Coming home- again!

The last few days have flown by and no blog posts have got done. So here it is, the last one I will write in Kampala. I will do one more once we are home to let you know we have reached safely.

On Monday we had our facilities team retreat. A nice time to get to know each other a bit better, learn together, encourage each other and pray together. It was a really great way to begin to wrap up our time here.

Yesterday (I guess I should say it is Wednesday morning here) we tied up a few loose ends and then went out for lunch with four members of the leadership team. We discussed our future plans and how we can continue to be part of the Watoto team going forward. We have some exciting plans and can’t wait to share them with you when we are back.

Last night we packed and settled our hotel bill. That was a bit of an ordeal since we brought US dollars that were too old (they need to be specific years). We had a lot of money in Ugandan shillings so we paid 2.7 million in Ugandan shillings, however many newer US dollars we had and the rest went on our credit card. Just another adventure!

We woke at 4:30 AM to flashing lightning and to the sound of rain pouring down. It is rainy season here so that is not unexpected, but rain makes me very sad here. You see, Kampala is built on several hills (I can’t remember exactly how many) and basically the more well off you are, the higher your home is on a hill. Of course that is not an exact rule, but it is a general premise that we will operate under for this conversation.

What I am trying to tell you is that the slum areas of Kampala are always at the bottom of the hills. All of the rain that falls comes rushing down the hills and ends up in the slum. In 2013, we drove past a slum the morning after a bad rain storm and saw people wading chest deep in water. What about the babies and children, were they washed away? Housing in the slum is usually scrap materials held together to make walls and a roof, well sort of.

When I hear the rain, I start to pray for the people in the slums. People die in the slums because of rain. I’m not talking a hurricane or a tropical storm, just a rain. To make this even more personal, two of Joanna’s kids (my kids), live in the slum with their families. This situation just got real- my children living through that.

So I started crying and praying at 4:30 and I will continue to do that throughout the day. Praying for safety for the people in the slums.

Also we will be saying our “see you later” to everyone here. You may remember from 2013, we don’t say bye, we just say see you later. So it is a rainy day outside and a rainy (teary) day inside.

Blessed, encouraged, humbled...

Some days you just feel like you will burst from all the blessings! Today was another one of those days.

There are a few people that I hadn’t seen yet this trip and I have been stalking them on facebook/calling them on the phone to see when we could get together.

This morning we went to church at Watoto Lubowa (South, for those who know the old names). As we were driving there, I remembered my friend Estella attends there and she is one of the people I have been trying to see. We arrived while the 8 AM service was still going on so I hoped I would see her either leaving the 8:00 service or arriving for the 10:00 service. I was walking along and there her big, beautiful smile was- right in front of me! What a huge gift to see her and spend a little while catching up with her. If you followed the blog in 2013, you will remember Estella from the trips she, Judy and I did to Gulu. By the time we reached Kampala, our vehicle would be so full of fresh fruits and vegetables that I would end up nearly buried in the back seat. Shopping along the Gulu highway is so much fun and the company of those two, made it even better.

That was only the beginning of the blessings of the day.

Watoto Church is always a place that is full of so much energy and thankfulness during their worship time. But today we sang the song “Heirs”. There are a few things you need to know about this song: it is a Watoto original song, it talks about how we are children of God and we are His heirs- people here take that inheritance very seriously, they don’t take it for granted. If you saw the Watoto choir do the “Oh What Love” concert, Heirs is the final song they sing. But today, instead of 25 people on the stage singing, jumping and pumping their arms, there was 1200 people doing that! So incredible to be a part of it.

After church we made our way to Café Java’s to meet one of my very dear friends. Florence is an absolutely amazing woman that is so filled with faith. She has been without a job for more than two years, her husband is stuck in South Sudan- caught in the civil war that is going on. He is safe in the town he is in, but there is no way for him and the others to get out safely. They have lived on so little, yet in every sentence, she speaks of God’s goodness, His provision and how thankful she is. I am so humbled and thankful to be in her presence. One cannot help but be encouraged, just sitting with this incredible woman. Two and a half hours flew by in an instant.

I left there feeling encouraged and thankful, but also somewhat entitled. I have never lived through the things that she has, yet I don’t always feel thankful for the ridiculous abundance that God has given me.

“…from everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.” Luke 12:48b

Time to get on my knees and find out what God is asking of me!

Friends

Finally found a coffee shop with decent internet so I could post this! 

Well, here we are…Saturday afternoon on our last weekend here. It seems that there is still much work to be done and we are working hard to get it done. There is still also visiting that needs to be done and we are keeping busy with that.  What a busy and amazing time it has been.

As I am typing this, Greg is completing another of the campus evaluations, while I sit under the shade of a mango tree and type this to you. Next we are off to see our dear friends Randy and Judy. It is Prossie’s birthday today so we will be celebrating her and Greg while we are visiting there. I will be back later to tell you all about it.

Later…we had an amazing visit with Randy and Judy.

When we arrived, some of Judy’s family members were there. Judy’s sister Darlene and her husband, Dave lived in South Sudan for many years (I’m not sure how many). They had a school there and ministered to many people, staff students, families. I’m sorry, I don’t know enough about their ministry to tell you details about it, but what I want to tell you is that the situation in South Sudan is awful. Most of their ministry staff have fled to Uganda so they were able to connect with some of them on this trip back. Dave and Darlene are currently living in the US. Please pray for South Sudan, things are really bad there.

During our visit, we heard about the incredible work Randy and Judy are doing in northern Uganda. They are working on a farming project there and it is so very interesting to hear about all that is going on. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to the farm on this trip, but next trip we will definitely have to go and check it out!

There are so many opportunities to serve the people of Uganda and to be Jesus to them. Sometimes our focus is WAY too narrow. Randy and Judy are assisting so many Ugandan families while they live out lives of being who God has called them to be. It is always such a joy and an encouragement to sit and talk with them about how God is working. We are so blessed to know this couple.