Gospel Revival Centre- Riruta

Pastor Ken Kamau is the senior pastor at Gospel Revival Centre,(Sanctuary Of Glory) Riruta Satelite. Raised in a Christian family, Pastor Ken grew up familiar with the ways of God.

“I was brought up by a single mom, but my extended family was born again, so I grew up going to Sunday school,” Pastor Ken begins.

When he was in standard five, he got filled with the Holy Ghost. But it was when he joined high school, God confirmed his call as a minister.

“In form one and two, my faith was a bit shaken because of the harassment from the older students (monolization). But by the time I was in form three, God restored my fire for him. I was very active in the Christian union. One time, I was given a chance to preach in the Christian Union. Word spread in the school that I was going to preach and almost everyone came! Usually, the Christian union would have only seventy but this time it was full. Even some teachers came. I remember all week I had read my Bible without any revelation. But on the day I was to preach, God gave me Ephesians 4:8 ‘When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts to men’

“That day,” Pastor Ken continues. “God used me and I learned that He is not a respecter of man. When I was done preaching, I made the altar call and three quarters of the school came forward. I began to pray for them. I saw in the spirit a wind of glory over them, then they began falling down. This increased my boldness, so I lay hands on them. That confirmed my calling as a preacher. One teacher who was scheduled for an operation also got healed that day,” Pastor Ken remembers.

After high school, Pastor Ken continued preaching in different schools and going for missions, under Gospel Revival Centre.

“In 1992, we did a crusade at Riruta and three hundred people got saved. So we opened Gospel Revival Church Riruta. The bishop sent three of us to go and do the work there. We began our meetings at a primary school. After some time, one of us left, and the other pastor passed on after four years in a road accident,” Pastor Ken recalls.

Suddenly, Pastor Ken had to run with the vision by himself, but he testifies of God’s faithfulness.

“it was not easy because I had been more of an evangelist while the other did most of the pastoring, but I testify of God’s grace, and I was able to continue with the vision.

“We had been trusting God for our own plot in order to build. Where we were, the landlord had initially doubled the rent, then he tripled it and eventually quadrupled it. But such challenges come to push you to your destiny. God had given me a vision to build a sanctuary. I decided to build a 4,000 sitter sanctuary. God finally gave us our own land in 2002 where our sanctuary now stands. By His grace, God has increased us. We have two thousand members in our three services. We also have a bookshop, and a tv program,” Pastor Ken says.

As a pastor, Pastor Ken has gone through many challenges but one stands out.

“It was in 2006 and I had just come from a pastor’s meeting at a nearby church. We prayed and concluded the meeting. As we were leaving, people were coming in because there was a revival meeting going on that evening. My phone had just rang and I was talking as I walked towards the door. When I got to the door, one of the pastors suddenly pushed me down to the floor. I thought it was a joke – then I spotted the gangsters.

“They had come posing as members coming for the revival meeting. Some even had Bibles! They were pointing guns at us. They had ordered everyone to the floor, including the church members. They took everything from our pockets, including the Kshs 6,500 we had raised at the meeting. As they ransacked me, they also took my car keys. I had just bought a new car and they had spotted it parked outside,” Pastor Ken recalls the dreadful incident.

Before the pastors and the congregation could fathom what had just happened, the gangsters came back.

“They had been unable to start and drive off my car and so they came back demanding for the driver. They picked me and took me to the car. At gun point, one of them ordered me to turn on the ignition. When it started, he took over and reversed so fast, it hit one of the poles supporting a huge water tank. He was also unable to maneuver his way out of the compound, and so he ordered me back on the drivers seat.

“I was very scared all this time, but I was praying in my heart and I knew the Lord would intervene. Again when we got to the main road, he ordered me back to the passenger’s seat. He also gave me a bullet to hold. He told me – if you do not cooperate with us, we will use this bullet to kill you.”

“As the gangster who was driving tried to make his way to Naivasha road, he missed because he was at a very high speed and the car made a very sharp u turn and landed in a ditch. There was such a loud bang. All the glasses and the windscreen shattered into pieces. We were all bleeding. The engine also started smoking, threatening to explode.” Pastor Ken narrates.

Almost immediately, a crowd began gathering.

“But when they saw the gangsters had guns, they fled from the scene. The gangsters also fled. Fortunately, people had already called the police and they soon rounded the scene. They helped me out and I went home. I later learned that the gangsters proceeded to Kawangware where they entered a restaurant and began eating some roasted meat some customers had ordered. When one lady confronted them, they shot her dead. I thank God because I knew he had spared my life,” Pastor Ken says.

That weekend, the church was in intense prayer.

“On Sunday evening, someone called me and told me to turn the news on. The six gangsters had been rounded by the police.”

Pastor Ken looks back with gratitude.

“I know that was an attack from Satan intended to end the call of God upon my life. But God restored me, and restored even the vehicle,” Pastor Ken testifies.
There was also a time four of us rolled with a vehicle 6 times while going to a mission to Butere but God saved us all only the vehicle became a wreckage.
Burning fire conference
G.R.C. Riruta will hold its annual Burning Fire conference from August 9th to 16th. Pastor Ken shares how the conference began.

“I was in a prayer meeting in 2002 when I saw a vision. The church members were on fire but they were not being consumed. God then spoke to me from Exodus 3 and told me to go and begin a major meeting. I called it the burning fire conference.

“When we held the conference, so many people came, the church sanctuary could not accommodate everyone. That was when God revealed to me that He wanted it to be an annual event. It has now become an international meeting with local and outside ministers,” he says.

As Pastor Ken winds us, he encourages all ministers not to give up no matter what challenges they may face.

“If you have been called by God, He will see you through your vision. Write it down and make it plain. It may take long, but if it was empowered by God, it will come to pass. Don’t stop nourishing it through prayer, and work at it. Every call of God will have to be challenged. But don’t give up, if others have made it, you will make it.

“And to the body of Christ, I encourage you to focus on the God of the Bible. Read the Bible so you may know Him well. Pray and work out your salvation with fear and trembling. Do what God has called you to do because in the Kingdom of God, there are no spectators. Don’t faint. Work for God. If you have been dormant, arise and shine, for the night is coming and no man can work.

Pastor Ken is married to Mercy Ken, and they have been blessed with three children – Joshua, Leah and Grace.

“I have a wonderful wife who is a gospel singer and a minister of the word. I encourage ministers to work closely with their family because the first church is the minister’s family. If it is stable, the congregation will be stable,” he says.
God has also blessed us with wonderful leaders,ministers and members.
Pastor Ken’s vision is to build a 15,000 sitter structure.
“Since we have already fulfilled part one of the vision, we are trusting God for more,” he concludes.

About Pastor Ken
Pastor Ken is also the author of the book The Covenant God available in all leading bookstores. Mercy Ken’s three albums are also available.
Contacts: 0722 893 542
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Website: www.grcriruta.org