Mr Vermeulen has written an account of his arrival in Kenya and of his assuming his duties once more. He said he was delighted with the new motor vehicle, as the old one was quite unreliable. Travelling long distances was now less of an ordeal. Two of the men came to see him in Nairobi to check up on details regarding the Church Constitution before applying for the registration of our Mission Church in Kenya.
Mr Vermeulen left for Sengera on Saturday morning, which meant a six hour drive. It is in Sengera that we have the small hospital. On Sabbath there was a Catechism Class before the first service. The Shorter Catechism is at present in Kiswahili, but the older people do not know Kiswahili. The local dialect is Kisii. They have Bibles in Kisii and now the men are concentrating on translating the Shorter Catechism into Kisii.
Mr Vermeulen says the work is slow and painstaking but well worth the trouble, if the people are to have a thorough grasp of the main doctrines.
Mesech, one of the men came to go over the accounts and bills with Mr Vermeulen as he had been paying the wages and bills during Mr Vermeulen’s absence.
Mr Vermeulen and the Chief went around looking at school buildings. The first Pre-School class had begun last year. This class will now be Standard One. To Mr Vermeulen’s surprise the Government has provided a teacher and will pay her salary. As the teacher belongs to our church she will give religious instruction according to our church teaching.
There are the same never-ending trips to the City Hospital with seriously ill patients, most of them suffering from malaria. Who can resist the pitiful plea, “Please help me. My child is dying. Will you please take us to hospital?” As fourteen people had died during the previous three weeks it was obvious that the cases were serious. “Humanly speaking”, as Mr Vermeulen says, “if we had a doctor in Sengera many deaths might be prevented.”
On Sabbath Mr Vermeulen went to Maiga congregation to speak and to Getumbe in the afternoon. The question is frequent, “Why are you not coming to our place?” “The harvest is great” — as the Saviour said. Why are the labourers so few?
J.N.