What are the chances?

Ever since I got involved with ministry in Kenya, one huge barrier for us has been that we can't ship anything over the reliably and affordably. It's expensive, for sure, and there's no guarantee that whatever we spent on shipping would actually result in the items making their final destination. I once sent four used books to a pastor friend, all properly labeled and showing that there was no commercial value to the contents, and it still took 18 months for the books to reach him. We've heard worse stories.

This, of course, makes it more difficult to help in tangible ways. We can't ship school supplies, uniforms, materials, lessons, electronics, or any number of things that would benefit the ministry there. We can bring money in and buy materials there, which can work well, but sometimes the options of what is available in country are limited.

We also continually struggle with the lack of reliable electricity at the ministry sites. Some buildings have none at all, some use noisy generators that require fuel, and some have electricity, but it's not reliable and it can be expensive.

So, what are the chances of coming to Kansas City and connecting with a Kenyan pastor (based on a conversation with a waitress) who has a member of his church who owns a shipping business that ships items to Kenya reliably? What are the chances that this man offers to that pastor some of the container space for each shipment? What are the chances of that pastor offering to us use of some of that space for free? And what are the chances that this arrangement has never failed to get the shipped materials through customs and to the final destination in a timely fashion?

Furthermore, what are the chances of getting connected with a professor at JCCC (basically across the road from our house) who has lived around the world installing solar power in developing areas? What are the chances that this professor has a Kenyan student with years of electrical experience and a passion to install solar power in Kenya?

The only way we could ever affordably ship solar devices to Kenya would be to have cheap (or free!) space in a container. Plus we would also need a virtual guarantee that this precious equipment will get through customs and reach its final destination. What are the chances of all of these connections being made in the same week?

That is what is happening before our eyes. And I'm grateful to God for what appears to be an amazing provision for the very things we need.

If the Lord does in fact put all these pieces in place, you will certainly be hearing more about it. In the meantime, please pray that He would make all this happen, according to His will.