More than 800 years of combined missionary service: a SIM Kenya legacy rooted in faith
By Tohru Inoue | Kenya in East Africa
Valuable members of the office staff. Photo by Tohru Inoue
The first night of the SIM Kenya team retreat wasn't filled with the usual icebreaker questions. There was a team trivia night. One of the questions asked, “If you add up all the years of service on our entire SIM Kenya team, how many years would that be?”
Could anyone guess the total? There was surprise from around the room as the answer was announced: 831 years!
That's right, if our humble Kenya team started serving their years back-to-back, we would have an unbroken stream of missionary service stretching all the way back to the 12th century.
This year, we recognised those who had been serving for over 20 years at SIM. A flower was given for every year of service. A bouquet of 27 flowers here, another of 38. It was meaningful and moving for us who were watching. It made us want to aspire to that.
It also made me picture a garden. One where he keeps adding flowers every year.
One day, some of these flowers will retire, some of the flowers will pass away, and we will hand out new flowers to a new generation. A growing bouquet of God’s garden, here in Kenya.
Today, there are 831 flowers. He has planted them across the country. In the humid areas on the coast, in the dry places in the North, in the forest grown areas of the West, in the bustling cities and in the lush villages. And he is adding to them, every year.
When taken as a whole, it is quite beautiful.
Claire and Martha who between them have 50 years of service with SIM.
Pray for:
- For God to keep sending people to places within Kenya where He is least known.
- That God would strengthen each of the people where He has planted them.
- Thanks to God for sustaining the many who have served no matter how many years of service they count.
Related stories
Young women from rural Peru find discipleship and belonging in the city
As rural young women move to Peru’s cities for study or work, they face a world full of pressure, distraction, and isolation. Mission worker Lizzie is walking alongside them; offering friendship, discipleship, and a reminder of their worth in Jesus.
In Carrie’s classroom, Jesus is shaping hearts and minds for his kingdom
When mission workers with young families leave their home country, a major concern is how their children will get on. While the parents are out serving, the kids need stability, education, and spiritual nurturing. That’s where teachers like Carrie come in. Originally from Kansas, Carrie now teaches at a mission school in Liberia, part of Dakar Academy in Senegal, shaping young hearts and minds for God’s kingdom.
Ken & Gwen Baker have spent 40+ years engaged in mission work and adventures with God
Ken and Gwen Baker have retired after 43 years of faithful service with SIM — a life devoted to God, to their teammates, and to equipping others for ministry. They spent decades planting churches in West Africa, fostering intercultural ministry, and shaping mission training that continues to impact workers worldwide. As they step into a new season of life, their story serves as a powerful reminder of how God uses ordinary people, willing to follow his call, to build His church and transform lives.
