Obviously More Important

Obviously haven't been the faithful blogger that I thought I would be. I thought I could "easily" blog a few times a week. Obviously that didn't happen.

I never dreamed it would take me so long to post about my October 2010 trip to Uganda, and now it's August 2011 and I have once again traveled to that country I love so much, and yet so much remains unwritten. I want to tell the stories of the trip in June. I want to tell about what God has been doing.

I want to blog more faithfully, but honestly I'm not going to stress about it. I've realized that my desire to produce and get things done can cause me to lose focus on more important things. Wanting to "just get this done real quick" leads me to produce instead of invest in the people in my life. I start off watching a movie with my brother and end up distracted with painting picture frames. I'm sorry, JR! Or I clip coupons while Skyping with my sister. I'm sorry, Bekah!

I want the people in my life to know that they're more important than stuff, whatever that stuff is. They're more important, because it's just a house....or it's just a picture frame...or it's just money.

My possessions or accomplishments or checklists don't matter. Obviously, the people in my life are more important. If you were to ask me, I'd tell you that without hesitation. But I've been realizing that I have a tendency to not back my words up with actions. I think "I can just do/clean/fix/paint do this real quick and then get back to _____." And maybe I can do something quick and get back to that person or what we're doing. But what does that say about my priorities?

I want to learn to be with the people in my life without worrying about doing. I think that it's going to take some time and it's not going to be an easy fix. I like being busy and I have a hard time sitting still, but I need to fight that tendency, because my family and friends are more important. They're infinitely more important.

Speaking of people in my life, this awesome guy and have been officially dating for 5 months tomorrow -

To celebrate he's taking me to dinner in Wilmington (as long as Hurricane Irene doesn't come sooner than expected). It's things like this that are really important. :-) 

Tomorrow also marks the one-year anniversary of this post - http://allyouwantmetobe.blogspot.com/2010/08/what-if-we-make-it-about-dating.html

So I will be trying to blog more. But if I don't, it's because I'm learning to show with my actions that infinitely more important than most of the things I do are the people I am so blessed to have in my life.

School Day...

I don’t like that it’s taken me this long to write about what God let me experience in Uganda. I think that part of the delay is that I don’t feel like I’ve truly processed it all, but maybe I never will. I know that my time in Uganda has changed me, and I don’t want to go back to the girl that I used to be.

I had gotten to meet Wycliffe, one of Pastor Edward’s older children the day before, but on Tuesday I was going to go the schools, hoping that they would be the schools that his children attended. I was very excited! Pastor Edward and the rest of his family used to all live in Bukaleba, but the mosquitoes were so bad that his family was constantly suffering from malaria, and he moved his family, except for the oldest children, closer to Jinja.

When we got back to Bukaleba on Tuesday morning, I played just a little bit with the children while we waited to go to the schools. Ashley told me that she has since learned that Bukaleba is one of the very poorest and sickest areas of Uganda. Even just the little bit that I saw was heartbreaking.

While we waited, I got to meet Juliet, one of Pastor Edward’s adopted daughters. It was amazing to meet someone I’d been praying for and loving for almost a year!


I went out with Josh, Pastor Edward, Isaac, and maybe a few others to the first school, Bishop Hannington Primary School. While we waited in the headmistress’s office, I saw that there 800 children who attended the school, and according to the calculations on a poster on the wall, they had a budget of $1,200. TOTAL. $1,200. The headmistress had been at a funeral, so we waited a few minutes for her to get back, but when she did we went outside where the teachers had assembled all of the students outside. They looked SO cute in their blue uniforms. We did songs for them, and I gave my testimony about overcoming fear. As I ended, I said “Webale nyo. Katonda Akuwe Omukisa.” Which means, “Thank you very much. God bless you.” I had 800 children in front of me nearly rolling with laughter. I thought I must have said something wrong, and I quickly sat down. I leaned over to ask Pastor Edward what I had said wrong, but he said that they only laughed because it was funny to hear words in their language spoken from a “mzungu.” Josh presented the Gospel and literally hundreds of children got saved! It was awesome!

A friend of mine had generously donated about 2 dozen soccer balls for us to take, and we had enough to give one to each school. I had hidden the ball in my backpack, and after we were done we said that we had gifts. We handed a plastic grocery bag full of paper and other school supplies to the head mistress, and when I pulled out the soccer ball, there was SHRIEKING. They cheered SO loud! Each of them was so grateful for just a simple soccer ball to share with 799 others.



We walked back to the bus with 800 children following us and wanting to touch us.

When we got back on the bus, we ate our lunch while we rode to the next school, which was a secondary school (high school). Pastor Edward told me that it wasn’t the school that his children were at, so I was obviously disappointed but I tried to put that behind me and focus on the students that were there.

Our interpreters went in to talk to the school officials and tell them that we had arrived, but they said that that they didn't know we were coming and the students were on their lunch break, so we could only have 15 minutes when they were ready for us. We waited on the bus for them to be ready, and two girls came up to the bus window that I was sitting next to. They smiled shyly, and I held up my camera and asked them if they wanted me to take a picture. They nodded and giggled when they saw the result. I have yet to meet someone in Uganda who did not like getting their picture taken.

We went inside to talk to the students, which was different from what I had done before. I’d also never been to a secondary school, and I was surprised by how much smaller it was. I don’t know if they didn’t bring all of the students to listen to us, but there were only 30-40 students in the room. Knowing that our time was short, we only did one song, and I gave my testimony again on fear. Again, my “Katonda Akuwe Omukisa” brought squeals of laughter. When Josh presented the Good News, about 20 students accepted Jesus as their Savior! God is so good! One of the girls that I had taken a picture of got saved!

As we were talking, it started pouring outside, so our time got extended. We did some more songs, and just like at the secondary school there was lots of cheering for the soccer balls.

On the way back to the village to meet up with the rest of our team, Pastor Edward told me and Josh that he was going to paint us black with shoe polish so that we would look like true Ugandans. He still tells me that he has “Kiwi” shoe polish waiting for me when I come back in June. :-) I love that sweet, sweet man so dearly.

When we got back to Bukaleba, I got to see Juliet. She said that her brothers and sisters had come to the village on their lunch break to see Pastor Edward and to meet me, but we were not there. I was extremely disappointed. Juliet was with a crowd of smaller children, and she helped me to tell them my name, and they all laughed as I tried to copy her accent and speak to them. I didn’t get to say much, even to her, but it was an unforgettable experience to feel a bond with someone that I barely knew.

At the guest house that night we had a tea party for our interpreters and all of the others who had made our stay so wonderful. It was so nice to be able to see our friends relax and eat and enjoy themselves. We were able to give them little gift bags with hats, t-shirts, soaps, etc. and it was just a very precious night.

I didn’t write anything else in my journal about the trip or the ride home, except a prayer that I wrote out. I might share that later. I think that I was just overwhelmed because it was so hard to leave. Every time I go to Uganda and come home, I feel like I leave pieces of my heart scattered all over the beautiful country.

... Like Heaven

I’m going to be honest…. I’ve been scared to write about this day. It was a day so full of meaning, so full of significance, so full of God’s presence. I am afraid of not doing it justice, but 6 months is long enough to be scared.

On Monday, we got to sleep in and leave for Bukaleba at 9, which really meant 10. When I came down for breakfast, though, there was a little boy at the table. Pastor Mark introduced him as Moses, and I found out that he was from the orphanage, and he had been brought into town that morning for his treatment because he is HIV positive. He was very quiet and reserved, but he opened up more and more as Pastor Mark shared his pancakes and we all gave him lots of attention and love.

While we waited in the yard, we finally saw a monkey!

The pastors in Uganda have become like awesome uncles to me. They watch over me but they’re not afraid to tease me. They are also very aware of the fact that I am 25 and not married. So while we waited, Pastor Edward told me that I needed to pick a date that I was going to be married. He told me, “Just say ‘By this date, I will be married!’” I just laughed and told him that I was trusting God to bring the right man at the right time. Pastor Omar promptly told me to wait and marry his son. All of the pastors who knew him laughed, and then I found out that his son is 7 or 8 years old.

We drove out to Bukaleba, and first we stopped at the site for the secondary school and walked around. It was a beautiful place! Words just don’t do it justice. It’s exciting to think of all of the children that will soon be filing these buildings!

After this, we drove to the Bukaleba guest house and the site for the primary school. From there, we could see a building about a quarter of a mile away and the sound of children laughing. When we heard that it was the orphanage, we asked if we could walk there, and we set off across a small field to get to it.

As we got closer, we heard the sounds of children laughing and playing. All I could think was “this sounds like heaven.”

We didn’t even make it through the doorway before we had kids swarming our legs to give us hugs. I dropped to the floor a few feet in front of the door.

Before I go further, I have to tell a story. Rewind about 5 years, and I was listening to a sermon as I drove home to Boone from Raleigh while I was just here on an internship. The pastor was talking about rhythms in our lives, and he kept using the word “cadence.” I just rewound him saying the word over and over again and I fell in love with it not just as a word, but as a name. I knew God was telling me something, and I feel sure that on that car ride I knew that someday I was going to have a girl and I was going to name her Cadence, and call her Cadie (say it like “Cay-dee”… I’m not really sure how to spell it).

So when I walked through the door of the orphanage, I immediately had a little boy attached to my legs. I sat on the floor and laughed with him, tickled him, and smiled at him. I asked his name, and I almost cried when I heard them say “Cay-dee.”

 

Really, his name is spelled Cade. He is being adopted by a family in the U.S., and they gave him the name Cade. In Uganda, though, they have been pronouncing it “Cay-Dee.” I don’t believe in accidents. It was a beautiful, surreal moment. Of all the children to greet me, it was this one. I know that was God-designed.

My words are truly failing me… I can’t even explain how beautiful that day was.

For the next long while, I played with Cade, Susan, and Johnny on the floor. I just tickled them, smiled at them, and laughed. It didn’t matter that we had just met, that we couldn’t speak the same language… it just mattered that we were there together. We were on the covered patio where they eat and play, and all around the space our team was playing with babies. I looked around and thought that it was the closest to heaven that I’ve ever been.

 

 

The orphanage is by no means fancy. If it was here in the U.S. we would probably turn up our noses at it. But it’s clean, it’s safe, and it gives them a home. Compared to the squalor that we had seen, it was paradise.It was still heartbreaking to know that these children go to bed at night without a mommy and daddy. It's not the way it should be. But God our God is good, and these children are safe. They are fed, clothed, and cared for. They will be able to go to school. They know that God loves them, and in that day we were able to tell them that we love them too.

 

After a while of playing, it was time for the children’s lunch, so we went to the bus to eat our lunch. When they were done eating, they were taken inside for a nap, and we tried to stay out of the way while the “aunties” there tried to settle them down and get them to sleep.

While the children were sleeping, most of the ladies organized the clothes and started getting the children (one by one) woken up and dressed in new clothes. Those precious babies came out looking so cute!

 

They had it down to a science so they didn’t need my help; I wandered outside to where Kelly and Tasha were working on getting information together on each of the children (questions and pictures), and I loved watching them at work. The children were coming outside for these interviews after they were dressed in their new clothes, but the problem was that they were too sleepy while they were trying to talk to them and take pictures!

So I got the best job in the world -- I was the warm-up act. After the children were dressed, they would come to me, and I would play with while Tasha and Kelly were interviewing one, and then they would take the one that I had played with and I would get another sleepyhead.

The first child that I got was James. I just walked around with him and talked to him. He was still very sleepy so I just gently told him what I could in Lugandan - that I loved him and that Jesus loved him. The only thing I could get out of him was “Mmmm….” But as I held him I felt a special bond.

After James, I got to play with Susan, Sharif, and Ivan. By this time, most of the children were awake and it was no longer a one-on-one situation, so we played soccer as a bigger group, then we did some songs, had a story, and then did coloring. After their coloring, they had their snack of porridge.

While the children drank their porridge, I went to ask Tasha and Kelly which of the children didn’t have sponsors. I'd known I was going to start sponsoring a child, but I really wanted to wait until we were there... I'd just felt God telling me to wait. They told me that James didn’t have a sponsor, and I couldn’t remember which one he was at first (we had learned a LOT of names that day, let alone that week!), but I knew as soon as they said his name that I was supposed to sponsor him. I walked back to the children and realized which one James was. I knew that he was the one that God had picked out for me to sponsor.

Pastor Edward’s older children are in school at Bukaleba, and his adopted son Wycliffe came to see us at the orphanage. It was so amazing to finally meet the children that I had heard about and prayed for! He told me that the next day he hoped I would meet the rest of his children, because we would be back in Bukaleba (the village, not the orphanage), and his children were going to come from school to the church to see him and meet me!

The whole afternoon is hazy to me, like it’s a wonderful dream. We played with the children, loved them, smiled and laughed, danced and sang.

 

I got to hold James… I just held him and didn’t want to let go. I had spent a lot of time with Susan, also, but I noticed that she looked sad. Pastor Nelson told me that it was because she was sad I was paying attention to James and not her. I sat down so that I could hold them both, and thanked God over and over that I was in that place in that moment.

 Now, in a day full of awesome, wonderful things, one thing was the most powerful. I was called “Auntie” several times that day, and one of the pastors had told me earlier in the week that I was a mother to many children.

But that day, October 11, 2010, I was called “Mama.”

After I wrote it in my journal, I just wrote “wow.” That’s all I can say now. Wow.

I have babies in Uganda. When I pray, I pray for my children and my babies. Even if God never lets me bring one back to the United States, I know that in my heart I have babies in Uganda.

“I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.” – John 14:18

“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” – James 1:27

Sunday in Uganda

First, I’m sorry it took me so long to write again. I guess it’s hard to think about finishing writing about the trip to Uganda, because then it’s somehow more “over.” Even as I write that it doesn’t really make sense, but that’s the only reason I have, so there you go. So…Sunday…

On Sunday, we split up and went in small groups to different churches. I’d asked on Friday if I could go to Pastor Edward’s church. Last year, I had gone to a different church and his children were disappointed that they didn’t get to meet me, and this year I really wanted to meet them! So when we left at around 10, we all got on the bus, and the first stop was Bukaya Baptist Church, where I got out with Tonja, Tasha, and Josh.

When we got to the church, Pastor Robert was already in the middle of his Sunday school lesson, so we got to listen to him, and then we sang a handful of songs. After that, they took an offering, and then they announced that Sister Helen was going to come forward to bring a word.

To say that I was nervous would be an understatement. I’d been speaking in front of hundreds of kids all week, but this made my knees shake. I had prayed that God would speak through me, because on my own I had nothing to say that could help them. But I knew that God could use me to speak to them. As I had prayed about what to talk about in the days before, I had felt God pressing it on my heart to tell them about what he’s been teaching me – to be strong and courageous. I know it’s absurd. What can I teach them about being strong and courageous? Every day of their lives requires so much of them, and I live a life of comfort and privilege. But I know that God saved me from fears, and I know that He is making me strong and courageous, and if He is doing that for me, I know that He can do that for them. (I’ll share what I shared with them in another post.)

When I was done speaking, we sang several more songs, and then Tasha and Tonja both gave their testimonies, and Josh spoke. I hadn't heard Tonja and Tasha give their testimonies, and it was so amazing to hear from them! It was so great, too, to hear Josh speak since I had been with the kids all week and hadn’t gotten to hear any of our pastors speak!

At one point in the service, Pastor Robert welcomed the visitors. He asked the visitors to stand up, give greetings, and tell whether or not they were saved. The eyes of all of the Americans in the room immediately got bigger. I thought that surely he was joking.

But he wasn’t.

Several visitors stood up, gave greetings, and told where they were from, what had brought them to Bukaya that day, and whether or not they were saved – yes, one lady stood up in front of the whole church and said that she was not yet saved, and sat right back down. I love their honesty!

At another point in the service, a young man at the back of the church started singing a song that said “This is the day of Bukaya… we are going to the next level…” and then it repeated. It was clear, though, that most of the people in the church weren’t familiar with it. I loved his enthusiasm as he encouraged us ALL to sing along with him, but it was hard not to giggle as we sang the same words over and over. We asked Josh to please sing it at Journey – “This is the day of Journey church… we are going to the next level.” We’re still waiting on that one.

I wanted to share the funny parts, but I don’t want to take away from how incredible that morning was. These brothers and sisters across the world are meeting in a classroom, sitting at small, cramped desks on a mud floor, and they are rejoicing in their God. Their enthusiasm in worship is like nothing I have ever seen. When they had an offering, these people who struggle to have enough to even eat gave. They know what it means to worship, to love God, to serve Him, to lose it all and yet gain.

Pastor Godfrey was giving announcements, and he reminded them about fasting. They fast the last week of every month – 5 days straight, and then they have an all-night of prayer on Friday night. I sometimes struggle to pray for more than 10 minutes… and they pray all night. 

People think that we go there to teach, but we learn. They think that we go to give, but we get so much more than we give.

This video says it better than I can -- please click here to watch it. 

After church, I got to meet 5 of Pastor Edward’s children – Gershom, Aaron, and Miriam, (his youngest three children by birth) Lashidi, and Joshua. I hugged Mama Joy and tried to talk to the children, but they weren’t very interested in talking to me. Maybe next time :-)

The bus (with the rest of our team) came to pick us back up, and we all went to the Nile Resort for lunch. It was wonderful to sit and relax and just enjoy being together. I got to play with Joshua, Joseph, and Emma. Pastor Godfrey told me that since I’m good with kids, I need a good husband to give me many children. I said that sounded good as long as that means I can bring some children home from Uganda!

We have to wear closed toed shoes while we’re in the villages because of bugs, but that day I had brought a pair of flip-flops in my backpack so that I could change shoes after church and wear flip-flops at the resort. While we were waiting to go outside to eat, I sat at a bench and started changing my shoes. Sweet Joshua came over to me and said “Oh! You have flip-flops? That’s wonderful! I don’t have flip-flops!” It was like a punch in the gut. The flip-flops I was wearing were $1 at Wal-Mart. My friend in Uganda doesn’t have flip-flops… he has one pair of shoes. I see the children in the village without shoes, but this little boy is my friend. I don’t know what else to say, except that I never want to get to the point where I forget how blessed we are, and what a responsibility we have to help our brothers and sisters.

Dancing with Princesses

On Saturday, October 9th I got to dance with princesses.

It started out as a normal day for us - “hurry up and wait.” I sat with Martha and Pastor Charles and others as we waited. I loved when Kelly pulled Pastor Edward and me aside to get our picture together. We laughed as she snapped pictures, and I haven’t seen them yet but I know that I’m going to love them. It’s amazing the bond that you can have with someone halfway around the world.

On the way back to the second village, we stopped at Pastor Godfrey’s house and picked up his wife, Mama Joy, and three of his sons – Emma, Joshua, and Joseph. You have never met cuter, sweeter boys in your life. I promise. Joshua sat next to me, and I don’t know how we got on the subject, but he said something about how he was very big. “Very fat” were his actual words, and he said “See, I’m almost as big as you.” I asked him if that meant that I was fat, and he said simply “Not very.” Not very. :-) I love their honesty.

Pastor Edward sat on the other side of me, and he let me ask him questions about his life. He told me that he gets $5/week from the church. Five dollars a week. That’s twenty dollars a month. I asked him how much it costs him to take care of his family every month, and he told me that it costs about three hundred dollars. Three hundred versus twenty. It doesn’t take an accountant like to me to figure out that it doesn’t add up. I asked him how he made up the difference. I’ve sent him money since last year, but not enough to make up the difference between three hundred dollars and twenty dollars every month. He said that he buys on credit when he can. He told me, though, that a while back he literally had no food for his family. He went to Pastor Godfrey, who gave him some food so that his family wouldn’t starve. Not so that they could eat what they wanted. They needed food to keep from dying. I pray that they never find themselves in that situation again, but it breaks my heart. I have friends who have faced starvation and have worried about feeding their children. I didn’t know what to say to him, but I held his hand and told him that I was sorry.

When we got to the village, there were a LOT of children waiting for us. The day before, Pastor Edward had told all of the children assembled that they all needed to bring 3 friends with them the next day. When we pulled up on the bus, it definitely looked like they had listened!

Since there were so many kids, we decided to split up the older and younger kids again. Tonja, Mary, and I took the older kids. Tonja told the Jesus story as Pastor Edward interpreted for her, and then I shared the Gospel. I think that at least 15-20 kids got saved! Pastor Edward was excited and made them hold up their hands and said “Look at all of these ones who have prayed!” Webale Jesu! (Thank you, Jesus!) After the stories, we played "friend, friend, go," and then did the hokey pokey – both resulting in lots of loud laughter!

Kelly came up to me before lunch, and told me that there was a little boy named Juma who had joined our group after I had shared the Gospel. His shirt had been in such bad shape that she had given him a new shirt - a bright white shirt. In a sea of children in dirty clothes in disrepair, it was easy to spot him. Pastor Edward came with me and we went to talk to him, and he told us that he was Muslim. Kelly came over, and we talked to him for a few more minutes. I asked if I could pray over him, and he said that it would be all right. I prayed that God would reveal Himself to Juma, and that Juma would know how much God loves him and that Jesus is the only way that he can have a real relationship with God. After I prayed, Kelly gave him her water and told him in beautiful, powerful words that only through Jesus could he not thirst again. The way she spoke gave me chills, and I prayed that Juma understood what she was saying. If Kelly was not already a rockstar in my eyes, she was after that. Juma wasn’t saved that day, as far as I know, but he did stick close to our group the rest of the day. When we sang songs later, he was there and he seemed to be having fun singing with us.

We ate lunch on the bus, and then after lunch I blew bubbles with the kids and we sang a lot of songs. Being the entertainment for about 30 kids was intimidating, but it was a lot of fun. I sang and danced my heart out, and they seemed to have fun. Pastor Edward got them to sing some of their songs as well, and I tried my best to learn them. (I recorded video of this, but I’m having trouble getting the videos off of my memory cards!) Their favorite song was “I like to jump everyday….I like to jump everyday… I like to jump everyday because I know He loves me!” They loved to jump while we sang, and we would do it again with clapping and dancing instead of jumping. I love it too… I still get it stuck in my head and when I do it brings back sweet memories of playing in the Ugandan sun.

After lunch, we went out hut to hut. The day before we had been walking with a woman who told us that demons had been attacking her children in the night, and we had promised to go back to her hut to pray with her. Pastor Edward had told Smooth about this at some point earlier in the day, so I went Smooth and Tasha as we followed this lady to her hut.

As we walked, I held hands with 2 little girls –Amena and Lolini. When we started, they were pretty shy. I had to stick my hand out for Amena to hold, and I had to nod and smile until she finally grabbed it. I found out their names and told them that God loved them, but I seemed to get no response. I kept tried to talk to them, but for the most part they would just giggle and duck their heads. I kept talking though.  In my heart, I could feel the same tugging that I had felt the day before – “Fight for my children.” So as we walked, I prayed for them. I asked each girl if she was saved; Amena buried her head in my skirt, and Lolini shook her head no. I kept praying, asking God to work in their hearts and draw His daughters to Himself with his relentless love.

We probably walked close to 45 minutes, and I was so thankful that we hadn’t tried to go out there the day before...even though she had told us that it was “just over there.” Pastor Edward told us that we were on the road to Kenya and we joked that we must be getting close! Along the way we were joined by another woman who said that demons had killed 5 of her children. They had died in their sleep - smothered by demons. It's hard to even understand something so terrible. I hate to think what I have called "bad" in my life compared to what she has been through. The reality is that for so many people there, they have faced things that we cannot even imagine.

When we arrived at the hut, we sat under a tree as a small crowd of women and children gathered. Smooth told them the Good News about a God who loves them, and I think that about 15 people were saved! It was awesome

After praying with our new sisters in Christ, we went into the hut where the children were being attacked by demons. Smooth prayed over the hut and the children, claiming God’s protection for them and affirming that Satan had no power in that place. It was a powerful experience that I’m not sure I can explain in words. The one thing that I do know is that that I felt peace and the presence of God when we exited, and I did not feel that at all when we went in.

We started to head to the second woman’s house to pray with her family, and I was again walking with Amena and Lolini. By this time, they were obviously more comfortable with me, and they had sought me out to hold my hands as we walked. I told them that God loved them, and I got half-smiles. I kept praying for them, even saying “I am fighting for them. I'm fighting for these two girls, and I will not give up. Save your children.” I knew that God wanted me to give these two girls a lot of attention and prayer.

At the home of the second woman, we entered and prayed for her family. I got to lay hands on the mother and some of her remaining children as Smooth prayed protection for the entire family. Again, the difference in that place between when we entered and when we left was significant. I can’t put it into words except to say that God made his peace felt in that place.

As we left the second hut and started walking down the road back to the village, I was walking between Amena and Lolini when I felt a sense of urgency that I couldn’t ignore any longer.
“Pastor Edward, will you ask my friend why she won’t be saved?”
He looked almost taken aback, but said “Of course! This one?” and he squatted next to Amena as she held my right hand, and for a minute and they exchanged words that I couldn’t understand.
“Oh. She will pray.” He said it very matter of factly, but it made my heart almost burst with joy!
“She will pray to be saved? Now?”
“Yes, she will.”
“And what about Lolini?” I asked and motioned towards the girl clinging to my left hand.
Again there were words that I couldn't understand, and then Pastor Edward straightened up, nodded, and said, “She will pray too.”

So on a dirt road in Uganda, I got to lead two friends to Jesus. I choked up several times in the short prayer as two little girls repeated after me in sweet, sing-songy voices. I will never forget that as long as I live.

At this point in the trip, I had probably gotten to lead more than 50 children in prayers to receive salvation, but there was something extra-special about this. I am humbled that God chose to use me to lead any of His children home to Him, but the way that He worked to save Amena and Lolini was unique. He wouldn’t let me leave them alone. He let me fight for them, and He won.

 (Amena is in the orange dress on the left and Lolini is in the green on the right.)

I get chills remembering the walk back to the village. It wasn’t a walk, it was a dance, a joyful parade. The girls that were walking back to the village weren’t the same girls who had walked out with me. These two girls were now princesses. I told each girl that God loved her, and each turned a face to me full of a smile that radiated. When I told Amena that God loved her, she closed her eyes, sighed, and said "Amena" (meaning "Amen," not her own name). They knew it now. They laughed out loud instead of quietly giggling as we skipped and walked and ran - I would pull them into a run, and then slow them back down into a walk, and then to a skip, alternating quickly to try to make them laugh. If I walked too long, they would look up at me with mischievous smiles, and then start running, trying to pull me with them.

And we sang. I started singing “I like to jump every day” and they joined in with me. When I stopped singing they would start singing on their own, pleading with smiles and pulls on my arms to join in. We jumped when it said to jump, and we reveled in the Father’s love.

I believe with all of my heart that I’ll get to hold hands with Amena and Lolini in heaven. I believe that we will dance and sing and run and skip and jump again. I have no doubt. And honestly, in that moment, it felt like heaven. There were times when all we could see was the dirt road before us (Smooth and Tasha were behind us). I can only imagine what walking streets of gold will be like after walking that sweet dirt road in the sunshine. As the sun shone on us, I knew that God was smiling at us. I know that He was in the middle of the celebrating going on in heaven because two of His daughters came home. Two little girls found a Father in the King of Kings, and had become princesses.

I had left the village holding the hands of two poor little girls, and I danced back into the village holding the hand of a princess in each of mine.

When we got back to the village, there were people milling around. I knew that our bus would be leaving soon, and felt the sense of urgency that I had earlier – Richard. I knew that I needed to find him. I had been praying for him since the day before, and I knew that God wasn’t done with whatever He was going to do in the life of that little boy. I found him, and took him to Pastor Edward. I asked Pastor Edward to talk to him, and to ask him why he wouldn’t be saved. They talked for a few minutes, and then Pastor Edward said “He loves Jesus, but he doesn’t want to get saved today. Not today.” I could tell that Richard was uncomfortable with all of the attention that he was getting, but I asked if I could pray over him and he said that I could. I prayed that God would show Richard how much He loved him, and that Richard would know that he needed to not only love Jesus, but to surrender his life and accept Christ as his savior. Richard didn’t get saved that day, as far as I know. But I believe that he will be saved. I believe that when I walk with Amena and Lolini in heaven, Richard will be there too.

As we drove back to the guest house on the bus, there was a double rainbow in the sky. It was an amazing ending to an amazing day. 

I love that God let us fight for His children that day. I love that He always wins. I love that we are all His children. I love that I got to dance with princesses in Uganda.

1 John 3:1 – “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!”

Katonda Akwagala

On Friday, October 8, we went to a different village, whose name I sadly cannot remember. Since this village was further away, we had all of our interpreters riding out with us, unlike at Lakeside were many met us there instead, including Pastor Edward. As usual, we waited for a while before we left. I got to talk to Pastor Edward while we waited, and he helped me practice my Lugandan. Between last year and the emails and phone calls in between, he taught me several phrases:

Katonda Akuwe Omukisa – God bless you.

Makama Yaybazibwe – Praise the Lord.

Katonda Akwagala – God loves you.

Olimulokole? – Are you born again?

Gwani? – What is your name?

Nze Helen – My name is Helen.

Webale – Thank you.

Nkwagala – I love you.

So as we waited, he helped me with some pronunciation, but he said that my Lugandan was very good! He even gave me a 95, saying that it was worth an “A” and that if I come back next year maybe I will get a 100!

I rode on the back of the bus with Pastor Mark, Pastor Geofrey, and Pastor Joseph on the 2 hour bumpy ride. When we reached this second village, I was surprised by how few children were waiting for us! Of course, more came as the morning went by, but at first there were probably only 15-20.

Before we got started with the kids, though, we went into the church where they had already started worshiping. We were only in there for a few songs, and then those of us working with the children left and asked our interpreters to get the children together. We took them into a small school room next door to the church, and Robyn, Tanja, Mary and I took turns telling the story of Moses. Then, Tanja and I took the older children outside for the Hokey Pokey and Bubbles, while Robyn and Mary kept the younger children inside for a game of “Who’s got the basket?” and bubbles. After games, we told the rest of the Moses story, and I presented the Gospel. I didn’t count them, but I’d guess that about 8-10 kids got saved!

By this time, a lot more kids had come, so we took them outside under a tree where we did songs, coloring, and more songs outside. They loved the songs, especially “I like to jump!” It’s so much fun to watch them become more and more engaged and excited. They were extremely excited to get their coloring books, and they sat and colored for a long time without losing focus. They would hardly look up, except when they realized that you were taking their picture! And if you told one of the children that his or her picture was beautiful, then all of the other children that heard you wanted to show you their picture too! 

 

So remember how I said I didn’t think I should have favorites? Well I had a favorite boy in this village – Richard. Richard sat up front in the school during the story, and listened intently. I was disappointed when he didn’t pray to receive salvation, but I hoped that it was because that he already knew Jesus as his Savior. At one point while we were singing outside, I very clearly felt God impress on my heart “Fight for my children.” Whoa. I wondered what that even meant, and something led me to look at Richard. I was sure that God was talking at least in part about him. I hid it in my heart, not knowing what it meant but sure that God would show me what to do.

After a while, we broke up for lunch, and Pastor Edward, Pastor Geofrey, Tanja, Mary, Robyn, Heidi, Ashley, and I went back in to the school room and ate the lunches that we had packed. Edward told us some funny stories about rats and cockroaches, calling them “uninvited guests,” and it became a joke of his through the rest of the trip.

We had seen them cooking lunch for the village across the road at a couple of huts, and Edward took us over there to see it after lunch. We saw a barrel full of a brownish liquid, and I assumed that it was some kind of broth. When someone asked Edward, though, he said that it was water. The follow-up question was to ask where the water was coming from, and then a little field trip ensued. We walked maybe a quarter to a half mile to what I would call a pond. Pastor Edward told us that this is that village’s water supply. As we walked right up to it, Pastor Edward said “Now you will see how we suffer.” I will never forget his words or what we saw. I have to show a picture because I can’t even describe it.

 

 

This is the water that they drink. This is the water that they bathe their babies in. As we watched, they lowered the bucket into the water, and took drinks. One night at dinner Kelly said, "Now that we know, we're responsible." She was talking about something different, but I think that was the realization that came over those of us who saw the water that day. We know, now. We have no excuse.

We walked back towards the village, where we realized that the rest of our team wasn’t ready to go hut-to-hut yet. There was a large group of children who had been following us and milling around, so we got them singing and dancing, and we ended up putting stamps on their hands. I love those parts of the day – there is no agenda, no rush, no hurry… just kids who want you to spend time with them. It is absolutely wonderful.

When we were ready to go hut to hut, I went with Pastor Edward, Mary, and Tanja. At the first hut, I got to present the Gospel to a man and three women. From what I understood, at least one of the women was already saved; the man prayed to receive Christ as his Savior, but before we prayed, I had Pastor Edward ask if any of the children listening wanted to be saved, and Richard was among them. When he said “No,” I asked Richard if he was saved in Lugandan. He ducked his head, and Pastor Edward said that he was not. He didn’t pray there, but he did follow us to the next hut where he heard the Gospel again, this time from Mary. A lady from the first hut had led us to a hut where there were 3 young women, and Mary got to lead all 3 in a prayer as they surrendered to the Lord! But again Richard did not pray, and I did not see him again that day.

The lady from the first hut led us again, and the third hut, I prayed with a believer who was very young but had three children; she had just come from Kenya and asked us to pray for her to find a way to make money and take care of her children. At the last hut, Pastor Edward ate a big piece of jackfruit, telling us that if we could eat it, we would never want to eat another fruit. Apparently it's that good!

This was the only food that really looked good to me besides what we were fed at the guesthouse. So while Pastor Edward ate his jackfruit, he interpreted for Tanja, who got to lead a woman to Christ! Mary and I spent most of the time quietly playing with this little girl – 

 

Could she be any cuter?

Before we had left that hut, Pastor Timothy rode up on a bicycle to tell us that we needed to hurry because the rain was coming. As we had walked back to the bus, the lady who had been leading us to these other huts had been talking to Pastor Edward; he told me that she was asking him if we could come pray with her at her house because demons had been attacking her children in their sleep. By the time I heard this, we were already at the bus and really had to leave, so we promised to go with her the next day when we came back. God got us safely back to the guest house despite the rain, and we were even early with time to spare before dinner!

Showering before dinner was a nice treat, as was the delicious dinner of chicken, rice, vegetables (green beans and carrots), cream of chicken soup, bread, and watermelon. Godfrey ate dinner with us for the first time, and he shared about the orphanage. When we asked what he wanted us to do there, he said “Love the children. Hold them. Play with them.” Wow. All day? That sounds awesome!

After dinner, I went to ask Pastor Mark if I could go to Pastor Edward’s church (Bukaya) when we split up on Sunday morning. Pastor Godfrey was still standing with him, and he told me that Bukaya is his church too, and that I should preach there. Me??!?!? I said, “If you think I should do it, my knees will shake, but I will let God use me.” I was sure that he had only been kidding that I should preach. He wasn’t. “Then of course you should preach! If your knees shake, then it is all God! My knees shake before I preach!”

So that was how I ended up preaching in a church for the first time that Sunday.

Isaiah 43:19 - "See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland." 

How awesome that we serve a God who is always working in a new ways!