Pentecostal churches in Kenya say a local nurses’ strike has enabled them to share the gospel in the Kajiado region.
A partnership between a UK-based Christian medical team and local Pentecostal churches had been attempting to reach the Maasai community with healthcare and outreach for almost three decades, but had struggled to establish relationships due to the Maasai’s loyalty to traditional culture.
As a semi-nomadic indigenous group, the Maasai Association says it does not oppose churches but wants to preserve its culture and traditional institutions. “We would like to be agents of our change rather than victims of change,” said Kakuta Ole Maimai, managing director of the Maasai Association.
Relationships opened up when a nurses’ strike in April meant that Kajiado’s healthcare infrastructure was severely depleted. The timing coincided with the arrival of the UK charity TOSOL Initiative in the area.
“God plans in wonderful ways,” Pastor Paul Sikolia Sahale of Bisil told World. “TOSOL couldn’t have come here for a medical outreach at a better time.”
Alongside Elim Missions, the 20-strong TOSOL team provided medical care and surgical equipment to the region, and demonstrated new surgical techniques. They report treating hundreds of people for injuries and eye conditions.
“The outreach gave the church volunteers great visibility among the locals,” said Ajileye, a TOSOL biomedical scientist. “Their ID tags with Elim Church proudly displayed helped them connect as they ministered to the teeming Maasai sick.”
After the successful surgeries, 11 local communities donated 20 acres of land to Elim Pentecostal Church to build new churches. In Paranai, a new church launched with 60 members, and two additional acres were given for a Bible school.
The team said they were initially “overwhelmed” by the response effort. “We felt we didn’t plan well enough,” said Dr Akinfemi Akingboye, a British surgeon at Russell Hall Hospital in the West Midlands. However, the new relationships formed meant the group saw God’s hand in their work.
The Elim Pentecostal Church of Kenya has planted over 400 churches across the country.
“We are looking forward to 100 churches in the region by 2027,” said Elim’s secretary general, Martin Muita. Dr Akingboye added: “Our mandate is shifting towards strengthening infant local churches everywhere we go. I am asking God to make our next outreach a revival.”