Michael’s First Trip to Kenya
Michael Goes to Kenya
After becoming Summit’s new lead Pastor in 2023, Michael Hinton knew that part of the gig would be traveling internationally to meet with our Global Partner Organizations. It would be something new for him, but also exciting! Well, at the end of May, the time finally came. Michael, John Parker (our Local and Global Outreach Pastor), and Bishop Sylvester Robinson from Love Fellowship, a Summit Partnership church, all boarded a 16-hour flight headed for New York, then to Paris, and finally to Nairobi, Kenya. Michael was excited to experience the church outside of an American context for the first time.
From a broader, organizational perspective, the trip's goal was clear. John hoped to introduce Michael to some of our most dear and long-term Partnerships and check in on the work they’re doing in this part of the world. The pair would then reassess the long-term viability of these connections, make decisions, and cast a vision of what Global Partnerships look like in the future at Summit.
The first stop would be Nairobi Chapel, where the group stayed for four days. Michael even got to meet Bishop Oscar Muriu, who some longtime Summit attendees may remember. He has preached at Summit several times in the past. Oscar is known in his part of the world for spearheading a broadscale church planting initiative that has planted 26 churches to date and he is seen as somewhat of a patriarch of the church now in his older age. He was on a year-long sabbatical but came back from elsewhere in the world to visit with John and Michael.
Michael said, “I was so impressed with Oscar’s wisdom. He knows the impact he’s had and yet he’s so humble. Even for someone who has studied the scriptures backward and forward, it was so apparent that this man is truly special in his close walk with the Lord.”
Michael felt encouraged by the staff at Nairobi Chapel and got the opportunity to learn the nuances of the church’s organizational structure and hear their unique approach to social justice. He listed this as one of the most inspiring experiences of the trip and something he wanted to figure out how to bring back to Summit.
“They believe the church should be a safe haven for people in their community to find hope, healing, and restoration, a place where they find dignity and self-respect. So, in their own vernacular, they take the ‘Give a man a fish, he eats for a day, but teach a man to fish, he eats for a lifetime’ notion to heart. This provides opportunities for much-needed training that multiplies their efforts in the community. 75% of the people they serve actually end up re-investing back into this program.”
From there, the group went to Kajiado, another city south of Nairobi. Here, Michael was able to meet up with Josiah and Sarah Kirisuah. Josiah and Sarah have been featured on our blog before as they were the first to come to faith from the Maasai tribe in southern Kenya and have since been working to make an impact in their village. The team was able to see how Summit’s 15% that goes out the doors serves communities in the far corners of the globe in practical ways like how Summit helped provide water tanks or a newer truck for transportation. Michael was once again inspired to see that the vast majority of the surrounding village has come to Christ through this church in Kajiado and the Kirisuah family’s ministry.
Michael also got to visit a couple of Nairobi Chapel’s Logos Schools. According to the Logos Christian Schools website, these were schools set up to serve the community by providing “a nurturing and Biblically-based learning environment in which children develop their abilities, and are equipped for effective, God-glorifying lives.” Nairobi Chapel has established three such schools and serves 500 students with over 60 staff members.
When asked what will stick with him for years to come, Michael answered, “The Kenyans have such an immeasurable joy. We often hear pastors say that our faith should move those around us to ask what is different about us. The Christians in Kenya walk in that every day! Why can’t we have that? I want that for us. I want that for me!”
Needless to say, Michael came away thinking that these long-term partnerships are solid and still fruitful after all these years. They are partnerships that will last.
Concluding his thoughts, Michael said, “If there’s one thing I could impress upon the congregation after this trip it would be to be open to the Lord’s leading of going on one of our trips in the future because I guarantee you will come back with a transformed worldview of God and his people.”
If going on a trip to see our Global Partners in action would be of interest to you, please contact our Local and Global Partnership team today. Also, if you want to learn more about our Partnerships, explore our website and see all the work that Summit is supporting in the Greater Orlando area and beyond.