How far would you go?

I drove 5 hours round trip with my Buremba teamhouse mates for a toasted ham and cheese sandwich today. And it was worth it! Expensive. Wouldn't even put it on my top 5 favorite foods list. Only been in Buremba for one week. But still worth it.

Why?

Because we drove into the Kibale Forest, past the Rwenzori mountains, and through bright green tea fields. We stopped along the road to buy jack fruit, watermelon, some red pepper-looking fruit, and the best pineapple in the world - all for under $3. We looked through my latest Life magazine with the World's Wonders in it and each decided where we most wanted to go. And I flipped through the pages of our Vietnam Lonely Planet to dream about the next big trip.

It was a nice deep breath - a nice day of rest! God is so good. :)

Happy

I walked into our dining area from my office to find a strange young woman sitting at our coffee table eating some fresh pineapple. I'm not alarmed by strangers in my house/office anymore. But it's still weird. I introduced myself and asked for her name.

"Happy" she replied without hesistating.

I was encouraged. She understood my english. We could have a conversation.

I asked why she was in our dining area and she told me that she wanted to know what we were doing in their community. I ushered her into the office and started to explain the water project. As I was telling her about filters and clean water, I glanced up at our new picture. It's a photo of a beautiful young girl catching rain water in Malawo. It includes our mission statement which is about sharing the love of Christ. I stopped talking about water and started talking about Jesus. I told her we were there to share the love of Jesus Christ.

"Are you saved?" she asked.

"Yes" I replied. "I am a follower of Jesus Christ - I love him very much."

"Well I am not saved" she said bluntly. I was surprised. I didn't even ask. I assumed she would say that she was.

So we started talking about Jesus. She explained that she goes to church, but she isn't saved yet. She says that it just isn't her time. I tried to explain to her why she shouldn't wait. But I felt like I was being too persuasive. I didn't want her to simply accept my point of view. I wanted her to accept Christ. So we continued talking about Jesus and loving Him and living our lives for Him. Eventually she said that she wants to be saved. I told her that she can be saved today. But she wasn't quite ready for that yet. So I simply told her that I hoped to see her again tomorrow.

She was Happy. And I am hopeful!

Please pray for her. That God would do a mighty work in her heart. And that He would give me wisdom and a great love for her.

Some friends from the field

A couple weekends ago I had some fun with some friends from the field. The four guys in the picture above are Tred (intern), Julius (my driver), Amos (my other driver), and Cory (intern). Tred and Cory were visiting our program for the week so I decided to take them out to a place called Kibale National Forest for a little outdoor fun over the weekend. Julius and Amos came with us because they themselves are a lot of fun. I'm so blessed to have them and their good humor on my team!

Being deep in the forest was the perfect refreshment - it smelled so good and crisp! And it was a wonderful reminder of God's creativity and beautiful mind. Honestly, we didn't see a ton of wildlife, but we did see some red, black/white, and brown monkeys - obviously I don't remember any of their real names - sorry. We also got to hike through some fresh elephant tracks...that's what Cory is pointing to in the bottom middle photo. But unfortunately we didn't run into any elephants on our hike. Next time, right!

After our hike, we ventured out to a visit a nearby crater lake (top left photo.) We searched around a bit and found a little dock to hang out on. We just sat around with our feet dangling in the water telling stories about home, families and travel. It was a great way to end the week.

I can hardly believe another week is coming to an end. I'll tell you more about village life soon. I've been staying in Buremba the past few days and really enjoying it.

For now - may we all take a little time to revel at and enjoy God's creation! He is so amazing!

Take care, my friends.

Feels like home...

It's amazing how God works.

I've been playing volleyball all weekend. Our team, our league is completely Ugandan except for me. I should feel completely out of place. But at last, I feel like I'm at home. On the court, I feel comfortable. With my team, I'm part of them. It is so wonderful.

Tomorrow I leave for the field again for two weeks. I admit, I'm a bit disappointed that I won't be able to play with the team for a few weeks. But I trust that God wants me to join him in something wonderful in Buremba too. He's good like that.

Volleyball...it's one of those little things...

Thanks Father!

Everyday life

(Phil and I on the Nile)

So I think it's time for a post about my everyday life. I was settling in with my team in our village called Buremba for the past three weeks. My time in the village was challenging but wonderful. It's my new home now - for at least 50% of my time here (probably 75%.) I love being with our communities - living with them - experiencing life with them. But communication is challenging. And it's hard not to be a workaholic when you live your job. But I think that as the weeks go by, I'll learn where and how to draw the lines.

I am hoping to start a women's bible study in Buremba on Saturday mornings. I'm thinking about serving tea and making banana bread. I have a couple bibles we can share - even some in the local language. I have a list of bible stories that we can read and discuss. I figure we can give it a shot and see where God takes us. If you have any good ideas, let me know. I'd love to hear them.

So you might notice that my posts are a bit sporadic. I'm sorry. It's because I don't always have electricity or internet access in Buremba. We run off of solar power, so when it rains, we don't have power for a day or two. But I love it when it rains because then we have plenty of water! We have serious water scarcity issues in Buremba. Somedays I don't get my bucket bath because there simply is no water to be found in the village. But after it rains, we have water for days! And it's super clean! So I guess it's a trade-off...water/power...power/water....take your pick. :)

Something else I think we're going to try in Buremba is volleyball. Surprise, surprise! :) We don't have enough space at our teamhouse, but there is a nice grassy spot next to a medical clinic across the road. I'm hoping that the community will let us use it for our volleyball court. It would be fun to get some games going and it's a great way to build relationships. More to follow on this...

Speaking of volleyball, I'm back in Kampala now and I just got to play on an awesome club team tonight. A friend from work, Samantha, took me to a place where she plays and I couldn't believe my eyes. These Ugandan women are GOOD! I mean, I was intimidated. I can't believe they're letting me play with them. One of the coaches asked me to join their team, so I am now officially part of a competitive Ugandan volleyball team. I'm so excited! They have trainings throughout the week and games on the weekends. God is really great to keep giving me chances to play volleyball all over the world...crazy, isn't it!

Another crazy thing is that I've finally begun to drive over here. We're talking left side of the road, right side of the car driving. Honestly, that part isn't too bad. It's the boda bodas (passenger motorbikes) and matatus (minibuses) that scare me. They come out of nowhere. And as just about everywhere outside of the western world, it's a disorganized mess on these roads. But I'm taking it "slowly slowly". And I plan to practice my "manual" driving in Buremba, so soon enough I'll be a bit more comfortable behind the wheel again.

Also, Phil came over to Uganda last weekend. Above is a picture from our time together. :) It was fantastic! He's my perfect R&R partner. We enjoyed Lake Victoria, the Nile River, a great coffee shop with a perfect Hazelnut frappuccino, and the best brownie in the whole world. Seriously. Phil's back in Kenya now, but off to the States tomorrow for some meetings. You can pray for his travel and specifically his weekend. I know he'll appreciate it.

I also appreciate your many prayers. Thank you so much for your love and support. God is good to have given me all of you. I am amazed at His outpouring of love through you.

May you also know, feel, and be amazed by our God's love for you today!

Take care, my friends.

Yusufu Rukwago and family

Our project is well underway and I was recently asked for some stories that will describe the impact that we're having within the communities. The following is a story that an intern, Cory, wrote while working with our team. I think he did a great job, so I wanted to share it with you...enjoy!

(Yusufu and his family are pictured in the top two photos)

Deep in the bright green foothills of the Rwenzori Mountains of western Uganda lies the community of Kyabahuura. Known for its large herds of cattle, Kyabahuura is well-known for its milk, which is said to be easier to find than water itself. One of the downsides of living in such a hilly area, though, is the lack of available clean water.

One such farmer facing this problem was Yusufu Rukwago. A happy father of nine children, this banana farmer struggled to find clean water for his family. He realized the health problems associated with drinking dirty water, but had no other options.

That is why Yusufu was the first in Kyabahuura to sign up for a BioSand Water Filter after hearing about Samaritan’s Purse’s Household Water Program. Knowing the water filter’s importance, Yusufu worked many hot hours alongside the Samaritan’s Purse team to build the filters from local materials. In addition, he spent his free time going round the many fragrant banana farms of Kyabahuura, mobilizing people and sharing with them the importance of the filters to the community’s health. He even challenged the doubting town doctor, proving to him the difference the filters make.

Now, 8 days after installing his filter, Yusufu sits on the cool cement floor of his red brick home describing the difference the filter has made in his family’s life.

“We will prevent sickness in our family!” He says he is very happy Samaritan’s Purse came to Kyabahuura because most people would not be willing to travel so far in the bush to help others. He hopes to work more with Samaritan’s Purse in the future, and is thankful for Samaritan’s Purse’s help in providing his children with healthy water. “Dirty water is now just a dream!”

Update: Shoebox Distribution

(Click on this collage to see enlarged photos)

Answered prayer, my friends! The shoebox distribution at St Stephen's Church in Kamwenge went fantastic. 300 excited children heard and experienced the gospel. 7 churches of various denominations were united. 4 countries were present and actively participating in sharing Christ's love. And our 1 and only God was praised and glorified!

It was amazing to be working with God on this project. He worked miracle after miracle and engaged more people than I would have ever imagined. Planning the event was challenging, but it caused us all to meet with God in prayer and surrender our plans to Him. I can confidently say that He made it all happen and He made it all good.

The day of the distribution, St Stephen's church was packed full of patient, glowing children. We talked to them about Jesus and told them about God's love for each one of them. We sang some fun songs together - led by our wonderful visitors from the Netherlands. And we explained that there were people all over the world that love them and prepared these boxes for them. We told the children about you and about your hearts. And we explained to them that these shoeboxes are a tangible expression of God's love for them. Then we prayed together and finally....we gave them the shoeboxes and let them loose to have some fun!!

As you can see, the children had a blast! They were smiling, laughing and playing until the moment we left. God was there and we were all enjoying it together!

For all of you who have been involved in packing shoeboxes full of toys, school supplies, and personal care items for children around the world - thank you, thank you, thank you! You are giving more than material gifts. You are sharing the love of Christ with the nations. May we all continue to pray for these children and their families. May we pray that they will know Christ as their Lord and Saviour.

A special thank you to my friends from the Netherlands. You were a true joy and delight in my life last week. You were a gift from God to me. Kamwenge is missing you!

Prayer request: Shoe box distribution

Tomorrow is a very exciting day! We are distributing 300 shoe boxes to children here in Kamwenge. I know that many of you have been involved with Samaritan's Purse's Operation Christmas Child program - some, for a very long time. I can't wait to show you pictures and tell you about the wonderful impact you're having!

I also wanted to ask for your prayers for this event tomorrow. Will you please pray for the logistics, for the Netherlands Team (donors) who will be attending, for unity between the seven churches involved, and for the children who will receive their gifts tomorrow. Pray for all of our hearts. Pray that God's presence would be palpable in St. Stephen's Church tomorrow. Pray that our Lord will receive all the praise and glory!

God loves your prayers and I appreciate them so much.

A Dieu soit la Gloire!