Michael and Joseph

Michael and Joseph. 
Two very ordinary names that should belong to two ordinary boys playing ordinary games in an ordinary life.

But they don’t belong to two ordinary boys. 

Michael and Joseph live in Uganda.  A country torn apart by war.  A country that is terrorized by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) and it’s leader Joseph Kony.  A country where the phrase “child-headed household” is all too common.  A country that is dark.  A country where satan is alive and well.  A country that needs the healing power of God.

 

See Joseph Kony and the rebels refuse to surrender and continue to wage war.  After 20 years they still refuse to give up.  Many attempts have been made to arrange peace talks.  Joseph Kony has yet to make it to any of them.  He continues to hide and make false promises of hope.  Part of me thinks he is a coward and is afraid that if he does come he will be arrested or worse, killed.  Part of me thinks he doesn’t show up because of his arrogance that he answers to no one but himself.

 

But back to Michael and Joseph.  These two teenagers have arrived at the World Vision Children of War Center after years of being in the LRA.  They were abducted at night from their homes when they were children, probably around 8 or 9 years old.  They were forced to become child soldiers.  What they were forced to do was horrendous.  They had to kill their own brothers and sisters with machetes and then drink the blood of those they killed.  They were involved in gang rapes of girls and became mass murderers.  They were told they would be murdered by their own people if they tried to go home.  They were terrorized into doing what the LRA wanted.

 

Michael and Joseph. 

Finding hope at the World Vision Children of War Center.  Finding love.  Finding forgiveness.  Finding healing.  Finding trust.  Finding God.

 

Uganda is one of the countries we’ll be travelling to.  I have no idea where we’ll be or which mission group we’ll be working with, but my heart goes out to these child soldiers.  I want to work with these vacant souls and put light back into their eyes.  I want to give them hope and love and most of all Jesus.

 

Below is a video called “Invisible Children”.  It’s about 7 minutes long, but explains what is happening in Uganda so much better than I am able.

 **information from invisible children website and “A Hole in Our Gospel”