Hello!
I can’t believe month one of my race is already over!!
This post is a short recap of all that happened in month one (Uganda), enjoy!
Most of my time in Uganda was spent training: the first week we did training camp, took a break for Sabbath rest for a few days, then continued training for three more days. After that, our squad split up into our smaller teams of 4-6 people and dispersed throughout Uganda to serve wherever God led us for the next 8 days.
My team, Team Deep: (from left) Christie, Tori, me, and Agnes
Through a series of events, God led my team to work with Amari Uganda, an organization run by ex-street kids who minister to kids living on the streets and in the slums of Kampala, Uganda.
Amari Uganda ultimately aims to get kids off the streets and either reconnect them with their families so they can live at home or, if that’s not an option, connect them to foster parents. Until that happens though, the organization loves and serves the street kids by meeting them where they’re at: they do outreaches in the slums and streets to connect with kids, teach them skills, like making bracelets and other crafts, provide them with meals, and, simply, agree to walk alongside them through life. In addition, they hold a weekly program for the kids to attend; the kids can come to the center to shower and wash their clothes, they give them breakfast and lunch, play group games, worship, and share the gospel.
Some things my teammates and I got to do while serving with Amari was cleaning and moving furniture into the organization’s new center, do day and night outreaches in the slums, cook food for the street boys, and run the weekly program. So, for the weekly program we played games with the boys, sang songs together, and got a chance to testify about the impact Jesus has had on our lives (for all you Young Lifer’s out there this was awesome because it was basically just like running a YL club).
My team was so blessed by this organization. During the week, I had the recurring thought, “Great is Thy faithfulness”. I was reminded of this the most through hearing the stories of our hosts and the street kids (or Heaven’s Angels as I like to call them) we worked with.
We became fast friends with the two founders, Martin and JB, and they taught us a lot about enjoying life even amidst tough circumstances. Their stories are ones of divine transformation. They were both street kids for a number of years, spent time in prison and have struggled with addiction. They were able to get off the streets because an organization came alongside them and helped them. So, that inspired them to do the same for other street kids and eventually led to the formation of Amari. Jesus brought them out of the darkness and is now using them as witnesses of His love and faithfulness to bring others out of the same darkness they’ve experienced. Martin and JB’s courage and tenacity toward loving this vulnerable group of children is inspiring. They never quit and are willing to go to any length to serve the children.
Great is Thy faithfulness.
The kids’ stories were heartbreaking. There are kids of all ages living on the streets, some are even born on the streets. They’ve already seen and experienced deep, traumatic events at their young ages. Most of the kids struggled with addiction. They were hated, neglected and despised by society, constantly being run off and harassed by the police. When I met the boys – got to know them and play with them – I saw the pain, but I also saw joy, life, and hope in them. Even though their life experience is far beyond what a child should experience, at Amari they were free to be just kids; free to play and laugh and be at peace. I know that, unfortunately, that’s not the reality of their everyday lives, but it gives me hope knowing that they have Martin, JB and others pursuing them, fighting for them, and showing them the Father’s love.
One of the boys taught us this song and it is my prayer for them. I pray that all of the children living on the streets will believe this, deep in their hearts. If you feel led, I ask that you pray this for all of the boys and girls living on the streets:
“There is hope
there is hope
that one day my life will be better
there is hope
there is hope
that God will wipe my tears away
I won’t give up
no matter what comes my way
I won’t give up
because He is by my side”
And again I was reminded…
Great is Thy faithfulness.
P.S- Amari currently only works with two girls, Krassoum (age 10) and Mariam (age 2.5) and they are sisters. We got to know them by helping Krassoum get enrolled in school and going with them to visit their mom in prison. Amari has aspirations of working with more girls, however it puts the girls in too vulnerable of a position to house them in the same building with street boys. Their goal is to open a separate home for girls to live in, but funding is a major hindrance. God put this on my heart as something to be praying for, so please join me in prayer for that if you can. If you feel led to donate to the organization you can do so here through their gofundme page: https://www.gofundme.com/2tecur8 .
Thank you for reading!
xx
Jessi
