By God's grace the work here continues. Praise the Lord! It’s so hard to put into words what you experience here in Uganda. I thought I would just share what comes to mind to give you some word pictures……
Power outs, rain storms, dust or mud on all your clothes, feet that are always dirty, baths that show just how much you really needed it.
Corruption every where, scheming and deceitful plans brewing, needs everywhere, wolves in sheep’sclothing, hidden witch craft, people asking of you everywhere and most of the time.
Extreme, chaos, raw life, thinking you don’t know anything, overwhelming feelings and thoughts, your mind constantly going and running through the day and days ahead, simple errands taking you all day, constantly trying to find the balance of “letting go”while trying to manage and plan, struggling in the culture to gain respect as just a “Girl” (singlewoman).
Simplicity in life, an acceptance of sickness and death as a part of life, dirt being worked and plowed,the old being burned away for new seed and fertile soil, fields being planted for survival and fruit,hoping the harvest will be plentiful.
Lizards and spiders on the walls as a norm, mosquito nets, huge flying bats in the trees and even in the ceilings squeaking away at night, frogs appearing in the toilets, mice and huge bush rats the size of a large possum, cattle with two-three foot long horns being led through the streets on a daily basis, goats/pigs/chickens dodging the cars while for some reason trying to cross the roads, birds singing and calling during the night and morning, dogs howling, roosters crowing, sleeping in just a thought.
Daily repairs to the vehicles with the occasional expected delays on the side of the road, surprising the people when we choose to “foot” in town, riding the bike into town to pick up meds, taking the long driveout to the camps appreciating the time to gather one’s thoughts and pray, looking out at His creation and Glory, the open skies showing his majesty.
Starch, starch, and more starch, more fried food than you have ever eaten, beans and rice turning into one of your favorite meals, avocado, lemon/limes,tangerines, passion fruit, and mangoes in our yard.
Evenings with no T.V., some nights with just candles and the blanket of wondrous stars, thursdaynight bible study with other NGO’s at our house, Sunday volleyball, card games, reading, talking, singing, dancing in our house, night walks, frisbeeand football in the front yard, taking a “break” from the front yard games after two broken bones, starting a vitamin and calcium dietary requirement in the house.
People laughing at you when you have no idea what they are saying or laughing about, remembering how joyful laughter is cross culturally and what good medicine it is, riding in the back of the truck and enjoying the sun and open air while everybody yells “Muno, Muno, Muno” (white person), a comfort in the simplicity, not minding the unfamiliar, the new “norm”somehow being normal, enjoying the life of Africa.
Dependence, seeking, desperation, calling, and praying increasing through every part of me in Jesus, a desire to see His name glorified, a desire to see His people helped, a desire for Truth to His people, a desire for His people to come to Him.
Seeing the hurt, seeing the desperation, seeing the people, seeing the needs, seeing gratefulness, seeing people being empowered, seeing and meeting those willing to give all they have to help others, seeing the hearts, seeing what God has done and is doing, seeing fruit, seeing dancing/jumping/ and praise to the Lord, seeing a little boy who did not feel loved taken to the hospital and provided care, giving him the opportunity of basic health care, loving on him and cherishing his smiles and tenderheart.
Learning to love far deeper, being humbled in so many different ways, making friends and enjoying the people, laughing, crying, struggling, finding those that have given themselves to Jesus and are serving Him with their heart.
God’s creation bringing Him glory and shouting His Name, hearing the orchestra of His creation from the rain and thunder storms to the crickets and bullfrogs, hearing His praises from beautiful faces.
New believers turning their hearts to Jesus Chirst.
becky
Sunday, April 22, 2007
The Vehicle Stops, but God Doesn’t!
This is a perfect example of how God uses every opportunity when we make ourselves available to Him. 
Last week, we were racing along the road to a medical training event to be held in one of the IDP camps. Suddenly, we noticed smoke pouring out of the vehicle’s tape player, and eventually the entire engine. Slowly, our truck rolled to a stop on the side of the road. Our radiator was broken and spewing coolant all over the engine. Thankfully, our resourceful driver Okelli knew what to do. We pushed the truck about ½-mile to a nearby stream where we used water to cool down the engine. He then had to take the radiator out of the engine and back into town to get it fixed. By the time we were on our way again, we had waited on the side of the road for over two hours. Wasted time? Not at all!
The place where we stopped was a local watering hole used by many local women to wash their clothes and gather water for cooking. Our nurse, Becky, seized this opportunity to serve. Greeting them with an “apoyo,” she asked if she could help wash their clothes for them. Although hesitant at first, one of the old women eventually agreed. Within minutes, Becky was kneeling on the ground, hand-washing an old woman’s clothes for her. It wasn’t long before this relatively strange activity drew a crowd of interested youngsters, eager to see what this white person was doing.
But that’s not the end of the story. God opened up the door for Becky to talk to these women about the person of Jesus Christ. Our pastor Walter soon joined in the conversation, laying out the gospel and dialoguing with them. Before I was really aware of it, an evangelistic meeting had begun. By the time it was over, a young child had accepted Christ as Lord! Praise God! He is never wasteful. I shouldn’t be surprised, though, because that’s just how creative God is when we give ourselves fully to Him!
Last week, we were racing along the road to a medical training event to be held in one of the IDP camps. Suddenly, we noticed smoke pouring out of the vehicle’s tape player, and eventually the entire engine. Slowly, our truck rolled to a stop on the side of the road. Our radiator was broken and spewing coolant all over the engine. Thankfully, our resourceful driver Okelli knew what to do. We pushed the truck about ½-mile to a nearby stream where we used water to cool down the engine. He then had to take the radiator out of the engine and back into town to get it fixed. By the time we were on our way again, we had waited on the side of the road for over two hours. Wasted time? Not at all!
The place where we stopped was a local watering hole used by many local women to wash their clothes and gather water for cooking. Our nurse, Becky, seized this opportunity to serve. Greeting them with an “apoyo,” she asked if she could help wash their clothes for them. Although hesitant at first, one of the old women eventually agreed. Within minutes, Becky was kneeling on the ground, hand-washing an old woman’s clothes for her. It wasn’t long before this relatively strange activity drew a crowd of interested youngsters, eager to see what this white person was doing.But that’s not the end of the story. God opened up the door for Becky to talk to these women about the person of Jesus Christ. Our pastor Walter soon joined in the conversation, laying out the gospel and dialoguing with them. Before I was really aware of it, an evangelistic meeting had begun. By the time it was over, a young child had accepted Christ as Lord! Praise God! He is never wasteful. I shouldn’t be surprised, though, because that’s just how creative God is when we give ourselves fully to Him!
Hilda Mercy=Laughter!
Many days, God chooses to give us glimpses of His glory, and other days the work here just feels like work. But even in the midst of the occasional mundane, God is still moving in people’s lives even if we can’t see it. I've realized it's times like that when we really have to hold onto the vision- the big picture, and not just get through the day, but choose to thrive in each moment of that day, aware that God is still working, and being ready to show His love at any opportunity.
Yesterday in the field was one of those days. We had our last marathon-Saturday of teaching for this group of girls and the awards ceremony will be on Tuesday. To be real, it was a long day, with most of our time spent listening to teachings in Luo and wishing so badly that we could speak the language, but also observing our teachers develop a heart and a passion to see their girls live a healthy and holy life. At the end of the day, 47 girls committed to abstain-praise God!
The absolute highlight of my day was a 4-foot-nothing teacher that we have who looks younger than some of the students in our younger-age class. Her name is Hilda Mercy and she is a little ball of fire and you can’t help but be so attracted to that fire in her.
Her laughter is so robust and contagious and comes from deep within her and bubbles out of her about 50 times a minute. As soon as class ended yesterday, the heavy rain clouds opened up and all the teachers tried to pile into the cab of our truck so they wouldn’t get wet. Hilda Mercy crammed in with Bethany and another teacher into the front seat. She tried to close the door and realized, a little too late, that her head was still halfway outside. She shut her head in the door and didn’t waste a second before she was absolutely cracking up at herself, which, in turn, filled the cab of the truck with laughter from everyone- and we couldn’t stop. Watching her face and seeing that she couldn’t even catch her breath from laughing so hard made me laugh until I was crying.
Laughter always seems to bring our two very different cultures to a common ground, whether we understand why we’re laughing or not (and usually we don’t)…
-MariAnne
Yesterday in the field was one of those days. We had our last marathon-Saturday of teaching for this group of girls and the awards ceremony will be on Tuesday. To be real, it was a long day, with most of our time spent listening to teachings in Luo and wishing so badly that we could speak the language, but also observing our teachers develop a heart and a passion to see their girls live a healthy and holy life. At the end of the day, 47 girls committed to abstain-praise God!
The absolute highlight of my day was a 4-foot-nothing teacher that we have who looks younger than some of the students in our younger-age class. Her name is Hilda Mercy and she is a little ball of fire and you can’t help but be so attracted to that fire in her.
Her laughter is so robust and contagious and comes from deep within her and bubbles out of her about 50 times a minute. As soon as class ended yesterday, the heavy rain clouds opened up and all the teachers tried to pile into the cab of our truck so they wouldn’t get wet. Hilda Mercy crammed in with Bethany and another teacher into the front seat. She tried to close the door and realized, a little too late, that her head was still halfway outside. She shut her head in the door and didn’t waste a second before she was absolutely cracking up at herself, which, in turn, filled the cab of the truck with laughter from everyone- and we couldn’t stop. Watching her face and seeing that she couldn’t even catch her breath from laughing so hard made me laugh until I was crying.Laughter always seems to bring our two very different cultures to a common ground, whether we understand why we’re laughing or not (and usually we don’t)…
-MariAnne
Sunday, April 15, 2007
Power!
The electrical power has been out all weekend here in Lira, and we have been eating, reading, singing and living by candlelight. The power of God, however, has been so evident in this place.
Saturday was indescribable. I just can't even begin to express the love I have for these people and the joy that serving here brings.
So our day in the field started out an hour late because Lira had run out of diesel gasoline, so then we had to wait to rent a truck that takes regular fuel. It was raining and the roads were muddy on the way to the camps, but we had learned at the end of the last rainy season to not be discouraged by the rain. Often, Ugandans will be very late because they don't like to get out in the rain and walk, or they simply just won't show up. But the rainy season is also so exciting because we never know what's going to happen on the days that we are out in the field. But one fact remains true: that these days always hold something unique and extraordinary.
All of our teachers were ready and waiting for us and about half of our students were there. So we got started while the rest of the students continued to drift in. My class is a little behind Bethany's class, so we started the day by reading "The Father's Love Letter" to the girls. Walter from Opeta had practiced and prepared and did such a great job reading it in Luo, while Wes softly played the guitar in the background. The girls had their heads down and eyes closed and were listening intently and soaking up God's promises. His presence filled the room as we offered an alter call for all of those who believed in God's promises and wanted a personal relationship with Jesus. Seven girls raised their hands that day and now have the Holy Spirit living in them and will spend eternity with Jesus... girls that more than likely have already been sexually active, may have an STD, and don't have any assurance that tomorrow will come for them. But they now have a hope and an assurance in Jesus. Please pray for the purity and spiritual growth of these girls, and for Bibles for each of them. Their names are:
Nighty, Ketty, Sarah, Dorkas, Scovia, Winny, and Vicky.
Thank ya'll, also, for the prayers for our teachers. They were on fire on Saturday - so creative and energetic. They will make better teachers for their people than we ever would. As Bethany described, a storm came with a vengeance halfway through the day. When the teachers couldn't be heard, my girls also began dancing and praising God, singing so loud as to outsing the rain, and I could imagine God basking in the praises of His people as He was flooding us with His presence. I think it was something similar to what heaven will be like. In the midst of all the varying souls God created, with some people bowing down in reverence while others raising their hands in worship, we will see the Africans jumping and smiling and dancing before the Lord with all their hearts.
Mari Anne
Saturday was indescribable. I just can't even begin to express the love I have for these people and the joy that serving here brings.
So our day in the field started out an hour late because Lira had run out of diesel gasoline, so then we had to wait to rent a truck that takes regular fuel. It was raining and the roads were muddy on the way to the camps, but we had learned at the end of the last rainy season to not be discouraged by the rain. Often, Ugandans will be very late because they don't like to get out in the rain and walk, or they simply just won't show up. But the rainy season is also so exciting because we never know what's going to happen on the days that we are out in the field. But one fact remains true: that these days always hold something unique and extraordinary.
All of our teachers were ready and waiting for us and about half of our students were there. So we got started while the rest of the students continued to drift in. My class is a little behind Bethany's class, so we started the day by reading "The Father's Love Letter" to the girls. Walter from Opeta had practiced and prepared and did such a great job reading it in Luo, while Wes softly played the guitar in the background. The girls had their heads down and eyes closed and were listening intently and soaking up God's promises. His presence filled the room as we offered an alter call for all of those who believed in God's promises and wanted a personal relationship with Jesus. Seven girls raised their hands that day and now have the Holy Spirit living in them and will spend eternity with Jesus... girls that more than likely have already been sexually active, may have an STD, and don't have any assurance that tomorrow will come for them. But they now have a hope and an assurance in Jesus. Please pray for the purity and spiritual growth of these girls, and for Bibles for each of them. Their names are:
Nighty, Ketty, Sarah, Dorkas, Scovia, Winny, and Vicky.
Thank ya'll, also, for the prayers for our teachers. They were on fire on Saturday - so creative and energetic. They will make better teachers for their people than we ever would. As Bethany described, a storm came with a vengeance halfway through the day. When the teachers couldn't be heard, my girls also began dancing and praising God, singing so loud as to outsing the rain, and I could imagine God basking in the praises of His people as He was flooding us with His presence. I think it was something similar to what heaven will be like. In the midst of all the varying souls God created, with some people bowing down in reverence while others raising their hands in worship, we will see the Africans jumping and smiling and dancing before the Lord with all their hearts.
Mari Anne
Praise to You Jesus!
It was a great day in the field yesterday. The PRICELESS teachers and students are getting better all the time. Every day we meet the teachers are improving and getting more and more empowered and are enthusiastic about helping the situation in their community. It is very apparent that all of you are showering us with prayers.
It is now about to be rainy season and as we were in Otwal IDP camp under a tin roof God blessed us with the most beautiful, torrential downpour. It became so loud that the students couldn't hear the lesson so we had to stop. While we waited for it to quiet down my girls sang at the top of their lungs the most amazing African hymns and danced and jumped in a completely undignified, beautiful fashion. Whoa....can I just say that I love this place. That image will be planted in my head for a long time. He was glorified with praise as he flooded our place with his presence. Good things are happening and though there is a lot of darkness, our Father's light is magnificent in Northern Uganda!
-Bethany
Friday, April 13, 2007
Another great Walter...
This is Walter and one of the cutest little kids in northern Uganda. Walter has such a heart to serve the Lord and his people. He has volunteered for us day after day for long hours for many months and Praise the Lord, just recently we were able to put him on full time staff! YEAH!
Shaunessy
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Beyond What We Imagined!!!
Things are going full swing and God is blessing PRICELESS more than we ever could have imagined! We thank you for the diligent prayers to pull us through these past few months of implementing the program. What is happening is exceeding what we knew was possible in such a short time. We came with a God sized vision and are now getting to witness His power everyday. Every day is different then the next and the longer I stay here, the more I love it. It is an exciting time right now!
It has been so encouraging every Tuesday and Thursday morning riding out to the camps to see teachers waiting on the side of the road eager to get to class and teach, and smiling students running down the dirt path to make it to class on time. Things have been much smoother with the students this time around and we have been working on ironing out all the kinks with the 10 teachers that are in the process of student teaching. The students have been so attentive and giddy at the opportunity to learn. The teachers, headmaster (principal), and superintendent of the district are all helping us in any way possible and requesting for us to continue the program. All these things working together are truly a miracle because implementing a program usually tends to be much more difficult.
Though the teachers are outstanding women in the camps, they have not been previously taught about their tremendous value in God’s eyes and how much they are loved by Him. They haven’t been encouraged to believe that their body is a temple to be honored, but instead have had been violated and defiled throughout their lives like the girls they are teaching. MariAnne and I are investing into them continuously and hoping for them to continue to become more effective than we could be as teachers. It has been a challenge but they are excited to learn and working hard to prove to us that they are able to have their own classroom. By next month 5 classrooms of 30 girls are going to be started up on the PRICELESS program. If you could pray for the teachers to continue to grow, the students to have their worlds rocked and fall in love with Jesus, and for us to have knowledge and enthusiasm as God continues to use us as tools to reach his precious daughters.
We have big hopes for these ladies in the future of our program! If you could pray for them by name it would be awesome! Their names are: Amolo Betty, Aparo Hilda Mercy, Akello Simmy, Auna Topister, Akot Anna Betty, Akello Harriet, Ayuru Grace, Docust Lucy Otim, Awino Eunice, Aguti Sarah, and Dilish Brenda. Some of the things that need to be lifted up are: for them to continue to be excited about teaching, to believe and practice what they are teaching, to be a good example and develop relationships with the girls and community as our representatives, and for them to be blessed for their work and continue to be encouraged.
-Bethany
It has been so encouraging every Tuesday and Thursday morning riding out to the camps to see teachers waiting on the side of the road eager to get to class and teach, and smiling students running down the dirt path to make it to class on time. Things have been much smoother with the students this time around and we have been working on ironing out all the kinks with the 10 teachers that are in the process of student teaching. The students have been so attentive and giddy at the opportunity to learn. The teachers, headmaster (principal), and superintendent of the district are all helping us in any way possible and requesting for us to continue the program. All these things working together are truly a miracle because implementing a program usually tends to be much more difficult.
Though the teachers are outstanding women in the camps, they have not been previously taught about their tremendous value in God’s eyes and how much they are loved by Him. They haven’t been encouraged to believe that their body is a temple to be honored, but instead have had been violated and defiled throughout their lives like the girls they are teaching. MariAnne and I are investing into them continuously and hoping for them to continue to become more effective than we could be as teachers. It has been a challenge but they are excited to learn and working hard to prove to us that they are able to have their own classroom. By next month 5 classrooms of 30 girls are going to be started up on the PRICELESS program. If you could pray for the teachers to continue to grow, the students to have their worlds rocked and fall in love with Jesus, and for us to have knowledge and enthusiasm as God continues to use us as tools to reach his precious daughters.
We have big hopes for these ladies in the future of our program! If you could pray for them by name it would be awesome! Their names are: Amolo Betty, Aparo Hilda Mercy, Akello Simmy, Auna Topister, Akot Anna Betty, Akello Harriet, Ayuru Grace, Docust Lucy Otim, Awino Eunice, Aguti Sarah, and Dilish Brenda. Some of the things that need to be lifted up are: for them to continue to be excited about teaching, to believe and practice what they are teaching, to be a good example and develop relationships with the girls and community as our representatives, and for them to be blessed for their work and continue to be encouraged.
-Bethany
Monday, April 2, 2007
Empowering the people!
Our long-term desire at GRI is to empower the people of Uganda to help themselves and make a difference in the lives of their own people. It is so exciting to me when we have the opportunity to train local people to help in their own camps. This past month we have had the privilege of training 25 women who serve as traditional birthing attendants in their 5 camps. Becky and Corrie worked long hours with a local nurse midwife and Dr. Tom to organize this training. These birthing attendants attend almost every delivery, night or day, rain or sun, without recognition and without any pay. Many of them have had no previous formal education or training. They just saw the need and have learned as they go. None of them even have gloves. So as they help deliver the babies, many of them told us they reuse plastic bags as gloves. It is so sad. We had a day training for them and gave them much-needed supplies to help. Here in Uganda, women on average have about 8 children, so you can imagine these TBAs are incredibly busy! Also we held our second training for our Field Medical Representatives which are now about 30 in number. Dr. Tom held this training and did a great job. With your continued support we can continue to hold many more trainings and continue to empower these wonderful people! This is a picture of the TBAs.
Thanks-
Shaunessy
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