Walking alongside Moses and Pamela

Over eighteen years of ministry in western Kenya, Graham and Sally Jones have served, taught and encouraged countless believers in their largely rural part of the country. Here they tell the story of one couple—Moses and Pamela—whom they have known from their earliest days in Kisumu.

We first met William (in his 60s) and Moses (in his 30s) in 2006. They came from Othoo Church—forty-five minutes outside Kisumu—to the pastors’ fraternal. ‘We want to have an induction service for Moses to become a co-pastor’, said William. ‘He’s done his theological training at Trinity Baptist Church in Nairobi and we believe he is ready.’ We visited the church three times for Graham to teach about church leadership and the church’s responsibilities and, a month later, Moses was appointed as co-pastor with William. The church had eight members.

Theological studies

In 2010, Moses joined a group of ten pastors who were starting the Moore Theological College courses. We thought the studies would help consolidate the Biblical understanding of the Grace Baptist pastors. The college also awards theological certificates, which are now required by the Kenyan government. The results for module one on ‘Introduction to the Bible’ came on Christmas Eve, and eight out of ten failed!

When reflecting on the results, one pastor said, ‘If they lowered the pass mark, lots of us would have passed!’ After further discussion, they admitted that they had not done enough to prepare for the exam and that they did not know their Bibles as well as they thought. Moses and the others agreed to try again. Moses went on to pass the next six exams, and he was awarded a Preliminary Certificate in Theology. He remarked that he had not even completed primary school education, but he now had a theological certificate.

Moses continued part-time for three more years and passed twelve modules in total. These studies have greatly helped Moses to deepen his knowledge of the Scriptures and develop his preaching.

Livelihood

Moses and Pamela have six children. Moses is not paid a salary by the church and he and Pamela are subsistence farmers. The daily struggle to survive is part and parcel of the regular pattern of life for him and his family. To help Moses and his family, a church in the UK agreed to buy Moses and Pamela a cow. It was done through a project that provides a cow and teaches the new owners how to look after it. The milk from the cow can be sold to provide a small income for the family. The cow was named ‘Margaret’ by the children in the UK church. Things progressed well, but then Margaret got sick and died.

A project that had a better outcome was when Moses agreed to let some road contractors dig a big hole in one of his fields because they wanted the murram for the road. They paid him for the murram and left him with a large deep hole which became a pond when it rained. Moses is now in contact with One Acre (a non-governmental organization) and he is growing seedlings for their tree project. The pond enables him to water the saplings regularly and he is paid for each small tree that he grows.

Health

Over the time we have been here, we have helped Moses’ family members with various medical issues. In 2008 Pamela had a swelling on her neck which she was told was a goitre. We paid for her to have a test in Kisumu and she discovered that she had thyroid cancer. The only place this can still be treated in Kenya is in Nairobi, seven hours away. We organized for her to go to the main government hospital there and a charity paid for her treatment. We and the family were grateful to the Lord that the treatment was successful.

On another occasion, we learned that Byval, their daughter, had hearing problems. We found out that it had been going on for several years and although they had tried to get treatment, it had not worked. Sally accompanied them to see a specialist in Kisumu and eventually Byval had one ear operated on. She was due to have surgery on the second ear, but Moses got worn down by the many obstacles to getting health treatment in Kenya. After a protracted period, Byval’s second operation took place and in November 2024, she completed her secondary education, with greatly improved grades.

The church ladies’ meeting

Originally, there were only two women in the church congregation—Veronica and Pamela, the pastors’ wives. To encourage them, Sally agreed to speak each month at a gathering for women. For several years, many friends and neighbours attended the meetings, received good Bible teaching and heard the gospel; but out of these, only two new ladies have joined the church.

Gospel opportunities

Moses has a good reputation in his community and sometimes he visits a local school and takes assemblies. He has also been invited by one of the local politicians to preach at a monthly community meeting. Moses has joined with several other local pastors and churches to lead evangelistic crusades in the market from time to time.

During covid, the Kenya government closed the churches for several months but some of Moses’ neighbours wanted to meet in his garden under a tree. They gathered on Sunday afternoons and Moses preached to them. When the churches were allowed to re-open, the people said, ‘We enjoy your preaching, so in the mornings we will go to our churches, and in the afternoons, we will continue meeting under your tree.’ This afternoon meeting continues, and Graham preaches at it whenever we visit Othoo Church on a Sunday.

Baptisms

In 2010 Samuel, Rachel and their children came to live near the church. They were both baptized in William’s pond. The next baptism did not take place until 2023. Another new couple, Charles and Ann, joined, and Ann was baptized along with Jairus (Moses and Pamela’s third son). This time it was in Moses’ pond. Jairus began to lead church services and preach. In January 2024, two more of Moses and Pamela’s children, Byval and Moffat, were baptized.

The church

Several church members are now housebound—John the deacon after an accident and William and Veronica because of frailty and old age. Moses visits John most Saturdays and runs a service at William and Veronica’s home on Sundays before going to church.

In the eighteen years we have been here, the church in Othoo has remained small. It still has only seven members attending regularly. Being the pastor of a small rural church in western Kenya is very hard work. It continues to be a privilege to walk with Moses and Pamela. May the Lord keep them faithful.