Great Fellowship

A small taste of home happens from time to time. Today we started out going to the slaughter house to buy pig. We bought two slabs of ribs and a shoulder. This put a large smile on my face because we do not eat meat all that often. Once we returned home I had the privilege of cutting the skin and fat away from the meat. After all this was finished we put them on the grill. Once this was done it was sit and wait for it to cook. It was great to just hang out and talk with my team all 19 of us. Once it was ready we sat down and piled on the meat and started the eating fest. We also had deviled eggs and potato salad. I ate three helpings of meat and gained back some of the weight I have lost. Once I finished Pam the long term missionary's wife brought out ICE CREAM yea that's no typo. I was in heaven it was so good and I have missed it so much. MMMMMMMM. After all the eating and resting and talking we played a game of volley ball to finish the night off. It was a great day of fellowship and fun. I am looking forward to tomorrow for church and soccer later in the afternoon. Be praying for ministry in the schools and for the relationships I have started with a man named Francis. The Lord is a mighty one to save.

Where's Waldo

I have a question to ask where’s Waldo? As a child I use to love getting a where’s Waldo book and I would spend hours looking for this man in a white and red striped shirt. He would be in many different cultures and places around the world. Today as I sat in church I felt like I was Waldo. I was not wearing a white and red striped shirt, but a green polo. I went to Central Catholic Church and I was the only Mundo (that is the local term for White person) , and the church was filled to over capacity. I had half a seat, but thankful to the catholic stand, sit, kneel I did not have to sit long. The service was around one hour and twenty minutes. You may be asking why I went to a catholic church, well I met a man named Francis at the post office. We had met up on Saturday for what he called “lazy time,” and this was a great time to hang out learn about culture. Francis invited me to join him for church, so I agreed and went with him this morning.
After church had finished I was not sure what would happen. As we were walking out of church my friend grabbed my hand (this is a cultural thing that men do who are friends). He then asked me if I had any plans for the rest of the day. I did not so he gave me a tour of Arua by foot. This was an exciting day for me. We spent several hours walking around meeting all sorts of people and then we went to meet some of his friends. I found out quickly that this place was an herbal healer place that was operated by a Muslim man. Just the day before my partner and I prayed at the mosque that is located across the street for an opening to share Jesus with Muslims. The Lord opened the door and I was able to discuss religion with the man. I am planning on returning to have more discussions with him. Over all my day was wonderful. Making relationships is the key to sharing Jesus with the people of Arua. They are a relational culture and it takes time to grow and share Jesus in a deep meaningful way. They will accept Jesus along with any other God if you do not take the time to invest and teach them Jesus is the only way. Be praying for my friend Francis and his Muslim friend.

One month in Africa

So it has been a month since I first step foot in Africa. Today was the first real day I felt I was in Africa. I went to church with one of my roommates Evan. He rides his bike to church every Sunday it is 22 miles of hard riding. Up and down his and mixed with extreme heat it can wear a person out. I struggled to keep up and even finish the journey back from church. The church is located in a place called Agia. The small village sits a the foot of a good sized mountain. Some people may call it a large hill, but I am from Michigan and so I say its a mountain. We arrived and chatted with the pastor and did a small bible study with him on John 6. After this was finished we were taken into his home and given tea and sweet potato. The strange thing was that everyone left us to have tea all alone. They feel this is honoring us by doing it this way. Once we were finished we then went to the church which sits under two mango trees no building for them. I felt this was so indigenous and reproducible I loved it. The pastor preached on the passage we had just discussed earlier. We sang and introduced ourselves and fellowshiped with one another it was true community. You would think we were done at this point but not in Africa. We taught bible stories to the people the one they are learning right now is the fall of man. We also had a drama to go along with it. We had fun with the kids doing this. Once church was finished they now insisted to feed us lunch. It would be rude to decline so we once again went inside all alone to eat. We had beans, rice, Goat meat, Goat liver, posho, and inya. To eat you use your hands no fork or spoon to use. At first I was not sure if I would like it, but it was not to bad the beans and rice were great, and Goat was not terrible. The posho and inya had no flavor at all. After we finished eating we then headed home on our 11 mile bike ride back. This is the part where I almost died, but I have made it home safe. The country side of Africa is a true beauty of God and how great His creation is. Now I have seen Africa.

Car Repair

SO when I signed up to serve overseas I had a job description and such. Little did I know that many other jobs would need filled. Today I changed a car battery and also the cable that connects to it. The terminal was broken and so, we changed it. After this was complete we then changed the oil in the truck. I felt at home while doing all this it gave me so much comfort to be useful for once. Other news from Africa we have met with several schools to discuss the presentation of true love waits. While at one of the schools my partner and myself have volunteered to help coach soccer. I do not know much about the game, but meeting school boys and talking with them is the idea. We want to make relationships and invest into them. We are praying for the ability to share our stories with them and learn about their stories. May the Lord use us in a mighty way to shine His light on these boys.

The 20th day

As I have now been in Africa for 20 days I still feel like I have just arrived. We are finishing up our training for True Love Waits today and will be teaching a children’s bible study this afternoon. I have become restless with waiting to start the ministry, but the school year just begun this week. As I am still adjusting to living in Africa many things have been difficult. The simple things we take for granted are very evident to me now. Just to name a few things: we have no fridge so food must all be non perishable or we must buy it daily. Taking a shower is normally cold water and there is no real water pressure. Sleeping at night can be a challenge the power here is turned off at midnight and turned back on at six a.m., so it becomes very warm inside the house. I am also in a room with no power outlet so I cannot have a fan. I am becoming use to this, but these small things are just some of the small stuff we never think about.
As far as I am doing here I would be lying if I said all was well. I have had many struggles and difficulties while here. They have caused me to be discouraged and even have a sense of failure. I have even had times when I felt like coming home would be better, but the Lord is faithful, I called on Him and all my worries all my doubts were taken away. In life we all make mistakes and struggle to follow the Lord, and as I am here that does not change. Satan hates when we follow after the Lord and these doubts and struggles are just his way to stop what the Lord is doing. I rejoice in the Lord and I am thankful for his healing hand in all situations. He is the king of kings the mighty God, and his “grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” 2 Corinthians 12:9 This comforts me greatly to know in my weakness his power is perfected. If we trust in the Lord and turn to him he is just and graceful to forgive us and restore us back to him. Hold on to that and seek the Lord daily.

The red moon

The other night as I took a walk down the road I gazed at the moon and it was dark red. The cool of the night and the view took me to a place that allowed me to feel at home on a warm summer night. I was thankful for this small piece of comfort. As my eyes are continually opened and shown the reality of life. I experienced my first Sunday in Uganda and we attended Awindri Baptist Church. The church was a mud brick building and we started at 9:30 and ended at 12. The service consisted of a bible study, prayer requests and testimonies, introductions of visitors, worship (one song in English and the rest in alure), preaching, and closing prayers in a circle. So much of the service was influenced by the west mostly the Anglican church. They had baptist hymnals so funny. The English song was their way of including the mondus (means white people). The sermon was translated from alure into African English. Over all the day was wonderful and I was able to praise the Lord. More to come keep praying for the team, the people of Arua, and for me. Thanks