1-30 Manna From Above

Today I (Alisa) want to share something the Lord brought me in my quiet time this morning. It is from a daily reading by C.H. Spurgeon:

Genesis 28:15 – “And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest’

Do we need journeying mercies? Here are choice ones – God’s presence and preservation. In all places we need both of these and in all places we shall have them if we go at the call of duty, and not merely according to our own fancy. Why should we look upon removal to another country as a sorrowful necessity when it is laid upon us by the divine will? In all lands the believer is equally a pilgrim and a stranger; and yet in every region the Lord is his dwelling place, even as he has been to his saints in all generations. We may miss the protection of an earthly monarch, but when God says, “I will keep thee”, we are in no real danger. This is a blessed passport for a traveler, and a heavenly escort for an emigrant.

Jacob had never left his father’s room before: he had been a mother’s boy, and not an adventurer like his brother. Yet he went abroad, and God went with him. He had little luggage, and no attendants; yet no prince ever journeyed with nobler bodyguard. Even while he slept in the open field, angels watched over him, and the Lord God spoke to him. If the Lord bids us go, let us say with our Lord Jesus, “Arise, let us go hence.”

As I sit here this morning, mosquito bitten, bathed with a bucket of water, fed beans and rice for several weeks, watching out my window as the rain pours and turns the ground to cement like mud, I am yet so grateful to Him for all He has done for us. Jesus has been with us every step of the way. When things have been hard we have asked for help and He has blessed us, when there looked like no way could be found He led us on. In truth here in Uganda, Africa we have found a new freedom. Jesus has freed us of the need to take care of ourselves and instead do His will in loving others. In that love we have found Joy and Peace like we have never known before.

I wonder today if that is not available to all of us wherever we are if we are in His will. All we need to do is forget about ourselves, our needs and serve Him faithfully in love reaching out to those before us and asking Him to show us their need.

Here are some of the pictures of children He let us love today:

Boys Will Be Boys

Today at Hope we got to see the children in everyday action; with no big teams on the compound life gets back to normal. There were children doing their laundry, helping with kitchen duty, watching a movie (We brought a few “G” rated videos from the states), and even more children just running and playing outside.

It reminded us of our own home and bringing up eight children, seven boys and one girl. They all had their chores and their free time. Even though we have many boys, we felt it was very important to train them up to know how to take care of themselves. This means cooking, cleaning, laundry and dishes. That way when they were grown they could either do things for themselves or appreciate their wives’ care of them from a first hand knowledge. We see this at work at Hope as well and we approve of all the children pitching in to help so no one person has to bear the burden of all the hard work.

That said we want to relay two incidents that happened today that show children are not so different across the world. In the morning I (Alisa) was working with Lia (another team member on an extended stay) to interview all the children to add information to their files when some noise and then crying broke out in the front yard. Knowing that sound quite well, I went out to see what was going on. As it turns out, two little boys had been playing and had collided with each other. They were both hurting, crying and a little mad at each other. Pulling them both up on my lap, I just held them and cleaned their faces and dusted their clothes. It brought back the memory of my own little ones who would get into altercations. As soon as they knew they were loved and cared for the tears dried up, smiles came back to their faces and off they went back to play again.

Later in the afternoon all the adults were sitting in Pastor Prossy’s office once again when BANG went a very loud noise! We all sprang into action to see what had happened. As it turns out the sound was glass breaking as a ball sailed into one of the front windows. The big boys had been playing soccer and lost control of the ball. That really took us back in time to our house. How many times have we had to replace windows because of our boys? As Randy cleaned up the mess, making sure all the glass was cleaned up; Alisa relayed a similar incident to Pastor Prossy. After the second time one of our boys (who will remain nameless) broke a window, Randy told him he would need to pay for it himself. Prossy then asked if our son had a job earning money at the time. I replied that he did not, but Dad gave him one and he earned the money for the broken window.

A little while later after the clean up, Prossy called the big boys into her office. As is their custom they came in on bended knee to face their punishment. She then told them that she would be arranging for them to do some work in the neighborhood to earn the money to pay for the window. She said she would not buy the window until the work was done. It was so sweet to see them smile and clap their hands after they heard their fait. You could see they were relieved that they could do something to make up for the loss of a window to their home.

So boys will be boys all over the world and parents can be parents if they have the love in their hearts to raise them well.

Lets Talk Shower.

Most of you know what an electric water heater is. We know where they belong in a house and the job they do. As you look at the photo, you may notice an electric wire going to the showerhead. That’s the waterheater. As a contractor of 30 years, I have become knowledgeable of some of the wiring codes. Here is one I remember… NO LIVE WIRES IN THE SHOWER! NEVER, EVER, GOT IT. Well as you might remember from other blogs, This is Africa (TIA). Here they put live wires in the shower and with in reach of the person showering. So this is how they work. When you are ready to get hot water, you turn on a switch, which they have located outside of the showering stall (not sure why, it must be for some safety reason, like “Honey, I’m being electrocute!!! Hit the safety switch… HURRY). You wait for a few minutes and you either get water from the roof’s holding tank at its current temperature which is almost cool enough to drink but not warm enough to call it shower water, or you get scalding hot water that actually burns you. There is no way to adjust the temperature. We let it collect in the laundry tub they supply you with, then dilute it with water (from the roof again) from the sink, and with a liter water bottle cut in half, you dump it over your head and body. The next thing you know… you’re clean and ready for the rest of the day. I love it here. Who ever thought I could blog about a shower?

More of TIA. It is now 1:30 and I have been waiting since 10:00am for my ride. I have call my friend who are to pick me up, but they can’t get something printed because there is no electricity where they are, and I don’t have a printer to help them out. I have had a wonderful morning and now a wonderful mid-day. I have hope they will arrive soon as we are running out of daylight in just 5 hours and that is about what it will take to accomplish today’s task.

See the electrical tape!

To the left of the door is the "safety?" switch.

Randy's first time behind the wheel. Note the right hand steering wheel. This is not easy over here.

My friend Patrick is in the passenger's seat.

A New Uganda

Our Children of Hope,

We love them dearly.

Isa 1:17 – Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow.

These are the things God calls His people to do; these are things that are good in His sight. As we are here in Uganda we see the need so clearly. There is much injustice. There are many who are oppressed. There are more orphaned children than adults and many of the adults have been abused so much in their lives, they don’t know any other way. So, the cycle of abuse continues on. Then there are the widows…too numerous to number, who have been left alone from the ravages of war, aids, malaria, and other harsh realities of life in Africa. Their lives are a struggle, they need help.

Driving through the streets you see so much need. The need is greater than we can comprehend. We ask ourselves “Where do we begin?”

Then, we drive into “Hope Children’s Home.” Things are not perfect here either; at first glance you see 94 children, orphans, living in one large home and one smaller one. But they are children who after being rescued from horrible circumstances are now being fed, clothed, cared for, schooled, bathed and loved. Children who once had no hope of a future are now filled with hope. The Lord has looked down upon this small corner of the world and reached clear across to the other side of the world to touch the hearts of men and women who are willing to answer the call of injustice, respond to the oppressed, defend the cause of the fatherless and plead the case of the widows. This is the work I have seen here; the work Show Mercy is doing in Uganda. But Show Mercy is not just a humanitarian organization started by two well meaning people. It is a movement of a God who says “The plight of my people in Africa is not OK with me”, it is the obedience of His children to hear the call and lay down their lives to follow Him faithfully. Show Mercy is all of the people who give to sponsor children, build buildings, feed hungry people, help those in need or join a team to serve as missionaries, short-term and long-term here in Uganda. We together are Show Mercy; a family of partners working to raise a family of children who will one day be the new face of Uganda, end the cycle of poverty and abuse, and usher in a new day in Uganda.

We can see in our minds eye a day when all the good seed that has been sown into these children will come to a day of a fruitful harvest. We see a day when they are grown, schooled, working and returning to their community the goodness that they have enjoyed. These are the faces of the new Uganda. Your sacrifice is making a big difference. Thank you.

Together with Him,
Randy and Alisa Varga

As For Me and My House We Will Serve the Lord!

Today we got a taste of what life in Uganda will look like. Having much to accomplish, we separated today and went to work. Alisa went to Hope for the day while Randy hit the road with Patrick the builder to get some errands done.

At the home I (Alisa) found a more peaceful version of the children. With only Lia and I there as visitors we found the children more into their daily routines. It was nice and a lot quieter. We started off the day by continuing the interviews we had started when the team was here. We are attempting to talk to each of the 94 children and ask them questions to update their files. This worked great until the battery ran out on Lia’s computer (Hope had no electricity today). So then we went to plan B, “Sock Day”.

All the Kids with socks.

A portion of the socks that our children raised were handed out to the children of Hope. They were so cute coming in one by one choosing a pair they liked and fit them. They smiled from ear to ear with excitement. When the children all had their socks, the staff each selected a pair themselves as well. Then, came some of the people who live in the village, pleased that they were invited to share some of the blessing; choosing a pair for themselves. Finally we commemorated the event with a picture. Later in the day we had lunch, walked to the boy’s home, visited with friends and read stories to the children. I brought a book out and just sat on the front steps. Soon I had a crowd around me and began to read. But before I could read, two of the boys began to take turns reading to the rest of the children. When the book was over they said “we want to read it again!” So of course we did. Life is slow here. We can take time to visit, to walk, to read a story once again. I noted that this is the life the Lord is calling me to and I think it suits me well.

I (Randy) on the other hand went to run a series of errands; we went looking for a mobile modem for our computers and found the only office in Uganda that sells them! Next we were off to look for a medical clinic to see what they have to offer. Yes Randy went to look at a medical clinic. It not what you would expect to see in the States, but more of a rundown country business run out of a side room of your house. When you get inside, you see they were rather adequately supplied. There are 6 British and/or Ugandan trained MD’s along with a few specialists, two ambulances (I have only seen one on the roads in the past two weeks), and I was rather impressed. After a lunch of a packet of Costco peanut butter crackers and some bottled water, we were off to look for a 4 wheel drive vehicle. The story is the Ugandans bring in Japanese cars and trucks and sell them by the 1000’s. The newest one I saw was a 1999; the good ones were 1995 to 1997. They are in great shape and only have between 60K to 110K miles! I can only figure they drive about 2000 to 3000 miles a year in Japan. The fun part of all of this is the used car salesmen over here could have come from the “schlocky” dealers on 82nd Drive in Portland! They used the same lingo, the same pressure, the same everything. I had to laugh at this. We did find a great 96 FourRunner, if I was ready to buy for around $11,000. Then it was time to try to cross town to get back to Hope and pick up the gals. An hour later we arrived tired and worn out, but with more knowledge of what we are getting ourselves into. After spending the day with Patrick, I know that God has brought both Show Mercy and myself a great Friend. I feel our lives here are beginning to gel.

Thanks for following along with us on our journey of life in Uganda.

Laundry Day.

1-26-09 This is Africa…

Hudson's Church.

Stephen, the oldest boy. He takes care of the little ones.

One cute little girl who loved the camera!

As we sit here in our new hotel room (but really old),very loud thunder and heavy rain outside, tiny little mosquitoes and the first cold water shower inside; we are faced with the reality that “This is Africa!”

Yesterday was our last day with the team so we have checked in to a more “economical” hotel. Yes, we have moved to “Hotel Ivory”. Located in the town of Nansana, very near Ganda Village, where Hope Children’s Home resides, Hotel Ivory is not exactly a five star hotel, but it is a reasonably priced place that is clean.

Today was a very full day. Our plan was to go to the city of Lugazi to visit Pastor Hudson, the Pastor who has stayed in our home twice over the past two years. It is about a 2 hour trip, and Patrick, a friend we have made here offered to take us there and back. Patrick is a builder here in Uganda, who recently built the two new classrooms for Hope. He is also helping with the constructions plans for the “Field of Dreams”, which is the name given to the property where Show Mercy (God willing) will build a mission base, children’s homes, a school, clinic and more. As for our trip, let’s just say it took well over 3 hours (for a 45 miles drive) due to numerous traffic jams to get there. But as we are learning “This is Africa” and the unusual always is the usual. When we reached Pastor Hudson’s home we had a treat in store for us.

Hudson, His wife Mercy, and their 4 Kids.

Hudson and Mercy.

His wife Mercy had prepared a wonderful lunch for us and we had a long leisurely visit. While there we spent time at their home, their children’s home with about 50 orphans living there, and their church. Hudson and Mercy are warm gracious people who have the gift of hospitality and blessed us with a wonderful day. Mammas and some of the Girls at Hudson's Children's Home.Mercy in one of the rooms.

The way home was much faster than the way going and we arrived back at our new “home” weary but satisfied. We had dinner with another team member Lia, who is also staying at Hotel Ivory and will be here a week after we go home.

I can see that God is bringing very special people into our lives, as He is preparing a place for us here. God is good!

1-25 Sunday: Saying Goodbye…

We spent the day at Hope today. As we arrived, we were ushered into the church were Pastor Simon was teaching. At Bethel church, the service starts early and continues throughout the day. We were honored today to have Dr. Nsaba Buturo, Minister of Ethics & Integrity (One of the President cabinet’s members), his wife Edith and children join us today as they were invited to preside over a dedication service for the two new classrooms Show Mercy and their partners have built for Alpha Omega School. The service was beautiful, lively, and inspiring. Our Hope children had prepared a dance (to worship music) that was dedicated as a thank you to our team. Tears ran down my face as I watched them dressed in white shirts, with ribbons tied to their hands and around their heads praising the Lord with their African dance moves so gentle and sweet. As I watched, I heard the Lord whisper to me, “This is what it’s all about. They are why you are here. I love them so much and want them protected and brought up in my ways.” These children have lived such hard lives for their years, but now they know they have been saved by a God who knows them and loves them. Their souls are at peace, they are in a family, their needs are being met and they give all the glory to God.

When it was time to pray for the people in need of healing, salvation and deliverance it was not our team who was called to come up to pray for the people. Instead we called the children of Hope to come up and step into their destiny of service to their people. One by one they stepped forward and so did many people in the church that were in need of prayer. Our team surrounded the people in support of our children, praying the Lord would hear their prayers and do a work of His Spirit. The Lord honored all of our prayers this day and it felt to me like a beginning. For many Ugandans the white man has been seen as an answer to their problems. But I see the Lord is doing a new work. It will be a work started in the hearts of these children; children who have seen the power of His name, children who love Him and have experienced His love, children who desire to be all they can be for Him.

After church came the dedication service, lunch, then some visiting and goodbyes. As the team headed back to the hotel, someone asked “What one word sums up this visit to Uganda?” One said “Wow’, another “Missionary”, my answer was “Fellowship”. The fellowship of believers has been so sweet. The team, the children, the Ugandan church, the house mamas, cooks, teachers and staff have all worked together and sacrificed to produce a beautiful perfume for the Lord’s enjoyment.

It was sad to say goodbye to our team as there are many from other states that we may not see again. But we are glad to have shared this time and experience together.

Goodbyes are Hard to Do

The morning meeting was a bit rough as the team realized this would be the last full day as a team at Hope. As a team we have done very well together. Everyone has enjoyed each other’s company and we all have functioned as a team. It’s hard to believe our time together is drawing to an end. Randy and I of course will remain for 10 more days, others will stay longer. But most of our team will leave tomorrow night. It is sad to say goodbye to those who have been our fellow workers in the Lord.

As we headed out to Hope today, it sounded so easy; we planned to stop, pick up some water jugs to set up a hand washing station for the children, a few gifts and 20 pineapples for the lovely people who serve the children at Hope. But then I guess we forgot where we were. This is Africa…. And after boarding the bus which was over an hour late due to a flat tire, we were on our way. How do I describe our stop to shop? Let’s just say we Mazungus were the morning entertainment! The first store was like an old five and dime store of the past and luckily we found most of what we wanted. We soon were on our way only to turn back because we had not realized the area was the only place we could stop for pineapple as well. Only problem was there was nowhere to park and a traffic jam so we parked the bus at a gas station and some of us got out, walked along the street and waited while on one side of the street while our Ugandan friends bargained for the best price on the other side. This is where the entertainment for the street people came in. I guess we were quite and unusual sight. While waiting we ran in to two girls from Hope, Ruth and Virginia who were shopping for groceries. Unfortunately, Ruth gave some groceries to a boda boda (motorcycle) driver telling him to take them to our bus, only to have a lot of confusion thinking he had not delivered them. Not only that, but standing across the street we lost sight of Simon and Edward (our friends) and headed back to the bus empty handed while Randy went to find them. All in all our stop was about 2 hours but the good news is we all made it to Hope and one of our team members, Danny even led one of the street vendors to the Lord in the process!! God is so good!

Once at Hope the children were so excited and we spent some time enjoying the day with them. Another thing we did was call in all the teachers and moms to give them the “hand washing lesson” and pass out small gift bags we had prepared for them. It was a wonderful time of blessing and we even game Miriam, our cook a baby shower “American Style”. After all that we had more time just to spend with these people we have come to know and love. Each one is such a treasure.

Randy and I are glad we have more time here. There is much we want to do for ourselves in our remaining time here but we are also grateful for some more time to spend with the children and helping Show Mercy in their mission of love in Uganda.

Our Trip to Jinja

There comes a time for all missionaries to take a day of rest. On Thursday morning we packed up and headed to Jinja to see the head waters of the Nile and Bujagali Falls. It was a long ride (about 2 1/2 hrs) to reach our destination, but along the way there were lots of sights to see, lunch to take in (Alisa had a hamburger and French fries!) and shopping to do. As you can see by the pictures the head waters of the Nile and the Falls are well worth the drive and it was a relaxing day. After our sight seeing spent the night at the “Paradise on the Nile” hotel. That is where we took the picture of the bats, see the posting below.

In the morning after breakfast we headed back to Kampala. We had plans to make stop at a hospital in Lugazi’s local hospital, but we received a phone call saying that they already had too many visitors. So, this gave us some free time. Some went to the Equator, Alisa stayed to go shopping and Randy went to Uganda Immigration Office to find out what it will take to move here and get a work Visa.

Tomorrow’s plan is to spend the day at Hope cleaning and getting ready for the dedication service on Sunday. We will be dedicating two new classrooms and Uganda’s Minister of state, Ethics & Integrity is planning to join us. Now this man is the 3rd highest political member of the Uganda government. He reports to the President of Uganda! Mike, Lori, Randy and Alisa went to dinner with him and his wife. During dinner Randy simply invited them to join us for this dedication, not ever imagining him accepting. Well he did. Now the panic is on to get the place ready!

Most of the team will leave to go home Sunday night, but Randy and I will be moving to a hotel located near Hope where we will spend more time with the kids, take care of some things for Show Mercy and try to make more connections for our up and coming move to Uganda as long-term missionaries.

We don’t know how many posts we will be able to make since there is no internet at this hotel but we will try, as there is an internet café near by.

God has been good and has shown up in many ways. It is good to know we serve a true, faithful, and wonderful God.

Oh My... There were Bats!

We were at Jinja, about 75 miles to the east of our usual location of Kampala. We had been at Head waters of The Nile river and were heading to our hotel, when some noticed bats... lots of bats. I took this photo from our hotel balcony. The black specks are huge bats the size of crows. The sky was filled for a mile wide and they flew past in this quantity for more than 30 minutes, until the sun went down and it was too dark to see them, but you could hear their wings and chirps. It was an amazing sight.

We Gave Your Socks Away Today…

The Church (yes it's a Church and not a barn).

My favorite thing to do... photograph my kids.

Playing ball on holiday.

The Village Watering Hole. A good one!

A New Beliver In Christ. Alisa prayed the Salvation Pray with.

A Child with Cancer.

Our son’s Elijah and Gabe with the help of their sister Leilani took up the challenge before our trip to gather socks for us to give out in Uganda. They called the drive “Socks of Love for Uganda.” Their efforts brought great success and the night before we left we counted 514 pairs of socks!! Since we had so many socks to hand out we have been able to spread a lot or love to the Ugandan people. It is amazing to me how the thoughtfulness of people clear across the world can lift the spirits of people who have so many struggles in life. Elijah packing the Socks!

We had an early morning wake up call today, so sleepy eyed we went to breakfast, had a short prayer meeting and headed to the bus. Our early morning destination was Mulago Hospital’s Cancer Unit. Last June the Show Mercy team began to forge a relationship with this hospital. Our hope is to help them in many positive ways, but first we must build a trusting relationship. Last June we brought little stuffed animals; today we brought blankets made especially for the children and socks and soap for the adults. The Hospital administrator led us through each ward one at a time. The plight of the people there seemed more than we could bear, yet as we spoke with them, prayed with them and handed out our gifts of love we saw a light come to there faces and hope spring up in their hearts. A happy patient with new socks.

While there I (Alisa) met Christopher, a man suffering from liver cancer. As I talked with him he shared that he is born again. Finding that we have Jesus in common was joyful for both of us. We talked about how we will dance together when we are in heaven!! I prayed for his healing and before we left he was up and walking around. Alisa and Christopher

Life in Africa is hard. When you are sick, you think a hospital is a good place to go but we were told that many people die in the hospital simply because they do not have anyone to take care of them. If a family member is not there, they do not get fed and if you don’t have the money to pay for the medicine you need, you will not get treatment until you are able to buy the medication and bring them over to the hospital.

In the children’s unit there were sometimes more than one in a bed and the tumors which would have been removed routinely in America were not dealt with. This leaves many little ones disfigured and in pain.

I (Randy) had a huge blessing from God today. I was walking through the ward (yes I was in a hospital) when I came upon one man. He was so weak he could barely hold up his head as he sat on the edge of his bed. I went over to him. I asked him if I could pray for him and if he was born-again. He nodded and then pointed to a bible written in the local language, and he replied he knew the Lord, “see my bible”? We prayed for a few minutes and you could see the peace in his eyes knowing there was someone who cared enough to share Christ’s love. I saw another and went to pray for him. He was too weak to even move. He was hurting; you could see the pain when he tried to move. I ask him if he was born again. He said he went to church but was not a “Born again” and there he was a few minutes later, a Brother in Christ. A new Christian, with Angles sing and dancing in heaven. We serve a great God, one who loves us and wants the best for us. I am so blessed to be part of His plan.

We are going to another hotel for a night in a town called Jinja. It is at the headwaters of the Nile River. If I can find an internet café, I will post another blog.

We love to see your comments, please keep them coming.

A Day Filled with Overflowing Emotions

We gathered in the morning to go to the village of Kaliti to hand out blankets and mosquito nets. It’s about an hour drive from our hotel, but with extra traffic it seemed to take a bit longer. The last several miles are on red dirt roads, but today we had a bit of rain which turned the roads into a very slick surface. At times we all wondered if the old bus would make it or get stuck. We arrived to see a crowd of children screaming and shrills of excitement! They all knew we were coming to distribute blankets and nets. The recipients of the gifts were a group of disabled villager, some blind or deaf, some with birth defects, some with sever injuries; but all with hearts are all full of love and appreciation for what they were receiving. I am amazed each and every time with the graciousness and honest gratitude people show for our actions. The smiles and the hugs are priceless.

Afterwards we drove another mile or so to the property we call “The Field of Dreams”. We walked the area dreaming and trying to visualize the homes, the dormitories, the social hall, the kids’ cottages, and everything else that will make this area a home to so many. I looked over the area and imagined the 100 or maybe 200 kids running around and the short term missionaries playing with them. I imagined the sound of life in a new community where kids will be raised up knowing and loving the Lord, where they are raised up know they are safe, knowing they will eat every day, where they will receive a good education. My dream keeps going…

The hard part of the day came when we returned to Hope Children’s Home, it was later than we had planned and everyone was waiting for us. They were ready for something, but we did not know what. We gathered in the social area and were told that the children had testimonies to give; testimonies of their lives before Hope. The children, one by one, told their stories. Their stories were filled with horrific things, unspeakable things. They shared how their days had been full of torture and neglect at the hands of those who should have loved and cared for them. They seemed to just recite their stories, one more time; but then the oldest girl at the home, Ruth, would translate them into English. When they heard their stories retold, it appeared the reality hit them, that this was their life. The pain was great. Their tears rolled down their cheeks, some would have to stop, and they tried to be strong. They wiped the tears away, only to have more tears flow. One by one our team member’s went to hugged, hold and comforted them as they finished. For a long while they came and sat on our laps. One girl was only two chairs away, and I could see her crying for the next 20 minutes. It was true raw grief. I spoke with Pastor Prossy afterwards and she thanked us for listening to her kids. She said it was part of their healing process. I know she is right, but it was heart wrenching. I praise the Lord we were all there to love and hug these kids. When I see these things, I know why we send teams to Uganda; to simply love these children and help them heal.

The meeting before we handed out the blankets and sleeping nets.

A little boy who received a blanket and sleeping net.

Children at Hope that still need sponsors.

We finished the day celebrating Lori Salley’s birthday, not sure which one, but we went to a nice Chinese dinner at Fang Fang’s. A must when you visit Kampala.

1-19 Another Day in Paradise!

Today Randy and Alisa were split up!! Randy went on a wild ride in Kampala searching for mosquito nets, blankets and generators. It was a very challenging journey as today was College graduation day and the streets were completely full of people coming to celebrate the great accomplishments of their children. Traffic was as bad as I could ever imagine. There were cars, trucks, buses, and motorcycles all moving within inches of each other jockeying for position. There were tens of thousands of people EVERYWHERE. It was astonishing how crowded it was, but we got all of our tasks done!

Alisa on the other hand went back out to Hope. The mission today was to begin to interview each and every child living at Hope to find out more information for their files. It was a wonderful experience and opportunity to get to know the children better one on one. In the afternoon it was time for some village ministry. We went out in groups to meet the neighbors, introducing ourselves, giving gifts of socks and soap, asking if we could pray for them and inviting them to church. All the village people we met were open and receptive. One woman prayed to accept Jesus, praise the Lord!

Randy and Alisa connected again at dinner where we met up with Megan Espinoza an architect (raised in Portland) who works for EMI a Christian engineering nonprofit here in Uganda. We also met with Patrick our builder and our friend Pastor Hudson joined us as well. It seems the Lord is helping us make so many connections we need. We feel like we are watching His plan unfold before our eyes. Amen!

Sunday, a Day of Rest??

Sunday was not a day of rest for us missionaries here in Uganda. But, it was a great day of ministry! We started out with team members being dropped off at various churches in Ganda Village (near Hope) to join with Ugandan believers in their services. Randy and Alisa got dropped off together at Pastor Samuel’s church. As we walked in the small church with banana branch walls and a tin roof we were met very kindly by about 20 adults and 15 children. We couldn’t help but smile as they praised, worshipped, danced and encouraged each other with testimonies of God’s goodness. Although English is the national language, most people in the village speak Luganda, so we had Pamela a young woman we met last year as our interpreter. Soon, it was our turn as visitors to share. Each of our six team members got up and shared a message the Lord had laid on our hearts. The last one to share was Randy, and boy can he preach!!! It was amazing and the Ugandan people really enjoyed his humor, his delivery and his message. Afterward we stayed to pray over everyone who wanted prayer. From the oldest to the youngest, they all came forward so we could lay hands on them and pray for them. Soon we were back on the bus heading for Hope, having lunch and getting back on the bus going to a prison. We went to the same prison we went to last June. As we arrived another team of missionaries were there meeting with the prisoners. They must have really paved the way for Jesus because after our team members finished speaking almost every hand went up to accept the Lord!! One of our staff members told us he heard them comment that the Lord must really love them because so many visitors had come to see them that day.

Pastor Simon, a pastor at the church that meets at “Hope” has a real passion for prisoners and was so happy we had gone with him.

The last stop in our mission filled day was to go back to Hope and host a showing of the Jesus Film. The church was full of children and adults from the village. It was so cool to hear the children cheering Jesus as the super hero that He is!! No batman or superman for them.

We were all very tired when we finally got back on the bus to head to the Hotel, but we all thought it was a very good day.

Are you ready to have fun?

“Did you know they didn’t sleep last night?” Teacher Paul told us as we greeted him. “Some of them were so excited they were awake by 3 in the morning and couldn’t get back to sleep!” We all laughed as we entered the amusement park the Show Mercy team had arranged as a treat for the 94 orphans that live at Hope Children’s Home.

Located in Kampala, Didi’s Adventure World Park is much like an amusement park you might see in an old movie. It is not quite Disneyland but to these children it is a happy place!! There is the Pirate Ship ride that swings from one end to another, the Octopus ride that scrambles you around as you go up and down, the Caterpillar ride that is a roller coaster of the small variety, a water slide that empties you out into a small pool, and more. Today Show Mercy hired three small busses to bring all the children to the park for a day of fun.

(Even Mike was having some fun).

As they walked into the park we asked them “Are you ready to have fun?” And of course like any other child in the world they replied a resounding “Yes!” And fun they had, going on rides, walking around, and playing with the Mazungus (white people) who love them. With only one exception everyone had a great time they will not soon forget. Unfortunately, little Eric came down with Malaria. He was at the park and his fever spiked to 104 degrees. After praying for him and asking the Lord to heal him he went with Pastor Prossy to a near by clinic where he received a malaria test and a treatment for his illness. But even little Eric rallied after his treatment and was able to have a little fun. This is Africa. These kids face a hard life, but our God is faithful and today He blessed us all. There is so much poverty, sickness, death, and injustice in this part of the world. Words cannot express all we have seen here. It struck us today though that these are our kids. We may not be able to solve all the worlds problems but we can invest our lives in these 94 orphans and make not only a difference in their lives but also the lives they will touch as they grow up in a harsh country showing others the love they have been shown themselves. One of the older kids is named Peter. We call him “Peter Painter” because he is an artist and loves to paint. He is home for Holiday right now and we found out he has been elected President of his class. He attributes this directly to the love he has been shown by Jesus through Show Mercy. His life before coming to the home was unspeakably tragic and he doesn’t like to think about what his life would have been like if not for the love and care he has received at Hope Children’s Home. We can’t tell you what a privilege it is to have the opportunity to serve the Lord in this way.