Holding hands in order to make a greater impact for the kingdom of God is what Taylor University's partnership with Nairobi Chapel in Kenya is about, said Oscar Muriu, bishop of the Nairobi Chapel.
Muriu visited Taylor’s campus April 7-9 to speak at chapel, guest speak in classes and discuss the various opportunities for Taylor students to partner in the work and ministry of Nairobi Chapel.
While Muriu presently serves as the bishop of the church to care for its pastors and cast vision for its future, he previously served as senior pastor.
Nairobi Chapel originated in Kenya’s colonial days, Muriu said. When the country gained independence, however, expatriates left, and many people moved from Kenya, causing the church's congregation to plummet.
In 1989, the church had only 5 to 10 members, he said, and they needed to decide whether to shut it down or give it away.
The leaders invited the Nairobi Baptist Church to absorb their small congregation; it was their only choice, he said.
How did Muriu get involved?
“I got to be the rookie who was sent to go and take up this church,” he said. “I had just graduated from theological college.”
Muriu was sent as a young 28-year-old with no experience. He didn’t know what he was doing, he said, but God in His grace was beginning a new work.
Muriu took over the church, and suddenly an influx of college students from the nearby University of Nairobi began to attend. Muriu believes his young age at the time was an appeal to these students.
“I suppose they felt, ‘we can relate with him, and he can relate with us,’” he said. “And so they began to attend out of curiosity and such, and the numbers began to creep upwards … In less than 10 years the church grew from the simple 10 people that were there, to a place where there were about three thousand people attending the church every Sunday. It was a nut house.”
It got to the point that they hosted seven services in one weekend, Muriu said.
As the church has expanded, it holds consistent to the motto it started with: “Growing deep to reach wide.”
Over time, Nairobi Chapel has widened its impact through planting hundreds of churches, as well as establishing a church planting school which equips students for eventual church leadership. Additionally, they have approximately 35 missionaries serving in various regions of the world, Muriu said.
While their sphere of influence widens, they also seek to “grow deep” by remaining founded in the Word of God, Muriu said. He compared this idea to a tree.
“The resilient trees dig their roots deep, and they mine nutrients from the ground,” he said. “Their strength is because of the depth of their roots. That’s always been our vision as a church – that our strength as churches would be because we are deeply embedded into the Scriptures and driven by Truth and Scripture. And so our deepest desire is to raise up Christians who are deep disciples..”
Muriu has found this mission to be richly connected to God’s call on his personal life. He has a passion for raising and equipping young leaders to become who God has called them to be and to serve with excellence, he said.
In envisioning Nairobi Chapel’s partnership with Taylor University, he anticipates the powerful impact of young people in Africa and young people at Taylor joining together to make a difference for the Kingdom.
Through this partnership, Taylor students will have various opportunities to study abroad in Kenya and participate in mission trips and internships involving Nairobi Chapel and its ministries. Specific programs are still in the works.
Muriu views this upcoming collaboration as an example of the body of Christ that Paul describes in 1 Corinthians 12.
“Taylor is a part of the body of Christ, and we are a part of the body of Christ,” he said. “We make partnerships so that we are better enabled and strengthened to accomplish the purposes of God, because we depend on one another in a healthy way. That's what we're trying to build with Taylor, that we would have a partnership where it would strengthen Taylor, but it would strengthen us, and it would enable the outcomes of the kingdom that God wants of us as two members of the body of Christ.”
Andy Mburu serves in Nairobi Chapel’s central office, overseeing the church’s missions care. This partnership presents a unique opportunity, he said: an opportunity to see the kingdom of God in all its colors.
He encourages students to take advantage of opportunities to go abroad for the sake of the Gospel, recalling the transformation that took place in his own life when he served as a missionary for two years in Australia.
“Something happens when you go beyond your borders and beyond your comfort zone for the cause of Christ,” Mburu said, “and you step into the unknown where your provision is really from the Lord, because it’s not your space, it’s not your culture … I think that’s something we are looking forward to seeing happen as these young people get on the plane.”
If people are interested in learning about the partnership and various upcoming opportunities with Nairobi Chapel, they can reach out to dan.darko@taylor.edu or visit the Spencer Center for Global Engagement.
For those who are considering these kinds of global opportunities but have reservations, Muriu has one message:
“Take the opportunity, and do it,” he said, “because it will change you, and it will change your understanding of the world that God has created.”
