the end of the road...

my time here is coming to an end way too quick. i'm getting busier and busier, but everything is such a blessing and it seems like everyday gets better than the last. the Lord is continuing to teach me so much through His Word and everyone around me.

things i'm learning: there's a difference between serving and serving at the direction of the Lord. you can do the same thing in the same wa, but apart from the Lord you're going to pull up empty nets.

i'm learning that i need to PREPARE my heart for whatever's next, for satan's attacks, for whatever the Lord has me to do. i need to seek the Lord, read His word, know His word, and walk in His ways, trusting that He is going to take care of everything.

the hardest trials will come right before God is about to do something miraculous in our lives.

Amos 7:10, 11- pay attention when God is talking to you, whether it hurts or not. the pain of listening is nothing compared to the pain of not listening.

1 Peter 2:2- God's Word is spiritual food. we grow by it. if i want to be used of God, it is important that i fill my mind, heart, and life with the word of God.

He's been teaching me a lot about not caring about meaningless things that don't need to be worried about. there are things in this world that really deserve time out of our days to be thought about; and then there are those things that we waste precious time thinking and worrying about that we can't control or change anyway, that aren't worth our time and energy.  Praise Him that He's given me living examples of this to follow.

i feel overwhelmed by the love of God. He is so good!

we went to show a film about Lazarus at a place around town using the Jesus Film equipment and it was a disaster. the generator went out Saturday, and when we went back Sunday the projector, microphone, and speakers kept going out. oh, it was bad. we finally had to pack up and go home, but i got to pray with a 17 year old boy to accept the Lord before we left. Praise the Lord! the funny thing is, yesterday when they tested the equipment it worked fine. the place we were at is hard ground; lots of spiritual warfare.

the upcoming weeks are going to be very busy: woutlet, "the grinch" play, phatfest, the Frontline Christmas party for the boys; Jinja, the Frontline retreat in Moyoni, and i get to be in a legit Ugandan Introduction ceremony (like the pre-marriage, i'm going to meet your family ceremony)...that means i wear the gown and walk down the aisle with something on my head-the whole nine! no better way to end my time in Uganda! i can't tell you how excited i am for each one of these things! Praise Him!

prayer requests: pray that the boys have an amazing Christmas and that they are so blessed by their gifts.

to finish strong the last few weeks here, as i'm starting to feel sick, and there's so much to do. i don't want to get exhausted and worn out.

pray that the Lord provides for me to come back here soon, as there's so much work to do here and i feel like i haven't even scratched the surface. i feel like the Lord wants me to come back, but i'm not sure when. but right now i don't have the money to come back. He's going to have to provide. i pray that He brings me back very, very soon.

Being Assured of God's Will

The longer I stay here, the more the Lord continues to blow my mind! He is doing such a good work in every ministry I’m involved in.

Updates on a couple:

Frontline: Praise the Lord, I got to spend a couple days in the slums this past week. On Friday, I got to pray with a 16 year old boy named Guy to accept the Lord! You could tell the Lord was tugging at his heart before, because he was so open to it; he just wanted it. It was awesome! On Saturday I spent some long overdue, much needed quality time with the boys at the church and then went to the program in the slums. We played games and had so much fun! On Sunday, I taught the boys at their Sunday service and some of them wanted to get saved! Praise the Lord! Please pray that it would be a legitimate prayer and a change of heart. Pray for continued salvations.

Jordan House: After the Bible Study last week I asked them to share about the things the Lord is teaching them or what He’s doing in their lives. One of  them said that since the Bible Study started she has learned how to meditate on the Word; another said that after we prayed over her for the pain in her mouth to go away, she hasn’t felt pain since; and another one shared that now she talks to her neighbors about the Lord and has her own Bible Study with them. Praise the Lord! God is doing amazing things! He is so faithful!

Personally, the Lord has been showing me a lot through the Psalms about His power and might; how great He is, and so deserving of our praise and worship. (Psalm 86:10) I finished my Philippians Bible study with Jordan House and am going through Ephesians. The Lord has been reminding me of the amazing work (beyond what we could ever imagine) He has for each and every one of us if we allow Him to work in and through us. It’s necessary that God works in us before He works through us.

The other night at church we were talking about how to know God’s will for our lives. He confirms His will through the Holy Spirit, His Word, the peace that He gives us, the desires He gives us, and godly counsel. Everything that was said was such a great reminder to me of the way the Lord continued to confirm that I was supposed to come to Africa, and now He’s doing such a great work! There’s no greater blessing, fulfillment, and joy than being in the will of God and being assured that you’re in the will of God. If we do things in our own strength, we will never know if it’s God and we will question if it’s God. But if we do things according to the Lord, we will have a peace that surpasses all understanding, and we will be blessed beyond anything we could’ve ever done in our own strength. GOD IS SO GOOD!

Prayer requests: *Strength to finish strong. As I get busier and busier, I get less and less sleep and I feel it taking a toll on my body. I want to continue to be strong, to stay focused and healthy, so that I can be effective as God’s servant, and really take advantage of and enjoy every moment, as the time is going by way too fast!

*Continued unity for the Frontline team. They’ve become like my family. They’re amazing people and I can’t believe the Lord chose to bless me with them! He is teaching me how important unity is. If we weren’t so unified it would affect our ministry drastically. But because everyone on the team is so close, it makes it so much more of a joy and blessing, and we’re able to pour into the boys more. Pray that the Lord continues to bring us closer together as we draw closer to Him.

“Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid nor be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9

God is so good, He's so good to me :)

I want to be sanctified (set apart) and useful for God (2 Tim. 2:21), that I might be blameless before Him (1 Thess. 5:23). I want to be a faithful minister of His word, since He has called me into the ministry (1 Tim. 1:12); that He might equip me (2 Tim. 3:17) and send me out to preach His gospel (Rom 10:14-15); that I would always be ready, in season and out of season, (2 Tim. 2:4) to give an answer to anyone who asks for a reason for the hope that is in me (1 Peter 3:15). That in the last days I can say with confidence, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith" (2 Tim. 4:7). That He would make me well-pleasing in His sight, and He would say, "Well done, good and faithful servant." (Matt:25:21)

There are a lot of transitions going on with Frontline and there have been since I got here, so there's a lot going on and many changes that are being made. We've been trying to have a drop-in center for them at the church on Sunday, and Praise God, He just provided us with our own space! We're trying to get programs going on again in the slums. There's so much to do and in our own strength we're not able to accomplish it. Please pray that the Lord will be in every detail and work everything out exactly the way He wants it. Because of this transition I haven't been able to go to the slums as much as I want to and that has been killing me. I want to spend so much time with the boys and I'm just not able to.

But, I have been blessed to spend two days this past week at Kivulu slums, to hang out with the boys and play games with them. I miss them so much and there are some of them that I don't even know. Everytime we go there, we tend to get discouraged thinking there's so much to do and we just can't help them all or do everything we would like to do. Please pray that the Lord continues to provide the resources we need to continue His work and fulfill His purposes. Please pray that our hearts would continue to have a brokenness for the lost like we never thought possible. I want to love these boys with the unconditional love of Christ.

Alex, the boy I've really been investing in was staying at Tiger's Club, where he had food and shelter. They have a 4-6 month rehad program in Entebbe, where they have regular schooling and vocational studies. During that time they try to get them placed back in their homes, but if they come from a bad home life they will place them in foster care. I got a text from another one of the boys the other day that Alex is being sent to this program and that he wanted me to come say goodbye to him. I was so blessed that he wanted me to come say goodbye; but when I got there and saw him, my heart sank, thinking that was the last time I might ever see him, even if I come back to Uganda. He is so precious. Please keep him in your prayers.

Lately my lack of being able to communicate in Luganda has been bothering me so much. It's hard for me to completely invest in these boys without speaking their language. And my friends all speak like 5 languages, so I feel like I should be able to speak at least two, which will also help build better relationships with them. Please pray for me as I start my Luganda lessons :)

People keep asking me what I'm going to do when I come home. I feel like the Lord has given me a desire, and right now I'm seeking confirmation from Him. It seems to all be working out. But pray that the Lord would continue to speak to my heart and confirm where He wants me next. My desire is to be in His will, no matter where I am. Through this, He has shown me that His will is the best place to be, even if it's not what I initally wanted. Unfortunately, my time here is coming to an end so much faster than I would like it to, and I need direction for wherever He wants me next.

Oh, how faithful God has been to answer my prayers, to change my heart, and to provide for me exactly what I've needed since I've been here. It is only by His grace, and has nothing to do with me. It is for His glory, to accomplish His will and His purpose.

Tears flooded my eyes as I thought about leaving in five weeks. That means I've already been here nine weeks! Thanksgiving is right around the corner! Where did the time go?! I feel like I just got here.

Thank you all so much for your prayers! Everyone here is feeling them 150%!!!! You're truly a blessing! Mukama Murunji!!! (God is good!!!)

Reaching the Unreached

“How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: ‘How beautiful the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, Who bring glad tidings of good things!” Romans 10:14-15

“The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.”  Luke 10:2

           6 days

                 4 towns

                        9 villages

                              1 mission:

REACHING THE UNREACHED for the sake of the gospel of Jesus Christ!

Between open air preaching, one-to-one evangelism, and the Jesus Film we were able to reach over 2,000 people and more than 200 people came to salvation and a new life in Christ! Praise the Lord! Definitely one of the most, if not the most blessed experience I’ve ever had!

We took an 8 hour bus ride up north to Kitgum. We spent three nights in a village in Orom…yes, I got the opportunity to spend not 1, not 2, but 3 nights in a legit hut. It was quite an experience in itself. Between the cockroaches, rats, and snakes, there were a couple times when I thought I might lose my life haha  They didn’t attack me, but a rat definitely left me a “special present” on my pillow while I was sleeping. Awkward, I know. The nights we didn’t spend in the village, we spent in Kitgum town at a missionary couples house.

We traveled to different villages everyday: Lotodore, Lukwanya, and Lukwor, right outside Kitgum; Karenga, Pire, and Lobalangit in Karamoja, which is a couple hours north of Kitgum; and we visited about three different villages when we traveled to Pajule, which is about an hour outside of Kitgum. We went to what seemed like the uttermost-uttermost parts of the world. I was literally the second white person to ever step foot in Lotodore Village (the first white girl) so some of the kids were even scared of me haha

The first few villages we went to people were so open and they were all accepting the Lord. It was awesome! We would go from hut to hut, and people would hear we were coming around and they would be waiting for us, to hear the gospel. There were people who would meet us at houses and want to get saved. There was a family of 15 that accepted the Lord! We talked to a lot of Catholics and we talked to people who had never heard the gospel, who got saved!

When we were showing the Jesus Film in Lukwanya Village, which is close to Karamoja, we had kind of a scare. Right before the crucifixion everyone started screaming and running all over the place, trying to get back to their homes. This is what they will do if the Karamajong warriors are coming. (And everything is pitch black in the villages because there’s no electricity, so it’s hard to see what’s going on in the first place.) We finally figured out that there were a couple drunk local defense guys who were fighting, so we got everyone calmed down and finished the movie. But, unfortunately, a lot of people ran away so not many people got saved that night.

We had to be very careful when we went to Karamoja, so we couldn’t show the Jesus Film. It almost caused problems that we were there. The people in Karamoja were very hard-hearted and stubborn, not open to the gospel at all. There is such a stronghold of alcohol in all the villages! It’s insane! We saw a few people come to the Lord; three ladies even came up to me and wanted to get saved, which really surprised me. People would gather around wherever we went to listen to us, but in Lobalangit, it was everything we could do to even get out of the car. People wanted to hear what we had to say. We would all have a section to open air preach and the people would just stand there and listen to us for hours, but not one accepted the Lord. They were all so worried about having to give up beer, because their local brew is how they make their money. It’s ridiculous.

We met a recently delivered demon-possessed woman and a former child soldier (JB), who is starting Calvary Chapel Pajule. His story is incredible! Much of the land up north in Kitgum was attacked by the LRA. A lot of where we walked in Pajule is where former LRA camps would be located. They held up to 78,000 people hostage, guarded by soldiers. Some of the people we saw were probably former child soldiers, but you would never know it. In Pajule, a couple of our team mates got to burn some witchcraft items. JB was going to go back the next day to finish burning the guys stuff and he wanted to get saved! Praise the Lord!

On Friday we went to Kitgum prison. The guys showed the Jesus Film to the male prisoners and saw 50 out of 200 give their lives to the Lord. You would never know some of them are on death row. Ritah and I talked to the female inmates and 6 out of 20 gave their lives to the Lord. While I was talking, a couple of the Catholics took their rosaries off, which is amazing. They’re die-hard Catholics and they don’t even know why they pray the rosary.

So, that’s a brief overview of what we did. Praise the Lord that His name was glorified and will continue to be to the ends of the earth! Let us all continue to be willing vessels, that the Lord might use, send out, and speak through; that people would be added to His Kingdom, and that we might receive the fruit of the labor, as our labor is not in vain in the Lord (1 Cor. 15:58). The word of God is living and powerful (Heb. 4:12) and when it is sent out it does not return void (Is. 55:11).

Ocean Floor

Exodus 33:18- Lord, show me Your glory!

“Bring me joy, bring me peace, bring the chance to be free. Bring me anything that brings You glory. Cuz I know they’ll be days when this life brings me pain, but if that’s what it takes to Praise You. Jesus, bring the rain.”

Romans 7:18, “For what I am doing I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do.”

Sometimes God places us in situations we don’t understand just to see if our trust is really there.

“The same power that conquered the grave lives in me!”-Romans 8:11, Ephesians 1:19-20

“Believing what we can understand takes intellect, not faith. It is believing what we can’t understand that takes the faith that honors and pleases God.”

James 5:11, “Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord- that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful.”

I can’t really describe how I’m feeling. I want to glorify God and say, “Jesus, bring the rain. Bring me anything that brings you glory, even if it’s painful.” I pray that and then I get scared He’ll give me what I’ve asked for. I don’t actually want to feel the pain; it’s uncomfortable. But in order to bring God glory I know that sometimes it’s necessary; sometimes I need to endure and press on. My trials are not about my pain; they are about His glory. Something the Lord has been teaching me is that it’s hard to move forward when you’re living in the past, either bitter over something or wishing you had something, wishing you had done something differently, wishing you hadn’t done anything at all, or wishing more than anything else that you could take something back. It’s always towards the end of the month that Satan attacks my thoughts with deep regrets; that my focus is shifted from ministry to myself, from God to me, from the people here to my own life. It robs me of time, energy, and worry (the very things I tell the ladies at Bible Study not to do. Ha!) More importantly, it robs the Lord of glory, of using a once willing servant, of completing the work He’s started.

My heart has been hard toward the Lord and the things of the Lord for too long, and in coming here He has managed to break down so many of the walls I put up, as well as allow me to work on so many of the areas that were hindering my walk with Him. I feel freedom in some way, and I also feel so held back with thoughts of the past, mistakes I’ve made, people I’ve hurt, and things I can never take back. My transgressions, my willful acts of disobedience to the Lord have brought about consequences and great pain. My heart is broken, but healing. It is painful, as all the pieces are sort of scattered. On top of everything else here that completely breaks my heart everyday, I feel overwhelmed. I am broken over my sin, and cry out for forgiveness.

The Lord is great and greatly to be praised! My circumstances and feelings don’t change Him. He remains the same. I don’t want to look to the past to remember a time when I was near to God or when God was near to me in a certain way. I want my relationship with God to be richer and more blessed today than it’s ever been.

The ministries I’m serving in are amazing, the people I’m serving with are wonderful, and the people we get to serve are more of a blessing than I can put in words. Last Sunday I got to pray with an 11 year old boy to accept the Lord! Praise Him! I feel so blessed to be serving here, but my flesh gets in the way. Praise the Lord that the Spirit is greater than my flesh.

Heavenly Father, I thank You that Your mercies are new every morning and that Your forgiveness is freely given. Continue to show us our sin, so that we can confess it to You and ask for forgiveness. Rid us of every weight and sin that ensnares us, that we could run the race with endurance, forgetting the things that are behind, and pressing forward to the things which are ahead. Continue to teach us what it means to truly have faith in You and to truly depend on You. Forgive us of our doubt and unbelief. Help us to believe those things we know to be true. Help us to fall completely in love with You, absolutely surrendering all for Your glory. In Jesus’ name.

“Ocean Floor”

The mistakes I've made
That caused pain
I could have done without
All my selfish thoughts
All my pride
The things I hide
You have forgot about
They're all behind you
They'll never find you
They're on the ocean floor
Your sins are forgotten
They're on the bottom
Of the ocean floor
My misdeeds
All my greed
All the things that haunt me now
They're not a pretty sight to see
But they're wiped away
By a mighty, mighty wave
A mighty, mighty wave
Your sins are erased
And they are no more
They're out on the ocean floor
Take them away
To return no more
Take them away
To the ocean floor

This is the story of my life. “A thousand times I fail, still His mercy remains.”

the uttermost parts of Africa

On Friday afternoon we went to visit a Congolese refugee family (1 mom, 3 daughters, 1 son) that was chased out of Congo a year ago. When they moved here the mom was prostituting herself to get money, but has since given that up. They live in a place worse than the slums, but better than the refugee camp they were in. There are refugees from Rwanda and many other places that live by them. One of the guys who lives by them called the 7 year old daughter into his house and raped her only a month ago. She not only has to get tested because she could be HIV positive, but she has flashbacks every night when she’s trying to sleep. The lady’s son got ran over by a car and is in the hospital right now. All of this started happening after she gave her life to the Lord, and she now wants to commit suicide. Things affect me here, but this is one of the only things that has brought me to tears. Our hearts were broken for this family. We are in trying to find them new living arrangements right now, but it’s not easy. Please keep them in your prayers.

Friday night my bus left for what some would call one of “the uttermost parts of Africa”-Paidha Village in West Nile. It was the longest, most uncomfortable, claustrophobic bus ride of my life! But I’m not complaining…Praise the Lord we made it there safe. There were a couple times I was sure we were going to die. We arrived at the home we stayed at, at 4:30 AM, and because it’s a legit village there’s absolutely NO electricity, so it was pitch black, except for the small light coming out of the lantern.

Did I mention it was a LEGIT village?! I was so stoked! There were huts everywhere! They go gather water, the bathroom is a whole in the ground outside, and you bathe in a basin. The huts were surrounded by beautiful green grass, there were children playing everywhere, and the people were so sweet.

Our purpose in going there was to help the children’s ministry at the church and to do door to door evangelism. There are hundreds of kids there and they all love to come to church! We made bracelets and played games with them, and helped the leaders of the ministry. Then we did door to door evangelism where we got to encourage a lot of believers and share the gospel with the unsaved. Although we didn’t see anyone give their lives to the Lord as we went door to door, it was still such a blessing.

There’s a lot of spiritual warfare that goes on in that village, a lot of witchcraft. If you ask a lot of the people how they sleep at night, they’ll tell you not very well. There are many stories about witches bothering certain homes at night. Some of the parents who are into witchcraft or believe in it but don’t want to be bewitched will wear charms and have their children wear charms for protection. Many of the kids we saw came from homes like that, or homes where their parents just get drunk all the time. They were normally running around by themselves, or following us from hut to hut because their parents don’t take care of them.

Praise the Lord witches are threatened by Jesus and don’t bother believers. They just want Christians to leave them alone. So we didn’t really have to experience any spiritual warfare in that sense. The only thing I really experienced externally, was that I got really sick the second night we were there. To be sick in a village is not fun. I lost my appetite for the rest of the time, so I was feeling pretty weak for the last three days we were there.

I met a madman the last night we were there. He tried to steal something from someone and they bewitched him three months ago. Just a month ago he was trying to kill children. He was standing just outside the home I was staying at because he knew the family that lived there and was good friends with them before he went crazy. My friend talked to him and prayed for him, and then he wanted to talk to me and started walking towards me, so I made a b-line into the house. He wanted to come inside! We told him no, so he hung out outside for a while and eventually left.

We arrived back yesterday (Wednesday) to a warm “welcome back”. I love the church family here! This trip was amazing and one I will never forget. It taught me a lot about being grateful for what I have, (i.e. running water, electricity) and about my lack of patience and compassion; I'm praying the Lord works on those areas of my heart.

Some of the things the Lord showed me in His Word while I was there:

Hosea 10:12, “Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground, for it is time to seek the LORD, till He comes and rains righteousness on you.”

Luke 5:16, “So He Himself often withdrew into the wilderness and prayed.”

Hebrews 11:25-26- Moses took the best the world had to offer and compared it to the worst the Lord had to offer and chose to follow the Lord, suffering affliction with the people of God rather than enjoying the passing pleasures of sin; esteeming the reproach of Christ greater than the treasures of this world.

Hebrews 12:28, “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.”

The Lord is great and greatly to be praised! He is doing a great work in that village and I feel so blessed to have been able to be there, and to just be able to experience everything here. Like… white water rafting down the Nile in Jinja this weekend?! Ummm yes, please!

The Greatest Joy

The greatest joy is found when we are simply content in the Lord and the place in which He has us, despite our circumstances. It is then that He can and will use us and bless us beyond what we could’ve ever hoped or imagined. Lord, teach us what it means to be truly content, completely satisfied in You and You alone.

The past couple of weeks have been amazing, feeling so blessed to have the opportunity to serve in each and every ministry that the Lord has put before me, as well as a time of simply sitting at His feet.

Here are some updates of what’s been happening in the ministries I’m working with:

FRONTLINE: It has been such a blessing to get to know these boys and hear their testimonies. Their lives are incredible, and their stories really put into perspective the cares of this world and what’s important. I’ve been able to visit the Kisenyu slums, which are the slums where some of the boys who come to Frontline live and get high off things on the street, like paint and gas. I can’t even tell you how dark of a place those slums are; much different than the Kivulu slums. The boys there are not doing good. The place itself just looks so dark. There is fighting, they were getting high when we went, and I was kind of scared of some of the boys. There are “uncles” who work with the kids there, but I don’t think any of them are saved, and sometimes they smoke cigarettes and marijuana around the boys. They’re not good examples for them. And, unfortunately because of some things that have happened in the past, they don’t really like white people, mainly Americans being there with the kids. So, that made me feel horrible and kind of uncomfortable, but whatever, I’m not there for them. So, while we were there we helped take care of their wounds, cleaning them and bandaging them up (uhhhhh…blood is definitely not my thing, so Praise the Lord for His strength). I was happy to take care of the boys. There is a program that they have for them there that teaches them English and regular classes, because they don’t go to school. That’s good, but they’re not hearing about the Lord. So, we’re going to start going back probably once a week to share the Lord with them and help out with whatever we can; mainly, to just be a light there. We all left the slum feeling a huge burden for the boys and what’s going on there. The day after I felt all this anger, righteous anger, welling up inside of me. Anger at what’s going on, anger that Satan has such a hold there, and angry that the people working with the kids are terrible influences. And then I started to think about the righteous anger that must build up inside of God every time He looks at the earth and sees all the sin and depravity. I felt discouraged and was trying to think of the “magical cure” that’s going to change things. But the only thing I can do right now is pray and be Jesus to them. There is also a program starting up in Kivulu slums again, so we’ll be going there once a week as well. I’m excited to go spend time with the boys where they live, instead of just at the church.

There is this 11 year old boy named Alex, who’s in some of my pictures on Facebook, who lives on the street and actually sleeps on the street (not even in the slums, but in the taxi park). He has nothing but the clothes on his back. He comes from an abusive home, which is why he ran away. He has no idea what love is, like most of the kids, which also creates in them a lot of trust issues between them and everyone else. I felt the Lord putting it on my heart to start investing in him. So, I’ve started really building a relationship and a trust with him, playing a kind of motherly role in his life, just trying to show him what love is and that he deserves to be loved. He is so sweet, and I don’t understand how anyone could want to do anything but love him. I wanted to let him know what a blessing he is to me, so I gave him a note telling him how much Jesus loves him, and bought him some clothes; when I gave them to him you would’ve thought it was Christmas. After my friend Rita got done translating the letter to him, he said he wanted to accept the Lord! (That showed me that language barrier doesn’t necessarily have to be a barrier when it comes to Jesus. Praise Him!)  Neither of us asked him. So, I made sure he understood what it meant and prayed for him. Joy overwhelmed me! On Sunday we took the boys to Tigers Club, which is a club for street kids, where they can stay for a few months to a year and have medical care, schooling, food, teaching from the Bible, everything they need. I talked to the guy that works there about Alex, and after some hesitation, he said he want to start staying there. He now has shelter! Praise the Lord! The glorious ways that the Lord works!

LOVING HEARTS BABIES HOME: I get more and more attached to these kids every week. They are so sweet and just so lovable!

BAMBEJJA: There’s a new group of 20 girls that just started the program on October 5. I started a Bible Study with them that same day, and although it’s a voluntary program, many of the girls are very stubborn and hard-hearted. No one in the program is saved, but I have faith that the Lord can change all that. I’m hoping He’ll change just one heart before I leave. I would love to witness the transformation!

I finally got to start teaching the girls English. The girls are split up into groups depending on which grade they would be in and their reading level. I’m going to be working with the girls who either don’t know how to read and write at all, or those who know very little about reading, writing, and speaking English. It’s hard for me to grasp that there are 16-22 year old girls who have never gone to school and don’t even know how to read or write in their own language. But most of the girls are really eager to learn and that makes me excited to help them. As I was teaching the Bible Study the Lord started speaking to my heart, and even if I’ve heard these things a million times, it was like He was revealing them to me for the first time. When I complain it tells me that I’m not so much discontent or dissatisfied with my situation or circumstance, and as I am discontent and dissatisfied with the Lord. It hit me like a freight train. Discontent with the Lord…how terrible does it sound when you’re discontent with the God of this universe?! What right do I ever have to be discontent in Him? Discontent with the God who thought about you before the foundations of the earth, who made you and formed every part of you, and knows absolutely everything about you because He Loves You that much! The second thing was that Epaphroditus was sick and risked his life to do the Lord’s work (bring Paul money, bring the church encouragement). How much more should we be risking our lives to bring people the gospel? It spoke to me a lot because of the fear that I’ve been having since I’ve been here and especially going out into the villages. But God is so good!

JORDAN HOUSE: The first week of the Bible Study, I thought we were going to have 10 women and we had 34! The second week of the Bible Study, 42 women came! The third week, 46 women came! Praise the Lord! I was so stoked! They don’t have to come. They have jobs to do, families to support, and money they could be making to support their families. But they would rather be fed the Word of God; that they might feed their children spiritually. These women are amazing and so excited to hear the Word! Today was the third week I had Bible Study with them and I came in to them singing songs and praising the Lord. So after the Bible Study I had them sing a couple more songs and it was so fun to dance and listen to them sing, with no background instruments, just their voices. They are filled with so much joy, and I’m filled with joy just being around them.

Please pray for all these ministries. Pray that the unsaved would have softened and open hearts to hear the gospel, and that they would come to repentance and salvation. Pray that the saved would be refreshed and encouraged. Pray for their struggles each and everyday: illness, disease, poverty, famine, shelter, that the Lord would provide for them. Pray that the Lord would provide homes filled with the love of Christ for the kids living on the streets and for the babies in the orphanage. Pray that they would see Christ and know the love of Christ when we visit them, that we would reflect Jesus wherever we go and be able to effectively minister to His people.

Tomorrow I leave for my first mission trip. I’m going to West Nile to do some work with a children’s ministry at a church out there and to do door to door evangelism in the village. I’m so stoked! I don’t really know what to expect, but most places outside the city of Kampala are villages, where the majority of the people are Muslim or have never heard about Jesus. I can’t imagine what it’s going to be like to talk to someone who has never heard the name of Jesus. The spiritual warfare has to be like nothing I’ve ever encountered. All I know is what I’ve heard, and I’ve heard some really crazy stuff happens in these villages: people manifesting themselves, different things happening when people are prayed over. Because there are many Muslims in the villages, there are witch doctors and a lot of witchcraft takes place there. Aside from the spiritual warfare, I don’t know if any village is necessarily “safe”, but the Lord doesn’t call us to go where it’s safe. He just calls us to go, and we’re invincible until He’s done with us. Please pray that the Lord would be glorified and that when people look at us they will see Jesus, first and foremost; that the unsaved would come to repentance and salvation; that it would be a time of refreshment and encouragement for His saints; and for spiritual warfare and safety. I’m so stoked to see the Lord work! God is so good!

I have been so in awe of the Lord lately. Some of the things He’s been encouraging me with the past couple of weeks:

*Having an eternal perspective. 2 Corinthians 4:16-18, “Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”

*God hears every prayer we pray, no matter how He chooses to answer it, and He sees our tears. We are not alone. Even when we feel deserted and abandoned, He is there.

*God is always there, calling us and pursuing us. He’s just waiting for us to respond, because He won’t force His love on anyone.

*Daniel has quickly become one of my favorite people in the Bible. The more I learn about him, the more I want to be like him. He greatly loved God and the Word of God; he was committed to God; he trusted in God; the Holy God was manifested in the holiness of Daniel; he lived a pure, clean life; the only way anyone could find fault in him was concerning his God; he spent much time in prayer and fasting, denying his flesh and waiting on the Lord; Daniel still prayed three times a day, out in the open with nothing to hide after the decree was signed, as he wasn’t afraid of what people would do to him; he knew the Lord was faithful to deliver him from any trial, and his story is proof that we are invincible until the Lord is done with us. His only desire was to serve the Lord. What a man of God!

*We are the Lord’s representatives. God has been so misrepresented by those who people who are called by His name. People have such a false concept of God because the people “representing God” have so misrepresented Him. People are drawing their opinions about God by what they see in us. That’s a heavy responsibility. We may be the only Jesus someone ever sees. Let’s represent Him well.

*Psalm 66:12, “We went through fire and through water; But You brought us out to rich fulfillment.” We will always go through struggles and trials, but we don’t have to be burned by the fire or overtaken by the water. As long as we’re clinging to the Lord and trusting Him during trials, He will bring us out to abundance!

God is so good! He is great and greatly to be praised! He is doing amazing things here, and I know that a great part of His work is because of prayer. “Where prayer is focused, power falls.” Thank you all so much for your prayers and support. I appreciate them more than you know. I love you all very much!

God is so good!

The Lord is so good! Can I please tell you just a couple of the things He’s been showing me just in the past couple of days? Ok.

*1 Corinthians 16:13-14, “Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong. Let all that you do be done with love.”  Should be my life verse, especially while I’m here.

*1 Corinthians 2:9, “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” The God of this universe has prepared things for us, not only here on earth, but He has prepared Heaven and the things of Heaven for us! We cannot even begin to fathom the things the Lord has prepared for us, because He loves us, and all He asks is that we love Him.

Ephesians 3:17-20 and Romans 8:38-39- God. Loves. Us. Nothing can separate us from that. Nothing. He wants us to know He loves us and He wants us to understand the depth of His love for us. Will we? Probably not. But, He wants us to know and that’s what’s important. I like to think of it like this: you know how when you’ve made something really special for someone, and you’ve spent hours upon hours making it for them, because you love them and you know that it’s going to bring such a joy to their lives? You just want to bless them and show them how much you care about them and that you were thinking about them. That’s how it is with God! Only like 50 bazillion times more, because He loves us more, blesses us on a regular basis, and has spent so much time preparing not only Heaven for us, but everything that happens everyday for us! God is thinking about us all the time, and even though we hurt Him, He does not withhold blessings from us. His love is unconditional, whereas ours can be, and is many times, conditional. He blesses when we don’t deserve it. We bless, most of the time, when it’s convenient or feels good to bless. But God is always good, so He always blesses.

*In doing my studies over Philippians, I have been looking at the suffering that Paul went through. In Acts he talks about how he’s ready to die for Jesus. In 1 Corinthians 4 and 2 Corinthians 11 we see the way Paul was treated; the persecution, (being beaten and stoned) facing hunger and thirst, being despised and defamed, to truly suffer for Christ’s sake. And in all this, he says, “I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content.” (Phil. 4:11) Let us learn what it means to be content; to be truly satisfied in the Lord. To lack everything this world has to offer and be ok, because we still have the Lord. Paul knew his suffering was for the gospel’s sake, and he endured. He knew the Lord had a plan in it. Even though Paul faced all this persecution he stayed bold in sharing his faith. Would there be nothing greater than to be persecuted and suffer for Christ? For the gospel’s sake? John 15:13- “The greatest love is to lay down one’s life for his friends.” Is Jesus not our friend? He is our best friend! Let us be willing to lay down our lives for Him, to absolutely surrender to Him everything in our lives, our whole being.

*1 Corinthians 8:29-31- The time is short and the form of this world is passing away.

*1 Corinthians 9:16, “For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of, for necessity is laid upon me; yes, woe is me if I do not preach the gospel.” Jeremiah 20:9, “But His Word was in my heart like a burning fire shut up in my bones; I was weary of holding it back, and I could not.”

*Wilderness experiences, according to Chuck Smith. The purpose of our legitimate wilderness experiences is that God uses them to prepare us to enter into the blessings He has for us and get us where we are going with Him. But is we resist His work in our lives and allow the wilderness experiences to make us bitter, and we don’t trust Him, but rebel against Him, we will find ourselves spending much more time in the wilderness than was necessary and than what He intended, which will be an illegitimate wilderness experience. Legitimate wilderness experiences are important parts of our growth as children of God. Illegitimate wilderness experiences are a complete waste of time.

On Monday I spent some time at the orphanage holding the sweetest babies ever. These children are so happy and so lovable. You just want to squeeze them! :) You would never know half the things these children have already been through by looking at their faces. They are so precious. I fed some of the 1-5 month olds and rocked them to sleep. It was amazing!

On Tuesday I taught a Bible Study with the girls at Bambejja, and they helped teach me more Luganda. Next week there will be a new group of girls coming in, so I’ll be teaching a Bible study as well as English, which I’m excited about.

Wednesday I had a Frontline meeting to go to. We’re going to a different slum next Wednesday, one where most of the boys who come on Saturdays live, and this is the slum where most of them get high. I guess there’s a lot of pretty crazy stuff that goes on there. I’m excited to finally be able to go. After the meeting I went to church, and got to pray with two girls to rededicate their lives to the Lord! Praise Him!

Thursday I taught my first Bible Study with the women of Jordan House (this is the widows and childrens ministry that’s located in the slums). I was expecting 10 women to show up and 34 women came! Praise the Lord! These women are so hungry for the Word and they are so excited about the Lord! I wish that I had the faith of some of them. Even though their situations look heartbreaking from an outside perspective, their faith doesn’t waiver. If anything it’s made stronger. It’s incredible! They love the Lord so much! Their hearts are filled with so much gratitude for any sort of teaching. We have so much teaching available pretty much anytime we want, and sometimes we don’t even go to church; we take it for granted. These women are starving for one or two teachings a week. Their hearts are so open to what the Lord wants to speak to them and they are so encouraged. He is going to do a mighty work in their lives. I just know it. They are so willing to allow Him work and to speak. It was such a blessing to be there and be a part of it.

As I prepare myself for this next month and the mission trips I’ll be going on, I get more and more excited, and more and more fear seems to overwhelm me. Fear about the things I’ll see and the things I’ll experience. Satan has even been attacking my dreams lately, some of the scariest dreams I’ve ever had. I keep hearing crazy stories about some of the things that happen in the villages I’ll be going to and I can’t believe I’m going. I don’t know if I’m ready for it or not, but I know the Lord has work He wants to do there and I want to be a part of it.

“God promises us many things, but He doesn’t promise us tomorrow.”

Romans 12:9-12, “Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, fervent in prayer.”

The Lord has been teaching me a lot about seeking Him now, because we aren’t promised tomorrow. Just like we evangelize to people all the time, “Today is the day of salvation, get right with the Lord now”, it’s the same for us too. Isaiah 32:17- God wants us to have a right relationship with Him and a right relationship with others, but we can’t have one without the other. When our relationship with God is right, our relationships with others will be right. And that will give us a life of peace, quietness, and assurance.

He is teaching me more and more about contentment and my complaining heart. These people have nothing and yet, you look at the faces of these kids and they are so happy. They don’t know they are lacking everything convenient, and everything unnecessary. The Lord gives them what they need for the day. He truly provides them with manna. I’m realizing I’m the one who has nothing, because I have everything. I don’t have to trust in the Lord for anything really, most of the time, because everything I want and need is pretty much at my fingertips. But for the people here, it’s not. Their dependency must be on something/ someone greater than themselves, and hopefully it’s in the Lord. They are content with nothing, and I am discontent with everything.

He is also teaching me to remember that He is a God of restoration, and the things that we can’t fix He can.

Psalm 136 and Psalm 33- God is great and He does wonderful things!

This weekend was so much fun! I’m so excited about the awesome ministry opportunities that are to come, especially this next month. The Lord is gonna do some amazing things, but I’m also anticipating it being rather difficult because of that. Satan will be working over time.

On Saturday we had sports day with the kids. We took them to a sports field to play basketball and football (soccer). They are some rowdy boys! As hard as I tried to get in there and play with them I was kind of scared for my life haha. After an hour or so of playing, we sat them down, did a skit for them on the story of Hannah, fed them, and off we went to one of the greatest nights of my life….Love Kampala Festival. It was probably the biggest festival Uganda’s ever seen, so I’m not gonna lie, I was a little nervous someone was gonna start dropping bombs, but Praise the Lord everything went really smooth! Thank you if you were praying. It reminded me a lot of the outreach we did last semester only on a much bigger scale. It was sort of like being at a Uganda Hillsong concert. They had motocross, a huge kids area with blow up castles and face painting, lots of food, a message, and lots of music. Papa San is this pretty big artist from Jamaica, who sings reggae music, and everyone loves him here, so when he got up to play everyone went crazy! I hadn’t danced so much in such a long time! Everyone here loves to dance, so it was so much fun! A lot of times even when the kids don’t have food, they’re content if they’re dancing.

The worship was really good too! As I listened, the words to Hosanna really tugged at my heart:

Heal my heart and make it clean

Open up my eyes to the things unseen

Show me how to love like You have loved me

Break my heart for what breaks Yours

Everything I am for Your Kingdoms cause

As I walk from earth into eternity

Let that be our prayer!!!

We had so much fun that Sunday after church we went back for the rest of the day. A lot of the kids came back too, which was awesome. It was pretty much the exact same thing again, but we had just as much fun as if we hadn’t been there the night before. My feet ached and my legs hurt, but it was all worth it!

I am broken...

So this week, I’ve been very busy, doing a lot of different ministries, but also taking a lot of time to read the Word and study a lot for the Bible studies I’ll be teaching while I’m here. Everything here is growing and stretching me, and preparing for Bible studies is teaching me so much!

Last Saturday the Frontline boys all got tested for HIV and AIDS. Most of them came back negative, but I think a couple came back positive L I love these kids so much, but some of them only speak Luganda, so the language barrier can be a huge hindrance, so I’m trying to learn some Luganda J I can speak about six words right now haha, but it’s enough to get me by. I’m starting to develop some sweet relationships with some of them though and I have so much fun just hanging out with them. They had this project they had to do from the week before, where they got in groups, were given a camera, and went out and took pictures of their favorite things or how they liked to spend their time. The winning picture was of a boy against a wall holding an empty cup and a woman in the back making food. The boy who took the picture said it symbolized the suffering they had to go through. Other pictures we saw were of the kids searching for coins and doing their laundry in the dirtiest, most disease infested water! So sad.

After working at Frontline, some of the people I work with took me to this annual Festival of the Arts, which was amazing! There were African dancers from Rwanda, a fashion show, and the Bayimba Kids Choir, made up of these orphan children, who were so cute! They sang and danced about the Lord, and so we sang and danced about the Lord! It was awesome! I was so stoked to finally get to show off my moves, and let me tell you, my African friends were thoroughly impressed ;) haha

Every Sunday morning there’s a service for the Frontline boys, and this week was my first Sunday with them. It was great, and then I went to the regular service. I love the worship here, and the teaching is always really good!

On the taxi ride home I got to share a little about Jesus with the guy sitting next to me. He said he knew about Jesus but that no one had ever sat down and talked to him about Him, so I was super excited to tell him. About the time I got started really talking to him it was his stop, but I’m hoping somehow I’ll see him again and get to tell him the Good News. The rest of my day was spent studying for a Bible study and resting, as I’ve been battling with a terrible cold. I’m praying it goes away fast so it doesn’t affect anything here.

The Lord is opening up so many doors and I’m beginning to be overwhelmed, but in a good way! I’m really stoked about all the opportunities He’s blessing me with! I never dreamed about doing ¾ of the things I’m doing here, but it’s all really good! I just feel so ill-equipped for all of this, but I’m willing to do it if this is what He’s calling me to.

Monday I went to the orphanage again and hung out with the kids J I held 3 week old Moses for as long as I possibly could. If there was one kid I could adopt while I was here it would be him. He is the sweetest thing. He is one that was left in a plastic bag on the side of the road by his mother. Someone walked by and kicked the bag and heard him cry. He came to the orphanage pretty much right after he was born.

Tuesday I taught my first Bible study with the girls of Bambejja. They were all so sweet and so grateful. I didn’t think I was going to have to share this week, but that I would just be introducing myself and getting to know them, so I had to think on my toes. But the Lord totally provided the words and I simply shared God’s love with them. They were so excited to have a white person teaching haha Most of them said they were saved, but a few of them were Muslim, so I tried to answer their questions about Jesus and God. There was one girl named Jackie, who said she loved God and wanted to be saved and forgiven, but she wanted to wait til next month for some reason. I gave her the “Repent brethren! For the Kingdom of God is at hand/ Today is the day of Salvation” talk. She said, “Ok, maybe when you come back Thursday.” I’m praying for her. To see someone come to the Lord here would be amazing!

Wednesday I went out into the slums again to visit some of the kids that come to Frontline. We sat and talked with them and I made a bracelet, which I was pretty stoked about J Then we had a Frontline meeting, where we talked about “contentment” and I realized just how discontent I am. And we found out that one of the kids that’s been part of the ministry for a while now was preaching on the street corner! Praise the Lord! I was blown away! Then I went to church, where the message totally convicted my heart, I pretty much had to rededicate my life to the Lord, and I came home.

Thursday (today) as I sit here and write this (everything else has been written throughout the week, even the things below) I can’t really describe to you how I’m feeling. I’m broken. The Lord is breaking me of so many things. It is painful and honestly, I can’t tell you I’m excited for the rest of it. The only thing I’m excited for is the outcome. The Lord is showing me things here and within myself that I never thought I would see, that I never wanted to see within myself. As the Lord continues to work, Satan continues to attack, more and more each day. I am exhausted and I am weary; I feel so alone and yet I know I’m not. I’m here to do the Lord’s work, but in myself I am not equipped. My full dependence must be on Him. I feel a heaviness today that I haven’t felt in a long time! A heaviness for the people of Uganda, the things I see, and the things I would never want to see; and a heaviness within myself. My heart is burdened. I am broken.

Here are some of the things the Lord has been teaching me:

LOVE, LOVE, and more LOVE!!! But, in order to have a love like Christ’s, I need to have a life like Christ’s; His compassion needs to be the very breath and joy of my life.

Prayer, prayer, and more prayer! The Lord attaches great importance to the things that concern me; even those things that may seem insignificant. And He wants to have amazing fellowship with me, so I need to bring everything to Him, even those things that seem insignificant.

Isaiah 1:18-20- God was still patient and longsuffering, despite His people’s continual sin. He offered them a solution to their suffering. They could either choose to be obedient and be blessed, or to rebel and be devoured.

Realizing that God is on the throne all the time, not just in times of desperation. Anything that obstructs my view of God needs to die, so that I can see Him high and lifted up.

Isaiah 6:8-“Whom shall I send and who will go for Us? Then I said, ‘Here am I! Send me.”

He’s teaching me to find joy and contentment solely in Him.

Thank you so much for all your love, support, and prayers! Words alone cannot express my gratitude, but know that each and every post on my wall makes me smile a whole bunch! Your prayers are definitely felt over here, as I feel the Lord working in the ministries I’m a part of, as well as in my life personally so much! He is incredible! Akwagalanyo! That means I love you in Luganda J

Phil. 1:3-9- “I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy, for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ; just as it is right for me to think this of you all, because I HAVE YOU IN MY HEART, inasmuch as both in my chains and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel, you all are partakers of me with grace. For God is my witness, HOW GREATLY I LONG FOR YOU ALL WITH THE AFFECTION OF JESUS CHRIST. And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.”

orphans, widows, and girls at risk

James 1:27, "Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world."

Thursday was my first day at the Jordan House, which is right in the middle of one of the slums. I went there to get a tour and we walked around to check in on some of the women and children. There is a residential facility for orphans from young to like 19 years old or so, and the women who live in "rooms" in the slums are widows who have anywhere from 2-5 children, most with different fathers, as polygamy is huge here! They get pregnant and a lot of times the men leave them. We prayed over an old lady who had malaria, she was very weak and wasn't well at all. We visited a few different ladies, talked to them and prayed with them in their rooms. The women make beads out of paper (it's really cool!) and turn them into necklaces, and then the woman who owns the facility has them taken to Australia and she sells them and that's how the women in the slums make money. The necklaces are beautiful! You would never know they were made out of paper.

We went to see this woman who had four children, one who was younger than a year, and her oldest was 6 years old. The mother had her six year old daughter give the baby a bath and she put the baby in boiling water! The baby suffered third degree burns and the mom didn't tell anyone. Praise the Lord she's ok and she's one of the happiest babies! So we saw the mom and her children. The mom has HIV and one of her four children also has HIV. They are being treated and will probably live 15-20 years. As we prayed over them I held back tears, but as soon as we walked out they came streaming down my face. This was even harder to see than the slum I saw Wednesday with the kids. It's something undesribable... overwhelming...i was left speechless. This is the hardest thing I've ever had to do, but it continues to put things into perspective and is making me truly grateful for what I have. These people have nothing!! Nothing!! But they are some of the happiest people I have ever seen!

I have the blessing of being able to go there every Thursday from now on to teach a Bible study with the women in the morning and do house visits in the afternoon.

Today (Friday) I went to check out this other organization called "Bombejja", which means "princess" in Luganda. It's a project foused on women at risk and children in the community. The girls are between the ages of 16-22 and the children there are in grade school. All of them come from abusive homes, and/or their parents have left them or died. The kids go to school during the day, and some of the kids and girls live there. I will be going there two days a week, teaching a Bible study for the girls and teaching some of them English. I've never done either of those things, so the Lord is totally taking me out of my comfort zone and stretching me. I can't believe I'm going to teach English haha! I have enough trouble speaking it myself. I feel so blessed to have the opportunity to share with them and teach them!

Getting home today was a trip! It's so hard to get around here, because you have to take taxis everywhere, which are big vans that are supposed to hold 14 people, but hold 16-17 people) and it's super confusing! It took me about two hours to get home, when it should've probably taken an hour at the most. The people drive so crazy here! They hardly ever stop, and pedestrians DO NOT have the right of way. If the vehicle is bigger than you, you have to move! That's like the only rule of the road. Or you will get run over! In order to cross the street you have to weave in and out of cars and just pray a lot! Well, the kids were getting out of school, the taxis are driving really fast, one boy thought he could run right out into traffic and make it across the street, and my taxi driver hit him. It caused chaos in the street and I really thought someone was gonna get shot, but everyone was ok. The boy got right up and walked to the side of the road. Praise the Lord! But everyone was rioting! It was crazy! I'm absolutely exhausted today!

Lord, give me strength, give me Your love and a heart of compassion. Give me a prayerful spirit, one of intercession for them. Pour out your grace and mercy on every one of these people. Let Your hand of protection be upon them. Strengthen them. Heal them, if it be Your will. Pour out Your love on them. Lord, teach me to be content in everything and grateful for everything. In Jesus name.

Prayer requests: For the women and children here. For the Bible studies that I feel so privileged to be able to teach- that it would be the Lord's words and not mine. That the Holy Spirit would speak to them through it and they would walk away feeling the love of Christ! Please pray for the Christian music festivals that are going to the happening here. I think there is one this weekend and there's one the weekend of the 24-25, which is supposed to be the biggest festival Uganda's ever seen or something, so it's probably high risk for a bombing.

All they need is LOVE :)

1 Corinthians 13:4-8- LOVE IS THE GREATEST GIFT! self-sacrifice is the very essence of love. John 15:13- THE GREATEST LOVE! it is in very deed our calling to become exactly like Jesus in His love and self-sacrifice. we are in the world, just as Jesus was, to have fellowship with men, loving relationships with them, and to win them to the Father who created them! We are in the world that men might see and long for what we have, that they might glorify the Father (Matt. 5:16). We are not of the world, but are entirely independent of all that the world holds desirable or necessary, with principles and laws completely opposite of those that rule the world. the glory of God should be the aim of our existence!

i went to "Loving Hearts" orphanage on Monday and fell in love! those kids were quite possibly the cutest and most lovable kids i've ever seen. there are 19 children, ages 0-2 and they just want to be held and loved, and i felt so blessed to be able to be there with them, even just for a little bit. it's probably one of the nicest orphanages in all of Kampala. i will be helping out there one day a week, which is such a blessing!

i went to the legit slums for the first time today to follow up with some of the kids from Frontline. heart-wrenching to say the very least! i can't even really describe it. part of me is still very speechless and trying to take it all in. it looked somewhat like a lot of kampala, but seeing up close the way they live...they have nothing! nothing! and yet they are still so happy! it's dirty and smelly...some of the most terrible conditions i've ever seen and pretty much all of them have horrible diseases and viruses. they say "muzungu! muzungu!" which means "white person". and they are so excited that you've come to just spend time with them. i got to sit down with a few of the boys in their "home", if it can even be called that. it's the tiniest room that you wouldn't even think would house one person; and four boys work there, making things (i.e. necklaces and different things out of wood, which are amazing!) to sell, and sleep in there! they sleep on the ground, many times with nothing under them. i saw one room, even tinier than that one that 16 boys sleep in! yes, 16! how? i don't know, but they tried to show me. they would hold my hand, have me put my arms around them, want to take tons and tons of pictures, and just hang out. i saw two babies, whose mother had thrown them away along the side of the road, who were over a year old, but were so tiny! they went hungry a lot and it was incredibly hard to not be able to do anything for them. but above any material thing or food we could give them all they need and want is love, and the most important thing we can do is show them Jesus. although they are so blessed to have us there, it was so much more of a blessing for me to be there with them. (check out my facebook for pictures.)

next wednesday i'll be going to an even worse slum area, where the kids get high and girls prostitute themselves. i can't imagine anything worse than what i saw today, but what i hear is that i have to see it. it's not something that can be described.

our verses for the boys who are a part of Frontline:

Romans 8:35-39- "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distresses, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written: 'For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.' Yet in all these things we are more than conquerers through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Jesus Christ our Lord."

Ephesians 3:17-19- "that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height-to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God."

i still can't believe i'm here doing this! as heartbreaking as it is, there's no other place i would rather be right now. it's one of the most blessed experiences i've ever had!

other than that this week i attended a class at the Bible College, went to a women's Bible study, went to church (which is sweet and people accept the Lord at about every service!) and babysat the kids here at the house. we colored and read bedtime stories :) their kids are awesome!

my prayer: Lord, give me the desire to live as You lived, and to love as You love. Cleanse my heart and purify my mind. Teach us all how You would use us to manifest Your love to the world. Fill us full of Your love, so that we may walk in love, even as Christ loved us. May we live everyday as people who have the Holy Spirit to enable us to love everyone with whom we come into contact. Under every possible circumstance, let us love with a love that is not of us, but of Yourself. Amen. Let that be our prayer!

Update :)

"When we are complacent and satisfied with our lack of spiritual growth and we fail to continue in our spiritual journey full force, we too set ourselves up for failure."

this past weekend has been filled with blessings! here's an update on what's been going on. i'm still in awe of everything around me, trying to take it all in. it's such a different environment and totally different change of pace. the cattle herding in the middle of the road, the chickens always crossing the road, and the goats make me smile :) the kids with the big stomachs and the ones sitting on the side of the road begging for money because their parents make them is heart wrenching to say the least. i hugged my first little black girl on thursday!!! it was awesome! she was the cutest and sweetest little girl begging for money right outside the church and i was immediately drawn to her. she kept looking at me with the biggest smile on her face (which was probably because i was white, "muzungu", and she wanted money, but i like to tell myself she just wanted a hug). because everything in the city is so crazy i was forced to keep walking, but as i looked behind me she started walking toward me and gave me a hug :) i wanted to take her home and keep her forever.

i tried my first african food on thursday as well. it's called matoke. it's like a mashed banana or plantain. this one was more like a plantain with indian curry on the outside!!! it was amazing! i've tried a couple more foods since then but they're very plain. since i'm living with americans i'm very blessed to be fed some of what i would normally eat, but even american food tastes different here.

i've been spending a lot of time at the church the past few days, getting my schedule figured out and whatnot. last saturday was my first day with Frontline (the street kids ministry). i loved them from the moment i saw all of them. there were about 30-50 boys who were some of the most dirty and smelly, torn up kids, but i loved them and wanted to hug all of them. most of them come to get food and then go back out onto the streets, but while they are there on saturdays they do worship and have a message, and this time i got to draw with them and paint with them, serve them food and just hang out with them. i got to here come of their stories, which are insane! some of them have been on the streets for months and some for years. i can't imagine living on the streets anywhere, but especially here. they steal to get money and food, and then they sell whatever they steal to get money. they get beaten by cops if the cops catch them. but while they're at the church and safe on saturdays they have so much fun! the people i'm going to be working with are great and have such a heart for these kids.

after that we all went to the discipleship house, where some of the boys who show a willingness to change live and are taken care of by one of the people who works there. when i say house, i mean a very very small two room shack, that has three sets of bunkbeds in one room with three beds on each bunk, and the other room is the sitting room thats about the size of our mail room. so small! we played cards, ate bread and tea (tea is huge here and its very good) and we had a great time!

i rode my first boda boda on the way home. i was really nervous haha it had been rainging really hard earlier that day so all the roads were wet. they are not safe and the drivers are crazy, weaving in and out of traffic! sometimes they get into accidents and people get very injured on them, but sometimes you're forced to take them. on the main roads they go super fast and on the back gravel roads there are so many potholes, that they have to swerve a lot and you feel like you're going to tip over. the women ride sideways on them, but they're crazy! the taxis are like big 16 or 17 passenger vans that everyone rides in, which is normally what i take, because it's the cheapest mode of transportation. i feel much safer in a vehicle. i almost get run over by a boda boda or a taxi everyday here haha but it keeps me on my toes.

i went to my first tribal dance/cultural night last night with some friends from frontline. it was absolutely awesome and definitely something i've been wanting to do while i'm here! i was kinda nervous because there were a lot of american tourists there but the Lord's hand was upon the event and we had such a good time!

i got my first full night of sleep last night since i've been here, which was amazing and definitely needed. and i'm going to get all my shots tomorrow.

so, along with frontline, which i'm super stoked about working with, there are many other ministry opportunites available for me:

*jordan house- works with women and children in the slums. it's a community based program to teach them how to live. the children stay in a residential facility and the women come and go for a month or more. i'll learn more about this when i meet with the lady that runs it this week. i'll be taking a tour of the facility, which is based in the slums.

*bombesia-this is a project for women at risk or women who used to be prostitutes, visiting them in the slums and ministering to them. i'm going to be meeting with the lady that runs this later this week as well.

*there is an orphanage that i will be visiting today, to see if thats a possibility. i get to hold some little black babies!!!

*i'll be going out into villages and maybe schools to show the Jesus film, which brings many people to the Lord! so stoked! that's one of the things i really wanted to do, was to go out into the villages and show this film. never thought it would be possible.

*i'm going to be helping teach a Bible study with the girls who work with Frontline Ministries, which will be awesome! i've never taught a Bible study before, but i feel like the Lord's been wanting me to for a while.

*So Sweet!!! i may have the opportunity to go up to northern Uganda, to Kitgum, to work at a church for about a week or so. this is where the LRA and child soldiers were, so i may have the opportunity to minister to these people who have been completely traumatized by everything that happened! i can't even imagine! for more information on the LRA check out www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/para/lra.htm

*other than that i will be doing office work at the church and helping out with anything else they might need.

so there's a nutshell of whats been going on. the Lord is teaching me a lot personally and i'm excited to see what else He has in store.

thank you again for your prayers! God is great and greatly to be praised! I feel more than blessed to be here and be a part of everything! I can't believe I'm here doing this right now!

URGENT PRAYER REQUEST

Everything is crazy here from day to day. A couple months ago there was a bombing here in Kampala that killed 60-70 people at an Ethiopian restaurant that is very close to the house I'm staying at now. They just reopened the restaurant today with a lot of security. There are eight more bombs that they're looking for here in Kampala, and there was a bomb threat again just a couple days ago. When the last bombing happened they only knew a couple days in advance, so I'm kind of just expecting it to happen sometime in the near future. They have been at high risk for a while now, but even moreso since a couple days ago. They are targeting Americans, Ethiopians, and Christians. Well, that's two out of three for me and many others here. We have security at the church and an armed guard there on Sundays, but I don't think you can ever be too prepared for a bombing. We have to stay away from any public places where there are large crouds of people (i.e. soccer games, etc.). I think there are even travel advisories out right now about not traveling to Uganda because of everything that's been going on, but I'm not sure. Bombings can happen anywhere, even in the United States, but because of what's been happening here in the past few months it honestly makes me a little nervous. I have to remind myself that the Lord is in control. Please pray for salvations and the safety of everyone over here, especially those who are being targeted. Thank you so much for your prayers! Much love and God Bless!

i'm here!

getting here was a little pre-adventure, adventure :) i had a 6 hour layover in London, so i decided to get on a bus and tour the city for a while. i went to Windsor Castle, which is where the Queen lives when she's there, and that's also where they do the Changing of the Guards, which i missed by a couple hours. i walked around, took some pictures, really just wanting to see one of those cute little red telephone booths. i turned the last corner and there it was! i was so stoked. then i took the bus back just in time to catch my flight.

i landed in Uganda about 8 am their time. it was one of the greenest places i had ever seen...so beautiful! the trees looked like little broccoli stocks haha. the clouds looked as if they were touching the ground. it was like Nahum 1:3: like the Lord woke up and decided to take a stroll across Africa and left cloud puffs from His footprints. haha (E.C. that's for you) i stepped out of the plane, got my visa, and was greeted by my house mom that i'll be staying with for the first couple weeks that i'm here. she's super sweet and it was so nice to have someone to talk to. the weather here was in the 80's and not that humid, a nice change from California. they drive on the opposite side of the road and you sit on the opposite side of the car, just like in Europe, which was really weird for me to get used to.

driving here is crazy! people pass on small streets, don't necessarily stay in their lanes, go whenever they want to, pass when cars are only ten feet away coming in the opposite direction (which looks like it's going to be a head on collision). for me it's weird. for them, it's normal. they have "boda boda's" here, which are like motorcycles that they use to transport different things, from people to animals haha to food, tires, etc. you can see them riding around with chickens, goats, dogs, cows, everything and anything on the back, and they are the craziest drivers ever!

there are baby goats and chickens everywhere!!! we also saw a boy herding cattle down the middle of the street! haha

women really carry baskets of banana's on their heads! it's so crazy! they'll have tons of stuff on their heads and also be carrying their baby on their backs. some of the women will have their kids stand by the street and put their hands out begging for food, and they'll go hide and watch them, and then come back later and get them. these are like the kids you see on tv with the big stomachs. :(

many of the houses are like what you think you would see. it's very dirty here. i'm staying in one of the nice parts of town. it's very protected with a gate and security. they live relatively close to the restaurant that got bombed a couple months ago. we drove by it today. so crazy! they say there are still eight bombs here in Kampala that they are looking for, so when you go to public places, like restaurants, security checks you and your cars. you see government military and security all over on the streets and in churches and any other public places with big guns, like it's nothing. there is also going to be a preisdential election here in February, so the months leading up to it can be kind of crazy, with riots and stuff.

a lot of the cars here have stickers about Jesus on them. almost everyone here has heard of Jesus, but doesn't have a relationship with Him. i went to church tonight, which was cool: there's two different Calvary Chapel locations here. there are about 200 people that come Wednesday nights and about 1,100 that come on Sundays. i'm so stoked to start working with the kids! they're having an outreach Friday that i'm hoping to be a part of, talking to and teaching the kids that are living on the streets.

i'm in AFRICA!!! i can't believe i'm here! i feel like everyday will be such an adventure and i'm looking forward to it.

thank you to everyone who put something in my box! those letters were so encouraging and really blessed me :) i love you all very much!

prayer requests: the women and children i'll be ministering to.
                         safety, as it's kind of crazy over here right now.
                         that Jesus would continually be working on and changing my heart to have an eternal perspective.

thank you so much! love you!