Kenneth is a first year apprentice serving in Deliverance Church, Maseno in the Western part of Kenya. Ken hails from Meru County and narrates his story and experience in the apprenticeship programme…
My name is Kenneth Mutuma, a sinner saved by God’s grace. I and was brought up in a simple family with my parents living together and teaching us the basics of religion like the importance of going to church, respecting everyone, and basically ‘doing as the Bible says’. However, it was not long before my parents separated and my sisters fell into unhealthy relationships, supposedly marriages. With these and many other family dysfunctions I was pushed to seek to know who God really is. I was somehow able to keep on with my studies to university and subsequently exposed to different viewpoints of the Christian faith. Now I believe in salvation by the grace of God alone, according to the Word of God.
Among the things I am grateful for, is the opportunity to serve as an apprentice with iServe Africa. This has changed my whole perspective on the word of God stemming from the Ministry Training Courses (MTCs), reading of carefully selected books and constant fellowship with friends who have kept pointing me to the truth of God’s word. Bible studies and book exposition sessions have been my most striking moments during MTCs.
It was quite a task for me to figure out and believe what the gospel is before. But with MTCs and continued fellowship with both staff and fellow apprentices, and by extension friends with a clear perspective of the gospel, I am now getting a refined understanding of what the gospel is, praise be to God. Figuring out that the Bible is “a one-story-book” – that it is primarily about God, was such a big deal for me!
I am serving in a church context in Deliverance Church Maseno and help in church administration, pastoral roles alongside Sunday school work. I also take pleasure in serving Maseno University students and organizing them in different small Bible study groups which has been quite encouraging. On Saturdays I get a chance to share the word with pupils from Maseno School which came as a result of a vibrant Maseno School staff Bible study that I’m part of. During this Covid-19 season, I have employed my social work skills in training tailors around Maseno how to make standardized face masks as well as turning to online Bible study sessions.
All this, preparing for pastoral work, sermons and one-on-one sessions, and Bible studies have kept sharpening my understanding of the Scripture and continued to teach me to be patient with people. Working with children has challenged me to explore different ways of packaging the message of the Bible, which has aroused an interest of working with children even more. Thanks be to God for all that has happened during this apprenticeship programme.