circled around me yelling "mimi" which means "me, me" as they tried to grab the camera. Once that settled down I convinced one of the older kids to write down a couple of simple Swahili phrases I could use. So I learn "Anitwa nini?" which is "What is your name?" and also "Una miaka gape?" How old are you?" So I went around the rest of the day finding children and saying "Anitwa nini?" I got laughed at a lot, but it was fun. More.........
Pictures from Kenya...click here
January 26, 2012 - Letter
Dear Family and Friends,
Last week I found out just how bad Kenyan roads can be. On Sunday the 14th we had a two and a half hour ride to church on roads that like kind of like swiss cheese. It was a very bumpy long ride. The church was in a rural area and it doubled as a Baptist school. It was a stone building with a roof and a dirt floor with no electricity. I sat there and thought about the churches back home, what a difference. The church is trying to raise money to put in a cement floor as they have a problem with jigger's in that area. Ryan preached a very good message on courage, and I like when Ryan preaches because it's in English and I can understand it. The believers in Kenya are very passionate and alive. It didn't matter where they were, they were excited to be worshiping God! After the service I got to meet a lot of the children that go to school there, and I helped hand out candy.
More..........
Pictures from Kenya... click here
January 14, 2012 - Letter
Dear Family and Friends,
I arrived safely in Kenya Wednesday evening. The flights were all right and went pretty quickly. When I arrived at the airport I was able to buy my visa without any trouble which is a huge answer to prayer. Beka and two of her kids picked me up from the airport, along with two Kenyan boys. Ryan wasn't able to be there because the car had broken down and he was working on it. From the airport we went to Beka's sister's house where we stayed the night. On the drive, I saw a lot of Naiobi and many backstreets. I also learned how people drive in Kenya, which is Beka's sister Rhea (Ray-a) runs a childrens home, so I was able to meet and interact with orphans as soon as I got there.
More.........