Muthoka Mutua

Page 2

What was my reward for working so hard? Why a high school that did not appear in the academic radar of the country? Did this not mean doom to my scholarly dream? Why put more financial burden to the family? I admitted that despite being a Sunday school teacher, a choir member at my church, and a dedicated Christian, God must have had a plan for me. But what plan could it be? For four years in this school I did not understand why. And God did not reveal it to me until years later.

I sat for my Ordinary level examinations and again applied to the best schools in the country. Once more, I passed my exams but got accepted to a school to which I had never applied. The school was some 80 miles from home in an arid hot region of the country. A pattern seemed to be forming in my academic pursuits. Working hard, getting the grades, applying to the best schools, then getting accepted to schools that never crossed my mind.

Looking back on the experiences during my last years in school, I have come to realize that during the four years I was there, in addition to academic strength, we had one of the best singing groups in the country. We performed at many Youth For Christ meetings in the Nairobi City Hall and many local churches within the school campus. The Pilgrims, as we called ourselves, had a ripple effect in a lot of Christian Union groups within the region. I was surprised to find out that word had already reached my new school regarding my singing abilities and several people had put together a group and were waiting my arrival.

Unlike my former school, this new place was a Government school and the Principal did not care too much about religious studies although it was not forbidden. All Bibles had been taken from students and stored away. Many of us were looking to revive the Christian Union Club and with God's help this Club was reinstated. Bibles were made available to students. There was challenge standing between the Christian Union and the school Principal. It was how to institute devotional time for the entire school during assembly time. There was no assembly time to speak of as our schedules were tight. When students got up in the morning, they performed morning duties, had breakfast, then went to classes.

I found an opportunity and requested the Principal to provide short assembly time where daily announcements would be made and, at the same time, have a Bible verse read to the students. The Principal agreed with the stipulation that the teacher on duty would be the one responsible for reading the Bible verse. Things were moving right on track until some of the members of the Christian Union opposed the decision stating that "a blind man could not lead a blind man" (Matt 15:14). We settled this argument by concluding that if God allowed Bible to be read to the entire school, then God would find a way of using the scriptures to reach the unsaved. God's wonders were evident because the teachers could neither choose verses to be read nor had time to attend the assembly meetings and the whole program was delegated to the Christian Union committee. Did I have any question as to why God took me to this school? Had I not learned enough to understand that His ways are not my ways and that He moves in mysterious ways to perform His wonders? I did not get a chance to sit for my Advanced Level examination but God gave me an opportunity to pursue my higher education in the United States.