Friday

I titled yesterday’s blog post “Wow” and realized today I may have wasted my title on the wrong day!  Truth be told we felt pretty overwhelmed yesterday and weren’t completely comfortable with the craziness that worked its way into the feeding time.  We made some adjustments today which included closing doors, sitting everybody down, dividing the group into 6 sections and being much more methodical. 

 

God’s favor clearly showed when we were able to look each child in the face as they left the building for the last time today, a candy in one hand and a bag of water in the other.  A few of the tiniest ones were crying when they had to get close to our pale faces, but most tears were resolved with the tiny piece of candy tucked into their hand.

 

From the minute the van turns a corner and comes into their sight, they begin running and yelling and smiling and chasing.  It was bitter sweet knowing this would be our last day with this mass of beautiful ebony skin showcasing amazing smiles.  Joey got right to work with the skit crew to rehearse the resurrection of Jesus.  We pulled together both teams of volunteers and clarified and fortified for the morning ahead.  Jeff was our food runner, driving back and forth with HUGE pots of beans and rice, plates and people to serve.  1000 bags of water...driving on the wrong side of the car on the wrong side of the road with ditches and potholes that were deep and frequent.

 

Morgan told the story, Janet translated and Joey offered a chance to commit their lives to Christ.  Probably about 200 or so raised their hands.  What their commitment was, or understanding is in God’s hands.  We do know they heard the truth of Jesus' saving love, punctuated with drama and music.  We gave the best we could and trust Him with the finishing. 

 

Karen explained the craft, 1000+ blobs of glue on construction paper became a flower as a reminder to stay planted and share what you’ve been given.  Cotton balls they called “sponges” q-tips for petals and a pipe cleaner as a stem were passed out with what can only be considered an aerobic style of activity.

 

Marc’s game activities were a hit again today, though it looked like he took his life in his hands when we thought taking 4 small bottles of bubbles outside and was alone!  Nearly trampled by their grabbing and reaching he came up with some 007 move that to the rest of looked like he was running for his life. 

 

Dann, Micah and Olivia led music together again and to see Micah and Olivia together was priceless for at least one Grandmother in this crew.  The food was served with better efficiency and we excused the masses for the last time.  Many did not leave the premises but continued peering into the windows as we expressed our appreciation to our Ugandan volunteers and to God for bringing us together.  We couldn’t have done it without them.  We prayed for each other, said some goodbyes, packed up, then did some clean up.  We left only to later find out that our Kakira counter parts stayed until 5pm mopping the floor and cleaning up.  Ahhh I wish we had known and stayed to finish that part.

 

A couple of us headed to town to the bank and then to trade a current OB/GYN text book with the hospital administrator in exchange for a letter permitting us to visit the children’s hospital while we are here.  It’s a formality really, but we settled into the office and waited for about 90 minutes all the while being told “He’s coming”.  A rain and then hail storm hit and serenaded our waiting time.  The rest of the group spent the rainstorm back at the hotel, but enjoyed the dramatic change in whether. 

 

Dinner and then a visit to our friends right behind the hotel for a bit.  I think there is an animated game of spoons going on a few floors down from us...a little friendly competition to end the week.  Tomorrow will be a free morning followed by a little sight seeing and floating down the Nile river.  A day of rest before part two of Mission Trip 2014-1...a week with our Chayah kids. 

 

God has been good to us this week.  Gently pushing us out of our comfort zones in the village and then pulling us back into His arms during our morning worship and evening fellowship.  We’re grateful for every face we took in this week and praying they were able to see God in our offering.  He has saved every one of us, given us purpose and allowed us to participate in his plan.  Kakira and the children...what a wonderful blessing to us.  We’re humbled and grateful for every opportunity to love knowing that it is just a shadow of depth of His love.  We’re grateful for your prayers and encouraging comments...until tomorrow.

 

WOW!

Today’s VBS was a blur...a whirlwind of faces some shy, others dominating all were beautiful.  Predictably the kids were waiting at the church and when they saw our bus heading their way they began running, yelling, smiling and followed right next us until we were parked.  The best way to describe it was to say that their response was a lot like what we would see fans of some superstar do.  It made me wonder if it was with that much excitement and joy that the children tried to get to Jesus when the disciples pushed them away.  Did he ever get the response he deserved when he was here on earth?  I don’t know that our fan club realizes how much we love Jesus or how much He loves them, but we are doing our best to show and tell them as best we can. 

 

It was nearly impossible to count them.  I know we gave out every last package of the craft packets and brought 750.  I’m sure some tucked them away in their pockets and then asked for another.  Its just impossible to be completely fair, but I don’t know that it really matters either.  Our youngest team member helped lead the music time with Olivia, the Captain and one from CBC Kakira named Faith.   One tiny one cried until we held him and it was obvious that he was sick with some chest issue.  Another young girl, maybe 9yrs old came with two younger siblings, one was an infant, probably about 3 months old.  It feels wrong to be 9 and have the responsibility of a mother when you are at a Children’s Rally so we scooped that little one up and rocked her for a short time, then laid her on a suitcase of game supplies while her older sister listened to the story and did her craft.

Jump roping and relay races took place today, more dodge ball and a necklace craft with beads was a hit.  Serving that many did not go as smoothly as yesterday and we had to make 3 trips to the “caterer” to pick up food.  Driving to avoid potholes and spill the huge pots of beans made each trip nearly 30 minutes and today we had so many older ones that seemed more rough around the edges...My mama bear threatened to show up a few times when I would see the little ones pushed aside.  It makes me wonder if Jesus ever had use physical strength to control crowds pushing in, pushing others and being unruly.  Did he let the disciples do crowd control or did he speak peace with a word?  I wonder what those moments were like for him.  We were passing out individual bags of cold water and you would have thought it was an Xbox or gold bar with the aggressive response.  Did people see one healing and press in and fight hard to be next? 

 

We talked this morning in our time together about the ones we saw that were so darling, innocent, obedient...the ones easy to love right off.  We also confessed that the really snotty noses, pee on the floor and the rough and tumble type are not nearly as easy to approach and embrace.  I’m so glad Jesus loves us when we were so unlovable and does the cleaning up after the fact and that it is not a prerequisite to access to him.  We are flawed.  As much as we try to see the world like he does...see the heart and not the outside...we still fail.  We prayed for mercy and grace, and thanked God for some healing of physical stuff that is much better.

 

Once VBS was over we tried again to figure out a better plan for serving so many, keeping track of who had been fed, gotten water etc… Tomorrow is our last day in Kakira and the day we will finished the gospel message.  Pray for us that it is real to them.  That they have some understanding and that seeds are planted deeply.  We’ll never know if any of them respond with sincerity, but its not for us to know anyway.  God sees the heart and pursues and never gives up.  We’re giving it our best, including about a gallon of perspiration each day...gladly doing what we were sent into the world to do.  He’s got the whole world in his hands, which includes Kakira, so we’ll leave confident in Him.

 

We headed to Cornerstone for lunch of chapatti (a thick tortilla sort of thing) and banana for lunch.  The split into two groups, one headed out as a prayer team the other going to visit the family we’ve shown you on FB.  A grandmother with 5 boys to raise after their father left and their mother died.  We shared the gospel and the oldest Peter prayed to receive Jesus.  We eyeballed their sizing and took some notes to prepare a package of clothing to send back to them.  This tiny toothless woman widow was so excited to have us as visitors, brought us out of the pouring rain to sit in the only seats, 12 of us all inside a 6 X 6 mud room with a tin roof.  She seemed so grateful, so sincere.  We made two more stops in these outer skirts of the village.  One old woman remembered us from a year ago and told us she was 102.  Its difficult to know for sure for either of us. 

 

The rain drenched dirt road made driving a little trickier and we arrived back at the hotel about 5:30 with very muddy shoes.  Its interesting to me that we can be physically exhausted and yet have hearts that are refreshed and satisfied.  Tomorrow we say goodbye to Kakira, and spend the next week concentrating on Chayah as the family swells to 34 for a week.  We’ve got much planned for them, the ratio will be a little better and we are praying that our time with them is personal relationship building and nurturing.  Names to go with faces and new skills to try together. 

 

Pray us through tomorrow if you can.  We’re expecting just as many kids, perhaps a little less frenzy and plenty of everything for everybody who shows up.  Until then...

 

The A team! Jan 15, 2014

And the crowd just kept growing!

Its Wednesday and 1/2 way through our this teams first week.  We marked the occasion by doing a 180 degree turn from the more personal one-on-one ministry to playing host to about 500.  Its only a guess since the count at the beginning was 280.  Every transition seemed to grow the group and by the end of the day the food consumed and plates used revealed that we served nearly double that number. 

Our amazing team leader organizing volleyball

Andrew and Micah with the littlest ones

Chayah’s children and about 25 others from the village joined to help support us and be able to communicate instructions and help with games and crafts.  From the first song the response was loud and animated.  The story of creation and sin entering the world was told and accompanied by an entertaining skit.  

Garden of Eden: L-R "tree of knowledge" Eve & Adam, the little blonde

 would be the serpent

The group was divided into two and half sent outside with the men for games. Parachutes tossing stuffed animals was a hit with the littlest ones, dodge ball and volleyball kept the bigger ones busy.  Once the inside group finished the craft, we traded inside and outside and started round two of games and crafts. 

John & Karen explaining the craft

007 teaching dodgeball!

Everyone joined together again and sang and danced until the food arrived.  Amazing that a room so over-crowded and feels like an oven, can still be so energetic and singing with so much enthusiasm.

Our team lead the first 4 songs in English and Chayah kids led the last few.

Joey serving on the lunch serving line.

Once again, the group swelled and we ended up short on food. It is possible that some figured out how to eat, then change to another group and eat again, but regardless at least 500 bellies were filled by 1:30pm.  Tomorrow’s food order has been doubled as a result and we expect that more will show up on day two after hearing the rowdy music and games inside the fence. 

We should have been exhausted, hot and hungry and welcomed the comfort of the hotel for the afternoon, but instead the men decided to go attempt to get their supplies for next week’s projects and the rest of the group decided they were not to be left out of any experience so back to town we went, a few minutes on the internet to connect with home, then walking and talking to locals.  It was time to restock our water, buy bibles for a few in the village, some food for a family near by and a couple of souvenirs for loved ones.  Four boda bodas carried 6 of us and 3 cases of water back to the hotel.

After visiting with the family nearby and hiking down to the Nile, we met for a buffet dinner and an early evening.  This gang called “the team” is amazing!  Their heart for people and tireless service is such an encouragement.  Our make up is pretty random, but fits perfectly together. God has done a great thing once again and we are all so grateful.  It’s 8:30pm here and it looks like my head might just hit the pillow before 11pm for a change, assuming the world wide web cooperates tonight.  Thank you for following, for praying and for your comments of encouragement.  Tomorrow...Day 2 of VBS!

                                          More of today in photographs

Graduation and switching gears... Jan 14, 2014

I reread the post from yesterday and have to apologize for the typos.   The internet is so spottyand unpredictable and slow, that there just comes a time when sleep trumps proof reading. 

Tuesday began with enthusiasm and a more comfortable feeling about our second day to go out into the village.  The groups were mixed up and we were sent to other parts of the village but our experiences today were again so rich in a realization that people everywhere just plain ol’ need Jesus.  We needed him to fill us up again and then give us the courage and transparency to speak truth into the lives of complete strangers.  One of the things that sticks out today is the patience of the people listening to stories about us and the gospel message.  The idea that whether or not they responded today, it’s a message that won’t be forgotten.  God will pursue them and show them the truth of his love in perfect time. 

Yesterday I mentioned that one group approached and was able to talk to a witch doctor.  When one of ours asked if we could pray for him he agreed, when we asked if we could lay a hand on him, he said “No”.  His reasoning was that he believed God would take his power away.   It made us wonder why he would serve something so easily conquered by the true God, except that the comparatively large income he takes in by offering darkness and witchcraft has won his loyalty, at least for now.  It also made me want to touch him...my rebellious nature...thankfully God doesn’t need anything but a decision on timing to wipe such a thing right in to oblivion. 

We arrived back at the church building and used the time waiting for lunch to play camera games with the children that seem to always be running in and around the place.  

 We sat and talked with the older of the Chayah children who have come to help us by translating as we visited. 

Janet asked me to drive to pick up the food that had been prepared and what a challenge it was to zig zag avoiding potholes so as to keep the beans and fish stew inside their pots.   We were preparing today for a graduation and the women from the class arrived dressed in their best ready to celebrate.

Last fall as Janet described again to us via skype about the great needs of the mother’s in the village, together we felt a help would be some sort of business class for them, teaching the very basics followed by an opportunity to begin a savings group and some start up capital. The internet and Google gave me several ministries to begin networking with and finally “Fount of Mercy” described exactly what we had been looking for.  Ugandan’s teaching Ugandan’s and willing to travel twice a week to teach 28 women, some completely illiterate.  Today those women came ready to celebrate and thank God and everyone else for the opportunity.  The afternoon was long and we were hot and tired, but there was something so sweet about watching them sing, perform a skit and stand proudly to receive their certificates and have a picture taken. Camera’s flashed from our team members and the Pastor of the church, a few shared what they had learned and a report was presented of what was accomplished in this group.  Women from 20 to 70 were there.  Traditional tribal hooting was heard as the utmost expression of excitement.

We ordered a cake from the hotel here (which means I bet they have a cookie sheet too) and the symbolic cake cutting ended the afternoon in Kakira.  We are so grateful that God has provided this experience for them.  What their success will look like is unknown for now, but they have hope and a God who loves them; a perfect combination to make the future look a bit brighter.

Tomorrow, we will make a big U-turn in the level of activity and the number of new faces we will see.  The three day VBS or the Children’s Rally as its being called, begins at 10am.  We spent the evening preparing 750 craft sets for day 1.  The thought of turning anybody away does not sit well with anyone but the building itself can only contain so many.  Please pray that is all that shows up, we will hardly be able to stand the disappointment. 

The “Actor” among us will train a few of Chayah’s children in the skit for day 1 and the Captain will have his guitar tuned to the voices of children.  Our “Secret Agent” is planning some organized chaos outside with games and the “teenage darling” will begin the first of 3 days of the greatest story ever told.  Yep, we’ll be living the dream!  If God could perhaps turn down the humidity by about 50 percent, we would smell a little better by the end of the day, but we’re gearing up regardless. 

The morning will end with the feeding of the 700, which isn’t even close to 5,000 but will feel like it.  Pray the food stretches just as far as it needs to and that the 30 helpers we have requested to assist us will show up eager to serve along side us. 

Yep, tomorrow will be an adventure!  Stay tuned!

Heat, dust, a message of salvation & a boda boda! Jan 13, 2014

Everyone was up and fresh this morning after a real night’s sleep and we began the day with such a spirit filled time of prayer and worship at the hotel.  As we discussed heading into the village to go out in 4 teams to visit individuals and families to share the saving grace of Jesus, we were very aware of the warfare that would ensue.  We prayed for each other and asked for a special anointing on the men of our team as we have felt a real call to pray for and reach men in the village.  There’s an overwhelming absence of men in the church.   Women talk about their not-yet-saved husbands and the conflict that results.  It makes perfect sense in the spiritual world...men leading families would be targeted by the enemy of our lives keeping families is disorder or worse.   We sensed a real filling of the holy spirit this morning as we headed to Kakira to do what for some was going to be especially challenging.  

Each group of 3 team members was accompanied with at least one interpreter and one church 

member. After several hours we met back at the church and gave reports of what happened in each group.  

There were accounts of openness among those we shared with, several cases of drunkenness, one at least amazing, if not miraculous healing of a woman who was bedridden and a witch doctor that was willing to listen.  In the clinic, one small child, Matthew lay suffering his third day in the ward suffering from Malaria and showing no signs of improvement.  His mother was so clearly worried.  We prayed for the boy and shared the hope of a saving Jesus and she was one of many today who wanted to be saved and prayed for just that.

We found the people of the village to be open, perhaps more so than what we experience at home a desperate need on their part and a fervent time of prayer that God answered with abundance.  Now, that they would continue to seek Him, learn more about how much He loves them and join the family of believers there for support and discipleship.  What we know is that God provided for us to do our small part, telling our own stories and the story of God’s amazing plan for them.

We were served a generous lunch and then sat with church members to hear of their lives, struggles and hopes for ministry in the village. Requests for prayer were shared on both sides, though we were humbled when we considered some of our “needs” and theirs.  We circled around the members of the church to pray for them, then they circled around us for the same.  I can’t really describe the unity we felt, the sameness, the mutual love and presence of God in that time. 

By 3:30 we headed out of the village and stopped in town for an hour or so for a soft drink and perusing of the local shops...though most of us sat at a table talking about what we had seen, experienced and were feeling about the day. 

Chris and our van picked up about 7 of the group to make a quick trip the Chayah’s house to scout out plumbing and building materials that would be needed, take some measurements and very possibly just get some face time with our tribe of amazing little ones. Four of us took Boda Boda’s back to the hotel...there’s something about that experience that says “I just can’t believe  I’m in Africa!”

The evening was spent sorting all of the generosity of people back home.  I wish we could pack in a more organized fashion, but we end up with a smorgasbord in each suitcase in order to equalize the weight, so like a production team moving within a maze of suitcases we sorted and labeled bags of things to go to Chayah, things to go to the babies home, clothing to be given to some in the village, tools and VBS supplies.  24 suitcases unpacked and repacked and two hours later we are all finishing up our day and making a beeline for the pillow in preparation for tomorrow. 

This team is wonderful, energetic, passionate, humble servants.  We are a mixed group with a variety of backgrounds and experiences.  But there was for each of us a point in time with nothing counted for anything except the cross and accepting the sacrifice made there.  Its were every single experience was repurposed to glorify our creator.  None of it our doing, not a shred of worthiness...God’s plan and design and we are grateful.