Good News from First Lutheran

WELCOME EXTENDED 8,508 MILES AWAY 

by Barb Johnson Frank 


When it’s Adult Forum time at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday morning in Lincoln, Nebraska, it’s late-afternoon in Kitui, Kenya, where Shadrack Matuku Musyoka lives.  

8,508 miles away from First Lutheran Church, Mr. Musyoka taps his keypad a few times to join the Adult Forum session. Connie Kisling, host for the church’s Zoom gathering, smiles as she greets Shadrack, a familiar participant, by name. First Lutheran Church members, Kay and Lee Rockwell, had invited Musyoka to attend, certain that the subject would interest him. 

Forum topics vary by the week. Many have offered ideas and information that the guest from Kenya finds applicable at work. Recorded sessions, available on the church website, enable Musyoka to watch later and to include family members or colleagues.  

Musyoka’s relationship with First Lutheran began in 2011 when he met Kay Rockwell, then a volunteer for monitoring and evaluation in a U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farmer-to-Farmer program focused on improving farming practices and scaffolding the health and well-being of persons affected by HIV-AIDS.  

Rockwell noticed early on that the colleagues had much in common, “I am an educator. I like to learn. It’s just part of my nature. I want other people to continue their learning experiences also. We both want to help people live better lives. We’re concerned about social issues that really affect people. Those are some of the places we’ve connected.”  

The pair worked together on a project in Voo, Kenya, designed to provide goats that enable families with children orphaned by HIV-AIDS to build sustainable futures for themselves. Their collaboration grew, as did the humanitarian projects at Voo and Chuluni. The Rockwell family’s visits to Kenya continued. 


Years later, Musyoka enlisted the Rockwells’ help in scheduling appointments when he and other officials from the governor’s office planned a visit to Lincoln. “We started in Lincoln because I had a connection with Kay and Lee. They helped us make appointments at the University of Nebraska and with city, county and state officials. Musyoka notes that their experiences in Lincoln are transforming how these government officials envision the role of citizens in a democracy, the importance of empowering women in business and leadership, fair recruitment and hiring practices, the design of affordable housing units and much more.   

“I can’t quantify everything I picked up in the United States. I find myself in situations when I remember something that I heard or saw and adjust it somewhat. Perhaps I may not have understood the details, so I continue asking questions and do further research. I focus on identifying systemic differences that have limited our growth. This pushes me to understand and to learn more,” he explained. 

Musyoka worships in person at First Lutheran Church when he is in town. When the Musyoka family’s home church in Kenya was closed due to COVID-19 last year the family joined First Lutheran members in worshiping online until services resumed in Kitui. Their relationship with the Rockwells and their experiences at First Lutheran have given Musyoka and his family chances to know practicing Christians in the U.S. He noted, “Many people in Kenya believe that white people could not be Christian because they have money. ‘Why would they worship? Why believe in God? They have everything they need.’ Instead, I see people who are reading the Bible and are passionate about their faith.” 

The Rockwells and the Musyokas describe their relationship as “family.” Time spent together in each other’s homes brought the Rockwells “expanded horizons, new relationships and an understanding of how people live in community.” Musyoka smiles when he recalls his neighbors’ concerns for his family’s well-being before Kay Rockwell stayed in their home for the first time. “Kay stayed with us. She went to church with us. Gradually, it became clear that ‘Ah, white people are normal people like us.’” 

The Rockwell family speaks fondly of time spent in Lincoln with Shadrack, his spouse, Judy, and their son, Charles. Lee explained, “We’ve gotten to know Shadrack and his family as individuals, as people with whom we can talk about our challenges. We feel a part of Shadrack’s family and they are a part of our family.” The Rockwells look forward to Musyoka’s return to Lincoln to begin the University of Nebraska PhD program in Leadership into which he has been accepted, pending financial assistance. 

Musyoka reflected, “God will use someone to create opportunities for a person. God will create a connection that will change that person’s life by making it possible to open a door that might have been shut. I would like to think of my life, my hands, my mind, my ideas, my money as God’s. When I give of myself to someone in need, I am not doing it for myself. That is God’s hand. This is my way of telling God, ‘Thank You,’ for giving me what I have. Wherever I am and as long as I can, I wish as much as possible to lift others.”  

More connections like the ones between Shadrack Matuku Musyoka and First Lutheran Church are very possible thanks to the growing use of technology as a tool to help the congregation live into its Welcoming Statement. As the Musyoka and Rockwell families demonstrate, time and distance need not be barriers to this welcome. In a world that longs for connections and good news, First Lutheran’s members are finding exciting opportunities to grow “family.” 

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