Living out of tents.
Long days of hot, hot weather.
Oogali (African cornmeal) for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
These were our expectations heading into Africa and within 24 hours of being at our ministry location, they were blown out of the water. Now we still have two more months in Kenya and Tanzania, so there is definitely time for these to come to pass, but as for Uganda it has been quite the opposite.
This month, my team and I are staying in the province of Masaka. We are living in the small “town” of Kybakuza (Chy-bakuza), 10 minutes away from Masaka Town. While Kybakuza is considered a “town” or small city, from an American perspective it would be characterized as a village. Several Western “basics” are lacking such as sewage systems, running water, and Internet communication. Meals are cooked over coal “stoves” because while we have electricity, it goes in and out. Thankfully mosquitoes haven’t been much of an issue; an occasional bite here and there but not the malaria monsters we were anticipating.
But let’s get back to the blown expectations. First off, the morning and evening weather is SO cool. Before going outside, I usually put on longer pants, a jacket, and socks because it is so chilly. However by mid-day when we are outside washing lunch dishes, we all need sunscreen. We are located just 30 minutes below the equator, so the sun comes out in full force! But we have had many rainy and cloudy days thus far, which has been nice, since it settles the dusty roads and makes walking around quite enjoyable.
My team is living with a local minister, Pastor John, and his family. Staying with this family has been a highlight of the month thus far! His wife Grace is AMAZING and they have three young children, Gift, Michelle, and Melissa. Michelle and Melissa are twins, which are VERY common in, Uganda. In fact they are so common they have special names in Ugandan: Babidia, for the oldest and Nakato, for the youngest. So Michelle and Melissa are often referred to with these names rather than their own. Pastor John and Grace are involved in so many different ministries and steward each of them so well! We learned last night that a little over a year ago, Pastor John was very sick and while recovering from his illness, the Lord spoke to him in a dream that he would have 18 ministries over the next 18 months! Right now they are involved in 9 and are anticipating more, ready to do whatever the Lord asks.
The girls moved out of their rooms to stay with their parents for a month, so we could stay in the house. Each team member has a bed and every week they provide us with clean sheets! Grace is an amazing cook and is always preparing for the next meal. In Uganda, they have 22 different types of bananas, so we eat a lot of banana dishes. We also enjoy rice, beans, posho (similar to ogali), chapatti, maize, avocado & mango, tomatoes & onions, peas, and several different soups. See what I’m saying with the blown expectations?
As I mentioned, Pastor John and Grace have their hands in all types of ministries, so we definitely have a lot to do! But even above the titled ministries, their heart is for their friends and community to know the love of Jesus. We spend several hours each day going door-to-door, sharing the gospel and speaking identity over the lost sons and daughters of Kybakuza. While most people in the community would consider themselves “Christian”, many have never had a personal encounter with Jesus. In fact, the majority have never heard the full gospel story and upon hearing desire to hear more and even confess Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Three encounters from this past week stand out: sharing the story of the prodigal son with 20 children, telling my friend Harriet, who had never heard the gospel, about the love of Jesus; and praying with several older women who either cannot have children or have lost their children, for physical healing and emotional restoration. Spending time with the people in the community and verbally sharing about the love of Jesus is my favorite part of this month!
Pastor John and Grace’s main ministry is through their church and school, Liberty Canaan. The church meets 3-4 times throughout the week for worship, Bible study, and intercession, so we participate in each of those. Most schools in Uganda are on vacation right now, so while we aren’t working with the students we have been helping around the grounds. There are 150 students at Liberty Canaan and 50 are orphans who live on-site throughout the school year. Many students cannot afford to go to school so Pastor John raises animals himself to help cover their fees. Since the farm is located on school property, the curriculum includes learning hands-on skills for raising animals and growing crops.
And this is just the beginning of Pastor John and Grace’s ministry. Other ministries we will be participating in include prison ministry, youth netball & soccer outreaches (this past week we had over 200 people), evangelism in the villages, and more!
While they have their hands (and hearts) in so many different places, Pastor John and Grace work so diligently and never cease giving thanks to God for all that He has given them. After every meal, we sing a song of praise thanking God for His provision in the big and small things.
God has been teaching me a lot this month already, and I can’t wait to share! He has used the praise and thanksgiving I see in Grace and John’s life to reveal a spirit of entitlement in my own. Entitlement is deadly, robbing us of joy and life, as it prevents us from sacrificially giving AND receiving. Hopefully several blogs will be coming soon to share in depth about what I am learning.
There is so much more I could share, but I will stop here. Thanks for reading!
Tons and tons of love from Uganda 🙂 🙂 🙂
