Uganda week 2 Dave speaks to church

Well, I just spent the last hour putting photos on here and I just realized they are backwards, so the ones at the top correspond to the end of the week and the bottom the begining. Oh well, It's Africa, that's the way things go around here. I'll just add captions and you can figure out what day they belong with. Above is the church that I spoke at on Sunday. First sermon that I have ever delivered.

Below: Ruth with lots of sunday school kids. Notice the mostly naked girlon the right with baby strapped to her back.
Below...the sunsets here are amazing as well. This is the view from the entrance to our dining hall. (which is like a huge cement gymnasium)

Above: Jess and Jonny taking part as we teach the Discovery kids some songs and sign language. The Discovery kids look well dressed because they have to buy uniforms to be able to come. That is there tuition and still many can't afford it.

Below: Our dishwasher for the base. start on the right (dirty water) and move left as it gets cleaner.
Jess and Jonny got a tour of the Vocational Training school (VTS). this is the chicken coop. they love all of the animals.

Day 91– Sep 28, 2005, Wednesday:Work with kids

We split up the team today to help teach the kids from refugee camps. Apparently what happens is about 40 kids come from a refugee camp for a week to live here on base and have school (not to mention beds and food). Rod, Rita, Wendy, Karen and I took the older kids (10-15 years). We had fun with them. We taught them a few songs and did “How Great is Our God” in singing and sign language. I think they enjoyed it. At least they clapped a lot. We had them all introduce themselves by tossing an orange back and forth, it was fun. It’s interesting, they all have very American names. I’ll have to find out if they are their ‘real’ names or not. After singing and name sharing Rod talked for 15 minutes or so with an interpreter. It was good. I suppose I’ll have to get up and start talking at some point. It’s weird, I feel led to do it, but scared at the same time….

Ruth went and served the preschool kids…. There is a preschool here on base that serves both the staff kids and local children (about 30 total kids). The teachers are apart of ywam and are volunteers. They asked us to come and teach and to do a craft with the children for 3 days. My kids were thrilled to go to school and to interact with the other children! I enjoy interacting with them and loving them and giving the teachers a break.

The first thing I noticed in the preschool was how little they had – the building is simple, they sit on the floor for everything, torn posters on walls, very simple toys made out of homemade objects (puzzles made out of cardboard that the teachers have cut out). The teachers have notebooks for each child that they hand write all their assignments (no preprinted materials). And yet with so little they are so content!

They also are so well behaved! They were sitting in a circle when we came in totally quiet. The teacher asked them to welcome us and in unison they said, “you are most welcome visitors”. They are so polite and so obedient. It made me realize how spoiled our western children are and how much it takes to entertain them and just how much we take for granted. I asked Susan, the main teacher, if they had anything we could buy for them. She was overjoyed and said she would like notebooks, pencils, erasers, markers and something to sweep the floor. I spent maybe $10 total and Rose, another teacher, just hugged me and said “Praise God for the Hawaii team”. I was shocked – because it was no big deal for me and yet such a big deal for them. There is so much need here for just basic things! Especially for clothing! The children wear the same clothes every day – so torn and dirty and most have no shoes. It breaks my heart. There is so much need when we have so much plenty.

At lunch we served the kids as a team. It was cool to be able to give to them. We sat at a table of all girls and tried to talk to them, but they weren’t talkers. Apparently Karen spoke with some kids and asked one about where he came from. When she asked, the childs face just dropped and he went quiet. She couldn’t get him to talk after that. Another child had a badly burned foot and it turns out that in these refugee camps there are often fires and all they can do is run, sometimes through the fire to get out. Another said that both his brother and father were killed by rebels…just devastating stuff.

I also found out that I’ll be preaching at church on Sunday. Yep, me…preaching at church. Luckily their church services are only about 3 hours long and the message is 45 minutes long (that’s sarcasm). Funny thing is that it didn’t come as a surprise to me, somehow I was sort of expecting it, and I feel like I have a message to tell. Pray for this one though.

Day 92– Sep 29, 2005, Thursday: Discovery kids

Woke up this morning with a sick Jonny. Bummer. He threw up a time or two, so I went and got breakfast and brought it back for the family. Breakfast is usually just a roll with plum jam or honey and some milk tea. A very light breakfast by my standards, especially because lunch isn’t served until 1:00pm. I get so hungry by lunchtime (I’m spoiled). Jonny was white as a sheet, so he stayed back with Ruth while I went to work with Discovery kids. We taught them the sign language to “How great is our God”. They are very quick learners. They really enjoyed it too. Then Wendy gave a message about our hurts and scars in life, both physically and emotionally. She asked if any of the kids had seen any one die or be killed and nearly all raised their hand slowly. She asked if any had parents die and several again raised hands, I almost started crying just watching the kids respond. She talked about how God can heal those wounds. She asked if any of the kids wanted to come up and be prayed for and nearly all of them did. We prayed for them and tried to encourage as much as possible. Wow, it was a powerful time. It was tough to see these little kids, knowing some of the things they’ve gone through. The really tough part is knowing that at the end of this week they have to go back to the refugee camp and face all of it again. They really shut up when you bring up where they come from and that they have to go back. There just isn’t enough money to keep them here. There are also just too many kids still there that need a week off to get some love and hear that God loves them and that there is hope. Sigh….tough stuff.

Then I went back with Jonny and Ruth went with the preschool kids again. I decided if I’m gonna be praying for healing for these other kids, I might as well pray for Jonny to be healed as well. He just layed in bed for a few hours, but he didn’t throw up any more. Then he got a little water down and scarfed down his biscuit. By lunch time he was done.

After lunch we met as a team for a while to figure out a game plan for tomorrow, because we are running the Discovery kids program for 4 hours. I think we have a good plan. I’ll tell you more about it after we do it.

Chipate is what we had for dinner tonite. It is like a thick tortilla that you dip in beans. It tastes awesome. Ruth wants to learn how to make it and reproduce it back at home. We have all been amazed at how good the food is here. It’s been a long, hot, tiring day…time for bed.

Day 92– Sep 30, 2005, Friday: doozy of a day...hot and tiring, but GREAT

Where do I start with today? It’s been a doozy. After breakfast we went to lead the Discovery kids. Remember, these are all kids that live in a refugee camp in Northern Uganda. Most of them have lived there for over 3 years. The camp is protected by their army, but surrounding them are the rebels who basically kill often. These kids were brought here for a week, they had to have an armed escort to get their bus out of the camp. Most of these kids have seen a family member die, most of them in horrible ways. These kids are hurting in ways that you and I can’t imagine.

We had 4 hours to lead them today. We started with worship. We sang “mercy is falling” with them and then they brought out the big drum and sang for us. These kids jumped up and down, sang “Hallelujah” with the African “thum da da dum thum da thum…” of the drums…they were awesome. It was a total blessing to watch and hear them worship. After worship I gave a short message with a translator (1/2 of the kids speak English well, ½ speak a tribal language). I spoke about Gods story of loving man. God created us…All was Very good…man sinned…God and man couldn’t be together….God loved man….God sent his son to forgive man so man could know God again…Gods son died for Man’s sin…Gods son conquered sin and rose from death…man has a choice to either accept God’s gift of forgiveness through his son... or reject it. Then we did a skit to the music “Agnus Dei” (Holy are you Lord God Almighty..worthy is the lamb…) It was really powerful. Then Wendy spoke a little about how God can heal us and asked if any of the kids wanted prayer. About ½ did, so we prayed for each individually. I prayed for 4. I remember Walter the most. All the kids said they knew Christ and were forgiven, but Walter said he didn’t know Christ. I asked if he wanted to know him and he looked down and said “yes”. He cried a little as he asked Christ into his heart to forgive him. I don’t think I’ll ever forget it.

Day 93– Nov 1, 2005, Saturday: Off to Town

There were some basic necessities lacking, so we took a taxi to town today. We had to hike for a good bit before we found a taxi; Jonny was cranky so I had to carry him. A friend (Jonathan) drove by in a truck and offered us a ride ½ way to town. We took him up on his offer and got to stand up in the back of the truck. Then we got a taxi the rest of the way, it took over an hour to go about 5 miles. In town we bought some paper, pens, markers for the preschool class. We also bought some material to make some clothes; our friend Grace is a seamstress and offered to make clothes for the family. We also bought some exciting things like toilet paper. Then we went into the bargain shops, which are pretty smelly and dirty and you could easily get lost in there. It’s like a flea market crammed tightly together (and probably with actual fleas). It was kind of tough to keep the kids happy the whole time at town. Luckily we bought a can of biscuits and they kept munching on them. On the way home we had 22 people in a van smaller than our old Eurovan. It was quite a ride.

We had planned on the trip taking only a few hours, but it ended up being about 5 hours. Ruth started laundry while I prepared a little for my speaking debut tomorrow. Laundry is a whole new way of life here. First of all the dirt just gets on everything. Then there is the hand washing…no wonder there are so many people here in filthy clothes

Jonny didn’t nap because he was so cranky (go figure). I tried to send some emails, but somehow the connection was down (again, go figure). During dinner the power went out (3^rd time this week) and of course there was no kerosene for the lamps because someone used it to start the coals for dinner, and there was no fuel for the generator because no one realized it needed refilling….this is Africa…

We discovered the reason for Jonny’s crankiness tonite as he spent more than ½ an hour on the toilet groaning. Apparently he’s not getting the fruit in his diet that he needs. He loves all the carbs in the diet, but we need to establish a better balance for his system

…he’s happy now.

Day 94– Nov 2, 2005, Sunday: Dave speaking at church

Well, I had kind of wondered if God in his infinite wisdom would protect the church from hearing me speak a sermon, but he chose to subject them to me. It was quite a church service. We went to ‘Abundant Life Church’, which is about ½ hour walk from base. We got a ride in the back of the truck because it’s too far for the kids (yeah). The first impression of this church/area…wow, how do people live like this. There are kids everywhere, half clothed, malnourished, kicking around a soccerball of sorts.

The church started out with some fairly random singing/clapping. They had a ‘sound system’ and even two wireless microphones. It was almost impossible to understand anything because the volume was so high and the building was concrete, so sound was everywhere. Every 30 seconds or so a lady would let out one of these African crys of joy that pierced your ears. But these people danced and sang with joy. Once the random singing slowed, a man started speaking, announcements I think. He spoke in English and had a girl speaking at the same time in Ugandan. I’d be surprised if anyone in the building took in more than half of what he said. Then things quieted down a bit and they stopped using the microphones. Ruth and most of our team left the service to help with the kids church. Then the choir (about 10 people) came up and sang, and this was cool. They sang very well and had that African rhythm about them. Awesome music. Then they brought our team back in to introduce us all and afterwards just handed me the microphone. My initial struggle was how to hold my notes, my bible and a microphone. Somehow I wasn’t expecting a microphone. But someone quickly wheeled up a massive pulpit for me to hide behind. The next struggle was that the interpreter girl couldn’t follow my accent, so she was quickly traded in for a man that understood me well. Then off I went. It is very nice to speak with an interpreter because you have just enough time to look at notes or think of your next line before it’s your turn to speak. You also don’t have to be very dynamic as most of the showy stuff is lost in interpreting anyways. I spoke about God’s word and how it needs to be our foundation and how most people haven’t even read it. I had a ton of bible references, probably too many, but the one I used most was James 1:22-25 Don't fool yourself into thinking that you are a listener when you are anything but, letting the Word go in one ear and out the other. Act on what you hear! Those who hear and don't act are like those who glance in the mirror, walk away, and two minutes later have no idea who they are, what they look like. But whoever catches a glimpse of the revealed counsel of God--the free life!--even out of the corner of his eye, and sticks with it, is no distracted scatterbrain but a man or woman of action. That person will find delight and affirmation in the action. (James 1:22-25)

I was told that I did pretty well. I think I spoke for about 30 or 40 minutes, but I’m not sure. After me, a guy came up (I think the pastor) and summarized what I said. He said that he had planned on giving a message, but that mine was sufficient. Then he summarized his just in case. I was amazed that his was about how our lives need to be transformed as Christians. It really tied in with my message. Then there were another ½ hour of what seemed like announcements and a little more singing. Once the kids started coming back in they wrapped everything up and we were done. I had many people wanting to shake my hand and thank me afterward.

We talked for a while and slowly made our way to our truck for a bumpy ride home. I watched the kids for a bit after church and was again amazed. There are little 3 year olds with babies on their backs (both naked) walking around. So many kids that need help and nourishment.

Ruth here: Let me say church was shocking! I am still trying to process it. My first shock was the toilet. A man from the church led me to a shack in the back with 2 doors. Inside was a hole on the floor – that’s it! (we call these “squatie potties”) And oh it smelled so bad! The first thing I learned was to always carry tissues and hand sanitizer with me for these moments. The mistake I made was looking in the hole – it was moving! I looked closer – worms and maggots everywhere – I almost threw up!

The next shocker was the children in church. We went into a small cement building with probably 100 kids – all ages! (yes, even babies) There were children my kids ages with little babies strapped on their backs. I noticed there was some sort of segregation among the children - or hierarchy. The nicer clothed children sat on benches. The ones on the floor were dirtier and were mostly younger. Then there were the ones looking in the windows – the street kids – so dirty – some missing clothes. We sang with them and taught them for over 2 hours – Yikes! I was beat! We prayed over them and I cried as I walked around and layed hands on their heads and told them “Jesus loves them”. So many of their heads so dirty, scabs and sores and ringworm.

They seemed to be totally entertained by us just because we are white. They loved to touch us and come close. Jessika gets a little frightened by this. Jonny doesn’t! Karen, on our team, commented as we were leaving that we could leave Jonny there and he would be content. He just runs and plays with all the kids no matter how dirty (he loves dirt too!). I on the other hand have my sanitizer out for my kids constantly – please pray that we will be able to get close to theses kids and love them and play with them without getting sick. They need touch and love and I don’t want to hold back just because of their filth.

It seems so unfair that these precious little ones need to grow up in such dirty conditions. Some of the kids looked so malnourished. Runny noses, scabs, sores, rotted teeth, etc. Some children have those large bellies – they are infested with worms. I wish to be able to help them all. I am still processing today’s events in my mind. I have such a hard time understanding why places like Uganda, so beautiful and so rich in culture, have to be so poor in basic necessities when we have soooooo much. What would it take to make change? I don’t know the answer.