One room. Outhouses. No power. No running water. Food cooked over a fire. Bath water boiled over a fire. . . .
Yep, we are living it Laura Ingalls Wild style, African version. However, we each get our own individual tub of bath water to take a bucket shower with, so at least we do not have to share water!
We are staying in a small community in a place that is nicknamed “the volunteer house.” Juliet and her kids, plus a few adopted kids also live there. Juliet does all of our cooking, she boils our bath water, and she taught us how to hand wash our laundry!
We arrived in the Mmanze community last Friday night. Our Saturday and Sunday were spent getting to know our lovely host family and having the kids show us around.
On Sunday we went to church at the boarding school church. This is mainly for the secondary students, but Juliet took us there as that is the only church service around that is done in English.
We got to watch a 16 year old boy preach with a passion! The service was led by an amazing group of students who have such spirit. It was very uplifting. As I looked out the window to my left to the schoolyard there was a beautiful purple flowering tree. As I looked over my right shoulder out of the window I was sitting by I overlooked the valley full of trees, plants, and a few houses. A couple of goats grazed just yards from the classroom.
We are working on spending some of this month working with this group of students. We talked to the teacher who is the patron of this group and he told us about their meetings and their purpose. They meet on Sundays for church, but they have other meeting times as well. He helps to teach these students how to preach & evangelize so they can be witnesses to their classmates and to others when they graduate and go out.
Our host, Mr. Mulindwa, is on the board at the school and is helping us get connected with this group, as well as possible programs where we can go and help with soccer and volleyball after school, and also possibly lead an assembly or two for the students sometime during the week.
We are anxious to see what this first month brings.
So far we have seen beauty, resourcefulness, a simpler life, and a passion for God.
Our team has been amazing through it all. We are all experiencing a bit of culture shock and uncomfortableness, but we are learning to enjoy the small things; like the unripe oranges that taste more like sour candy than oranges!! And also chasing around the baby ducks on the yard. Derek finally caught one yesterday! Oh and you can’t forget the “short walks” that turn into an hour hike to go find some sugar cane to munch on!
Thank you for your prayers and support! We will update you when we can!
Journal Entry: Saturday, Sept 12, Evening
“I am watching two young boys play soccer with a water bottle. It almost looks like a dance with the way they move around. Remmy, the 2 year old, finally has some clothes on and his favorite toy at the moment is a 2 liter plastic bottle.
My view from the shower (a cement room outside next to our “toilets”) included a giant anthill, a newly started garden, and at one point a long horned cow that went grazing by.
The kids just came over as we were writing in our journals on the patio out front. Joviah asked Amanda if she was holding her Bible, she wasn’t, but I had mine. They were excited to see it, hold it, and read it.
I turned them to Psalm 23 and told them it was my favorite. They said they had a song about it, but couldn’t remember it right then, but they recited the Lord’s Prayer for us.
I pray for our ministry to be these kids and this community. I pray for health, both spiritually and physically.”
We are also praying for the remainder of our support to come through!! You can help to support us through your prayers but also financially by clicking the “Support Me” button on our blog and donating to our race!!
Thank you!
