Chapel Resuming Services; Celebrating Chloe’s Birthday
September 17, 2020
Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ,
It has been an interesting month to say the least. For the last few weeks Julie has been in the United States on a much-needed trip to visit family. Since we haven’t had a furlough since 2013, we do not get back home very often to visit parents and children. So, it is good that Julie be there for a little while to see our very missed family members. So that means that I have been here in Kenya alone with Chloe. That, I guess, is what is making this month so interesting. But Chloe and I have been surviving and getting along OK. I have learned to pick my battles with her. The day I am writing this update is actually Chloe’s birthday. She turned six years old today. That is hard to believe! She didn’t come home to live with us for another month after her birthday but I was contemplating this today: Six years ago today an unknown Kenyan girl, from an unknown Kenyan village gave birth to a 2 pound baby and this event would change my life forever. I didn’t know it yet, but God knew it and His plan was to bring her to our home. Chloe would change our lives, we would change hers, and we would be linked together forever. All according to God’s plan (which he would unfold for us in the weeks following her birth).
Ministry at the Chapel has started up very slowly. Our first week after restarting from the Covid shutdown we had 5 in attendance. The second week we had 6. The third week 7. The fourth week 8. Seeing a trend here? Well, we were going in the right direction as far as attendance is concerned but then we hit the fifth week. On the fifth week we had 2 – myself and Victor. So, I thanked God for Victor. Victor faces some mental challenges but he loves Jesus, is a humble and loving man and he rarely misses a service at the Chapel. In fact, he usually shows up an hour early to clean and help me get everything set up. As far as I know, Victor has no job and no income but I have on multiple occasions seen Victor take a loaf of bread or a bag of chips that I have bought for him and immediately open it and give half of it to people on the streets. He has a big heart. So, on week 5 I thanked God that Victor was at the Chapel, even though there was no one else there. Victor and I sang a few songs together, talked about God and some things in the Bible, prayed for a while, and finished our service. Week 6 we then had ten in attendance. We will see where the trend goes from there. My goal is to get back to where we were before Covid hit. I am not referring to numbers in attendance but to closeness, to relationships, to spiritual growth, to glorifying God together, to the Kingdom of Jesus, and to the overall desire to see the ministry develop and progress.
Please keep our Chapel in prayer and pray that my wife gets back here soon.
Blessings to you all,
Roger, Julie, Amy, Josiah & Chloe
CONTACT INFO
Roger & Julie Tate
P.O. Box 96
Kitale, Kenya 30200
rojuta@gmail.com
Read more
God at Work During COVID-19
Beloved Brothers and Sisters,
I write this letter sitting in my living room – where I have been doing a LOT of sitting (not unlike many of you!). It’s been many weeks now since the whole world basically shut down because of COVID-19, and while I can say I think we’ve settled in a little bit, nothing quite feels normal. I feel a bit like Inigo Montoya in the Princess Bride when he says to the Man in Black, “Let me esplain. No, there is too much…let me sum up.”
Like most people, I’ve struggled with fear and uncertainty. There are so many unknowns. Just like in the US, schools are shut down here as well as all social/religious gatherings. It’s been bad timing in some ways (though I have to remind myself often that God’s timing is never bad). Milimani Christian Homeschool Community was – truthfully – a struggle, but we had a young lady who is a special education teacher from the US who was getting a work permit to come take over that aspect of our school (a huge load off my shoulders). We were starting to get the hang of the high school, our dyslexic girl was reading and spelling, and our autistic boy was finding his stride and showing mathematical gifting. It’s very possible that COVID-19 is going to totally wipe out MCHC because of financial constraints. This in turn affects the chapel because we rent the MCHC building on Sundays. No MCHC, no building.
There have been a lot of changes at home as well. In all honesty, you all in the US have a lot more change to adjust to than we do here. There is never much to do around here anyway, and we often suffer from boredom. April is a month off of school in Kenya anyway; but there are many unanswered questions. Will MCHC survive? Will Chloe’s school survive? Will school even open back up in May? Likely not. Josiah’s school, Rift Valley Academy, is NOT opening up at all for the remainder of the school year (which ends in July). Instead, they will have an on-line platform. We didn’t know this, however, when Josiah and the other students were released from school two weeks early. He may never see his friends again; he may never see the campus again (which he loved). He doesn’t get to say good-bye.
Chloe, as usual, has had a difficult time adjusting to the change. Her behavior became aggressive enough that we had to consult her doctor. Being all “trapped” at home together without any reprieve has been a challenge to put it mildly.
Doing COVID-19 in Kenya has some additional psychological challenges, however. Currently, we have more deaths from police violence than we do from the corona virus. Forced isolation into some of the isolation facilities has been a nightmare. People are crowded together sharing the same facilities and even going hungry in some cases. Those who get a positive result have not always been removed from the group as a whole in a timely manner, and those who test negative after 2 weeks have not always been allowed to leave without paying a bribe. Who wants to get tested under those circumstances? Travel in and out of Nairobi is prohibited, so even if we wanted to fly out, we would not be able to (also because Chloe wouldn’t be allowed to leave, and we won’t leave without her).
HOWEVER…God is the Master at taking difficult things and
working them together for the good of His people. Here are just a few ways I
see God working.
1. We were growing increasingly unhappy
with the culture at RVA. I am really excited to have this time with Josiah –
time we weren’t expecting and that we are very thankful for.
2. I know of two precious local families right now who have been struggling
with family issues. This has forced them to spend time together at home because
they don’t have the escapes they usually have in town or at work. It’s been
good for them (not always easy, but good).
3. I’ve been able to work on some of the academic things Chloe was struggling
with at school. I’ve been able to help
her with letter reversals, and she’s even starting to do some very preliminary
reading and spelling.
4. Not being at work all day has helped me get back into a daily morning time
of Bible reading and prayer – something I had been deeply missing.
5. Not knowing what is going to happen with MCHC has helped me see where some
boundaries need to be set and where some of my priorities need to shift if MCHC
does survive.
So, that’s where we are currently at. Here are some specific things you can pray for on our behalf. These are not in order of importance. First for the health of my family. I suspect we may have already had the virus, but there is no way of knowing for sure. Anyone with flu-like symptoms has the potential of being removed from their home and put in an isolation center. Second, that our financial situation stays somewhat stable so we can pay our rent. We have a good landlord, but there are no protections here like there are in some places in the US. Third, that our faith in our Good, Good Father would grow, that our love for Jesus would build up and effervesce onto others around us, and that we would draw nigh to Him in new and fresh ways. Fourth, that we – as a family – would find new and creative ways to invest in each other during this time of increased “forced togetherness.”
In Christ,
Julie Tate
Contact Info:
Roger & Julie Tate
P.O. Box 96
Kitale, Kenya 30200
rojuta@gmail.com
For ministry donations:
Pastor George Sledd, Treasurer of BFM
P.O. Box 471280 | Lake Monroe, FL 32747-1280
or click here to donate to BFM online.
Read more
Missionary Update: The Tates in Kenya [May 2016]
The Tate Family has served the Lord in Kitale, Kenya since January 2008. Their main ministry is indigenous church planting.
April 28, 2016
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
As most of you know, our main ministry in Kenya is church planting/teaching the Bible and the Gospel/discipleship training. However, in the course of being here for 8 years, Julie and I have accepted other ministries as well; though I hate to even call them “ministries” because they’re not really “part of the job”. They’re just something God has opened our hearts to because we are followers of Jesus and followers of His ways. Since being in Kenya, God has opened our hearts to the plight of orphans in this world, and we want to do what we can in order to help them. Is this “ministry” or is it just the heart of God?
Orphans who were in the Tates’ home this past month: Chloe, Clinton, & Sasha
This past month we had three “orphans” living with us at various times and for a few days all at the same time. Let me introduce them to you. To the far left of the picture is our precious Chloe. Hopefully, she needs no introduction to you as I have written about her often and related her story in detail in previous newsletters. She has lived with us now for over a year and a half. In our hearts she is our daughter, and when the Kenyan government lifts the moratorium on adoptions in this country, we will make her our daughter officially and legally. In the middle of the picture is Clinton. His full name is Bill Clinton Muhkwana. Can you guess the US president he is named after? We love Clinton. He is ten years old and has lived at a children’s home since he was an infant. His extended family situation is very dangerous to him, and so on occasions when the children’s home is closed he comes and lives with us. He lived with us for two weeks this past month. In the picture you can see that I took him to play golf (yes, we have an old golf course here built by the British during the colonial days). What an experience! On the far right of the picture is Sasha. What a cutie! She came to stay with us over a weekend when the children’s home she lives in was moving from one location to another. I don’t necessarily enjoy middle of the night feedings, but what a joy to be able to care for one of God’s little ones. You might say, “Oh, what a blessing you are to these children”. But if you say that you would be wrong. They are a blessing to us!
When I was living in the States, I never much considered the plight of orphans. It’s just not something that is before our eyes on a daily basis. Not so in Kenya and much of the rest of the world. Kenya has a population of 44 million people and the number of orphans in the country is estimated to be around 3 million. That’s 7% of the total population of the country. In comparison, the US has 319 million people and only around 400,000 children in foster care. That’s only .1% of the population. If 7% of the US population was orphans, that would come out to over 22 million orphans in the US. Can you even imagine? Consider these additional Kenyan statistics: 13.5% of children aged 0-18 are orphaned; 15% of all Kenyan households are headed by an orphaned sibling; 700 children are orphaned every day. The main reasons for so many orphans are poverty and AIDS. It is estimated that Kenya has close to 1,000,000 orphans due to AIDS, the third highest rate per population in the world. And the problem is compounded when the society acts impervious to their plight. This sets the children up for easy exploitation, and makes them soft targets for child trafficking.
Why do I bring this up in this newsletter? Mainly for awareness. As I said earlier, when I lived in the States this problem seemed a million miles away. Now it is very close. But also because God loves these children and wants to show them his love through you and me. They are very near and dear to the heart of God. What does this mean to you? Maybe you adopt one. Maybe you foster one. Maybe you protect or care for one. Maybe you find out what you can do to help. And if you’ve made it this far into my newsletter please, please do not say, “That’s just not our ministry”. Remember what James said: “Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble” (James 1:27). And remember this also: To do so is a joy and blessing!
Until next month, beloved.
May God’s peace and joy be with you.
For the glory of God in East Africa,
Roger & Julie Tate (and Emily, Amy, Josiah & Chloe)
rojuta[at]gmail.com
Visit their blog!
Read more
Missionary Update: The Tates in Kenya [October 2015]
The Tate Family has served the Lord in Kitale, Kenya since January 2008. Their main ministry is indigenous church planting.
September 28, 2015
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Hello Friends. I am in an especially happy mood right now as I sit down to write this update. As you know, we have been wanting to adopt Chloe since she came to live with us last October. We just celebrated Chloe’s first birthday back on September 17th but unfortunately the Kenyan government’s moratorium on foreign adoptions is still in place. Thus, in the meantime, because we are not able to proceed with formal adoption plans, we thought it a good idea to obtain some more legal and permanent recognition of our status with her. So, for the past few months we have been in the courts here in Kitale trying to obtain legal guardianship for Chloe. This isn’t adoption, but it is an extremely important legal proceeding for us. In granting us guardianship the court would in essence be recognizing us as her legal parents and no one would be able to take her from us without a court order from the same court granting us guardianship. In other words, it legally places her in our family and gives us legal parental rights to her. However, up to today we have faced many delays and postponements in this legal process. Countless times we have thought we would receive the ruling only to be delayed again. We’ve jumped through all the hoops only to be postponed again. Today, finally, we have received the ruling from the court – We have been granted legal guardianship of Chloe! We are thanking God for this ruling and for placing Chloe into our family and now pray that the government will open up the adoption process to us as well. She is a precious blessing to us and in light of the recent and horrible discoveries about Planned Parenthood we are blessed and pleased to be able to care for and love one of God’s “little ones”. Lord, help each of us to be as concerned as you are about your “little ones” and all those in this world who are weak and helpless.
In other news, I also just finished teaching a week long class at a local Bible college just outside of town here in Kitale. The class I taught was hermeneutics (or, how to interpret Scripture). The class was all day, every day from Monday to Friday with the final exam on Saturday morning. I was excited about being invited to teach this class at the Bible college because one of the best ways to see the Kingdom of Christ grow and spread here in Kenya is to help, teach and disciple the pastors of the country—and what better topic to teach them but how to properly interpret God’s Word. I found out how important it was to teach my students this topic as throughout the week I found out that their favorite method of interpreting the Scriptures was to allegorize the text (ie, replacing the original, intended meaning of the author with fanciful and imaginative substitute meanings). It was a grueling and tiring week but my eleven students were very bright and I grew to appreciate them all very much.
Finally, I want to give you my latest Pokot news. In my last newsletter update I reported my desire to visit a certain remote village in the bush in Pokot and to take the gospel of Jesus there to those isolated people. Since my last report I was actually able to meet with my contact and we had solidified my plans with actual dates and an itinerary. However, later that very day all my plans came crashing to the ground. I will not go into all the details but let me just say that it was obvious that God himself was closing all the doors for me to make this trip. We can have our own plans but ultimately God is in control and when He shuts the doors it is wise that we not try to force them back open. In fact, it appears that God has completely shut the ministry doors to Pokot to me, at least for the time being. I still desire to minister and share the gospel with these remote people and we will see how God opens things up and allows me to minister there, but for now I have no immediate plans to go. This makes me very sad but I comfort myself with the knowledge that the Apostle Paul also had certain ministry plans and had intentions on going to certain cities when God suddenly directed him to another city and gave him alternative plans. Again, I will try and trust in God and do all that He asks me to do. In the meantime I will pray for an opening up of the ministry back in Pokot.
Until next month, beloved.
May God’s peace and joy be with you.
For the glory of God in East Africa,
Roger & Julie Tate (and Emily, Amy, Josiah & Chloe)
rojuta[at]gmail.com
Visit their blog!
Read more
Missionary Update: The Tates in Kenya [March 2015]
The Tate Family has served the Lord in Kitale, Kenya since January 2008. Their main ministry is indigenous church planting.
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
I want to send a special thank you to all those who have helped with the adoption process for Chloe. Julie and I appreciate so much that so many would want to assist us in bringing Chloe into our family. We are currently grieved at the moratorium the Kenyan government has placed on foreign adoptions. This decision by the current cabinet is NOT taking into consideration the needs and welfare of the Kenyan children. We are praying the Kenyan government will quickly lift this moratorium and allow us to continue on with the adoption process. Please also be in much prayer for this as we truly believe God has led us to this decision in our lives and in our family. Chloe is thriving and doing so well physically and mentally. Her rapid physical development has amazed me and we thank God for taking such good care of her.
I thank God for my other children as well. They are all such a blessing to me. Emily is currently in Michigan where she would like to gain residency and continue her education. The state of Michigan is being somewhat difficult and this has caused her some delay. Amy is continuing at Rift Valley Academy where she is taking her eighth grade year. It is difficult having to hear of her drama that she deals with on a day by day basis. It seems all eighth grade girls have a lot of drama in their lives. Josiah is our only other child at home besides Chloe. He is still home schooled and will continue to be home schooled until September when he will also attend Rift Valley Academy as a boarding student. He is growing fast (he is second tallest in the family now, behind only me) and his voice is growing deeper. We don’t have a little boy in the family any more.
We pray that God will continue to bless the ministries in Kitale. We have started a new home group that is progressing well. Each week we have a good number of people who gather for worship, prayer and Bible study. The host family is so faithful and generous in opening their home and in showing us love, kindness and hospitality. We are trying to share the love of Christ with all who come. You all can pray that we would have people who faithfully come each week to worship God and hear the teaching from His Word. We do have some that come every week but many of the others are very sporadic. We would like to see God capture the hearts of these people that they might know Him, love Him and serve Him with all their hearts. What a blessing it is for us to be able to minister to these beloved Kenyan people and to teach them how to know Him and serve Him. Thank you, Lord, for these new people to minister to and, Lord, we pray that many more would come to know you as their Savior and Lord and that your kingdom would spread in this world and especially in Kitale, Kenya.
Until next month, beloved.
May God’s peace and joy be with you.
For the glory of God in East Africa,
Roger & Julie Tate (and Emily, Amy, Josiah & Chloe)
rojuta[at]gmail.com
Visit their blog!
Read more
Missionary Update: The Tates in Kenya [January 2015]
The Tate Family has served the Lord in Kitale, Kenya since January 2008. Their main ministry is indigenous church planting.
January 6, 2015
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Ministry here is always three steps forward, two and nine tenths steps backwards. It is constantly up and then down, encouraging and then discouraging. I keep asking myself, “Are we doing things the right way? What are we doing wrong? What do we need to do differently?”. When something positive seems to happen, if we give it enough time it will all seem to fall apart. So, I take my cup of tea out to the stable out back of the house (it is literally a stable) and pray, asking God to show me what he wants me to do differently, asking him to give me wisdom and to guide my ministry here. I want only to do what he wants me to do and say what he wants me to say.
I look around at other missionaries’ ministries here in Kenya and I ask, “Why is their ministry doing so well? Why are so many people working with them, clamoring for their teaching and following all that they say? Then I look closely and I know the answer: It’s because those missionaries are paying rent for their pastors, giving away motorcycles, throwing big parties and goat roasts or other similar things. I suppose I could also have a big, thriving ministry if I allowed myself to go that route too. It’s just hard when I compare my own ministry with theirs, when I see my group of students start at a meager six and dwindle down to one after a few weeks. Or, when starting up a new group with the promise of six to ten new students and none of them show up. Why do men plead with me that they want to be trained, set up a date and a time to start, and then never show up? Wouldn’t it be easier to just say you are not interested? I guess you all probably face some very similar problems back in the States, don’t you? I remember doing ministry back in Ohio (seems like forever ago). I would receive many promises from people that they would come to church. I think I remember about 1 in 20 ever showing up (and that statistic is probably on the generous side). Back here in Kenya I have been trying to reach out evangelistically to some of the motorcycle taxi drivers. I drive up on my own motorcycle to a group of 8 to 10 drivers sitting around waiting for work and engage them in conversation. I invite them to an informal Basic Christianity course at our training center. I say, “Come at 3:00. That’s 20 minutes from now. Will you be coming”? All of them promise me they will come. Back at the training center I wait for them to show up. Can you guess how many come? If you guessed ZERO you would be correct. After waiting until 4:00 for anyone to arrive I leave and return to the group that promised they would come. I ask them why they didn’t come. They all stare off into the sky, cough and laugh, and say, “We’ll come tomorrow”.
Is my soul cast down? NO, NO, NO! We serve a great and mighty God. I am so thankful that He promises that His Word will not return to Him empty. Praise God that he loves me, that he loves you and that he loves the Kenyan people. We will keep trudging along, looking for the called and faithful, until God tells us to something different. Maybe next time one or two of those motorcycle taxi drivers will show up and learn about Jesus, their Lord and Savior.
In other news, Chloe is doing fantastically well. She is over ten pounds now and is healthy (except for some moderate to serious acid reflux). She is a joy to our hearts and lives. Thanks to all of you who have assisted us with your prayers on her behalf and your financial assistance in support of her adoption process. Blessings to you all.
Until next month, beloved.
May God’s peace and joy be with you.
For the glory of God in East Africa,
Roger & Julie Tate (and Emily, Amy, & Josiah)
rojuta[at]gmail.com
Visit their blog!
Read more
Missionary Update: The Tates in Kenya [December 2014]
The Tate Family has served the Lord in Kitale, Kenya since January 2008. Their main ministry is indigenous church planting.
December 5, 2014
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
This month’s update will be difficult to write, not because the subject matter is difficult to write about, but because I have so much to say in only a little bit of space. So, here it all comes, whether you’re ready for it or not. I will be as brief as possible.
Something extraordinary has happened in our family and in my heart, something I could never have anticipated nor previously wanted. The story probably goes back a few years. For five or six years now, Julie and Emily (especially Emily) have tried to get me to think about adopting a Kenyan child. There are 2.6 million orphans in Kenya, so the need for adopting families is very great. However, my response has always been, “NO! Absolutely not”. Emily would say, “I think you should think about it”. I would say “No!” Emily would say, “I think you should pray about it”. I would say, “I don’t need to”. Emily would say, “I think you should consider it”. I would say, “The conversation is over”. Ahem…have you ever noticed that God has a mysteriously, wonderful way of changing your heart?
Now, back up about 3 months ago. I was walking into a little dive of a restaurant in town where I go regularly to eat beans and rice for lunch. As I entered the opening into the “restaurant” where streamers hanged down from the lintel acting as a door, I looked down on the ground and saw a kitten that couldn’t have been a week old. It lay there in the dirt squirming and meowing, eyes shut tight, crying for its mother; I stood there looking at it. My heart went out to it because it was so weak and pathetic; I wondered how he got there, where his mother was, and why this innocent creature had to suffer so much. It was too little to take home as it would certainly have died in my care, thus, I left it there. I thought about it all day, continuing to wonder where his mother could have been. I returned for my beans and rice the next day and the kitten was gone. For the next three days the kitten kept coming into my mind. I wondered what happened to him, if he had lived or died, if his mother had returned or abandoned him. After the fourth day, a thought struck me so suddenly and severely that it set me back. I believed, even then, that the thought was from Almighty God. The thought from God went almost exactly like this: “Roger, for four days now you have been ultra-concerned about the kitten you saw suffering in the dirt. How could you be so concerned about this kitten when there are millions of people all around you that are made in my own image who are innocent and suffering and need help”? Can you see why this thought threw me for a loop? This thought, unspoken by me to anyone else refused to leave my mind, and I continued to ask God what it meant to me and what he wanted me to do.
Now, back up to seven weeks ago. I was sitting in my office doing some work and minding my own business when Julie called me. There was a baby, she said, that had been committed to a nearby children’s home. The baby was premature and needed care the children’s home was not able to provide her at that particular time. Julie asked me if we could take her in and care for her until she was a little stronger and the children’s home was in a better position to take her full time. I told Julie I would need to think about it. Within the hour I called her back and told her we could temporarily take the child if it would be beneficial to the child and the children’s home. The children’s home assured us it would be an answer to their prayer if we were able to take the child for a few weeks. The baby, Chloe, came to our house the next day.
The shock of her arrival overwhelmed me. She was definitely the most pathetic and weak thing I had ever seen, and my thoughts immediately went to the message of the kitten. She was already one month old, but she still weighed less than three pounds. She had been abandoned by her mother at the hospital and had been fed by a feeding tube at the hospital for a month. I don’t know if she had been held at all during that time period. I looked at her and wondered how she had even lived so long. She was gaunt, she had no meat or substance to her at all, her skin hung off of her. He arms and legs were skin and bones only, her fingers as thin as toothpicks. Later that night when I changed her diaper for the first time I wondered as I looked at her, “where is the rest of her”? She did not know how to suck from a bottle and we initially had to feed her from a syringe. Julie and I have raised three babies of our own but this one scared me to death. I wondered if she would live through the night or if she would die in our care. This was a very serious and legitimate thought. Well, she lived, and not only did she live but she very quickly began to respond to the love and care we gave her. She learned to suck, started to put on weight and would even occasionally open her eyes and look at us. She wasn’t exactly what you would call “cute” (Amy even said so verbally),but we thought this little girl made in God’s image was beautiful.
After we’d had Chloe for about two weeks I knew exactly what God wanted us to do. He clearly revealed to us that, just as he took us when we were weak, pathetic and helpless and loved us and decided to adopt us into his family, we should do the same with Chloe. However, I was resistant. I had plenty of excuses why I should not adopt her. I was too old. I didn’t have enough money. The Kenyan government won’t let us keep her. I should think about saving for my retirement someday. I was happy with my current family situation. I was glad to not have to change diapers and get up in the middle of the night, and so on. But God showed me that all the reasons to go ahead and adopt Chloe were good while all the reasons to not adopt Chloe were selfish. One by one he stripped away the excuses, and what was left was the realization that I loved her and I wanted to keep her. The last step was to verbalize this to Julie which I did the night of my 45th birthday. This was the decision she had already made in her heart and was just waiting for me to make as well. We wept tears of joy together and thanked God for this little blessing he had brought into our family.
Yes, we have made the decision to adopt Chloe! But there are many obstacles yet to hurdle before it will be legally finalized. One of the biggest hurdles is financial. Our research has found that it will cost about $5,000 to do a local, Kenya adoption (as opposed to a $25,000 international adoption). Right now we are about $5,000 short. If you feel led to help us financially in our adoption process we would greatly appreciate your assistance. You can send any financial assistance to the BFM treasurer and label it “Chloe adoption” (or click here to make a one-time donation securely online and put “Chloe adoption” in the Memo field). The biggest obstacle, however, will be the Kenyan government. I could write a couple of pages more just on this subject alone. Let it suffice to say that legally adopting Chloe is not a sure thing based on the current and past governments. But we know God wants us to pursue this and we are trusting God with the final results. Please pray with us, beloved. Pray that God would open all the doors for us to adopt Chloe into our family. Pray that God would bless our little girl and that someday her name would officially be Chloe Thamani Nasimiyu Tate (Chloe is the name given her by the children’s home staff, Thamani is the Swahili word for “precious”, Nasimiyu is the last name her mother gave for herself at the hospital).
Until next month, beloved.
May God’s peace and joy be with you.
For the glory of God in East Africa,
Roger & Julie Tate (and Emily, Amy, & Josiah)
rojuta[at]gmail.com
Visit their blog!
Read more
