Jane Oballa

My name is Jane Oballa and I am 22 years old. I am born again and attend Peace Makers Fellowship International in Nakuru under Pastor Paul.

My parents are very poor and we were brought up in real poverty. We are 6 in our family, 3 boys and 3 girls. My mother was a stone dresser and my father was a fisherman in Lake Naivasha before the recent post election violence that displaced my family in different directions.

While in Naivasha
I attended a Catholic secondary school in Naivasha and due to the poverty state in my family I got a sponsor from the Catholic Church and paid for my high school fees.

Despite the poverty my parents were devoted Christians and help start Peace Makers Fellowship in Naivasha. Despite that Pastor Paul use to visit Naivasha P.M.F Churches I took no notice of salvation. I thought that once my parents are saved automatically I am also saved.

I used to see many “Challenge Papers” in our house and Pastor Paul would give them out with other volunteers in town, but I thought it was just an ordinary paper.

Ethinical Violence in Naivasha
It was on a Sunday morning, I had dressed up to go to church. Then all of a sudden hell broke loose. Outload sect — Mungiki started burning luo’s houses and killing luo’s it was mayhem a lot of people running helter skelter everywhere. A good Samaritan took us to the police station where we took refuge — little did I know that me and my family were IDP’s (Internally Displaced Persons).

Our house was burnt down we lost everything and I mean everything, except the Bible and a copy of Challenge that was inserted in the bible. That evening a report came that my mother was killed by the outload sect. I was motherless. My problem started there. My father is an old man, no food, no clothing, no nothing except for the clothes I had on my body.

After one week stay at the police station I had to trace Pastor Paul on his mobile phone, guess what I found his cell phone in the Challenge paper, only to realize that Pastor Paul and his family were also IDP in Usigu village near Kisumu but I narrated my situation to him over the phone. He organized for a lorry all the way from Kisumu to Naivasha and we were taken to Nyakatch our uncentral land. Paul had parked several Challenge Papers in this lorry and instructed the driver to give at every road block for his safety. It is this Challenge paper that I got a copy and read it carefully this time. The paper blessed me:- there was an article on pg 3 Peace Within - of Kenyan Edition — A DESPERATE NEED FOR DELIVERANCE.

During this journey that lasted 9 hours I felt that the Lord Jesus was close to me. I needed the Lord Jesus in my life. That Sunday morning as I attended Sunday Service at Nyakatch P.M.F — I gave my life to Jesus as Pastor Jared led me to a confession prayer.

After one week my mum’s body arrived for burial. I had now to start hard life without my mum, in a rural setting. Nevertheless the Lord was on my side. A week followed and the form IV high school results were released by the government. I had passed and was to join University but had no money. My uncle who had given us refuge suggested that I go and work in a bar as a bar-maid as he could no longer feed us.

Now that I knew the Lord I knew whom to call — Pastor Paul. By this time Paul had gone back to Nakuru. He made arrangement for me to travel to Nakuru, the church bought me clothes and shoes and the church has rented me and my younger brother a room. My brother plays keyboard and I am a singer in the praise team of the PMF — Nakuru as well as, a volunteer in Challenge Paper distribution team.

My Prayer
Please pray that the Lord continue blessing donors for more prints of Challenge Paper and that other people who read the paper may also be blessed as I came to know the Lord through this paper.

Pray for my College fees, I am to do Bachelor of Commerce in the University. I am needed to join in January 2009.

God bless Challenge Paper and the donors.

Yours Sister in Christ,

Sister Jane
PMF Praise Team
Nakuru
August, 2008