I have been living in Uganda for almost three months now, and in this time, I feel that my heart has been broken so many times by the struggles of the people and the heartache that they have endured. But then there are the times when my heart has been put back together by seeing the joy and passion that fill the people here. I love every minute of it. Before coming to Uganda, I had some crazy idea in my head that when I got here, I would be teaching people here and be reaching out to them, but I’m going to be perfectly honest and say that many people here have spoken and taught me more deeply than I could ever dream about doing for another person. I hope that I can make even half the difference in their lives as they have made in mine.
In the next few weeks I’m going to share with you some of the opportunities I’ve had in my time here! My hope is to speak to you of how I am growing; of how the Lord is teaching me. I want you to see into my heart and see how the Lord is challenging me.
I’ve been blessed with the opportunity to be a part of several different ministries while I have been here, and there is much to tell you all about. I came to Uganda under Rafiki Africa Ministries, which is a children’s home in Kampala (the capitol of Uganda) in a small village/town called Namugongo. The children’s home cares for 12 children that have been abandoned by their families or have been orphaned due to HIV/AIDS and poverty. These children are beautiful inside and out and I have come to love each one of them more deeply than I ever thought possible. There are five precious girls and 7 feisty boys who all have very different personalities and it has been so special to me to get to know them all; their interests, their dreams, likes and dislikes, and the things that make them bust up laughing. Fauziya loves when I sing to her and she is terrible at staring contests because she can’t go five seconds without smiling and giggling. Annet loves when I speak Luganda (the local language) and she thinks it’s hysterical when I miss-pronounce the words she teaches me. Brenda thinks she’s a monkey and always jumps on me when she sees me as if I’m the mama monkey, even though she’s too big to carry around now. Esther get’s huge eyes when she gets excited and becomes speechless when you do something she likes. Carol is miss prim and proper and she loves everything to be just right; she’s the little lady in the house.
Joshua dances every night and sings his heart out, I’m always surprised that he has any air left in his lungs. Joel is quiet and reserved, but when you get to know him he lets himself go which is a beautiful sight; he loves to draw and to be held, even though he’s almost too heavy now! Oscar is a smarty-pants; ask him anything and he probably knows the answer; his nickname in the house is Professor and he giggles every time he hears it. Cocus loves hugs and he pretty much lives for any moment he can get to cuddle with someone. Jerom smiles constantly and thinks that "play dough" is really called "potatoes" (and that just cracks me up!). Don is a surfer dude and he’s a little punk (the good and funny kind of punk); whenever he comes home from school he’s the only one that doesn’t have his shirt tucked in. He’s a prankster and I think it’s adorable! Emma is tiny (I just want to clear this up- in Uganda, Emma is a common boy’s name); he has a tiny raspy voice and loves being the baby in the house, being held and being completely spoiled.
I wish you could get to know these kids. I love them dearly! A few weeks ago I was sitting on the ground while the kids were running around playing and a couple of them jumped in my lap and started laughing uncontrollably, I was suddenly overwhelmed with this feeling that I would do just about anything for these kids. The Lord as given me a special love for them and they will always have a place deep in my heart.
Another ministry that I have been able to work with is called Sanyu Babies Home. Sanyu is located in downtown Kampala. They house babies and toddlers who have been orphaned or abandoned. It’s always heartbreaking to spend time there. This is the oldest babies home in Uganda. They have grown in children faster than they have grown in resources and you can only imagine what sort of outcome that has. These babies need so much love and attention and there just aren’t enough people to give it to them appropriately. I’m still not sure how to help there more effectively, but for right now I am there once a week for a few hours doing laundry, mopping, playing with the babies, and feeding them all during lunch time.
I am also involved in another ministry called A Perfect Injustice (API) and I love every minute of it! This ministry works with street boys who live in a slum in Kampala. These boys have been in the streets for years and for many of them, that kind of life is better than the life they had at home. These boys collect scraps and sell them for an incredibly small amount of money and many of them use that money to buy drugs. API has “project days” (Monday, Wednesday, Friday) when the boys all get together and meet at a church (more of a roof with two walls made out of scrap sheet metal) in the middle of a slum. On these days they have a school lesson, game time, worship, and a Bible lesson before being served dinner. Rachel (a girl that I work with) and myself are in charge of the Monday program. Every week I plan a school lesson and then we play games and Rachel plans a Bible lesson. The rest of the time we hang out with the boys- building relationships which they so desperately need. The other day I was walking down a road in Kampala and I ran into a few of the street boys. We were excited to see each other and stopped in the middle of the busy sidewalk to talk. Street kids aren’t hard to miss. It’s sad to say, but they are usually dirty and they wear clothes that look like they’ve been around the world a few times over the past century. People usually avoid them, so you can only imagine how people were reacting when a Mzungu (the word used for a white person) stopped to have a conversation with them in the midst of afternoon traffic. In less than a few seconds a group of people surrounded us and I was a little nervous about what might happen. Nonetheless, I was determined to talk with these boys. They’re my friends, and I wasn’t going to ignore them because people were watching. I would trust these boys with my life- I love them so much! They are good kids and I’m not going to let anybody tell me otherwise. As soon as we finished our conversation I started walking away and the crowd around us began walking as well, whispering to one another, and I knew it was about me talking to the boys. But honestly, I trust those boys more than I would trust a lot of people. They’re good. I know they do things that are wrong, but don’t we all? I’m going to keep spending time with them and it doesn’t matter what anybody thinks! I’m happy to say that I am now able to spend two days a week with these boys at API instead of the one day that I have been spending with them for the past 3 months. I’m really excited to spend some extra time with them!
Our God is amazing! He is doing great things in Uganda! I am so blessed beyond belief that he is letting me be a part of it! I want to thank you all for your support. Because of you, I get to be here in God’s presence. Because of you, I see miracles. Because of you, my heart breaks every day for the needs of the people. And because of your support, I get to be apart of meeting those needs.
I would love to hear from you all. I want to hear how the Lord is speaking to you. If you have any questions, I want to hear them. If you are interested in more information about a specific program or organization I am working with, please let me know! Email me any time. I hope you are all being blessed this year!
In the next few weeks I’m going to share with you some of the opportunities I’ve had in my time here! My hope is to speak to you of how I am growing; of how the Lord is teaching me. I want you to see into my heart and see how the Lord is challenging me.
I’ve been blessed with the opportunity to be a part of several different ministries while I have been here, and there is much to tell you all about. I came to Uganda under Rafiki Africa Ministries, which is a children’s home in Kampala (the capitol of Uganda) in a small village/town called Namugongo. The children’s home cares for 12 children that have been abandoned by their families or have been orphaned due to HIV/AIDS and poverty. These children are beautiful inside and out and I have come to love each one of them more deeply than I ever thought possible. There are five precious girls and 7 feisty boys who all have very different personalities and it has been so special to me to get to know them all; their interests, their dreams, likes and dislikes, and the things that make them bust up laughing. Fauziya loves when I sing to her and she is terrible at staring contests because she can’t go five seconds without smiling and giggling. Annet loves when I speak Luganda (the local language) and she thinks it’s hysterical when I miss-pronounce the words she teaches me. Brenda thinks she’s a monkey and always jumps on me when she sees me as if I’m the mama monkey, even though she’s too big to carry around now. Esther get’s huge eyes when she gets excited and becomes speechless when you do something she likes. Carol is miss prim and proper and she loves everything to be just right; she’s the little lady in the house.
Joshua dances every night and sings his heart out, I’m always surprised that he has any air left in his lungs. Joel is quiet and reserved, but when you get to know him he lets himself go which is a beautiful sight; he loves to draw and to be held, even though he’s almost too heavy now! Oscar is a smarty-pants; ask him anything and he probably knows the answer; his nickname in the house is Professor and he giggles every time he hears it. Cocus loves hugs and he pretty much lives for any moment he can get to cuddle with someone. Jerom smiles constantly and thinks that "play dough" is really called "potatoes" (and that just cracks me up!). Don is a surfer dude and he’s a little punk (the good and funny kind of punk); whenever he comes home from school he’s the only one that doesn’t have his shirt tucked in. He’s a prankster and I think it’s adorable! Emma is tiny (I just want to clear this up- in Uganda, Emma is a common boy’s name); he has a tiny raspy voice and loves being the baby in the house, being held and being completely spoiled.
I wish you could get to know these kids. I love them dearly! A few weeks ago I was sitting on the ground while the kids were running around playing and a couple of them jumped in my lap and started laughing uncontrollably, I was suddenly overwhelmed with this feeling that I would do just about anything for these kids. The Lord as given me a special love for them and they will always have a place deep in my heart.
Another ministry that I have been able to work with is called Sanyu Babies Home. Sanyu is located in downtown Kampala. They house babies and toddlers who have been orphaned or abandoned. It’s always heartbreaking to spend time there. This is the oldest babies home in Uganda. They have grown in children faster than they have grown in resources and you can only imagine what sort of outcome that has. These babies need so much love and attention and there just aren’t enough people to give it to them appropriately. I’m still not sure how to help there more effectively, but for right now I am there once a week for a few hours doing laundry, mopping, playing with the babies, and feeding them all during lunch time.
I am also involved in another ministry called A Perfect Injustice (API) and I love every minute of it! This ministry works with street boys who live in a slum in Kampala. These boys have been in the streets for years and for many of them, that kind of life is better than the life they had at home. These boys collect scraps and sell them for an incredibly small amount of money and many of them use that money to buy drugs. API has “project days” (Monday, Wednesday, Friday) when the boys all get together and meet at a church (more of a roof with two walls made out of scrap sheet metal) in the middle of a slum. On these days they have a school lesson, game time, worship, and a Bible lesson before being served dinner. Rachel (a girl that I work with) and myself are in charge of the Monday program. Every week I plan a school lesson and then we play games and Rachel plans a Bible lesson. The rest of the time we hang out with the boys- building relationships which they so desperately need. The other day I was walking down a road in Kampala and I ran into a few of the street boys. We were excited to see each other and stopped in the middle of the busy sidewalk to talk. Street kids aren’t hard to miss. It’s sad to say, but they are usually dirty and they wear clothes that look like they’ve been around the world a few times over the past century. People usually avoid them, so you can only imagine how people were reacting when a Mzungu (the word used for a white person) stopped to have a conversation with them in the midst of afternoon traffic. In less than a few seconds a group of people surrounded us and I was a little nervous about what might happen. Nonetheless, I was determined to talk with these boys. They’re my friends, and I wasn’t going to ignore them because people were watching. I would trust these boys with my life- I love them so much! They are good kids and I’m not going to let anybody tell me otherwise. As soon as we finished our conversation I started walking away and the crowd around us began walking as well, whispering to one another, and I knew it was about me talking to the boys. But honestly, I trust those boys more than I would trust a lot of people. They’re good. I know they do things that are wrong, but don’t we all? I’m going to keep spending time with them and it doesn’t matter what anybody thinks! I’m happy to say that I am now able to spend two days a week with these boys at API instead of the one day that I have been spending with them for the past 3 months. I’m really excited to spend some extra time with them!
Our God is amazing! He is doing great things in Uganda! I am so blessed beyond belief that he is letting me be a part of it! I want to thank you all for your support. Because of you, I get to be here in God’s presence. Because of you, I see miracles. Because of you, my heart breaks every day for the needs of the people. And because of your support, I get to be apart of meeting those needs.
I would love to hear from you all. I want to hear how the Lord is speaking to you. If you have any questions, I want to hear them. If you are interested in more information about a specific program or organization I am working with, please let me know! Email me any time. I hope you are all being blessed this year!
If you would like to read more about any of these ministries on your own, check out these websites:
Rafiki Africa Ministries
A Perfect Injustice
Sanyu Babies' Home
