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.
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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
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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.
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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:
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.
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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
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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
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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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