When “Never” Becomes Wonder: Pastor Lou’s Journey to Kenya

Dr. Gilbert

Tuesday, March 24

7:00 am

Dr Daniel & Mary Beth Gilbert

“Never once in my life did I ask God for success or wisdom or power or fame. I asked for wonder, and he gave it to me.” — Abraham Joshua Heschel

What begins as a “never” can become a place of wonder when God rewrites the journey.

For years, Pastor Lou said he would never go to Africa.

God had other plans.

Pure Wonder

Pastor Lou recently returned from ministering alongside me (Daniel) in Siaya, Kenya—and the word that keeps surfacing is wonder. Not the casual kind. The kind that rewrites your assumptions and rearranges your heart.

“What makes it even more astonishing,” Lou reflects, “is that years ago I said I would never go to Africa. Yet God delights in turning our ‘nevers’ into the very places where He displays His glory.”

Beyond the Discomfort

Stepping off the plane, the equatorial heat hit like a wall. The climate, the conditions, the long hours under tents in rural Kenya—none of it was comfortable.

But every discomfort was quickly overshadowed by what God allowed Lou to see, feel, and experience.

A Hunger That Humbles

From the very first teaching session, Lou was struck by something he rarely encounters in American churches: hunger.

The pastors and leaders didn’t just listen—they leaned in. They absorbed every word with a passion that humbled him. And their worship? It stopped him in his tracks.

“The worship was primal and pure,” Lou shares. “No fancy instruments, no staged production. Usually no instruments at all—just the human voice lifted to God. And more than once, it moved me to tears.”

This is the same vibrant, wholehearted worship that has marked EmPowered Living’s work in Kenya for years—a stark contrast to the passive worship we often settle for in the West.

Kingdom Synergy

One of the greatest joys of the trip was the unity among the teaching team. Three men—Dr. Daniel Gilbert, Pastor Lou, and Pastor Sam—served together with seamless grace.

No egos.

No competition.

No power struggles.

“Just brothers serving together, submitting to one another—even though one was clearly leading—with a grace that felt like true kingdom ministry,” Lou recalls.

This collaborative approach is central to how Dr. Gilbert leads. Each teacher enhances the others. When one is teaching, the others can raise a hand and add insight—a “power punch” that deepens the moment. The Kenyan leaders notice.

They call it a “corporate anointing” they’ve never seen before.

The Paradigm Shift

On a deeper level, Lou sensed something fundamental shifting among the people we taught.

An inner movement—unseen yet unmistakable—as mindsets moved from one place to another.

We call these “butterfly moments” at EmPowered Living. The moment when legalism gives way to grace. When condemnation is replaced by identity in Christ. When a pastor who has been teaching for decades suddenly sees the Gospel with fresh eyes.

But the shift wasn’t only in the students.

“There was a moment during the trip when I knew with absolute clarity,” Lou shares. “I would return to Africa with Dr. Daniel to teach again.”

Stories That Stay With You

A few individuals approached Lou personally with their testimonies. One man—retired from a significant leadership role in regional education—told him the teaching had changed his life.

“Moments like that stay with you,” Lou says.

A Door Opened

Lou is profoundly grateful to Dr. Daniel for opening the door, trusting the gifting God placed in him, and leading the mission with humility and grace.

“His example made serving in Africa not only significant but unforgettable.”

This is the heart of EmPowered Living: equipping leaders who will go back to their villages, their churches, their communities—and pour into hundreds more. When we invest in a pastor in Siaya, we’re investing in everyone that pastor will ever teach.

Wonder, indeed.