I am a big sports fan. And I knew that Kenya was famous for its distance runners. My primary goal for being in Kenya, and only goal really, was to minister the truth of God’s Word to those people who are hungering for truth. But while I was here in Kenya, in the back of my mind, I was hoping to meet one of their great distance runners or coaches. My 15-year old daughter is on the Cross-Country team at her school. Maybe I could bring home a few tips for her and her coach.
There were only two Kenyans that I had mentioned this desire to. I suggested Kipchoge Keino. “Kip” for short. He was among the first in a long line of great middle- and long-distance runners from Kenya. Kip had won gold medals at the Olympic games in 1968 and 1972. I had watched him on TV when I was little boy. He was my hero. I knew he lived in Eldoret, which was nearby. And I recently discovered that he was a Christian who had become heavily involved with helping children by way of an orphanage and the building of schools. He had also been the chairman of the Kenyan Olympic Committee (KOC) until September of 2017. Meeting this man would be really cool.
On Tuesday, April 2nd we were traveling to Eldoret. We had expected to arrive around 5:00 pm. However, due to the three flat tires I had mentioned in the previous passage of this newsletter, we didn’t arrive in Webuye until after 11:00 pm.
On Wednesday I would be teaching God’s Word all day at a conference. On Thursday we were scheduled to continue that conference until 2:00 pm. After that I would be traveling in the opposite direction, to Bungoma. So, I had completely given up on any possibility of meeting a Kenyan runner or coach. That was fine. I hadn’t come here for that. I was here to minister to God’s people.
Suddenly, on Wednesday afternoon Kefa says to me, “Kip Keino has agreed to meet with you. He would like to join up with you at a restaurant in Eldoret.”
Of course, this was a very positive step towards the possibility of meeting Kip. But how to fit it into my schedule? Pastor Maurice then offered to close the conference early on Thursday so I would have the opportunity to meet Kipchoge for lunch that day, prior to traveling to Bungoma. I would not be teaching in Bungoma until Friday morning. I agreed. Kefa reached out to Margaret, his contact in Eldoret. Then Margaret contacted Kip. And it was all arranged. We would wrap up my portion of the conference at noon and then have I would make the short trip to Eldoret where I would eat lunch with Kip.
As we traveled to Eldoret, I began praying continuously about this. I was convinced by now that this meeting had been planned by God. He had something in mind to come from this and I was now going to find out what it was. I knew it would be much more than just getting a picture taken with a celebrity. Our God is much bigger than that and His plans extend far, far beyond something so trivial.
We arrived at the hotel where I met Margaret Maheri. She explained that Kip had been flying in from Nairobi and would proceed directly from there to meet us. While waiting for Kip’s arrival I got into a long conversation with Margaret. She is an absolutely amazing woman. I learned about her ministry which is to reach Muslims with the salvation message of Jesus Christ. She has been starting up churches in Muslim-dominated areas.
What she is doing is extremely dangerous, from a sense-knowledge point of view. But our Lord Jesus Christ had called her to that ministry. And while we were waiting for Kip to arrive, she told me story after story regarding the miracles God was performing to protect her from harm and to bring salvation to many former Muslims. It was the book of Acts in the 21st Century. Suffice to say, when we listen to God and decide to perform His will in reaching people with the Gospel, we will have stories like this to tell. And she sure did!
In one particular incident, Margaret had heard that many of the Muslim men were very angry with her ministry and were plotting to come by one night to make havoc of her church. She got together with other believers and they spent much time in prayer. The Muslim men came and were about to cause the destruction when the Muslim man who was leading the charge suddenly changed his mind. “We will leave them alone,” he told his group, “They are not worth the effort.” And then they all turned around and walked away. No harm had come to the church or anyone in it. It reminded me of Acts 5:21-42.
Kip Keino then walked into the restaurant. He offered to shake my hand. I asked him for a hug instead, and he accepted. We then ordered dinner. Kip ordered only a drink, as he had already eaten. I asked him how his career began as a runner and the events that happened after that which caused him to win so many races, including at the grand stage of the Olympic games.
I have lots of details I could share with you, but four things he said stuck out most in my mind. 1.) He always prayed and kept God first in his life. 2.) He was disciplined in his training. 3.) He ran with a training partner who was also a very good runner. 4.) He believed in himself. Those were the four keys he shared with me that contributed towards his success.
I knew that after he had won all of those medals, he had turned to a different ‘sport,’ that of helping children in need. He had sponsored the building of two schools, a primary and secondary. And he established the Lewa Children’s Home for orphans through the KipKeino Foundation. You can learn more about the orphanage by going to: www.lewachildrenshome.org.
I told him that the medals he had won in the Olympic games were temporary. But the things he was doing for God, such as the schools and orphanage, would reap him eternal rewards. He looked at me, smiled that big, warm smile of his, and agreed.
Kip handed me his business card that contained his email address and cell phone number. I asked him if he would like for me to put his email address in the group to receive newsletters about my mission trip in Kenya. He said, “Yes.”
Soon afterward, he said that he needed to get to the farm to plant seeds. He mentioned that rain would be greatly needed after the seeds were planted. I suggested that those of us at the table gather around and pray for rain. He agreed and so we held hands and I prayed for God to cover that need. Soon afterwards, we all got up and left.
I discovered that Kip is still a hard worker, with the same self-discipline that had made him so successful as a distance runner. He had likely been involved with business meetings in Nairobi that day. After that he flew to Eldoret and met with me. Now he was going to work on a farm. It was all in a day’s work for the legendary 79-year old named Kipchoge Keino! But what stuck out in my mind the most was to witness how humble he was, and his love for God.
A person’s gift creates opportunity for him and leads him before great people.
Proverbs 18:15 REV