Pruitt Lee AnneMarie 1998 Kenya

7/25/2019 Pruitt Lee AnneMarie 1998 Kenya

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Lee

& Anne Marie

Prui t t

MISS ION R I S

TO

K NY

P O Box 59322

Nairobi, Kenya

East

Africa

Phone: 0}1 254 256 7699

E-mail: [email protected]

LEE. ANNE MARIE, DANIELLE &

ADAM

CMF INTERNATIONAL Prayer Newsletter

April 1998

Karibu

Kenya

We have

heard

these words

many

times since our

arrival in Kenya. Karibuis the

Swahili

word for

welcome

and

s

used

to invite people into yourhome

or to say,

You

are

welcome. Karibu

literally means

to drawnear. It isa word that aptlydescribes our

experience here so far. We havefelt sowelcome, and

wedaily learn to draw near to this new land, these

peopleand their culture.

Where has the time

gone?

Aswewrite,weare

approaching the end ofour third month in

Kenya.

It

has

flown

by at an

unbelievable

race. We havelearned

somuch, and

are

daily learning about

living

in

Kenya.

We have

found

that

moving

anytime, anywhere

canbea

stressful

and

difficult

time.

Although

it has

been

stressful,

in

some

ways

it

has also

been

remarkably

peace-filled.

At

last,

the

long-awaited

and

long-

anticipatedstepwas made. Aftertwoyears of

preparations and planning,weare finally here. It

feels

so good to be home

With thehelp of teammates Ericand MelodiePerry,

our

first

weeks were

filled

with orientation

to

ou r new

Lee

brining

greetingsfrom our brothers and sisters in

America

to a

Maasa i church

home and role as the Field Business Administrator.

Melodie

helpedthe kidsand me

move

into the

apartment, learn

how

tocount

money,

buygroceries,

and get around. Eric and Joe Cluff ~ another

teammate who

has

served

as

interim business

administrator ~ worked with Lee at the office showing

himthe

ropes,

introducing

himto

people,

and

teaching

h im how

to drive

on the lefthand

side

of the

road.

Even

thoughwe arenowcomfortable with

accomplishing

the basic

tasks

of living and

working

here, itwill

certainly

take a

good

year or two to

really

feel s though we know what we are doing.

A TypicalDayAt the Office

It isactually impossible to predicta typical day, asthere

s

no such

thing. Each

daybrings itsown

needs

and

newsituations. This canbechallenging at

times,

but is

also

one ofthe

rewards

ofthe position. It

s

always

changing and neverdull

We try to start eachdaywith a family

Bible

study

before Lee

isoffto theoffice and

his busy

day,

which

includes:

Making sure that our runner hasall the information

he

needs

before leaving for downtownto run errands.

IP I lSS i i iS

iSSl i

Unpacking in our newhome.


2/7

pay bills,

goto the postoffice, etc.

Checking and responding to

e-mail, which

typically

includes

messages: from the home

office,

from

missionaries to Kenya whoareon furlough, and

from

alloverto relay to team

members

in the

field.

~ Conductingmorning radio time for the team from

10 to 11. This is

generally

the timewhentheywill

call

the

office

for information andwith

requests

for

information, parts,

medical supplies,

etc.

Determininghoworwhereto best

fulfill

the team

requests, such

as:

Which medical supplier to use to

purchase clinic supplies, based on price. Where do you

find t he acid

fo r

solar

batteries?

~ Trying to locate a goodplace to get a yellow fever

vaccine.

Scheduling appointments for teammates coming

into town,

i.e.,

vehicle

repairs,

doctor appointments,

accommodations etc.

Inputting

financial

data into the computer and

keeping upwith financial records.

Also, overseeing

and coordinating office

staff,

appointmentswithNairobi business people.

--

Learning Swahili.

Three evenings a

week

we

have

a

Swahili

tutor come

to

our home. He

works

with all of

usand isvery patient

On

the

Home ro t

The

kids

and I spendour mornings through

early

afternoonin homeschooling. Afterovertwomonths

offas we

were preparing

to

come,

it is

good

toget

back

into our

school

routine. It definitely helpedreturn

some normalcy to our lives. Our afternoons are free

for friends, atriptoa nearby

mission

guesthouse pool

for

swimming

lessons, or running

errands.

Adamand Danielle aremakinga few

friends

and

enjoying a Bible Club heldon

Friday

nights at the

MissionAviation Fellowship (MAF) compound. This

study draws missionary kids (MKs) from allover the

west

sideofNairobi,and has beena real

blessing

to

our family. The leaders of this study

have

a

special

AnneMarieand Danielle visiting withMaasai Christian

heart for MKs (they have their own

well)

and really

care

about an d

minister to

th e

kids.

I

have

had to

relearn

howto cook, as

many things

that

I

was

accustomed to cookingwith arenot

available

here. It

was simply

a matter of

returning

to the

basics

and

cooking everything from scratch.

No

more

one-step or prepared

foods

for us Cooking isa much

more time-consuming process now, but one I am

enjoying

very

much.

Kenya

is rich in fresh

fruits

and

vegetables.

I amsorry to say thatwhile you

suffered

through thewinter, we

enjoyed

fresh pineapple,

mangoes, and zucchini

Safaris

Since ou r

arrival, we

have

had

some wonderful

opportunities to visit a fewof our team members in

theirhomes down-country. Our

first

safari

was

byair

in a six-seater MAF plane. This

was

a new experience

forallof

us,

and nothingcan

adequately

describe the

wonder ofour first view of the great RiftValley What

a

blessing

anda

privilege

it has

been

to get to

visit

our

teammates

in

their

homes

and

to

know them better. It

has

enabled us to

learn

more about the

environment

in

which theyworkand see their ministries firsthand.

These experiences will help us understand their

needs

and how to serve these

families

more

effectively.

Transportationfor oursafari toElangdtaEnterit.

SoHowAre We Doing, Really?

This isa question that manypeopleaskus. As you

know,

we felt confident in our call to

Kenya;

the

Lord

opened every door and confirmed our call repeatedly. I

wonderthen,whywearesurprised at howwell weare

doinghere? Weare

experiencing

theJOYof

being

right where the Lord hasasked us to be. It is not

always easy, and it is not always fun, but that isnot the

promiseHe

gave

any of us in this life. Somedaysit is

scaryliving in a country with much unrest and a

tremendous amount of crime. It isoften frustrating to


3/7

tiy to

accomplish

even the simplest tasks here.

And>

when we are tired and frustrated, homesickness and

loneliness

sneak upand clobber us. It is

during

ALL

of

these times

that

your

prayers and

HIS grace

and

mercy sustain usand

carry

usto the nextnew day.

Wethank the

Lord

daily forbringing us

here

and

we

thankyoufor helping usto be here. We have already

been blessed

so richly in coming to this

place

and

we

thank the

Lord

for theopportunity to serve Him here.

will

praise

you O

Lord among

the

nations;

I will

sing

ofyou

among

the

peoples.

Forgreatisyour

love reaching

to theheavens;

Yourfaithfulness

reaches tothe

skies.

Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;

Letyourglory be over all theearth.

Psalm 57:9-11

Praises

We praisethe Lord for:

The

privilege

of

being here

in this

wonderful place.

Our

bridge family Eric

and

Melodie Perry

who

graciously and generously helpedus to get

acquainted with our new roleshere. Ericalso lived

through teaching usboth how to driveon the left

Our teammates whohave

welcomed

uswith open

armsand supported usaswe learn.

Our house in Hillsboro is in the selling process and.

Lord willing will

besoldbythe timeyou

read

this.

We praisethe Lord for friends who haveworked

hard and handled many details in our absence.

For eachof you who faithfully prayfor usas we

strive

to serve

Him here.

Prayer Concerns

Please prayforour continuedadjustment to

Kenya

and living in Nairobi.

The

arrival

and clearing ofour shipment. We

packed it up lastJune

Please

pray for wisdomand discernment for Leeas

he continues to learn how to handle and meet th e

ever-changing needsof his role.

For t he sale

of

our

ca r

our

final loose end

Please

pray

always

forour health and

safety

aswe

live

a nd work here.

In the Joy of Christ,

Lee,

Anne Marie Danielle

and

Adam Prui t t

Enjoying a sunset in Maasailand.


4/7

L e e A n n e

M a r i e

P r u i t t

MISS ION RI S

TO

K NY

P .O . B ox 5 9 3 2 2

Nairobi, Kenya

East

Africa

Phone:

OJ1-254-256-7699

E-mail:

[email protected]

LEE. A N N E

MA RIE .

DANIELLE.

A D A M

CM F

INTERNATIONAL Prayer Newsletter

N ew

News

in N a i r o b i

It may not

come

asa big

surprise

to

hear from

your

missionaries weare expecting. It may come asa BIG

SURPRISE to hear from us wewere

NOT

expecting

but the babyhasarrived

T o make sense o f thi s news, let me start at

th e

beginning. Lee

and I

are

both

from large families.

We

loved our

large

families and always desired to have one

ourselves. W e

h av e b e en

blessed with

two beautiful

childrenand, formore than a decade, have prayed and

waited upon

the

Lord

for another addition to the

Pruitt household.Asyou know, adoption isa

complicated

and

costly

affair, and theanswer toour

prayers these past

years

has been silence.

We

have

trusted God's

plan

for

our

lives,

and thank the

Lord

for the beautiful family he has

given

usin

Danielle

and

Adam. God issogood, and

we

have been

so

blessed.

Soon after wearrived in Kenya, weheard about New

Life

Ho me.

It is a h o me fo r infents

w ho

have been

orphaned,

abandoned,

or have HIV/AIDS. It seemed

that

everywhere we turned we

met

someone

who

had

adopted or

was

fostering

children from this home.

Not

long

afterward, a new

friend offered

to take me for a

visit

to

New

Life. I

found

it to be a

wonderful center

operated bymissionaries who

are

dedicated to

these

babies.

On

our second visit, Lee casually reached down

and

picked

upa

beautiful six-month-old

baby

boy.

Onlythe

Lord

knows

why

it

was

this child,

but the

momentI saw that

little

guyin

Lee's arms

I knew he

was the one for us. Soonwe

were

visiting

regularly

to

change

a

diaper, feed

a

botde,

andjust

play.

This

time

gave

us

all

a

chance

to get to know Michael and

for

him to get to

know

us. Theonly

history

we knew

o f Michael

was

that

he

ha d been abandoned

at

birth

a n d f ound on

th e

streets.

- V

MeetMichaelJames Pruitt, bom August28, 1997.

We

only

had one huge

problem.

Michael

was

testing

HIV

positive

on his blood tests. This blood test s a

simple test

that

reveals

thevirus or the antibodies to

th e

virus.

If Michael s

birth

mother ha d HIV/AIDS

Michael'sbabyshotver.

then hewouldautomatically have the antibodies. We

did not know ifMichael truly had the virus. A DNA

test

was performed

on his

blood

to determine a

conclusive

answer. W e

w e re t ol d th e

results

would

be

ready

in

five days and then, if ll was well, we could

takeMichael home. After waiting for twoweeks for

these

test

results, we begged

to bring

Michael home

withor without the

answer. As

a

family

wehad

prayed

together and felt

convinced

thatMichael was ours ...

wewould face the

answer

one wayor the other.

As the

days

went

by,

webecame a family, and Michael

really settled into his new home.

It

was

difficult at

first.

We had forgotten all

about

getting up

during

the

night

with

an infantand

how

hard it

s

to get things done

with

a lit tle

on e

in

th e

house.

Michael

too,

ha d

to

make

a

difficult

adjustment s he

had

been at

New Life

since hewas threeweeks old. What we had notforgotten

was the

joy thata

baby

brings, the

happy

smiles and

laughter. Michael soon found

that

being

adored

by his

new

family

was

to

his liking.

Four

weeks after his test was first taken, we received

word that th e

tests

were

in and

Michael

is

H IV

negative

The

relief was unbelievable.

When

we

finished crying,

we

were able to

share

our

good

news

and praise the

Lord

forMichael's life\

Truly

God

has

given

us

the

desire

ofour

hearts

in

this new member

of

the family.

Delight

yourself

in the Lord andHewill

giveyou the

desires

ofyourheart.

Psalm

37:4

SpiritualRetreat

In late April, we attended aSpiritual

Retreat

for the

CMF-Kenya team on the

coast

at Mombasa. It

was

a

wonderful timeof

fellowship.

We

were

able to meet

together with

most

ofthe

team

and even get to

know

those teammembers whomwehad not yet had the

opportunity tomeet. In our time there, we were able to

worship

and

praise

the

Lord

together and

share

how

God isworking in our lives.


5/7

Duringour

free time

the children

enjoyed

thepool

and the ocean in this beautiful and

relaxing

spot. Both

kidstriedout a

free

scuba lesson in the pool, and

Adam spent time snorkeling aswell.

Because

weare so

new

here

it

was especially nice

for our

whole

family to

enjoy the companyof the other

members

of the team

and to get to know them better.

On April 29,

while

in Mombasa, the

women

on the

teamsurprised uswith a babyshower for

Michael.

It

wason this veryday that we received his test results.

Truly a day to celebrate It was a beautiful showeras

eachwomandedicated a special Scripture to

Michael.

We closedwith a time of prayerfor Michael slifeand

for us as a family.

Technically, at this time, weare Michael s foster

parents.We will start his formal adoption process in

July. Pleasepray with us for a smooth and efficient

processingthrough the various steps.Lordwilling it

isour

desire

to adopt one morechild.With the

12-year

age spread

between

Adamand

Michael

Michael would soon be an onlychild. The need is

greathere,and our

hearts

arewilling Please praywith

us concerningthis that wewould onlyseek to be

obedient to our Father and His plan for our lives.

We wanted to share with you the newnewsin our

lives and give thanks to the Lordfor His answer to our

6/98

Lee and

Anne Marie Prui t t

C M F I N T E R N A T I O N A L

P .O . B OX

501020

INDIANAPOLIS. IN 46250 6020

317 578 2700

Return ServiceRequested

5 7 = H 2 S 0 1 i l

prayers. We

could

not

have been more surprised as

to

HIS

timing

but we

could

not behappier to

have

this

newjoyin our lives.

Thank you for sharing in our joy with us.

In the richness of His blessings

Lee, Anne Marie, Danielle, Adam and Michael

Daniellegettinga scubalesson in Mombasa.

ission

ervices

E d i t o r i a l D e p t

PO B o x 1 3 1 1 1


6/7

Lee & Anne Marie Prui t t

MISS IONARIES TO

KENYA

P.O. Box

59322

Nairobi, Kenya

East Africa

Phone : 011-254-256-7699

E-mail: [email protected]

ADAM, DANIELLE, LEE.

ANNE

MARIE.

&

MICHAEL

CMF INTERNATIONAL Prayer Newsletter

Novembe r

1998

F i r s t Year

As you read this letter, we are bringing our first year

in Kenya to a close. As we think back over the year,

it is hard to find words to express what this year has

been to u s.

Over this past year, it seems as if we have encountered

every emotion imaginable We have been thrilled and

terrified; we have been peaceful and stress-filled. We

have been happy and sad. We have experienced heart

aching homesickness and overwhelming joy. Often we

experienced several of these emotions at the same

time, which causes conflict and confusion. Though at

times

it

has been

difficult, as we

look back

on this

year it has been so GOOD Even though our emotions

and experiences in this great adventure may change,

our Lord is constant and unchanging. So, we ride the

roller coaster and keep our eyes on Him who called us

to this.

Bat t l e s

This past year, we have battled culture shock,

language barriers, pot holes, homesickness,

loneliness, and weariness. We have

battled with

water lines, phone service, and power supplies. We

have battled our old way of thinking and coping, and

are releaming a new way of coping and thinking, a

way that is unique to life in Kenya.

Without a doubt the greatest battle that we have

faced is a spiritual battle. In the midst of all of these

battles around

us, we

have found

it is

sometimes

hard to hang onto our focus on Christ. Changing

cultures has required us to redefine who we are. We

have learned through this time of constant change

and fighting the battles, that although everything else

may change, who weare in Christ does not. Our

daily task is to put on the armor that He has provided

for us and to line up on the side of His righteousness.

The battle belongs to the Lord, and He has the

victory

Visi tors

In August, our very special friends Pat and Linda

Gelsinger and two of their children, Elizabeth and

Josiah, came for a two-week visit. It was a precious

time of renewal and great fun to have friends from

home

come

here to share in our lives in Kenya. We

filled every moment of our time together with

talking, tears, and laughter.We took a game viewing

trip to the Maasai Mara and a trip to northern Kenya

to visit the Keith and Kathy Ham family in Turkana.

There we celebrated with a sheep roast and

participated in a church service with the Turkana.

This was a unique experience as the church meets at

night when the day begins to cool down, in the open,

Pat and Linda Gelsinger wading the river to go to church in

Turkana

and on the ground. It was a privilege to visit Turkana,

to visit Keith and Kathy's home, and to worship with

our

brothers

and

sisters

there.

In September, Lee's niece and her husband, Heather

and Peter Hutchison, came to Kenya to vis it us. This

was a very special visit as Heather and Peter live in

New Zealand, and our times together are rare. Each

of these families made sacrifices and very special

efforts to come and see us, no t to mention

the

shots

they had to get We are so thankful for them and

were so blessed and encouraged by our time together.

Peter an d Heather

Hutchison

with Lee,

Danielle, and

teammate Joe Clitff visiting a Maasai village.

Ano the r

You may recall, when we shared the news of

Michael's arrival into our family, we indicated that

we wou ld

like

another child

if th e

Lord wou ld

lead

us

to do that.

Wel l, He did

Paul Ernest Pruitt joined the Pruitt crew on October

I. Paul was bom September 19, 1997, and was just

over one year when he came home to us. He was

bom in a local hospital where he was abandoned by

his birth mother. After six weeks in the hospital, he

was

tumed over to New Life Home, as he was HIV .

Paul, too, had a special test to determine if he was


7/7

Paul

Ernest Pruitt born

September

19,1997.

actually HIV+ or if he just had lingering antibodies

from

his bir th

mother.

Like

Michael, his

test

was

NEGATIVE, and we praise the Lord for sparing this

precious little boy from this terribledisease and for

bringing him into

our

lives.

The little boys are just three weeks apart in age, but

very different in personality. Michael had been with

us for six months when we brought Paul home, and

you can imagine that he wasn't too happy to share

his position on center stage Both boys are adjusting,

and we all stay busy with these two little guys.

Thank you for your prayers regarding our family and

its growth. The number of orphaned and abandoned

babies in this country is staggering and

heartbreaking. We have felt very specifically led and

directed to these tw o

children

and know

that

th e

Lord has a special plan for them. We feel privileged

and honor ed t ha t t he Lord has chosen us to raise

them. What a precious gift He has allowed us to

have in a ll o f

ou r chi ldren - - - .

Gifts

As we come to the time of year when people are

thinking of gifts, I would like to close by sharing

with you some of the very precious gifts we have

received this past year.

To come to li ve and s erv e

in th is beautiful land of

Kenya.

The love and support of so many precious friends

who pray and care for us.

The

addition of tw o beautiful chi ld ren to the tw o

that He already gifted us with.

Visitors What a joy to see friends and family

The developingof strong bonds of love and

friendship with our CMP family here.

Opportunities to visit several of our teammates in

their homes to see their ministry areas and spend

time together.

Protect ion from harm

and

illness

fo r

our

entire

family.

The greatest gift is always the saving grace of Jesus

Christ. We pray that this letter finds you reflecting on

this most precious Gift and the reason for this season.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one

and

only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not

perish but have eternal life. John 3:16

Celebrating Him,

Lee,

Anne

Marie, Danielle, Adam, Michael, and Paul

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Documents

Pruitt Lee AnneMarie 1998 Kenya