Pastor John picks up our team of 6 and we will pile into his little Suzuki SUV that also carries 2 translators with us. Thats 9 of us in total that squish together making full use of the smallest third row seating you can imagine. This wouldn’t be too uncomfortable on a short drive, but lately the villages that we drive to are 1-2 hours away. The roads we travel along, well aren’t really roads at all. They’re more like dirt trails that have been cleared of brush so villagers can make their way to town on bicycle or by foot. There are pot holes large enough to bury a zebra in, and our driver, pastor John, finds is quite humorous to drive as fast as possible no matter the tole it takes on his vehicle or on us. We in the back of the SUV often find ourselves airborne, smacking our heads on the ceiling or trying to soften the blows to our tailbones. He drives kind of like I ski, fast and on the edge of losing control. (Mom and dad, if you’re reading this, I don’t really ski like that.) These dirt roads would be a good test for the Baja 500 race (an off-road race in Baja Mexico). Or maybe a better way to describe the journey to those in S. California is like the Indiana Jones ride at Disney Land, but without seat belts and going 50mph! Sometimes my fear is moreso for the school kids walking along side the road who are just feet from our SUV barreling down the road.
Most afternoons it rains which causes a muddy and slick drive home… One such afternoon we spun out right into a mud ditch. I honestly thought it would require a tow truck to get us out (which of course don’t exist in Uganda). But thank god there were villagers around to help us push through at least 50 yards of the slickest mud you can imagine.
All that to say that at the end of these roads to seemingly no where, will magically appear a village that I swear you would only see in National Geographic episode. We are often welcomed along the road while still driving by women of all ages singing and dancing along side the car as they usher and welcome us into their village. At one point i thought an elderly woman, who must have been well in here 60’s, was going to pass out as she danced along side our car for nearly a kilometer. We arrive to their church which is almost always what looks like a larger mud hut thats about the size of the average American living room. Literally this building is made only of dried clay, dirt floors, and a straw roof. There is raucous dancing and singing going on inside the hut which usually creates quite the dust cloud, not to mention the occasional chicken and chicks that meander through the sanctuary that only help solidify that fact that I’m the Middle of No Where village in East Africa Uganda.
After jumping around with the locals during worship, sometimes almost as if I were at a concert back home, we introduce ourselves like the starting line up of the Lakers before tip-off. From Springfield Missouri, standing 5 foot 3 inches, 23 years old and in her rookie season right out of college….Brittanyyyy Cox! (and the crowd goes wild…ahhhh!) Ok, maybe we don’t list our height, but everything else is pretty much how it goes.
Once all the players…ahem, I mean teammates are introduced, we play a quick game of Rock, Paper, Scissors, to determine which 2 or 3 will give the message/ testimony that day. Yea right…we take it much more serious than that! Its usually decided right before we get out of the car to see if the heinous two hour off-roading excursion jarred a message in anyone that they felt led to share. I’m guessing this is what the World Race was going for when they informed me they are a Spirit led organization once I arrived to training camp. For example, just a couple days ago, I was quite convinced I wouldn’t be speaking that day, but literally on the ride over I had such a message start to formulate. In all my years of sunday school and church camp, I don’t recall ever hearing a message on the book of Job nor did I ever take the time to explore it for myself. Just this past week I started reading and was amazed by Job chapter 1- which tells the story of Job and how in almost an instance his life was seemingly ruined as all his wealth and all 10 of his kids were destroyed, but he was still able to say, “Blessed be the name of the Lord!” Thats crazy, right!? Read it for yourself if you haven’t.
Didn’t have any notes prepared and really didn’t have more than about 30mins of thinking about it before I gave what was probably one of my favorite messages of the trip so far. One thing is for sure, this wasn’t done on my own power or skill because this is certainly not how I normally operate. But in times like these, I get glimpses of how the Spirit can work in me to encourage and edify the larger body as a whole. Turns out this gathering I spoke at that day was more of pastors conference but villagers were there as well. One of the elders of the church approached me afterwards and said that was a message these people needed to hear and that it was a timely word. Sweet deal!
Basically thats what I’ve been up to this past month in Uganda. In about a week, I will hopefully be leading my team and squad successfully across the Tanzanian border to enter into our last month in Africa!
PS- Go Lakers! Actually caught Sports Center highlights of the home opener! Absolutely made my day!
*Very Important- on that note, if anyone wants to drop Laker updates on my blog comments from time to time, I would be forever grateful! You can comment on my blog too… either would make me smile!!!
