Sarah, Mr. Elephant, and I!! He came to visit while we were eating dinner.
Us four on opposite hemispheres!
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
A couple more pics...
Sarah, Mr. Elephant, and I!! He came to visit while we were eating dinner.
Us four on opposite hemispheres!
Monday, June 23, 2008
A Burst of Love for You!!!
Greetings to all of you whom I love dearly!!!
I have such a burst of love for all of you!! I just want to thank you once again for making this trip possible through your prayers and financial support. Words cannot describe the impact that is being made on the children here. I really hope you all know that your support is changing lives. Even though you might not be able to see it directly, I can speak with confidence and tell you that it is true. God has been doing a mighty work in all of us here. I wish that each one of you could come here, even for one day and see the work that God is doing in the precious lives of the people here. I hope that in some small way you have been able to see the impact being made thru my pictures and blogs. I thank God everyday for allowing me to be His hands and feet here. I really do not feel worthy of it at all. I’m amazed daily that He chooses to take me, as inadequate as I might be, and use me to reach out and touch other people. He is so good!
We all arrived safely back from our safari. What a blast we had!! We left early Wednesday morning and got on the 5 hour bus ride to Kampala. It was just us four “mzungus” traveling around Uganda. I think that Ken was a little bit worried. After we arrived to Kampala we were supposed to catch a bus to Kasese, but unfortunately we missed it. So we lugged our luggage all around Kampala to find the bank, store, and restaurant. Kampala is SO busy!!! And the drivers! I don’t know where to start! There are not really any rules, lines, signs or crosswalks. So basically if you want to cross the street just step right out into traffic and dodge cars, motorbikes, and other running people. I actually would tend to just look straight ahead, run as fast as I could and pray that I made it to the other side. So if you can imagine us four mzungus carrying all of the luggage for our camping trip in a straight line dodging traffic and people. It was actually quite humorous, after we made it safely to the next bus.
The next day we headed out to Queen Elizabeth National Game Park. It was so beautiful! We got to see so much of God’s creation like, buffalos, elephants, cobes, hippos, crocs, wart hogs, lots of beautiful birds, water bucks, hyenas and maybe a lion but we weren’t quite sure. We got to take a two hour boat ride on the Channel where the hippos would come up right next to the boat. It was so relaxing! Later in the afternoon we went to our campsite to set up camp. No one else was camping which I thought was kinda funny. The area where we camped was so so beautiful. It was located right off Lake Edward. That night we decided to make a fire so we walked down the road to get some matches. We carried two big sticks and rocks in case something decided to attack us. We also bought some eggs so that we could cook them on a rock in the fire. This failed because the rock wasn’t level so it would just slide right off into the fire. It was still fun to try. :) The whole night we heard hippos, hyenas, and wart hogs that had surrounded our camp site. It was awesome! At one time we had a pack of hyenas all around our tent howling or doing whatever it is they do. It’s at times like that where you see how thin the lining on the tent is and just try to fall asleep so that morning will come faster. It was the best night of my life! I mean who can say that they camped out in the African wilderness in a tent with the wildlife all around?
The children were so excited when we returned. They said that even though we were only gone for a couple of days it felt like forever. They would hardly let us return home that night; they were pulling at our arms and standing in front of the gate so that we couldn’t pass. They are already beginning to beg us not to leave them. One girl told me that New Hope is now my home. I can’t imagine when the day comes to say good bye. It makes me teary-eyed to think of it.
Last night, we were getting ready for bed and a couple of the girls came into our rooms to chat. We started showing them some of our things like, tweezers, eyelash curler, retainers, contacts and my fake tooth. It was hilarious to see their faces and expressions. Oh my goodness! We were laughing so hard! They kept asking, “Is it paining?” They are so cute!
I do want to ask you to join me in praying for the Lord to lay it on people hearts to sponsor the children here at New Hope. There are 67 children and only about 15 are sponsored. It has been really eye opening to see how much sponsorship helps the children emotionally and physically. Not only does it provide them with food and school fees but it helps them to feel special because they don’t feel alone. They feel as though someone believes in them and this helps them to succeed. Each child is so precious and unique. I am praying and trusting that someday all the children will be sponsored.
I love you all bunches and bunches! Just like all the bunches of bananas here. :)
Hugs,
Laura (Sanyu)
I have such a burst of love for all of you!! I just want to thank you once again for making this trip possible through your prayers and financial support. Words cannot describe the impact that is being made on the children here. I really hope you all know that your support is changing lives. Even though you might not be able to see it directly, I can speak with confidence and tell you that it is true. God has been doing a mighty work in all of us here. I wish that each one of you could come here, even for one day and see the work that God is doing in the precious lives of the people here. I hope that in some small way you have been able to see the impact being made thru my pictures and blogs. I thank God everyday for allowing me to be His hands and feet here. I really do not feel worthy of it at all. I’m amazed daily that He chooses to take me, as inadequate as I might be, and use me to reach out and touch other people. He is so good!
We all arrived safely back from our safari. What a blast we had!! We left early Wednesday morning and got on the 5 hour bus ride to Kampala. It was just us four “mzungus” traveling around Uganda. I think that Ken was a little bit worried. After we arrived to Kampala we were supposed to catch a bus to Kasese, but unfortunately we missed it. So we lugged our luggage all around Kampala to find the bank, store, and restaurant. Kampala is SO busy!!! And the drivers! I don’t know where to start! There are not really any rules, lines, signs or crosswalks. So basically if you want to cross the street just step right out into traffic and dodge cars, motorbikes, and other running people. I actually would tend to just look straight ahead, run as fast as I could and pray that I made it to the other side. So if you can imagine us four mzungus carrying all of the luggage for our camping trip in a straight line dodging traffic and people. It was actually quite humorous, after we made it safely to the next bus.
The next day we headed out to Queen Elizabeth National Game Park. It was so beautiful! We got to see so much of God’s creation like, buffalos, elephants, cobes, hippos, crocs, wart hogs, lots of beautiful birds, water bucks, hyenas and maybe a lion but we weren’t quite sure. We got to take a two hour boat ride on the Channel where the hippos would come up right next to the boat. It was so relaxing! Later in the afternoon we went to our campsite to set up camp. No one else was camping which I thought was kinda funny. The area where we camped was so so beautiful. It was located right off Lake Edward. That night we decided to make a fire so we walked down the road to get some matches. We carried two big sticks and rocks in case something decided to attack us. We also bought some eggs so that we could cook them on a rock in the fire. This failed because the rock wasn’t level so it would just slide right off into the fire. It was still fun to try. :) The whole night we heard hippos, hyenas, and wart hogs that had surrounded our camp site. It was awesome! At one time we had a pack of hyenas all around our tent howling or doing whatever it is they do. It’s at times like that where you see how thin the lining on the tent is and just try to fall asleep so that morning will come faster. It was the best night of my life! I mean who can say that they camped out in the African wilderness in a tent with the wildlife all around?
The children were so excited when we returned. They said that even though we were only gone for a couple of days it felt like forever. They would hardly let us return home that night; they were pulling at our arms and standing in front of the gate so that we couldn’t pass. They are already beginning to beg us not to leave them. One girl told me that New Hope is now my home. I can’t imagine when the day comes to say good bye. It makes me teary-eyed to think of it.
Last night, we were getting ready for bed and a couple of the girls came into our rooms to chat. We started showing them some of our things like, tweezers, eyelash curler, retainers, contacts and my fake tooth. It was hilarious to see their faces and expressions. Oh my goodness! We were laughing so hard! They kept asking, “Is it paining?” They are so cute!
I do want to ask you to join me in praying for the Lord to lay it on people hearts to sponsor the children here at New Hope. There are 67 children and only about 15 are sponsored. It has been really eye opening to see how much sponsorship helps the children emotionally and physically. Not only does it provide them with food and school fees but it helps them to feel special because they don’t feel alone. They feel as though someone believes in them and this helps them to succeed. Each child is so precious and unique. I am praying and trusting that someday all the children will be sponsored.
I love you all bunches and bunches! Just like all the bunches of bananas here. :)
Hugs,
Laura (Sanyu)
Hello Everyone!
Hey Everybody!
Things are going wonderful here in Uganda. We just got back from our Safari a couple of days ago so I am really blessed to have had the opportunity. It was a crazy long journey but we had a lot of fun times. We woke up very early Wednesday morning and set off to Kampala, the largest city in Uganda to catch a bus to Kasese which is just 45 minutes outside of the game park. We ended up getting to Kampala later than we thought and we missed our bus to Kasese so we had to take a really late one. We were so blessed though because Ken, our director has a brother there and he was able to pick us up and help us find accommodations. The next morning we were able to enter the park and we crossed the equator on the way. We had an amazing driver so we were able to see so many things and animals in the park such as buffalo, warthogs, elephants, koby deer, lions, and all different kinds of birds. We also took a boat ride down the channel and we were able to see hippos, crocodiles, and other animals. It was a really wonderful experience and since all the animals are free to move about wherever they want, we had an elephant walk right by our table while we were eating and it was eating off the grill! We also camped so we got to have animals walk by our tent all night long, the hyenas, warthogs, and other animals were practically sleeping with us. Our campsite also overlooked Edward Lake so the scenery was absolutely beautiful.
Sunday we went to pray and worship with New Hope and it was amazing. It was our second Sunday there and every time we fall in love with it more and more. There is nothing in the world like seeing the children praising and worshiping God together. To them nothing else in the world matters because they are worshipping their God and I am so blessed that it is the same God here in Uganda, Africa that we have in the states.
Everyday we learn more and more from the Ugandan people. They portray such an image of Jesus in their everyday life through their love and servant hood. Please continue to pray for the orphanage and all of the children there. Also the other two volunteers that we are currently serving with are leaving in a week so please pray that their last week would go well and for safe journeys home. Thanks so much for your love, prayers, and support! God bless you
Sarah (Mirembe)
Things are going wonderful here in Uganda. We just got back from our Safari a couple of days ago so I am really blessed to have had the opportunity. It was a crazy long journey but we had a lot of fun times. We woke up very early Wednesday morning and set off to Kampala, the largest city in Uganda to catch a bus to Kasese which is just 45 minutes outside of the game park. We ended up getting to Kampala later than we thought and we missed our bus to Kasese so we had to take a really late one. We were so blessed though because Ken, our director has a brother there and he was able to pick us up and help us find accommodations. The next morning we were able to enter the park and we crossed the equator on the way. We had an amazing driver so we were able to see so many things and animals in the park such as buffalo, warthogs, elephants, koby deer, lions, and all different kinds of birds. We also took a boat ride down the channel and we were able to see hippos, crocodiles, and other animals. It was a really wonderful experience and since all the animals are free to move about wherever they want, we had an elephant walk right by our table while we were eating and it was eating off the grill! We also camped so we got to have animals walk by our tent all night long, the hyenas, warthogs, and other animals were practically sleeping with us. Our campsite also overlooked Edward Lake so the scenery was absolutely beautiful.
Sunday we went to pray and worship with New Hope and it was amazing. It was our second Sunday there and every time we fall in love with it more and more. There is nothing in the world like seeing the children praising and worshiping God together. To them nothing else in the world matters because they are worshipping their God and I am so blessed that it is the same God here in Uganda, Africa that we have in the states.
Everyday we learn more and more from the Ugandan people. They portray such an image of Jesus in their everyday life through their love and servant hood. Please continue to pray for the orphanage and all of the children there. Also the other two volunteers that we are currently serving with are leaving in a week so please pray that their last week would go well and for safe journeys home. Thanks so much for your love, prayers, and support! God bless you
Sarah (Mirembe)
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Week 5!!
Hello to all my dear friends and family!!!!
We are in our 5th week here in the beautiful country of Uganda. Time is flying by so quickly. It is hard to believe!! Sarah and I have grown to love the people here so so much. They have been such a blessing to us, more than we could ever bless them.
Tomorrow we are going to go on a trip to Western Uganda and visit a game park. We are excited to camp a couple of nights at Queen Elizabeth National Park. Hopefully we will be able to see some elephants, giraffes, lions and other big animals. Although we are very excited for this experience we are also very sad to leave our kids. We absolutely love to just spend time with them.
Some of the leaders of New Hope decided to give Jess, Jon, Sarah and I new African names. Jessica’s new name is Kwagala, which means Love. Jon’s is Mukisa, which means Blessing. Sarah’s new name is Mirembe, which means Peace. And my new name is Sanyu, which means Joy. The kids at New Hope love calling us by our new names. It is taking awhile to get used to our new names when they call. They call me Auntie Sanyu. It’s precious!
Saturdays are very full days. It is the day that all the children are there because there is no school. We try to make Saturdays especially fun for the kids with songs, color pages, dance and games. We have learned about love and the love that God had for us to give us His only Son. Also, we have taught about not being afraid and trusting God when we go through hard times. We have learned about the Armor of God as well. These kids have been like little sponges, just soaking up as much as they can about the Bible and Jesus. I am constantly amazed at their eagerness to learn.
Sunday was a very special day for us. We got to help plant a church called New Hope Christian Mission. It is a church that meets at New Hope because it is very hard for them to transport all the children to church on Sundays. We were blessed to be able to pray for the church leaders that the Lord would continue to bless them and grow many people up in the Lord. I love worshipping here in Ugandan churches. They really know how to worship Jesus with their whole bodies. There is a really big excitement that comes when praising Jesus.
Last night we all decided to go to New Hope to have a sleep over with the kids. We brought them all cookies and juice. Then we had a time of praise and worship. We all danced around and praised Jesus. The boys all went with Jon and played capture the flag late into the night. Jon said that they were really good and they were really hard to see. But Jon stood out like a beacon of light. :) Jess, Sarah and I took the girls and told them the story of Jesus washing the disciple’s feet. We told them that Jesus was a servant and that He put others above Himself. We told them that we wanted to serve them by washing their feet and doing their nails. Each one of us had a basin of water, soap, nail polish, and lotion to give the girls pedicures with. After finishing their nails we prayed with them a prayer of blessing and encouragement. It was a great night. Many of the girls came up and told us that we had done a good thing and they thanked us for serving them. It was a very special time for all of us.
Thank you so much for your prayers. You are all wonderful! May the Lord bless you greatly for all that you have done to make this trip a possibility. Love you!!
In His Hands,
Laura (Sanyu)
We are in our 5th week here in the beautiful country of Uganda. Time is flying by so quickly. It is hard to believe!! Sarah and I have grown to love the people here so so much. They have been such a blessing to us, more than we could ever bless them.
Tomorrow we are going to go on a trip to Western Uganda and visit a game park. We are excited to camp a couple of nights at Queen Elizabeth National Park. Hopefully we will be able to see some elephants, giraffes, lions and other big animals. Although we are very excited for this experience we are also very sad to leave our kids. We absolutely love to just spend time with them.
Some of the leaders of New Hope decided to give Jess, Jon, Sarah and I new African names. Jessica’s new name is Kwagala, which means Love. Jon’s is Mukisa, which means Blessing. Sarah’s new name is Mirembe, which means Peace. And my new name is Sanyu, which means Joy. The kids at New Hope love calling us by our new names. It is taking awhile to get used to our new names when they call. They call me Auntie Sanyu. It’s precious!
Saturdays are very full days. It is the day that all the children are there because there is no school. We try to make Saturdays especially fun for the kids with songs, color pages, dance and games. We have learned about love and the love that God had for us to give us His only Son. Also, we have taught about not being afraid and trusting God when we go through hard times. We have learned about the Armor of God as well. These kids have been like little sponges, just soaking up as much as they can about the Bible and Jesus. I am constantly amazed at their eagerness to learn.
Sunday was a very special day for us. We got to help plant a church called New Hope Christian Mission. It is a church that meets at New Hope because it is very hard for them to transport all the children to church on Sundays. We were blessed to be able to pray for the church leaders that the Lord would continue to bless them and grow many people up in the Lord. I love worshipping here in Ugandan churches. They really know how to worship Jesus with their whole bodies. There is a really big excitement that comes when praising Jesus.
Last night we all decided to go to New Hope to have a sleep over with the kids. We brought them all cookies and juice. Then we had a time of praise and worship. We all danced around and praised Jesus. The boys all went with Jon and played capture the flag late into the night. Jon said that they were really good and they were really hard to see. But Jon stood out like a beacon of light. :) Jess, Sarah and I took the girls and told them the story of Jesus washing the disciple’s feet. We told them that Jesus was a servant and that He put others above Himself. We told them that we wanted to serve them by washing their feet and doing their nails. Each one of us had a basin of water, soap, nail polish, and lotion to give the girls pedicures with. After finishing their nails we prayed with them a prayer of blessing and encouragement. It was a great night. Many of the girls came up and told us that we had done a good thing and they thanked us for serving them. It was a very special time for all of us.
Thank you so much for your prayers. You are all wonderful! May the Lord bless you greatly for all that you have done to make this trip a possibility. Love you!!
In His Hands,
Laura (Sanyu)
Praise the Lord!
Hello Friends and Family!
Oh my goodness I am so excited and overjoyed to be sharing this with all of you. We wanted to do something special with the children so some of them suggested that we have a sleepover and we thought it was a great idea. Last night we went to the store and bought lotion, nail polish, soap, cookies, and some juice and we got ready to have an amazing night with the girls in their dorm. We praised God for a while with everyone and we danced around and shouted with joy and then we broke up into boys and girls to have our night. Jonathan took the boys and played capture the flag in the dark with them which they really enjoyed, and me, Laura, and Jess took the girls to do a feet washing with them. We explained to them how Jesus washed his disciples’ feet and that we were so excited to be able to serve them that night just as Jesus did in the New Testament. I cannot explain to you the overwhelming amount of joy I felt as each of the beautiful girls sat in the chair in front of me and I had the opportunity to serve them. To be able to love them like Jesus and scrub their feet no matter how dirty, they were still precious. I had the opportunity to pray with each of them after washing their feet and encourage them, let them know that they are loved, and spur them on in their race of faith. We had such a good time with them and I know that each one of them felt special. It was so amazing to see the light in each of their eyes and hear them thank us for serving them. It could not have been more wonderful!
The Bible teaching and other lessons have also been going very well with all of the girls and children. Just recently we taught on the armor of God and they understood so well. It is so encouraging that they have such a hunger and a passion to read God’s word and learn more and more about him. They have no idea how big of a blessing they are to us and how much we can see Jesus in them everyday. Each and every one of the kids has gone through so so much and in spite of it all they shine the love of Jesus like no one I have ever seen. Everyday when we praise Jesus with them I get chills all over my body because I know that God is moving incredibly in them and in that place and I get overwhelmed with joy.
Recently we let Ken know that we had two digital cameras for him to keep and use at New Hope. He said that he is so incredibly humbled, that he has been praying to God for a camera for years and that he never expected to get one soon or at this time. He could not believe he just jumped for joy so thank you for blessing him and this place so much! God has really been showing me lately that you don’t have to build a house, or do a VBS to impact lives. Simply being around the kids, loving them, talking to them, and serving them has been a blessing. Everything here is about the relationships and spending time with someone can mean so much more than anything else. Even though we may not be able to see what God is doing through us physically, he has given me a peace that he is doing a mighty work. I thank him everyday for what he is done, doing, and is going to do. I was given an African name by Ken and the New Hope staff it means peace and in Lugandan you say it Mirembe. God has a funny way of teaching us things and even before I was given the name I was struggling with getting peace about some things. God has been teaching and helping me to have a peace that he has everything under control, I am just his vessel and it is only through him that I can do his will! Peace was truly the perfect name for me to remember everyday not to worry but to put my trust, hope, and all in Jesus!
Thank you all so much for everything I cannot say it enough and I cannot express to you what you have done here in Uganda and at New Hope. God Bless all you!
In Christ,
Sarah (Mirembe)
Oh my goodness I am so excited and overjoyed to be sharing this with all of you. We wanted to do something special with the children so some of them suggested that we have a sleepover and we thought it was a great idea. Last night we went to the store and bought lotion, nail polish, soap, cookies, and some juice and we got ready to have an amazing night with the girls in their dorm. We praised God for a while with everyone and we danced around and shouted with joy and then we broke up into boys and girls to have our night. Jonathan took the boys and played capture the flag in the dark with them which they really enjoyed, and me, Laura, and Jess took the girls to do a feet washing with them. We explained to them how Jesus washed his disciples’ feet and that we were so excited to be able to serve them that night just as Jesus did in the New Testament. I cannot explain to you the overwhelming amount of joy I felt as each of the beautiful girls sat in the chair in front of me and I had the opportunity to serve them. To be able to love them like Jesus and scrub their feet no matter how dirty, they were still precious. I had the opportunity to pray with each of them after washing their feet and encourage them, let them know that they are loved, and spur them on in their race of faith. We had such a good time with them and I know that each one of them felt special. It was so amazing to see the light in each of their eyes and hear them thank us for serving them. It could not have been more wonderful!
The Bible teaching and other lessons have also been going very well with all of the girls and children. Just recently we taught on the armor of God and they understood so well. It is so encouraging that they have such a hunger and a passion to read God’s word and learn more and more about him. They have no idea how big of a blessing they are to us and how much we can see Jesus in them everyday. Each and every one of the kids has gone through so so much and in spite of it all they shine the love of Jesus like no one I have ever seen. Everyday when we praise Jesus with them I get chills all over my body because I know that God is moving incredibly in them and in that place and I get overwhelmed with joy.
Recently we let Ken know that we had two digital cameras for him to keep and use at New Hope. He said that he is so incredibly humbled, that he has been praying to God for a camera for years and that he never expected to get one soon or at this time. He could not believe he just jumped for joy so thank you for blessing him and this place so much! God has really been showing me lately that you don’t have to build a house, or do a VBS to impact lives. Simply being around the kids, loving them, talking to them, and serving them has been a blessing. Everything here is about the relationships and spending time with someone can mean so much more than anything else. Even though we may not be able to see what God is doing through us physically, he has given me a peace that he is doing a mighty work. I thank him everyday for what he is done, doing, and is going to do. I was given an African name by Ken and the New Hope staff it means peace and in Lugandan you say it Mirembe. God has a funny way of teaching us things and even before I was given the name I was struggling with getting peace about some things. God has been teaching and helping me to have a peace that he has everything under control, I am just his vessel and it is only through him that I can do his will! Peace was truly the perfect name for me to remember everyday not to worry but to put my trust, hope, and all in Jesus!
Thank you all so much for everything I cannot say it enough and I cannot express to you what you have done here in Uganda and at New Hope. God Bless all you!
In Christ,
Sarah (Mirembe)
Monday, June 16, 2008
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Bunches of Bananas!! (Matooke!)
Hi Everyone!!!!
I hope you are all enjoying this first month of summer!! You are all probably pretty busy, because that’s the way summers normally are.
Things are going really well here. Everyday is a full, event-filled day. We are either teaching English, Bible, Life Skills, doing counseling, getting involved in the community or just loving on the kids at New Hope. But we absolutely love it! God has been so good to us by letting us be His hands and feet in this wonderful place. I can’t begin to describe to you how beautiful this country is and how beautiful the people are. They put America to shame when it comes to hospitality and friendliness. They also are pretty laid back when it comes to time. When Sarah and I first arrived Ken would tell us that we walk so so fast. He said that we walked like Americans. Isn’t it funny that even the way that we walk portrays our busy American nature? Ugandans walk at a slow pace and when they greet someone they take a couple of minutes to do so. He laughed how we would greet as we were walking by someone at a fast pace. Ken still has to remind me to walk Ugandan sometimes but I actually really appreciate the laid back nature of the Ugandan people.
Wednesdays are our community outreach days. We have set aside these days to go out into the community and reach out to the hurting in hospitals, prisons, poor sections of town, and anything else were we might need to bring encouragement. This past Wednesday we went to visit an orphanage in Jinja. It was sad to see how an orphanage operates without very much financial help from the outside. The orphanage is actually supported by a group of widows. We sang some songs with them and we hope that we were able to bring some encouragement to them. Then we went to a hospital that was also located in Jinja. Talk about heart wrenching! My heart ached for those people. We visited bed after bed, ward after ward and laid hands on people and prayed for them. Everyone was so glad to have a visitor. I could tell that even a simple smile brought some hope to them. There was this one lady who was in the corner of the ward with her back to the wall. I have never ever seen someone who was just skin and bones like that. Her eyes were so full of fear. She was just waiting to die. How do you bring comfort to someone like that? When we got to the babies ward there was a little child whose body had been burned. The mother said that a candle had fallen onto the baby’s bed. How do you bring comfort to the mother? For most of the patients I had no idea what to tell them. I pray that Jesus used us to bring encouragement to His precious children. There was a big miracle that happened however. There was a man who Jess had prayed with who asked for a Bible. For some reason before we left Busia I felt the Lord tell me to bring my Bible with me. So as soon as Jess told me that this man wanted a Bible I felt the Holy Spirit nudge me to give him the one in my bag. I told the man that I would give him my Bible if he promised to actually read it. Then the Holy Spirit nudged me again to tell Him about Jesus. So with Ken interpreting and Jesus speaking through me we were able to lead this precious soul to Christ. He is now our brother in Christ. I told him to start with the book of John. He was so filled with joy and later when I went to check on him I found him diligently reading the Bible. I thank the Lord so much for that opportunity that He blessed me with.
I love you all so much and can’t wait to talk with you personally about all of these experiences. Continue to pray for increased health care and education for the Ugandan people. Also, pray for Christ to raise up servants to serve at New Hope in a more permanent way. Lift up the people in the hospital to the Lord. Pray that they will find hope and comfort in Christ. Thanks once again for all of your prayers, they mean so much. May the Lord bless you all!
Laura
I hope you are all enjoying this first month of summer!! You are all probably pretty busy, because that’s the way summers normally are.
Things are going really well here. Everyday is a full, event-filled day. We are either teaching English, Bible, Life Skills, doing counseling, getting involved in the community or just loving on the kids at New Hope. But we absolutely love it! God has been so good to us by letting us be His hands and feet in this wonderful place. I can’t begin to describe to you how beautiful this country is and how beautiful the people are. They put America to shame when it comes to hospitality and friendliness. They also are pretty laid back when it comes to time. When Sarah and I first arrived Ken would tell us that we walk so so fast. He said that we walked like Americans. Isn’t it funny that even the way that we walk portrays our busy American nature? Ugandans walk at a slow pace and when they greet someone they take a couple of minutes to do so. He laughed how we would greet as we were walking by someone at a fast pace. Ken still has to remind me to walk Ugandan sometimes but I actually really appreciate the laid back nature of the Ugandan people.
Wednesdays are our community outreach days. We have set aside these days to go out into the community and reach out to the hurting in hospitals, prisons, poor sections of town, and anything else were we might need to bring encouragement. This past Wednesday we went to visit an orphanage in Jinja. It was sad to see how an orphanage operates without very much financial help from the outside. The orphanage is actually supported by a group of widows. We sang some songs with them and we hope that we were able to bring some encouragement to them. Then we went to a hospital that was also located in Jinja. Talk about heart wrenching! My heart ached for those people. We visited bed after bed, ward after ward and laid hands on people and prayed for them. Everyone was so glad to have a visitor. I could tell that even a simple smile brought some hope to them. There was this one lady who was in the corner of the ward with her back to the wall. I have never ever seen someone who was just skin and bones like that. Her eyes were so full of fear. She was just waiting to die. How do you bring comfort to someone like that? When we got to the babies ward there was a little child whose body had been burned. The mother said that a candle had fallen onto the baby’s bed. How do you bring comfort to the mother? For most of the patients I had no idea what to tell them. I pray that Jesus used us to bring encouragement to His precious children. There was a big miracle that happened however. There was a man who Jess had prayed with who asked for a Bible. For some reason before we left Busia I felt the Lord tell me to bring my Bible with me. So as soon as Jess told me that this man wanted a Bible I felt the Holy Spirit nudge me to give him the one in my bag. I told the man that I would give him my Bible if he promised to actually read it. Then the Holy Spirit nudged me again to tell Him about Jesus. So with Ken interpreting and Jesus speaking through me we were able to lead this precious soul to Christ. He is now our brother in Christ. I told him to start with the book of John. He was so filled with joy and later when I went to check on him I found him diligently reading the Bible. I thank the Lord so much for that opportunity that He blessed me with.
I love you all so much and can’t wait to talk with you personally about all of these experiences. Continue to pray for increased health care and education for the Ugandan people. Also, pray for Christ to raise up servants to serve at New Hope in a more permanent way. Lift up the people in the hospital to the Lord. Pray that they will find hope and comfort in Christ. Thanks once again for all of your prayers, they mean so much. May the Lord bless you all!
Laura
Jon being his amazing self!
Me, Sarah and Jess at the Jinja Orphanage.
Praise and Worship
One of the baboons that we saw on the way to Jinja.
Teacher Sarah. :)
Hi from Sarah!
Hey Everyone!
I hope that all of you are doing well. We are having such a wonderful time here in Africa playing with the children and teaching them English. I have also had the opportunity to do some counseling with the teenage girls and that has been really enjoyable. On Sunday we had the opportunity to go to an awesome church in Tororo and the people were so friendly and we were dancing and singing throughout the entire service. Just recently we visited some of the larger hospitals in the area and I was absolutely appalled at the conditions. The patients had no IVs or monitors and the entire time we were there I saw only two nurses. Some of the HIV patients were just bones lying in there beds, it was so heartbreaking. We were blessed to have the opportunity to pray with each of the patients and talk to some of them about Jesus. We also prayed with the mothers of some babies who had been burned quite extensively. On the way back we rode in a taxi and there were 25 of us in a 16 passenger van! That is just Uganda for you as many can fit in the car the better, some people even hang on outside the door the entire way. I was sitting on Laura’s lap going over every bump and we were just laughing hysterically because the car was so full that the back end of it was dragging. Yesterday we went to a house of an American missionary family and we got to help cook American food with our Ugandan hosts so it was really a wonderful time of fellowship and fun! God has been blessing us with so many opportunities here from talking to street workers to everything that we have been able to do with the children. Each and every one of them is so precious and we have been so blessed to just be able to love on them and be there big sisters for a couple months. With your support and prayers we have already blessed the orphanage so much through you. We were able to get them Bibles, a guitar, some teaching materials, games, and a couple of other random items that they needed. Thank you so much for partnering with us on this trip and for all of your prayers and support. Everything we do here is God doing it through us because we are completely incapable of doing any of this on our own. Mom and dad I love you so much and thank you for everything that you do and have done for me.
~ Sarah
I hope that all of you are doing well. We are having such a wonderful time here in Africa playing with the children and teaching them English. I have also had the opportunity to do some counseling with the teenage girls and that has been really enjoyable. On Sunday we had the opportunity to go to an awesome church in Tororo and the people were so friendly and we were dancing and singing throughout the entire service. Just recently we visited some of the larger hospitals in the area and I was absolutely appalled at the conditions. The patients had no IVs or monitors and the entire time we were there I saw only two nurses. Some of the HIV patients were just bones lying in there beds, it was so heartbreaking. We were blessed to have the opportunity to pray with each of the patients and talk to some of them about Jesus. We also prayed with the mothers of some babies who had been burned quite extensively. On the way back we rode in a taxi and there were 25 of us in a 16 passenger van! That is just Uganda for you as many can fit in the car the better, some people even hang on outside the door the entire way. I was sitting on Laura’s lap going over every bump and we were just laughing hysterically because the car was so full that the back end of it was dragging. Yesterday we went to a house of an American missionary family and we got to help cook American food with our Ugandan hosts so it was really a wonderful time of fellowship and fun! God has been blessing us with so many opportunities here from talking to street workers to everything that we have been able to do with the children. Each and every one of them is so precious and we have been so blessed to just be able to love on them and be there big sisters for a couple months. With your support and prayers we have already blessed the orphanage so much through you. We were able to get them Bibles, a guitar, some teaching materials, games, and a couple of other random items that they needed. Thank you so much for partnering with us on this trip and for all of your prayers and support. Everything we do here is God doing it through us because we are completely incapable of doing any of this on our own. Mom and dad I love you so much and thank you for everything that you do and have done for me.
~ Sarah
Friday, June 6, 2008
Hello Everyone!!!
As I am writing this it is pouring rain outside. The people here fear the rain because they think that it causes malaria.
Everything has been going really good here on our end. God is so amazing and faithful to help us when we feel completely inadequate. I feel that He works best when we feel the most inadequate.
Two new volunteers came to join us in ministry. They are really nice and friendly. I love them already. :) Their names are Jessica and Jon. They are our age. Last night the rats were running all over our room. One ran across Jessica in her bed! So the three of us slept together in Sarah's and my bed. It was cozy. :) It is so great to have them with us!
A couple of days ago we did a lot of counseling with some of the children. I was almost brought to tears knowing what some of them have been through. Jesus spoke through me when I had no words. I thank Him for that. They would ask me why there parents have died. Three of the girls just lost their dad. He drowned while he was working as a fisherman. They told me that almost every night they have horrible dreams of their dad drowning and them falling into the water. Another girl wants to be a nurse but can't afford schooling. She needs money for next term which equals about $6 US dollars. I prayed with her and told her that God is the Father to the fatherless and that He cares about everything that she is going through. I also told her that Jesus asks us not to worry and to cast our cares upon Him. When we were done praying she was crying but somehow she seemed relieved. I pray that the Lord brought comfort to her broken heart.
I am falling in love with the precious people here in Uganda. They are constantly amazing me with their kindness and hospitality.
Sorry that I can't write long. I'll try to write more later. :)
Much love,
Laura
As I am writing this it is pouring rain outside. The people here fear the rain because they think that it causes malaria.
Everything has been going really good here on our end. God is so amazing and faithful to help us when we feel completely inadequate. I feel that He works best when we feel the most inadequate.
Two new volunteers came to join us in ministry. They are really nice and friendly. I love them already. :) Their names are Jessica and Jon. They are our age. Last night the rats were running all over our room. One ran across Jessica in her bed! So the three of us slept together in Sarah's and my bed. It was cozy. :) It is so great to have them with us!
A couple of days ago we did a lot of counseling with some of the children. I was almost brought to tears knowing what some of them have been through. Jesus spoke through me when I had no words. I thank Him for that. They would ask me why there parents have died. Three of the girls just lost their dad. He drowned while he was working as a fisherman. They told me that almost every night they have horrible dreams of their dad drowning and them falling into the water. Another girl wants to be a nurse but can't afford schooling. She needs money for next term which equals about $6 US dollars. I prayed with her and told her that God is the Father to the fatherless and that He cares about everything that she is going through. I also told her that Jesus asks us not to worry and to cast our cares upon Him. When we were done praying she was crying but somehow she seemed relieved. I pray that the Lord brought comfort to her broken heart.
I am falling in love with the precious people here in Uganda. They are constantly amazing me with their kindness and hospitality.
Sorry that I can't write long. I'll try to write more later. :)
Much love,
Laura
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Hello to Our Dear Friends and Family!!!
Today marks our 2nd week here in Uganda. We love it here so much!! Our days have been very busy and filled with lots of activities. Last week Sarah and I started teaching English at New Hope. We really enjoy it! Also we have been doing a lot of Bible teaching as well. It is so amazing for us to see how much the children love learning about the Bible. We really were not very aware that we would be doing so much Bible teaching so we didn’t bring very many materials. Last Wednesday we were able to go to Kampala to buy some supplies. We bought all the children Bibles as well as some soccer balls, a guitar, color books, crayons, and some crafts. They were all so excited to receive them! :)
Saturday we taught them all about the love of God and the love we should have for our friends and neighbors. Then we helped them to make bracelets that tell the salvation message. We used five different colored beads. Black represented our hearts before we accepted Jesus as our Savior. Red represented Jesus’ blood that covers all sin. White represented our hearts after Jesus’ blood makes our hearts as white snow. Green represented growing in the Lord by reading our Bibles, praying, and going to church. And finally, gold represents the streets of gold that are awaiting us in heaven with Jesus. They were so happy to have the bracelets as a way to remind them of the salvation message.
The people here are all so friendly to us. Everywhere we go we hear children call out, “Muzungu! Muzungu! How are you?” It is really cute how the little children run after us as fast as they can, just wanting to touch our skin. :) We either walk or ride booda boodas wherever we go. We are a lot better at riding them now. We don’t get quite as scared anymore. :) I even tried riding on it sideways, which is what all the ladies are supposed to do. I almost fell off and died when we went over the bumps. :)
It is kind of Uganda’s winter season now but it is really hot!! There is a lot of humidity too.
I love the food here! There main food is called Matooke. It is made from green bananas. They peel them, boil and cook them until they are like the consistency of mashed potatoes. I really enjoy it. They also have a lot of beans and meat that they serve with it. Everything is fresh in Uganda, because they don’t have refrigerators. You just go and buy fresh food before each meal. For example, today they wanted to have chicken for lunch so they bought a live chicken and slaughtered it and cooked it. When they were going to slaughter it Sarah and I couldn’t watch so we went for a little walk. :) After they cut it’s head off and plucked out the feathers I helped Harriet clean and prepare it for cooking. Oh! I almost forgot! I ate bugs!!! They are called white ants and they come up from the ground in the early morning and you can go catch them. Then you take off their wings and fry them with some salt. Then they are ready for eating. :) I actually really enjoyed them besides the fact that they were a little bit crunchy. Tea is a big thing here. Every morning and evening we are brought hot cow’s milk with some tea bags. We love our teatimes!
Last week when we were in Kampala we had a great time. They drive crazy in the city! We almost got hit like ten times! Then if we thought bicycle booda boodas were hard to ride, try riding a motorbike booda booda!! Talk about scary! They weave in and out of traffic, on and off of sidewalks, and they swerve around the people crossing the roads. When I was riding them I just put my hand over my eyes so that I couldn’t see. That way I didn’t scream. Everyone just pointed and laughed at me including the driver. We barely made the taxi to go back to Busia. By the time we got there, there were only two seats left. But there were three of us plus all of the Bibles, books, balls and the guitar. So we squeezed in and piled all the stuff on top of us. The road from Kampala to Busia is extremely bumpy and bouncy. So for five hours we were bouncing up and down trying not to squish into the people next to us. We were laughing so hard. About half way through we stopped for a bathroom break. Everyone piled out and lined up on the side of the road. All except for Sarah and me, who were left in the taxi bus laughing our heads off as quietly as we could. :)
Wednesdays are our community outreach days. Ken said that we will be going to prisons, hospitals, really poor sections of town, and just sharing the love of Christ with hurting souls. Please be praying for us, especially on those days.
Sarah and I want to thank you so much for you prayerful support. We can really feel it. Today we are expecting two new volunteers from New York to work alongside us. We are excited to meet them and pray that God would use us as His vessels to do His work.
Sarah and I with two Ugandans
Sarah and I with the directors son, Jordan.
Saturday we taught them all about the love of God and the love we should have for our friends and neighbors. Then we helped them to make bracelets that tell the salvation message. We used five different colored beads. Black represented our hearts before we accepted Jesus as our Savior. Red represented Jesus’ blood that covers all sin. White represented our hearts after Jesus’ blood makes our hearts as white snow. Green represented growing in the Lord by reading our Bibles, praying, and going to church. And finally, gold represents the streets of gold that are awaiting us in heaven with Jesus. They were so happy to have the bracelets as a way to remind them of the salvation message.
The people here are all so friendly to us. Everywhere we go we hear children call out, “Muzungu! Muzungu! How are you?” It is really cute how the little children run after us as fast as they can, just wanting to touch our skin. :) We either walk or ride booda boodas wherever we go. We are a lot better at riding them now. We don’t get quite as scared anymore. :) I even tried riding on it sideways, which is what all the ladies are supposed to do. I almost fell off and died when we went over the bumps. :)
It is kind of Uganda’s winter season now but it is really hot!! There is a lot of humidity too.
I love the food here! There main food is called Matooke. It is made from green bananas. They peel them, boil and cook them until they are like the consistency of mashed potatoes. I really enjoy it. They also have a lot of beans and meat that they serve with it. Everything is fresh in Uganda, because they don’t have refrigerators. You just go and buy fresh food before each meal. For example, today they wanted to have chicken for lunch so they bought a live chicken and slaughtered it and cooked it. When they were going to slaughter it Sarah and I couldn’t watch so we went for a little walk. :) After they cut it’s head off and plucked out the feathers I helped Harriet clean and prepare it for cooking. Oh! I almost forgot! I ate bugs!!! They are called white ants and they come up from the ground in the early morning and you can go catch them. Then you take off their wings and fry them with some salt. Then they are ready for eating. :) I actually really enjoyed them besides the fact that they were a little bit crunchy. Tea is a big thing here. Every morning and evening we are brought hot cow’s milk with some tea bags. We love our teatimes!
Last week when we were in Kampala we had a great time. They drive crazy in the city! We almost got hit like ten times! Then if we thought bicycle booda boodas were hard to ride, try riding a motorbike booda booda!! Talk about scary! They weave in and out of traffic, on and off of sidewalks, and they swerve around the people crossing the roads. When I was riding them I just put my hand over my eyes so that I couldn’t see. That way I didn’t scream. Everyone just pointed and laughed at me including the driver. We barely made the taxi to go back to Busia. By the time we got there, there were only two seats left. But there were three of us plus all of the Bibles, books, balls and the guitar. So we squeezed in and piled all the stuff on top of us. The road from Kampala to Busia is extremely bumpy and bouncy. So for five hours we were bouncing up and down trying not to squish into the people next to us. We were laughing so hard. About half way through we stopped for a bathroom break. Everyone piled out and lined up on the side of the road. All except for Sarah and me, who were left in the taxi bus laughing our heads off as quietly as we could. :)
Wednesdays are our community outreach days. Ken said that we will be going to prisons, hospitals, really poor sections of town, and just sharing the love of Christ with hurting souls. Please be praying for us, especially on those days.
Sarah and I want to thank you so much for you prayerful support. We can really feel it. Today we are expecting two new volunteers from New York to work alongside us. We are excited to meet them and pray that God would use us as His vessels to do His work.
Sarah and I with two Ugandans
Sarah and I with the directors son, Jordan.
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