Monday, August 23, 2010
More Blogs
Many of you may not have known but Jaynie and Caitlin were posting blogs on their own blog sites the entire time we were in Africa. Sorry we did not let you know earlier and post them here. I would encourage you to go and read them at http://godblesstherains.wordpress.com/ and http://eyalama-yesu.blogspot.com/ Their writing is very good and both go into a lot of detail of some of the things we went through.
I'm still here!
Ahh! I don't even know when the last time I posted was, I'm sorry! I just know that the big group of 14 from The River has come and gone already. And so much has happened since then... I really enjoyed my time with all of them here. They were a lot of fun to be with, they were so open to listening to what the 6 of us had to say after being here for a month, and they jumped right into life in the bush. I didn't hear any complaining about the conditions and they seemed to get accustomed to Oditel much faster than I did on my first trip - walking down to the center with their new friends, riding or walking waaay out into the bush to eat mystery meats, and trying their best to learn some new Ateso words. I was very proud of them. Good work U2 :)
In case any of you didn't know, I decided to stay back for another week after all the rest of The River missionaries headed back to the US because I still had some work I needed to get done here. We tried to work it out so that someone else would be able to stay with me, but it just didn't happen. So I have trusted God to keep me safe here as a lone Mzungu - after all, if my dear friend Amelia can make it a year by herself, I should be able to make it a week :)
For those of you who have been praying for me these past few days, thank you, thank you, thank you! Your prayers have certainly been heard and answered! I was a little nervous at first because I had a rough start coming back to the village after dropping the big group off in Soroti. I took public transport back to Oditel - 4 hours in the back of something like a big pick up truck, piled with boxes and bags of supplies. Then people sit on top of those supplies, then more people sit around the outside edge of the truck, making a total of 40+ people in the back. The first 2 hours were ok but the last two I was really just miserable. I was crammed so tightly that I literally couldn't move to get inside my purse, move my legs at all, or even straighten my neck up. I don't know how Ugandans can travel like that!
Then once I finally reached the village, it had already gotten dark. Being a female Mzungu by myself, I really was a little nervous and pretty irritated. There were a few guys calling at me in Ateso after I got off and I wasn't really sure how to get them to take my bag down from the roof. And then I heard "Ayyy Asio!" (my Ateso name). I looked up and saw Andrew, a teenage boy who works/stays at the Catholic mission we stay at, walking down the road. Oooh eyalama Yesu for sending me that boy at that very moment! He helped me get my bag down and carried it all the way back to the mission for me. I also felt safe with him there even though the yelling didn't really stop. He laughed after someone yelled at him in Ateso "How much for that Mzungu?" I'm just glad he didn't name a price for the guy :)
So anyways, I've have been back at home in Oditel for 2 days now. And let me say that just like in America, I prefer being out in the country (or bush) instead of being in the city. I love the closeness and community here, there's always a familiar face nearby.
And for more answered prayers, I have felt completely safe, haven't felt lonely even a single time, and have stayed well fed :) One of the priests at the mission immediately invited me to eat every meal with them while I was here and Pastor Andrew has also offered me many meals.
As for fellowship, I've spent my days with the children, lots of time in the evening with the people from the mission - eating meals, even playing Scrabble with Father Opio, and then after church today, I spent the afternoon sitting at Pastor Andrew's store with a group of people from the church. I had such a good time with them, they were really funny, like they really had me cracking up! I didn't know Ugandans could be so silly. There was also some solid, profitable talks/discussions. After all of that, Pastor Andrew served me another delicious meal with the only meat that I really like to eat here, beef. Luckily, after struggling to ride a bike in my long skirt earlier in the day, I got someone to carry my back to the compound on their bike :)
So anyway, after a wonderful Sabbath day, I'll be back at it again tomorrow working on my remaining work here. Thank you again for praying for me and please keep praying for me - for continued protection, that I would get to meet up with all of the children and finish my work, and that the Lord would be preparing my heart to have to leave this place that I've come to love so very very much. Thank you again!
Amina eong yesi (love you guys!)
Asio Cati
In case any of you didn't know, I decided to stay back for another week after all the rest of The River missionaries headed back to the US because I still had some work I needed to get done here. We tried to work it out so that someone else would be able to stay with me, but it just didn't happen. So I have trusted God to keep me safe here as a lone Mzungu - after all, if my dear friend Amelia can make it a year by herself, I should be able to make it a week :)
For those of you who have been praying for me these past few days, thank you, thank you, thank you! Your prayers have certainly been heard and answered! I was a little nervous at first because I had a rough start coming back to the village after dropping the big group off in Soroti. I took public transport back to Oditel - 4 hours in the back of something like a big pick up truck, piled with boxes and bags of supplies. Then people sit on top of those supplies, then more people sit around the outside edge of the truck, making a total of 40+ people in the back. The first 2 hours were ok but the last two I was really just miserable. I was crammed so tightly that I literally couldn't move to get inside my purse, move my legs at all, or even straighten my neck up. I don't know how Ugandans can travel like that!
Then once I finally reached the village, it had already gotten dark. Being a female Mzungu by myself, I really was a little nervous and pretty irritated. There were a few guys calling at me in Ateso after I got off and I wasn't really sure how to get them to take my bag down from the roof. And then I heard "Ayyy Asio!" (my Ateso name). I looked up and saw Andrew, a teenage boy who works/stays at the Catholic mission we stay at, walking down the road. Oooh eyalama Yesu for sending me that boy at that very moment! He helped me get my bag down and carried it all the way back to the mission for me. I also felt safe with him there even though the yelling didn't really stop. He laughed after someone yelled at him in Ateso "How much for that Mzungu?" I'm just glad he didn't name a price for the guy :)
So anyways, I've have been back at home in Oditel for 2 days now. And let me say that just like in America, I prefer being out in the country (or bush) instead of being in the city. I love the closeness and community here, there's always a familiar face nearby.
And for more answered prayers, I have felt completely safe, haven't felt lonely even a single time, and have stayed well fed :) One of the priests at the mission immediately invited me to eat every meal with them while I was here and Pastor Andrew has also offered me many meals.
As for fellowship, I've spent my days with the children, lots of time in the evening with the people from the mission - eating meals, even playing Scrabble with Father Opio, and then after church today, I spent the afternoon sitting at Pastor Andrew's store with a group of people from the church. I had such a good time with them, they were really funny, like they really had me cracking up! I didn't know Ugandans could be so silly. There was also some solid, profitable talks/discussions. After all of that, Pastor Andrew served me another delicious meal with the only meat that I really like to eat here, beef. Luckily, after struggling to ride a bike in my long skirt earlier in the day, I got someone to carry my back to the compound on their bike :)
So anyway, after a wonderful Sabbath day, I'll be back at it again tomorrow working on my remaining work here. Thank you again for praying for me and please keep praying for me - for continued protection, that I would get to meet up with all of the children and finish my work, and that the Lord would be preparing my heart to have to leave this place that I've come to love so very very much. Thank you again!
Amina eong yesi (love you guys!)
Asio Cati
I'm still here!
Ahh! I don't even know when the last time I posted was, I'm sorry! I just know that the big group of 14 from The River has come and gone already. And so much has happened since then... I really enjoyed my time with all of them here. They were a lot of fun to be with, they were so open to listening to what the 6 of us had to say after being here for a month, and they jumped right into life in the bush. I didn't hear any complaining about the conditions and they seemed to get accustomed to Oditel much faster than I did on my first trip - walking down to the center with their new friends, riding or walking waaay out into the bush to eat mystery meats, and trying their best to learn some new Ateso words. I was very proud of them. Good work U2 :)
In case any of you didn't know, I decided to stay back for another week after all the rest of The River missionaries headed back to the US because I still had some work I needed to get done here. We tried to work it out so that someone else would be able to stay with me, but it just didn't happen. So I have trusted God to keep me safe here as a lone Mzungu - after all, if my dear friend Amelia can make it a year by herself, I should be able to make it a week :)
For those of you who have been praying for me these past few days, thank you, thank you, thank you! Your prayers have certainly been heard and answered! I was a little nervous at first because I had a rough start coming back to the village after dropping the big group off in Soroti. I took public transport back to Oditel - 4 hours in the back of something like a big pick up truck, piled with boxes and bags of supplies. Then people sit on top of those supplies, then more people sit around the outside edge of the truck, making a total of 40+ people in the back. The first 2 hours were ok but the last two I was really just miserable. I was crammed so tightly that I literally couldn't move to get inside my purse, move my legs at all, or even straighten my neck up. I don't know how Ugandans can travel like that!
Then once I finally reached the village, it had already gotten dark. Being a female Mzungu by myself, I really was a little nervous and pretty irritated. There were a few guys calling at me in Ateso after I got off and I wasn't really sure how to get them to take my bag down from the roof. And then I heard "Ayyy Asio!" (my Ateso name). I looked up and saw Andrew, a teenage boy who works/stays at the Catholic mission we stay at, walking down the road. Oooh eyalama Yesu for sending me that boy at that very moment! He helped me get my bag down and carried it all the way back to the mission for me. I also felt safe with him there even though the yelling didn't really stop. He laughed after someone yelled at him in Ateso "How much for that Mzungu?" I'm just glad he didn't name a price for the guy :)
So anyways, I've have been back at home in Oditel for 2 days now. And let me say that just like in America, I prefer being out in the country (or bush) instead of being in the city. I love the closeness and community here, there's always a familiar face nearby.
And for more answered prayers, I have felt completely safe, haven't felt lonely even a single time, and have stayed well fed :) One of the priests at the mission immediately invited me to eat every meal with them while I was here and Pastor Andrew has also offered me many meals.
As for fellowship, I've spent my days with the children, lots of time in the evening with the people from the mission - eating meals, even playing Scrabble with Father Opio, and then after church today, I spent the afternoon sitting at Pastor Andrew's store with a group of people from the church. I had such a good time with them, they were really funny, like they really had me cracking up! I didn't know Ugandans could be so silly. There was also some solid, profitable talks/discussions. After all of that, Pastor Andrew served me another delicious meal with the only meat that I really like to eat here, beef. Luckily, after struggling to ride a bike in my long skirt earlier in the day, I got someone to carry me back to the compound on their bike :)
So anyway, after a wonderful Sabbath day, I'll be back at it again tomorrow working on my remaining work here. Thank you again for praying for me and please keep praying for me - for continued protection, that I would get to meet up with all of the children and finish my work, and that the Lord would be preparing my heart to have to leave this place that I've come to love so very very much. Thank you again!
Amina eong yesi (love you guys!)
Asio Cati
In case any of you didn't know, I decided to stay back for another week after all the rest of The River missionaries headed back to the US because I still had some work I needed to get done here. We tried to work it out so that someone else would be able to stay with me, but it just didn't happen. So I have trusted God to keep me safe here as a lone Mzungu - after all, if my dear friend Amelia can make it a year by herself, I should be able to make it a week :)
For those of you who have been praying for me these past few days, thank you, thank you, thank you! Your prayers have certainly been heard and answered! I was a little nervous at first because I had a rough start coming back to the village after dropping the big group off in Soroti. I took public transport back to Oditel - 4 hours in the back of something like a big pick up truck, piled with boxes and bags of supplies. Then people sit on top of those supplies, then more people sit around the outside edge of the truck, making a total of 40+ people in the back. The first 2 hours were ok but the last two I was really just miserable. I was crammed so tightly that I literally couldn't move to get inside my purse, move my legs at all, or even straighten my neck up. I don't know how Ugandans can travel like that!
Then once I finally reached the village, it had already gotten dark. Being a female Mzungu by myself, I really was a little nervous and pretty irritated. There were a few guys calling at me in Ateso after I got off and I wasn't really sure how to get them to take my bag down from the roof. And then I heard "Ayyy Asio!" (my Ateso name). I looked up and saw Andrew, a teenage boy who works/stays at the Catholic mission we stay at, walking down the road. Oooh eyalama Yesu for sending me that boy at that very moment! He helped me get my bag down and carried it all the way back to the mission for me. I also felt safe with him there even though the yelling didn't really stop. He laughed after someone yelled at him in Ateso "How much for that Mzungu?" I'm just glad he didn't name a price for the guy :)
So anyways, I've have been back at home in Oditel for 2 days now. And let me say that just like in America, I prefer being out in the country (or bush) instead of being in the city. I love the closeness and community here, there's always a familiar face nearby.
And for more answered prayers, I have felt completely safe, haven't felt lonely even a single time, and have stayed well fed :) One of the priests at the mission immediately invited me to eat every meal with them while I was here and Pastor Andrew has also offered me many meals.
As for fellowship, I've spent my days with the children, lots of time in the evening with the people from the mission - eating meals, even playing Scrabble with Father Opio, and then after church today, I spent the afternoon sitting at Pastor Andrew's store with a group of people from the church. I had such a good time with them, they were really funny, like they really had me cracking up! I didn't know Ugandans could be so silly. There was also some solid, profitable talks/discussions. After all of that, Pastor Andrew served me another delicious meal with the only meat that I really like to eat here, beef. Luckily, after struggling to ride a bike in my long skirt earlier in the day, I got someone to carry me back to the compound on their bike :)
So anyway, after a wonderful Sabbath day, I'll be back at it again tomorrow working on my remaining work here. Thank you again for praying for me and please keep praying for me - for continued protection, that I would get to meet up with all of the children and finish my work, and that the Lord would be preparing my heart to have to leave this place that I've come to love so very very much. Thank you again!
Amina eong yesi (love you guys!)
Asio Cati
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Home
It's been a while since my last update but I will have to fill you in later. I just wanted to let you know that we made it home safely yesterday, however Caitlin is staying in Uganda for another week to finish out a few things. Continue to pray for her safety.
Brian
Sunday, August 8, 2010
No Internet
Hello everyone.
Sorry there have not been any recent updates. Our internet access has been non-existent. Here are some updates from the past week.
On Saturday July 31st I met with all of the coaches and leaders of the soccer league for the second time. There are two leagues, 8 teams in a 10-14 league and 6 teams in a 14-17 year old league. Games started on Wednesday and there will be one game every day till late August. Then there will be a tournament (all mzungus will be back in USA by then). They would then like to make an all star team and go play against Kapelebyong. The idea then would be that the league would start over.
On Sunday August 1st we started a prayer ministry after the service very similar to how we do things at The River. All of the prayer was done by the local people with our support. Jaynie and I were a team with Pastor Emanuel and a few other women. There was also a 12 year old boy who layed hands on and prayed for everyone along with us. Eventually he even wanted to be prayed for. While praying for him I saw a very clear vision of a knight surrounded by fire slaying a dragon. The boy was the knight. Jaynie also had a vision of a soldier. Pray that this boy grows up to be the warrior that Janyie and I saw in him.
On Tuesday August 3rd the Youth Association of Oditel hosted a farmers training day. They were expecting upwards of 200 people from all over the region. Some traveling up to 15 miles one way to be here. I will be providing lunch for everyone as a way to encourage people to come. I preached for about 30 minute to start off the training. I spoke on the value of community and used many biblical reasoning's to support my claims. The response from the pastors present and from all of the people was very encouraging. Everyone that attended felt empowered. The training was practical and hands on using the skills that they have learned in creating and maintaining the garden that Luke and Adam put in. The idea is that these people will use the skills they learn to train all of the people around them.
On August 5th I was reading a chapter from the book When Helping Hurts. The chapter that I happened to be reading was on Asset Based Community Development. One of the things discussed in this chapter was taking an inventory of all of the skills and abilities that people in the community had. At the time I read it I didn't think much of it but later in the day it turned out to be extremely helpful… I was walking around Oditel during the time that the orphans are being fed at the carepoint. I ended up finding one of the pastors who was at the farming training and we chatted for a little bit. During our conversation I presented him with the idea I had read about that morning in my book. I suggested that they take an inventory of the skills and abilities that all of the people in the community have. Then group people with similar interests and skills together. So now rather than people being scattered all over trying to work alone, they could band together and share knowledge and possibly send one person to receive training and then come back and teach the rest of the group and hold a conference similar to the farming training to share their knowledge with the rest of the community. They are fully embracing this idea and making it their own. This has great potential to bring the community together and increase the quality of life here.
Currently I am in Soroti at the Elotu Josephs house with Jaynie while the rest of the team is back in Oditel. We arrived last night and had a great time visiting with Amelia and her friend from Gulu. We will head back to Oditel tomorrow morning. We probably will not have internet for a while so don't expect too many more updates from me.
Brian
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