I can distinctly remember moments throughout the past year where I would allow thoughts of what ministry would look like on the race to completely and utterly overtake my mind. It was often during times of stress or irritation as I neared the end of my service in the Army. Some sort of insignificant event would occur at work and I would turn to my First Sergeant and say “Top, I seriously cannot wait to be holding orphans in Africa.” It became a way to put my life and stressors into perspective because I understood that at the end of the day the fact that having a last minute tasking thrown my way or having a horrible month of recruiting was so incredibly fleeting and insignificant compared to the Kingdom Perspective God was granting me. Other times the desire to just serve anyone and everyone around the globe would overwhelm me. My trip to Ethiopia back in March truly served to flame that desire and I would have moments where I felt like I would explode over the thought of getting the chance to travel to some of the darkest places around the world in the name of Christ.
Now here I am, one week into what will amount to just under a year full of ministry. Team Liora, without a doubt, has amazing opportunities with multiple ministries here in Rukungiri that I am not sure exist very often on the race. Our host, Reverend Enoch, works for the Rukungiri Diocese which falls up under the Anglican Church of Uganda. The format is very similar to that of the Catholic church in that there is a Bishop assigned to this region as well as many subordinate leaders of the church. Because this is the main church in this region there are extensive programs that the Diocese supports. While Enoch is technically our host we actually are partnering with multiple people throughout the Diocese and are involved in roughly four separate ministries every week. A typical week looks something like this, although the actual days change around:
Monday: Free Day (always).
Tuesday: Chili Children. This ministry involves families with children affected by severe disabilities. Everything from cerebral palsy to autism to hydrocephalus are conditions we are encountering. Here in Uganda there is a perspective that people with disabilities have curses upon them. They are therefore outcasts of society and get little to no acceptance, support, or in some cases love. The ministry is called Chili Children because when the program was first started small Chili plants were given to the families so they might grow the chilis and sell them as a way to make an income. There are actually two components to Chili Children. The first is home visits which we conduct with an Occupational Therapist named Evas (she is the Point of Contact for the ministry). A home visit is interesting both for Team Liora as well as the family. I am quite sure that most of these families have never had five white Americans/Canadians sitting in their humble homes and quite frankly unless an American has visited a third world country at some point I can assure you they have never seen conditions like these. Yet, there is always an attitude of appreciation and pride stemming from the residents. They are excited you are there to visit and fellowship. They think nothing of giving you the last of anything they have and it is extremely difficult to accept it knowing you have everything you can possibly need. The second component, which we have yet to experience (it is scheduled for tomorrow, 22 Sep), is the clinic. Evas hosts a clinic in which disabled children from all over are brought for treatment. I do not have many details on exactly what this will look like but Amanda warned the team that it was going to be an emotionally taxing day as we will encounter many children with severe brain damage.
Wednesday and Thursday: Canon Beatrice Training Center. This is a school about a two minute walk from our house and it houses orphaned women aged sixteen to about eighteen. The school offers courses in hair styling, knitting, sewing, tailoring, basket weaving, etc. From what I understand all but two of the girls both live and attend school here. They stay in dormitory-style rooms and it actually looks a lot like the open bays with bunkbeds where Soldiers live during Basic Training. Our ministry here is simply to spend time with the girls getting to know them and allow them to teach us their skills. Watching them beam with pride as they show off their abilities in tasks in which we are not proficient feels to me like watching my younger sister excel at her gifts and talents. Last week they decided to sit me in front of a non-electric sewing machine that utilizes a foot pedal and pulley system. It was not pretty. I can play sports, I can work out, I could probably even play a musical instrument with the right lessons. I cannot sew if it requires the use of my feet and hands at the same time. At least I provided endless entertainment to both the girls as well as my team. A video exists and it will probably surface at some point. This particular ministry seems to be a team favorite because it is literally a ton of girls just hanging out and giggling…it feels like Girls’ Night Out (shout out to my GNO group in RVA).
Friday: Hospital. This ministry is pretty straight forward as it involves praying for and spending time with women in labor as well as those who have just given birth. I was out of town last week so I have not yet personally been but I am seriously hoping to see some fresh babies this week (#expectations #prayingforfreshbabies).
Saturday: Teen Moms. This is Enoch’s personal ministry (it does not actually fall under the Diocese). In Uganda if a women becomes pregnant outside of wedlock, regardless of whether or not it was consensual or she was raped, more often than not she becomes an outcast. Neither her family nor her immediate community surround her but instead she is expected to leave and find a way to survive. We meet with a group of about ten young women and their children who range in age from two months to roughly five years. We color, blow bubbles, play with action figures, and sing with the kids and the young mothers interact with us as best as they can. Strangely enough most of them do not speak English like the majority of Ugandans. I appreciate the time we can spend with them, however, because I know it must be so nice for these single mothers to be able to just sit with other women like them and have a little break from caring for their children. We simply try to make them feel loved and accepted for the short amount of time we get with them each week. Enoch’s wife and son, Constance and Seth, put together a small meal of some sort and we also do a five to ten minute lesson given by one of our team members. The very first Saturday I gave a short lesson on children being a gift from God and the responsibilities the mothers have to raise their children in a Godly home. The Lord’s unending grace and love are topics we always incorporate because more than anything these women need to understand that nothing they have done or that has been done to them can separate them from His Love, especially in a culture where the victims of sexual assault are blamed as opposed to the perpetrator.
Sunday: Church. Reverend Enoch typically rotates around the different churches in the region so the Diocese remains present on a regular basis. Due to our schedule, however, it seems that we will not have the chance to join him on these rotations. The first Sunday we were here we were out of town, this past Sunday we attended church here at the Diocese, next Sunday we will be doing a ministry with street kids a couple of hours away, and the final Sunday is still up in the air. This past Sunday the team taught children’s church. Everyone is together for worship and then the children are released for their sermon as the adults receive the sermon in the sanctuary. Debbie, our resident school teacher, took the lead and taught the children the story of Zacchaeus. We had about 100 children, plus a couple of Ugandan Sunday School teachers (thank God), and we gathered in a field about a two minute walk from the church. We did a five minute instruction where Debbie told the story and the rest of the team acted it out. I played the tree that Zacchaeus climbed because…well duh…I mean I don’t act and I seem to always get chosen to carry people on my back. We also taught them a song about the story and by “we” I mean Debbie and Ashley because I sure as heck do not remember childhood bible songs at this point. I just stood next to them doing the hand movements and I was darn good at it if I do say so myself. At some point cows started walking by (and mooing) behind the children as we were giving the lesson…just another day in Ruku I suppose. The children were totally unfazed. I may have tried to climb on one and ride it had I not been in a skirt. Plus, my team would probably have voted me off the island.
Monday through Friday we attend morning devotionals from 0830 until about 0930. Time is always subject to change here in Africa. I say Africa and not just Uganda because it was the exact same in Ethiopia.
This is pretty much what a typical ministry week looks like. During down time we often gather in the living area of the house and talk about anything and everything. It feels like we get endless amounts of girl time and I do not believe we have found an off-limits topic as of yet. We cook meals on an almost daily basis and this is usually about an hour and a half to two hour production. Since we do not have a stove, oven, or microwave our only real heat sources for cooking are two small clay pots that hold charcoal. They look very similar to pots used for planting except they have holes all around for oxygen. I spend most of my time with my mouth roughly two inches from these holes blowing air into the charcoal to keep it hot enough to cook. The team has yet to master the art of heating charcoal without lighter fluid and if it weren’t for the locals or Amanda I am fairly certain we would be on a totally raw diet. We always have at least an hour or so each day where we come together as a team to just be together, talk about the day, talk about ups and downs, and then get off topic about some funny story from our past. Generally speaking this occurs around dinner and beyond.
I feel extremely blessed to have the opportunity to participate in so many different types of ministry in this first month. I am not sure I’ll know what to do with myself when we have only one ministry focus. I am still trying to wrap my head around the things I have seen this week as I am sure there are lessons to be found. In the meantime do not hesitate to follow my team mates’ blogs because it will give you different perspectives on our time here. On the left side of this blog you will see a tab that reads “Meet My Team” and you can follow that to their blogs. Until next time enjoy that cool autumn weather as it approaches and enjoy a Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte and a Chick-Fil-A #1 for me!
One last thing…Go Dawgs!
