Thursday, February 21, 2024—Nairobi, KenyaGod gives smiles that miles cannot erase. I remembered a bad preacher joke just now: An old Arkansas farmer had a prize jackass that he loved to brag about. One day he told the crew at the feed store he and “Jake” were on their way to the Kentucky Derby. When the laughter died down a bit, a friend in the crowd retorted—KENTUCKY DERBY?! Why, you ain’t got no chance of winning anything there? To which the Farmer said, NO. We ain’t got a chance a’tall...

Wednesday, February 21, 2024—Nairobi, KenyaI am writing this journal “by faith.” As I type, the North African continent has just appeared outside the airplane window. We’re not in Nairobi yet. But, we have made it to Africa. Unless God has other plans, in a few hours we will collect our luggage, make our way to our hotel, enjoy a long hot shower, and climb into bed exhausted. But, what a wonderful exhaustion it is! It wasn’t fun a few hours ago, but as I replay the images of our brisk walk...

The ministry of shopping.There is something about a new dress and new shoes with ladies. The smile is spontaneous and irrepressible. New clothes don’t make the lady. She is inside there all the time, dressed in rags or as royalty. But, a new dress invites that inner beauty to surface for a smile. Teresa tells me that one of her favorite expressions of my affection for her is when I take her shopping. She says she is treated differently by the sales people when I am with her. She feels...

Always check the gauges!Country boy rules: never turn the switch to on until you check the dipstick and the water level. Then, when she starts… check those gauges! Tuesday, February 120, 2024—Home, Hot Springs National Park, AR Every piece of equipment at our hunting property has one thing in common: it is either worn out or well on its way to being worn out. That’s why I have a hard/fast rule: don’t start any piece of equipment until you check the fluid levels and then the gauges! Well,...

LOOKING FOR A RIDEWe are always trying to find our way home…all of us. I spotted the young lion walking away from the fight with his elder and toward our LandCruiser. He looked tired. When I found his counterpart, I understood why. He was leaving a bloody tussle with an older lion. I watched the older lion limping, blood streaming from an open wound on his back. I thought to myself, “I know just how you feel old boy.”

WHIPLASH – The orchestra is warming to play the finale on this safari of the soul. Leaving the Kenyan mission field and reentering our lives as wealthy Americans is truly a whiplash effect on the mind, body, and soul.

SABOTI – Only Jesus bring out “the good stuff” at the end of a party! The Mississippi team taught/preached/trained in the Kitale main church today. Pastor Richard and I made our way to a new church plant in the “bush” in a village called Saboti. God has a habit of leading Richard to unreached/unchurched villages. Richard has a habit of doing personal evangelism in that village to see if the Gospel will be accepted. When the Gospel is received, Richard raises up a pastor and plants a church...

ENCOURAGED – New clothes and fresh smiles. There is some deep, if not eloquent, philosophy that comes from hillbilly’s. I am a descendant of hillbilly’s. One quip that has stuck with me and is heard often around the Curry house is, “even an old dog needs a pat on the head every now and then.” Often, some of you send me with one pocketful of money to just “blow” on a shopping spree with our pastors and their wives. Yesterday was that day. The ladies all bought new dresses and shoes...

GATHERED TO BE SCATTERED – It’s graduation day at Mount Elgon Training Center! Elijah is the dean of the training center. He is the Nick Sabin of disciple training in Kenya. Only his eyes betrayed him today. Elijah is so unlike most Kenyans. Not loud. Not a worship dancer. He has never waved his hanky at me while I preached. But, he is not stoic or unmoved either. His eyes betrayed him today. I saw it. The glimmer of fatherly pride and gratefulness for what God has done once again. The...

MOUNT ELGON – Training leaders. The heartbeat of our ministry in Kenya. The past two ministry days in the Kitale region have been a blur of activity. The team has visited the Seeds Feeding Station and Academy (Kitale), the Seeds High School, the orphanage in Kitale, and today the training center at Mount Elgon. I believe the word I am looking for is overload. The primary purpose of this trip for our visiting Mississippi team is to see snippets of the ministry God has entrusted...