Encouragement defined is to give confidence, support, or hope. A little over three weeks ago my brother, Kyle, was able to come here to visit me and he just left last night and he did exactly that... encourage. Before he came I had several people (actually it was pretty unanimous) advise me that I needed to let him minister to me and not plan and just enjoy the time with him. At first it took me back.... minister to ME? But I'm the big sister, how is that even possible? When he first came it was interesting adjusting to have another person to consider in making plans even just to go out to breakfast, but the more time we spent together, the cooler the talks and the sweeter the time. Considering that he's 18 (7yrs younger than I am), I was kind of not sure about how our talks would go, but then before I knew it the poor kid was the witness of several breakdowns and I honestly talked to him about struggles/concerns/insecurities that I had never told anyone. There was such safety in having family, someone who can now see everything first hand. He actually gave me some sweet counsel and was amazing to have around. He was able to get to know the people who have become so important to me and get a true tasted of Uganda from giraffes to crazy roads in Karamoja, and there are really very few things that he missed out on and when it was all said and done he didn't want to leave.
All today I kept thinking that I heard or saw him out of the corner of my eye. He was so cute last night (there's the big sister for you) as he was in line at the airport and doing so good to turn around and wave goodbye after each step of the check-in process and I'll always remember seeing this long white arm raise above the sea of brown as he waved goodbye one last time. Pretty much everyone I know on the field desires to have their family witness their lives and experience the calling God has placed on them, and I was able to enjoy that blessing. The encouragement he was to me and others... well, words can't express it. It hurts me to think of how he's not here right now but at least I get to see him in just about 4 months. I'm so proud of the man...gulp... he has started to become and I can't wait to see what God has in store for him.
Sunday, August 14, 2011
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Our Karamoja Jaunt
Now, some may have thought that Kyle already had enough adventure with what went down over our safari trip, but au contraire my friends... we still had a little more adventure up our sleeves before the big guy leaves us. Originally we were supposed to go to Karamoja for a pig roast on Thursday (today) but that had to be cancelled so then on the fly we made arrangements to head up there on Tuesday. So we got the car all set late Monday evening and early Tuesday morning we were off on another whirlwind adventure. I had stayed up all late a couple nights before to make a playlist for our 6ish hour journey, but because of issues with speakers and connections, that didn't happen, so we began our long trek without speakers booming... I didn't even know it was possible to have a road trip like that these days.
We made great time getting from Jinja to where the dirt road begins heading into Karamoja, but then the fun began. Seriously within about 20 yards of the tarmac ending we encountered problems and already began sliding and that's when we knew we were in for it. More and more too we were getting texts from the friends we were going to visit telling us that they're getting reports as to just how bad it was. But we decided to keep on going. As drove on, Kyle's heart rate continued to rise and he had to focus on breathing (just kidding... but no seriously), my prayers got a little more fervent, and Ryan just kept enjoying himself. His lightheartedness and optimism definitely helped keep me calm. When we were about to go into a scary spot that involved quite a bit of fish tailing Ryan would yell out some form of a "God help us!" and He definitely did. We didn't get stuck once, except for when we got high centered because of cows not getting out of our way fast enough. Of course, Ryan's jovial attitude was a little dampened when we encountered a river that seemed to be not so terrible and it ended up going over the hood. That was intense to say the least and it definitely got all our hearts racing. We were able though to finally get to our friends by about 1:30 and have some lunch and rehash all our war stories from the drive up.
Our friends at the Orthodox Presbyterian mission were awesome to catch up with and such a huge blessing. Kyle not only got to take in the breathtaking beauty that is Karamoja but he was able to meet some more hard-core missionaries and their kids. We walked through a "river", took pictures, drank some coffee, and had some awesome fellowship. Then on Wednesday we all geared up to come this way because the other families had things to do down country so we all caravanned. Leaving by about 12:30ish we were able to hit the roads and God was so good at how he had allowed the roads to dry up and be exponentially better than they were the day before. We were able to get to the tarmac without incident and were pretty much home free from there.
Last night, I was tired and sore (my collar bone is bruised because of the seat-belt doing its job on Tuesday's roads), and there was more dust in my ears than I really ever thought possible. But really it was an awesome time yet again with a whole new layer of inside jokes and memories. I'm so glad my brother was able to experience this part of Uganda and continue to meet the people and experience the country that has become a part of who I am.
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Signs of the times
I'm hearing all sorts of information coming in from what's happening in the States. Things like debt ceilings, stock market crashes, and more soldiers loosing their lives. I'm here in Uganda daily hearing of prices rising almost 100% (no joke) on staple food items, I hear of people dying of starvation, and drought. You look around the world and it seems like there's no hope. It seems like everything's crumbling around us. This world is like sand passing through ones fingers. Christian, Mayan, Muslim, etc... all lay claim to an end to the world as we know it. And just this year we had "the sky is falling" by one pastor who thought that although God said "no one knows the day or the hour", he was able to figure it out. No matter what your religious beliefs may be, looking around at the condition of the world, our minds should be churning over the concept of the temporary nature of this life. How one day you can have security and the next you have nothing and the very things you spent your life to accumulate are now gone.
As I said, we could look around and allow our fear to almost paralyze us saying that there's nothing we can do. But really, we need to "make the most of every opportunity" while we have the chance, we should be taking these events as wake up calls as to what really should matter in our lives. If you're a Christian, it should motivate you to get off your butt (sorry for the bluntness there) and share your faith with those you care about the most because you really don't know what tomorrow may bring.
I just heard about how the governor of Texas called for a time of prayer and fasting for the nation. I've also heard that there were several people (even Christians) who were not necessarily in support of it. But no matter what your sentiments are with such an event, the fact that he was willing to put his career on the line should get our attention. This world as a whole is lost and dark and very close to the time when every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is the Lord - no matter if it's in worship or fear because they have lived a life rejecting him. We're on our knees now, but what happens tomorrow if things get better? Will we go back to how we used to be? The nation of Israel during the time of the Judges rejected God, got punished, cried out to God, and God sent reprieve and then after time they went back to doing their own thing. Now someone who's a governor can make a huge difference with the exposure his actions can get, you and I may never be able to organize hundreds of thousands of people to earnestly seek God to change our country or our world, but we can change how we live. We can be the ones who live differently, we can be the ones who no matter what the world is saying is ok we live for something more, we can be the ones to show the love, grace, forgiveness, and holiness that this world has become so void of. I hope that the reaction to the situation in the States is not merely a one day/week/month emotional response to suffering, but a true lament over the sin and people committing to truly living to please God above anyone/thing else.
I know hearing of these things has challenged me because so often we complain, but often do we pray. So let's be challenge and let's be a nation/generation that truly, genuinely, and passionately seeks His face.
As I said, we could look around and allow our fear to almost paralyze us saying that there's nothing we can do. But really, we need to "make the most of every opportunity" while we have the chance, we should be taking these events as wake up calls as to what really should matter in our lives. If you're a Christian, it should motivate you to get off your butt (sorry for the bluntness there) and share your faith with those you care about the most because you really don't know what tomorrow may bring.
I just heard about how the governor of Texas called for a time of prayer and fasting for the nation. I've also heard that there were several people (even Christians) who were not necessarily in support of it. But no matter what your sentiments are with such an event, the fact that he was willing to put his career on the line should get our attention. This world as a whole is lost and dark and very close to the time when every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is the Lord - no matter if it's in worship or fear because they have lived a life rejecting him. We're on our knees now, but what happens tomorrow if things get better? Will we go back to how we used to be? The nation of Israel during the time of the Judges rejected God, got punished, cried out to God, and God sent reprieve and then after time they went back to doing their own thing. Now someone who's a governor can make a huge difference with the exposure his actions can get, you and I may never be able to organize hundreds of thousands of people to earnestly seek God to change our country or our world, but we can change how we live. We can be the ones who live differently, we can be the ones who no matter what the world is saying is ok we live for something more, we can be the ones to show the love, grace, forgiveness, and holiness that this world has become so void of. I hope that the reaction to the situation in the States is not merely a one day/week/month emotional response to suffering, but a true lament over the sin and people committing to truly living to please God above anyone/thing else.
I know hearing of these things has challenged me because so often we complain, but often do we pray. So let's be challenge and let's be a nation/generation that truly, genuinely, and passionately seeks His face.
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Do I have to?
One thing about God's Word is that vary rarely do you find caveats when He calls us to do something... REJOICE ALWAYS period, LOVE YOUR ENEMIES period, IN YOUR ANGER DO NOT SIN period, FORGIVE period. There's no room for, "But, you don't understand! They've done/said this, this, and this to me!" or "God didn't mean this when he said those things". But the truth is, God just knows us way too well. He knows that even if He had listed every possible scenario to those commands that we would always try and find some little loop hole. As children of God, we're called to be holy (set apart) as He is holy. That means we're not to be like the world. The world says, "you got a raw deal, go ahead and become bitter", "They said that or did that to you, you have every right to be nasty back to them", "They've hurt you time and time again, just forget them!". That's what the world says, but God calls us to be different...period. In John 14:15 Jesus says, "If you love me, you will obey what I command." So the answer to that question of "do I have to?" no matter what the world may say is a definite yes... even when it's not easy. (I may or may not be learning this lesson right now myself ;) )
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
One wild and crazy month
A couple of months ago, God really opened my eyes to the fact that there are 17 million youth under the age of 15 here in Uganda. From there sprung the plan to do a tour of Uganda and visit our village churches and have day long youth conferences to get the students thinking about the things of God and realizing who Jesus really is. So needless to say, that's happening at the end of this month from August 25th through September 2nd where I'll be heading out with a small team to begin reaching the youth of Uganda one village at a time. In the middle of that, on the 27th, we will also have a day long conference here in Jinja that will cover the book of James. I'm so excited to see what God will do through this endeavor, but I'm also well aware of my flesh, and that's what has me worried.
Whenever a big event comes up and I get stressed, I freak out and basically become a monster to all those closest to me as I'm trying to make everything absolutely perfect. So knowing that, I'm trying to be proactive and put an SOS out there to everyone, that I desperately need your prayers as I gear up for that week. For me personally, that I would just breathe, have grace, be flexible, effectively communicate the ways others can help me, and realize it's all about God and not about me. For the ministry itself, pray that the students will come and lives would be eternally changed (and I'm not taking that part lightly). Also pray for safety on the road, provision for the food (overall it will cost about $1,000), and that I would know who should be a part of the team.
You can look forward to several other posts leading up to that week, so this is just the beginning. I know that God could radically change lives of about 1,000 youth through that week, I just need to not get in the way and just "let go and let God".
Whenever a big event comes up and I get stressed, I freak out and basically become a monster to all those closest to me as I'm trying to make everything absolutely perfect. So knowing that, I'm trying to be proactive and put an SOS out there to everyone, that I desperately need your prayers as I gear up for that week. For me personally, that I would just breathe, have grace, be flexible, effectively communicate the ways others can help me, and realize it's all about God and not about me. For the ministry itself, pray that the students will come and lives would be eternally changed (and I'm not taking that part lightly). Also pray for safety on the road, provision for the food (overall it will cost about $1,000), and that I would know who should be a part of the team.
You can look forward to several other posts leading up to that week, so this is just the beginning. I know that God could radically change lives of about 1,000 youth through that week, I just need to not get in the way and just "let go and let God".
Friday, July 29, 2011
Be careful what you wish for
In my life, I take very few risks.... all with the heading of "I'll get hurt if I do that". The problem with that is, is that I still enjoy adventures... experiencing new things, making new memories and inside jokes. Well, yesterday (wow, I can't believe it was just yesterday) Ryan, Kyle, and I set out at 4am to embark on a short adventure of taking Kyle to a game park for a safari. Little did we know just how much of an adventure it was going to be.
Normally, I'm meticulous in my planning - color coded schedules, check-lists, etc... but this time, I decided to just be more or less go with the flow. I had called a few days ago to try and find a place for us to stay and found that because it is peak season everything is booked, so we decided to bring a tent and camp. Well, we made excellent time getting to the game park and after a couple of tense moments with the baboons on the road we reached our campground only to find the booking had never been properly communicated. But they still had a place for us to set up our tent so we decided to tackle that endeavor... only there was one little problem: as we unpacked the tent we found that one key thing was missing - the poles. Being the avid camper that I am (not!), I didn't think to really unpack it and see how it all worked before-hand. So needless to say we were battling panic, frustration, and laughter over this. Ryan used his experience with tents and just being a handy guy to have around, got the one piece of string out of his car and had Kyle get vines and they made it where it turned out to be a glorified mosquito net, but it worked and looked fine to sleep in. (it's ok to laugh, i still do when I see the picture).
Well after that fun thing, we call to see if we could get some seats on the big boat that gives you a tour all the way to the water fall, but yet again, because it is peak season, they were totally booked - unless we wanted to spend $140 and rent a little private boat to do so. So that was a bummer, but when we finally ended up going back to the campsite we got some good news, two more "legit" tents opened up and we could take them if we wanted - God is seriously so good! Of course, my excitement for this was only heightened by the fact that when I was by our old tent, a rather large baboon came out of the bush and walked about 2 inches away from our tent.
With the tent situation settled, it was time for the game drive. It was awesome! We were able to see so many giraffes, elephants from a distance, and even two young male lions. All of which while the sun was beginning to set. It was really cool, and our guide was not half bad either. So that in and of itself made the trip a success.
After having dinner and all wanting to pass out. We went to our tents, and then as I was about to fall asleep, Kyle sees a snake in our tent. It was about 10ish inches long and purple. I call out to Ryan (who is in the other tent) "Ryan, what type of snake is purple?", his response, "Oh, Egyptian Cobras". I proceded to maybe possibly freak out a little bit. Kyle got the nerve to use his shoe to smash it and it didn't work, so he ended up pinning it and cutting off his head (I was going to post pictures, but decided to keep this post PG.
We made it through the night, checked out the falls, and then began our trek back to Jinja (we were pretty ready to be done with the place by then). Then we were heading home and passed a sign "Misindi Council Wishes You a Safe Journey" - we thought, "that's funny, that sign is double sided and seems to be positioned backwards". We should have listened to that caution, because before we knew it we had gone the wrong way for about 20 minutes. Going back the right way, we hit the town, had some breakfast, and then again began going back home. That's when the back right tire decided to blow (oh, and it was raining and cold). So we (well more Ryan with the help of Kyle - I was there to gather rocks to put behind the tires), fixed the tire and finally made it back to Jinja.
When you total it all up, it was about 20 hours that we were in the car. We made it through countless songs on the iPod, and laughed a lot. We definitely had ourselves an adventure that's for sure... and once again let me just say "Be careful what you wish for".
Normally, I'm meticulous in my planning - color coded schedules, check-lists, etc... but this time, I decided to just be more or less go with the flow. I had called a few days ago to try and find a place for us to stay and found that because it is peak season everything is booked, so we decided to bring a tent and camp. Well, we made excellent time getting to the game park and after a couple of tense moments with the baboons on the road we reached our campground only to find the booking had never been properly communicated. But they still had a place for us to set up our tent so we decided to tackle that endeavor... only there was one little problem: as we unpacked the tent we found that one key thing was missing - the poles. Being the avid camper that I am (not!), I didn't think to really unpack it and see how it all worked before-hand. So needless to say we were battling panic, frustration, and laughter over this. Ryan used his experience with tents and just being a handy guy to have around, got the one piece of string out of his car and had Kyle get vines and they made it where it turned out to be a glorified mosquito net, but it worked and looked fine to sleep in. (it's ok to laugh, i still do when I see the picture).
Well after that fun thing, we call to see if we could get some seats on the big boat that gives you a tour all the way to the water fall, but yet again, because it is peak season, they were totally booked - unless we wanted to spend $140 and rent a little private boat to do so. So that was a bummer, but when we finally ended up going back to the campsite we got some good news, two more "legit" tents opened up and we could take them if we wanted - God is seriously so good! Of course, my excitement for this was only heightened by the fact that when I was by our old tent, a rather large baboon came out of the bush and walked about 2 inches away from our tent.
With the tent situation settled, it was time for the game drive. It was awesome! We were able to see so many giraffes, elephants from a distance, and even two young male lions. All of which while the sun was beginning to set. It was really cool, and our guide was not half bad either. So that in and of itself made the trip a success.
After having dinner and all wanting to pass out. We went to our tents, and then as I was about to fall asleep, Kyle sees a snake in our tent. It was about 10ish inches long and purple. I call out to Ryan (who is in the other tent) "Ryan, what type of snake is purple?", his response, "Oh, Egyptian Cobras". I proceded to maybe possibly freak out a little bit. Kyle got the nerve to use his shoe to smash it and it didn't work, so he ended up pinning it and cutting off his head (I was going to post pictures, but decided to keep this post PG.
We made it through the night, checked out the falls, and then began our trek back to Jinja (we were pretty ready to be done with the place by then). Then we were heading home and passed a sign "Misindi Council Wishes You a Safe Journey" - we thought, "that's funny, that sign is double sided and seems to be positioned backwards". We should have listened to that caution, because before we knew it we had gone the wrong way for about 20 minutes. Going back the right way, we hit the town, had some breakfast, and then again began going back home. That's when the back right tire decided to blow (oh, and it was raining and cold). So we (well more Ryan with the help of Kyle - I was there to gather rocks to put behind the tires), fixed the tire and finally made it back to Jinja.
When you total it all up, it was about 20 hours that we were in the car. We made it through countless songs on the iPod, and laughed a lot. We definitely had ourselves an adventure that's for sure... and once again let me just say "Be careful what you wish for".
A taste of home
Well, just over a week ago, I got a very awesome "care package" from home. It was my 18 year old brother, Kyle. For so long I've been wanting him, or just someone from home to come and see my new home and the life I have here and the people who have become my second family. He's had a whirlwind of a time so far, meeting more people than he can keep track of, going to my school ministry, tagging along with the prison ministry, and just getting into the flow of life here. We can look forward to two more weeks of him getting to know the people even more and see the ministry and the country in some very real ways. He's even had to deal with the death of a baby who was from an orphanage where the owners, volunteers, and kids are a very large part of our church body. He's gotten to see the beauty of this amazing country as well as witness the personal struggles those of us on the field deal with. It will be interesting to see what all God shows him and uses him for over the rest of this visit. It's definitely too cool getting to have someone I love so much experience what has become my life.
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