Harris Family Update

26Jun

- June 2026 -

The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters. He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.
~ Psalm 23:1-3 ~

Allow me to attempt to catch you up on our family's journey. Last month, we were surprised when the US embassy closed down many of its functions due to the Ebola scare, the day before Apiyo’s visitor visa appointment. In our struggle to find a path forward, we learned that we could schedule an appointment with the American Embassy in Kenya, which we secured for the 18th of June. We had to act quickly for fear that Kenya might close its border with Uganda, as happened with Congo, and because the United States declared that non-U.S. citizens who were visiting affected countries may enter the U.S. only after staying at least 21 days in another country. So, we quickly packed our bags and took a 24-hour drive to the big city of Nairobi.

We have now stayed in a high-rise apartment here for nearly 3 weeks. Our children have bunkered down to complete their remaining homeschool before summer break. They love the views and the ice cream. Noelle and I also enjoy being here, although we have been dizzy nearly every day due to the vibrations and sways of the building. Noelle has been focusing on our immigration paperwork while I have been working hard to create more curriculum for the Bible college. Unfortunately, we did not find success at our visa appointment. They did not reject our case, but they told us we could not move forward with Apiyo’s visitor visa until we secure an appointment date for her stateside immigration with USCIS. We applied for the appointment to be expedited when we first arrived in Nairobi, but apparently the system is so backed up that there is even a backlog of expedite requests. Because of that, we reached out to the office of our Senator and have been placed under the comforting care of the Director of Constituent Affairs. We have been left in suspense, but with Ebola-induced displacement, an impending due date, and a special needs applicant, we know our case is strong.

If all goes well, we will have a stateside appointment secured early next week for the month of July; we will acquire a visitor’s visa that will allow us to reach the appointment; and we will fly home with the tickets we purchased for June 28th. This has been an interesting journey, but we trust our Good Shepherd who has provided for all our needs. We didn’t know how we would afford all our travel, the apartment, the extra expenses of staying in a big city, or our $5,000 visa bond, but without making any requests, God is supplying all we need. He has held our family firmly together, allowed us to continue our ministry work full-time remotely, given us opportunities to witness to several people caught up in local cult groups, and even to connect deeply with a wonderful local body of believers.

This month, please join us in prayer:

Recently, a group of thugs stole a gun from the police in the district where our school is located and have been using it to murder and rob people. So far, they have wounded around 10 people, burned vehicles, and have held up many roadside shops. The Ugandan military has gotten involved, but instead of providing help for the vulnerable community, they have turned every citizen into a suspect and are confiscating property, as well as beating and arresting random people. The coach of our football (soccer) ministry was nearly arrested by them for no reason, but he managed to escape. However, his motorcycle was impounded in the process. Please pray that the criminals would be caught and that those sworn to protect the citizens would do so.

Right now we are praising God for the newest addition to our family, and we ask that God will take care of Noelle and the baby during the pregnancy and that He will allow us to reach the United States so she can deliver around our family.

That God will give us favor in the eyes of all the immigration officers at the US Embassy in Kenya, at the airports we will be traveling through, and in the United States Immigration Office in Denver. We will need to be approved by many sets of people to bring Apiyo home to meet all of her extended family.

Our Bible College is currently in session, and we pray that God will strengthen our team and fill them with wisdom and insight to teach His Word with clarity and conviction. We pray that God will deeply impact all of the students through their studies in the Old Testament.

God has provided for our Bible College to begin building more classrooms, and we pray that God will continue providing for the next block of classrooms and the chapel that we are also hoping to build.

May God bless you all for your love, support, and prayers,

In Christ,

Matt & Noelle & Family