That my heart may sing to You..............

Psalm 30:11
You turned my wailing into dancing:
You removed my sackcloth and clothed me with JOY,
that my heart may sing to you and not be silent.
O Lord, my God, I will give you thanks forever.

On Sunday morning, we woke up and headed off to church. There was going to be a special service today in Oditel. The mzungus (white people) were here and also several other villages were coming in to worship together that morning. Following the service, a meal would be provided for the community. We were ushered in and seated in chairs that went behind and around where the pastor would speak. Little girls and boys were on some of our laps before we could even sit down. I held the lovely Mahsa. Several others sat by our feet. The hut had several windows. I wish I could show you a pix of all of the little heads we saw peeking in the windows :) The place filled up quickly, with lots of overflow outside. Then the music started.........................Now, I had attended Christian Life Center for 13 years and so I have been a part of some lively praise and worship sessions. And The River can get pretty hip sometimes too. But, there was a different atmosphere there that I can only describe as FREEDOM in worship!  It was unlike anything I had ever experienced. My back was feeling like a pretzel so I could only tap my feet and clap my hands, but if not..................:) So I tapped and clapped and took in what was happening around me--Todd K.'s low voice, Heather, Caitlin and Alyssa dancing with the praise team--they were all in. Kara and Sara trying to find their groove on the sidelines. Jaynie was holding 2 sleeping babies. Even saw that Matt & Chris couldn't contain themselves--they were movin' :) The people from the villages were PRAISING GOD! Their joy was contagious, their crying out to the Lord was inspiring, their faith in God was so moving! You could see it and you could feel it and you could hear it. I wish you could hear it --Dustin our video master?  The children danced along with the praise team. Even the little ones knew the songs and the dances. They had so much fun! The humbling part of the experience was comparing my/our praise to theirs. To be with people who do not have much of their own and to see how generous and how thankful they are for what they have is humbling. Convicting and inspiring at the same time. Does my praise reflect my thankfulness for what God has done for me? For what I have? For my relationships? For ways in which I have been healed emotionally? Why do they seem to have more joy? Why can't I dance like that? If only I could sing....... :)

Mahsa would not leave when they called the children out. I tried to prompt her, but she refused to get off my lap. Fine with me. I was in awe of her too. She would write in my journal, play with my fingernails, wear my glasses and look up at me.

We (all 20 of us) had to introduce ourselves (through an interpreter) and say a little something. I shared that I knew they had so much to teach us and that our group was so ready to learn from them. Others shared how much we have appreciated their hospitality.

One of our leaders, Wil, gave a great message (through an interpreter) re: the purpose of our hands. Our hands should be used:
1)To pick up a brother/sister, if he/she falls down. Todd Heeter provided an example of that. If your neighbor has a need (repair/sickness), our hands should be used to help meet that need.
2) To unify us. To hold our brothers/sisters hands.
3) For work. Each of us have a purpose--to use our hands to better our community and God's kingdom.
4)For worship. May our hands often be seen lifted in worship.

Powerful message Wil!

And it turns out, many of the songs that had been sung before Wil's message (in Ateso) were about our hands. Just didn't know that until we were told afterward. It's as if God had something to do with all of that--not that we should be surprised.

After service, there were cooks coming in on their day off (Sunday) to cook the meal for the community. They would use these big vats and cook over the fire. Our team from Kalamazoo would be helping to serve the meals. Some of us would assist with hand washing, some would be passing out the bowls of food, and others would be handing out a bottle of pop for all. While we were waiting, we had the people gather into groups. Our team spread out and were in charge of "entertaining" our group until the meal was done. Sydney, Deb and I and Charles (who interpreted for us) had no idea how to entertain our group. We started by having Charles ask them if they had any questions for us. About 50 kids started out asking general questions about America. Then they got a little deeper. "If I were to go to America, would my skin turn white?" "Do white girls fist fight?" "Would you want to marry an Ateso man?" My reply was that I am married and I would not want to marry any other man :) "Would a single white woman want to marry an Ateso man?" "If they did, what color would their babies skin be?" "What would happen if a husband got another woman pregnant?" It was amazing to hear their questions and know what they were thinking. Charles saved us by keeping order and telling us what they wanted to know. When their questions ran out, Charles asked if we had any questions for them. Then he said these words that I keep hearing over and over, pointing at the group and then back at us, he said, "It's interactive". The truth of that keeps coming back to me. Relationships are supposed to be back and forth, interactive. They are ideally supposed to work for me and for you, a give and take. This has been one of my most important lessons that I have taken home with me. Something I knew before, but it seems that it has been taken to a deeper level. So we started to ask them lots of questions, my favorite was "why do girls fist fight here?" Of course it is over a man. When asked "who gets the man--the winner or the loser of the fight?" They laughed and responded "the man gets to decide". Hmmmmm. They could not give me a suitable answer for "what is the purpose of fighting then?".

When the food was finally ready (a little time in Uganda goes a loooooong way). The teams worked like clockwork, rinsing hands, scooping food in bowls, lining kids up and using an assembly line to put a bowl in each person's hands. Then he/she received a pop and ate their food. I have heard that we served approximately 1000 people that day. It was an honor.

Jumping ahead a few days to my flight home. I watched the movie Invictus for the 2nd time. At the end of the movie, Nelson Mandela says to Francois, the captain of the Rugby team, "I want to thank you for what you have done for our country." Francois responds, "No, Mr. President, I want to thank you for what you have done for our country."                            

Once again, reminding me, IT IS INTERACTIVE.

Arriving in Oditel

I am attempting to transition back into home life now. I am determined to get some blogs posted before my memories start to dim:

As our bus drove through the dirt roads and started to get closer to the village of Oditel, we were noticed with excitement by the people outside. Word spread quickly that we were arriving. Kids started chasing our bus. The "mzungus" --white people-- were here! We were swarmed with hugs and smiles and cheers of joy. The children just wanted to hold our hands and be near us. It was great to see the familiar faces of the Mission 6 team that had been there, working before us, for the last month. All of us were escorted into the church hut so that we could receive the welcome they had prepared for us. Such beautiful songs and such joy coming at us. Most of us had a few little ones on our laps and several others near or staring at us I had Mahsa. She would be with me all week. It was wonderful!

My goal had been to watch and listen and stay quiet (not a normal thing for me). I truly wanted to be open to what this trip was about for me. We headed out to see the projects that others had worked on before us. There is a garden that had been worked on and planted in May. The kitchen was coming along nicely. We attempted to communicate with our new friends, but that was difficult (besides "hi" and "what is your name"). I began to look for Isaac, the teenage boy that we sponsor. Jason had picked out his picture at church a few months before. I asked Deb, who had been living in the village since July. "Do you know many boys named Isaac?" As I said his name, I caught the attention of a tall young man close by. Within my first 30 minutes in Oditel, I had found our Isaac. With the help of Gabriel, who could speak English, I let Isaac know that our family sponsors him--we pray for him and see his photo every day. The response that came back to me (through Gabriel) was "I do not know how to say  thank you".  Later, Deb told me that she had been seeing Isaac everyday for the last few weeks at the care point, where they served the meal each day. She had not seen him smile until the day before we arrived. Throughout my time in the village, I never saw him without a smile :) I can still see his smile and it is a beautiful sight. I would later meet his mother, some of his sisters, and his twin brothers (who were about 8 mos and very afraid of me). When I arrived at their home, I was greeted by Isaac who was sweeping a swirl pattern in the dirt outside his home. I was offered freshly roasted ground nuts and many "thank yous" from his mother. The generosity and joy that came out of these people who had so little was overwhelming. All of us from Kalamazoo were treated like we were so special. This would haunt me over the next several days and continues to do so.

Our team stayed inside a compound, similar to a campground. There was a gate around it that the children could not enter. They would gather outside bright and early and wait for us to come out. One morning, as we were sitting in a circle and having devotions, Isaac boldly came in the gate. He had a bag for me. It was full of freshly roasted ground nuts that had been cooked in a fire. After handing them to me, he quickly walked back out of the gate. I was moved by his gesture and thought it appropriate that the young man we sponsor would have a rebellious streak. It runs in the family :)

I had expected to hold little babies and speak to their mothers/caregivers for the week. I definitely held some children, but most of my time was spent with boys ranging from 11-15. I was frustrated by not being able to have conversations with them. There was so much I wanted to know and couldn't ask. They laughed when I tried. I asked if they had a ball so we could play catch. They did not have an "impedo", but they all quickly worked to gather pieces of garbage bags and string from the ground to make one. They would tie knots and piece things together until we had a ball to play with. Aaaaah. Once we started playing catch and trying to keep the ball in the air, doors were opened for us to communicate. I would pitch windmill style or like a baseball player and they would mimic it. I would show them how to "pop it" off my elbow and throw the ball up and catch it behind my back. We laughed and were silly and they would ask me to show them something else. I could not help but be reminded of all of the times I had played with my dad. My dad had taught me everything I had shared with them. I imagined my daddy watching me from Heaven and smiling down on all of us. It is not typical for older girls to play with older boys there. They seemed surprised that I could keep up. Cannot tell you how many hours we spent communicating this way during my time. Cannot tell you how much I loved it!

So I just realized that the last post I wrote did not go through. We have left the village which was very sad. We are beg the transition home. I will have much more to write later. Amazing. Life changing. I miss you Jason, payton, ella, Eli, and jase. Love u!

Kalamzungu: Real Life, Real God, Real Change

I am "borrowing" video from a guy's blog that goes to my church. Thanks Brian! Brian is 1 of 6 from The River that is in Uganda right now. My team will be joining him "Mission 6" in a few days. I am sure my flight problems will be settled by then. 12:00pm on Wed, I am off!

To see the awesome video, click the link and then you will have to press the "play" arrow.


Kalamzungu: Real Life, Real God, Real Change: "Video created by Jeff Jones using photos and footage from my first trip to Uganda"

Almost August 11th

In 5 days I will be saying goodbye to my family for 10 days and heading on my adventure. As I see my gear starting to pile up, it is becoming very real. I can truly say that I have felt so loved on by the response of my family and friends throughout this entire preparing process. I was so nervous about asking for the financial support. Not only did I outreach my financial goal, I have recieved so much encouragement, prayers, supplies and more. I can see that God has used this time to confirm that I am supposed to go and to show me that He (and all of you) have me covered. What an amazing feeling!

Please bear with me as I attempt to get this blog up and running. I am hoping to be able to post a few times over the next few weeks, if any of you would want to follow this journey with me.

My Story

The story begins a few months ago when I was sitting in church at The River. Our pastor was excitedly telling of a new partnership our church was forming with the village of Kapelebyong in Uganda. For teh next few years, The River will be working with this village (by sending people regularly) to build relationships, provide supplies and support the people of Oditel, Kapelebyong. The goal is for the village to become self-sustaining and be able to reach out and support other villages. The people sent from our church will be helping in the areas of agriculture, education, income-generating activities, widow & orphan care, and pastoral equipping.

I was taking notes and pondering how this would affect my family. Immediately, my mind went to Jason, my adventurous husband. With his love for people, generous attitude, and hard work ethic, I knew that such a mission trip would fit him like a glove. Selfishly, I wondered if I would "let" him go. Hmm.

Then a "thought" came to me that I can assure you was not my own! I almost laughed aloud at the feeling of "YOU are going to go to Uganda". I began to write in my journal how humorous that was to me. God would not send me! Nothing against Uganda, but, I have become rather wimpy over the years. I do not like to be hot & sweaty, I do not sleep well anywhere, and I am a very picky eater.

I kept my funny "thought" to myself until a few days later when Jason approached me. He said these words that made me stop in my tracks and shake in my boots, "I feel like God told me taht YOU are supposed to go to Uganda". Aaaah!

So, I will be heading to Uganda, August 11-21. For the last few months, I have been warming to the idea, buying a plane ticket and asking God to show me why He would send me. I compare my feelings to the contestants that have just learned they will be on the show, "The Biggest Loser". I am hopeful and fearful and doubting myself and my ability to handle the hard work that lies ahead of me. I see God as Jillian who can't wait to get me to "the ranch" so He can ge a hold of me :) I am believing this experience will be a game-changer for me and that is exciting. Also, I turned 40 in July and you are supposed to do something big and life-changing that year, right? Consider this to take the place of a marathon for me.

I am thinking I will be serving in the area of widow and orphan care. Recently Payton told me, "I am excited to be able to share my mom with some kids who have never had a mom or dad". Priceless! I expect to fall in love with the people I meet, to shed many tears for/with them, and to be the hands and feet of Jesus to the people in Kapelebyong.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. I promise to keep you posted!