Spitting Cobra Strikes

 

May 5, 2013 (Sunday) The hot rays of the African sun beat down on us as we rode through the dry desert soil. The rains are here but I have not seen them since I arrived.  When the rains come the green spindles of fragile grass pop up through the white sand.  For months they hide themselves beneath the dry earth and somehow survive the months of drought.

Little half-clad children holler from the sides of the path “Mazungu” or “White Woman” it is a word used throughout Kenya for white visitors but I have heard it so often I claim it as my own. Little bare feet run quickly over the hot burning sand as they don’t want to miss the “Mazungu” as she rides by.

The sky is deep blue and the white billowy clouds decorate the heavens above.  The land is covered with huts made of the earth and thatched roof coverings.  The cloth that wraps their bodies stands out so beautifully against the earth tones that surrounds us.

Life is desperately hard each and every day in the land of the Turkana.  It has been their land for generations and they live here with pride as they continue living in the ways of their forefathers.  Turkana are herdsmen and roam the land looking for water and food for their animals.  A man can have many wives, that is, as many as he can afford to buy.  The price of their young brides will differ depending on the clan they come from and the price her parents insist on.  The bride price is usually a certain number of goats, cows and even camels.

One pastor that I work with here in Turkana land cannot marry the woman he lives with because he has not paid her parents the 60 goats they agreed on.  In such cases, and there are many, the children from such arrangements do not belong to the father but to the wife’s parents.

When we arrive at church it is already in session but the little ones come running out of the door and gather around and just stare.  It is such an important day to have someone from America visit with them. The cross that my husband, Manley, placed on top of the church still stands strong and there is no doubt in anyone’s mind that this is a place of worship.

One drum is used during worship and there is dancing as they praise God.  Even though we have a covering over us the heat increases as the service continues. Pellets of water pour from my body even when I’m sitting still!  It is a “hot” land. 

One of the elder mama’s, with her neck covered in beads and her head shaved, comes to the front to greet me in the Turkana way.  We shake hands as we bend our opposite shoulders toward each other until they touch, then we turn and repeat with the other shoulder.  It is expressing love one to the other as each shoulder turns inward toward the other person.  In the Turkana way she is telling me that she loves me and by doing the same I return my love to her.  This woman has not forgotten me from my past visits and though our languages are different I understand and receive her message of love.

I encourage interaction as I speak and I can see their eyes lighting up with happiness as we talk about God’s Word.  It doesn’t matter that the sun is high above us and the land burns from the midday sun they are like sponges and cling to every word.

 

Pastor Florence lives in the interior parts of Turkana land in the upper corner near the Uganda mountains. She woke early one morning and sensed that something was wrong. She began to look around her but everything look to be alright.  As she went outside she noticed how something had moved the soil and its trail went into the place where she slept.  She knew these markings well and she was aware of the danger nearby.  This trail in the sand was made by a snake.

She went back into her hut and carefully looked around one more time.  This time the 40” spitting cobra was coiled and  its head was standing upright waiting for her. When she moved a box he spit and hit her in the eye. She immediately saw a change in her eyesight.  With intense pain she called for help.  Everyone feared that the snake would strike again and ran away from her.  She had her daughter boil water and the hot boiling water was thrown on the snake.  When the others saw that the snake was down they came to help. They came with rocks, machetes and clubs and killed the poisonous cobra. 

They called someone in town, an hours ride away, to come and get her. When they arrived to pick her up she was totally blind.  By the time she arrived at the hospital in Lodwar over 2 hours had passed, her eyes had turned green and the venom had started eat away small areas of the eye.  The pain was intense and they did their best to treat her.  She stayed in the center of Lodwar for several days and a friend cared for her but she did not get better.  She was then flown to another hospital in Eldoret and treated.

She thanks the Lord for his greatness and for his hand upon her life.  She now sees clearly out of both eyes.  Once completely blind but now she sees!

It was a good day.  I enjoyed returning to the church we built here in the Lodwar area.  They are stronger now and more determined to minister to those around them.  Their growth and progress is visible. They have blessed the pastor with a mud hut home next to the church.  A Sunday School room is being built on one side of the church for the many children in the area. It is being built the Turkana way out of dried Desert Palm branches and will provide shade for them as they sing and study God’s word.

 

At the end of the day the shade trees of St. Theresa’s welcome me.  The heat is still felt but even a couple degrees drop in temperature is a blessing.  I’m not the only one that likes the shade trees. The branches move above me as the monkeys run and jump throughout the trees that surround me.

I Timothy 4:13 Until I come devote yourselves to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching.