Oct 19, 2012

Friday - Today started with a trip to a clinic in Wakiso.  We were told it was an HIV screening clinic, but it turned out to be a dentist. We just started chatting with different people and praying for those who wanted it.    The funniest incident was when this big lady walked up and Ruby approached her.  She was there with a toothache and was planning to have the tooth pulled.  (Without novacaine I might add)  Ruby offered to pray, and the lady kept insisting that it wouldn't work.  But after some time, she let us pray anyway.  When asked if the pain was gone, she was unwilling to answer, she just kept going on and on about whatever.  Finally we heard the answer.... "you're deceiving me, when you go, the pain will come back."  :)  So she was healed!  She was still not going to acknowledge it, so we left her, but it was pretty funny.  Wonder if she went through with the tooth pulling?

Alex picked me up right after that, so I didn't do any more at the clinic.  I got to go back to Masulita and spend the day with my brother and his family.  :)  When we reached Alex's new house, baby Elijah woke up and I held him.  If you know me at all, you know I don't hold babies normally.  Elijah is 4 months old.  For some reason, I was excited to meet him, more than any other baby I can remember.










Violet prepared a wonderful meal for us, traditional, but better than any other I've had there.  :)  And Alex remembered I like Mirinda Fruity, so he had bought one of those for me, and pineapple!!  What a perfect lunch!!








We wandered around Masulita for a bit, seeing all the growth and construction that is happening.  I was sad that I didn't get to see any of the kids that I met last time.  Some had moved away and others were on a field trip to the city.  I got to say hi to Robina, the pastor's wife who I met last time.  She is such a sweetheart.  Then Alex and I took a long walk out to see the land that has been purchased for his soccer team.  It was a beautiful spot, and Alex shared his dreams with me about what he wants to see happen here.

While I was gone, my team went to a mental hospital.  I think I am kind of glad I didn't go there, the things they saw were very disturbing.  I think something I am learning on this trip is that I'm not meant to do everything.  Situationally, God can equip me to do anything as needed, but in general, not all things are my calling.  I have always been drawn more toward ministry within the church instead of outreach / evangelism toward strangers.  I'm more relationship based I think.  Kids are easy, strangers or not, that is part of my heart for sure.  Maybe I just have more growing to do, but for now, that 's where I'm at.  I appreciated that there was no pressure, only opportunity with this group.  I had the chance to step out and sometimes I took it and sometimes I didn't.  No guilt, no condemnation.

October 18, 2012

Today we started actual ministry time.  Our big team is split into 3 small teams, and I am on Jacob and Juho's team. (Team Ja-ho)  We were sent to God's Mercy Primary / Nursery School today.  I love that kind of thing!  As soon as we showed up, we each had about 4 kids hanging off our arms.  The kids are so hungry for love, they fight each other for the right to hang onto the arm of a mzungu (white person).

Show Mercy - the base where we are staying - hosts interns for 3-4 months, and these girls go regularly to the places we visited.  They are doing amazing things, building relationships at schools, clinics, and in the village.  We got to tag along and join them at their ministries.  At this school, we watched as Sarah led the kids in fun action songs.  We had a blast!  The kids are just so excited to see us.  

Later in the day we headed back to the village.  The local leaders had provided us with a list of some elderly people who were especially needy and we went specifically to those on the list and gave them blankets or mosquito nets.  It was so fun to see the smiles light up the faces of these amazing people.  They've worked so hard, and their bodies are bent over permanently now it seems.  It was a blessing to be able to bless them with something as simple as a blanket.  One lady asked us to pray for her leg.  Later in the day we bumped into her again, now walking, and we asked how it felt and she responded "I'm walking!" Yay Jesus!  

As we walked, kids came out of everywhere to join us.  It's so fun to just gather a crowd of cuties like that.  I saw at one point that one of the interns, Sarah, had gathered the kids and was teaching them to pray for each other.  That was so sweet.  It's not just us that can pray for the sick, everyone can do it!  

Oct 14-16 2012

Travel has been long and hard.  I woke up early Sunday to go out with my 2 best friends before I left.  I was nervous waiting to get in the van for the drive to San Fran airport.  I don't know anyone on this trip.

After my friends left, the team gathered and took communion together and loaded up for the drive. On the drive I began chatting with some of the people in the van and we all just hit it off.  Michael, Judith, Juho, Jacob, Richard, and our leaders, Chris and Stefanie Overstreet.  This was the small crew we started the journey with.  At each airport we added more members until we were a team of 23.

At the airport, we had some trouble getting our boarding passes, they'd somehow gotten voided.  Eventually that was straightened out and we headed in.  Met Sarah, Katrina, and Candy at this airport.  I ate one last cheeseburger at the airport and then we sat around and waited for our 11:00 pm flight.

Landed in Washington DC to a beautiful sunrise.  Added Charlie and Lance to the team.  I got to have a couple Auntie Anne's garlic pretzels here, I love those things!  We loaded up for the 13 hr flight to Ethiopia which was just no fun at all.  I couldn't sleep, there were no good movies to watch...  Landed at Addis Ababa to find a really ghetto airport where I laid on the floor and tried to nap, didn't work. When we started heading down to get on the plane, we passed a lady in a wheelchair being pushed by airport staff.  Chris stopped and asked if he could pray for her, and she ended up walking away from the wheelchair totally healed of her back pain!!  It has begun.

 Finally we loaded up and flew out to Entebbe, which meant I got excited and hyper because I was returning "home."  As I recognized the Ugandan landscape beneath me, I totally had that feeling that I was home.  :)

At the airport we met a few more team members and the Show Mercy staff members who took us to the coaster to drive to the HQ.  Driving down the Entebbe - Kampala road I was amazed at how different it is in just 2 years.  This is their 50 yr jubilee, the celebration of their independence from Britain.  They have been doing major cleanup and also I saw a lot of new buildings.  This is a nation on the rise!

Arrived at the Show Mercy base and were amazed at how nice it is!  They have created a beautiful haven for missionary teams to be able to rest up so that they can go out and serve.  They had an awesome team of intern girls here to help us out and show us the ropes.  We are so blessed to be in this place!  After we settled in a little, we walked a little ways down the road and met some local kids.  It was a short outing, but it felt so good to be back with the Ugandan people that I love so much!!

Back to Uganda

I got to see my Ugandan family!!!  This is Violet and Alex Kalema and their new son Elijah!!  I am so grateful that my team leader allowed me to leave with Alex and go visit Masulita for a day.  We had a wonderful time catching up and sharing our visions again for our future in ministry together.  God is doing great things in this area and I can't wait to get back here and be involved.

Another opportunity?

I have recently relocated to Redding, CA to attend Bethel Church.  As soon as I arrived I saw in the bulletin that they were planning a trip to Uganda in October!  I have felt like God is leading me to go after this one, so I have taken a step of faith and begun asking my friends and family for financial support.  There is not enough time for me to raise the money myself this time, so if God is truly pushing me to go, I am trusting that He will provide the funds.

I am excited about this possibility because it will be with a group that walks in the supernatural Holy Spirit led way.  These people have seen God move in crazy cool ways, and I'd like to learn how to be like that.  I want to receive training to access everything that God has for me in order to better serve the people of Uganda.  This trip would be a hands on crash course in living that way.

Not much happening

Just in case anyone is actually still following this one.... I'm still working towards returning to Uganda on a more permanent basis.  I miss it terribly, but glad I have contact with some of my friends there via Facebook.  Kinda funny to think they have Facebook in Africa, but there are quite a few of them on there.  :)  I'm looking to pay off my debt in the next 2 years, then after that I'll figure out the finance part of living elsewhere.

Financially speaking, I'm having a bit of a rough go.  My back has cost me quite a bit over the last few months.  Chiropractor bills plus limited hours at work = less money available and more debt.  I've picked up a few extra in the last couple weeks, so hopefully I can continue to do that.  But I believe God is in control, and He'll provide for me when it's time to go.  I will just do my best, and He'll make up the rest.  He knows the timing better than I do.

Excited to go see a Ugandan children's choir performing here in Wenatchee next Tues. nite.  yay!  I saw them a couple years ago I think.  It will be great to get to see those kids from the place my heart lives.

Next Phase

While on this trip, God brought me complete healing of some junk I've been dealing with for 13 years.  It is totally amazing what He's done!!  But now, coming home, I realize that it's time for an all new season of my life.  Since God showed me in a lot more detail what I'll be doing in Uganda, now is time for training.  I need to learn some things before I can be effective in my mission.  So, my first assignment of training is a high school youth group.  I have volunteered to be a small group leader at the Free Methodist Church.  Crazy I know.  :)  But I guess if I can handle American teenagers, I can handle anyone.  : P   This isn't my choice of something fun to do, this is where God is sending me next, and I will obey.  Things always work out great when I do that.