My Week and a bit with the Masai 2012, part 1

A 30-day African Safari:

Mark and Simba

Come on a 30 day safari with me! We will take walks, meet the Masai people, we will learn about culture and deep traditions, sleep in mud huts and even hear a sermon or two. You will hear things that make no sense; some of the things you hear may even make you mad. Let us also take a trip into the Rufiji Delta islands and a trip on the Indian Ocean to Mafia Island in an old wooden dhow boat.

Hi, my name is Lyle Hall, my African name is Simba, Lyle has become Lion which is Simba in the Swahili language. Karibuni Safarini - welcome on the journey!

 

Day 1

It’s that time again; I pack my bags and head to Masai land. In the past I have driven from here in Zambia which is 4 full days of travel just to get there, but this time I am alone so I will fly as far as I can. I will be meeting up with Dr. Richard who has a dental practice in Washington State and we will travel together, doing dental clinics and ministry. Dr. Rick has been a supporter of ours for many years now so a big thank you to you, sir.

The plan is to fly to Nairobi, Kenya and bus it to Arusha, Tanzania to collect Dr. Rick there, and then we take a bus up to Masai land through the Serengeti plains. This drive is always full of wildlife and adventure, especially by bus.

My plan is to make my way back to Nairobi, Kenya in the end but I am not holding my breath on this one. Anything can happen; all the unknowns is half the adventure. If everything went according to plan, what ‘fun’ would it be, right?

 

I will miss the family as I always do, but my kids know that daddy goes to help others, so they are learning to understand the value of helping others.

           With a few smiles mixed with tears, I wave goodbye and head off to the security check in the airport; it is the moment that one just pushes through. You don’t want to think about that hard goodbye, so you just get on with it. This is the hardest moment of my leaving away from home. Jette and the girls wave goodbye also with a smile and a tear. The only good part about that tear is that it means there is love there, something many spouses and kids do not have at home. I love you, Jette, thanks for all your support to me. I got a great lady that stands beside me.

Well, I better get out of here or I will miss my plane, see you in Nairobi…..

   -------------------------------------

               I flew out early afternoon to Nairobi, Kenya to meet up with Mark, my Masai friend, whom many of you have read about over the years. He met me at the Nairobi airport with smiles and hugs. Mark introduced me to Pastor James and another friend, both of whom were Masai. I had met Pastor James at the previous conference in Tanzania two years ago; James greeted me also with hugs and smiles. This other Masai I had not met before, he lives in Nairobi. Little did I know at that moment when I met him, that his life would change forever that night.

We tucked ourselves into a taxi and off to the big city of Nairobi in search of a hotel for the night. After hours of traffic - not just vehicle traffic, but people traffic, we found a reasonable place, threw our things on the bed and off to find something to eat.

In the East African culture especially, people are a very social people at night so the streets are always full, not only in the city but in the rural villages as well. People by the thousands just fill the streets to eat from the small venders selling on the streets, chicken, chips (French fries), fruits, tea or chai, chapati and soups, and then there are some things you are just not too sure what it is…

I chose the chicken and chips, and with a coke and a smile we were enjoying the busy environment. After eating my greasy chicken and chips and wishing to clean my gizzard out with a cold coke we made our way through the crowds back to the hotel.

           Back in the room this other Masai guy that I had met at the airport, out of the blue said that he had been watching and listening to Mark and James over the years and that he now wanted to give his life to the Lord right here and now in the hotel room for it was time. He said, “I have taken the time to watch and see if what you have said was also how you lived and now meeting Simba and all that you have said I can see that it is truth what you say.”

I took some time to share with him so that he understood what salvation was all about. (I am pretty tough on people when it comes time for salvation; I do not make it too easy, rather just the opposite. Salvation is generally made too easy for people so they do not go deep. Then it does not last long, easy come easy go. When you start talking about a life of surrender and discipleship it goes a lot deeper than ‘God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life’.)

Well, he was more than convinced that he was ready to take that step of faith, so in our little room we all knelt down and I had him pray his own prayer of salvation. He sure did not need to repeat after anyone, the desperate cry that came from deep within his soul moved us all. After he prayed he said, “I need to go home now and tell my family”, so out the door he went. Mark knows him well, so he will follow up on him in the coming days. Mark, James and I had a time of prayer for our new brother in the Lord and off they went to their room.

So this was our first day of a lot more days to come. Another word of thanks and prayer to the Lord, earplugs in to drown out the noise from the city streets, and I was out.