Olympics: Biblical encouragement on running to win the prize using the Kenyan long distance running prowess

Don’t you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win! All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified.

1 Cor 9:24-27 (NLT)

The verses above come from Paul’s letter to the church in the city of Corinth. This was a historical city founded as early as 800 BC. It had been conquered by Rome and completely destroyed in 146 BC. Julius Caesar founded it again in 44 BC. He settled some of his war veterans here giving them lands and titles. It became the capital of the province of Achaia. Most of ancient Greece was contained within this province.

Greek and Latin were the main languages in the city. Greek was the language of daily use while Latin was principally for business purposes. It was strategically located on
a narrow waterway (only 6 kilometers wide). All North-South and East-West traffic had to pass through this port.

Paul and Silas planted the church in Corinth at around 50AD during their second missionary journey. (Acts 18:1-17) Their ministry was so successful that they stayed there for eighteen months. Only in Ephesus did Paul stay for three years.

In these verses, Paul uses a picture drawn from the Isthmian Games. This was the second most important Roman sports festival after the Olympic Games. The Isthmian games were held every two years in Corinth and attracted thousands of people from all over the Roman Empire. The sportsmen competed in six disciplines – athletics, boxing, wrestling, discuss throwing, javelin, and jumping. The modern Olympic games still incorporate these six disciplines. The winner was decorated with a pine wreath on their head. Paul refers to this crown as perishable. He contrasts it to the imperishable one a Christian receives after he finishes his race of life.

Historical records show that the games were held the following year while Paul and Silas were preaching in Corinth. It is highly likely that the missionary duo witnessed them. But he was writing this letter from Ephesus (1 Cor 16:8) as a reply to questions that the Corinthian saints had.

Since the games attracted tens of thousands of people, it seems Corinth did not have enough lodging facilities to house the visitors. The solution was the use of portable tents. These were simple coverings made from animal skins and goat hair, some of the finest materials in use in the ancient world. Paul himself was a tent maker. (Acts 18:3) It is therefore likely that Paul (alongside Aquila and Priscilla) did thriving business during the games.

But Corinth’s success was rivaled by its infamy on sexual vice. Its principal deity was Aphrodite, the goddess of sexual love.

The ancient Olympic games were first held in 776BC. They were the most prestigious event held in Olympia in Greece. The games were held every four years in July in honor of the Greek god Zeus, the senior-most god in the Greek pantheon. The champions in the different disciplines were awarded a wreath from a sacred olive tree. They were considered blessed by the gods and got eternal fame throughout the empire. In addition, they got other favors, awards, and privileges from their home cities.

Paul used the images of the games in three other portions of scripture. He wrote to his son Timothy in his farewell letter in 2 Tim 2:5; 4:7-8, and to the Hebrews in Heb 12:1. It is also possible that he wrote to the Philippians with this image in mind (Phil 3:14).

African athletes have excelled in the modern Olympic Games. More specifically, Kenya clinched most medals in the middle and long-distance races. The middle and long-distance races are the 800 m, 1,500 m (the mile), 3,000 m steeplechase, 5,000 m, 10,000 m, and the full marathon (42 km).

These middle and long-distance races differ from the sprints. The sprints are categorized as 100m, 200m, 400m, 400 m relay, and 400 m x 4 relays. Generally, the fastest athlete wins. Speed is key in sprint races.

However, in long-distance races, an athlete requires endurance rather than speed. However, speed is always important in the final lap. This is what athletes call the final kick. Having conserved his energy by properly pacing himself, an athlete unleashes a momentous burst of energy and sprints down to the finishing line. In other words, middle and long-distance races not only require intense training, but they also require strategic running. As Christians, each one of us needs to focus on his race of life, endure and finish strong.

Kenya in particular has pride of place on the winner's podium. In the thirty-first (XXXI) Olympiad (Rio 2016) Kenya was the best-placed African country at position sixteen. The country had a total of thirteen medals (six gold, six silver, and one bronze). In the thirty-second (XXXII) Olympiad, Kenya emerged position nineteenth overall with a total of ten medals (four gold, four silver, and two bronze.) These were in the men’s and women’s marathon, men’s 800 m, and women’s 1,500 m.

The essence of the verses is an emphasis on training in order to compete rightly. Training gives the athlete the confidence to run his race and focus on the prize.

The pretty nurse that crushed a giant

Photographs are an eternal moment in time immortalized on an image.

There are several things I remember from this photo. My mom wal a lifelong employee of the Nairobi City Council health department. Throughout her career, she was posted in several City Council (NCC) health centers across the city. I remember she loved night duty very much. (There were certainly many perks to it.)

I remember that starched appron and the nurses cap. (It was just a stiff piece of cloth held onto the hair with pins. But as little boy, I didn't know how it was held in place.)

My mom wore the ever fashionable ladies belt. One accessory that never lacked was her trusty handkerchief. She always tucked it on her belt, towards her hip. It always looked smart. (During her funeral, one friend of hers eulogized her that she copied her style because my mom was a very smart and neat lady.)

But the greatest quirk with my mom was that little, feminine watch riding high above her pretty wrist. She always wore one through out her life. (Of course after independence.)

Every time we went with her on public buses, she had this practice of folding the Kenya Bus Service (KBS) ticket and tucking it under her watch straps.  This KBS memory brings a nice anectode that will warm your hearts.

One December, my mum had to take us upcountry to the then Nyeri district (Nyeri county). Alongside her cousin, she had 5 excited, energetic little strapplings and a gigantic bag full of a months worth of clothing. And of course, her handbag. (My dad was at work then, and in those days, it wasn't common for men to walk around with their children lugging around tonnes of baggage.)

As we got onto the KBS, all 5 of us were excited with the adventure before us. A  uniformed conductor stood by the door bored stiff. He was a gigantic, black man, but a small brin. You couldn't tell this from his royale look untilehe opened his mouth. Seeing this coterie of children and two pretty ladies, he probably got a chance to kill his boredom.

'Mama, uko na watoto wengi', (lady, you have many kids eh?) 

The giant conductor said trying to vybe my mum.
I think having just come out of his twisted daydream, he was thinking aloud. He didn't know he had just vomited.
My mum had a legendary look that was sharper than the injections she administered. She shot

t back at the big bodied conductor. And like a boss, without any chills, the pretty lady replied,
'Ni wako?' (Are they yours?) 😊😁😎
Ouch! The guys life was crushed.

Pasqualina was a LEGEND! (1948 - 9th December, 2018)

Check out freelance, non bidding writing gigs on www.listiller.com 

The tale of a 1978 Kenyan number plate on a car in 1958

Many movies that are set in historical points have the singular challenge of getting all the factual details

right. This is never easy. The 1985 adventure film King Solomon Mines was a fantastic but horrible little tale full of anachronisms and replete with inaccuracies.  Based on the book of the same name by Sir H. Rider Haggard, the book created the genre known as lost world. I remember reading this book in the eighties and being fascinated with the adventures in dangerous lands full of cannibals, witches, powerful African kings, and priceless wealth that was only rumored about. (It helped dehumanize Africans making the colonists perceive us as subhuman, an idea that still persists to this very day.) So what is that thing, anachronism?

Anachronism is a literal device placing someone or something out of its proper time period. It comes from a compound Greek word meaning ‘against time’ to show events, places or things that are out of their time. This technique is sometimes used to make it easier for people to understand stories set in a different historical and social plane.

This is widely used in popular culture that is movies, music, and film. Their use can be either deliberate or accidental. For example, Martin Lawrence starred in Black Knight (2001), a comedy that used anachronisms effectively for comedic purposes. Other times it may be accidental showing poor research on the part of the scriptwriter and producer.

Breathe (2017) is the true story of Robin Cavendish, an activist for the rights of disabled people and a responaut.  This is a person who is permanently dependent on a ventilator for breathing.  Robin became one after contracting polio while on honeymoon in Kenya in 1958.  With his wife Diana, the couple had only one son, Jonathan Cavendish, the film’s producer.  Robin died in 1994 aged 64 years, one of the longest living survivors of polio.

The movie has certain scenes depicting Kenya in 1958.  These were shot on location in South Africa. They are the source of several anachronisms.  A blue plane lands with the newlyweds in Kenya (6.09).  The yellow subtitle records this in Kenya, 1958.  At the end of the airstrip, a buxom African woman runs her vegetable stall.  She is unconcerned with the plane landing in this dirt airstrip.  She has put an advert for oranges and bananas, and it’s in English.  This is highly unlikely since there were few Africans who could speak the English language leave alone a Mama Mboga selling by an airstrip. 

The newlyweds sampling Kenyan tea at a Mombasa-based tea brokerage company. (6;35) The newlyweds take a ride in the pristine African wilderness on a Land Rover series 1 registration KTT 8211. (6;55) According to Kenya vehicle registration records, vehicles were registered in the format LLL NNN (L standing for a letter while N stood for digit).

Between 1920 – 1980, vehicles were registered in 14 districts across Kenya. All had a uniform letter ‘K’ standing for Kenya, followed by a second letter denoting a region, and a final letter for the time period.

First, KTT 8211 would not have been possible since this number plate utilizes four digits.  This is obviously contrary to the law. Secondly, the ‘KT’ series was issued in 1977 for the Mombasa region.  The ‘KA’ series was used in Mombasa between 1950- 1966. It is therefore impossible for the KTT 8211 series to have been issued in 1958.

From 1980, the number plate changed from a regional to a sequential system.  In 1989, as the number plates came to an end, Kenya introduced a new format, LLL NNNL.  The additional ‘L’ guaranteed that every generation of the number plates would register 23,976 vehicles. (A generation means KAA 001A – KAZ 999Z.) There are projected to be 23 generations with the exemption of KAF, KAI, KAO. 

This means 551,448 vehicles will be registered at the end of ‘KZZ 999Z’.  The first generation ran from 1989 to 2007.  The second-generation (KBA) run for seven years until 2014 while the third (KCA) was issued between 2014 – 2020. We are currently in the fifth generation (KDA 001A) which was issued in September 2020.

This anachronism is not obvious to any Kenyan. It is also near impossible for the international viewer to spot it, but someone has gotten it for you.

5 Steps to Better Online Writing

 Writing is big business.  Many writers dream of great success.  But the bulk of writers earn just enough to meet their own needs.  Many other writers are just passionate and receive satisfaction from setting words from their minds onto a blank page.  However, there’s no reason why a writer should not be passionate and grow rich from their craft.  A good writer needs to continually become better in his writing.

Here are 5 steps to becoming a better writer.

1. Take a writing course

Some people have a natural writing talent.  However, any talent that is not sharpened is like money buried in the soil – it never grows. Taking a good writing course is a sure way to becoming a better writer. A well-structured course will boost one’s confidence as you reach your key milestones.

2. Make writing a daily habit

Do you know someone who locks themselves in a room and churns out page after page of awesome work? Afterwards, they go for days, weeks or even months without producing anything until the next deadline. Sounds like you in college? Unfortunately, this method of writing will end up making you a moribund and disillusioned writer even if you are greatly talented.

Writing is a habit just like any other. Every day, set some time apart to write something.  One does not even need a computer to create this habit.  Simple journaling with your pen and diary is enough writing practice. As writing becomes a strong habit, begin to set daily, weekly, monthly or even quarterly word count targets.

3. Read widely

A good writer is a good reader.  A good writer reads widely.  In fact, a good writer reads even old works that are sometimes, honestly, very boring.  Imagine reading Ngugi wa Thiong’o’s ‘The River Between’, Alan Paton’s ‘Cry, the Beloved Country’ or Solomon Northup’s ‘12 years a slave.’  (Alternatively, you could always wait for the movie release). I hope you get the point - reading is an indispensable habit for a writer.

4.As much as possible, get a mentor

Getting a mentor sounds cliché but it is true. Everyone requires someone who will guide them. A mentor doesn’t necessarily have to be a writer.  A mentor is a person who looks out for you and has your interests at heart. A mentor helps one avoid the many pitfalls in writing.  

5. Eliminate cliches from your copy

The world generates huge amounts of articles and texts. Due to global interconnectedness, there are many phrases, sentences and word that have become overused. For example, ‘sticking out like a sore thumb’ sounds nice but it has been overused. It can give an impression of one as a lazy writer. Taking a good writing course will challenge you to develop a personal writing style using uniquely constructed phrases. 

Writing is big business.  It pays well and it can only get better with time.  A writer needs to continually improve and sharpening his skills.  There is no shortcut to becoming a good writer.

 

 

7 Reasons Why Every Christian Must Be Discipled

 Christian discipleship is the process of making believers become fully committed followers of Jesus Christ.  Discipleship training builds and strengthens the believer's faith on a firm foundation. As a believer, you will be sharpened in wisdom and matured in Christian doctrine. The ultimate goal is to have you also disciple other believers. 

Here are 7 reasons why Christians should be disciples.

1. The need for maturity

The Bible places emphasis on the need for you to grow in Christian doctrine. (Hebrews 6:1) You will be protected from becoming complacent in your relationship with God.  It also helps to check against stagnation in your knowledge of biblical truths.  The objective is to keep growing in your relationship with God.

2. Disciples have to be accountable

The Christian model of discipleship is drawn from Jesus Christ’s method of discipling His 12 followers. He taught them what He knew and gave them certain responsibilities to carry out. He also required a report from His students.  Discipleship is supposed to make you as a Christian become accountable to God in how you live your life.

3. As a disciple, you should become a role model

In 1 Cor 11:1, Paul wrote to the believers telling them to imitate his lifestyle. Discipleship requires that a trainer use his lifestyle as a pedagogical method. As a result, you will align your life with biblical teaching.

4. It helps in character and spiritual formation

The Bible gives 9 key values for you as a Christian. (Galatians 6:22-23) These are love, joy, peace, perseverance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. It goes further and emphasizes that having these values and cultivating them will cause you to be productive in your faith life. (2 Peter 1:5-6)

5. Discipleship is training church leaders

The church is a spiritual institution that requires leaders.  These are to be picked from among mature believers.  The spiritual requirements of a leader are clearly given. (1 Timothy 3:1-10; Titus 1:7-9) The bible goes as far as requiring that as leaders, you should be tested before being given any responsibilities in the church.

6. A Christian is a disciple

The word ‘Christian’ occurs only 3 times in the New Testament. However, the word ‘disciple’ occurs 268 times in the gospels and Acts.  Clearly, the emphasis is laid on discipleship.  As a Christian then, you should be a disciple.

7.  Jesus Christ commanded discipleship training

In one of His last acts before ascending to heaven, Jesus met His disciples and gave them the Great Commission. He further instructed them to teach others what he had taught them. Jesus Christ told His disciples to use the method he employed to disciple them. (Matthew 28:19-20)

You Must Be Discipled

As a Christian, you are supposed to keep growing deeper in your relationship with God. Churches are also supposed to have discipleship programs. It is strongly recommended that you should go through it.

Kayamba goes upcountry for christmas

The Christmas holidays were coming soon.  Kayamba could not hide his excitement. This would be the first time that eight-year-old Kayamba and his two siblings would be traveling upcountry to see his grandparents. The night before the trip, his parents bought him a children’s digital watch for Christmas. They told the children to sleep early since they would be travelling at six in the morning.  Kayamba couldn’t sleep. He kept checking his watch.  He didn’t want to be left behind.

At six the next morning, Kayamba’s parents and his siblings picked up their luggage for the fun trip ahead. The sun was just rising when they got to the bus station. The five of them got into a new colorful bus. It looked smart in the inside and felt very comfortable.  There was some fot music playing from the new speakers above.

Kayamba’s family occupied three seats. Their parents had a seat each while Kayamba and his two siblings shared one seat. Although they were squeezed, the children did not notice because of the excitement of the seeing the bus station. It was exciting to see so many people with lots of bags cris-crossing the bus station. There were also many children walking with their parents. The buses were many and colorful. It took almost one hour to fill up.

Finally, the bus left the station. Kayamba looked at his watch. It was seven in the morning.  It travelled through the countryside past people’s well dug farms. Kayamba’s excitement began turning to sleepiness. Before long, he was asleep. His siblings also went to sleep.

Kayamba was woken up by his parents after two hours. He checked his watch.  It was nine in the morning. His younger brother needed to relieve himself.  The bus had stopped at the side of the road.  His parents took them behind a bush to relieve themselves. 

When they got back into the bus, their excitement had returned. It also seemed that everyone else in the bus was also excited. People were now talking, reding newspapers and eating snacks.  Kayamba’s mum gave each of her children a half cob of boiled maize to eat. Boiled maize was his favorite.

The bus arrived at its destination and mid-day. The sun was high in the sky and it was hot.  Kayamaba and his siblings had to remove their sweaters. Their excitement grew again.  Kayamba could not wait to see his grandparents for the first time. His father came and picked up his family from the bus shade. They boarded a mini bus.  It was plain white and older than the bus they had come with.  The seats were dusty. Everyone squeezed in the bus.  Kayamba’s and his siblings sat on their parent’s laps. Kayamba sat on his father’s laps while his two younger siblings both sat on their mother’s laps.  The mini bus played loud music from the small old speakers under the back seats.

Kayamba looked at his watch.  It was one o’clock in the afternoon. The mini bus left the station and drove off on a small road. Sometimes the road was bumpy and sometimes it was smooth. It was hot although by the time they got to the village station, it was warm.  Kayamba saw that it was three o’clock in the afternoon. There were only a few people around.

They alighted from the minibus and boarded a small van. It was old and rusty. Kayamba could see that it used to be yellow.  It had wooden boards for seats and no windows. Kayamba’s excitement began to shrink. They waited for an hour before it filled up.

Everyone squeezed as much as they could.  Every child was squeezed between someone’s legs.  Kayamba was squeezed between his father’s legs while his two siblings were squeezed between other two men.

The old van drove of on a dusty road.  Kayamba looked at his watch.  It was four o’clock in the afternoon.  The road was really rough. There was music playing from the driver’s old phone. The conductor was hanging outside the door. It made the van creak and sway.  Everyone was swaying to the motion of the old van.

The van finally stopped and they alighted near a big old tree. The driver honked his horn once and drove off.  Kayamba looked at his watch.  It was five o’clock.  Kayamba was no longer excited.  He was very tired.

Beside the old big tree, there was an old motorcycle. An old man came from his house in the bush when he heard the old van honk its horn. Kayamba’s father and the old man exchanged greetings and talked for some time.  Meanwhile, Kayamba’s mother made him and his sibkiing to put on their heavy sweaters. It was getting cold.

Finally, they all got on the old motorcycle with the old man. Kayamba’s mum sat behind the old man while his father was last.  Kayamba sat on the petrol tank near the handle bars holding a bag. One sibling sat between his mother and the old man while another sat between their father and mother. His father carried another bag on his back.

They rode off as Kayamba looked at his watch. It was half past five in the afternoon.  The old motorcycle had no gauges, no headlight and it sounded like a posho mill. They rode off into a small path in the bush and went up a hill.

It was already dark when they saw their destination at a distance.  Kayamba could not tell what type of house it was.  All he could see was light from a lamp through the open door. They finally got off the motorcycle and began walking. Kayamba looked at his watch.  It was half past six o’clock in the evening.

They walked for some time before they got into their grandparents compound. They were welcomed by their grandparents.  Kayamba and his siblings could not enjoy anything since they fell on the sofa sets and slept. Kayamba only remembered looking at his watch before he slept. It was seven o’clock at night.

 

Misuse of religious images to advance political discourse

John Mbiti philosophized that Africans are notoriously religious. Official statistics say Kenya is 84% Christians, about 9% Muslim and the remainder are Hindu, Buddhist, African Indigenous Religions, animists and atheists.  As such, religion is a major socialization factor in Kenya. Our social, economic and political lives are replete with influences from our religious backgrounds.  Yet, religion has failed in socializing Kenyans with values of brotherhood, peace, love, and unity.

In politics, Christian religious overtones have been used to advance the political party's agenda.  Since retired President Moi’s studious attempt to cultivate an image of a God-fearing leader, Kenyan political activities have employed the use of Christian songs and biblical narratives to persuade the common folk.

President Moi’s (retired) sunset years were punctuated by Christian songs turned political protest chants. President Kibaki maintained a dignified aloofness giving the impression of religion as irrational. His rival, Raila Odinga electrified the masses using the narrative of Moses and the Promised Land to drive his second liberation agenda.

In 2013, the UhuRuto duo charmed Christians using prayer rallies as political campaign tools creating an impression of divine approval. That image run through President Uhuru Kenyatta’s first term as Christian leaders enthusiastically latched onto this narrative.  Political leaders have become quasi-spiritual leaders firmly exploiting the bible as a Machiavellian tool.

In 2017, Raila Odinga’s political style upgraded his Mosaic narrative to Joshua and the conquest of Canaan.  He launched his presidential campaign with a prayer at Jerusalem’s Wailing Wall and baptized himself Joshua. As a liberator, Canaan was a powerful symbol for the 3^rd liberation. It was for the taking. That message sunk deep into the psyche of all Kenyans. The conquest of Canaan narrative is now an idiom in Kenyan social life, from serious boardroom talk, bar banter to social media memes. Its power to galvanize his supporters has left a deep imprint and fired hope. His advisors understood the African understanding that is shaped, socialized and educated through stories and narratives. His rival duo was not asleep either. They continued with the charm.  The end result is a political, religious and social divide that has deepened.  Where religion had a unifying value, it is now divisive. Both political formations now control their various Christian factions. These opposing teams do not seem to have any theological advisors who would have helped to present the religious angle realistically. Politicians now recognize the propaganda value of the bible.

A whole generation is emerging in Kenya for whom independence, post-independence, and second liberation politics is historical stuff. These ‘liberation’ ideals don’t mean anything in their new globalized, digital world. But strong, biblical narratives are vehicles of conveying political ideas and ideology. In the next general election, the first millennials will vote. Our geriatric leaders are being disconnected from this new pool of voters.  But use of religious propaganda is able to make cross this divide.

It is true that social, economic, political/ethnic divisions in Kenya have been growing. But the Church was always a powerful and unifying factor in Kenya.  Unfortunately, it has ceded it’s high moral ground and is being co-opted into the partisan political mainstream. Christian leaders have been foolishly caught up in a dazzling display of power and influence and abandoned their social responsibility.  As a result, though they plead for dialogue in Kenya, they cannot bite the hand that fed them. They are partisan mediators.  They are not a third force that can check the polarized politics in Kenya.

The English have a saying; when you send out your chickens in the morning, they will come home to roost. The evening of Kenyan socio-political, religious society is fast approaching.