How I Was Lead to Uganda

24 June 2010

So, I know a lot of people are reading this, and I thought it would be good to tell you why and how I got to Africa! Although I first felt God call me to be a missionary when I was only fifteen years old, I tried to walk away from that call and build my own future. Last year, this time, I would never have dreamed that I would be here, in Uganda, on a mission trip. At that time, I was in a sorority, which God had me sever from the sorority and move out of the sorority house, so that I could draw near to Him. It was a hard fall semester after that, but God has been growing me in so many ways since then. In the fall, He made it clear, after I prayed, that He wanted my heart to hurt like His does for Africa. So I did some research on the country, and every time I talked about Africa, I would compulsively cry. I don’t like crying in front of people, so that was pretty huge to me. I realized that God wanted me to be a missionary in Africa.

Sometime in the fall semester, my friend, Mike Ryan, invited me to go to a retreat with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, which is the group I am on this mission trip with. I went on the retreat in November, after attending a few of their bible studies (I was, and still am, a faithful member of the Baptist Student Ministries, which is where I met Austin, and a large amount of my current friends). At the retreat, I talked to Jeremiah, one of the staff workers and the “Global Director” of this trip, and told him my testimony and how I felt God was calling me to missions in Africa. It was a totally random conversation, but had we not had it, I am sure I would not be here, in Uganda, right now. The next day at the retreat, he announced the trip to Uganda that would last six weeks. He later told me that he had to hold it in when he spoke so he could make the announcement before their entire fellowship, but that he really felt strongly that I should go.

After probably two months of praying about this trip, and talking it over with my parents, I finally decided to go. To be honest, I wasn’t gung-ho on going from the start. The whopping price tag of $4,200 seemed really overwhelming, especially since I wanted to go to Peru with my church as well, and I had never, ever raised money for a trip before, let alone that much money.

In March, I mailed out support letters to all the family and friends that I could possibly think of. It was a much shorter list than I thought I could compile, but God knew I had asked just the right amount of people. In the first few weeks after sending out the letter, I had reached $1,500. I was amazed. I knew, without a doubt, that God would provide all the money I needed. And He DID! More than that, He showed me how much both sides of my family, as well as Austin’s family, valued me, as they encouraged me and told me that they would be praying for me. Even my friends told me they were praying for me and my trip – I was so blessed. I am still so blessed. God got me to Africa! If that’s not a miracle and a blessing, I don’t know what is. There was a lot of effort put into this, but I know that He has a reason for getting me here, and will keep using me for the next twenty or so days we have left.

So, how does Austin feel about this? Well, let’s backtrack a bit! I met Austin (the “one”) in September. I was in no way looking for a relationship, but I did think he was a handsome, tall, blonde engineer, and I was interested! We got to hang out (who knew he deliberately invited me to Second Baptist’s college stuff?) and get to know each other throughout the fall semester. I didn’t learn that he felt the call to go to Africa and use his Civil Engineering skills to build/dig wells as a missionary, but when I did, I just liked him even more! We went on some dates in December, and we’ve been together since. We know that we are going to end up together, somewhere in Africa (no that’s not official, but you will all know when it is! Hahaha) so this is just a taste for me. When we first started dating, I told him about the trip, but we weren’t sure how serious we were, and in January, June seems pretty far off. The closer this trip and the Peru trip got, the more he realized how much he would miss me, (and likewise, I would miss him) but we both knew that God wanted this for me this summer, so He could mold both of us through this.

It’s a crazy and long story, but I think it’s beautiful. God is working things together in my life for His glory.

Philippians 1:4-6 (NIV)

“In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”

Hangman

22 June 2010

At the school today, I played some Frisbee with the primary school kids. The first time I played with them, it ended well, because it was only a small crowd and no one got hurt, and the kids left their break time to go back to class (they have more than one recess, kids in America should be jealous). The second time they came for their break, right before lunch, the boys started getting aggressive over who got the Frisbee, and hurting little girls, and after two warnings, I walked away. I don’t know if the English was bad or if the little boys didn’t think I was serious, but I was.

Before lunch, a group of Senior 2 girls was let out of class early, so I taught them how to play hangman outside using my journal. It was really good English practice for them, because I noticed they misspelled a few things (“combine” was spelled c-o-m-b-a-i-n) but they enjoyed it, and hopefully learned something. Another group watched, learned, and was playing in one of the rooms as well! Who knew hangman was that fun? It definitely helped build their trust and a relationship, which is a big goal here: build trust and relationships now, so when the groups who come back in the next two summers come, they can do even more things in this community.

After having my fill of posho and beans with avocado (the avocados here are HUGE—easily twice

the size of the Haas avocados in America) I played with some primary school aged kids who did not have a uniform, which probably meant they weren’t in school, because they couldn’t afford it. Even after meeting Sarah, it still blows my mind that their school may cost as little as 36 USD (75,000 UGX) and they can’t afford it. Seeing some of the places they live—the mud huts—it makes more sense, but it is still absolutely heartbreaking.

Since I arrived in Uganda, God has been teaching me to increase my prayer life; to pray hard and expect big results. One cool story from the beginning of this trip that I forgot to mention was an answered prayer the second day of our travel. Stuart didn’t get a standard, yellow immunization form from his clinic, so we didn’t think he would be able to get into the country, and we didn’t find out until we were on our way to Dubai. When we arrived in Entebbe airport, after finally reaching the front of the long visa line, our group paid for our visas, and the man did not check for our immunizations! We still need to get it before we return to the States, but it was amazing that we prayed that day that God would grant us travel mercies and see a way for Stuart to get in. It didn’t seem like a huge deal, but it definitely could have been! Thank you, also, to those of you who prayed for travel mercies for us! God heard you. It was an encouraging start to the trip, and since then, God has been answering prayers left and right, and my prayer life has definitely increased.

2 Chronicles 7:14
“If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”

Healing of Uganda is an awesome prayer to pray. I definitely encourage you to meditate on this verse, and let God teach you something from it!

I love you guys!! Thank you for remembering us in your prayers.

PS – if you read some of the Psalms that David wrote, like Psalm 86, you’ll see that he really cries out to God. When I read it I thought, “when was the last time I cried out to God like that?” How about you?

PPS - Sarah's school has been paid for!

Culture Shock

We have been out of America for 14 days now. I’d say I’m getting used to the culture, but somehow, something new surprises me, often. Yesterday we went to St. Andrew’s Anglican Church for their service, where they welcomed and honored us, because we are teaching at their Secondary School. We sat in the front of the church, but the way it is laid out, everyone could see us. We each introduced ourselves with a 30-second testimony, after all the church officials were introduced to us. They interpreted everything into English, just for us, and sang songs in Lusoga and then translated them into English, again, just for us. As Americans, it was a bit overwhelming, and uncomfortable for some. From a Ugandan perspective, they wanted to make sure we felt a warm welcome and their deep appreciation for getting involved in the community. After all, the aim of this project is to come back for the next two summers. Having learned about the way their culture works, it makes perfect sense that they would welcome us in this way. They take a long time to introduce and do welcomes, even in informal situations, because, as I’ve said before, they like to make sure everyone feels valued. They value people more than time; a valuable lesson for Americans, who are always on-the-go. Afterward we went to one house for a delicious, huge, home-made Ugandan meal, followed by drinks (sodas in bottles, it’s so fun) at another person’s house, and then we headed home, so James could catch his football match.
Today was a tiring day, though it doesn’t seem like I’ve done much. Mike, Walter and I went out with the Hospice, and we did two clinic visits and three home visits, for a total of 11 patients. They were pretty far out from Jinja, where we are, and we got to ride on some tough roads, some of which weren’t even roads! It feels like riding a bull, without being bucked off. Literally. The roads in developing nations, well, the two I’ve been in this summer, are pretty terrible. They have potholes that aren’t usually filled in, and our awesome driver, James, maneuvers like a stunt driver, but often the bumps and rocks are unavoidable. Again today, we saw children wearing clothes that may be their only pair, and encountered patients that had HIV/AIDS, cancer, and other terminal illnesses. Every day on these visits, I try to spend some time in prayer for these people, for their pain, and for their families. We’ve heard that some patients, because of the medicines, will be able to walk, which they couldn’t before, or will otherwise benefit greatly from the medicines.
God has been doing amazing things in my heart… and it may be few days until I can post again, but please keep us in your prayers, that God will continue to work in our lives like this! We still need $8,000, as far as we know, to perform all the things on this trip that we had planned to.

Sangala Sangala

Yesterday was a heck of a day at the high school! We played two games of “netball,” which is like basketball but when you have the ball, you cannot move, so there is some ultimate Frisbee incorporated, too, if you’re familiar with that. After the first game, we had some manzani, which are like fried balls of dough (not quite as sweet as donuts) and tea, and then rested until another game came around. Usually, the girls play netball and the boys play soccer, and the girls really get in to netball. They were pretty competitive, but any time the other team got to their goal, I was down there with my hands up, and prevented most of the shots. When you shoot in netball, you can’t jump, and Ugandans do not usually get to be very tall, so… it wasn’t hard for me, at 5’10 to be good on defense J

(me, talking to the primary kids after lunch, before scouting)

Then we had lunch, which was posho and beans, again. I wonder if they get tired of it, but I know that at the very least they are fed every day, Monday through Friday. I didn’t quite finish mine, which would be very rude in Ugandan culture, but at the school, with this meal, it is acceptable (I learned this because Gladys, our Ugandan host who goes with the team who goes to school, never finishes her posho at the school).

Afterward, we learned what “scouting” is. It’s a game theatre kids would love! You stand in a circle, and one person starts a traditional Ugandan song or one they all know, and then does movements the rest of the group follows. Sometimes the dance moves go with the songs, other times they are ambiguous, but it was always funny when the mzungus did it!! There was one song where I was the one in the circle, but since I don’t know their songs, someone else sang, and I had to dance!! It was so much fun, because they pulled two of the other mzungus in as well, and I know we were entertaining. Afterward I took some pictures with the high school kids and the street kids that had come out to see what was going on.

I loved how the culture radiated through this activity, and how I felt more connected to these kids. The Ugandan culture is very interesting: I knew handshakes were important, but greetings are vital, and long. And I knew they liked to talk, and to give, and are great hosts, because Jeremiah, our leader, informed us of such, but it’s really true, and to a larger extent than I imagined. They value people very much, and I think there is something to gain from that.

"Sangala Sangala, nowukeni yena asangala."

This is a song that means, "when the host is happy, everyone is happy!" This is so true of Ugandan culture, too! They really live this out as hosts to us. They serve in almost everything they do.

Water

This is a picture from the last home visit we did today. This is her home.

I have been here a week, and I am in my first Ugandan power outage. I had to type this on Word before posting. They say that is very common here, and I knew to expect it. I’m glad it is during the day, but there is no telling when I will be able to post this. Five minutes! Here it is! I don’t know if it is a generator or not.

Today was quite the day. I went with the hospice team on two home visits and one Clinic visit, to see a total of four patients. What I was struck with today was when I was on the road, and I noticed all of the Jerry cans. I would start to count, but they seem infinite. I saw a young boy, maybe six or seven, carrying two twenty-pound jugs barefoot up a hill, and my heart hurt for him. I wanted to take them for him. At Passion2010, Living Water came and had a demonstration, where we carried two cans, like him, for an eighth of a mile. It was very hard, and I am much older, and I know he carried it much farther. There is also red dirt everywhere, which means that his water probably got some into his water, and the already contaminated water gets even dirtier.

We abuse water in America. We run it when we don’t need it, and we throw it away instead of drinking it. They need it. It’s so heart-breaking.

More and more, I’ve been feeling a conviction about water; it’s good because that is why Austin is a Civil Engineer, to bring water to people, and because I know that social justice, caring for widows and orphans and the like, please God as an act of our worship. So, I am praying about what God’s will is for Austin and I in the future with water, and observing its purpose in third-world countries.

God has also been working in my heart about the allocation of my resources (time, money) and how to glorify Him with it, which incorporates into the Social Justice idea. Austin sent me a passage from Amos 5 the other day that paired well with the Jon Foreman song (the song is based off of it) and as the song continued to ring through my ears, I asked God what He wanted me to do with this conviction. In America, I used to feel these heart stings. Being here, and seeing the poverty and the need, it increases. And I am here, praying for these people who are hurting, and praying for a way to help them.

Thanks for your continued prayers! God is being so good to us.

Amos 5:21-24

"I hate, I despise your feasts,

and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies.

Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings,

I will not accept them;

and the peace offerings of your fattened animals,

I will not look upon them.

Take away from me the noise of your songs;

to the melody of your harps I will not listen.

But let justice roll down like waters,

and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream."

"I Hate All Your Show" by Jon Foreman

I hate all your show and pretense
The hypocrisy of your praise
The hypocrisy of your festivals
I hate all your show
Away with your noisy worship
Away with your noisy hymns
I stomp on my ears when you're singing 'em
I hate all your show

Instead let there be a flood of justice
An endless procession of righteous living, living
Instead let there be a flood of justice
Instead of a show

Your eyes are closed when you're praying
You sing right along with the band
You shine up your shoes for services
There's blood on your hands
You turned your back on the homeless
And the ones that don't fit in your plan
Quit playing religion games
There's blood on your hands

Instead let there be a flood of justice
An endless procession of righteous living, living
Instead let there be a flood of justice
Instead of a show
I hate all your show

Let's argue this out
If your sins are blood red
Let's argue this out
You'll be one of the clouds
Let's argue this out
Quit fooling around
Give love to the ones who can't love at all
Give hope to the ones who got no hope at all
Stand up for the ones who can't stand at all, all
I hate all your show

What "show" is there in my life? Change me, O God.

Olyotya Mzungu!

You get another Lusoga lesson today! A "mzungu" is the Texas equivalent to "gringo."

On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I go with a few other people on my team to a private school, called St. Andrews Secondary School. There are only about 200 students because it is a new school, and yes, they are high school age. The school system in Uganda works very differently, because the British came in and colonized here (they even drive on the left side!) and now their school system reflects that. They go to Primary School for Forms (grades) 1-7 and have Secondary School Forms 1-4 and 5-6, then University (potentially, for the smart or rich). Sometimes public schools are too far from their village, so they will go to a Church-started private school (like this one) which they would have to pay for, but would offer a better education than the public schools typically would. Therefore, many children (like Sarah) who cannot afford school or cannot get to a school just don't go. We saw many of these children wander through the playground during recess, and you could tell they wished they were in school.

We arrived at the school, and we saw a large field, and two buildings. The kids were already in class because we ran late today (a very Ugandan thing to do). When they got out of the class they were in, the girls came and played "net ball," which is like basketball with ultimate frisbee rules, with Tammy and I. After we wore ourselves out, we ate some Posho, a cheap Ugandan dish that is like grainier, thick grits, and beans. Afterward, the kids taught me and Tammy a song (they think it's funny to hear a mzungu try to say these words) which, I think, we butchered! Hah, but they enjoyed it. We are definitely their entertainment! I took a break outside the classroom afterward because the Posho definitely affected my stomach, and I felt a little nauseated. I talked to one of the teachers about the poverty in Uganda. He said that 40% of Ugandans are what we would call "dirt poor," but he could not understand homelessness. These people have a home, or a hut, or anything they can have. Property is their pride. But, often, they are not about to feed their (usually large) families more than twice a day. Many of these families have low-paying jobs or just live off their land, and there are many self-sustaining farms.

At the end of the class that was after lunch, and before we had to leave for a Ugandan Bible study, (early--their school is from 8am-5pm!) we went into a class that a teacher had not shown up to teach, and learned another song! I wish I remembered it, but I will get Tammy to remind me, and post it on here.

I love you all, and I appreciate your prayers. Every day is a new day, and a blessing from God to be used by Him to make Him known. Keep praying for us, those we interact with (especially Sarah) including the people working at the Hospice and their patients, as well as the students at St. Andrews.

Love you!

Sarah.

Today at the Hospice, they had a "Day Care." It is a day for patients to come, talk about their lives, (including their illnesses) and make crafts. They dance and sing, too! Despite their illnesses, these women were so joyful. It came from the Lord! One woman was brought to the Hospice, and got out of the car, walking. She couldn't walk for months, but because of the medicine the Hospice provides, she walked! The women at the Day Care did their African cheer/shout (hard to describe, but SO cool to hear) and sang an awesome praise to God for her walking. I love hearing them sing! Yesterday, in church, it made my heart so happy, even though I couldn't understand the words, I felt the worship and the joy. These people have so little, but they LOVE so much! During the day care, the women made necklaces, so of course I bought some. :) If you've seen the paper bead necklaces that are made by Ugandan women (some are sold in the states, if you know Abby Tracey, she sold some at Tallowood recently) and they make them during the day care.

Before it started, however, I met Sarah. She is thirteen, has AIDS, and is a patient of the Hospice. You can see the rash on her skin, as it covers her body. She scratches at it often, she got tired at about 1 pm, and she said she sometimes has pains in many different areas. I was intrigued by her, so I asked Sarah many questions today, trying to find out more about her. Her story, like many Ugandans living with AIDS or Cancer, is very dark, and very sad.

Sarah told me that she had two siblings, and that they have both passed away. Her mother is dead, and her father is still alive, working as a mechanic. Sadly for Sarah, he remarried to a woman who thinks Sarah is useless because she has AIDS. Her stepmother might feed her one time a day, and that is all. Sarah also told me that her uncle is involved in witchcraft, a traditional form of sorcery here. He is greedy, she said, and he wants to kill Sarah's father for his land. She said that her brother died at a young age because of her Uncle's witchcraft.

Sarah is only thirteen. She has seen more pain in her life, and will endure more, than I have in my twenty-one years. I wanted to cry, listening to her tell me that she desperately wants to be in school (which is rare to hear from an American child) and that she wants to learn. She can't do basic math. But, her sweet voice and her smile are still signs of hope from a hurting, thirteen-year-old, Ugandan little girl, who loves Jesus Christ, and probably learned about Him from the Hospice. They have a great ministry here! I guess you could say that a thirteen-year-old Ugandan girl stole my heart.

Pray for Sarah! Pray for healing physically and spiritually. Pray that God provides a way for her to go to school.

Pray for our team - we are bonding well, but now my prayer is that we would give of ourselves as much as possible, to really be incorporated into their way of life here. We also still need several thousand dollars of support. Mine was raised, I know many of you all heard, but some members of our team weren't so fortunate. So, please pray for that funding.