Preaching Under Banana Trees, Gifted with a Chicken
June 10, 2025
Greetings in the Name of Jesus Christ,
I do have some new things to report, but before I do I want to touch briefly on some items and situations that I have written about in previous reports, so that you all can be updated on some of the serious issues I spoke about previously.
First, regarding the student “Solomon” who had been threatened by the violent gang and was being extorted for money. As I reported earlier, Solomon stood his ground and refused to pay or to stand down to these thugs. As of now, a couple of months later, there has been no action taken in this situation. We are presuming one of three options is happening: 1) It was a hoax made by a non-gang member simply trying to get some money, 2) The gang doesn’t want to escalate matters and has moved on since Solomon stood up to them, or, 3) They are biding their time. At this time, since a couple of months have passed since the initial threats, we are trusting that God is protecting him and that maybe things will settle down and the situation will “pass away” without further trouble.
Second, since the death of Chloe’s teacher, things have settled down a bit. We have been able to find a new teacher for Chloe and both Chloe and the new teacher are getting along well, and we pray the new teacher will be a long-term fixture in our home and in Chloe’s life.
Third, Julie has recovered very well from her fall and subsequent serious concussion. She was pretty much holed-up for a couple of weeks in a dark, quiet, and secluded room. Her progress for the first two to three weeks was pretty slow and we were a little concerned that her recovery was going to be a very long and arduous process, but after about three weeks of slow progress she made rapid advances, and it seemed like in just a couple of days’ time she recovered to almost 100% very quickly. Although she may disagree with my analysis, I do not see any lingering symptoms of her concussion. We are very thankful to God for this ultimate recovery.
With all that has been going on I haven’t been able to relate to you all my week’s trip to Meru county, the hometown of one of my students who will be graduating in July. This student, Mark, has kind of “adopted” me, calling me “Dad” and jokingly accusing me of being “lost” if I haven’t seen him in a day or two. We wanted to take this trip to his home before he graduates because after he graduates and leaves school I will be “lost” for a long time. We went with two other students, one from India and one from Indonesia. So, this trip and my car were very international as we had one person from America, one from Kenya, one from India, and one from Indonesia. This obviously led to some very interesting discussions as these four cultures are very diverse. It was a long road trip but very worth the time in getting to our destination. We were able to preach, teach, sing, and share the gospel in many “official” and “unofficial” settings. I enjoyed teaching and preaching in a couple of churches, but my favorite time came when we walked a couple of hours through the forests, hills, and banana trees to get to Mark’s grandmother’s house. When we got there, grandmother had collected the entire family and small village at her house set within her banana orchard. We sang, prayed, and taught the Word of God there in the banana orchard with American accented English, Indian accented English, and Indonesian accented English being faithfully translated into Kimeru for the sake of grandmother and the villagers. Singing and teaching the gospel in multiple languages in the middle of a banana orchard in the heart of Kenya is really pretty cool. What a special privilege and honor it was to talk to these beloved people about our Savior Jesus and the salvation offered through His death on the cross and resurrection. To be welcomed with opened arms into such a place to share the gospel is quite awesome and we thank our God for such an opportunity. I was even ceremoniously gifted a chicken, live and kicking, from grandmother for having come. However, I made Mark carry it home.
Thank You, God, for such an amazing opportunity to meet some of Your Meru people and be able to share the good news of Your Son with them. May You bless Your Word and send Your Spirit amongst them.
Blessings to all,
Roger, Julie, & Chloe
Contact Info:
Roger & Julie Tate
Moffat Bible College
P.O. Box 70
Kijabe, Kenya 00220
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.
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Faith & Fortitude in the Face of Persecution
March 10, 2025
Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ,
I had somber news last month when I talked about the wars and conflicts in Congo and our students who are living and ministering there. I guess I will have to follow up last month’s somber news with some additional somber news for this month. I’m not being somber on purpose, folks, believe me. Some things just strike me hard and those are sometimes the things I feel like I should report so that you all can know what life here in Kenya is really like and what it means to be a follower of Christ in other places of the world.
Here at the school, we have small groups where faculty have a number of students that they can meet with multiple times per week and they can mentor and disciple the students in life, ministry, and other practical areas. I have ten great guys in my group and we meet a couple of times every week to talk about…well…life, ministry, and other practical things. It is a good time for the guys to talk, ask questions, pray, and on occasion, eat. One of our past meetings was spent allowing just one of our guys to talk, express his fears and anxieties, and for us to advise him and pray for him. I will refer to him with a pseudonym (Solomon) in order to keep him safe. Solomon is one of our few “older” students who is already married with some children. He is already a pastor of a church and is attending school here to learn how to better minister the Word of God to God’s people.
After last Sunday’s service, Solomon received a phone call, a call no one ever wants to receive. The call was from a local gang of thugs, the name of which I will also omit from this report. After a few pleasantries, the gang leader informed Solomon that he knew all about him, that he knew Solomon’s wife (which he named), his children (which he named and the names of their schools), his church (which he named), and his house (which location he gave). The gang leader then informed Solomon of the amount of money Solomon was going to give him. The gang leader then threatened Solomon, telling him that if he did not pay the required money that the gang would burn his church to the ground, kill his wife and children, and then kill Solomon. Beloved, this is no idle or empty threat. This is a real threat and the danger is very real. All the students in my small group verified that these gangs exist and their threats can and often are carried out. Solomon was obviously distraught. He fears for the safety of his family. He fears for his own life. I told Solomon that his fear was legitimate and understandable, and all the students agreed. Solomon went to the police and reported the threat, but you can believe that this does not give him any comfort.
Our group spent a great amount of time praying for Solomon and his family, but we all feel helpless to know what else we can do for him, besides prayer and advice. I remain impressed by Solomon’s faith and fortitude in this situation. He himself says that we serve a mighty God and that like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the fiery furnace, God can protect him from the threats of the evil gang. While Solomon does not want to be afraid, he is still afraid. I would be too (terrified would be a better word to describe my feelings if I were in the same circumstances). He also does not want to die but says he is willing to die if that is the outcome that God wants and will bring Him the most glory. Solomon is determined to not pay the gang (he couldn’t pay their exorbitant extortion fee anyway) and to continue ministering to his people in Jesus’ name.
Father God, I pray that you would continue to protect this good and godly man, Solomon. I pray that you would protect his family and keep them safe from harm. Make the threats of the gang empty. Remove any power that this gang has to threaten or harm Solomon or anyone else. Protect his church and his people so that they might be able to continue to proclaim the gospel and spread the love of Jesus in their community. Oh God, do this for your glory and for the good of your people in Kenya. Amen.
Blessings to all,
Roger, Julie & Chloe
CONTACT INFO
Roger & Julie Tate
Moffat Bible College
P.O. Box 70
Kijabe, Kenya 00220
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
