Amazing Opportunity to Reach the Lost
Nathan and Carrie Radford serve the Lord in Kitale, Kenya. Their main ministries include indigenous church planting, a prison ministry, and a hospital ministry for mothers with premature babies.
Greetings from Kenya!
As I sit here typing this letter, the girls are at an art class they are taking during a break from school. We are so thankful another local ministry is providing this class for kids. The girls are enjoying it immensely and they have the opportunity to be around other kids. Breaks from school are difficult for kids here, as there are limited options of activities for them. Our school follows the Kenyan school calendar, which runs from Jan-Nov. The students are in classes for 3 months, then have 1 month off. We like the schedule as the kids retain more information and are less likely to need much refreshers at the start of the new terms.
Speaking of school calendars, we are so excited the girls have a school to attend now. Julie Tate, along with myself, and 4 Kenyan parents (directors) have seen the need for our community to have a Christian school for the children. We currently have 10 students enrolled, including our girls and a Hindu student. The school is such an amazing opportunity to reach the Hindu and Muslim population in our area. Not only do the students have a dedicated Bible class, but all their regular classes have Biblical principles woven into them. We are using a combination of Bob Jones University curriculum with Mystery of History and Math-U-See. All the students have enjoyed the year thus far and are anxious for classes to resume. As a mother, I am so happy to see our daughters thriving and enjoying their new friendships with kids in the Kenyan culture.
We are also very excited about a new family who is planning to move to our area sometime in June or July. There are 4 children in the family, including 2 girls close in age to our girls. McKenna and Cami haven’t had American girls here their ages, so this is a huge answer to prayer for them. We are praying for the family and their upcoming adjustments.
Speaking of prayer, a request we have as a family is for homesickness. The girls have been especially homesick lately, and it’s hard as a parent to see this. We want so badly for them to be happy, but we also recognize that God is able to work through the sadness and is teaching them things that will benefit them in the long term. School definitely helps as it keeps them busier and they are around kids, but still, they miss their family in the States. They don’t always understand why we are serving here in Kenya, so please pray for us as we lead and teach them.
As I close this letter, the sun is shining and the heat is rising. Kenya is in a bit of an emergency due to drought conditions. Please pray for rain and temperatures to cool soon. The farmers desperately need the rain for their crops and food prices are rising for everyone.
May the Lord bless each of you as you serve Him in the States. Thank you so much for all the prayers and encouragement you offer to us. We appreciate you all!
In Christ,
Carrie Radford
Nathan and Carrie Radford
P.O. Box 4150
Kitale, Kenya
East Africa 30200
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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Pursuing a New Plan for Church Planting
Nathan and Carrie Radford serve the Lord in Kitale, Kenya. Their main ministries include indigenous church planting, a prison ministry, and a hospital ministry for mothers with premature babies.
April 3, 2018
Dear praying friends,
Another month has come and gone, and there is much to update you on. We thank the Lord for each one of you, who either prays for us, sends us encouraging correspondence, or gives sacrificially to the work of the Lord here in Kenya. You are each a great blessing to us.
Our daughters (McKenna and Camille) are now on break from school in Kitale. God was so good to provide a good school for them to go to, where they can get much needed socialization, as well as try to develop some independence and make some decisions on their own. Now, they are on break and my wife has the opportunity to home school them on the side. Please pray for this time, as this is the time my wife wants to invest in and teach our daughters. They will be getting much needed teachings and we know the Lord will bless their time together.
The hospital ministry is continuing along well. We thank the Lord that He has kept the door of ministry open for my wife to reach the mothers and children with Biblical materials as well as much needed clothing supplies. Many of the mothers and children are very needy and we do our best to reach them and encourage them. We feel that these children are very near to the heart of God. Many of them come from very challenging situations and need to be shown care and love. Psalm 82:3 says “Defend the poor and fatherless: do justice to the afflicted and needy.” This is a very challenging verse and please pray for my wife as she continues in this ministry.
After much prayer and seeking the Lord’s will in regards to church planting here, I (Nathan) have decided on a way of pursuing this ministry. I am seeking to train qualified national men (preferably younger) in their homes, trusting God to raise these men up in His plan and timing, then teaching these men to go to their immediate village they live in and reach their neighbors with the Word and the Gospel message. The goal is for the men that are trained to start groups in their homes that would develop into churches over time.
I desire to go outside of town into remote village areas, teaching the men in the Swahili language. This is a big challenge for me, as Swahili is difficult, however, I feel as much as possible it is beneficial to get the teachings into the language of the people. I am in active pursuit of this at this time and would pray that you would pray for me, that God would raise up the right men who truly want to serve the Lord. There are many challenges here, as I have mentioned before, so it is not easy. I will probably go through several men before finding the right man to train. I also would ask you to pray that God would open and close the doors that He wants me to pursue. Matthew 10:14 says “And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet.” Please pray for me as I seek to be led by the Lord in these endeavors and trust Him each step of the way. Church planting is difficult here and there are many challenges, but God is able and I trust Him. I would greatly appreciate your prayers at this time for wisdom for who to work with, and where to pursue opportunities.
We appreciate each of you so much and thank the Lord for you. Please keep us in prayer as we remember you as well.
Blessings,
Nathan and Carrie Radford
Nathan and Carrie Radford
P.O. Box 4150
Kitale, Kenya
East Africa 30200
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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Getting Back in the Swing of Things in Kenya
Nathan and Carrie Radford serve the Lord in Kitale, Kenya. Their main ministries include indigenous church planting, a prison ministry, and a hospital ministry for mothers with premature babies.
January 2, 2018
Dear praying friends,
Happy 2018! Another year has come and gone, and now we have a new year filled with opportunities to serve God and others. It is easy to look at the past year and possibly regret some opportunities we had that we did not use to serve God, but this new year, may we look with anticipation at the areas and chances that God gives us to serve Him. May we truly have the attitude of a servant, realizing that we will be rewarded by Him for our service. Only one life will soon be past, only what is done for Christ will last.
This past month was crazy busy for us as a family as we were in the process of moving. As I shared recently, there were security issues at our last place and we really felt after prayer and seeking the Lord’s will, that we should move to a safer area of Kitale. We packed tons of boxes, got them all loaded on moving trucks, loaded our personal items and moved to a different location. It is always hard to move, but we really felt the Lord’s leading in it. We now praise the Lord that we are in a safer area. Please pray for our family and our adjustments at this time.
Speaking of family, our girls go back to school early this next week, January 9th. This is also a very big transition for them, as they are used to homeschooling, but my wife and I both feel that they need this time of socialization with other children and activities that the school offers. We are both so thankful for this school and many other missionaries have their children enrolled as well. This is a big answer to prayer and we thank the Lord for providing this opportunity for our daughters.
Please pray for me (Nathan) as I seek to get back into ministry in the near future. It has been so crazy busy with moving, waiting out the election, etc. Please pray for God to lead and guide me and give me wisdom as I seek the Lord’s leading in regard to serving others here. We thank the Lord that He recently provided the work permit for my wife, so this is a big blessing. My permit (Nathan) is also up for renewal soon, so please pray if it would be the Lord’s will, that it would be renewed without any problem. We trust God to lead and guide us. Psalm 25:4-5 says “Shew me thy ways, O LORD; teach me thy paths. Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day.” May this be our prayer as we serve the Lord this upcoming year.
Lastly, we would appreciate your prayers for safety as we drive in Kitale. The traffic here has become so heavy and the roads are narrow in some areas, with many accidents occurring recently. The drivers are impatient and overtake, and there are so many motorcycles, bicycle taxis, regular taxis, etc. We trust the Lord for our safety and would covet your prayers for this. We appreciate each of you so much, your faithful prayer support and sacrificial giving. May the Lord bless you for your mindfulness of missions around the world.
Serving Him,
Nathan and Carrie Radford
P.O. Box 4150
Kitale, Kenya, East Africa
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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Preparing to Move; Daughters Excited for New School!
Nathan and Carrie Radford serve the Lord in Kitale, Kenya. Their main ministries include indigenous church planting, a prison ministry, and a hospital ministry for mothers with premature babies.
November 30, 2017
Dear praying friends,
We hope this finds each of you doing well as we round out the year of 2017. Hard to believe we are on the verge of another new year, and another year where we can faithfully serve the Lord and use the opportunities that He gives us. What a privilege it is to serve Him. We hope each of you have a great upcoming Christmas holiday, and a happy upcoming 2018. This update will share current updates as well as prayer requests.
One major prayer request we have since we have returned is for safety while driving in Kitale. Since we have returned to Kitale, it seems the traffic here has become even more congested than when we left. The roads are narrow, and there is a large amount of traffic each day that passes through. Imagine bicycles to the side of the roads, cars who are impatient and want to overtake where there is no room, and motorcycles all over the place, also impatient and trying to overtake. We always take careful precautions when traveling here, and we would appreciate your prayers even more, for the Lord to watch over us as we go back and forth to town. Please pray for everyone else as well who uses the roads, for their safety. God has been so faithful to protect us and we continue to trust Him each day as we drive here.
Another big announcement that we have is that after prayer, and searching for the Lord’s will, we have decided to move to a safer area within the Kitale area. As many of you know, there was a large amount of unrest at our compound last term. The back fence was broken several times, our hedge was cut several times, a light was shone late at night in the compound, our electricity fuse was stolen so we would be in the dark, the gate was shaken off the hinges, etc. Our neighbors have also had security issues, and there were even other incidents near our place when we were on furlough, so we really feel it is time to get to a safer area in Kitale. Please pray for us as we pack up, try to keep track of things, and for the transition as we move. It is a huge job, but we feel it is really wise and prudent at this time to move, given all the unrest in our area. Please pray for my wife as she is very overwhelmed with trying to keep track of where things are, etc. We feel very at peace with this decision and we are trusting God. Psalm 32:8 says “I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with Mine eye.” It will be a very busy upcoming few weeks, and we would covet your prayers for us as we pack and go. God is in control and we trust Him for our safety.
Our daughters have been out of school for a few weeks and are anxious to get back into the swing of things in early January, Lord willing. This has been a good time for them to rest, spend time with us, and our daughter McKenna has been honing in on her drawing skills. She has been taking some art lessons (as well as Camille, our other daughter) and has been really improving and drawing beautifully. We are so thankful for the new school and the activities that it has given our daughters. This has been much needed in Kitale and a huge answer to prayer.
We wish you all a great Christmas holiday and time with your families. Please pray for all the missionaries on the field, as the holiday season is a difficult time for them. We appreciate each of you so much and thank the Lord for your prayers, sacrificial giving, and letters of encouragement. You are a huge blessing.
Serving in Kenya,
Nathan and Carrie Radford
P.O. Box 4150
Kitale, Kenya, East Africa
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
Back in Kenya with a Big Answer to Prayer
Nathan and Carrie Radford serve the Lord in Kitale, Kenya. Their main ministries include indigenous church planting, a prison ministry, and a hospital ministry for mothers with premature babies.
October 31, 2017
We are now at the end of 2017, and this year has passed so quickly. I am reminded of how short life is when I think of how time flies. It seems the older I get, the faster it goes. I am sure that is true for everyone. God is so faithful and may we use our days to worship Him, serve Him, love Him, and bring Him glory. He deserves all praise and glory for all things. 1 Corinthians 10:31 says “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.”
In family news, October is a big month for our family. My wife and I celebrated our 13th anniversary, and also I (Nathan) turned 41 this past month. Both days were great days of celebration with friends here in Kitale. I am thankful for a wife who sacrifices daily on the mission field, giving up many comforts, to serve the Lord here. She is truly a blessing and I am so thankful for her and her servant spirit. I hope and pray we will have many more years together.
Also in family news, we have had what seems to be a huge answer to prayer. As you know, we have struggled to find friends for our daughters here in Kitale. This is one of the biggest struggles for missionary children, having social interaction and friends their age to play with. Many times the needs of missionary children can be overlooked, so we have wanted to bring their needs before others so they can be in prayer for them.
Praise the Lord, He has answered this prayer in a big way. There is now a Christian school in Kitale with approximately 70 children enrolled at present. The school is now closed for break, but when it begins in January, they plan to have 100 students there. It is growing and expanding and offers many extracurricular activities, such as drama, art, music lessons, Swahili lessons (the language of Kenya), French language lessons, etc. There are further plans to even provide more in the future, but this is a great start. McKenna and Camille had the opportunity to go for about two weeks and were already making good friends, so we are so thankful for this and praise God for this big answer to prayer.
In regards to the presidential election here, it is still continuing along. As I reported last month, the prior election in August was annulled and they did a second election last week. The voter turnout was much lower than the first election, and some areas had delays in voting due to protests and violence. I know the winner will be announced soon, so please pray for the country, for the stability of the country, for no further unrest that is not necessary, and for it to be settled. Unrest has been in certain pockets of the country and we have done our best to stay safe, stock up on supplies, and all the usual things that would be expected in a time of insecurity and possible unrest. We know God is in control and we trust Him in all these things.
We appreciate each of you so much and your prayers, sacrificial giving, and notes and letters of encouragement. You are all such a blessing and we are thankful to you. We will keep you updated.
Nathan and Carrie Radford
P.O. Box 4150
Kitale, Kenya, East Africa
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
Missionary Update: The Radfords in Kenya [March 2016]
Nathan and Carrie Radford serve the Lord in Kitale, Kenya. Their main ministries include indigenous church planting, a prison ministry, and a hospital ministry for mothers with premature babies.
March 1, 2016
Dear praying friends,
Greetings from warm and sunny Kitale. As I (Nathan) see photos of parts of America with great levels of snow, here in Kitale, it is consistently around 85 degrees. It definitely makes me miss the snow and seasons in America. I always enjoy the snow and seasons while we are home on furlough. There is never snow here in Kitale, so it is an adjustment when we return to visit churches, friends, and family. We are now approaching rainy season in the next few weeks, so that will be a blessing as well.
This past month, we celebrated the birthday of our daughter Camille. She is such a blessing in our family and it was nice to have some friends over to celebrate. She is now five years old, which is hard to believe. McKenna will soon be eight years old, Lord willing. Please pray for us as we raise our daughters and for wisdom from God in our parenting. I love Proverbs 22:6, which says “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”
Please pray for the national that Roger and I are training. His name is Christopher, and he lives in a large village area called Kibomet. We train him in town and he has been coming faithfully to be taught the Word of God. We are now at a very important part of our training, where we are allowing him to teach us the Word of God. We are doing this so we can see how he will do before he would go to start a Bible study group. Lord willing, the ultimate goal would be for the group to become a church. He has shown much improvement in his teaching, for which we are thankful. Please pray for Roger and I as we continue to train him, model for him the teachings, and trust the Lord with the results. We are thankful for Christopher and his willingness to serve the Lord. He has shown a sincere desire to study and obey the Scriptures. Psalm 119:105 says “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.”
We are now nearing the end of the teachings at the Annex prison called Firm Foundations. We have been studying and learning about the life of our Lord Jesus Christ. We recently studied when the disciples and the Lord were caught in a fierce storm. The disciples feared, then the Lord arose, rebuked the wind and the waves, and there was a great calm. This proves the authority of our Lord and shows that we can trust Him during the storms of life as well. Mark 4:39 says “And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.” Please pray for the prisoners as they faithfully study the Word of God. What a blessing it is to be able to teach them the Scriptures, by the grace of God. Please also pray for my prison permit to be renewed so I can continue with this ministry, Lord willing.
We are so thankful that our daughters have friends now. There is now a family that lives in Kitale on an internship with four daughters. They are from America and it is great for our daughters to have some friends to play with. This will help them to get along with other kids their age, develop social skills, and have some close friends. We are also praying for other children for our daughters to play with, as this is a much needed area of interaction on the mission field. We know the Lord is in control of this and we trust Him.
May the Lord bless each of you who give sacrificially, pray for us, or send emails or letters of encouragement. It means so much to us and we really appreciate it. Thank you for your faithfulness and encouragement to us. God bless each of you so much.
P.O. Box 4150
Kitale, Kenya
East Africa, 30200
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Missionary Update: The Radfords in Kenya [June 2015]
Nathan and Carrie Radford serve the Lord in Kitale, Kenya. Their main ministries include indigenous church planting, a prison ministry, and a hospital ministry for mothers with premature babies.
June 1, 2015
Dear praying friends,
We are now halfway through the year of 2015, and there are many things
to update you about. This will share ministry progress, as well as prayer
requests for current health issues.
In a previous letter I mentioned that our daughter Camille has contracted amoeba.
It is nearly impossible to prevent it completely, as ingesting just one drop of unfiltered water can transmit it. We do all we can to prevent it and stay healthy, such as watching where we eat, using
water filters, drinking bottled water, etc, but sometimes those actions aren’t enough and a person contracts it.
McKenna has also recently contracted it and so she has started medications to eradicate it.
We are so thankful to have a good doctor here in Kitale who has been here for over 30 years, seems knowledgeable and provides good medications.
Right now we are in the “waiting stages” to see if these medications will eradicate the amoeba, or if we have to go to an IV stage, which is the last resort. We are praying that the regular medications will take affect and the IV will not be necessary for either of the girls. We would appreciate your prayers for our daughters at this time. A verse that comes to mind at this time that is comforting is 1 Peter 5:7, which says “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.” It is a daily battle to stay healthy here and we would appreciate your prayers.
We have been praying for friends for our daughters to play with. Recently, our daughters have begun playing with a couple Kenyan girls from a local children’s home. Maggie and Daisy have been coming over to spend time with our family on the weekends. All 4 girls have gotten along well and this has been a blessing for our family as well as Maggie and Daisy, so we are so thankful for them. We continue to pray that other missionaries with children would come. God has been faithful to answer prayer.
In ministry news, the group at Robinson is continuing along and we are proceeding
through the foundational teachings. Recently I had the opportunity to teach on “What does it mean to really follow Christ?” We looked at examples from the Scriptures of those who did not follow Christ for various reasons, including misperceptions such as following Jesus will make all my problems go away, following Jesus will make my life easier, following Jesus is for the weak, etc. As I got to John 6 and explained that many people originally followed Jesus for the “loaves and fishes,” (to have their bellies filled), there was some laughter, as many in the meeting knew that this is a real issue here in Kenya. I continued to explain that others followed Jesus because they saw His signs and wanted to “get” something from Him. In the end, many disciples refused to follow Him and deserted Him. This was teaching that was necessary for the people here to understand. We desire to have those who follow Jesus for the right reasons, not for what they will get, or misconceptions they have. We will continue, Lord willing, to teach the truth in love, trusting the Lord to work in His time and plan, and leaving the results with Him.
My friend Roger Tate and I desire to be faithful, entrusting the results to the Lord. 1 Corinthians 4:2 says “Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.”
We thank you each so much for your heart for missions and your prayers and sacrificial
giving. Thank you for your faithfulness, and may the Lord bless you abundantly.
Until next month,
Nathan and Carrie Radford
P.O. Box 4150
Kitale, Kenya
East Africa, 30200
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Missionary Update: The Radfords on Furlough from Kenya [April 2014]
Nathan and Carrie Radford serve the Lord in Kitale, Kenya. Their main ministries include indigenous church planting, a prison ministry, and a hospital ministry for mothers with premature babies.
April 2, 2014
Dear praying friends,
We wanted to write and thank you all so much for your prayers for us during our furlough as we have been in America. It is hard to believe that Lord willing, we plan to return to Kenya in early June. The time has passed so fast, and we appreciate your prayers for the remainder of our time here.
I have recently been reading a book on “third culture” kids and those who live and grow up overseas. Suffice it to say that as I have been reading the book, my eyes have been really opened. I had no idea the challenges that those growing up between cultures face. It is so easy for children to get overlooked and for their needs to not be known or addressed. As I read the book and continue to read it, the Lord has been showing me ways that I can try to help and assist our daughters in different ways.
One of the main challenges that they face is “Home is everywhere and home is nowhere.” Meaning, they grow up in different cultures but neither culture is home. There is no ownership within that culture. This feeling contributes to restlessness and rootlessness. Among the uprooting between cultures, different challenges emerge for them. I have much more of the book to read, but please pray for me, that God would give me wisdom for how best to help them as we live and serve overseas and return for our time of reporting here in America. I am thankful for this book and the insight it has given.
Please also pray for us as we have much to do before returning to Kenya, Lord willing. My wife has huge tasks ahead of her, as she is trying to decide what to take for the term ahead, what to leave behind, schooling supplies, etc. I cannot imagine all the pressures that she will be under soon, and we covet your prayers for us as we work through all of the packing issues. Psalm 4:1 states “Hear me when I call , O God of my righteousness: thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress; have mercy upon me, and hear my prayer.”
Thanks so much to each one of you who prays for us, gives sacrificially, and is involved in missions across the world. Each of you are such a blessing and we thank the Lord for you.
We will keep you updated.
Serving in Kenya,
Nathan and Carrie Radford
315 College Street
Youngsville, PA 16371
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